Your Amount of Social Distancing (buying, maintenance, groceries)

[Kippy]

Originally Posted by PenguinsFan14

If anyone is staying in and ordering food, I strongly suggest tossing some money at your local Chinese restaurant. These places are usually local mom and pop places and they are really hurting. Papa John's will survive this, but many of these Chinese places won't. Remember your neighbors.

Having worked in a restaurant before and seeing the utter lack for food safety by both the kitchen staff and waitstaff alike on a good day, there is no way I would eat any food prepared outside my home until this situation dies down.

[Kippy]

Yikes, as if I weren't already paranoid enough! While this is fiction, it makes a strong case for social distancing.

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020...infection.html

[PGH423]

Originally Posted by Kippy

Having worked in a restaurant before and seeing the utter lack for food safety by both the kitchen staff and waitstaff alike on a good day, there is no way I would eat any food prepared outside my home until this situation dies down.

That's scary to think about. However, you don't know who has handled the food you're getting in the grocery store either. I'd hope there's at least some accountability if you show up to work and are obviously sick at a restaurant but anyone can go to Giant Eagle and cough on stuff. I think that's even more worrisome for exposed food (mainly produce) but probably an issue for everything.

[Kippy]

Originally Posted by PGH423

That's scary to think about. However, you don't know who has handled the food you're getting in the grocery store either. I'd hope there's at least some accountability if you show up to work and are obviously sick at a restaurant but anyone can go to Giant Eagle and cough on stuff. I think that's even more worrisome for exposed food (mainly produce) but probably an issue for everything.

Part of the reason that SARS-CoV-2 is so difficult to contain is the fact that it can be spread by asymptomatic carriers. In places where testing was done on the population en masse, such as on the cruise ships and the Italian town of Vo, they have found that 50% to 75% of those infected were asymptomatic. So, there is no way to know who has it and who doesn't by symptoms alone.

I do see your point about Giant Eagle, and I would suggest that any non-perishables be left in their bags unpacked somewhere out of the way, like your garage or basement, for a period of no less than three days. The same goes for packages that you receive. In theory, the virus should not remain viable on surfaces after 72 hours.

For perishable food that needs to be refrigerated, I would suggest spraying them with a bleach solution, if possible, or changing out the container. For example, a gallon of milk could be sprayed and allowed to sit for fifteen minutes before putting in the fridge. A dozen eggs could be placed in other container and the egg carton could be thrown away. A loaf of bread could be dumped into your own zip lock bag and the original bag could be thrown away.

I know that some people might think this is overboard, but it is one's personal preference. People in high risk groups or who are in close contact with those in high risk groups may see the extra precautions as warranted. We have already taken such extreme measures to avoid the virus, why not take an in for a penny, in for a pound approach?

I think one of the most important things to do, which is often overlooked, is to clean disinfect your phone upon returning home from being out and about. Also, while it might seem odd with the weather warming up, you can do your shopping wearing "tech touch" gloves, which let you use touch screen checkouts while protecting your hands and serving as a reminder not to touch your face.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by Kippy

I know that some people might think this is overboard, but it is one's personal preference. People in high risk groups or who are in close contact with those in high risk groups may see the extra precautions as warranted. We have already taken such extreme measures to avoid the virus, why not take an in for a penny, in for a pound approach?

no, not overboard at all. just good advice, based on what science knows now.

this from the National Inst. of health:

The scientists found that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was detectable in aerosols for up to three hours, up to four hours on copper, up to 24 hours on cardboard and up to two to three days on plastic and stainless steel.

so - good advice about packages. who thinks to sterilize cardboard?

[Doowlle34]

We had a pretty good week of "social distancing" in Dormont. We had bought enough food last Friday for the entire week, so we didn't need to go to a store until last night. I was able to work from home, and my wife, after working downtown for 18 years, is currently a stay-at-home mom for our one, elementary-school-age child. Other than going out for walks, and saying hello to friends from a safe distance (we have some great pictures), we maintained a good social distance from other folks. We finally went to a store last night -- Shop and Save in Heidelberg. We went later in the evening -- and it was mostly empty, although some folks still do not seem to have any clue or care about "social distancing". The store was more or less well-stocked, although there was no toilet paper or flour (although we only hoped to buy the latter, as we are good on the former).

I'm also helping manage my 79 year-old mother's social distancing in and around Ellwood City. We first had to convince her to skip mass last Saturday, but she agreed, and then I scored a coup by predicting, on Sunday morning, that Bishop Zubik would cancel all masses indefinitely (which he did on Sunday evening). We have relatives in the town who are assisting in procuring groceries for her as well. Our biggest problem up there is my mother's one friend, also 79, who is not taking social distancing very seriously, and showed up, unannounced, on Thursday at dinner time (of course, my mother was not going to tell her friend to leave, so she invited her in and they had dinner). The friend lives with her daughter/son-in-law, and the daughter owns a small business, so the daughter was still interacting with the public through wednesday, and then coming home and interacting with her mother, of course.

In general, I think most of our acquiantances in Dormont have taken a similar approach to social distancing, although practices vary somewhat based on whether a parent is still required to go into work.

In general, however, and I assume like the majority of folks, I continue to have a constant low-level anxiety about the situation, which sometimes drifts in to despair. I'm not so much concerned about my own health, but principally my mother's and then the threats to others, and the continued disruption of the economy and social life.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by Doowlle34

.....

I'm also helping manage my 79 year-old mother's social distancing in and around Ellwood City. We first had to convince her to skip mass last Saturday, but she agreed, and then I scored a coup by predicting, on Sunday morning, that Bishop Zubik would cancel all masses indefinitely (which he did on Sunday evening).

In general, however, and I assume like the majority of folks, I continue to have a constant low-level anxiety about the situation, which sometimes drifts in to despair. I'm not so much concerned about my own health, but principally my mother's and then the threats to others, and the continued disruption of the economy and social life.

"scored a coup"

for your last paragraph, likewise for me. i havent' gotten to 'despair' (yet), but i am so concerned for co-workers, and some local kids (20s) in my neighborhood (im old for this area anymore! ha) who NEED social interaction - that is just what you do at that age.

years ago i got into a situation where i sit with old people - none in this group are to be left alone, but i fill in the late afternoon gap their family (friends of mine) just cannot cover. nothing was ever done to cover this gap, so i just continued doing it - no nursing or anything, just sit there and watch their shows like family feud and ellen (they love ellen - i think they think shes a boy ), just in case of an emergency.

that has ceased - and the one old woman, who thinks im a boat captain for some reason, called some office in connecticut because she thought i was MIA and in danger. (there's no rationale here - she is old and not totally coherent). they just don't totally get this disruption in their almost decade routine. they are so sweet and cute, but so confused, and helpless. you just have to hope for that sometimes 2 hours, they'll just sleep or something...and then, can they even have their family people assist them anymore? egads.

after this, there will have to be a new normal. and the warnings were there a decade ago, or longer...

[_Buster]

I practice social distancing by staying off of FB and Twitter

[Reggiezz]

I'm 65 and have cancer so I've been home for 2 weeks until yesterday. I started following this story around the 3rd week of January and acquired enough non perishables by the end of January to last quite awhile. I also bought surgical masks then. I dropped off a box of 125 to my cancer Center nurses yesterday then came home. I kept about 30 masks in case I eventually go somewhere.

I expect to get this bug eventually as it will be unstoppable. My goal is to delay getting it until the hospitals are no longer full. Don't know if that's possible though. If I get it at the peak, I'm a goner.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by Reggiezz

I'm 65 and have cancer so I've been home for 2 weeks until yesterday. I started following this story around the 3rd week of January and acquired enough non perishables by the end of January to last quite awhile. I also bought surgical masks then. I dropped off a box of 125 to my cancer Center nurses yesterday then came home. I kept about 30 in case I eventually go somewhere.

I expect to get this bug eventually as it will be unstoppable. My goal is to delay getting it until the hospitals are no longer full. Don't know if that's possible though. If I get it at the peak, I'm a goner.

if you remain home, you very well could avoid it! hope you have whatever is prescribed for your cancer. awesome of you to make the trip to share the masks....