Please, stop showing the needles!

Professor Gottfried Kremsner injects a vaccination against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) from German biotechnology company CureVac to a volunteer at the start of a clinical test series at his tropical institute of the university clinic in Tuebingen, Germany, June 22, 2020. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo

I don’t know if it bothers you, but I’ve about had my fill of seeing news reports showing needles poking into people’s arms and giant q-tips being shoved up their noses. Yes, I am happy that a COVID-19 vaccine is being distributed, but do we really need to see people getting shots multiple times during every evening newscast?

Maybe it’s my empathic nature, but it hurts me to see people getting vaccinated. I am not afraid of needles. I would just rather not see them. Even when I get vaccinated, I look the other way. I know it’s going to hurt. I know it will be over quickly. But I’d just rather not see the giant pointy thing approaching my arm.

I saw enough news footage of people getting nasal swabs for COVID testing that I realized I would not enjoy that, either. I am lucky that my community has a large-scale spit testing facility available – one of the first in Minnesota.

I had some symptoms a few months ago, so I took the spit test. Thankfully, it was negative. I plan to get another one even though I don’t have symptoms because we are going to try and have a small family gathering over Christmas. I would much rather spit into a tube than have my brain scraped by a giant q-tip.

Maybe I should just stop watching the evening news. But I would much rather vainly complain about needle footage in hopes some ABC News executive will read my blog and find some other visual to use instead. What would that footage be? I don’t know. Just show the vaccine vials or a smiling person with a temporary bandage on the vaccinated arm. Anything but the NEEDLES!