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shadowkatI got to give NY and New Yorkers credit - they don't go down easily or without a fight. This is one tough city and state. Since I moved here in 1996 - we've had 9/11, The big East Coast Blackout, The Transit Strike, Hurricane Irene, Superstorm Sandy, Donald Trump and now...the Corona Virus.
1. Crazy Ass Organization
* Site Tour of overhead mechanized doors. Honestly, it's fascinating to watch experts in doors examine them.
ME: No handshaking. (considering I already shook hands with the head of stations, only to realize, damn, not supposed to do that any longer. It's kind of automatic in the business world. I immediately used my hand sanitizer.)
Contractor: Ah, very wise. Let me show you the foot to foot approach that the kids are doing..(He touches the tip of my left shoe with his right one, and the tip of my right one with his left one. I don't know this requires more coordination than I have in me.
Contractor: You really aren't letting yourself touch anything. Pushing doors open with your elbows. Etc. (Also the guy who lead the site tour had black work gloves on.) You that paranoid?
Me: No, just being cautious. (Also getting tired of using hand sanitizer and worrying about touching my face constantly with my hands. So I had my hands firmly in my pockets. I think I have surgical gloves from several years ago when a germ-a-phobe co-worker handed them out. But I can't remember what I did with them. I hope I didn't toss them. I don't have a lot of space, I tend to toss things. And we had moved twice. )
Contractor: So, when do you think they will reveal that it is a weaponized virus?
Me: It's not a weaponized virus. (He looks at me with pronounced skepticism). They know what caused it. It comes from Bats, just like SARS. Some nitwit in China decided to illegally purchase a wild animal, and got the virus. He passed it on to a bunch of people. And the virus is highly contagious. We don't need weaponized viruses - nature is quite capable of creating her own, and humans are selfish idiots who like do illegal things - that end up hurting us all.
Contractor nods convinced by my logic. Conspiracy theorists lack logic, that's why they are easy to debunk or not as they case may be.
After site tour, returned to base camp with my purple site tour boots - which I swear glow in the dark, I find out via email that crazy work place has shut off the fingerprint portion of the biometric clocks. Now you just key in -- using either a pencil head or pen on the touchscreen. Apparently people are afraid of passing the virus via the biometric swiping -- even though there are containers of hand sanitizer right next to them. So they sent out two contradictory memos - one that tells people to keep swiping and using the hand sanitizer (come on people be adults and follow directions) and one that came immediately thereafter, informing us that they had chosen to temporarily discontinue the biometric portion of the time in/time out clocks. (Except you still have to touch the screen to key in - so none of us really saw the point. But hey, if the virus does away with the dumb things. I count that in the plus column.)
Cubical aisle mate informs me that there are six confirmed cases in crazy org. But no one in our dept that she knows of.
2. Governor Cuomo gives an amazingly informative press conference, which I listened via FB on my phone during work (I decided to follow the Mayor, my local reps, and state reps, and Governor on FB). Here's some highlights because you won't be able to see it on FB unless you have an account.
These are from yesterdays:
* State Will Provide Two Weeks Paid Leave for State Workers Who Are Quarantined as a Result of Novel Coronavirus
* Announces Cooperative Effort with New York State Business Leaders to Voluntarily Implement Different Work Shifts and Telecommuting to Help Reduce Density
* NYS Department of Health Will Provide $200,000 to Local Food Bank in New Rochelle to Ensure Any Family Who Relies On Free School Lunches Can Continue To Access It During Containment Period
During a novel coronavirus briefing, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that New York State will contract with 28 private labs to increase testing capacity for the novel coronavirus. Following a call with the 28 labs, the Governor announced that he has instructed the labs to begin testing immediately as soon as they are ready. The 28 labs are specialized in virology and are routine partners with the New York State Department of Health.
The problem is not enough test kits. Test kits are basically a swap that goes deep into the nostril cavity and the mucus from the nostril is tested for the virus. (Midnight Jane, an intensive care nurse in Vancouver, Canada who recently got briefed on the testing - is my source. You may or may not know of her via Buffy fan boards.) The problem is enough labs. We just don't have that many labs that can test the virus. So, NY, being proactive, has decided to contract with private labs not just CDC labs or government labs. It apparently takes two hours to do the test, and about twenty-eight hours if they have to send them to Lab Corps or Quest which are out of state or further away. They can do two people per test, and the people are tested twice. And no, it doesn't take weeks. And no, they aren't going to test everybody - that's impossible. Just the people who show symptoms.
The Governor also announced the State University of New York and the City University of New York will implement plans to maximize distance learning and reduce in-person classes, beginning March 19th, for the remainder of the Spring semester in light of the evolving novel coronavirus situation in New York. All campuses will develop plans catered to the campus and curriculum-specific needs while reducing density in the campus environment to help slow possibility for exposures to novel coronavirus. Distance learning and other options will be developed by campuses.
Governor Cuomo announced the state will guarantee two full weeks of paid leave for all state workers who are subject to a mandatory or precautionary order of quarantine as a result of the novel coronavirus. Employees will not have to charge accruals during the time taken off work for quarantine. This will apply to all state employees, regardless of civil service classification, bargaining unit, and regardless of part time or accrual status.
That was yesterday.
This is today's:
* Events with 500 or More Individuals in Attendance to Be Cancelled or Postponed [So, basically they just shut down Broadway, all concerts, dance performances, conventions, etc. I mean this is major people -- it is going to kill NY's economy.
Nik the journalist: So shutting down Broadway -- isn't that going to really hurt NY's economy?
Mayor: Nik, forget about Broadway for a minute - we're losing billions per day in tourism, hotel reservations, restaurants, concerts, sporting events, museums, you name it. ]
* Any Gathering Under 500 Individuals in Attendance Will Be Required to Cut Capacity by 50 Percent [ So you aren't off the hook if you are a restaurant, bar, nightclub, coffee shop, small theater, or movie theater. Also religious organizations are going to have issues. My church sent out an email informing us that they may take worship online and close the sanctuary. We can watch it live on FB or by link instead.]
Co-workers: And yet, they still haven't closed the NY public schools. WTF? Don't our kids matter.
ME: Well, no, the kids aren't the problem. They recover quickly unless of course they have a respiratory ailment (such as asthma), a heart condition or immune deficiency. It's the elderly they are worried about. I feel sorry for the teachers.]
* New Limits on Visitations to Nursing Homes - Only Medically Necessary Visits Will Be Allowed To Protect Most Vulnerable [ My parents told me that their retirement community is restricting guests and outside visitors to membership facilities. Or any facilities that are shared facilities. Also you have to sign in and out when you go to eat. And the servers will wear masks, gloves, and serve you, you don't serve yourself. And they've cancelled all outside activities.]
*First Public Drive-Through Testing Facility on the East Coast, Located in New Rochelle, Will Start Testing Tomorrow [They decided to ignore the Federal Government some time ago and do their own testing.]
* Confirms 109 Additional Coronavirus Cases in New York State - Bringing Statewide Total to 325; New Cases in 14 Counties [The Governor is convinced there are more out there, but it is impossible to test everyone - they are doing the best they can. But we're in climb mode. The governor is mostly interested in the hospitalizations - because that is what they need to watch to ensure the healthcare system isn't overwhelmed.)
During a novel coronavirus briefing, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the state will institute limits on mass gatherings, directing events with 500 or more individuals in attendance to be cancelled or postponed. Public health experts agree mass gatherings with people making sustained close contact are a place where the novel coronavirus can easily infect many people quickly and continue its spread. As such, events, gatherings, or places of business with less than 500 individuals in attendance will be required to cut capacity by 50 percent, with exceptions being made for spaces where individuals do not make sustained close contact, such as schools, hospitals, public buildings, mass transit, grocery stores and retail stores. These new regulations will go into effect Friday, March 13th at 5pm, with the exception of Broadway Theaters where the limits will go into effect this evening at 5pm.
In an effort to protect some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers, Governor Cuomo also announced only medically necessary visits will be allowed at nursing homes. [As previously stated they already doing this where my parents live in South Carolina. The reason is to avoid the tragedy in Kirkland, Washington - where all those people in a nursing home contracted the virus and died from it.] This policy will be effective Friday at 5pm. The state is also asking nursing homes to set up skyping and other online communication capacity so families can tele-visit their loved ones. Additionally, the state will require health screenings for all nursing home workers each day when they enter a facility and require them to wear surgical masks to guard against any potential asymptomatic spread.
In order to increase testing capacity, the State is contracting with BioReference Laboratories to run an additional 5,000 tests per day on top of what the state is already doing.
[NY figured out they had a lot of cases some time ago. Which is not surprising. I remember thinking this as well when the cases popped up in Washington and California -- "why I thought doesn't NY have any? It should. We have millions of people traveling from China, Japan, Germany, Iran, Italy, etc on a daily basis." This is weird. Apparently my government agreed with me, and gave up on the CDC and decided to start doing their own tests. NY's attitude since the Doofus became President - is a) we're on our own and b) let's see how we can either work around him or get him to give us what we require.]
These additional 5,000 tests per day will come online next week. This additional testing capacity is on top of that of the 28 private labs the Governor announced are partnering with the state in the coming days and weeks. Additionally, the Governor announced the first public drive-through testing facility on the east coast will start testing people tomorrow in New Rochelle. Testing will be done by appointment only. New Rochelle residents who have been quarantined will be tested first.
Finally, the Governor confirmed 109 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 325 confirmed cases in New York State.
"The spread of this coronavirus is not going to stop on its own, and we know that mass gatherings have been hotspots for the virus to infect large numbers of people quickly," Governor Cuomo said. "To help contain it, we are instituting limits on large events as well as new measures to protect our most vulnerable populations — including people in nursing homes — and preparing our healthcare system to be able to deal with any future capacity issues. While the context is key and the anxiety is outpacing the facts of this situation, we will continue taking aggressive action to protect public health and prepare for any future spread of this virus."
"Our number one priority is protecting the public health and every action the Governor and the State of New York have taken thus far have been in furtherance of that goal," State Health Department Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said. "Public health experts have been clear that limiting large public gatherings where there is potential for close contact is a critical way to slow the spread of this virus. This regulation will help keep people healthy and safe."
The Governor also announced that the State is taking measures to create a reserve workforce of health care professionals in the event of a staffing shortage and identify state facilities that can be used as temporary hospitals. The State is asking former doctors, nurses and other health care professionals to reconnect with their former employers and offer to work on an on-call basis in the cases of a staffing shortage. The State is also identifying National Guard medics for reserved staffing and contacting medical schools to identify possible reserve health care professionals. Additionally, the Department of Health is accelerating regulations to get more health care personnel trained so they can work in other areas.
[The above is how we're going to avoid what happened in Italy, apparently the reason Italy collapsed is their health care system got overwhelmed and they have a better one than we do. They have universal health care.]
For all schools in communities with the highest rates of positive cases, the state will be taking proactive steps to implement protocols that limit mass contact. Today the Governor announced SUNY Albany will cancel in person classes for the rest of the semester effective tomorrow after a positive case was confirmed today.
3. I'm concerned about getting it - because my immune system is compromised. I have high blood pressure, ceiliac disease, and type 2 diabetes.
Although I have not gotten sick that often in the last six years. And I have my flu shot. Allergies just keep beating me up, along with IBS, perimenopause, and back issues.
CBD is a godsend. I love those gummies.
If I get it - it will probably be from my building, commute or crazy workplace. Just doing laundry tonight - I have to open the elevator by hand, take the laundry down it, open it again, and use the community washers and dryers. (And people are slobs. One guy who was before me - had dog bone in the washer. And weird debris that I had to get out of it. I wanted to smack him. I had to take his clothes out because he wasn't coming down. They have baskets that you can put them in. People have a tendency to forget that this isn't their own washer and dryer, but shared washers and dryers among over 77 apartment units. This means, that no, you can't put your wash in for thirty five minutes then come down again one - three hours later to switch it to the dryer. Then an hour or so later to take it out. People are within their rights to remove it for you. Still, it's better than dragging it to the laundromat.)
Oh, well, doing what I can to avoid it. People are afraid to cough, sniffle, sneeze or blew noses on the trains any longer. (Which is a problem since it is allergy season.) Subway etiquette? Don't sit in the middle seat if there are three seats available on the G trains. Seriously. Pick one of the ends, so people can easily sit on one of the other seats. I found myself thinking evil sadistic thoughts about a teenage girl who felt the need to take up three seats on the subway, and when I took one, refused to scoot over and make more room. I wanted to smack her parents. I never want to hurt the child - I want to punch the evil parents or my peers. If a kid has bad manners - blame the parents.
Considered buying a bike - so I can get around if and when crazy organization decides to shut down. It can't shut down. It rarely does. It has shut down during Hurricane Sandy -- which well, was a disaster that no one wants to repeat. And during the Big East Coast Blackout.
If it shut down we'd be in trouble. No one could get to the hospital to be tested.
Broadway shut down - I was supposed to see Whose Afraid of Virgina Woolf with Laurie Metcalf and Rupert Everett. But it's not happening now, I don't think. Considering my friend who got the tickets is over 70, I seriously doubt it. She also has a compromised immune system.
My brother had friends from Manhattan who were supposed to come up and visit - but those plans have been cancelled. All Manhattan trips and visitors have been cancelled. Niece's friends either went home for Spring Break and aren't certain they can return (there's one who went to Barcelona and several in Europe and a couple from Mainland China). For a while they thought they'd have to permanently host a boy that she'd befriended from Mainland China. He was staying with friends in Boston, but she found out yesterday that he was returning to China and it wasn't clear if he'd be able to return. Most of her friends might not make it back, and it's unclear if her school will go full online class mode.
My parents have chosen not to attend church, and my mother caved to my father's request that she not go to choir practice tonight. Instead they watched Knives Out, which they liked a whole lot better than I did. Also no visitors in their shared facilities.
1. Crazy Ass Organization
* Site Tour of overhead mechanized doors. Honestly, it's fascinating to watch experts in doors examine them.
ME: No handshaking. (considering I already shook hands with the head of stations, only to realize, damn, not supposed to do that any longer. It's kind of automatic in the business world. I immediately used my hand sanitizer.)
Contractor: Ah, very wise. Let me show you the foot to foot approach that the kids are doing..(He touches the tip of my left shoe with his right one, and the tip of my right one with his left one. I don't know this requires more coordination than I have in me.
Contractor: You really aren't letting yourself touch anything. Pushing doors open with your elbows. Etc. (Also the guy who lead the site tour had black work gloves on.) You that paranoid?
Me: No, just being cautious. (Also getting tired of using hand sanitizer and worrying about touching my face constantly with my hands. So I had my hands firmly in my pockets. I think I have surgical gloves from several years ago when a germ-a-phobe co-worker handed them out. But I can't remember what I did with them. I hope I didn't toss them. I don't have a lot of space, I tend to toss things. And we had moved twice. )
Contractor: So, when do you think they will reveal that it is a weaponized virus?
Me: It's not a weaponized virus. (He looks at me with pronounced skepticism). They know what caused it. It comes from Bats, just like SARS. Some nitwit in China decided to illegally purchase a wild animal, and got the virus. He passed it on to a bunch of people. And the virus is highly contagious. We don't need weaponized viruses - nature is quite capable of creating her own, and humans are selfish idiots who like do illegal things - that end up hurting us all.
Contractor nods convinced by my logic. Conspiracy theorists lack logic, that's why they are easy to debunk or not as they case may be.
After site tour, returned to base camp with my purple site tour boots - which I swear glow in the dark, I find out via email that crazy work place has shut off the fingerprint portion of the biometric clocks. Now you just key in -- using either a pencil head or pen on the touchscreen. Apparently people are afraid of passing the virus via the biometric swiping -- even though there are containers of hand sanitizer right next to them. So they sent out two contradictory memos - one that tells people to keep swiping and using the hand sanitizer (come on people be adults and follow directions) and one that came immediately thereafter, informing us that they had chosen to temporarily discontinue the biometric portion of the time in/time out clocks. (Except you still have to touch the screen to key in - so none of us really saw the point. But hey, if the virus does away with the dumb things. I count that in the plus column.)
Cubical aisle mate informs me that there are six confirmed cases in crazy org. But no one in our dept that she knows of.
2. Governor Cuomo gives an amazingly informative press conference, which I listened via FB on my phone during work (I decided to follow the Mayor, my local reps, and state reps, and Governor on FB). Here's some highlights because you won't be able to see it on FB unless you have an account.
These are from yesterdays:
* State Will Provide Two Weeks Paid Leave for State Workers Who Are Quarantined as a Result of Novel Coronavirus
* Announces Cooperative Effort with New York State Business Leaders to Voluntarily Implement Different Work Shifts and Telecommuting to Help Reduce Density
* NYS Department of Health Will Provide $200,000 to Local Food Bank in New Rochelle to Ensure Any Family Who Relies On Free School Lunches Can Continue To Access It During Containment Period
During a novel coronavirus briefing, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that New York State will contract with 28 private labs to increase testing capacity for the novel coronavirus. Following a call with the 28 labs, the Governor announced that he has instructed the labs to begin testing immediately as soon as they are ready. The 28 labs are specialized in virology and are routine partners with the New York State Department of Health.
The problem is not enough test kits. Test kits are basically a swap that goes deep into the nostril cavity and the mucus from the nostril is tested for the virus. (Midnight Jane, an intensive care nurse in Vancouver, Canada who recently got briefed on the testing - is my source. You may or may not know of her via Buffy fan boards.) The problem is enough labs. We just don't have that many labs that can test the virus. So, NY, being proactive, has decided to contract with private labs not just CDC labs or government labs. It apparently takes two hours to do the test, and about twenty-eight hours if they have to send them to Lab Corps or Quest which are out of state or further away. They can do two people per test, and the people are tested twice. And no, it doesn't take weeks. And no, they aren't going to test everybody - that's impossible. Just the people who show symptoms.
The Governor also announced the State University of New York and the City University of New York will implement plans to maximize distance learning and reduce in-person classes, beginning March 19th, for the remainder of the Spring semester in light of the evolving novel coronavirus situation in New York. All campuses will develop plans catered to the campus and curriculum-specific needs while reducing density in the campus environment to help slow possibility for exposures to novel coronavirus. Distance learning and other options will be developed by campuses.
Governor Cuomo announced the state will guarantee two full weeks of paid leave for all state workers who are subject to a mandatory or precautionary order of quarantine as a result of the novel coronavirus. Employees will not have to charge accruals during the time taken off work for quarantine. This will apply to all state employees, regardless of civil service classification, bargaining unit, and regardless of part time or accrual status.
That was yesterday.
This is today's:
* Events with 500 or More Individuals in Attendance to Be Cancelled or Postponed [So, basically they just shut down Broadway, all concerts, dance performances, conventions, etc. I mean this is major people -- it is going to kill NY's economy.
Nik the journalist: So shutting down Broadway -- isn't that going to really hurt NY's economy?
Mayor: Nik, forget about Broadway for a minute - we're losing billions per day in tourism, hotel reservations, restaurants, concerts, sporting events, museums, you name it. ]
* Any Gathering Under 500 Individuals in Attendance Will Be Required to Cut Capacity by 50 Percent [ So you aren't off the hook if you are a restaurant, bar, nightclub, coffee shop, small theater, or movie theater. Also religious organizations are going to have issues. My church sent out an email informing us that they may take worship online and close the sanctuary. We can watch it live on FB or by link instead.]
Co-workers: And yet, they still haven't closed the NY public schools. WTF? Don't our kids matter.
ME: Well, no, the kids aren't the problem. They recover quickly unless of course they have a respiratory ailment (such as asthma), a heart condition or immune deficiency. It's the elderly they are worried about. I feel sorry for the teachers.]
* New Limits on Visitations to Nursing Homes - Only Medically Necessary Visits Will Be Allowed To Protect Most Vulnerable [ My parents told me that their retirement community is restricting guests and outside visitors to membership facilities. Or any facilities that are shared facilities. Also you have to sign in and out when you go to eat. And the servers will wear masks, gloves, and serve you, you don't serve yourself. And they've cancelled all outside activities.]
*First Public Drive-Through Testing Facility on the East Coast, Located in New Rochelle, Will Start Testing Tomorrow [They decided to ignore the Federal Government some time ago and do their own testing.]
* Confirms 109 Additional Coronavirus Cases in New York State - Bringing Statewide Total to 325; New Cases in 14 Counties [The Governor is convinced there are more out there, but it is impossible to test everyone - they are doing the best they can. But we're in climb mode. The governor is mostly interested in the hospitalizations - because that is what they need to watch to ensure the healthcare system isn't overwhelmed.)
During a novel coronavirus briefing, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the state will institute limits on mass gatherings, directing events with 500 or more individuals in attendance to be cancelled or postponed. Public health experts agree mass gatherings with people making sustained close contact are a place where the novel coronavirus can easily infect many people quickly and continue its spread. As such, events, gatherings, or places of business with less than 500 individuals in attendance will be required to cut capacity by 50 percent, with exceptions being made for spaces where individuals do not make sustained close contact, such as schools, hospitals, public buildings, mass transit, grocery stores and retail stores. These new regulations will go into effect Friday, March 13th at 5pm, with the exception of Broadway Theaters where the limits will go into effect this evening at 5pm.
In an effort to protect some of the most vulnerable New Yorkers, Governor Cuomo also announced only medically necessary visits will be allowed at nursing homes. [As previously stated they already doing this where my parents live in South Carolina. The reason is to avoid the tragedy in Kirkland, Washington - where all those people in a nursing home contracted the virus and died from it.] This policy will be effective Friday at 5pm. The state is also asking nursing homes to set up skyping and other online communication capacity so families can tele-visit their loved ones. Additionally, the state will require health screenings for all nursing home workers each day when they enter a facility and require them to wear surgical masks to guard against any potential asymptomatic spread.
In order to increase testing capacity, the State is contracting with BioReference Laboratories to run an additional 5,000 tests per day on top of what the state is already doing.
[NY figured out they had a lot of cases some time ago. Which is not surprising. I remember thinking this as well when the cases popped up in Washington and California -- "why I thought doesn't NY have any? It should. We have millions of people traveling from China, Japan, Germany, Iran, Italy, etc on a daily basis." This is weird. Apparently my government agreed with me, and gave up on the CDC and decided to start doing their own tests. NY's attitude since the Doofus became President - is a) we're on our own and b) let's see how we can either work around him or get him to give us what we require.]
These additional 5,000 tests per day will come online next week. This additional testing capacity is on top of that of the 28 private labs the Governor announced are partnering with the state in the coming days and weeks. Additionally, the Governor announced the first public drive-through testing facility on the east coast will start testing people tomorrow in New Rochelle. Testing will be done by appointment only. New Rochelle residents who have been quarantined will be tested first.
Finally, the Governor confirmed 109 additional cases of novel coronavirus, bringing the statewide total to 325 confirmed cases in New York State.
"The spread of this coronavirus is not going to stop on its own, and we know that mass gatherings have been hotspots for the virus to infect large numbers of people quickly," Governor Cuomo said. "To help contain it, we are instituting limits on large events as well as new measures to protect our most vulnerable populations — including people in nursing homes — and preparing our healthcare system to be able to deal with any future capacity issues. While the context is key and the anxiety is outpacing the facts of this situation, we will continue taking aggressive action to protect public health and prepare for any future spread of this virus."
"Our number one priority is protecting the public health and every action the Governor and the State of New York have taken thus far have been in furtherance of that goal," State Health Department Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker said. "Public health experts have been clear that limiting large public gatherings where there is potential for close contact is a critical way to slow the spread of this virus. This regulation will help keep people healthy and safe."
The Governor also announced that the State is taking measures to create a reserve workforce of health care professionals in the event of a staffing shortage and identify state facilities that can be used as temporary hospitals. The State is asking former doctors, nurses and other health care professionals to reconnect with their former employers and offer to work on an on-call basis in the cases of a staffing shortage. The State is also identifying National Guard medics for reserved staffing and contacting medical schools to identify possible reserve health care professionals. Additionally, the Department of Health is accelerating regulations to get more health care personnel trained so they can work in other areas.
[The above is how we're going to avoid what happened in Italy, apparently the reason Italy collapsed is their health care system got overwhelmed and they have a better one than we do. They have universal health care.]
For all schools in communities with the highest rates of positive cases, the state will be taking proactive steps to implement protocols that limit mass contact. Today the Governor announced SUNY Albany will cancel in person classes for the rest of the semester effective tomorrow after a positive case was confirmed today.
3. I'm concerned about getting it - because my immune system is compromised. I have high blood pressure, ceiliac disease, and type 2 diabetes.
Although I have not gotten sick that often in the last six years. And I have my flu shot. Allergies just keep beating me up, along with IBS, perimenopause, and back issues.
CBD is a godsend. I love those gummies.
If I get it - it will probably be from my building, commute or crazy workplace. Just doing laundry tonight - I have to open the elevator by hand, take the laundry down it, open it again, and use the community washers and dryers. (And people are slobs. One guy who was before me - had dog bone in the washer. And weird debris that I had to get out of it. I wanted to smack him. I had to take his clothes out because he wasn't coming down. They have baskets that you can put them in. People have a tendency to forget that this isn't their own washer and dryer, but shared washers and dryers among over 77 apartment units. This means, that no, you can't put your wash in for thirty five minutes then come down again one - three hours later to switch it to the dryer. Then an hour or so later to take it out. People are within their rights to remove it for you. Still, it's better than dragging it to the laundromat.)
Oh, well, doing what I can to avoid it. People are afraid to cough, sniffle, sneeze or blew noses on the trains any longer. (Which is a problem since it is allergy season.) Subway etiquette? Don't sit in the middle seat if there are three seats available on the G trains. Seriously. Pick one of the ends, so people can easily sit on one of the other seats. I found myself thinking evil sadistic thoughts about a teenage girl who felt the need to take up three seats on the subway, and when I took one, refused to scoot over and make more room. I wanted to smack her parents. I never want to hurt the child - I want to punch the evil parents or my peers. If a kid has bad manners - blame the parents.
Considered buying a bike - so I can get around if and when crazy organization decides to shut down. It can't shut down. It rarely does. It has shut down during Hurricane Sandy -- which well, was a disaster that no one wants to repeat. And during the Big East Coast Blackout.
If it shut down we'd be in trouble. No one could get to the hospital to be tested.
Broadway shut down - I was supposed to see Whose Afraid of Virgina Woolf with Laurie Metcalf and Rupert Everett. But it's not happening now, I don't think. Considering my friend who got the tickets is over 70, I seriously doubt it. She also has a compromised immune system.
My brother had friends from Manhattan who were supposed to come up and visit - but those plans have been cancelled. All Manhattan trips and visitors have been cancelled. Niece's friends either went home for Spring Break and aren't certain they can return (there's one who went to Barcelona and several in Europe and a couple from Mainland China). For a while they thought they'd have to permanently host a boy that she'd befriended from Mainland China. He was staying with friends in Boston, but she found out yesterday that he was returning to China and it wasn't clear if he'd be able to return. Most of her friends might not make it back, and it's unclear if her school will go full online class mode.
My parents have chosen not to attend church, and my mother caved to my father's request that she not go to choir practice tonight. Instead they watched Knives Out, which they liked a whole lot better than I did. Also no visitors in their shared facilities.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-13 02:16 pm (UTC)China unfortunately permits sale of all kinds of wild animals for meat that would be illegal here. The belief is that a seller at a typical Chinese open air market in Wuhan had infected stock, caught it themselves and passed it on both through sales of the animals and personal contact. Despite what the Chinese government said, they didn't rush to contain the problem, instead they jailed doctors who attempted to spread the word to their colleagues in other parts of China. When they did decide something had to be done, the quarantine at Wuhan was leaky in the early stages. It's likely their government is telling the truth about cases tapering off in Wuhan, but also likely it's still lying about the current spread of the virus through that country, since education about sanitation is not as ingrained the way it is here. And we have our own dolts... (The info comes from a Youtuber who lived in China till last year and his wife who is a physician and a Chinese national. They live in the U.S. now, but she is still in contact with other physicians there.)
no subject
Date: 2020-03-13 03:56 pm (UTC)The China information you provided fits with what the NY Times reported some time ago. (I ignore YouTube, because anyone can make a youtube video and there's no way of knowing if its valid.) But it was reported by other reliable outlets. The virus is traced to bats. And most likely the bats bit the wildlife stock that the vendor was selling and eating as a food source. This is what happened with both SARS and MERS. There's a documentary on Netflix (I think) called "Pandemic" about how this is happening all the time in China. Actually the plot of the film Contagion grabbed that idea. (Patient zero in that film contracted it by eating infected Chinese meat in China.)
China doesn't regulate anything. In fact people have been warned about traveling there - there are no health and safety regs, no environmental regs, etc. They believe the numbers coming from China - because it appears to have turned, and they are still reporting cases, also China did work with WHO. Unlike North Korea ...and I'm uncertain about Russia. Of course neither North Korea nor Russia have open borders and do not have open travel -- both are heavily regulated in other ways. While like I said, China isn't regulated at all - except in regards to freedom of speech. It's an odd culture/country.
no subject
Date: 2020-03-13 11:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-03-14 01:37 am (UTC)Italy is the one that is worrisome. Their health care system is better than ours and what caused them to collapse was being overburdened.
It's why everyone in the city is raiding the grocery stores. We're all terrified of going down the same road as Italy.