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deckeda
This @#$%& news is the backdrop against my family’s Xmas —- “way too close to home” I haven’t seen my dad, sister and their kids since this time last year, but they’re all headed this way today. We’re meeting in a rental house closer to Nashville. Ho, Ho, Ho

Are you sure you can't take a rain-check on this get-together?

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It’s over. He died.

As for the raincheck, yes anything is possible, but not probable. I need to pack and head out.

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deckeda
It’s over. He died.

As for the raincheck, yes anything is possible, but not probable. I need to pack and head out.

I'm sorry.

I hope you and your family remain well and have a good holiday.

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deckeda
It’s over. He died.

As for the raincheck, yes anything is possible, but not probable. I need to pack and head out.

damn! This is scary.

Headline: Only one covid-19 treatment is designed to keep people out of the hospital. Many overburdened hospitals are not offering it.

"Medical centers in the United States are balking at providing the only treatment for covid-19 that aims to keep people out of the hospital, leaving hundreds of thousands of doses of the medication unused.

"Monoclonal antibodies — described as “unbelievable” by President Trump, who received the treatment this fall — are designed for patients newly diagnosed with covid-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, who have a high risk of developing complications and becoming seriously ill.

There are logistical and other challenges. You can read the WaPo link for more, but I just was struck by the irony of the situation.

Positive for Covid. Not a surprise; between the wife and I, we covered most of the symptoms. Body aches, feverish (although probably not a high fever; never bothered to measure). Headache, joint aches, mostly-dry cough, chest tightness and an increased respiratory rate. The finger pulse oximeter we recently inherited said we got down to the low 90’s. We both lost our appetite, and had loose stools; wife still can’t taste things.

But we seem to have survived (both in our low 60s); for me it was mostly two bad days, and one really horrible night. I could easily see how it could put a person in the hospital (or worse, I suppose). We’re both considerably better now.

We were both pretty darn careful all year long, but had a family emergency at the end of the year, and it seems like that’s when we picked it up. I did drive through testing at Walgreens; got to stick the swab up my own nose, and so the staff never came close. And now we’ll do the strict quarantine thing.

Seems a little ironic to have picked it up at the very end of 2020, but I am a little relieved. We weren’t in line for vaccination til considerably later (probably summer, at this rate) and we had a vacation planned in two-plus weeks from now where we will be required to retest as negative (and should be by that time).

Oh, and BTW? I can confirm it’s real. Glad (it seems!) it’s over for us.

Ugh - I'm sorry to hear it, pdq. Hope you and wife clear the infection and get back to life, symptom-free!

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pdq
Positive for Covid. Not a surprise; between the wife and I, we covered most of the symptoms. Body aches, feverish (although probably not a high fever; never bothered to measure). Headache, joint aches, mostly-dry cough, chest tightness and an increased respiratory rate. The finger pulse oximeter we recently inherited said we got down to the low 90’s. We both lost our appetite, and had loose stools; wife still can’t taste things.

But we seem to have survived (both in our low 60s); for me it was mostly two bad days, and one really horrible night. I could easily see how it could put a person in the hospital (or worse, I suppose). We’re both considerably better now.

We were both pretty darn careful all year long, but had a family emergency at the end of the year, and it seems like that’s when we picked it up. I did drive through testing at Walgreens; got to stick the swab up my own nose, and so the staff never came close. And now we’ll do the strict quarantine thing.

Seems a little ironic to have picked it up at the very end of 2020, but I am a little relieved. We weren’t in line for vaccination til considerably later (probably summer, at this rate) and we had a vacation planned in two-plus weeks from now where we will be required to retest as negative (and should be by that time).

Oh, and BTW? I can confirm it’s real. Glad (it seems!) it’s over for us.

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rj
AKA
Vreemac, Moth of the Future

That it didn't prove fatal for either of you is probably the best new year gift anyone could wish for you. Keep on keeping on and please - if you would - let us know what recovery looks like, how symptoms either hang on, wane or evolve.

Give your wife a hug from everyone here!

Fingers crossed pdq that you and your wife clear the infection and do not do the long hauler dance.

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=wr=

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pdq
Positive for Covid. ...

So glad you are both doing better. That bad night was probably pretty scary. I'm sure I would have been scared.

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e pluribus unum

It was a little scary, but mostly just miserable. Everything hurt. My muscles hurt, my joints hurt, my eyes hurt, my head ached. There were intermittent showers of little icy sparks that I imagined were sort of flushed into my blood from time to time that sent me shivering and deeper under my blankets. And the night was filled with a swirly-sort of mental state that was somewhere between misery and near-delirium; not any proper sleep, for sure.

That morning, I dragged myself out of bed with some effort and stumbled to the nearest recliner and pretty much stayed there all day. If I had been into the 80's on that pulse oximeter that morning, I would have sought medical help then and there.

But that night was the worst, and since then, everything has been uphill. I do appreciate y'alls concern, and I don't count myself as fully recovered quite yet, but I now feel minimal symptoms.

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RgrF
That it didn't prove fatal for either of you is probably the best new year gift anyone could wish for you. Keep on keeping on and please - if you would - let us know what recovery looks like, how symptoms either hang on, wane or evolve.

Give your wife a hug from everyone here!

yeah, everything he said...

So glad that you and wife are ok! Keep us posted as you continue the path back to health
What a scary experience.

So glad you are both on the mend!

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Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

FWIW, we worked backward and tried to guess what our exposure would be and we haven't been able to figure it out entirely. Without going into great detail, we had a family emergency situation around the projected exposure time (onset of symptoms minus 5 days) and remember that as a result we had a few people come through a family member's senior condo around that time. They were all masked, but...

We also were with my BIL around that time for the same reasons and he eventually developed Covid as well, but 1) on the same general timeline as us, and 2) he had been vaccinated (once). Also, 3) his wife, my SIL, has not developed any symptoms and she was both with us and with him.

I dunno. It's tricky out there folks.

Remember..... the new strain is 50-70% more transmissible..... If you can, be extra careful.....

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rj
AKA
Vreemac, Moth of the Future

Glad you’re both on the mend! How early was BIL vaccinated relative to onset of symptoms?

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

his wife, my SIL, has not developed any symptoms and she was both with us and with him.

Wonder if she was tested? If not she could have been asymptomatic and passed it to both of you. (Just working on your narrative of possibilities.) Sounds horrible; really glad to hear you're on the mend.

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deckeda
Not that their conservative politics has been shaken or anything, but a lockdown was good enough for THEM.

That is conservatives in a nutshell.

"It doesn't affect me. Therefore it is not real/I don't care."

Also known as "F you, I've got mine" or

"These leopards won't eat MY face!"

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Speedy
Glad you’re both on the mend! How early was BIL vaccinated relative to onset of symptoms?

His recall was that his vaccination was around the 15th, about 5 days before he came to town w SIL to visit Grandpa, who hadn’t left his place for a month or so. Then the medical emergency, which brought a couple of medical people into Grandpa’s. He developed symptoms about the same time as us, around the 28th/29th.

The wife tells me the Pfizer vaccine is supposed to be around 50% effective 10 days after the first dose, but he probably was exposed and caught it a couple days before that, then 5 more days to symptoms. Occam’s razor suggests that the source pf exposure was the same as ours, but who knows?

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deckeda
his wife, my SIL, has not developed any symptoms and she was both with us and with him.

Wonder if she was tested? If not she could have been asymptomatic and passed it to both of you. (Just working on your narrative of possibilities.) Sounds horrible; really glad to hear you're on the mend.

She’s being tested tomorrow. Still no symptoms.

“ air-powered costumes are no longer allowed in Kaiser Permanente facilities. ”

An outbreak has killed one, infected 43 at California hospital. An inflatable holiday costume is likely to blame, officials say.

“A staff member dressed as a smiling, red-nosed Christmas tree strolled through the emergency department at a San Jose hospital on Christmas Day, hoping to provide holiday cheer.

“Days later, a coronavirus outbreak swept through the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center, eventually infecting 43 employees and killing one.

“Hospital officials now say the “air-powered” Christmas costume is likely to blame for the 44 positive tests, all recorded between Dec. 27 and Friday. Experts said the fan inside the costume could have blown coronavirus-laden droplets throughout the department.

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deckeda
“ air-powered costumes are no longer allowed in Kaiser Permanente facilities. ”

An outbreak has killed one, infected 43 at California hospital. An inflatable holiday costume is likely to blame, officials say.

“A staff member dressed as a smiling, red-nosed Christmas tree strolled through the emergency department at a San Jose hospital on Christmas Day, hoping to provide holiday cheer.

“Days later, a coronavirus outbreak swept through the Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center, eventually infecting 43 employees and killing one.

“Hospital officials now say the “air-powered” Christmas costume is likely to blame for the 44 positive tests, all recorded between Dec. 27 and Friday. Experts said the fan inside the costume could have blown coronavirus-laden droplets throughout the department.

That's literally a horror movie scenario.

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rj
AKA
Vreemac, Moth of the Future

Geez.

OK, random post I suppose but I thought I'd drop this link here, [www.youtube.com]

The funeral for the family friend I mentioned recently is being held today, beginning now. I just thought some might find it interesting in an effort to not isolate so much C-19 death from reality.

Ike was an amazing person, as I suspect you'll learn, having lived a rich life and loved by many. It's a private service although my dad was added to the roster as one of the presenters. As a former minister he's got some experience with this sort of thing, although he's not officiating this one.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/08/2021 11:07AM by deckeda.

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deckeda
OK, random post I suppose but I thought I'd drop this link here, [www.youtube.com]

The funeral for the family friend I mentioned recently is being held today, beginning now. I just thought some might find it interesting in an effort to not isolate so much C-19 death from reality.

Ike was an amazing person, as I suspect you'll learn, having lived a rich life and loved by many. It's a private service although my dad was added to the roster as one of the presenters. As a former minister he's got some experience with this sort of thing, although he's not officiating this one.

I hope his family and friends find comfort in celebrating his life.

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e pluribus unum

Was musing today on some various after-the-fact things you learn from a pandemic. Late news, mostly. Have a random conversation and learn, "Oh yeah, so-and-so just recovered from Covid ..." or whatever.

It's not reasonable to know about every instance of things impacted by the virus but that doesn't stop the news from being a bummer.

Today I was browsing photo topics online and was curious to see what Dury's might be up to. Nothing, actually. Dury's in metro Nashville permanently closed May of last year, after 8 weeks of having to close their door because of the virus. Dury's had been in business 138 years. One of George Eastman's first dealers, they also advertised the "Kodaks" and sold Nashville's first one.

I'd been to the store twice, staffed with a few middle-aged men of the sort that had surely been there for years. In a nondescript strip mall, the store wasn't terribly busy, as remaining camera stores tend not to be. But it was well-stocked with accessories and their cameras were competitively priced IMO. I picked up some supplies at prices better than I could get online.

The Dury's came to America after being nudged out of Germany. They had expressed a little too publicly their admiration for folks like Washington and Jefferson --- and the democratic ideals associated with them --- to remain at home.

Part 1 of this (linked at the Part 3 post) from the Nashville Public Library, provides a little history:

[library.nashville.org]

Parts 2 and 3 are diary translations from George Sr's wife, from a type of script that was later deleted by the Nazis.

.

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e pluribus unum



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/07/2021 05:46PM by Ted King.

I don't understand why recommendations for mask use don't include elimination of beards. I gave up beards a couple of years ago when I discovered how much more effective my N95 respirator was after shaving my beard. I could smell the difference immediately. This is in a wood shop with good dust control. Most dramatic was the reduction in the strength of lacquer fumes. I've never seen this sort of thing mentioned.

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lost in space
I don't understand why recommendations for mask use don't include elimination of beards. I gave up beards a couple of years ago when I discovered how much more effective my N95 respirator was after shaving my beard. I could smell the difference immediately. This is in a wood shop with good dust control. Most dramatic was the reduction in the strength of lacquer fumes. I've never seen this sort of thing mentioned.

I have seen that recommendation, though it certainly isn't frequently made.

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Acer

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lost in space
I don't understand why recommendations for mask use don't include elimination of beards. I gave up beards a couple of years ago when I discovered how much more effective my N95 respirator was after shaving my beard. I could smell the difference immediately. This is in a wood shop with good dust control. Most dramatic was the reduction in the strength of lacquer fumes. I've never seen this sort of thing mentioned.

I have seen that recommendation, though it certainly isn't frequently made.

It's a complicated issue, especially for people for whom facial hair is a matter of religious faith, not just aesthetics.

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rj
AKA
Vreemac, Moth of the Future

Shaved my beard at the turn of the year for just that reason.

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=wr=

Right. I hadn't thought of the religious aspect.

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rjmacs

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Acer

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lost in space
I don't understand why recommendations for mask use don't include elimination of beards. I gave up beards a couple of years ago when I discovered how much more effective my N95 respirator was after shaving my beard. I could smell the difference immediately. This is in a wood shop with good dust control. Most dramatic was the reduction in the strength of lacquer fumes. I've never seen this sort of thing mentioned.

I have seen that recommendation, though it certainly isn't frequently made.

It's a complicated issue, especially for people for whom facial hair is a matter of religious faith, not just aesthetics.

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Washington Post is marking the upcoming marker of 500,000 Covid-19 deaths in America by highlighting child deaths.

[www.washingtonpost.com]

They cite 271 deaths among children but that far lower number doesn't alter how heartbreaking the stories are. Perhaps unsurprisingly, symptoms are usually not caught, can be very different than in adults, and it's all over very quickly. And sometimes Covid isn't even diagnosed until after death.

My dad’s got his appt now.

“Getting Moderna vaccine next Tue at Hannibal Regional Hospital. Five of us: ..... Second batch on March 30. Peeps around here traveling great distances— Cape Girardeau, Rolla, anywhere. Rural areas seem to be well-stocked but not St. Louis or County. We’re behind everybody.”

He got a link from the widow of the friend who recently died from it (my December post here). Called them up and they are basically just waiting for people to call them. Lovely.

For himself and another oldster setup and then asked about my sister, her husband, his sister. They all also got in due to having underlying conditions.

“This was a piece of cake. All they asked was age, underlying conditions, phone & email. She gave me a choice of dates and times. Done. Return email included a map of hospital and where to go. She gave detailed directions from here to there. Couldn’t be easier.”

ny.tcom

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lost in space
ny.tcom

It's been close to that in some places for almost a year.

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In tha 360. MRF User Map

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Filliam H. Muffman

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lost in space
ny.tcom

It's been close to that in some places for almost a year.

Of course. I posted this because of its raw nature.

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The nurses are amazing. I couldn’t do it.

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

In Minnesota, in our area at least, those in higher ed can get vaccinated:

“Word is out that [large area provider] is giving the vaccine out to anyone who works in higher ed. Anyone can call to schedule. I can't seem to find official documentation of this news, but I did call and said I worked in higher education and the scheduler said that was fine and scheduled me. So, this information is based on personal experience, but others are also having success so I'm confident it is good information.

You will need proof of employment (either your ID or pay stub) to show you work in higher ed. I have shared this information with xxxx so that she can send out an official announcement to all employees but wanted to start sharing the news tonight. Please pass this along to your colleagues--particularly those who are not on the faculty discussion list or in an academic department.”

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

"Your appointment is confirmed. Please print your appointment details."

But really, it was already being less-than-perfectly-healthy that allowed me to qualify. Ain't that a @#$%&.

I should not have dragged my feet, but then again don't know when this became readily available in my county. Chicken-or-egg conundrum with getting info out on this.

[edit to include sample headlines from local news]

"Newly-elected council member resigns" (he moved to just barely outside city limits)
"Two arrested in stolen van, pulling stolen camper" (self explanatory?)


3.1 miles away, at the fairgrounds, same place I cast my vote in November. Timeslots all open starting mid-week.

Expand your search to rural areas if you can. I really don't think anyone cares where you live or what your pre-existing conditions are. Please go get jabbed.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/13/2021 10:14AM by deckeda.

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deckeda
Expand your search to rural areas if you can. I really don't think anyone cares where you live or what your pre-existing conditions are. Please go get jabbed.

My brother in law qualified by having high blood pressure.

His state registry offered him sites 90 miles away and more. Had his first shot last week.

If he didn't have a car and the opportunity to take a day from work, he'd have blown his chance.

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Sarcany

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deckeda
Expand your search to rural areas if you can. I really don't think anyone cares where you live or what your pre-existing conditions are. Please go get jabbed.

My brother in law qualified by having high blood pressure.

His state registry offered him sites 90 miles away and more. Had his first shot last week.

If he didn't have a car and the opportunity to take a day from work, he'd have blown his chance.

That's me, hypertensive and with the ability to tell my boss I'll be taking a half-day this Wednesday and another half-day later.

Although actually, I can probably just roll both into my lunch breaks.

And now that I will soon be even more pompous and righteous have started looking for "jabbed" masks.

[www.redbubble.com]

Two lamentable items related to the pandemic.

1) The H.S. basketball team is once again at State, so as a dad it was a bummer weekend to know my kid wasn’t there, she having been forced to skip playing this year due to the school’s homeschool policy.

She and her mom watched a game hosted online and enjoyed it. My kid is more resilient than I am about such things. Maybe it was the wrong choice but I preferred to get some work done instead.

2) And today is her 15th birthday. To help herself celebrate herself she spent last night getting ready for today by donning one of those weird face mask skin conditioner things LOL and is today doing her schoolwork all dolled up with fresh nails and makeup.

It’s a remarkable age. Young enough to wanna play a form of dress-up of sorts but old enough to where it can be appropriate. “Dad! Come look at my makeup! You must loooooooook!”

However. Her grandmother / step grandfather invited to take her out to dinner but we declined. There’s no way to be safe in that restaurant. We’ve come too far to possibly get sick now. We offered to pick it up and bring it to their house but I don’t know if they want to do that.

Well, a very happy birthday to your daughter, D! And many many happy returns of the day!

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=TC

If you chose to be virtual at home, the school doesn't allow those kids to participate in sports???

That's horrible.

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The arts are not luxuries but assets that give way more than they cost.
--Ronald Tucker on YouTube

A mind is like a parachute. It doesn't work if it is not open.
--Frank Zappa

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Sam3
If you chose to be virtual at home, the school doesn't allow those kids to participate in sports???

That's horrible.

That's small-town "thinking." They just barely were able to respond at all to the pandemic and trying to figure it all out on their own (i.e. the school board). Nearby school districts didn't do it this way.

First, they offered a virtual option which we might have done except that the edu package the school district bought did not employ any of their own teachers and did not include any honors courses. Full stop ... we chose to homeschool and buy our own edu products.

For the kids its been good because there's no live instruction, which as someone who works with instructors in my job can tell you that's only a good idea when done right. And my kids are not compelled to stay glued to a screen all day long.

But what the District claimed was that homeschool kids were a risk, and not eligible for any extra-curricular activity. Let that sink in. We're here isolated, masked in public (not that they care) and yet we're the health risk, not the families desperate to send little sniffling Johhny off to the bus so that they can go to work or not be interrupted at home.

My daughter, still receiving the group texts from the team she earned a spot on but could not join, watched team mates contract Covid throughout the year. She's slowly agreeing to join an AAU team to help keep up her skillset. We'll see how that goes. I want her to play, even though my gasoline expenditure is now going to go through the roof driving her all over the region.

AAU might not be a bad way to go, it could open more recruiting doors than just sticking with high school. My daughter played volleyball and I kept on hearing that more college recruiters go to club tournaments than high school games and tournaments.

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The arts are not luxuries but assets that give way more than they cost.
--Ronald Tucker on YouTube

A mind is like a parachute. It doesn't work if it is not open.
--Frank Zappa

We used a public cyber-charter school for the majority of our kids education, pre-COVID, and have many friends and family in the pure homeschool world as well. YMMV, but in our experience school districts in general are very cold toward either format. It does not surprise me they made up their own illogical rules.

That said, among our homeschool friends, there is anecdotally a higher anti-mask sentiment.