@plaguepoems@mastodon.social

Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Aug 04, 2026

Due to the wildfires currently burning in the Pacific Northwest it is being projected that smoke will once again blanket many regions, which is a reminder yet another important reminder that as long as you’re breathing there’s still time for you to start masking again.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Aug 03, 2026

Are we ready for the public health challenges of the future? No, we are not ready for the public health challenges of the future. But as you worry for the public health challenges of the future, remember: we are not ready for the public health challenges of today either.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Aug 03, 2026

By now you have probably seen the clip of the appointed official stating that constitutional rights are more important than public health, but by now you probably also know that this administration does not care about protecting either of those things.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Aug 03, 2026

now you have probably seen the clip of the appointed official stating that constitutional rights are more important than public health, but by now you probably also know that this administration does not care about protecting either of those things.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Aug 03, 2026

Upon returning from attending  his 20 year college reunion over the weekend,  my cousin asked me:  “do you ever miss  the person you were back in college?” and I told him “no,”  but if I’m being honest  I do frequently miss  the person I was  before the pandemic.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 31, 2026

My friend
the climatologist
worries
that the heat
is rising.

My friend
the epidemiologist
worries
that cases
are rising.

My friend
the historian
worries
that fascism
is rising.

My friend
the activist
worries
that we
are not rising.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 31, 2026

At this point in 2026 Bordeaux, France has experienced more days above 40°C (104°F) than it had in the years from 1920 to 2025, and while it would be wrong to say that this is the end of the world, it certainly suggests that the world as we knew it has already ended.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 31, 2026

The smoke pains you; the lettuce isn’t safe; this heat harms, too; a mask will chafe; your friend has a bug; “no fucks to give;” reign of a thug; keep trying to live. * A compendium of the 333rd week of plague poems… https://librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/2026/07/31/plague-poems-the-three-hundred-and-thirty-third-week/

LibrarianShipwreck

Plague Poems – The Three-Hundred-and-Thirty-Third Week

I am self-aware enough to know that I have a tendency to see dark omens wherever I look. Yes, I am self-aware enough to know that about myself. But this morning upon smelling the smoke, and seeing …

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 31, 2026

I asked my aunt, the doctor, if she is concerned that this week’s hearing will have a chilling effect on public health in this country, and my aunt, the doctor, replied: “wait, we still have public health in this country?” And then neither of us laughed.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 31, 2026

With a defeated sigh he looked up from reading the news on his phone and grumbled: “I really thought this would be over by now,” and though I was unsure if his “this” referred to the war or Covid or cyclospora or or or or or or or or or or, I replied with a simple: yeah.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 30, 2026

How lucky we would be if we could blame all the suffering and death from this pandemic on just one person. As then we would not need to consider how our leaders and institutions and employers and systems (and even friends) abandoned us. Yes, how lucky we would be.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 30, 2026

Based on current data the CDC has received reports of over 19,200 cyclospora cases (with most not yet confirmed), which is just further proof that slashing funding at the CDC and FDA, while making monitoring of cyclospora optional, was an explosively shitty idea.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 30, 2026

When you hear it said: “Look, I don't want to play down the effects of the virus, but at the end of the day it had a roughly 1 percent mortality rate. We coulda gotten through this.” it is vital to remember the millions of people who did not get through this.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 30, 2026

I keep hearing it said
that it is important to understand
that many people
still have not gotten over
Covid-era lockdowns,
but whenever I say
that it is important to understand
that Covid is still here
many people tell me
to just get over it already.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 29, 2026

My aunt, the doctor, told me a new joke. She asked: Why are these Senators so focused on public health’s past? I said I did not know. So she answered: Because these Senators don’t want to talk about public health’s present or future. And then neither of us laughed.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 29, 2026

Due to today’s hearing
many people
seem quite interested
in Covid again,
but don’t try to tell them
cases are rising again
for that’s something
they’ve no interest in hearing.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 29, 2026

I have heard
that the tale of the hiker
who hiked 10 miles
down a mountain
after impaling himself
is a case study in
bravery and endurance,
and I have heard
that the tale of this hiker
needing to setup
a GoFundMe
is a case study in
how nobody can afford
medical care

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 29, 2026

My brother-in-law
called me to insist
that this hearing proves
the pandemic
was a huge conspiracy,
and so I replied
by reminding him
that he always insists
“Covid is just a cold,”
and I could tell
he didn’t like this reply.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 28, 2026

A friend asked if the lettuce is okay. A friend asked if the parsley is okay. A friend asked if the eggs are okay. A friend asked if the cilantro is okay. My friends none of this is okay.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 28, 2026

Please note:
when remembering
Covid
it is essential
to remember that
Covid
is still with us.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 28, 2026

According to new polling some 40% of Americans have changed their eating/buying habits because of the cyclospora outbreak, and while I understand that the level of risk varies across regions, I still cannot quite decide if 40% is depressingly low, or impressively high.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 28, 2026

Look, I understand
that between
the wildfires and cyclospora and
the heat and rising costs and
the war and the Ebola outbreak and
the spread of AI and rising fascism
and and and
that you have more than enough
to worry about,
but please know
Covid cases are rising too.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 27, 2026

As I walked in the bookshop I said out loud: “oh, cool,” upon seeing their impressive Corsi-Rosenthal box, and the man at the counter after hearing me asked “what was that?” but by that point I had noticed that it was not actually plugged in so I just said: “oh, nothing.”

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 27, 2026

On the topic of the cyclospora outbreak a former FDA official stated: “it is starting to approach a catastrophic level in terms of how mismanaged it’s been,” but considering this administration’s catastrophic mismanagement of the COVID pandemic this is hardly a surprise

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 27, 2026

According to the data from flight trackers July 23rd was the busiest day for commercial air travel ever recorded, and in other news, as this summer of extreme heat continues multiple countries are being consumed by wildfires, but that is probably just a coincidence.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 24, 2026

When they complain to you about how the smoke from over there has wound up here, and how the cyclospora from over there has wound up here, calmly but firmly reply: that disasters and outbreaks understand that we’re in this together, even if too many of us don’t.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 24, 2026

She sighed: “it’s getting worse,” and I could not tell if she was describing the cyclospora outbreak or the Ebola outbreak, the dangerous heat or the war, the uptick in Covid cases or the cost of living, and so I simply replied: yeah. * The 332nd week… https://librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/2026/07/24/plague-poems-the-three-hundred-and-thirty-second-week/

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 23, 2026

I asked my uncle (the vegetarian) what he is doing to avoid cyclospora and he replied by sending me picture after picture of his garden.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 23, 2026

The historian told me that she spent last night chasing a beetle around her home, yelling “I’m trying to help you!” while trying to put it outside before her cats could get it, and the longer she talked the more I thought that she wasn’t really talking about a beetle.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 22, 2026

Evidently,  I seemed like I would know  for the stranger  in the produce section asked if I knew which brand  of lettuce to avoid buying,  and as I pointed it out I politely suggested  that maybe now is a time  to eat roasted vegetables instead.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 22, 2026

As you read through the lists of which brands and produce types are being recalled over cycyclospora, it is very important for you to recall how alongside budget cuts the FDA and CDC made surveillance of cyclospora optional.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 22, 2026

The professor told me that in her summer class after several readings on the topic, today she asked her students to define utopia, and one replied: that in a utopia no one has to check the air quality before going outside.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 21, 2026

After the film the young man told me: we need to take care of strangers because they might be gods in disguise; and though I wanted to reply: we need to take care of strangers because they are people too; I was just glad he was talking about taking care of strangers

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 21, 2026

As we walked towards the grocery store the gray-haired man asked me why I was wearing a mask, so I pointed at the sky and said: “I don’t want to breathe in this smoke,” and then after looking at the sky the gray-haired man asked if I had an extra mask.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 20, 2026

The smoke pains you; lettuce isn’t safe; this heat harms, too; a mask will chafe; your friend has a bug; “no fucks to give;” reign of a thug; keep trying to live.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 20, 2026

If at this point you are tired (so very tired) of having to explain why you are masked just tell them you’re wearing it because of the smoke, though I truly hope that where you live is not one of the places where this can be reasonably used as an explanation.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 17, 2026

My friend is in a part of the country where the lettuce is contaminated. My friend is in a part of the country where the air is unsafe. My friend is in a part of the country where masked men abduct and kill. My friends this is a country that is falling apart.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 17, 2026

I have heard this outbreak is being caused by Taylor Farms lettuce used at Taco Bell, but considering their lettuce is at Costco and Kroger and Walmart and Target and Safeway and Albertsons and Whole Foods (and other fast food chains) for now let us just avoid lettuce.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 17, 2026

Note: cyclops is a one-eyed giant coming from Greek mythology that will likely appear in a major movie this summer, cyclospora is a food borne illness which causes explosive diarrhea that is currently appearing in many places this summer * Week 331: https://librarianshipwreck.wordpress.com/2026/07/17/plague-poems-the-three-hundred-and-thirty-first-week/

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 16, 2026

It is now official: this is the largest cyclospora outbreak in US history, so if you are keeping track (and you should be keeping track) of the historical events you have had the misfortune of experiencing please remember to add this to your list.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 16, 2026

According to the CDC if you do not want to contract cyclospora you should “avoid consuming food or water that may be contaminated with feces,” which is just further proof that slashing the budgets of the agencies that monitor contamination was a shitty thing to do.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 15, 2026

My aunt, the doctor, told me a new joke. She asked: What is this cyclospora outbreak teaching us about public health messaging? I said I did not know. So she answered: That people are happy to have an excuse to not eat vegetables. And then neither of us laughed.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 15, 2026

Should someone respond (and someone will) to your attempt to share information on staying safe from: cyclospora or Covid or extreme heat or anything else, by telling you to “mind your own business,” politely but firmly reply: public health is everyone’s business.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 14, 2026

As I walked through the produce section I looked at the lettuce, and thought: you cannot afford to contract cyclospora. And as I walked through the produce section I looked at the prices and thought: you cannot afford to buy produce anyway.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 14, 2026

Listen: in the past you have probably heard that you should “eat your fruits and vegetables.” But listen: in the present (during this cyclospora outbreak) before you “eat your fruits and vegetables” make sure they’re cooked.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 13, 2026

It is quite understandable, my friend, if at this point you are feeling burnt out from trying to stay safe in the face of all these public health crises, but please, my friend, do keep taking care for these crises have not yet finished burning through us.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 10, 2026

Should you find yourself at the grocery store this weekend protect yourself from cyclospora culprits: raspberries and basil, salad mixes and cilantro, snow peas and berry mixes; and while you’re there wear a mask for cyclospora isn’t the only thing that’s making people ill.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 09, 2026

When he grumbled  about how much he hates  being in the middle ages,  I told him I agreed  that it is terrible  being in this age  of plagues and feudal lords, but then he explained he had actually said “being middle aged,” and so I told him  that my knees hurt too.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 09, 2026

I keep seeing headlines about how several members of the Norwegian soccer team have come down with a “flu like virus,” and I can’t help but wonder if no one knows what this “flu like virus” is, or if it’s just that no one wants to admit people are still catching Covid.

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Plague Poems @plaguepoems@mastodon.social · Jul 09, 2026

When suggested as a response to airborne illnesses the recommendation to “wash your hands” is often seen as insufficient, but cyclospora is not an airborne illness, so in this case please: wash your hands, and wash your produce, and then wash your hands again.

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Plague Poems – The Three-Hundred-and-Thirty-Third Week

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