Coronavirus prep

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Replies

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    SModa61 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Re air circulation on planes: I am very sensitive to air quality. While it is true that there is great air circulation while the plane is *moving,* when last I flew regularly, 11 years ago, while the plane was on the ground there was a distinct decrease in air quality. Looks like that was still true in 2020:

    https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-clean-is-the-air-on-your-airplane-coronavirus-cvd

    ...That’s why, in addition to good filters, airline cabins also need good passengers. This means everyone onboard should wear a mask.

    That’s both because of masks’ proven protective qualities and the fact that HEPA filters and rapid-air circulation don’t work at max effectiveness until the plane is airborne. This means that the sometimes-interminable period between grabbing your seat and takeoff (or between landing and disembarking) is when you’re most likely to inhale a cloud of air from a person infected with COVID-19.

    That stale, warm air you occasionally notice when a plane is on the ground sitting at the gate or idling might mean there’s little circulation through those filters.

    Your discussion is causing me to remember something from early on in the pandemic. Back in the beginning, weren't they "idling" the plane to keep those filters going? If so, I am not noticing that now.

    I haven't been on a plane since I left FL for good to move back to MA :smiley:
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    SModa61 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Re air circulation on planes: I am very sensitive to air quality. While it is true that there is great air circulation while the plane is *moving,* when last I flew regularly, 11 years ago, while the plane was on the ground there was a distinct decrease in air quality. Looks like that was still true in 2020:

    https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-clean-is-the-air-on-your-airplane-coronavirus-cvd

    ...That’s why, in addition to good filters, airline cabins also need good passengers. This means everyone onboard should wear a mask.

    That’s both because of masks’ proven protective qualities and the fact that HEPA filters and rapid-air circulation don’t work at max effectiveness until the plane is airborne. This means that the sometimes-interminable period between grabbing your seat and takeoff (or between landing and disembarking) is when you’re most likely to inhale a cloud of air from a person infected with COVID-19.

    That stale, warm air you occasionally notice when a plane is on the ground sitting at the gate or idling might mean there’s little circulation through those filters.

    Your discussion is causing me to remember something from early on in the pandemic. Back in the beginning, weren't they "idling" the plane to keep those filters going? If so, I am not noticing that now.

    I haven't been on a plane since I left FL for good to move back to MA :smiley:

    We're at that age that we are thinking estate planning and Florida is friendlier in that regard. Plus, hubby would fish 365 days a year if he could. :)
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,274 Member
    I think our Australian rule of 7 days isolation is about right - recently reduced from 10.

    If you are asymptomatic on day 6.
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    SModa61 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    SModa61 wrote: »
    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Re air circulation on planes: I am very sensitive to air quality. While it is true that there is great air circulation while the plane is *moving,* when last I flew regularly, 11 years ago, while the plane was on the ground there was a distinct decrease in air quality. Looks like that was still true in 2020:

    https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/how-clean-is-the-air-on-your-airplane-coronavirus-cvd

    ...That’s why, in addition to good filters, airline cabins also need good passengers. This means everyone onboard should wear a mask.

    That’s both because of masks’ proven protective qualities and the fact that HEPA filters and rapid-air circulation don’t work at max effectiveness until the plane is airborne. This means that the sometimes-interminable period between grabbing your seat and takeoff (or between landing and disembarking) is when you’re most likely to inhale a cloud of air from a person infected with COVID-19.

    That stale, warm air you occasionally notice when a plane is on the ground sitting at the gate or idling might mean there’s little circulation through those filters.

    Your discussion is causing me to remember something from early on in the pandemic. Back in the beginning, weren't they "idling" the plane to keep those filters going? If so, I am not noticing that now.

    I haven't been on a plane since I left FL for good to move back to MA :smiley:

    We're at that age that we are thinking estate planning and Florida is friendlier in that regard. Plus, hubby would fish 365 days a year if he could. :)

    My partner would go to the golf driving range 365 days a year if he could :)

    During lockdown, he bought a net to hit balls in the backyard, and is trying to figure out how heat the barn enough to be able to hit balls into the net out there when it is too cold for the range.

    During the nutty year, we downsized into a townhouse on a golf course. We are on the ninth hole, next to the putting green and driving range. Neither of us golf.......

    good luck with the barn :)
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,740 Member
    SModa61 wrote: »

    During the nutty year, we downsized into a townhouse on a golf course. We are on the ninth hole, next to the putting green and driving range. Neither of us golf.......

    good luck with the barn :)

    My brother lives in Arizona in a beautiful house overlooking a golf course. He and his wife both play golf, but they can't afford to play on the course where they live. Still, it's fun to watch others play.
  • RetiredAndLovingIt
    RetiredAndLovingIt Posts: 1,394 Member
    When our kids were young we lived along the golf course, along one of the longest driving holes. Of course, we had broken windows & got lots of unclaimed golf balls. They had a golf ball stand instead of lemonade, lol.
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,098 Member
    @spiriteagle99 @retiredandlovingit Our unit is an interior unit and behind our cluster is a berm topped with white pines that separates us from the putting green. As for the ninth hole, there is another long group of pines which are trimmed at the bottom to see under, but full at top for rogue balls. Since august when we bought, our unit has not been hit by one ball, but the end unit next to us has as it is not fully behind the pines and exposed to the tee off. As for the driving range, since the driving is not used off season, the cats are loving being harness walked up that hill . There is brush along the sides with lots of exciting critters.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,163 Member
    edited January 2022
    I posted this link on another thread, but I'm going to repost it here in case it may be helpful to some.

    It's a paper written by medical doctors (with cardiology and sports med credentials), with this aim:
    The primary purpose of this topic is to provide guidance about individual return to play or strenuous activity following infection with COVID-19, with a focus on older adolescent (eg, high school) athletes, recreational and elite adult athletes, tactical personnel, and heavy occupational laborers.

    I was interested primarily because some of my past coaching education still makes me curious about things like that, but I think active people who've recently had Covid (or have active family members who have) might get some usefulness from it.

    https://www.uptodate.com/contents/covid-19-return-to-play-or-strenuous-activity-following-infection#H135764167

    It's written in a dry research study kind of way, not like a lively journalistic report, but it's not super-technical IMO beyond that, so should be accessible.
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    After almost three years of being *so* gods-damn careful, I've got Omnicron. I'm vaxxed and boosted; I have mild symptoms and just tired all the time. My workplace mandates isolation for five days, complete masking for five when reporting to work; no negative test required. I hope my kids (also vaxxed, one boosted) can manage to avoid this.

    Nobody is going to avoid Omicron unless they literally do absolutely nothing and have no contact with anyone. My whole family had it earlier this month and I'm still in quarantine for work due to their very strict protocols. We're all vaxed and my wife and I are boosted. We have indoor mask mandates here and always comply and we all still got it.

    Sorry if you already answered this, but having been so conscientious, can you narrow down your/your kids' possible exposures?
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    For those in the U.S., have you ordered your free test kits from the government yet?
    We'll see how long they take to arrive...it is through the U.S. Postal Service, after all...
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
    edited January 2022

    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    After almost three years of being *so* gods-damn careful, I've got Omnicron. I'm vaxxed and boosted; I have mild symptoms and just tired all the time. My workplace mandates isolation for five days, complete masking for five when reporting to work; no negative test required. I hope my kids (also vaxxed, one boosted) can manage to avoid this.

    Nobody is going to avoid Omicron unless they literally do absolutely nothing and have no contact with anyone. My whole family had it earlier this month and I'm still in quarantine for work due to their very strict protocols. We're all vaxed and my wife and I are boosted. We have indoor mask mandates here and always comply and we all still got it.

    I thought that too but somehow managed to avoid getting it when my family had it. I wish I did test positive, at this point I just want to get it over with. Given my extensive exposures I am assuming that I am immune due to either previous exposure or vaccine response. I just wish I had that confirmation of being post infection so I can get on with normal life and go on a freaking vacation without worrying about getting stuck there with a positive test.
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
    I'm going to a wake tomorrow, and find myself pretty anxious about it. I'm going to double-mask and not stay very long, but funerals/wakes tend to be super-spreader events.

    My husband and I are vaxxed/boosted, but we still do not want even a mild case.

    If I test positive, I'm out of work for a minimum of 5 days. This is an extremely busy time at my job, and what I can do from home is limited. It would be a burden on my co-workers if I were not there.

    My husband is a freelancer/contractor. If he tests positive, he is also out of work, but he would not get paid for his lost time, so it's a financial burden for us if he doesn't work.

    Honestly at this point given how obiquitous it is I would just not test and keep on doing what I needed to do.
  • ReenieHJ
    ReenieHJ Posts: 9,724 Member
    For those in the U.S., have you ordered your free test kits from the government yet?
    We'll see how long they take to arrive...it is through the U.S. Postal Service, after all...

    My sister got hers and it only took a few days. Plus she said it has a years expiration date. I picked some up from the state police a few weeks ago; they'll get us through until April then they expire so will have to look into getting more then.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    For those in the U.S., have you ordered your free test kits from the government yet?
    We'll see how long they take to arrive...it is through the U.S. Postal Service, after all...

    We ordered ours on Tuesday. Said 7-10 days to ship. I wouldn't imagine it will take long to get here once shipped though.
  • SuzySunshine99
    SuzySunshine99 Posts: 2,989 Member
    33gail33 wrote: »
    I'm going to a wake tomorrow, and find myself pretty anxious about it. I'm going to double-mask and not stay very long, but funerals/wakes tend to be super-spreader events.

    My husband and I are vaxxed/boosted, but we still do not want even a mild case.

    If I test positive, I'm out of work for a minimum of 5 days. This is an extremely busy time at my job, and what I can do from home is limited. It would be a burden on my co-workers if I were not there.

    My husband is a freelancer/contractor. If he tests positive, he is also out of work, but he would not get paid for his lost time, so it's a financial burden for us if he doesn't work.

    Honestly at this point given how obiquitous it is I would just not test and keep on doing what I needed to do.

    I have required testing twice a week at work, and my husband is required to test on certain job sites, so we can't hide it.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,163 Member
    For those in the U.S., have you ordered your free test kits from the government yet?
    We'll see how long they take to arrive...it is through the U.S. Postal Service, after all...

    No. Some of my friends have.

    When the news came that the website was open (early, soft open), I looked at an online-order source where I'd found a good price previously on the Abbot Labs BinaxNow 2-packs, but that had been out of stock for a while. They were back in stock, though now at $20 per 2-pack rather than $14 as previously. I ordered some, they'll be here tomorrow. I still had one two-pack from a previous order.

    My thought process was that - based on what I've heard/read - my health insurance provider will reimburse me (though possibly at an out-of-network rate maxed at $12) albeit with a little hassle to send stuff in; and I can afford this even if they don't (not rich, but this isn't big bucks in context). I'm also retired, don't need lots of tests, unlike some folks in more challenging situations.

    I'm waiting to see how the supply through the government channel holds out, thinking that letting lower income, underinsured, and front line workers go first would be a good thing for someone like me. (I'm not suggesting anyone else should do likewise, just sharing my thought process).

    The friends who've ordered reported that the process was easy, but I wouldn't expect any of them to have received the tests yet, given published timelines. It's likely they'll post about it (in a private FB group where we're members and it's relevant), so I can report back if they do, given that theirs were quite early orders.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    My aunt sent me the site to order the tests. I ordered mine yesterday and they give you a max of 4 tests per household.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    edited January 2022
    33gail33 wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    oocdc2 wrote: »
    After almost three years of being *so* gods-damn careful, I've got Omnicron. I'm vaxxed and boosted; I have mild symptoms and just tired all the time. My workplace mandates isolation for five days, complete masking for five when reporting to work; no negative test required. I hope my kids (also vaxxed, one boosted) can manage to avoid this.

    Nobody is going to avoid Omicron unless they literally do absolutely nothing and have no contact with anyone. My whole family had it earlier this month and I'm still in quarantine for work due to their very strict protocols. We're all vaxed and my wife and I are boosted. We have indoor mask mandates here and always comply and we all still got it.

    I thought that too but somehow managed to avoid getting it when my family had it. I wish I did test positive, at this point I just want to get it over with. Given my extensive exposures I am assuming that I am immune due to either previous exposure or vaccine response. I just wish I had that confirmation of being post infection so I can get on with normal life and go on a freaking vacation without worrying about getting stuck there with a positive test.

    I know others who have avoided it also. My best friend's kids had it and he didn't come down with it at the time (Christmas), but he just popped positive yesterday. I'm not sure about his ex-wife. I think ultimately it's going to be very difficult to avoid and those people who don't get it at some point will be few and far between just looking at the numbers. In my state alone we had a weekend positive test number of 21,000 and that's only the people who actually went to a testing site that reports to the DOH...our previous 3 day high was in the neighborhood of 6,000 which was around this same time last year before the vaccine came out.

    ETA: when I say everyone, I mean everyone who hasn't yet come down with some variant of COVID. I think Omicron is the wide net...
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
    edited January 2022
    ahoy_m8 wrote: »
    @cwolfman13 Your assessment of it all is interesting to read. Thanks for sharing it. Sorry again you were all exposed, but the NYE thing does sound fun. Hope its all better where you are.

    @SuzySunshine99 I ordered Tuesday. Also curious about turn around time. Do you have to go to the wake? Can you send a really, really nice heartfelt letter? And maybe some food or something?

    @33gail33 Having contracted covid once does not mean you will not get it again nor that the pandemic inconvenience is all over for you. I have a daughter who has had it twice: once pre-vaccine and once post-vaccine/pre-boost. She felt truly awful both times.

    It means that you can travel internationally with your positive test results for 180 days, and not have to worry about a PCR test coming up as an asymptomatic positive, which would delay getting back into my country (Canada).