Lani and gbs, I can't even imagine how difficult these past months have been for you. I cared for my mother in her final years, and I not being able to see her and know she was taken care of properly would have been horrible. I will hold your mothers in my thoughts, and I'll ask my own mother on the other side to watch over them.
Posted by @lynnventura:
I will hold your mothers in my thoughts, and I'll ask my own mother on the other side to watch over them. [emphasis mine]
Lynn, I love this. My sister cared for my mother after she developed Alzheimer's, but eventually we needed to place mom in a long-term care facility. It was a good and caring facility, and she passed away peacefully. @mililani and @gbs, I will follow lynn's wonderful example and do the same. I can feel my mother wanting to help.
Today in the Washington Post, a famous chef said some interesting things about the "reopening" of Georgia:
Does reopening signal that restaurant workers are deemed expendable?
Hugh Acheson, a judge on “Top Chef” and owner of three restaurants in Georgia, said restaurants may be the classic canary in the coal mine — a trial balloon to see how viable post-pandemic business will be.
“We’ve been given the green light to reopen,” he said. “So why is the Governor’s Mansion still closed to tours? If people are going to die, they’re going to pick which ones.” He has taken to Twitter and television to explain why he thinks reopening would jeopardize his workers’ safety.
Hugh Acheson✔ @HughAcheson
Georgia has Covid tested 88000 people. The population is 10.62 million. That is 0.8% of the population. The kicker is this: 23% tested positive.
We are not ready to fling the doors open. #sciencerulesKempdrools
Acheson closed his restaurants March 15 and has been producing 500 to 800 meals a day with World Central Kitchen for hospitals and housing projects. He says 50 percent capacity isn’t viable, especially as landlords aren’t charging 50 percent rent — he says it is likely that after reopening there will be massive restaurant failures that lead to even higher rates of unemployment.
“Normal consumers don’t have any idea of how their lives would change, the economic tentacles that emanate from restaurants, the ripple effect,” he said. “I guess I’ll pivot to being a drive-through strip club.”
I have no interest in the PCR virus presence swab testing. I am aware that many of the antibody tests are giving false positives. Quest Labs is usually pretty accurate for other antibody tests I have had with them, this is a blood test, not saliva or swab, so better chance for accuracy. Also - this only the first test. I plan to get tested 2 more times from different companies between now and the end of the year. Figure 2 out of 3 should be accurate enough. Also, I had a long illness in late January - early February that matches most of the CV19 symptoms (posted way earlier in this thread about that), and I didn't fully recover til first week of March. I live in a big city with lots of foreign tourists and travel(ed) a lot. I suspect I already had it, so that's why I'm pursuing the AB testing rather than the presence testing.
@lynnventura and @deetoo Your kind words brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for including my mother and the other residents of her facility in your prayers.
The group in these forums is so extraordinarily kind. It's life-affirming to be reminded of this kindness every time I come here.
@lynnventura lani and gbs I will add my prayers and ask my mother who had dementia and has passed to help bring peace and comfort. It is a devastating, heartbreaking disease. Hang on and hang in. We are all here for each other and sadly many have walked the same path. But there’s safety and comfort in numbers and we are here for you. Love and peace to all. ❤️☮️
I think it's awesome to reach out to our moms for help! My mom was fierce and was always trying to help when and where she could. It gives me such joy that in such hard times we're enlisting mother energy and bringing them close to us once more by including them and giving them a chance to lend a hand. What a great way to honor them, and with Mother's Day approaching.
Happy Tuesday everyone!
Posted by @lynnventura:
I feel very deeply that I shouldn't disrespect my good fortune. These are terrible times but they bring gifts if we are open to seeing them.
That is so true, lynn. And I agree how privileged and blessed those of us are who can stay home. I become furious with those people who have that same luxury but instead, choose to do whatever the hell they want. How incredibly selfish. And the question is this: what is the human cost? What are the lives of these essential workers worth to you?
I live in Virginia and read that Gov. Northam plans to open up some non-essential businesses on May 15th if current state trends hold. In my view, the current trends aren't that great; it's much too soon. And the crazy thing is, it can't be that Northam is worried about his own election because in Virginia, you can only serve one term as governor. Plus he's a doctor, so he should know better.