As the semester progresses from the university enforced two-week quarantine, the number of positive cases has been very low. However, with the holiday season coming and the winter months following along, there are a lot of opportunities for cases to rise.
All it took for the university to shut down was 50 positive cases and 500 students in quarantine, after a short period of time. The same could happen all over again. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has even warned about a second wave in the winter months.
With Halloween falling on a Saturday, it almost seems like the perfect excuse to go out and enjoy a jam-packed party with no worries of assignments due at midnight or lectures the next morning. That is not the case this year.
Until there is a vaccine for COVID-19, it’s irresponsible to put aside the pandemic for the sake of partying, even for what seems like “one night only.”
On top of this, flu season is near, and medical experts are heavily advocating receiving the flu shot if possible.
According to Stanford Medicine, there isn’t enough research on how having both the flu and COVID-19 could affect the body. Hospitals could quickly get overwhelmed by patients with both illnesses.
If you can get the flu shot, you should. It’s better to be safe than sorry. Bradley Health Services is giving out flu shots at Markin. Students can reserve a time and only have to pay $1 with Quick Cash, cash or check.
With two diseases to worry about, adjusting from now on is going to be critical. Rather than going out into a COVID-19 hotspot for Halloween night, it could be better to keep the celebration to a small group of friends for the holiday. That doesn’t mean that you can’t participate in any festivities.
If dressing up is the only thing you look forward to, getting into a costume can turn into a photoshoot with close friends. If you’re looking for thrill, choose a horror game, movie or story night as a replacement. For more fun, a karaoke night with friends can be suitable.
While this isn’t the holiday season we hoped for, it doesn’t mean we have to cancel it all together. We will have to apply to the same creativity and logic when the holiday season rolls around in November and December.
Adapting our traditions is the right direction for the sake of fighting off COVID-19.
