The Coronovirus pandemic continues. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world are suffering from the symptoms, among them both of Princess Eugenie's in-laws. Mr. Brooksbank is in the ICU; Mrs. Brooksbank is recovering at home, apparently with the assistance of Eugenie and Jack.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post has put a mainstream media endorsement on the idea that China has vastly undercounted its dead. According to reporter Anna Fifield, "official Chinese statistics put Wuhan's coronavirus death toll at 2563. Evidence coming out of the city suggests it was actually more than 40,000."
So much for all those stories saying "The UK now has more deaths than China!" or "The US now has more deaths than China!"
Finally, I found myself wanting to wear a mask for the first time yesterday. I was at the grocery store - retrospectively, a poor choice, since the first Friday of the month is bound to attract a lot of newly-paid shoppers.
The store had stuck a promotional candy display in the middle of an entry aisle, pushing the streams of shoppers to the side around it.
We were packed together quite closely. Uncomfortable! Wished I'd had something to protect myself.
I ended up holding my shopping list in front of my face.
Let's continue the conversation.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post has put a mainstream media endorsement on the idea that China has vastly undercounted its dead. According to reporter Anna Fifield, "official Chinese statistics put Wuhan's coronavirus death toll at 2563. Evidence coming out of the city suggests it was actually more than 40,000."
So much for all those stories saying "The UK now has more deaths than China!" or "The US now has more deaths than China!"
Finally, I found myself wanting to wear a mask for the first time yesterday. I was at the grocery store - retrospectively, a poor choice, since the first Friday of the month is bound to attract a lot of newly-paid shoppers.
The store had stuck a promotional candy display in the middle of an entry aisle, pushing the streams of shoppers to the side around it.
We were packed together quite closely. Uncomfortable! Wished I'd had something to protect myself.
I ended up holding my shopping list in front of my face.
Let's continue the conversation.
Comments
Now if we could just close our borders for a month we will be good to go. Of course, this won't happen, but it should!
Morning, Everyone!
Once you've secured your own area, all you need is a couple of super-spreaders from a nearby area and you're in serious trouble.
who both live one county over.
On Reddit another Civil War is brewing between FL and NY. Each blaming the other for spreading it. I do believe at this point that it would be beneficial if these two Governors would close their borders.
You aren't alone. I yelled at the pug today. Who yells at a pug?
In South Africa, the lockdown happened quickly and it is one of the strictest being imposed in the world. The spread of the virus seems to be under control and very few have died (so far, the police have killed more people in just over a week than the virus has in a month), but projections were that at least 60% of the population would be infected and more than 5% would die.
As I said in another post, as I see it, the real reason for any kind of lockdown is twofold:
1. Control the movement of people so you can test and find out key information such as how many are infected, how many are asymptomatic, how many are ill but will recover, how many will be infected, get ill, recover and still be infectious ... (it seems that the information from China was not accurate at all so all the modelling and planning done at the earlier stage of the pandemic will have been based on very inaccurate information).
2. Bring down the number of infections and thus the number of people requiring ICU and hospitalisation and the number of deaths (the truth is that health systems and the funeral business cannot cope with the increasing number of very ill and dying people - in any country).
Lockdown will not stop the virus from spreading. As Nutty said, you just need one or two super spreaders (and these people are often asymptomatic) to start up the pandemic in an area all over again. Lockdown buys time (for a more effective treatment, for a vaccine, for quicker and more accurate tests ...) and brings the pandemic down to manageable levels.
Please don't leave. People are just hyper sensitive right now. I have friends in FL and close family in NY. People all over the country in each state are acting stupidly right now. There is just more focus on NY/NJ and s FL due to these areas being hotspots. The spring breakers were stupid and foolish, but the mayors of each beach should have stopped them. NY/NJ unfortunately has two major airports that brought a lot in. We stand with y'all and with FL during this horror. Personally at this point I think all unnecessary travel between states should be banned. It's like Nutty said- it only takes one super spreader. Who knows, that super spreader could come from NC. We all have to be vigilant until there is a vaccine.
https://uk.yahoo.com/news/mp-warned-police-totally-irresponsible-151056326.html
I wonder if it would have gone unreported, were it not for an MP getting a reprimand?
Sends hugs to you and your pug.
With this Coronavirus, there's always something isn't there?! Weekend or no weekend. I'm actually shocked it's freaking Saturday. I've lost track of the days!
We are messing up days as well. We plan to pack a cooler and and drive up the coast and just park somewhere and have a little picnic. I hope you have a great day🙏
All is quiet.
We have almost 3 miles of beautiful sandy beach which would be impossible to close but the District Council has done the next best thing and shut all the public loos. The DC's been annoying us for the last few years because it's been closing them to save money, in the face of protest. We're a seaside town with elderly residents & visitors who need access to facilities if there are no cafes.
I'm v. pleased they're shut now though. So far, the campervans are staying away - police check points on the main roads help enormously.
As the Health Sec said t'other day, `Staying at home is not a request - it's a Government regulation' ie law.
It'll be a strange summer without the visitors. Easter will be the real test.
Shopping is our main challenge. I've been trying to buy more strong flour for bread-making, with no success; even when I go the the websites of the various mills, they all say they're working flat out but they've had to close their `shops' until they've cleared the backlog of orders.
I read one report that suggested the cause of the problem was the shortage of packaging. So much for `just-in-time' delivery. Or are ebay profiteers at work? Or would-be exporters?
My supermarket online order from `Iceland' was barely 60% successful. Most of the fresh veg & fruit arrived but no dry goods or booze. I did manage to order jumbo oats and oatmeal (13 kg in all) from the main English supplier - that should see us through the next 10 weeks (in theory, it was supposed to be few weeks but when imposed the period of being incarcerated became `up to 12 weeks'. It may even be longer.
It's a challenge, whichever way one looks at it. Husband & I are coping pretty well - I'm even feeling much better than I did, having given up the medication I was on for migraine (Topiramate). GP finally admitted that it was a `dirty drug', potentially with many side effects. They may only upset one in 10, or even 1 in 100 patients, but it's not funny if you happen to be that one.
Sorry to hear you're finding it difficult, Scandi. Have you thought of thumping a cushion to relieve your anger? Or there's that other activity you mentioned - would it take your mind off things?
I'm wondering about KnitWit and whether she managed to get away from what sounded like a dangerous narcissist. I'm feeling guilty about telling her what I thought was the best course of action for anyone in that situation - I do hope she's OK, wherever she is.
Someone has added an extra bit to one of the road-names near here. It's another notice, saying `Smile!' with smiley faces of course. It always works for me.
I don't seem to able to stay asleep for more than 3 hours at a time - it's mid-morning now but drowsiness is about to overwhelm me. Talk to you all later- stay safe.
Thank you & hope you have a great day too and lots and lots of fresh air!! 🍃🌸🌊
Actually now that I think of it, I hope KnitWit's coping. Her sanity's being tested harder than mine!!
Thanks for your suggestion! 💜💜
Lemon Tea here
Agree , per your previous comments , that all 50 states should be unilateral. I can't see the point of the President making one statement , and then leaving the decision loosely on each state. Of course viewpoints are going to differ, as it has. Dangerous, I think. Why can't the states do a vote ? And majority wins get to make the decision?
All the laws and policies in each state and how they differ seem deliciously complicated. In fact, why couldnt every country in the world vote on this isolation tactic? Together. Why so many differing strategies with one virus?
How we love to criticise those in power. And we should. Seems like those in power are either being decisive , floundering ,dictatorial , or bluntly stupid , in between other adjectives. Yes, someone higher up must take blame, but ultimately individuals have control (hopefully ) of their health status, to a certain degree.
Whenever I hear herd immunity, thoughts of wildlife stampedes across the Serengeti comes to mind. Stampedes usually caused by one or two, then masses get wounded and killed and maimed. Why the term "herd " was tagged to us humans in the first place , is insulting. Thankfully those in leadership are doing their best , not always but they appear to.
It’s delivering to law enforcement officers and other first responders. The company itself is producing sanitizer for the entire state of Florida.
Manufacturing Director Darrin Mueller said that from the start of the coronavirus crisis, Bacardi began working on ways to help out in the pandemic.
The results have already made a difference.
“This week, we had the fortunate opportunity to produce about 24,000 gallons of hand sanitizer for those on the frontlines fighting this pandemic,” Mueller said.
Bacardi delivered bottles to police at Jacksonville Beach, Neptune Beach and the Jacksonville International Airport. It’s also made deliveries to UF Health and Baptist Hospital.
The company is coordinating with mayors and Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office.
“This is just a small token of our appreciation back to the communities and those fighting on the front lines, because without them, without our first responders, without our medical professionals, you know, none of this would start to slow if it wasn’t for them and taking the proper precautions,” Mueller said.
My husband and I are in our 30’s but ever since my work at an outpatient center went down to emergency cases only (so I got laid off) and he was permitted to work from home, we’ve been pretty isolated. No block parties for us. We live in Coral Gables and I haven’t seen or heard of any block parties in our area. The one night some neighbors got obnoxiously loud on their balcony late at night and I almost called the front desk to complain but waited and it stopped (I think someone else called on them). Due to where we live, a little further from the beach, we don’t see a huge tourist influx, although some other states license plates are represented in the area
I’ve been getting out once a day for a walk and everyone around here is very respectful about social distancing and due to hardly any traffic it is safe to walk out into the street to social distance from others. Being from a small town in the Midwest for most of my life, I feel as though people have actually gotten friendlier down here through this. Everyone will acknowledge you with a wave or smile as you give them a wide berth. For me, learning another language always interested me and so I had studied Spanish for awhile before I ever moved here. I looked at the (about 30% of) patients who couldn’t speak English as a chance to practice my Spanish and they were always very gracious to me. Usually between the two of us we could speak enough of each other’s language to get by.
To anyone who considers healthcare, I always think another language is such an asset as there is nothing that makes you feel more vulnerable than being in a hospital or clinic and not speaking the language. I can’t imagine being effected by COVID-19 in a foreign hospital (although don’t get me wrong, here in Miami many people have lived here for many years and don’t speak English) and not really understanding what was happening to me.
Anon-unknown— I didn’t have to comment here before or on Nutty’s other blog. I’m fine to read along and enjoy the views of others until there is a point when I can’t stomach their attacks any longer.
Good morning one and all.
I, too, have lost a little track of the days. Now that Mr. Abby is around all the time I have to stop and think about which day of the week it is.
I have some fabric and supplies for making masks. After ironing (2-3 weeks worth), maybe I will sit down and start making them. I'm thinking of giving them to some people I know who are non-sewers as the locals are selling them for $12 or more.
Enjoy and stay safe.
https://twitter.com/i/status/1246416385670098948
(I'm usually very cynical about CSR but it's always funny & endearing coming from a booze company!! 😂😂 that made me happy 💜🍹 lololol.)
I prepared for the TP shortage, the mask shortage, the run on other paper products shortage, the medications shortage, and even a shoe shortage. I did NOT, however, purchase a barber shears on account of I should never be tempted when I can't reliably cut paper in a straight line. And now here we are.
Thanks for the update from down in Miami-Dade. Anybody wearing masks in public there? (Not much mask-wearing occurring here.) Lots of the area hobby guilds (quilters) are sewing for the hospitals and nursing homes.
The graduating (high school) seniors are pretty butthurt about no proms, no graduation ceremonies, etc. A big group of them from various high schools got together for a house party outside the city limits. (I'm a grandmother in my early 60s. My granddaughter was invited; she asked if they'd lost their minds.) One of the partiers tested positive in the last day or two, asymptomatic then, so a lot more people will be testing positive in the next week and their older family members will probably be in the hospital soon.
Of course, Joann Fabrics was ruled nonessential along with all the other fabric and sewing stores, so no more fabrics from THEM. It's not like there aren't over 300,000,000 people that suddenly have to make masks for their families.
Sorry, Joann. You should have bribed politicians.
Some context:
A surgical mask is meant to be disposed of after the interaction with the patient. So, pre-COVID, if I go into a room and start peritoneal dialysis on a patient, I put a mask on the patient, put a mask on me, and set up the process. Once I am done in the room, I take the mask off the patient, take off my mask, and leave. When I go in later, the task requires a NEW mask.
So wearing the same surgical mask all day long is exposing patients and myself to every microbe and collected interaction from the shift. The hospitals can't win. They are telling us to "make do," but the "make do" process could contaminate who knows how many others.
My breaking point will be when we are re-using masks throughout the week, or when we run out of PPE. We are playing Russian Roulette here with who may or may not get infected.
Finally, look back at the lessons we learned from the Challenger and the Columbia Space disasters. Engineers working on the solid rocket boosters during Challenger said, "Do not launch unless it is 53 degrees or higher. The O-Rings will not function properly outside of the parameters." People did not listen to them.
PPE cannot be used willy-nilly. We are using it outside of the parameters. We do not know what the results will be. If any of us nurses survive this, we will be in litigation for the rest of our lives for contaminating patients and possibly harming them because we did not use PPE properly.
If you get mail, you technically could order fabric from Joann's or another company over the net.
Save your emails. Your workplace is making a new policy that you are to reuse PPE since there is limited supply available. The limited supply is well documented globally; therefore by policy and limited supply you should be protected in a lawsuit. This isn’t ideal, it’s a pandemic, so what would normally be standard of care unfortunately cannot exist right now. I’m sure there will be lawsuits when this is all over, but if you’re following documented policy you should be protected.
Most importantly, take care of yourself as best you can. I have no doubt that you take good care of your patients.
You are on my mind and in my prayers. This is all a nightmare for first responders all over.
CookieShark, I can only pray for you and recommend that you look into sourcing this from your hospital: https://ufhealth.org/news/2020/uf-health-anesthesiology-team-devises-respirator-mask-made-existing-hospital-materials?fbclid=IwAR35slwdlK0XM4722VDHF7mThd38wePFO92x8nOUtxZTvzhsnHEEIVLWPtI
So, Australians, is Monash University biomedicine unit something that I should pay attention to?
/Disclaimer: I wondered a few days ago what else I could use if I tested positive, and decided screw it, I'd try Ivermectin since I personally know it to be safe.
I’m not trying to be political but to lighten the mood, I get a bit of chuckle that people forget Trump just moved from NY to FL mere months ago. He’s a born-and-bred NYer from Queens. He left before the hike in taxes he pushed on Blue States got to his doorstep. LOL.
My home has needed a deep cleaning for a long time so I started my Swedish Death Cleaning to cope with the stress. To my utter delight, I found a couple of boxes of surgical masks, an old sewing machine, thread, and a bunch of cotton fabric. My Mom was a big sewer in her youth. Looks like I am going to be learning how to sew after all. I’m a bit intimidated and I am having a hard time concentrating but maybe I can figure this out.
Charade - sewing tip:
lubricate all moveable parts of the sewing machine (open up as much access as possible).
If you don't lubricate it, it will be the equivalent of never changing the oil in your car.
I don't know but I would not try it: my machine oil is labeled: Clear, Stainless. It has this little pull out so the tube extends down into places I can't reach otherwise. Easy peasy and available at fabric store.
What you might do is to google the instructions for your machine as it may have the lubrication spots marked out. Basically they are where metal meets metal movement but mine has a wool maybe thing which needs soaking also.
Also, I was taught not to sew over pins (had to teach my mother not to). It messes up the timing.
https://covid19.healthdata.org/projections
It’s the projected model of how this will play out. You can scroll to your state and it will tell you if your state will have any bed shortages be they regular beds or ICU beds. It also tells you when your state should peak in terms of deaths and maximum infections. Florida’s projected peak is May 3’rd.
Ivermectin can be gotten at feed/supply stores, but you have to be extremely careful about the dosing, which is obviously different for livestock. If math is not your strongsuit, I wouldn't mess with it, but it's handy to have on hand.
It is pretty safe in livestock even when overdosed (can give 'em diarrhea). It has been used in people for years for parasites and head lice. Some people have used it to self-treat rosacea. It is reportedly effective but I have no direct knowledge.
The caution is to take care or avoid if a person has hepatic disease.
I have used it for ear mites in rabbits; however, just using avocado oil (or any kind of oil) will kill ear mites as well. It will just take longer.
And, yes, I've been involuntarily dosed with it more than I'd like when worming cattle/horses/hogs with a drench gun. Sometimes they'd whack me with their head just when I was depressing the plunger and wham! Face full, sometimes mouthful of wormer. It is extremely bitter, BTW, so I don't blame 'em for not wanting it.
I'm still contemplating getting a Baby Lock serger while they are on sale but only because I'm fundamentally lazy (grin).
Short version: many many thanks to @swampwoman for all the tips on gloving, masking, hair covering, ear and eye protection for my first trip to the grocery store since March 11. Was a chore, but thanks to your posts I felt comfortable that I was protected. Saved my surgical mask in a dated paper bag in the garage, showered down, washed bags, clothes and shoes in hot water.
Now I need a nap!
I live in Charlotte NC. I was very surprised at how many people were out and about today. Lots of walkers, joggers, bikers, convertible riders, etc. My store was only about one-third as full as normal, though. About half of shoppers had masks on, half of those were surgical masks and half were homemade or bandanas. I was the only one I noticed with gloves on.
I normally work at home but am single and live alone, so I used to make a trip out each day to have a meeting, meet girls for dinner, occasional dates, or shop, so it has been hard to stay in so much. Our weather is glorious, full-on Spring, with scads of pollen everywhere. Bright green cars. I have been in since March 11th, except for walks and daily sunbathing for vitamin C.
I am 10 days short of celebrating my 10 year late stage cancer victory, so I am not about to let a darn virus get me now. The party will be postponed.
I have really enjoyed reading comments from all over the world, from S. Africa to Netherlands, East coast, West coast and in-between. Many thanks to all who contribute so much so often. I will probably lurk more than post, but I am here and sending all of you best wishes for happy, healthy lives..
Found this on Rense.com
Also found on Rense.com
Social distancing regulations for workplaces mean that the number of staff who usually work in the packing department has had to be reduced - hence the reduced output.
Lovely weather this w/e - usual idiots out in droves in London parks and at Brighton. Many lounging about -ie not out for exercise. So the parks get closed, serve'em right.
New Labour party leader says he'll work with the Government to deal with crisis. Good, I thought.
First thing he's done is to criticise the way it's been handled so far. I should have known.
There's anecdotal evidence that patients taking it live longer even than non-diabetics. Very interesting.
Fauci video made its way to the DM. I just find it incredible that tptb left our countrymen and women so woefully unprepared when they were most certain this was on the horizon. We have always been preppers to some degree due to the storms, but I have a new level of respect for serious full blown preppers now. Bill Gates' ID2020 has made it to the comment section as well. Pretty wild stuff out there.
On a personal note, my bil is mad at me because I won't let him visit. I told him we would reevaluate the situation in two weeks after our peak which is around April 18th I believe. Big sigh. He is by himself and a recent widower. Sad days.
At this rate of chubbiness due to the ipa and stress eating, I may qualify. 😄😜
@Abbyh, here's another pattern that doesn't use elastic OR homemade ties for those of us with a limited attention span (grin): It is SUPPOSED to take 5 minutes to make (which will probably be two hours for me) but it is quite clever! (She uses synthetic clothesline for ties and gardening wire for the wire to fit to face and says you can get it from Home Depot or Lowe's although you COULD have gotten it from the fabric and craft stores (which are all closed).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zm_NmpdgWWA
WBBm
At this rate of chubbiness due to the ipa and stress eating, I may qualify. 😄😜
I may have sneaky purchased a bag of Ghirardelli dark chocolate sea salt caramel bunnies at the grocery store yesterday. And as an aside, I will say that the grocery store had no toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, the ground beef was $5.00 a lb. for the cheap fatty stuff, there was no milk, frozen food, or canned goods, but they had dark chocolate sea salt caramel bunnies. PRIORITIES, people! Those bunnies should not have been on the shelf for me to eat. And I did, the whole bag.
I made the life-threatening milk run because SwampMan was getting all upset because the milk was almost gone. Which was his fault.
Don't bogart that Metformin, my friends!
Now, back to the reasons that Metformin *may* be effective. The Chinese (I know, lying liars) made the observation that diabetics were extremely susceptible to the virus. Since Metformin brings down blood sugar, it may be effective in that way. Metformin has been noted to fight inflammation although I don't think they know how or why (I believe elevated blood sugar produces inflammation). Y'all can look it up online and read the studies.
Okay, now I'm venturing out into wildly speculative territory here (if I could sound klaxons of warning I would at this point). Are you prepared for wild speculation? Okay, here goes! *Maybe* it can help calm the cytokine storm that this disease can elicit that often kills the patient.
And thanks for the Little Feat reference, “Don’t bogart that Metformin.” Where is Dallas Alice these days?
I read that diabetes is a factor in covid 19 deaths, so I wonder how the Metformin info ties in? So much research will be done, for years, I’m sure.
Right now I am researching how many fun size Milky Ways can fit in my mouth at one time.