• Rookie gets thrown into news cycle

Rookie gets thrown into news cycle

Wide-eyed and excited to begin my career as a sports journalist, I never in my wildest dreams thought it would be happening in the middle of a pandemic.

During my first week in Rockdale, I began to feel a little under the weather. I woke up one morning with body aches and flu-like symptoms. Everyone around me was joking and saying I had the coronavirus. I would try to smile and laugh along, but I was nervous.

With all the craziness I read in the daily news that stated how the infection spread and how people become infected, it was hard not to think of the worst-case scenario. I decided to take a trip to the Rockdale clinic. I was diagnosed with inflammation buildup in my body and no coronavirus. I was happy and relieved.

After completing my two-week trial period at the paper last week, I traveled back to my hometown of Atlanta, GA.

Because I was under the weather, I took precautions in order to prevent infection. I packed masks and antibacterial hand wipes. On the day of the flight, I woke up at 5 a.m. and made the hour drive to Austin-Bergstrom Airport.

As I approached the airline desk, I saw that my flight was at 9 p.m. not a.m. I had already turned in my rental car, so I was forced to wait at the airport all day.

The vibe in the airport was more relaxed than I expected. Not many people were wearing masks or gloves, and no one appeared to even blink when someone in close proximity to them coughed. I felt weird being one of the only people wearing a medical mask, but I figured I was better safe than sorry.

As I sat in the lobby waiting, a man came and sat next to me. Like me, he was wearing a medical mask and also gloves. He had about four bottles of hand sanitizer with him.

Aaron McMay said he was headed to Cincinnati, OH.

“This is some scary stuff,” McMay said. “I have a relative that caught it out in California, so I’m doing everything in my power to not contract it.”

He showed me a picture of his family and said he had to protect himself in order to be there for his two daughters.

When it was time to board my flight, I walked onto the airplane and sensed a different vibe. No longer was there an easy-going feeling but a more cautious one.

The woman I sat next to wore gloves and took out some cleaning pads and wiped down everything around her before she sat down. She offered some of the pads to me and to others on the flight.

As we landed at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, there was an eerie feeling when we entered. The airport was empty, and the few people there were wearing medical masks unlike what I had observed in Austin.

Since Hartsfield is so large, it has a shuttle train to take passengers to each terminal. On the train, I noticed that people were scared to touch the rails with their hands. Instead, they wrapped their arms around the rail to avoid any germs that were present.

I made my exit from the airport around 12:30 a.m. When I walked outside, it looked like something out of a scary movie. As I was walking towards the Uber area, I saw homeless people wearing medical masks.

I made it home safely and have now fully recuperated. I am thankful that the circumstances weren’t worse.

With this COVID-19 virus among us, I urge everyone to please be safe. Please wash your hands and practice social distancing.

If you are sick, please stay home and be mindful of others. I know the world will get through this, so I urge everyone to have faith and to exercise precaution in all of your surroundings.

Rockdale Reporter

221 E. Cameron Ave
Rockdale, TX 76567
512-446-5838