Coronavirus Tales

tuffalobuffalo wrote:

Frozen foods would be the logical choice in this crisis, and that's not what people are hitting at all.

I don't have enough room in my freezer to store enough food for two weeks for a family of four. (I don't have one of those big, standalone freezers.) We did get some frozen proteins and vegetables and fruit, but we have to supplement all of that with dried goods, canned foods, and staples.

We've always bought food week-to-week, mostly because that's what we could afford until recently, so this is a new experience.

We are lucky to have 2 refrigerators and they are pretty well stocked. We also bought a bunch of dried soup mixes.

And hard alcohol. Plenty of that.

How is queuing on the sidewalk like being a D&D miniature? Everyone has their own 5' square.

This was at the local farmer's market this morning. They had the whole thing gated off and were only letting 10 people in at a time. Fortunately my wife had the foresight to call the vendor we wanted to hit and order some stuff ahead of time. Everything went pretty smoothly, all things considered. People were getting in and out quickly so the queue moved pretty fast. The man at the gate said next week there will be a separate queue for people just picking up orders.

I find out this week (Monday most likely) whether I will get to stay working or be sent home on 80% pay, I've crunched the numbers and I can afford this option. I could go either way really, sent home because of length of service or kept on because I'm cheap. What a time to be alive...

SallyNasty wrote:

And hard alcohol. Plenty of that.

For the dried soup mixes?

iaintgotnopants wrote:
SallyNasty wrote:

And hard alcohol. Plenty of that.

For the dried soup mixes?

You don't know my life.

SallyNasty wrote:

We are lucky to have 2 refrigerators and they are pretty well stocked. We also bought a bunch of dried soup mixes.

Just came back from the store about an hour ago. Got a bunch of canned goods and fresh vegetables. Even managed to snag some Poland Spring and a package of off-brand TP.

SallyNasty wrote:

And hard alcohol. Plenty of that.

More importantly, picked up a bottle of Absolut Vanil (for the wife) and a bottle of Angel's Envy bourbon, to go with the bottles of Scotch and Irish I already have on-hand.

Vanilla-flavored Vodka goes great with cream soda or root beer.

Mixolyde wrote:

Vanilla-flavored Vodka goes great with cream soda or root beer.

We have both of those in the house right now.

It also goes well with Coke Zero.

There was a line at the hardware store this morning, so I went back to the car, put on my plague doctor mask and went back to the line.

People kept their distance.

My brother returned from Thailand last night. Not only was no one on the plane tested, they didn’t even do temperature checks or anything else. Everyone just came on in as though all was normal.

Yep. We are past the point where it can be stopped at the perimeter (or even reasonably slowed). The protocols have shifted to general population stuff, and with community spread prevalent, it no longer matters on the small scale.

Fair enough. Though I think that is still in stark contrast to 45s claims of what is being done.

I'm sure it is. Since January 2017, the wise policy is not to trust anything he says until it's verified by outside sources...

Edit - I can't work a calendar, and my memory is suspect. Sigh.

Robear wrote:

I'm sure it is. Since January 2018, the wise policy is not to trust anything he says until it's verified by outside sources...

Why wait a year? Literally the first thing he did in office was lie about his inauguration and make everyone else cover for him.

Reality is in stark contrast to his claims.

Up until about a year ago the fam and I were living full-time in a fifth wheel and traveling. It was really great, but health and other changes in our family forced us to buy a home in Gainesville, FL and settle down a while.

Now we're hearing from traveling families all over the country who are finding it more and more difficult to find places to stay as state parks, RV resorts, and other locations shut down. A few are now in a situation where they have a home but nowhere to stay. These folks don't mind sheltering in place and not traveling for the good of everyone, but some state and local governments who don't understand their plight are currently making decisions which lead to their traveling more than expected and staying in parking lots out of desperation. This sucks for a community as eco-conscious and giving as the one we got to know during our traveling years. It's only the start of what's to come, so I'm more than a little concerned for them.

LouZiffer wrote:

Up until about a year ago the fam and I were living full-time in a fifth wheel and traveling. It was really great, but health and other changes in our family forced us to buy a home in Gainesville, FL and settle down a while.

Now we're hearing from traveling families all over the country who are finding it more and more difficult to find places to stay as state parks, RV resorts, and other locations shut down. A few are now in a situation where they have a home but nowhere to stay. These folks don't mind sheltering in place and not traveling for the good of everyone, but some state and local governments who don't understand their plight are currently making decisions which lead to their traveling more than expected and staying in parking lots out of desperation. This sucks for a community as eco-conscious and giving as the one we got to know during our traveling years. It's only the start of what's to come, so I'm more than a little concerned for them.

For some reason, YouTube served me up "van life" or "moved into an RV" video a while back, and I've watched a bunch of the videos with kind of morbid fascination over time while playing guitar or doing other things. Have genuinely wondered how that nomadic life is going to handle this. I suspect incredibly badly; you don't have the capacity to store enough supplies for a longtime self-quarantine in a place, and, if you're ordered to shelter in place and your place actually moves . . . no idea.

There are a lot of people who have been living off specialized YouTube channels who are going to have a very rough time now that the economy has tanked and Patreon is going to dry up.

MilkmanDanimal wrote:

For some reason, YouTube served me up "van life" or "moved into an RV" video a while back, and I've watched a bunch of the videos with kind of morbid fascination over time while playing guitar or doing other things. Have genuinely wondered how that nomadic life is going to handle this. I suspect incredibly badly; you don't have the capacity to store enough supplies for a longtime self-quarantine in a place, and, if you're ordered to shelter in place and your place actually moves . . . no idea.

There are a lot of people who have been living off specialized YouTube channels who are going to have a very rough time now that the economy has tanked and Patreon is going to dry up.

Those few that are in vans or other small setups will have an easier time finding a place to sit (heck - many urban camp without a problem), but will definitely have to resupply more frequently.

Most families won't have a problem with supplying themselves as they're living in a fifth wheel, Class A, or bus conversion which they can easily stay in for a month or longer. Many spend a few weeks at a time boondocking out of reach of everything. The main problem for them is going to be finding a spot to rent for a long period of time if places are closed.

It seems to me that long-tenancy RV parks are likely to stay open. I remember stopping at one of those in Arizona somewhere. It was intended for RVs, and had both daily and monthly rates, and I think had separate electric meters and individual cable connections for long-stay tenants.

Well, New Zealand is going into full lockdown over the next 48 hours. Schools aren't opening tomorrow, all non-essential businesses will be closed. Expected to be for at least four weeks.

I'm just glad we prepared a bunch of stuff 'just in case' over the last week, I think we can manage FORTRESS: OUR HOUSE okay now.

I've had very dull and minor chest pain since Friday morning. No other symptoms. I've got two young children so we've been sick with one thing or another since November. They just got over a cold recently too. After the pain persisting I called our 811 info number and talked to someone. I'm very low risk of infection but told me to stay home for the week. I mentioned I'd like to set up an appointment with my family doctor and they encouraged it. I may have asthma but that was only recently suggested and it certainly isn't serious if I do have it.

So I'm home for the week and can hopefully set up an appointment sooner rather than later.

Good luck Vector!

Vector wrote:

I've had very dull and minor chest pain since Friday morning. No other symptoms. I've got two young children so we've been sick with one thing or another since November. They just got over a cold recently too. After the pain persisting I called our 811 info number and talked to someone. I'm very low risk of infection but told me to stay home for the week. I mentioned I'd like to set up an appointment with my family doctor and they encouraged it. I may have asthma but that was only recently suggested and it certainly isn't serious if I do have it.

So I'm home for the week and can hopefully set up an appointment sooner rather than later.

How's your sense of smell and taste?

And this guy's account:

Taste and smell are fine.

Thanks, Antichulius. I'm hoping it's just some form of heartburn or acid reflux but I'm doubtful.

MikeSands wrote:

Well, New Zealand is going into full lockdown over the next 48 hours. Schools aren't opening tomorrow, all non-essential businesses will be closed. Expected to be for at least four weeks.

I'm just glad we prepared a bunch of stuff 'just in case' over the last week, I think we can manage FORTRESS: OUR HOUSE okay now.

So. Many. Calls. I work in IT for local businesses, and I’ve never had a day as insane as today. And we’re classed as “essential services” so we’re staying open, although we’ll be working from home and doing everything remotely possible to stay remote.

Well either stress is starting to hit me or I may be getting sick. While probably just a cold I am scheduled to work remote until Friday.

I hope my people don't hate me if I have to call out.

Between stress, epilepsy, medication side effects, sinuses and allergies this could literly be anything or nothing.

This is such an odd time in our lives.

Maryland is shutting down non-essential stores at 1700 today.

Robear wrote:

Yep. We are past the point where it can be stopped at the perimeter (or even reasonably slowed). The protocols have shifted to general population stuff, and with community spread prevalent, it no longer matters on the small scale.

It turns out someone didn’t completely give up on screening. While on the plane to LAX all passengers were given health questionnaires to fill out. But no one collected them, and no one my brother attempted to give his to even seemed to know what it was.

Dang we have 3 threads about this?

WFH week 2.

Mostly I just want to play Animal Crossing all day. It's sitting right over there.