Coronavirus prep

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

The packaging on stuff - yogurt, eggs, bread, pasta, rice, oatmeal. The skins of fresh fruits and vegetables.

My husband is a huge germaphobe, and has driven me crazy over the years with his habit of rewashing his hands after he opens a package before actually getting anything out of it, also "quarantining" food containers he brings home that he has handled at work until they can be washed. He also never takes any food provided for employees in the break room, unless he has seen it arrive and no one has touched/coughed on it yet. I used to make fun of him, but now not so much. He has a high-risk condition (asthma) and works at a business that sells/repairs semis, where lots of truckers of questionable hygiene from all over the country visit each day (believe me, he has some stories ).

I like your husband. Please have him email me his Excel sheet with his list of procedures.

I know a couple (and mind you, he has a complex system that he has been working on for 35 years). He has trained himself to maintain one hand in a clean condition and use the other hand for potentially contaminated surfaces during meals. In restaurants, he only drinks out of glasses with a straw, since the glass itself was touched by the server. He washes beverage cans. He keeps his own hand towel in the kitchen (I guess the kids and I are on our own ). Would you like more?

I know it sounds like he must have no life, but he's actually worked all of these habits into his routine so seamlessly that they are barely noticeable (unless you're me ). Not sure where they came from, as I don't recall him being like that when we were first married.

The at-home stuff...I'm making changes as I go. What does he do about bread bags?

Open the bag while hands are still unwashed. Wash hands. Carefully reach inside (perhaps tongs would be helpful? ) and remove bread. Close bag and rewash hands before proceeding with food preparation (assuming any other required containers have already been procured and opened).

I'm starting to feel like I'm the one who's crazy!

ha ha I love him.

I'm toying with the idea of just putting brand new bread in a tupperware type thing or a large ziplock - why not both? Every time the bread bag touches the counter, you've got a problem. God only knows how many hands touched it between the bakery and me.

Same with bananas.

Egg cartons. Oh, wait! *runs to look for that Dollar Store plastic egg holder thingy that I put away.*


I mean, everything in my refrigerator and cupboards are potentially a problem.

Not really. Has it been mentioned how long the virus can live on surfaces?

(I'm not the one who "disagreed" with you, BTW.)

I have a stalker in this thread.

If I said, "Sky's blue," I'd get one.



And, yeah I've posted a couple times that the best-guess is that the virus can live on surfaces for UP to nine days.

Huh... aren't most viruses 24 hours, or something?

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/home/cleaning-disinfection.html

https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses




Private source: https://www.nst.com.my/world/world/2020/02/570273/how-long-can-covid-19-survive-surfaces

An analysis of 22 earlier studies of similar coronaviruses, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) published online this month in the Journal of Hospital Infection, concluded that human coronaviruses can remain infectious on inanimate surfaces for up to nine days at room temperature. However, they can quickly be rendered inactive using common disinfectants, and may also dissipate at higher temperatures, the authors wrote. It is not yet clear, however, whether the new coronavirus behaves in a similar way.

kimny72 wrote: »

pitbullpuppy wrote: »

I don't even leave the house at this point. I'm neurotic. I almost didn't give my dog a kiss because he might have it from spending too much time in outside contaminated air.

If it helps, the WHO is still saying that's not something you need to worry about. From their FAQ:

Can I catch COVID-19 from my pet?
No. There is no evidence that companion animals or pets such as cats and dogs have been infected or could spread the virus that causes COVID-19.

So I can't justify getting rid of my devil dog? Man this virus sucks.

My dog greets everyone on the street though. He could carry it on his person.

lemurcat2 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

Truly, I'm at zero personal stress over this, so far.

That's admirable, and I mean that sincerely.

For some reason I'm overreacting compared to my normal type of response. A friend asked me where I was 1-10, and I said 6 - only 1 (vs. 0) about personal physical danger (although I find I am way more conscious of the fact I constantly touch my face and of all the other contact I have on the L, my most likely infection vector), more like 4 for my concern about high risk people (before she died 2 years ago my mom was in assisted living in WA state, which is probably making some of this hit home), and then the stock market has been freaking me out about the economy tanking (although I may refi to my own benefit even though I think the reduced interest rates are getting insane and irresponsible).

Other people's reactions do have some effect, it seems to me: I can watch my silly brain trying to fall for that s***, and gotta shake my head (such as catching myself wondering whether I should buy extra hand sanitizer, a thing I only rarely use (and that I just routinely re-stocked, besides)). Sort of a twisted form of FOMO, I guess (everyone's doing it!!).

For me, the thing is that I don't see how stress helps. Kind of the reverse. Thought and appropriate planning? Sure, good. Stress? Anxiety? Really optional.

I used to be a more anxious person, very "what if". Sometime during cancer treatment, I realized I was spending a good bit of time worrying about things that never happened, then being blindsided by things I never anticipated. The net effect that I was maximizing the time I spent in negative emotional states - which are unpleasant places to live, right? - to little profit. At that point in life (mid-40s, recently widowed, diagnosed with stage III cancer), the idea that life is short had a certain sharp clarity. Why waste it on stress? These days, I try to save stress for times when something must be done, for life-altering reasons, and I can't figure out exactly what should be done. I don't always succeed at equanimity, but practice helps. I get that these are not reactions we can mostly intentionally control, but smashing my head into it in a down period somehow shifted my personal practices.

Interest rates: Yeah. It's nice for the consumer debt side, but not so great for the hyper-conservative savings/investment side of the economy. I think about my (blue collar) dad who planned/saved well for his retirement, but liked to keep his savings in CDs, and only enough $$ per institution that it was FDIC or NCUA insured. Interest rates were small, but coming close to consumer price growth, at least (or so it seemed). Nowadays, more people rely on 401-k or equivalents for retirement - how well the average person handles it is a different subject - and the lower-risk moderate-return options are thin on the ground. In moments of frustration, I feel like profilgate behavior (over-leverage) is incentivized more than highly prudent behavior (risk averse saving/investing). I know some other countries' equivalent of the Fed have moved to negative rates in some scenarios, which is a hard thing for me even to wrap my mind around.

P.S. Irrelevant additional aside about Steve Goodman: I was a big fan. I think he was one of the most well-roundedly engaging live performers I've ever seen (especially solo, as I felt like a band, other than Jethro Burns, tended to restrain his spontaneity). So sad that he died so young, and there's even pitifully little live video on YouTube, etc., because it was so long ago, and the performances small scale. Interesting, and sad, to hear that the Lincoln Park Pirates persisted so much longer . . . !

Some Doctors say regular soap is as good or better than hand sanitizer.

Powder y liquid bleach same thing both are good.

I been making dishes based on stuff we need to use up or hate first with stuff we like on the side. Figure that way got more food end up with better y better meals lol . I’m still watching calories to exercising not letting this crazy pandemic make me loose my weight loss progress !!

In case you're not too sick of the media coverage or anything having to do with Coronavirus, I found this daily newsletter via email with links to some interesting articles, stats, etc. You can decide with you like the sources.

https://cronyclecovid19.substack.com/p/covid-19-080320-fasten-your-seatbelts?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo0OTU5MjIwLCJwb3N0X2lkIjozMDc2NTMsIl8iOiJkVjBRUSIsImlhdCI6MTU4Mzg2MzE5NywiZXhwIjoxNTgzODY2Nzk3LCJpc3MiOiJwdWItMzE3ODAiLCJzdWIiOiJwb3N0LXJlYWN0aW9uIn0.xP1JsCKxxaewS1dOH_WSLBcSfoXT_iOr25qgjNye4tA

To address the "contagiousness" question, I found this to be interesting: (from https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-symptoms-start-about-five-days-after-infection-new-research-finds-11583784452).

I don't subscribe to the WSJ but basically it explains why 14 days self-quarantining if exposed makes sense. The first symptoms have appeared in most within 5 days and 98% within 11-12 days of exposure.

"“early and potentially highly efficient transmission of the virus occurs before clinical symptoms or in conjunction with the very first mild symptoms.” Michael Osterholm, Head of Cidrap

COVID19 peak shedding is 1,000 times that of SARS shedding likely explaining its higher spread (114,000 versus 8,000 cases for the SARS epidemic)

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

try2again wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

The packaging on stuff - yogurt, eggs, bread, pasta, rice, oatmeal. The skins of fresh fruits and vegetables.

My husband is a huge germaphobe, and has driven me crazy over the years with his habit of rewashing his hands after he opens a package before actually getting anything out of it, also "quarantining" food containers he brings home that he has handled at work until they can be washed. He also never takes any food provided for employees in the break room, unless he has seen it arrive and no one has touched/coughed on it yet. I used to make fun of him, but now not so much. He has a high-risk condition (asthma) and works at a business that sells/repairs semis, where lots of truckers of questionable hygiene from all over the country visit each day (believe me, he has some stories ).

I like your husband. Please have him email me his Excel sheet with his list of procedures.

I know a couple (and mind you, he has a complex system that he has been working on for 35 years). He has trained himself to maintain one hand in a clean condition and use the other hand for potentially contaminated surfaces during meals. In restaurants, he only drinks out of glasses with a straw, since the glass itself was touched by the server. He washes beverage cans. He keeps his own hand towel in the kitchen (I guess the kids and I are on our own ). Would you like more?

I know it sounds like he must have no life, but he's actually worked all of these habits into his routine so seamlessly that they are barely noticeable (unless you're me ). Not sure where they came from, as I don't recall him being like that when we were first married.

The at-home stuff...I'm making changes as I go. What does he do about bread bags?

Open the bag while hands are still unwashed. Wash hands. Carefully reach inside (perhaps tongs would be helpful? ) and remove bread. Close bag and rewash hands before proceeding with food preparation (assuming any other required containers have already been procured and opened).

I'm starting to feel like I'm the one who's crazy!

ha ha I love him.

I'm toying with the idea of just putting brand new bread in a tupperware type thing or a large ziplock - why not both? Every time the bread bag touches the counter, you've got a problem. God only knows how many hands touched it between the bakery and me.

Same with bananas.

Egg cartons. Oh, wait! *runs to look for that Dollar Store plastic egg holder thingy that I put away.*


I mean, everything in my refrigerator and cupboards are potentially a problem.

cmriverside--I can't tell if you're kidding or not. We have a family of 5--I can't tell you how many times one or two of us has been sick (cold, influenza, stomach bug, etc) and no one else in the house gets it. And I mean, I'll clean surfaces if one of us is sick, but do you really think everything stays pristine and germ-free with 3 kids? The (normal) immune system is amazing, and really does protect us from germs for the most part. I heard something way back, that indicated that if you took away the solid objects from the earth that we can see, and you could only see microbes, there would still be the 3D appearance of every solid object, due to the bacteria and virus particles on them. Everything has tons of germs, but that doesn't mean you'll definitely get sick from them.

I will agree that during these times, and many would argue in the winter in general, that it's best practice to wash hands and stay back from people in public. But to try to avoid so many surfaces and objects in my own home...just no. I personally can't live like that. Maybe if I was in the over 60 crowd I would think differently about it, but still, I can't wash my hands that many times and/or worry about the things brought into my home. And no, I'm not saying I'm laid back about it because I'm not over 60--my parents are flying here to visit this week, and believe me, I'm mindful of not spreading this (or flu) to those who are more susceptible.

I do understand that some have OCD about germs, and no way of speaking rationally will change their minds. That's a whole different thing (like my irrational fear of flying!).