Mostly Apolitical Thread for Discussing/Venting our Rational/Irrational COVID-19 Fears and Experiences in 2020

Haha! Glad to get rolled in.

the problem with all of the half measures we're taking in this country = doing things 50 different ways from state to state and not having uniform standards or guidelines or any real enforcement = we're relying on companies to do right by their employees when they're notorious for not doing that.

so my friend, the one who recovered immediately stayed home from work when she is sick. In Virginia, where she lives, you cannot get tested without Virginia Department of Health approval. Their website and their hotline state that you need to contact your local health department to see if you can be tested, but to just self-isolate like you have it.

My friend attempted to get tested, called the local district health department/CDC - she could not be tested. You have to either be a healthcare professional with symptoms, live in an area of a suspected cluster of infections, work in a congregate setting (she does not), or be hospitalized due to fever or lower respiratory infection and have tested negative for flu. Obviously, she wasn't going to go to the hospital for mild symptoms, esp because non-COVID tests wouldn't be free and she couldn't afford them. and also who wants to take a bed away from the people that need it?

So the CDC/local health ordered her quarantined, and gave her a letter. 99% of the civilized world would accept this. However, her company is giving her a hard time that it's not a "doctor's note". They made a statement saying that others who "recently got sick" went to a virtual doctor and get notes. So my friend pointed out "what do you mean others - you mean others had COVID-like symptoms and you DIDN'T TELL US???!!". HR brushed that off like it was ok. So there's possibly a mass breakout at their office. Her BOSS is home sick too!

But she also said "wait, why should the department of health letter not qualify? once I told them I had COVID symptoms, the urgent care or primary care physician would have referred me to call the CDC/local health department to see if I can get tested, and I *DID* the latter. they wouldn't have me come in due to risk of getting their practice infected.

And a virtual teledoctor can't take my temperature or examine me thoroughly online, and it's not free! and I'm out of work right now! they literally would do the same thing the department of health did - listen to my symptoms, advise me to stay home".

so nobody will tell her if she can return to work. she is now thinking she might just leave the job and report them to OSHA/federal authorities for unsafe practices, since the company isn't following social distancing requirements, nor reporting known cases at the company to other employees.

so angry on her behalf.

well to your own credit at least you observed the two weeks distancing xp

to put what I said yesterday another way.
1) If I am trying to stay at home I need to know that the parameters of that home are safe and that I don't have another agency introducing external factors into it for no reason. So having some idiot decide that the entranceway to my space is open for them to hang out in is revolting.
& up to now I have kept the door unlocked to allow mail to be delivered and people to access me. Now have to keep the street door locked which totally screws that up since landlord hasn't fit an intercom to my door several flights up.

2) at a time that has probably increased suicidal thoughts among the population one measure that had been pretty recently introduced appears to have removed. There have been a large number of people jumping into the river here so they introduced a system where that river had patrols watching that they didn't. & I'm not seeing them around anymore when I've been in town.
Does need people to be that patrol and they would be vulnerable to the virus in the process. But surely they do need to have some measures against suicide.
Which has me wondering if similar things are happening elsewhere.

This new 'oh lol maybe you do need a mask after all, our bad, or maybe you don't actually, who can say (masturbates furiously while alternating between hysterical laughter and copious weeping)' shit is inducing the first mild twinges of despair in me. Like I didn't really have all that much faith in the people 'in charge' to begin with, but this kinda makes me feel like we're truly on our own to an unnerving extent.

the other thing I'm trying to do is boost awareness of the $600 unemployment because it seems to have been dwarfed by the news of the stimulus checks. lots don't know they're eligible for it so I want them to hear how it works.

fortunately it seems like states are just going to pay the extra out, but the federal government is funding it. so if you're already eligible for unemployment and getting it, they'll just start bumping your payments up $600 no application needed. it's those people who aren't usually eligible, like gig workers and contractors, self-employed people, people who had to quit their job because of coronavirus, or had their job not begin due to it that I worry about, as it appears they are going to have to apply for it.

States are still awaiting on guidance so I'm worried it will take weeks to implement. I hope not.

so right now I just keep sharing the article daily and telling everyone I know about it, and friends are sharing it. just feel like that's the best we can do. make sure nobody gets left behind.

in other news, most Floridians have spent over a week trying to file for unemployment and can't, due to understaffing and a flawed website, and they're "hiring" 100 more people as if that's going to help in the near future.

― narcissistic sleighride (Neanderthal), Monday, March 30, 2020 7:23 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

Been checking the website of my local unemployment office every day, and their recent update is basically "we're waiting for guidance, could take weeks." I fear that when they finally have this all sorted there is going to be a major traffic jam. I've tried calling, but no one answers the phone, because of course they don't.

I haven't been outside my front door for a week but I was running out of food, so I decided to make the trip to my local supermarket today, luckily it is literally at the end of my street. So, donning my makeshift face mask of a red silk handkerchief held together at the back by a Ramones badge I headed out. I was glad to see that the good people of the area were dutifully queueing along the pavement outside Morrisons, six feet apart, not so delighted to see some not so good people walking along the pavement - which was definitely not six feet wide - the whole length of the queue when there was an empty pavement just across the road. Anyway, the supermarket was pretty well stocked - I even bagged some toilet roll and eggs - for more or less everything but pasta and rice, I also appreciated the choice of background music they were piping in, The Carpenters, "Close to You". Got all I need for now, so didn't need to check out my local corner shops, I'm assuming they're still open if I am in desperate need of pasta or rice.

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my makeshift face mask of a red silk handkerchief held together at the back by a Ramones badge

LOL that is very Boab-like!

I was cleaning the basement and ran across some old painting/drywall masks.....I'm assuming there might be some value in them? I read an article that said no, but I feel like a lot of these articles have been about decreasing hoarding not actual facts

surely better than a makeshift one?

i think anything that reduces the odds of bacteria getting into your mouth and nose (or you spreading it!) is better than nothing, even if it isn't up to medical regs standard.

covid isn't bacteria but never mind - point stands!

copper chopper has been circling around menacingly for the last hour.

I actually do have an as-yet-unused N95 onhand (nb: my gf's pulmonologist brother is aware in case it's needed, also I found a donation resource but they're only picking up lots of 5 or more), from a recent incident involving an abundance of mouse droppings which I'd rather not recall too vividly, but going with makeshift if I'm not sick feels more responsible somehow. But I don't know. Who knows. Literally no one, that's who.

yeah I guess fuck it next time I have to get groceries I'll wear it, don't think I could donate three old Home Depot masks that have been sitting in a basement for years out of their plastic wrap

I had the same q earlier -- I have some 3m sanding masks that are N95, but the bag was sitting open and there was a dead spider in the bottom. There aren't a lot, and I'm holding on to them in case friends or neighbors need them, especially for a ride to a doctor. Still, keeping an eye out to see if local hospitals have a drop-off

wow i just did some googling about mouse droppings and did NOT like what i saw
you have to bury them to dispose of them properly?!

o_O

xpost I think our vet (or something I read?) told me that the reason cats are such effective killers of vermin is that, unlike dogs, they avoid eating animal poop, and the poop is often how pests spread disease.

Yeah, apparently it's possible to get hantavirus from agitating mouse droppings. I wasn't taking any chances.

In other news, I was out yesterday, and while it could be projection, the music I heard piped in a couple of places seemed conspicuously positive. "Vacation" by the Go-Gos, "California Girls" (Beach Boys original), Stevie Wonder "Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing" (kinda).

As I said earlier, I heard "Close to You" by the Carpenters. In the supermarket.

Heh, they should have swapped out "Vacation" for "Our Lips Are Sealed."

will my roommate ever learn that my working from home is somewhat more important (and contributes more to the rent on this apartment being paid tomorrow) than her watching grey's anatomy from home? stay tuned to find out

My somewhat vague, longish ago reading about the hantavirus was that it's from...mouse urine? When urine dries and gets incorporated into dust and then into the air? Gave me a turn, I can tell you.

xp katherine when this is over, or whatever passes for "over," we're finding you a new roommate/apartment. This one has Got To Go.

I complain a lot about Chris Cuomo (+), but I'm only going to say nice things about him for the time being...I was wondering if--if he's up to it, that is--him continuing to go on the air every night would be a good thing, in that it would help alleviate fear about this. But then I thought it could have the unintended consequence of confirming for some people their belief that this is no big thing, just a mild flu.

afaik, hantavirus in the US is sorta limited to the southwest, right?

Well, this has cheered me up a bit:

James Corden says he's been struggling with 'incredible spikes of anxiety and sadness' during the Covid-19 outbreak.

Lol, pouring one out for each one of Corden's anxiety spikes!

I've had decades of harsh lessons about how much that seems vitally important to me is out of my control, so I mostly skip past the anxiety straight to the sadness. Saves time and energy.

Just tried wrapping a scarf round my mouth when I went to supermarket and it was definitely worse than useless in that I ended up touching my face much more than I otherwise would, fiddling with it.

Wasn't sure how I'd react to this until it actually happened...I was waiting to exit the post office a while ago, standing away from the door until some other guy, around 35 or 40, entered. He held the door, I just waited. He let go, and as he walked away he said, "No need to not worry, god'll take care of this."

I let out a kind of muffled half-laugh, more derisive than I intended it to be. Some other time, I might have engaged--not about "He's doing a bang-up job so far," but the concept of the double-negative. (Positive that's exactly what he said. Maybe he was indeed telling me to worry.)

In other news, our daughter was reported awake with a low fever all night. No other symptoms mentioned. Trying to stay calm.

I missed that...best wishes.

sorry to hear that aimless, hope she's ok.

She does sometimes have low-grade unexplained fevers that abate within hours. This one seems to be more stubborn, having lasted all night. She had an elevated temp yesterday morning, too. If this takes a bad turn I'm about as mentally prepared as I am capable of being, but the prospect of not being able to sit with her is much harder than any possibility I've considered over these many years.

I'm not going to assume the worst, yet. I'll post more if matters become any clearer.

Oh, Aimless, best of luck.

sending some love your family's way, Aimless

oh aimless hoping for the best

I've got everything crossed for you and your daughter

thinking of you and yours, aimless

really sorry to hera

*hear -- apologies

All the best, Aimless. Thinking of your daughter and her comfort.

Best wishes to you and your family, Aimless.

thinking of her and sending well wishes, Aimless

fuck! Aimless, thinking of you

This could still easily turn in almost any direction. Her health and physical being are full of deep mysteries, very unpredictable and confounding. But I gladly accept all good wishes!

But to give a better sense of her, here's a pic of her and me from 2012:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8183/8146701943_a122735976_z.jpg