I don’t want to make this article too bleak sounding so I will try to keep it as light and breezy as possible.
It’s amazing how indecisive I have been this year. For many months I said I wasn’t planning on going to any events this year but since getting my first vaccination, my mind quickly turned to what events I could attend with this new lease of life I was given. I was surprised how quick and I mean with a few hours of receiving my first vaccine that I was planning the rest of the year out.
Before my vaccination, I had planned a few location shoots with people both outdoors and indoors but remained cautious with wearing a mask, keeping as socially distant as possible, taking lateral flow tests to make sure I was not knowingly passing on this very easily transmitted virus to other people.
I’ve since had my second vaccination and have started attending events. I was in September invited to the Meanwhile event in Coventry where I was both a guest on a cosplay panel and cosplay judge. The event itself was outdoors mostly which helped with my anxiety about this virus. I’ve been to other location shoots throughout the summer which has been fun but again I still stick to my regime of taking a lateral flow test, wearing a mask and staying as socially distant as possible. I’m trying to get my brain used to being around crowded people, travelling on public transport and people who choose to not wear a mask near me.
My fears about large events such as MCM London is that as much as they’ve set out rules that only allow vaccinated people, those who produce a negative lateral flow test or have natural immunity, I can’t see how they can realistically check each person if they passed one of their criteria. I don’t like that masks are only encouraged but I do understand that not everyone can wear a mask for both personal and medical reasons.
I personally wished that mask-wearing is mandatory especially as it’s a large event and that we all know how crowded the indoor part of comic con can be.
Because of my current life situation and job, I’m very aware of what risks I put myself in both voluntarily and forced to such as I can only travel to work via public transport so on a daily basis I encounter more and more people who choose not to wear a mask to help prevent the spread of this highly infectious virus. This risk of going to both MCM London and Birmingham events is a major huge risk for me, I’m even prepared that one of these events will be the time I catch covid-19 but I’ll also prepare to keep myself safe but wearing a mask throughout my time at the event.
I hope people will understand if I seem very cautious around people if I deem that you may be a risk to my own personal safety and health or people reading this change their minds to start wearing masks more often as currently the daily cases of those catching covid-19 aren’t climbing down with over 30,000 new cases each day. I am lucky that I am not classed as vulnerable but I know enough people who aren’t as fortunate cause they aren’t allowed to take the vaccine or other personal reasons.
Despite what I have just said, I am looking forward to MCM London and Birmingham. I am looking to be going to other events that remains of the year and that I come out of each of these events with a clean bill of health.
