COVER: In the foreground, a black person busses dishes while giving side-eye to two white adults talking as one of their kids sneezes. We see the air flow out and billow around them, splashing on a listening face and forming a miasma that fills the rest of the background. The busser has a button that says “service with a smile” even as their mouth is covered by a k100 mask. In large hand drawn lettering at the top of the page, the words “WHY WE MASK: IT’S NOT” sit on a black background. And then out in the miasma and in quote marks it says “JUST A COLD”. In the bottom right, it says “Laurel Lynn Leake” above a large “2024”.

TITLE PAGE:“WHY WE MASK” IT’S NOT “JUST A COLD”” and then a subtitle underneath saying “A Handy Scientific Guide To Surviving COVID-19 Together”. At the bottom of the page, a cute drawing of a big headed person with cat’s eye glasses. She looks nervous and sweat is flying off her, filling the house shape she’s in. Outside, a large COVID-19 particle looms. Text below reads “featuring ME!”

P1: Surrounded by drawings of COVID-19 particles of various sizes, it says “THE BASICS: COVID-19 is a viral illness caused by SARS-CoV-2, and primarily spreads through the air.” The first endnote appears, signified here as e1. It continues “A single infection – even a “mild” one – can severely damage nearly every organ system in your body. Each additional infection risks further harm to your immune system, lungs, heart, brain, guts, and reproductive organs, and can result in permanent disability or death. e2 About 75% of all adults e3 (and at least 30% of children e4) are at a high risk of developing severe SARS-COV-2. If you’ve ever had COVID-19, EVEN ONCE, you are now high risk.” It then says “THE VIRUS:” and shows “SARS- COV- 2” separated into it’s three parts. A bubble connected to SARS says “Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome”. A bubble connected to COV says “Corona Virus (crown-shaped, round with spikes)”. And the bubble connected to 2 says “similar to 2002-2003 SARS-CoV outbreak”. A cartoony character with dense curls pulled into a ponytail sniffs and then starts to build up to a sneeze. And then again, it says “THE ILLNESS:” and splits up “COVID 19” the same way. A bubble connected to CO says “corona”, the one connected to the VI says “virus”, and to the D says “disease”. And for 19 it says “discovered in 2019”.

P2: Large hand drawn text reads “COVID-19 is an AIRBORNE ILLNESS e5” over that same curly haired character from the last page sneezing with a big “KACHOO!” We see a large billow of mist and droplets. A measurement in meters is below, showing larger droplets dropping in the first couple meters and the more misty particles continuing to 6 meters. In a box below, text reads “ It spreads when infected people exhale, cough, or sneeze plumes of tiny RESPIRATORY PARTICLES. You can shed hundreds of viruses in a single minute, just by breathing. e6 And sneezing can send viral gunk flying up to 6m (20ft)! Once they’re in the air, the tiniest RPs can linger in poorly ventilated spaces for HOURS…invisible to the naked eye. e7,e8”

P3: A bubble points at a loose collection of little circular drops of different sizes, aiming at the bigger circles. The bubble reads “DROPLETS…are barely visible globs of fluid that drift to the ground.”. Another bubble points to tiny drops “AEROSOLS…are microscopic blobs, so light they float.” Large text reads “What’s inside a respiratory particle?” next to a cute little self portrait looking through a magnifying glass, and then an arrow which shows the particle bigger, with a ball labeled “SARS-COV-2” and little squiggles labeled “mucus”. An arrow leads us to an even bigger particle, which has the ropey squiggles and spiked SARS-COV-2, but also little dots labeled “dust” and translucent blobs labeled “lung fluid”. Text to the side reads “RPs are made up of lung fluids, mucus, & saliva, as well as contaminants like dust, bacteria, & viruses. E9 When a COVID-19 contagious person exhales, they send out lungfuls of SARS-CoV-2, hidden inside aerosols & droplets. e10 Aerodynamic aerosols carry the highest dose of viruses and are the most dangerous to inhale. e11 The particles protect their passengers as they fly through the air, ready to be inhaled by someone new.”

P4: Bubble text at the top says “SYMPTOMS” and text below it says “COVID-19’s ACUTE PHASE symptoms start about 3-6 days after infection, & last about 12-14 days. e12 Symptoms & periods of contagiousness can differ by variant, but include… e13” Below a bunch of words in bubbles are illustrated by cartoony figures. “EXHAUSTION, DIZZINESS, HEADACHE” is illustrated by a miserable head with little confusing and pain indications around it. A head hacking into their hand illustrates “COUGHING, SNEEZING, RUNNY NOSE”. A leaning figure has little stars and shapes shooting out of joints their joints as they say “ow”, illustrating “SORENESS, FEVER, CHILLS”. A figure that seems sick to their stomach and barely holding in vomit as their digestive system is illustrated inside represents “NAUSEA, VOMITING, ABDOMINAL PAIN”. “DIARRHEA” is off on it’s own, unillustrated, but might as well be that last figure too. And a confused head disgusted at the taste of an apple represents “LOSS OF SMELL AND/OR TASTE”. Below, text says “Then again, you could be one of the 32-50% of people with COVID-19 who are… e14, e15” And then next to a silly drawing of a person frolicking and singing “CONTAGIOUS WITH NO SYMPTOMS”’

P5: “SEVERE SYMPTOMS” it says in big text surrounded by little alert symbols. A drawing of a figure in distress is shown, looking to be gasping for breath as they hold a hand to their neck. A bubble points towards their lungs that says “STRAINED AND/OR RAPID BREATHING, WHEEZING”, another bubble points at the heart that reads “CHEST PAIN AND/OR PRESSURE”, and a third bubble points at the bottom of the lungs that says “PNEUMONIA (fluid in the lungs)”. Below, an arrow points at the darkened lungs and leads back to a large bubble with the text “HYPOXEMIA : COVID-19 can impair O2 flow to your blood, even without obvious breathing issues. LOW BLOOD OXYGEN symptoms can cause organ failure and even death w/o treatment. Measure BLOOD OXYGEN LEVELS at home with a PULSE OXIMETER:” It then shows a little drawing of a finger going into a pulse oximeter, and continues “91-94% = concerning, 90% and under = emergency!!” Underneath it says “WARNING: Oximeters may give FALSELY HIGH READINGS to people with dark skin &/or painted nails. E16 It then says “Hypoxemia symptoms include:” A troubled and confused head illustrates “CONFUSION AND/OR DISORIENTATION”. A beating heart represents “RACING HEART”. Nothing seems to illustrate “INABILITY TO WAKE UP OR STAY AWAKE”. And then “CYANOSIS” is explained by smaller text “PALE, GREY, or BLUE-TINTED TONGUE, LIPS, &/or NAILBEDS, depending on skintone. E17” and illustrated by a shaded mouth, fingertips, and a toenail. At the bottom it concludes “ALL THESE REQUIRE EMERGENCY HOSPITALIZATION!”

P6: “HOW COVID SPREADS” it says in large letters above the text “There are 3 main ways that viruses hiding in respiratory particles enter our bodies:1) INHALATION, 2) DIRECT CONTACT and 3) INDIRECT CONTACT” The page underneath this text is filled with a splash image of a chubby, shadowy figure breathing in mist and particles as we see the particles descend down the trachea and into their lungs. Couples sit across from each other at tables in the background, letting off gusts of air. A bubble pointing to the inhaling mouth says “#1 INHALATION: The vast majority of COVID-19 infections start by breathing in aerosols. e18 In crowded, poorly ventilated spaces, you can inhale an infectious dose in minutes! People working or living in places like this are in constant danger of severe infection. e19, e20”

P7: A black butch with close cut hair puts their arm over the shoulder of a short haired friend, as they blow out air that flows all around them. An bubble pointing towards their visualized sinuses reads “#2 DIRECT CONTACT: Viral aerosols/droplets can also collide directly with your MUCOUS MEMBRANES. e21 Those are the layers of soft, wet cells lining your nose, mouth, eyes, respiratory tract, etc.” Another balloon points at a beer bottle being handed from one of the friends to the other, it reads “#3 INDIRECT CONTACT: Much less likely to infect, but still possible: You get respiratory particles on your hands, & then transfer them to your mouth/nose/eyes. e22”

P8: In large, stylized handwriting it says “When you breathe in…” above a drawing of the respiratory system. Smaller text continues next to the drawing “……air enters your RESPIRATORY TRACT, rushing down your TRACHEA (aka windpipe) before splitting off into the twin BRONCHI of the lungs.” On the drawing itself you can see this happening, with an arrow pointing to the tube that leads to the lungs labeled “trachea” and another arrow pointing at little dots traveling through it labeled “respiratory particles”. Below, it shows the lungs as hollow and filled with branch-like shapes, with the label “bronchi” pointing at the base of the branching shape.The text continues next to the drawing “Most of the tract is lined with undulating “hairs” called CILIA, which are coated with a slimy layer of protective MUCUS.

They work together to capture pathogens (bacteria, viruses, mold) and irritating particles (pollen, dust) in clumps of gunk you then eject by coughing &/or sneezing.” A detailed panel shows a mess of long pointy shapes moving around each other like a coral reef. A label calls those long shapes “cilia” and thin squiggling lines that coalesce around them it labels “mucus”. Tiny dots of white that float around and collect around the mucus are labeled “SARS-COV-2”. Text beside the panel continues “But even if these defenses manage to snag the particles, they haven’t neutralized the real threat hidden inside.” And then, beside a drawing of an orb breaking apart and little particles flying out it says “The droplets and aerosols start to dissolve in the warm, wet environment of the respiractory tract…and the SARS-CoV-2 viruses break free!  They kick off the initial COVID-19 infection by attacking any nearby cells.23”. A little SARS-COV-2 particle in the drawing says “wee!”

P9: Text reads “SARS-CoV-2 uses SPIKE PROTEINS like lockpicks to trick cells into “unlocking” their outer membranes.” A drawing beside it illustrates it with a ball covered with irregular knobby outcroppings it labels “spike proteins”. The ball seems to be rolling over an indistinct surface and connecting with little Y shaped outcroppings that are labeled “cell receptor”. The text continues “Once inside, the viruses re-program the cells to pump out more viruses. They swell until they burst, spreading viruses everywhere. e24” A drawing shows a cartoony cell with a face getting a tiny ball stuck to it, which confuses it. Then we see the cell looking sick, and then barfing up more little SARS-COV-2 balls. “VACCINES” it says in a black bar with a drawing of a syringe spurting out drops. Text explains “Most COVID-19 vaccines teach our immune systems to create defensive ANTIBODIES that lock onto the spikes, rendering them useless.” And next to the text there’s a drawing of this happening. Little Y shapes labeled “antibody” fly at the SARS-COV-2 virus and connect with the spikes on the ball. Cell receptors at the bottom seem to be being kept at bay by this extra bit of mass.

The text continues “Antibodies don’t stop every single virus, but they make a difference! Vaccinated people have much better chances of surviving initial infections. e25 But now we’re dealing with 5 years worth of dangerously mutated VIRAL VARIANTS like Delta, Omicron, Pirola, & FLiRT! Our outdated antibodies can’t lock onto all the newfangled spike proteins anymore…e26 …So infections keep spreading, and scientists race to keep up with booster vaccines that can handle the latest variants.”

P10: A drawing of overlapping branch shapes takes over the top of the page, each branch getting narrower and narrower until it gets to something like “leaves”. A circle around that “leafy” area points to a zoomed in version at the bottom of the page. We see there that the “leafs” were actually more akin to bunches of grapes at the ends of the branches. Stylized handwritten text announces them as “Bronchioles”. Text underneath says “Once air reaches the lungs, it disperses through the BRONCHIAL TREE, where airways split into smaller and smaller BRONCHIOLES. Each bronchiole is tipped with ALVEOLI, clusters of flexible, interconnected ALVEOLAR SACS. Delicate capillaries wind between them, bringing blood to and fro.” On the zoomed in drawing we see those details labeled. Veins and arteries wind around the branch-like bronchiole, and split into smaller capillaries. The whole “bunch” of grapes is labeled “alveoli” and the “grapes” are the “alveolar sacs”. We also see “aerosols” flow in through the brionchiole to the alveoli.

P11: “Healthy Alveoli” it says in big text, next to a cross-section of an alveolar sac. We see a translucent feeling arrow flow in and split into multiple directions labeled “air flow in”. It comes over a honeycomb-like shape of different cells with shadows of nuclei inside of them. And at the cut edge, two arrows explain a narrow couple of layers between the cells and the air. These are labeled “thin fluid layer” and “semi-porous membrane”. Then below we see this membrane in action, as wiggly arrows bring CO2 out and O2 into a capillary. It’s labeled “gas exchange, CO2 out, o2 in” and we see a label along the same capillary that says “blood cells full of waste CO2” above the gas exchange, and then at the other end “oxygenated blood cells”. We see the cells themself burst forth from the cut capillary surrounded by fluid labeled “blood plasma”. Text explains “Inside the alveolar sacs, fresh oxygen molecules travel through the separating membranes to swap places with waste carbon dioxide in the bloodstream. That’s another reason why the tinest aerosols are the most dangerous: they’re small enough to reach the alveoli and to use the gas exchange process to slip inside your blood. e27”

P12: This large body of text starts off the page: “Our body launches into defensive action, but variants excel at turning our IMMUNE CELLS against themselves in an escalating CYTOKINE STORM. e28 Infected, dying cells release CYTOKINES (chemical signals) that summon immune cells…which get attacked by viruses, so they summon even MORE immune cells…! e29 The inflamed alveoli try to flush the invaders out with fluids, but that results in a suffocating state called PNEUMONIA. The swollen, pus-filled alveolar sacs struggle to continue exchanging O-CO through their damaged walls. Without treatment, this can end in death.”

Below, a diagram shows all of this happening. We see the inside of an alveolar sac that is being filled with “too much fluid!” as one bubble declares. And inside of the fluid, many little balls are coming up to one of the larger shapes at the wall of the sac, labeled “SARS-COV-2 infecting cells”. A few big blobby orbs are labeled “Immune cells”, and the little speckles that are flying away from one are labeled “Cytokines”. The one sending the cytokines looks unusual, suggesting infection, and another receiving the cytokines is attacking one of the cells on the cell wall. On the periphery of the wall where the semi-porous membrane was on the previous page, it’s much thicker, and text says “membrane’s getting too porous”. Little SARS-COV-2 circles are spilling through the wall and into a capillary. Where the virus is coming in, the walls of the capillary are thicker and an arrow points to it from a bubble, explaining “Cell lining swelling, blood cells coagulating e31 “. The big oblong blood cells flow by a lighter orb that’s extending little tentacle things at the wall of the capillary, causing it to swell. Text explains “Immune cell attacking healthy cell lining e30”. Another bubble points at the blood cells and says “02 starved blood cells”.

P13: Stylized handwriting at the top says “Meanwhile…” and text continues “…SARS-CoV-2 spreads into the CIRCULATORY SYSTEM, triggering dangerous MICRO CLOTS & attacking the ENDOTHELIAL LINING. e32 That’s the thin layer of cells lining every artery, vein, and capillary that normally keeps all your blood and tissues functioning.” To the left, we see blood splashing out of vein and little SARS-COV-2 particles within it. The vein connects to a diagram of a brain below, and that down through thicker and thicker blood vessels until it reaches the heart. The text gets a little larger for emphasis here, and says “Vascular damage like this damages EVERY part of you.” In regular text below it continues “Even “mild” initial COVID-19 infections travel through the bloodstream to injure your BRAIN, HEART, & other critical organs – whether you notice that damage or not. e33” And arrow pointing at the brain leads to a zoomed in shot of spindly neurons covered with tiny circles, while another arrow shows a zoomed in shot of heart cells shows fibrous stretched forms covered with more little tiny circles. Arrows point at the tiny circles in both, and labels them “SARS-COV-2”.

P14: Bubble letters say “LASTING EFFECTS” over a graph showing viral count over time. A label at the start says “infection” at the base of a steep curve with a little whistling and skipping person. Then at the peak, labeled “symptoms start” a person wrapped in a blanket coughs. About halfway back down the other side, a little triumphant person declares “all better!” This whole section is labeled “initial infection zone, aka COVID-19”. Then, from the period where the symptoms start to 3 months, it’s labeled “ambiguous ongoing symptoms zone” with a little drawing of a fallen over person going “ooogh…” A line curving up and down past the 1 month mark, the 3 month, the 3 year mark is labeled “Persistent, recurring symptoms zone, aka Long COVID”. Illustrating this period is an alarmed person in bed saying “not again…” and a person with a cane and a headache saying “how am I STILL SICK”.

A block of text begins below “At least 10-30% of people who survive COVID-19 report symptoms reappearing months or even YEARS later, regardless of their age or health. e36, e37, e38 Many have had their lives changed for the worse…maybe permanently. Long COVID (aka POST-COVID SYNDROME or POST-ACUTE SEQUELAE OF SARS-COV-2) varies wildly from person to person, but lung damage, strokes, heart attacks, immune dysfunction, and debillitating exhaustion are common. We’re only just beginning to understand it as a POST-VIRAL ILLNESS like Shingles (caused by the Chickenpox virus) & AIDS (caused by HIV). Vaccines lower the likelihood of long-term damage, but don’t eliminate it. e39 Long COVID hits marginalized people the hardest, and we often go undiagnosed & untreated due to systemic bigotry in healthcare. e40, e41, e42” A drawing underneath shows a young girl sweating in bed with a sleep mask over her eyes, and she says “can’t sit up… can’t talk… light & sound hurt…” and then in larger text “this sucks”

P16: In large bold letters this page says “LONG COVID”. This page shows a chubby person with an undercut and facial hair using a cane and closing their hand in front of them. Inside of them we see various organs, muscles, and veins. An array of bubbles float near the affected body part, some pointing at them. Starting from the top, near the brain, the bubbles say “strokes and memory loss”, “migraines”, “new or worsening mental illness”, “extreme exhaustion, aka myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome”, “brain fog”, “loss of taste/smell”, “immune disorders”, “hearing loss”, “new or worsening cancers”, “joint pain”, “lung damage”, “rashes”, “heart attacks”, “MAST cell activation”, “new or worsening diabetes”, “kidney and liver failure”, “nerve pain”,  and “bowel damage”. Endnotes for this list are e43, e44, and e4

Below, text says “As of 2024, we keep discovering new ways Long COVID damages the body, but we still don’t have a “cure”. There are many ways to treat the symptoms (primarily serious, extended REST e46, e47, e48), but no silver bullet to reverse damage.”

P17: “THE DAMAGE GETS WORSE WITH EVERY NEW INFECTION” large text declares at the start of this page. Below, it explains “Most people don’t know that SARS-CoV-2 damage is CUMULATIVE. So every new infection raises the odds you’ll be hit by horrible new health complications that may become permanent. e49, e50 Even infections that feel like “just a cold” or “allergies” can cause trouble down the line. e51”To the side, a graph shows the risk level of various effects measured by the number of infections. At 0 infections it shows a 1 risk level, and then various lines ascend at different rates as they go to 1, 2, and 3 infections, with the lowest ending at 2 risk level and the highest shooting up past 8. That highest line is labeled “hospitalization”, and the rest of the issues are arranged in order of most risk to least. They are labeled “ISSUES WITH YOUR…” “Kidneys”, “Heart”, “Blood”, “Lungs”, “Stomach / Intestines”, “Exhaustion”, “Diabetes”, “Mental”, “Neurological”, “Muscles / Skeleton”. e52

Text continues underneath “An easy or entirely asymptomatic initial infection may mean your immune system barely even activated to fight off the virus. Long after you recover from the “mild” symptoms, inactive viral debris can remain throughout your body. e53” A sideways figure that looks like an X-ray with shadows throughout the body, especially coalescing in the torso around the organs. It’s labeled “FDG-PET scan showing spike proteins in joints & blood vessels e54”Text explains further below “These are VIRAL RESERVOIRS: Leftover viruses & spike proteins that collect in your muscles, bones, & organs, ready to reinfect you whenever your immune system gets stressed.”

P18: “STOPPING THE SPREAD” it says at the top of the page, followed in smaller letters by “So obviously we want to stop getting sick, but how? We can’t end pandemics through individual action alone.” And then bigger for emphasis it says “So we work together! And we combine many strategies, both individual and systemic.” And continues back at regular size “The SWISS CHEESE MODEL OF INFECTION PREVENTION is an easy, cheesy way to visualize this tactic. e59”

Billows of air carrying countless tiny particles flank those words, and coalesce at the front of a bunch of thing slices of Swiss cheese, each with holes in different places. Each slice is labeled a different thing, one is “limiting exposure”, another “well-fitting respirator masks”, “good air, filtration”, “fast, accurate testing”, “quarantining after exposure”, and “vaccines & boosters”. Each slice blocks more and more of the particles, until the end of the slices where a baby sits in clear air and says “I love not having COVID!” Text below explains it “Just like how each Swiss cheese slice has holes, no single protection method against SARS-CoV-2 works 100% perfectly. So we stack together methods until we’ve covered up all the holes, and maximized protection!”

P19: A group of protesters march at the top of the page, including a Native American in a wheelchair with a “Land Back” top, a teen holding up their fist, a middle aged Jewish person wearing a kippah and a Palestine watermelon shirt, and drag queen holding the progress pride flag. There’s a large “WE KEEP US SAFE” banner in front, and signs that say “end all genocide”, “clean air is a right”, and “free them all”, as well as a butterfly sculpture and non-binary symbol shirt. Below the drawing it says “COMMUNITY CARE”. In mid-sized text it says “To survive this pandemic, we must follow the lead of Disability Justice and survive TOGETHER.” And then in smaller text it continues “That means all of us – the infants and toddlers too young to mask, the disabled and the neurodiverse, Black and Indigenous people, all people of color, queer and trans people, sex workers, pregnant people, immunocompromised people, the undocumented, the unhoused, the incarcerated and institutionalized…People forced into constant exposure at home, work, and school until they’ve lost count of infections, people forced into indefinite isolation because one infection could kill them or permanently change their life for the worse, people who get fired when they run out of sick days and evicted when they run out of money…” And then in bigger text it concludes “Everyone abused by our medical industry and abandoned by our governments. All of us.”

P19: In mid sized text it says “So why do we mask?  Because we refuse to accept  a world where any of us are disposable. We fight for a future where we all survive – together.” Below, a large drawing of those two from the bar on earlier pages, the black butch and the short haired friend. Here, we see the short haired friend looking bashful. They stand close to a scenic river as a breeze blows the tassels of the hoodie the butch is wearing, and the keffiyeh the other is wearing.. They are both wearing masks and looking at each other, and hearts appear between them. 

P20: That same SARS-COV-2 virus pattern from the inside cover is here again, cut across with white under text that reads “This comic would not exist without my partner Kimball Anderson’s digital editing, emotional support and COVID know-how. Thank you!” And then in another column “I’m grateful to everyone who gave me feedback, with an extra big thank you to Dupe & Caitlin for copy edits. Thank you to everyone making SARS-CoV-2 resources accessible online, & to everyone fighting to keep each other alive out there.” Down past more of the pattern, a blob of white sits behind a drawing of a little Laurel lump, looking particularly gelatinous but still having her hair and glasses. In stylized handwriting it says “Laurel Lynn Leake” and then in text below it says “…is a white, queer, and disabled artist who believes in the subversive power of empathy. They graduated from the Center for Cartoon Studies in 2013 with their MFA and live in Providence, RI.” The location there is in quote marks suggesting that this is a name imposed onto native land. It continues “She’s taking care of herself even though it’s hard! You can find her at: counterintuitivecomics.tumblr.com patreon.com/counterintuitive laurellynnleake.storenvy.com laurel-lynn-leake.itch.io” And then after a bit more of the viral background, it says “THANK YOU FOR READING” in mid sized text. And then in smaller text it says “If you stopped masking, let this be the excuse to start again! And if you never stopped – thank you, thank you, thank you.”

BACK COVER: Little aerosol droplets of water flow in a swooping line towards a brain and all of the veins that twist around it and lead down to the rest of the body. A cute little Laurel holds up a magnifying glass that is bigger than herself and shows within it a SARS-COV-2 virus. In large text it says “A Handy Scientific Guide To Surviving COVID-19 Together”. And then in regular text it continues “Why’s everyone sick all the time? Well, it’s not “just a cold”, and it’s definitely not “mild”… It’s SARS-CoV-2, and it can change your life forever. In larger text: “Whether you’ve been too burned out to keep up with COVID-19 news, or if you’re still masking and sick of explaining why, this zine is for you! WHY WE MASK cuts through 5 years of COVID chaos with simple, non-judgemental language and fun science illustrations featuring masked-up queer & trans disabled people. Plus resources for protecting you and your loved ones.”At the bottom, a hand gives a wrapped up boat shaped mask to another hand while puffs of air float around. The mask says “NIOSH N95” on it.