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

I think a part is click and collect of one kind or another - food and shops are all still open, unlike March. That plus many more workplaces making people come in and I guess people trying to find less crowded parks.

(Parks are also likely more crowded because there are fewer hours of daylight. Ours are too busy but at least the big mixing groups have gone - as far as I could see it was mainly families and couples with the very occasional extra people)

masks have made people feel safer, which might explain the distance thing.

the stay at home or ppl die message is pointless when they haven't abandoned their murderous "everyone get back to work" policy in any significant way.

In real terms it's plain that the first message is pro forma and intended only to cover their arses and give the appearance of action, while the back to work policy carries the only message that's serious. good luck uk.

Woke up in the middle of the night to a brief wave of nausea/sweats on the second night home after spending a week visiting my father-in-law in hospice at my sister-in-law's. Started freaking out, but it has apparently passed.

Well damn, this quote knocked the wind out of me. This is the chief of emergency services at the hospital I work at (normally on-site, not now obv.)

"We are still admitting more than we are discharging which is obviously not sustainable long term," he said. "We still have capacity and are still able to care for both COVID and non-COVID patients, but filling up faster then we can sustain. We have never seen it this bad. I was the physician at the scene at the Columbine High School Shooting and in the ED for the Aurora Theater shootings and this is just as bad. Different, but just as bad."

I've seen people say similar about the 7/7 bombings. Hideous as it was, it was a one-off event and they had loads of outside support available.

ned, as a littleton resident present in area for both Columbine and Aurora i feel crazy shook reading that, and i hope you all to stay strong and smart. so sorry to read that, it's very rough news.

Hey, just an update from my last post of my elderly mom being released from the hospital.

Ok...so if your elderly parent/friend was given a prescribed steroid to combat covid, just know that your parent/friend can (and probably will - Christ, no-one told me of this was a very common side effect) suffer from mania! My mom is trying to buy me a condo, lol. I've been able to convince her that she's chemically instable for the next few weeks.
All the medical records tell me I have to navigate her for the next few weeks.

It's never over.

To be clear, I've done some drugs in my life - some of which made me feel like superman. And my mom is now feeling that way. LOL

I could tell she was way off after a minute or so of talking to her. She feels amazing now (of course, lol).

It’s very very very common to experience hypomania when taking steroids

That's what t was about when he had the vid. Innit.
Hard to tell what with the normal mania.

Or to put that another way t was trying to make out it was no big deal and he'd never felt better. Hope it didn't prompt magaheads to go and get the rona in sympathy. Cos I bet they wouldn't have watched where they were spreading it like.

I got a Bell's palsy for christmas, so have been on steroids - I was surprised my GP didn't warn me about interaction with my bipolar disorder! Was not a fun couple of weeks. Face is working again now though.

Glad you have a working face again dowd, sorry you had to deal with that.

Thanks, but it wasn't a big deal.

Obviously it's a small concern when compared to the still terrifying levels of deaths and hospitalizations we are seeing, but I have been spending a lot of time thinking about live concerts and how we really haven't had any sort of reckoning with how far away we are from being back to anything even remotely approaching "normal".

Obviously with the vaccine on the horizon and Fauci's comments about live events returning, in some form, maybe as soon as this Fall, people are thinking about it again. And these are undoubtedly good signs and puts us in a better position than we were six months. And, I am really thrilled that musicians will be back on stage and earning some money, that's a net good for the world, for a whole lot of reasons.

That said, I think it's going to be time measured in years, not months, before concert goers are back to any sort of regular attendance. First, and most obviously, we don't know what ramping this industry back up will look like. Capacities will likely be down, but does that mean 75% of pre-COVID crowds? 50%? 25%? Time will tell and it may be a slow climb back up, particularly for smaller, indoor venues.

But the one thing I haven't really seen anyone grapple with is how the demand for live concerts is going to be absolutely astronomical when they start up again, and rightfully so. People are hungry for it and will undoubtedly jump at the chance to see bands live again. Setting aside the logistical concerns of online sales selling out even more faster than ever before, I fear seeing what the ticket prices are going to be. I won't be at all surprised to see national touring act tickets being 3-5x what they were in pre-COVID times. Ticket prices on the secondhand market (fuckin' thanks again for that, Ticketmaster) are going to be unimaginably high for some time.

Hopefully I'm wrong and things will settle down sooner rather than later, but even pre-COVID times it felt like popular national (and international) touring acts and festivals were slowly becoming the playgrounds of the rich and I fear that situation is only going to be exacerbated when the industry ramps up again.

I mean, I'm not really concerned about those popular national touring acts? If you're enough of a dope to spend a ton of money on concert tickets for a stadium or arena show, then that's on you.

Bit more worried about smaller bands and venues, but maybe I'm misunderstanding you.

My concern is small arts organizations not making it.

Exactly. The number of literary arts venues and groups is going to drop precipitously the longer this continues.

Oh absolutely I'm most worried about the small, local venues and organizations. Definitely.

My point was separate from that, tl;dr I think the demand is going to drive ticket prices up to really high levels. I don't think it will impact the local jazz shows, house punk shows, DIY stuff in that respect, but I'm talking anything from the latest Pitchfork hyped bands on up to the Taylor Swift/BTS level mega-stars - I think those ticket prices are going to shoot into the stratosphere.

As a random example, let's say someone at the level of a Jason Isbell. Not exactly selling out arenas, but a lot of hype and support from indie radio stations. Last time he came through Chicago, I think ticket prices were around the $40-45 level. I won't be at all surprised that it costs three figures to see him on his next tour.

Oh yeah, for sure. I guess that I just *personally* don't care for any of that latter stuff, and can't imagine ever spending more than like $75 on a concert ticket. Most I ever spent was $250 for two tickets to see the Scissor Sisters open for Lady Gaga in early 2011 that was a gift for an ex.

(I also don't even know who Isbell is, which shows how much I actually keep track of this stuff)

Isbell is like one of the only bearable people in the universe adjacent to country

Oh yeah, I cringe at ever spending that much too, I just think that the higher prices are going to trickle down and even "known" touring bands hitting up 1,000 seat theaters (like, say, the Metro in Chicago) are going to be seeing triple digit ticket prices for awhile.

I mean, I hope I'm wrong! I just think the demand is really going to drive up ticket prices for a few years as things open up. But let's get there first and keep supporting the small, local places so they can still be around as an alternative!

Agreed!

the small arts org/venue that i am (was) on the board of tanked in June :/

I am really curious about the touring demand question, tbh i'm not 100% sold on the idea that there will be an explosion of pent-up demand for live entertainment, i am wondering if the opposite will happen, if the effect of 2+ years of fear and trauma will make many people reticent to immediately go back out and cram themselves into packed clubs and arenas. i think it could be just as likely that there will be a glut of supply as every act jumps to get back on the road while the audiences are still taking baby steps to reacclimate to normal pre-covid life

Pretty sure demand is going to be huge. I was thinking of this exact problem the other day and came to my personal conclusion that even if all of the bands I actually care about sold out too quickly or cost too much money or whatever, I'm going to go to as many shows as I can. Could be MC Hammer at a state fair or whatever.

There's always buying digital music and mail-order merch to support bands. Went much harder on that in 2020 than I have in many years

https://mixtapeclub.net

There's always buying digital music and mail-order merch to support bands. Went much harder on that in 2020 than I have in many years

Been doing a ton of each, to be sure! Still not a patch on the live music experience at all, imho. As of today, 361 days since I've seen a live show.

Sort of hit a point where lock downs in the UK feel weird - sort of wearying but not strict enough at the same time.

totally. feels too loosey-goosey to me. there are prets that are still open.

My parents should get vaccinated soon, and we are so desperate for the kids to go there for a while and to get them out of the house so everybody can have a fucking break. Kids have been virtual this entire time. I was thinking that this should be able to happen in a month or so, maybe spring break?

Then wife sent me links to articles about how it still might not be safe and whatnot. I am leaning hard towards FUCK THAT SHIT THESE KIDS HAVE TO GO SOMEWHERE OR I AM GOING TO LOSE MY GODDAMNED MIND. My conservative parents have been pretty understanding about not being able to hug the kids and have them over, but they will flip if they've had both shots, waited three weeks and still can't see kids.

The kids aren't going to get them sick probably, because the kids and my wife have been very isolated. I get tested once a week. Technically my parents could still get the kids sick?

I can not with this shit any longer.

if i were you, and as long as my vaccinated parents weren't licking doorknobs and going to choir practice in a basement, i would send the kids over.

basically for the reasons under "Can Vaccinated People Spread COVID?"
here https://emilyoster.substack.com/p/post-vaccine-behavior-can-i-go-wild

one of my best friends from high school is an upstanding dude but he has a tendency to spread nonsense rumors, and though usually they're about NFL trades, today he briefly sparked a panic on a FB feed because he said the Orange County Convention Center site ran out of Moderna vaccines and they were replenished with Pfizer only, implying that people who got their first shot as Moderna won't be able to get their 2nd anytime soon (or that they might be given Pfizer's instead).

so he has people freaking the fuck out for their parents on FB, and I found an article that within 5 minutes had the health director indicating they had vials of both. there were literally people in a panic because their parents had been vaccinated there and were about to start a mini-uproar.

granted, I don't BLAME people for being freaked out because this rollout has so far been a complete mess, particularly in Orange County (which is not where my folks got vaxxed). but man I wish people, even close friends of mine, would WAIT to confirm things before they get everybody in an uproar. especially since he probably just overheard something in passing and misunderstood it.

and..the article was from yesterday which is a day after my friend claimed to have overheard there was no Moderna left.

there were also two friends who aren't elderly, but one's a teacher working in a classroom (so she'll be part of 1-B, which is the next phase), and there were extra, leftover doses that were about to get thrown away at a facility (and no more appointments for the day), so they went and got them, and now people are giving them grief.

they were going to go unused if nobody claimed them - i don't get why everything has to have shaming attached to it.

Back to issues with restarting live performance, as it's my field of business and has me terrified, here's some pertinent links that i've been reading lately:

https://gothamist.com/arts-entertainment/cuomo-announces-plan-bring-back-live-events-fueled-rapid-testing
https://www.gothamgazette.com/opinion/10070-plan-save-the-arts-in-new-york-broadway-beyond
https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/9509810/save-our-stages-act-passage-niva-director-next-steps
https://musicxcorona.substack.com/
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/09/arts/fauci-coronavirus-performing-arts.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2qjmuZ11fw

In the UK, I've heard of people administering vaccines being told they can only be vaccinated if people don't turn up to their appointment - that is, if the vaccine has been prepared and is likely to go to waste.

Also, surprised to read (in the Guardian) that a majority support a ban on individuals from different households being able to walk outside together. I'm guessing this isn't a major source of transmission? Perhaps it is?

I'm guessing this isn't a major source of transmission? Perhaps it is?

The more-contagious variant hasn't been around long enough for anyone to get a firm grip on that one way or the other. It is estimated as 50% easier to catch, so outdoor transmission will become more common than it was in the first six or eight months, but who can say if that would be enough to become a significant problem? Just eliminate every unnecessary risk and you're doing all that's possible.

I knew things were bad in the UK but apparently now my in-laws' entire family in the UK currently have COVID

Also, surprised to read (in the Guardian) that a majority support a ban on individuals from different households being able to walk outside together. I'm guessing this isn't a major source of transmission? Perhaps it is?

― djh

I've always thought these kind of restrictions are for them to keep you from doing things you shouldn't do by preventing you from doing things they can verify. Like people from different households are likely to have met at one household, indoors, maybe had a few drinks and then went for a walk. They can't check inside peoples' houses, but they can check public areas.

Thanks, Aimless.

I've been fairly "locked down", I think. Definitely stricter than the guidance has allowed. I guess what I mean is that I'm surprised people are saying they supportive of restricting outdoor walks?

"household group walks" is a rule that cunts who don't care if they kill people can exploit by lying that they're observing it. abolishing the rule means removing cover for the lie.

Sorry to hear that Katherine - hope they are okay.

Something has definitely shifted, in the sense that ... people I know are starting to have Covid, whereas for a long time it was "friends of friends", often with specific circumstances.

also, deaths in the UK are going fucking wild due to ten months of pissweak shithouse rules, a lot of people will probably say they support anything up to armed guards in gasmask delivering food parcels via trebuchet bcz it'll be more effective than any gov't policy to date.

I've always thought these kind of restrictions are for them to keep you from doing things you shouldn't do by preventing you from doing things they can verify. Like people from different households are likely to have met at one household, indoors, maybe had a few drinks and then went for a walk. They can't check inside peoples' houses, but they can check public areas.

― nickn,

Maybe?

Actually, may have lost track of the rules but in my head at least, it's not one household, is it? [at the moment]. It's one individual with a child under five?

Aye, sic.

Was watching one of the press briefings recently where I was expecting there to be an announcement about increased lock down (as above, something that makes me feel shifty while welcoming it) ... and it was just self congratulatory tat about vaccines. Vaccines are brilliant but the messaging is that it will be alright regardless of what you do.