courage2

Tell her that you hear from a friend in NYC where we have, as far as I can see, by far the highest concentration of cases in the world -- more than 1,900 confirmed cases per 100,000 people, compared to say, Spain, which has been hit hard, but still has only 450 confirmed cases per 100,000. (And yes I know that's partly a function of testing, but hey, it remains, NYC has had a disaster in a nutshell.)

So tell her from NYC, it gets better. The curve has changed incredibly here, and the feel of anxiety lifted in the population is palpable. It will get better. Hugs to your daughter, entropy.

Aellyce

Some more science about the virus and vaccine development:

https://www.nature.com/articles/d415...JC01_GL_Nature

Reid82

Well our lockdown is extended until May 18th now, with only minor tweaks to it. We have a 5 phase plan to get fully back to normal running from here until August/September time. That is if everything goes according to plan.

Aellyce

Evidence from Central Park today. No blame on all the relaxed residents as obviously I was there, too. We'll see if more of this will lift the curve as well in the near future?

courage2

^^^ I heard more sirens today than in a long time -- maybe they were car and bicycle accidents? People have gotten used to driven fast and not sharing the streets. As you say, we'll see.

Caramel

^ Disconcerting to be driving one's usual streets again and finding children still wobbling blissfully along on bicycles and oblivious walkers, with earbuds in, nearly stepping in front of the car.

Aellyce

The gorgeous, relaxed summery weekend continues in NYC. This is a riverside today:


And a street next to a bar that serves alcohol to take away. Or drink on the spot.


One thing I'm pleased to see is that people seem less fixated on their phones while walking around. I think it started with trying to not contaminate the gadgets by using them all the time outside (at least that was for me), but appears to stick even when people don't show the same level of caution and distancing, like this weekend. That is a healthier mental habit for sure!

biminiblue

I want to know where everybody is getting surgical masks.

I tried to order some on Amazon and the delivery date wouldn't fill in...but the estimation was June.

Aellyce

In Manhattan, I know many people get masks via family/friends who work in medical institutions - there are so many. Or just hit the pharmacies every day until they get lucky. I did get my masks from Amazon but ordered the N95s before everything got crazy (took about a week to arrive then) and a brand called Oxybreath Pro, which was advertised as N95 but is really not, and took >a month to receive. I still have a couple of both types. Not that I can toot my horn because I got sick right at the beginning, before starting to actually wear them.

I worked in lab/medical environments my whole career and am very familiar with different levels of PPE. Honestly, those standard surgical masks do not protect you any better than a homemade one (that you can adjust), in fact the surgical mask may be sloppier because it does not have a tight fit at all and cannot be washed. I would place an order and just wear homemade masks in the meantime.

biminiblue

Oh, I don't think they are protecting me.

I'm just pretty sure they're going to be required.

Aellyce

I see. Don't think they can require formal masks if they are unavailable... where I live, every kind of face protection goes.

courage2

Weirdly, in my neighborhood some random places, like coffee shops, are selling surgical masks.

My big purchase challenge is alcohol-based products -- rubbing I mean, not drinking. You basically have to go in drug stores, ask the clerk at the counter "Do you have any alcohol-based products?" and go on to the next store when they say "No." They'll tell you when the next truck is coming in, and you go back. And so it goes.

MesaMan

.
I don't have any American Journal Of Maskology attributions for this Chart to validate it. BUT, my Career did cause me to thoroughly know Particle sizes in Microns. 1 Micron = 1 millionth of a Meter. So, this Chart info rang true to me. One primary function of a Mask is to keep me from touching my Face. Made sense.

I cut some clean Vacuum Cleaner Bag, and stapled a generous scrap of it between 2 folded-over layers of Bandana for Version 1.0 of several Masks I now use. Had to get on with it to go Grocery Shopping a few Weeks ago. 'Round here in Redneck Nation, the look of Bank Robber Couture is accepted just fine. This solution leaves the N-95 Masks for the Pros who need them more...

biminiblue

Oh, I know, I've done all the research on masks and I have a whole folder of bookmarks..

I just wondered - because I see a LOT of people with those blue surgical face masks. They are easy and disposable. I can make an outlaw-vacuum-cleaner bag one. So far I've just done that, no sewing yet. They don't stay on very well, the homemade bandana ones. I made some from paper towels with kleenex in between and they are the best for breathing and not fogging up my glasses.

90% of the filtering ability of surgical masks according to the hospital who came up with it. In China, though - not sure how much I trust China these days. I haven't gone so far as using the sheet protector thing, but I have it. Super easy.

least

I've got six of the cloth masks with elastic loops for over the ears and I wear them when I have to go into a store for any reason. I notice at the grocery store and the drug store, all the employees were wearing masks. The customers were about 50/50 for wearing them.


I wear mine to protect others I might encounter, tho I must say I maintain the 6 foot distance between me and them.

biminiblue

It's supposedly the HEPA filter vacuum bags, not the regular ones, so I hear.

I don't know who to believe, and I really think the masks do more harm than good unless they fit really well, otherwise I end up fiddling with it. That's not good.

Abraham

Yea, they are basically just spit guards right?

Wastinglife

I may have the virus already. Woke up with nasal congestion and my ears are feeling like they would on an airplane takeoff.
I'll never know for sure because I can't get a test. Maybe I just have a cold.

Dee74

Have you taken the self assessment WL?
https://covid-19.ontario.ca/self-assessment/

EndGameNYC

I know some people who wear two or three surgical masks at a time. Or one or two surgical masks on top of more substantial protection.

It's hit and miss in my neighborhood for buying masks. Most of the stores that remain open seem not to have had things like over-the-counter Lysol, Purell, or prescription sunlight for weeks. And most of those stores require a minimum of wearing a mask in order to go inside. Things like that can make people feel safer than otherwise.

There are three challenging parks in my neighborhood. All of them require hiking uphill; there are cliffs and hills that overlook the Hudson River and New Jersey on the other side of the Hudson in each one. The geography here is much different than that of the rest of Manhattan. It feels like a real neighborhood to me. It has more than one bodega. With a cat. My minimum requirement for qualifying as a neighborhood (with or without the cat).

I live right across the street from Fort Tryon Park, home of the Cloisters. It also has beautiful views, especially for a city-dweller. I walk my neighbor's dog through the park every night. I spent most of my afternoon there on Saturday. The sun felt good. People seemed to be enjoying themselves.

I went to a different park today, more than a half-mile away from the Cloisters. Isham Park. You can ascend up to different levels or plateaus, each of which is very flat. It’s manicured and landscaped on each level. The outer limits of this park are the Hudson River, Broadway, and two residential neighborhoods. It’s a little bit freaky to me. People were wearing masks and maintaining a safe distance. The park generates a lot more sound than usual with a roughly equal number of people who were in the park today.

I’ve been to the remaining park before, Inwood Hills Park, but not recently. It isn’t well developed (which gives it a cool vibe) and has a lot of space that’s taken up by boulders and hills and a seemingly infinite number of paths. It’s very easy to get lost in the park, especially after sunset. It was dusk the last time I was there, and I don’t recall there being any lighting.

It’s important for me to get outside. I’ve rarely spent any significant time inside on the weekends. But being stir-crazy, having cabin fever, or just hating people and things because people spend so much time inside will not make COVID-19 disappear.