If customers won’t obey virus rules, leave store

Dear Editor:

My wife and I are septuagenarians. For us, contracting the coronavirus could be a terminal diagnosis. Therefore, we are cautious and limit our visits to stores.

Ulster County’s low COVID-19 stats are encouraging. Like others, we are experiencing COVID fatigue and thought we’d “shop locally.” What follows is an account of our experience.

We entered Home Goods at Kings Mall in the town of Ulster. Few persons were following the one-way arrows on the floor. The more egregious safety violation was a person sneezing into blankets she was holding. We left.

At nearby Marshalls, we noticed a woman on her cell phone, her face uncovered. We spoke with employees. They told us a person is only required to wear a mask to enter the store. Once inside, if the person unmasks, there was nothing employees can do,

We avoided the unmasked person and continued to shop. The checkout line was clearly marked with circles meant to keep patrons 6 feet apart. A pregnant woman wearing a mask not covering her nose crowded us. My wife asked her to please cover her nose and keep back from us. She told my wife to mind her own business and asked, “Are you serious?” We said yes, and she began a rude rant.

From now on, if we notice a violator, we will leave the store. I encourage others to do the same.

The Ulster County executive and legislators need to address this issue and put teeth into the regulations before the virus flourishes again.

Art Gould Kingston