Everyone is tired of the pandemic. I know I am. I’m tired of being tired. Instead of mere pandemic fatigue, I have fatigue fatigue.

One of the most worrisome, even irksome, recent developments have been premature declarations of victory. Everyone wants it to end but hoping that it’s over, is a poor substitute for proof that the pandemic is on its way out. That’s the phase we’re in right now. It’s mentally and emotionally more dangerous than the reaction to past waves.

The amateur epidemiologists tell us that Omicron is not that bad: it’s not as long-lasting and kills fewer people. To say that’s a low bar is like saying I’m a cat person or Saints fan. Most early reports are anecdotal and/or journalistic. The data is sparse but encouraging except for one problem: it’s the most contagious wave thus far.

Speaking of the New Orleans Saints, the easiest way to be infected with Omicron is to hang out with my local NFL team. They’re so decimated that they were obliged to sign Jason of The Good Place’s favorite player:

Blake Bortles is the journeyman’s journeyman as well as a running joke on The Good Place. And Jason is a lovable dolt. So it goes.

How decimated are the Saints? So decimated that Sean Payton  tried to lure Drew Brees out of retirement to backup green rookie Ian Book. How green is Ian Book? He played QB for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. That’s green, y’all.

Showing more sense than he did during his playing days, Drew Brees wisely declined. Besides, being around the Saints is a surefire way to catch Omicron. That would get in the way of Drew’s lucrative teevee gig.

I wish that New Orleans Mayor Teedy had the sense of Drew Brees. I think that having Carnival parades is a bad idea based on what we know now. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: a yellow light is in order, not boosterism.

I’m the guy who usually catches everything, but I’ve stayed COVID-free during the pandemic. I’m unwilling to risk my undefeated record just because Mayor Teedy wants to spike the ball. They can have parades but I’m unlikely to attend or entertain company.

As you can see, my fatigue fatigue is aimed at wishful thinking. It makes me want to make like Paul Douglas in the Panic In The Streets featured image.

Worst-case scenario thinking is in order when it comes to the pandemic. I want it to be over but in the immortal words of Lawrence Peter Berra:

You know times are tough when I quote a New York Yankee legend or praise Drew Brees’ acuity. Oh well, what the hell.

One thing my fatigue fatigue does not extend to is the annual Jon Swift Roundup of satirical blog posts. My Owning The Commies With John Neely Kennedy post joined this year’s festivities. Props to Batocchio of Vagabond Scholar for keeping this tradition alive. While we’re plugging away, a reminder that The Best Of Adrastos 2021 is online.

I also never tire of Dave Barry’s annual year in review piece in the WaPo. I stole “I am not making this up” from Dave. I only steal from the best.

Finally, I write my posts on WordPress then feed them into MS Word for a spell/grammar check. It nearly had a stroke over this post title: DELETE REPEATED WORD.

Since I had a green reverie earlier and the word fatigue is rarely used in song lyrics, the last word goes to Al Green: