Does your vaccine even work if you don't post it on social media?
Just checked Instagram. It's true. Your vaccine only works if you post it somewhere online.
WebMD confirmed. It also clarified that the flu shot does NOT require social media documentation to work and also, that the flu shot is soooo 2019.
So here you go, Internet. I'm 50% vaccinated and my shot is now 43% more effective:
Getting Vaccinated While Homeless
I've learned that getting a vaccine is very difficult when you're homeless.
Finding Pfizer in Small Towns
Virginia notified me that I was eligible for my vaccine in early April, when I had my base camp in Page, AZ, which has a population of just 7,500 people, very few locations to get a vaccine, and access to Johnson & Johnson only.
Call me picky, but I wanted Pfizer only. Why?
Pfizer has been doing this for years and its shot has the highest efficacy rates.
Moderna is a close second, but this is their first vaccine rodeo, which raises doubts in my mind.
Johnson & Johnson ... yes, the one-and-done shot seems practical and much easier on the road, but the efficacy rates are much lower than Pfizer and Moderna and, like Moderna, J&J isn't exactly known for its vaccine record.
Turns out, rejecting J&J wasn't such a terrible idea as it was put on hold just a couple weeks later.
The Booking System
The next week, I was in St. George, UT, with a metropolitan population of 172,000 people, dozens of locations offering the vaccine, AND access to Pfizer.
I found a location, but it wouldn't let me book because I am not a Utah resident.
So I tried Walgreens because it would be easier to find a Walgreens for my second shot, but they had no appointments available.
I found the Pfizer vaccine at Albertsons, the second largest grocery chain in America (behind Kroger), founded in Idaho, locations everywhere. Booked my appointment. Done.
Wrong.
Timing the First Shot so I can get the Second Shot
I realized that in three weeks, I will be in Monticello, UT, which has just 2,600 people and only two locations within a 50-mile radius that even offer a vaccine, and those two locations offer Moderna and J&J only. No Pfizer. So I canceled my appointment.
I needed to wait a week to get my first shot in order to time my second shot three weeks later when I would instead be in Salt Lake City. Went to re-book the first shot, but the system allows you to book just five days out. Cue waiting.
A few days later, I booked the appointment for my first shot at Albertsons. Showed up on Tue, 27 April and boom! 50% vaccinated.
Booking the Second Shot
Getting my first shot was super easy. Showed up to Albertsons. Filled out paperwork. Got poked. Waited 15 minutes. No blood clots. Done.
Went to book my second shot. There are NO Albertsons in Salt Lake City. Can't make this up. It's the second largest grocery store chain in the country, founded just across the border in Idaho, has stores in every little town I've been in, and NO stores in Salt Lake City.
Back to square one! And I have to once again wait until I'm five days out to book online. Fingers crossed I'm able to find a Pfizer shot on May 18.
If not, I'll just have to rely on the efficacy boosting power of posting my vaccine photo on social media. :)