It’s not surprising that the city’s drive-in antigen COVID-19 testing slots at the Blaisdell Center testing site filled up for Day One on Monday, and pretty quickly. It was, after all, the first day of the “Safe Access O‘ahu” policy, requiring proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test to enter restaurants, bars and other recreational establishments. To preregister for a test, visit testing.nomihealth.com/signup/hawaii.

But it’s still an inconvenience, which may be why the state tallied, over the weekend, more than 18,000 vaccinations — many wanting to meet one of the new mandates more easily.

More masks, spacing needed at games

It was great to see the return of college football, and the NFL, over the weekend, after the rough past season due to pandemic shutdowns. But it was shocking — and not great at all — to see the multitudes of fans in stadium after stadium, crammed together cheek to jowl, and mostly unmasked.

With COVID-19 still raging across the nation, the lack of masking and social distancing seem downright wrong. That’s not to say, though, that the University of Hawaii shouldn’t have any spectators in the outdoor stands — as long as rules for vaccination proof, masking and group distancing are all strictly followed.