I am now safe from COVID-19. Okay, that’s a bit of an overstatement, but after receiving my second vaccine on March 9, I’m as secure from that disease as I can reasonably be.

The process of getting the second shot started with me taking my COVID vaccine card off the bulletin board and putting it in my shirt pocket. It would have been more convenient to put the card in my wallet, but it was too big for that. Once my car was out of the driveway, I essentially followed the same steps as I did when getting the first vaccine. I drove to the Schott where attendants guided me into a parking lot close to the northeast end of the building, where the shots were being given.  Again, I put on two masks — a disposable with a permanent one underneath — and entered. After reporting my name at the counter, I waited in line until a spot at one of the tables became available. The line was a little longer this time — maybe five or six people were ahead of me — but within 10 minutes I was escorted to a seat. Again, there was some paperwork to read and sign. Once that was done, a young doctor pushing a laptop came by and gave me my shot. Then he took my vaccine card and wrote the date on it along with the lot number of the vaccine I just received. Before he left to deal with other patients, I asked him two questions:

Q: How long will the protection afforded by the two vaccines last?

A: It’s not known for certain. That’s because the COVID vaccine is so new. There hasn’t been time to conduct any long-term studies on the duration of the vaccine’s affect. It could last for years or maybe it will require an annual booster, the same way a flu vaccine does.

Q: Will it be safe for me to have face-to-face contact with my daughter and her family while they quarantine following their arrival from Indonesia?

A: Not really. Even after receiving both shots, I could be an asymptomatic carrier of the disease. It’s also possible that I might contract COVID-19 but, thanks to the vaccines, have milder symptoms.

As before, a little digital stopwatch made sure I waited the obligatory 15 minutes before leaving. While I waited, I asked a nurse if it might be a good idea to laminate or otherwise protect the vaccine card since someday it might be something I’d need to display in order to board a plane or attend a special event. She agreed that was a good idea. On my way out, I did stop by the Brutus Buckeye model and had a nice security guard snap our picture.

I had read that some people became ill after receiving the second vaccine; that was not the case with me, although my arm may have been a little sorer than it was with the first shot. That was a small price to pay for the sense of security that came with knowing I had done everything humanly possible to thwart COVID and (I hope) start it on the road to oblivion.