![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkat1. Me vs. the Corona Virus
I'm still here. Still well reporting from my apartment in pandemic central. (Yes, I'm hibernating in my apartment and am somewhat afraid to leave my apartment. When I do - I wear a hat, and my face mask. The hat is to keep my hair out of my face. I tried gloves - but decided they didn't help all that much. I may, however, use them for laundry. Assuming I ever find the courage to actually go down and do it. I keep washing items out in my sink and hanging them to dry - which won't quite work with the sheets and towels. Although I do have more than one set.)
I did take a brief walk and I got some face masks - the Amazon order came in, with the masks from China. China is now shipping masks to the US via Amazon. Which is the least they can do, since back in December and January, we were shipping masks to China. My Crazy-Ass Uncle's face mask also came - it's a filter mask used for industrial cleaning, apparently, not medical grade. I actually think the Chinese one's might be better. But I'm a little wary - since the box was beaten up a bit in transit - it was in a sealed plastic mailing envelope. And the box wasn't overly sturdy, also just about everything on it was in Chinese. They are the blue and white cloth masks. I wiped one off with a Clorox wipe and used it to take a walk. [Discussed the masks with a former college bud, who is sending me one from Arizona. She advised that I hand wash the China ones and go with those over the one my Crazy Uncle sent.]
I didn't walk far - just up the block and back. Lots of people were in face masks. Not everyone. Two kids on bikes - weren't. But most of the bicyclists were, as were people walking about. The doors to the apartment complex are now, also wrapped with plastic. The incremental changes are fascinating. A week ago it wasn't. Now there's a plastic shield over the buzzer buttons, the door handles are wrapped in plastic, and the elevator buttons covered with plastic.
Everyone that I working remotely with appears to still be fine. None of us appear to have COVID-19. Which is a relief. Our boss asks at each staff meeting, twice weekly.
We're constantly check with each other here and there.
My family doesn't appear to have it either - outside of the one family member, who recovered. My mother keeps calling all of them to check in. My brother, who is turning 50 this year, in a few weeks actually, had intended to get a wind-up watch for his birthday, but is putting that on hold, and since both his wife and himself were turning 50 this year - they were considering a jaunt to an island near Portugal, but that's out now. It's amazing how much we used to take for granted.
And yes, I feel very spoiled. Because I'm surrounded by folks who are struggling, not near me, about ten to twenty blocks away, but close enough.
That's the thing about NYC, walk just a few blocks to the East or West and you run into low income and poverty. Walk to the North and you see insane wealth, walk to the South and upper middle class. The rich and the poor live next door to each other in Brooklyn, practically on top of each other. And most of the poor are our grocery store clerks, delivery people, postal workers, etc.
The anxiety isn't as bad today - but that's partly because we had a wonderful thunderstorm at 2pm while I was on a conference call. Then the clouds blew away and we had blue sky, sun, and wind. It was lovely. And I took a CBD, which is very calming. Also listened to music all day long.
Trying not to go shopping again. I just read an article about a potential food shortage - which did not help. Getting deliveries online is...well, difficult? NY is stepping up efforts to feed everyone in the city. But there could be issues down the road. I really want chocolate and am hoping my chocolate delivery arrives sooner than later - since I kind of ran out.
2. New York vs. the Corona Virus
New York is now, according to the news and various officials, the epi-center of the Pandemic. Let's face it, it was only a matter of time.
Apparently New York State has more cases than any country outside of the US with:
Total Cases - 159,937
Deaths - 7,067
Lovely.
Of course, as my Uncle in Philly pointed out, New York is testing more than anyone else is at the moment. They broke away from WHO and the CDC way back in March - when the CDC refused to let them test because it wasn't clear anyone had been in contact with China and there were no signs of China bringing it over to NY. (I read an article in the NY Times this morning that kind of explained all of this. Apparently the Federal Government and CDC made the mistake of thinking the viral strands were only originating from China. But NY's testing has shown that there is another related strand of the virus that originated in Europe, specifically Italy. And NY got it from travelers who'd recently been to Italy and Europe, not China. The two strands are similar and part of the same virus, it's just a mutated genome. It's not stronger than the original genome or anything. It's still the coronavirus. Sometimes I think I'm a frustrated infectious disease pathologist. I find this stuff fascinating.
Here's the article link - New York CoronaVirus Cases Linked to Europe Genomes]
Anyhow, NY decided, okay, that's it - we're doing it on our own. And then the CDC came back and said - oh, you can test now. NY looked at the CDC and said, "uh, about that, we went ahead and did it and guess what we have over 100 cases so far just in one area and over a few days of testing." NY went one step further and asked pharmaceutical companies and labs to help them come up with their own tests. In short, NY went nuts with testing. And the Governor of New York is attempting to find a way to make it possible for everyone in the state to be tested.
Regarding the test? It used to take ten days - still might in Florida. My cousin who lives in Orlando wasn't sure if she had it, took the test and had to wait ten days for the results. Now, a New Jersey firm is seeking approval for a test that takes less than two hours.
New Jersey and New York currently have the most cases and the most deaths in the US.
There is some good news. According to the Gov's press conference today, we finally flattened the curve. But as his email to me stipulates, now is not the time for complacency.
Now is not the time to relax and be complacent. I am proud that New Yorkers have so far acted responsibly, and diligently, and we are saving lives by the actions we are taking today. I've said we're "New York Tough," because every day is tough on many, many levels. Our individual and collective actions appear to be succeeding in flattening the curve. As I have said repeatedly, this virus is very good at what it does. It is efficient. We are too. So Stay Home — Stop the Spread — Save Lives.
Here's what else you need to know tonight:
1. The State is opening five new testing facilities downstate, primarily in minority communities. A drive-through mobile testing facility will open at the Sears Parking Lot at 2307 Beverly Road in Brooklyn tomorrow at 12:30 p.m., and a drive-through mobile testing facility opened at the Club House at Aqueduct Race Track Parking Lot, 110-00 Rockaway Blvd., in Queens, on Monday, April 6th. In addition, the state is opening three walk-in facilities at health care centers in the South Bronx; Jamaica, Queens; and in Brownsville, Brooklyn. The walk-in facilities will open next week and will be by appointment only. Residents who would like to be tested at these facilities must make an appointment by calling 888-364-3065.
2. New York is tough but "New York Loves." A new initiative called "New York Loves" will coordinate foundations, philanthropies, charities and other nonprofits that want to help or donate to the state during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. New York Secretary of State Rosanna Rosado and State Director of Nonprofits Fran Barrett will coordinate this effort and work with local governments that need additional help.
3. To help develop a treatment, I am asking all New Yorkers who have recovered from COVID-19 to contact the state and donate blood. Individuals who tested positive and then recovered from the virus may have convalescent plasma in their blood, which has antibodies against the virus and could help with the development of a treatment for the virus. More information about how to donate is available here.
4. We continue to mourn the New Yorkers we have lost to this vicious virus. I will issue an Executive Order to bring additional funeral directors to New York to help with the high number of deaths due to COVID-19. There are no words that can express our grief and heartbreak at the lives we have lost. It is a loss to the very fabric of New York.
Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": New York State has distributed over one million free bottles of "NYS Clean" hand sanitizer across all 62 counties in the state. The hand sanitizer has been distributed to county emergency managers, first responders, healthcare workers, nursing homes, law enforcement, homeless organizations, other non-profits and transportation systems.
3. I'm tired and happy for a three day weekend, we get tomorrow off as a holiday. Granted most of us are working from home, but as one co-worker put it - he's busier at home than he was at work for some reason. It never quite shuts off at home unless you force it to. Also he's teaching his kids and informed me - as pretty much everyone who is currently home-schooling their kids has - that teachers are grossly under-paid. I'd agree - teaching kids is hard. Mainly because you have to discipline other people's kids and convince them to focus. I knew that when I was in school - I always felt sorry for the teachers. I wanted to learn, everyone else wanted to play spit-ball, tease each other, and kid around. 90% of teaching is performance and patience - if you are really good at improv, patience and performance, you'd be good at teaching. And it helps if you like other people's children. Also there's a heck of lot of disciplining going on. I couldn't be a teach - it's in the category of jobs that I cannot see myself doing.
Considering taking a belly dance online. All my exercise or cardio work seems to be dancing around my apartment to music. I miss long walks. I'm considering trying again this weekend - but I don't know. It's frustrating and anxiety inducing trying to circle around people - particularly the folks who've decided to take their entire family out for a stroll. My friend Rahael, on FB, had issues with runners, who kept brushing past her. Apparently you really need to avoid runners and bikers. There's a An European Study that Isn't really a study that recommends Bikers and Runners exercise social distancing and space.
The article link appears to be skeptical of some of it and even the researcher states that his findings are overhyped and misunderstood. Sigh. Confused? Me too.
Although all I want to do is take long walks outside.
I may veg and watch Disney + tomorrow, also flirting with the grocery store. May venture into it with face mask and gloves and hat. See what happens. And flirting with doing laundry - which I may attempt at some point this week or next. Definitely considering making up the bed clean and switching out towels.
My morbid fascination with the stats continues, I like to know where we are in the fight against the virus and how bad the damage is - if I can see it, I can figure out how to handle it. (I am not good at ignoring what's happening, I think it's the frustrated journalist in me?) I've decided humanity has finally found an enemy far worse than itself. I mentioned this to my mother today. And she remarked that there was no terrorist activity any longer. They'd shut down. And this virus was far worse than anything they've been able to come up with. Yes, Nature is far more deadly than we realize, we underestimate her at our own peril. The Pope recently remarked that he thought the virus might be Nature's response to climate change and pollution.
It's fun listening to how Cuomo discusses the virus - he treats it as if it is a thinking, feeling, living entity, akin to a terrorist that he needs to root out and defeat at all costs.
I'm still here. Still well reporting from my apartment in pandemic central. (Yes, I'm hibernating in my apartment and am somewhat afraid to leave my apartment. When I do - I wear a hat, and my face mask. The hat is to keep my hair out of my face. I tried gloves - but decided they didn't help all that much. I may, however, use them for laundry. Assuming I ever find the courage to actually go down and do it. I keep washing items out in my sink and hanging them to dry - which won't quite work with the sheets and towels. Although I do have more than one set.)
I did take a brief walk and I got some face masks - the Amazon order came in, with the masks from China. China is now shipping masks to the US via Amazon. Which is the least they can do, since back in December and January, we were shipping masks to China. My Crazy-Ass Uncle's face mask also came - it's a filter mask used for industrial cleaning, apparently, not medical grade. I actually think the Chinese one's might be better. But I'm a little wary - since the box was beaten up a bit in transit - it was in a sealed plastic mailing envelope. And the box wasn't overly sturdy, also just about everything on it was in Chinese. They are the blue and white cloth masks. I wiped one off with a Clorox wipe and used it to take a walk. [Discussed the masks with a former college bud, who is sending me one from Arizona. She advised that I hand wash the China ones and go with those over the one my Crazy Uncle sent.]
I didn't walk far - just up the block and back. Lots of people were in face masks. Not everyone. Two kids on bikes - weren't. But most of the bicyclists were, as were people walking about. The doors to the apartment complex are now, also wrapped with plastic. The incremental changes are fascinating. A week ago it wasn't. Now there's a plastic shield over the buzzer buttons, the door handles are wrapped in plastic, and the elevator buttons covered with plastic.
Everyone that I working remotely with appears to still be fine. None of us appear to have COVID-19. Which is a relief. Our boss asks at each staff meeting, twice weekly.
We're constantly check with each other here and there.
My family doesn't appear to have it either - outside of the one family member, who recovered. My mother keeps calling all of them to check in. My brother, who is turning 50 this year, in a few weeks actually, had intended to get a wind-up watch for his birthday, but is putting that on hold, and since both his wife and himself were turning 50 this year - they were considering a jaunt to an island near Portugal, but that's out now. It's amazing how much we used to take for granted.
And yes, I feel very spoiled. Because I'm surrounded by folks who are struggling, not near me, about ten to twenty blocks away, but close enough.
That's the thing about NYC, walk just a few blocks to the East or West and you run into low income and poverty. Walk to the North and you see insane wealth, walk to the South and upper middle class. The rich and the poor live next door to each other in Brooklyn, practically on top of each other. And most of the poor are our grocery store clerks, delivery people, postal workers, etc.
The anxiety isn't as bad today - but that's partly because we had a wonderful thunderstorm at 2pm while I was on a conference call. Then the clouds blew away and we had blue sky, sun, and wind. It was lovely. And I took a CBD, which is very calming. Also listened to music all day long.
Trying not to go shopping again. I just read an article about a potential food shortage - which did not help. Getting deliveries online is...well, difficult? NY is stepping up efforts to feed everyone in the city. But there could be issues down the road. I really want chocolate and am hoping my chocolate delivery arrives sooner than later - since I kind of ran out.
2. New York vs. the Corona Virus
New York is now, according to the news and various officials, the epi-center of the Pandemic. Let's face it, it was only a matter of time.
Apparently New York State has more cases than any country outside of the US with:
Total Cases - 159,937
Deaths - 7,067
Lovely.
Of course, as my Uncle in Philly pointed out, New York is testing more than anyone else is at the moment. They broke away from WHO and the CDC way back in March - when the CDC refused to let them test because it wasn't clear anyone had been in contact with China and there were no signs of China bringing it over to NY. (I read an article in the NY Times this morning that kind of explained all of this. Apparently the Federal Government and CDC made the mistake of thinking the viral strands were only originating from China. But NY's testing has shown that there is another related strand of the virus that originated in Europe, specifically Italy. And NY got it from travelers who'd recently been to Italy and Europe, not China. The two strands are similar and part of the same virus, it's just a mutated genome. It's not stronger than the original genome or anything. It's still the coronavirus. Sometimes I think I'm a frustrated infectious disease pathologist. I find this stuff fascinating.
Here's the article link - New York CoronaVirus Cases Linked to Europe Genomes]
Anyhow, NY decided, okay, that's it - we're doing it on our own. And then the CDC came back and said - oh, you can test now. NY looked at the CDC and said, "uh, about that, we went ahead and did it and guess what we have over 100 cases so far just in one area and over a few days of testing." NY went one step further and asked pharmaceutical companies and labs to help them come up with their own tests. In short, NY went nuts with testing. And the Governor of New York is attempting to find a way to make it possible for everyone in the state to be tested.
Regarding the test? It used to take ten days - still might in Florida. My cousin who lives in Orlando wasn't sure if she had it, took the test and had to wait ten days for the results. Now, a New Jersey firm is seeking approval for a test that takes less than two hours.
New Jersey and New York currently have the most cases and the most deaths in the US.
There is some good news. According to the Gov's press conference today, we finally flattened the curve. But as his email to me stipulates, now is not the time for complacency.
Now is not the time to relax and be complacent. I am proud that New Yorkers have so far acted responsibly, and diligently, and we are saving lives by the actions we are taking today. I've said we're "New York Tough," because every day is tough on many, many levels. Our individual and collective actions appear to be succeeding in flattening the curve. As I have said repeatedly, this virus is very good at what it does. It is efficient. We are too. So Stay Home — Stop the Spread — Save Lives.
Here's what else you need to know tonight:
1. The State is opening five new testing facilities downstate, primarily in minority communities. A drive-through mobile testing facility will open at the Sears Parking Lot at 2307 Beverly Road in Brooklyn tomorrow at 12:30 p.m., and a drive-through mobile testing facility opened at the Club House at Aqueduct Race Track Parking Lot, 110-00 Rockaway Blvd., in Queens, on Monday, April 6th. In addition, the state is opening three walk-in facilities at health care centers in the South Bronx; Jamaica, Queens; and in Brownsville, Brooklyn. The walk-in facilities will open next week and will be by appointment only. Residents who would like to be tested at these facilities must make an appointment by calling 888-364-3065.
2. New York is tough but "New York Loves." A new initiative called "New York Loves" will coordinate foundations, philanthropies, charities and other nonprofits that want to help or donate to the state during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. New York Secretary of State Rosanna Rosado and State Director of Nonprofits Fran Barrett will coordinate this effort and work with local governments that need additional help.
3. To help develop a treatment, I am asking all New Yorkers who have recovered from COVID-19 to contact the state and donate blood. Individuals who tested positive and then recovered from the virus may have convalescent plasma in their blood, which has antibodies against the virus and could help with the development of a treatment for the virus. More information about how to donate is available here.
4. We continue to mourn the New Yorkers we have lost to this vicious virus. I will issue an Executive Order to bring additional funeral directors to New York to help with the high number of deaths due to COVID-19. There are no words that can express our grief and heartbreak at the lives we have lost. It is a loss to the very fabric of New York.
Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": New York State has distributed over one million free bottles of "NYS Clean" hand sanitizer across all 62 counties in the state. The hand sanitizer has been distributed to county emergency managers, first responders, healthcare workers, nursing homes, law enforcement, homeless organizations, other non-profits and transportation systems.
3. I'm tired and happy for a three day weekend, we get tomorrow off as a holiday. Granted most of us are working from home, but as one co-worker put it - he's busier at home than he was at work for some reason. It never quite shuts off at home unless you force it to. Also he's teaching his kids and informed me - as pretty much everyone who is currently home-schooling their kids has - that teachers are grossly under-paid. I'd agree - teaching kids is hard. Mainly because you have to discipline other people's kids and convince them to focus. I knew that when I was in school - I always felt sorry for the teachers. I wanted to learn, everyone else wanted to play spit-ball, tease each other, and kid around. 90% of teaching is performance and patience - if you are really good at improv, patience and performance, you'd be good at teaching. And it helps if you like other people's children. Also there's a heck of lot of disciplining going on. I couldn't be a teach - it's in the category of jobs that I cannot see myself doing.
Considering taking a belly dance online. All my exercise or cardio work seems to be dancing around my apartment to music. I miss long walks. I'm considering trying again this weekend - but I don't know. It's frustrating and anxiety inducing trying to circle around people - particularly the folks who've decided to take their entire family out for a stroll. My friend Rahael, on FB, had issues with runners, who kept brushing past her. Apparently you really need to avoid runners and bikers. There's a An European Study that Isn't really a study that recommends Bikers and Runners exercise social distancing and space.
The article link appears to be skeptical of some of it and even the researcher states that his findings are overhyped and misunderstood. Sigh. Confused? Me too.
Although all I want to do is take long walks outside.
I may veg and watch Disney + tomorrow, also flirting with the grocery store. May venture into it with face mask and gloves and hat. See what happens. And flirting with doing laundry - which I may attempt at some point this week or next. Definitely considering making up the bed clean and switching out towels.
My morbid fascination with the stats continues, I like to know where we are in the fight against the virus and how bad the damage is - if I can see it, I can figure out how to handle it. (I am not good at ignoring what's happening, I think it's the frustrated journalist in me?) I've decided humanity has finally found an enemy far worse than itself. I mentioned this to my mother today. And she remarked that there was no terrorist activity any longer. They'd shut down. And this virus was far worse than anything they've been able to come up with. Yes, Nature is far more deadly than we realize, we underestimate her at our own peril. The Pope recently remarked that he thought the virus might be Nature's response to climate change and pollution.
It's fun listening to how Cuomo discusses the virus - he treats it as if it is a thinking, feeling, living entity, akin to a terrorist that he needs to root out and defeat at all costs.