I just returned from getting my first dose! I had registered with my state back in January. We were told of different mega-vaccination sites and were told we could schedule individually with them. One of them is through the health care system of my pcp, so I did register and the earliest appt I was offered was in July. I did take the appt. I kept checking for availability at another megasite within 15 minutes of me, but no appt have been made available, I would assume, based on my availability. A few people close to me have been offered appts, so I was hopeful I may not have to wait until July.
I am on my laptop around 6:30 pm yesterday and I see an email notification at the bottom of the screen, "Now is the time to make an appointment" !!! A couple clicks later and I had an appt for 9 am today!!!
It was literally a herd of people, lol. But I will say this, it was the most organized cattle call I have ever experienced. It was at a local community college one county over (I had taught there as an adjunct) and it was a lot of walking, with multiple check points to confirm indeed I was who I said I was and that I absolutely had an appt. I was done in under an hour. I did overhear another woman, who I guess was having her 2nd dose, said she waited for hours before.
After my injection, of course, I had to wait. When my time was called to leave, I thanked the man who was calling the release time (either local police or the campus security) as I was getting snap of the QR to leave feedback (when the state of NJ actually does something right, I feel obligated to point it out) and said I was rather amazed. He responded, "We've worked out some kinks" and laughed. The policeman at the entry point said they were giving out 4,000 doses that morning.
After my injection, I asked the nurse and her assistant, "Would anyone be surprised if I stood up and did a little happy dance?" They both chuckled and said, they get a lot people who start crying tears of relief!
Sorry for a bit of a ramble. We all know what a long year it's been. It is a bit surreal. In 24 hours I have gone from wondering if I can possibly get the vax before the July appt to actually getting it with a follow up in 3 weeks (Pfizer)!
Best wishes to all you still patiently waiting, a big ((hug)). My biggest concern in all of this has been what if I need to travel to FL on an emergency basis for my mother? Now I feel a bit more comfortable with taking a flight, if I had to.