Kirk's COVID story

THIS IS KIRK Gribler. He lives in Quincy and is a chiropractor. He plays drums in our band, The Cheeseburgers. Kirk is a good guy who is never at a loss for words when we are hanging out and driving to and from shows

Kirk got COVID-19 almost two weeks ago. Here is his story. Watch the video and decide for yourself what impact this awful virus has on us  - all of us.

He got it at work. Let's just be generic about the details, but Kirk had no idea he was encountering somebody with the COVID-19 virus. The next day he got a phone call from the Adams County Health Department saying he'd been exposed. Kirk immediately went to get tested, but they sent him right home and told him to come back if he started showing symptoms. He immediately canceled all further appointments at his office and waited it out.

Sure enough, a few days later, Kirk started feeling fatigued, and he lost his sense of taste and smell. He got tested. And it came back positive. It isn't life-threatening for him, but he likens it to having a bad case of the flu, only the symptoms are lasting a lot longer. It probably feels like the morning after a really good Cheeseburger show. Watch the video and you can see it for yourself.

He is going to miss about two weeks of work. He's self-employed. He downplays it. But losing your income is very difficult no matter who you are.

His awesome wife, Susan, is quarantined for 14 days. She is able to work from home, thank God.

Health is the most important thing. He's feeling better and hopes to be back at work soon, but only when he's completely symptom-free. There are many other things about getting the virus that pale in comparison. Kirk and Susan are social creatures and often have people over to the house to enjoy the pool and hang out. I think they had a vacation planned but that got canned, too.

The Cheeseburgers haven't played since March, but we do have some outdoor shows coming up. Maybe. The running joke was that you can mess with somebody's life and livelihood, but screw up band practice? F-2020, indeed.

Kirk was inspired by Kathleen Birsic's post last week about getting COVID-19. He wants people to know it's real and not a joke or something to dismiss. Stay socially-distant, wear a mask if you go out and go inside a store or public gathering place, and be kind to your fellow human beings.

Hopefully, he's back at work and behind the Cheeseburger drum kit soon, and kudos to him for sharing his message.