My Coronavirus Diary Part 25

More than 11,000 people have died here in the United States from the coronavirus.

Yesterday, my mom sent me a link with a video explaining what a ventilator is exactly and how personalized they are. I deal with them all of the time, so it didn't occur to me that others may not know exactly what they are or how they work. But I've only dealt ventilators on patients with tracheotomies (holes cut into the trachea/throats of patients). Patients with COVID 19 have tubes down their throats in lieu of tracheotomies. Only doctors and respiratory therapists can do that. The pressures and oxygen requirements vary from patient to patient, and yet New York is doubling up on the ventilators somehow to make do. Check out the video.

Another startling video shows the inside of a hospital emergency room in Brooklyn. The video runs 5 and a half minutes and was filmed over a 40 minute period, but the video is horrifying. The number of patients is overwhelming.  It is a rather shocking look in a New York emergency room

New York is the country's COVID 19 hot spot right now, with 131,815 confirmed cases. They have more than 65,000 cases in New York City alone. There have been 4,758 deaths in the state, about 3,485 of those deaths in the city. New York City's death toll has surpassed all those who have died in China (3,212) where this virus originated. But New York City seems to be seeing the results of sheltering in place. The numbers of new hospitalizations there have started to drop.

Another good story involves a 90-year-old great grandmother who survived COVID 19. Awesome.

But despite these good signs, we have a long, long way to go before this thing is over. The virus comes in waves and spreads. New Jersey is now taking up the little slack that the New York City drops have made. Now is the time to be vigilant. Stay inside and away from others if possible. This article (Read it. The video is praising healthcare workers--and they do deserve it. But...) points out that this mess is still just beginning and we can't pat ourselves on the back just yet....especially when people like Louisiana pastor Tony Spell continually breaks state orders and hosts large church gatherings as he did on Palm Sunday. How can people like this guy think that a worldwide catastrophe that is killing thousands is "politically motivated"?

Staying  safe now is key in trying to vanquish the virus, especially since roughly half of those with the virus show no symptoms.

My friend Christa in Santa Monica is originally from Switzerland. She sent me an article detailing how, at the border of Switzerland and Germany, fences have been erected. Similar to the Berlin Wall with two sides and a "no man's land" between them, people in one country can visit loved ones in the other by simply standing at the fence. It's an effort to keep the virus from spreading from one nation to the other.

In another attempt at preventing the spread of the virus among its employees and customers, Safeway (aka Vons) and Albertsons are going to implement one-way aisles for shoppers, limit the numbers of shoppers in the stores and issue masks to all of the employees. Other "necessary" retailers (such as Wal Mart and Home Depot and even Target) have also added measures to keep employees and customers safer.

But away from the death and horrible situations in hospitals, and removed from whatever necessities  are away from the walls of home, life in quarantine continues on.

Sue Nan, in Southern California, wrote me another note yesterday. Seeing the picture of Shirley the tortoise at the end of yesterday's diary reminded her of some animal visitors she has often.

"Having an animal or two around helps remind us that life goes on in spite of the unseen things we’re dealing with," she said. "When I kept seeing and hearing about Shirley, I realized that these 'wild' distractions are helping us through this crisis because they just keep doing what they do in the midst of all these things scaring us. They’re older than us in the big picture and they do what they do to survive sans emotions. So just observing them provides a bit of encouragement, peace and humor… A few weeks ago, a mallard couple found their way to our deck. They flew up from the lake. I only had birdseed and shelled, raw sunflower seeds to feed them. So, knowing I had a stash of food, their visitations became daily occurrences. I ordered some duck pellets on Amazon, which I mix in. Of course, they prefer the more expensive fare. They eat, drink, preen for about 15 minutes, then get under the table, lie down and sleep for an hour or so before returning to the lake. Watching their daily ritual keeps me grounded. The ducks are oblivious to our human woes and emphasize the importance of keeping our simple routines: Eat, drink, preen, sleep."

My friend Art in Boston sent me this clever and humorous picture:

My friend Mikey in Iowa sent me a note yesterday about his grocery run. It went better than he had expected.

"There were no lines waiting to get in," he said, "but they only had two doors open; one in and one out.  They had carts arranged to keep people entering only in the one door.  The carts were all being sprayed with disinfectant by an employee as they were gathered from the lot.

"All of the employees were upbeat and very helpful.  That was a very pleasant surprise

"Almost all of the shelves were full and we were able to get all the items on our list, except the tortillas.  All the tortillas were sold out.  Who knew? 

"All of the employees were upbeat and very helpful.  That was a very pleasant surprise  I went in there with a feeling of dread and worry,  but left with a smile on my face and a spring in my step.   I'm not sure if it was because we got there right after they opened and everyone was still in a good mood, or if the management told them to be more helpful to the customers.  Either way,  it was a good trip.

"We are pretty lucky being way out in the country and able to walk around outside for a bit of exercise and fresh air. There's still only one verified case in our county, but things can change very quickly. We are staying home as much as we can until the groceries run out."

Mikey included some photos. Although the eggs were low in stock,...

the cleansers were all back on the shelves.

Art's prayer for T.P. picture must have worked miracles for Mikey. There was an abundance of bathroom tissue. Amen.

My friend and co-worker Anna has been busy in her spare time. Meet baby coronavirus, Ronita.

The actor, David Harbour (who may be best known for the recent HELLBOY remake and the Netflix series STRANGER THINGS), wants to hear from you during this crisis. Really. I came across the information about this while scrolling through Dread Central's newsletter. I don't know who David Harbour is really, but...sure. Why not? I sent him a note. (I also leveled with him that I didn't know who he was. Ha.) We will see if he responds (although I am sure he is getting thousands of text messages from fans) and he hasn't bothered to reply yet (but I'm boring). The information is below, should you want to try and connect with him.

“Text me (please not just ‘i love stranger things’ but with info about yourself, where are you? what do you do? Instagram handle? How’s money and work in this time? How’s family? Anything else you feel like might be interesting for me to know about you during all this?) 1 917 540 5294. Clearly, in the overwhelming nature of the numbers thing, I won’t get to reply to everyone, and I may not even see yours (apologies in advance if that happens) but I will try to compile some database of fans and friends to see if there are easy ways to connect and help each other in the future. If I am completely overwhelmed by this and it is a disaster I will keep you posted."

Yesterday late afternoon, I was sitting on my computer and realized my throat was feeling a bit scratchy. Oh crap. Was I getting a sore throat? Of course, I panicked. I Googled the signs and symptoms of coronavirus infection. Fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing. I don't have any of those. Other symptoms can include tiredness, aches, runny nose, sore throat. I might be developing a sore throat--but that is not one of the main symptoms. Maybe it's just a sore throat? Probably. I'm probably just being paranoid. The weather has changed from warm to cold and rainy. I could have a regular bug. That's probably all it is.

But it's hard not to let your mind get the best of you...

I also forgot that the incubation phase can be two days to 14 days. Crap! I've been home most of this past week, but the week before? Where was I? I did go to work one day. I've been to the store a few times. I think I should be okay--but these days, anything--a sneeze, a cough, even a headache--can freak you out.

And... I stink. I don't know how long it has been since I've shaved and showered...or even changed my underwear. As Sue Nan said "Eat, drink, preen, sleep." Oops. I've been forgetting to preen. I'm off to take a much-needed shower.

Ugh! I could do with a lot of preening...


Stay SAFE. Stay SHELTERED. Stay ALIVE.



CHEERS!



Continue to the next part HERE.