Yep, in contradiction to Steve’s post “Target, Macy’s, CVS, Home Depot, Starbucks, and Best Buy *Drop Mask Mandates” from a couple of days ago, I can tell you that the Best Buy in Concord, NH still has it’s Mask On operation in almost full-blown mode.
I attended Ken Eyring’s day-long launch event of the Government Integrity Project yesterday and per usual, one of the first in and one of the last ones to leave. I’ll be honest, I hate summer. One of the favorite phrases people will hear from me is “I wait all summer for February” and I do mean it.
I said it a number of times yesterday as what has happened the last few years here in NH, we just about jump from the 40s/50s to 70s/80s/90s. I hate the lack of hot/humid time to acclimate to an “instant” summer as I never do well.
When I left Windham, it was 91 degrees. Even having brought lots of water and Gatorade bottles to drink, I was gassed by the end. Normally, I can do my breakdowns by myself – yesterday, I needed help (thank you, Tom Murray and the two nameless folks that came to my much-needed aid) because I just couldn’t do it (or it would have taken me an hour longer (or more).
Even with the A/C in the truck going full blast, Steve asked me if I was alright as I had to drop something off at his house before stopping at Best Buy. That was bad to see it that apparent; even having drunk all those fluids at the event, a couple more from Windham to Merrimack, I was not a tip-top happy camper.
Was a bit better by the time I hit Concord and went into Best Buy; better does not mean good. Better meant a tad above functional – and I was in no mood to put up with any nonsense from anyone of the age that could have made them a grand-offspring. But they tried – they really did!
Walked in and the “security” guy immediately ask me (politely, I may add) to put on a mask. I immediately said, “no! I am vaccinated”. He rejoined with “Well, it is store policy and I have one if you need one.”
In the vein that he has to do this, I repeated my answer “no, thank you”. He said as I thought, that he has to ask this. I then asked “where do you keep your optical cables (TMEW has asked that I resurrect my old stereo system and needed one). He ALSO said:
It’s also only for nine more days – Concord still has a Mask ordinance.
Nope, not happening. If the J&J vaccine is what they keep telling us, that’s all that’s needed. And no, if you ask me to show proof, I’ll give them the name of a good HIPPA lawyer as it is illegal for them to ask.
The B.B. guy that was listening to this exchange said “I’ll take you there”. Cool.
The snowflake micro event.
Grabbed the one I wanted and strode quickly to the cash register area; NO one was there (customers or cashiers). As I was walking through the “COVID corridor” (“for social distancing!”) two young cashiers came out – one masked and the other not. And that’s when I knew Steve’s declaration that Best Buy was a bit off.
IMMEDIATELY, the younger unmasked twit raise her voice and demanded:
PUT ON YOUR MASK!
Immediately I thought that I’ve been buying stuff there longer than she’s been alive. I ALMOST said, too, “I’ve got underwear older than you – do NOT get to ham-handedly treat me as a customer in that manner, you self-assured, self-righteous, Mask Karen and show no respect for your elder?”. No, you little twit, welcome to a LOUD example of Irish Democracy:
NO! I am NOT putting on a mask. I am going to pay for my product and THEN I will leave.
She looked at me, horror-stricken, and beat feet back into the bowels of the door she came out from. Was it something my face was telling her? Did I come off as Ken Eyring did yesterday, from that cool, calm collected, and served man I’ve known for over a decade to a new Version 2.0 whose vocal intonations I hardly recognized as in “who stole Ken away and replaced him with a Mr. Hyde?”.
Even her co-worker wanted to get the transaction over as quickly as possible….from behind a 3-foot high Plexiglass plate.
As I walked out the door, I let a woman about my age go first. I guess she had watched / HEARD the whole thing. As soon as she got out the door, she whipped off her mask and say “THANK YOU for doing that!” and told me some of what she’s had to put up with living in MA with RINO MA Gov Charlie “I’m a Democrat in real life” Baker. She said she was vaccinated as well and declared “As of now, I’m not wearing a mask anymore either“.
Gosh, I immediately felt better the rest of the way home. A man does not live by Gatorade alone – doing something good helps.
But I did drink a couple more on the ride home…
I feel MUCH better!
