Tourist season is upon us. And the one sure sign is the abundance of out-of-state license plates – especially the ubiquitous Texas variety.
Traffic on the 160 and 84 corridors seems to be a Lone Star parade of giddy Texans in their classy SUVs escaping the miserable heat and humidity of their home state. Unfortunately, our guests will be disappointed to find that our temperatures are unseasonably high with ‘red flag’ fire alerts in effect, and everything is covered in allergenic pollen dust.
They will also be shocked to find that a lot of our stores and restaurants require “masks” and “distancing” due to the threat of COVID-19 – terms that must seem foreign to them.
I visited my favorite liquor store the other day where the owner has a big sign at the entrance: “Masks are required to enter the store!” A few feet in front of the door is a large table with two big bottles of spray hand sanitizers with a sign warning that one must clean their mitts before entering.
As I approached the entrance, two foul-mouthed gentlemen were expressing their displeasure at the audacity of being made to don surgical masks or bandannas and clean their hands. “This is un-American!” (This phrase was their only comment that is fit for printing.) The two jumped in their black Yukon with Texas plates and sped off in search of a more friendly booze purveyor.
A geriatric friend of mine from Oklahoma City called to alert me that her friends were coming to Pagosa and would be staying at the cabin near us. She said that the renters had to get out of the city and go to a quiet little place were they could actually eat in a restaurant, do a little shopping and enjoy the Springs – you know, get away from all the corona virus nonsense.
Pagosa Country has only 9 people who have tested positive and has had just 8 cases holding for months. But is our luck running out? With all this tourist activity rearing up, I can’t help but worry that our low number ‒ with no deaths ‒ will probably increase exponentially in the next month or so.
I’m all for tourism, but at what price?
Texas (along with 25 other impatient states) has exploded with new COVID cases not long after they decided it was high time to re-open for business. What a mistake. Where could these brilliant governors get such a crazy notion? Especially after our top scientists and epidemiologists warned us not to be imprudent. Could it be a man whose name rhymes with Ronald Frump? Well, it’s campaign season and a president has to get elected at any cost.
And what a season it is! We have lost over 120,000 Americans; there are over 40 million people out of work; angry Americans of all ethnicities are protesting in the streets every day – “Black Lives Matter!” And our current president threatened to use the United States military to squelch the “rioters.” This is a perfect storm, but Trump has had two rallies in three days – in hot spots ‒ where crazed MAGA fans packed themselves shoulder to shoulder inside arenas, ignoring distancing and the use of masks.
The countdown is on. And we still do not have a vaccine…
Houston is becoming the most infected city in America, and Dallas/Ft. Worth, Austin and San Antonio et al are also spiking at alarming rates. After disregarding the CDC recommendations to fight the corona virus, a number of irresponsible Texans who actually helped cause these huge spikes are now headed for the mountains to escape the insanity. (Yikes!)
When Italy was stricken with the virus it mainly affected the northern states. The southern states shut down their borders. “No northerners allowed!” And now the EU is considering a travel ban preventing Americans from visiting the whole of Europe. And this just in: New York, New Jersey and Connecticut are to quarantine visitors from spiking states – like Texas – that has alarming numbers that haven’t been seen since April.
It’s back! (It never went anywhere.)
I know we can’t set up road blocks along the perimeter of our county. We can’t prohibit Texans from entering our safe zone. We can’t quarantine flatlanders and city folks. We probably couldn’t even stop a micro Trump Rally at Ross Aragon Community Center. Of course not. It would be un-American.
Fasten your seat belts Pagosa, it might be a bumpy ride…
DC has been a frustrated musician for over fifty years, and now has decided to become a frustrated writer. Learn more at DCDuncan.com. He’ll keep you posted.