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The e-mail came in at about 5 on Friday evening: "Covid-19 Community Vaccination Program—Appointments Available Today—Act Fast."

When you see a broom like that, of course you hop right on.

I'm still not sure which of the lists that I signed up for actually managed to get me in. When it comes to things like signing up for vaccination, I operate strictly on the polytheist principle: More is Better. When you see a list, sign up. The more people that you ask for help, the more likely you are to get the help that you ask for.

Though the Minneapolis Convention Center has only been a mass-vaccination site for a week now, I was impressed with how well-thought-through everything was, and how smoothly the whole operation ran. If it hadn't been for the requisite waiting period afterward to guard against allergic reactions to the vaccine, I could have been in and out in under 30 minutes.

Boy, was it ever weird to be under one roof along with a hundred other people. The past year has left its mark on us all.

Needless to say, way too many people were still being way too careless about distancing. One good reason to continue avoiding crowds for the time being is that, in any given crowd, there will always be at least a few careless people.

What I really wanted to say to the guy behind me in line: Dude, I really hope that you're wearing a condom, because otherwise I don't want you that close to my ass.

What I actually said: Mate, there's two of us in line here. Could you maybe back off some?

He gave me a look, but he did it.

Jab 2 on Friday, March 5. Barring nuclear holocaust or a howling mob with torches and pitchforks, chances are I'll still be around six months from now to write more blog posts like this one for you to read.

Maybe it won't mean as much because for an alleged "Big Name Pagan / BNP", my name is pretty small outside a relatively tiny circle of Hellenists and other traditional polytheists, and it's not like I've moved my spiritual blogging to mostly over here... hell, I can barely keep to the minimum of a single post here a month, but I've researched some recent drama, weighed the words and intent (or at least likely intent) of all sides, and I've decided to step down from PaganSquare.

Racism is the gigantic elephant in the room for traditional polytheism -- too many use their religious practises as an excuse for racism and vice-versa.  While, true, Heathenry has the biggest reputation for racism, here's the thing:  There is not a single recon religion without its racist baggage in some form.  I've met Neonazi Celtic Recons passing out literature at the Celtic Festival in Saline, Michigan, back when I was in high school.  In more recent years, I've seen Hellenists in North America describe Hellenismos as "kinda like Asatru, but for the Greek pantheon and, best of all -- no Nazis! ^_^" and then ten minutes later encounter Hellenic polytheists from all over the globe say some of the most appallingly racist filth.  Hell, at least the LaVeyans and Boyd Rice fanboys I used to hang with during my misspent youth had the decency to try and hide it.