Michele,
I am happy that you and your family are well-prepared. Here too. As you know, when the Cascadia quake hits, it's going to be devastating and thousands are woefully unprepared, especially along the coast. Warnings fall on too many deaf ears. ☹️
This virus has got me going through our emergency boxes & supplies, updating and categorizing, so that's a good thing.
I just went on the news, and ironically, read that last night a 5.8 struck the coast of Northern CA.
I used to travel to Yucatan in the 80s-90s, and I live near Baja now... one last awareness to keep is that in the event of medical emergency, the Mexicans will [rightly] prioritize their own citizens above Americans, especially given how our government has been treating them since 2016. If you have no friends [ex-pats?] who live nearby, who speak Spanish and who could help out if needed, understand you'd be on your own, far from home, possibly with no way to get home. Playa Mujeres isn't going anywhere. Sitting in the sun is a good idea, but maybe not so far from home. Maybe you could re-book to something closer, like Florida or Tybee Island. That way if you need to drive home, technically you could.
BTW, one of our Jazz Fest considerations is that we might actually drive rather than fly. This way we can avoid public transportation while there, and also it gives us freedom to leave quickly if we need to. AND - if you want to stand in hot sun NoLa works! C'mon down! YES they serve alcohol at the Fest ?
Yes, indeed. Deaf ears abound.
I'd rather be well prepared even if there was little I might do in such a short time. I started several years ago and as we eat so shall we re-shop and repeat. Keeping it and the larder real and full!
Everytime we are at the coast or close family is--i think the old what ifs about the Cascadia Sub-Induction fault. But the "what ifs" are also the "it is what it is".
And the same with the Coronavirus that has indeed reached Marion County where I live in Salem. No identification so far on city or age or places of contact or anything closing here. Just one person has now been tested and has COVID-19. Challenging times indeed.
Be prepared but live life in the now and hold positivity and love for all the--the best you can even in the hardest of times.
Oh my gosh. Laughing far too hard for a woman of a certain age!
Cruise-Ship Passengers Demand to Be Housed at Mar-a-Lago
From the Borowitz Report: Cruise Ships Passengers demand to be housed at Mar-a-lago.
If you guys want to laugh or shake your head if the stable genius visit to the CDC:
The 25 most concerning lines from Donald Trump's CDC visit
https://apple.news/AqhFpkd9LTQ2gnkmOMxXtig
OMG! How can they allow this nutjob to continue! This is reality yet it sounds like a movie.
How long until he accuses the virus of being a Democrat and demands a criminal investigation?
Trump in the Time of the Coronavirus This article interviews some of the professors from the school where I got my masters, Harvard School of Public Health. They are smart dedicated ethical people.
Bottom line: This is a serious pandemic. The president’s misstatements and lies are dangerous. Fortunately, the public health community is responsible and will do everything they can.
Some highlights:
-- “twenty to sixty per cent of adults will “eventually get this before it’s all over, but they won’t necessarily be symptomatic.”
--“The strain on hospitals and public-health workers is bound to be tremendous. … the capacity of even the best hospitals to deal with a pandemic was a matter of central concern to everyone in the public health community…
---“It is just false and unproductive to say that things are under control, and it is false to say that anyone should go to work with a ‘minor’ case of the virus. . . .
--“There are top-notch people in state and local health departments. They are very capable and put out good information.”
---Michael Mina, an epidemiologist at Harvard’s T. H. Chan School of Public Health and a physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, told me, “We need the President to put the well-being of the American people before his reëlection."
---“Though there was much to criticize about China’s initial reaction to the outbreak of the virus, in Wuhan, Michael Mina, of Harvard, said that China has succeeded in slowing the spread by taking extraordinary measures, including travel shutdowns and quarantines of whole cities.
---“Without a clear signal of concern from the White House, people will continue going to big events and say to themselves that this virus might only hurt people over the age of eighty, not me and my family,” Mina said. “They won’t change their behavior in a way to help slow down this virus.”
Read the whole article: https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/trump-in-the-time-of-the-coronavirus
Hang on Sloopy, Sloopy hang on!
Rough road becoming bumpier. If you weren't already strapped in, locate your seatbelts and engage them. Parachutes in limited supply ( think ICU beds and those protective masks we are hoarding, but shouldn't be - our front line medical people NEED them.)
Also remember - Necessity is the mother of invention! We will see good inventions both in the midst of this and more on the other side.
Please also remember that this is an equal opportunity virus. Dems and our very public conventions are as much at risk of catching and spreading this as CPAC has proven to be. There are several world wide governments suffering greatly from this contagion. We're equally vulnerable - rich, poor, Dem, Republican, compassionate, narcissist - this virus is a great equalizer.
Much Love to all!
cross posted here and in Unraveling... isn't this interesting? https://twitter.com/betsy_klein/status/1237117897727782912?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1237119845621260289&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheweek.com%2Fspeedreads%2F901048%2Fgop-rep-matt-gaetz-selfquarantines-coronavirus-exposure-just-1-hour-after-flying-trump
5 members of congress are now going to self-quarantine due to exposure to a person with the Corona virus.
4 republicans and 1 Democrate.
Republicans
Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia
*Matt Gaetz of Florida- Rode on Air Force One today
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas
Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona
*Rep. Louie Gohmert of Texas- told he was he was in close proximity to someone who got the virus but will not self-quarantine
Democrates
Rep. Julia Brownley of California
Many also had staffers exposed and are closing their offices.
St. Patrick's Day festivities in the Republic of Ireland have been canceled amid concerns about the spread of coronavirus.
The cancellations have come at the advice of health officials to help slow the spread of the virus, Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said Monday. There have been a total of 19 cases of COVID-19, the disease associated with coronavirus, in the Republic of Ireland.
The cancellations include the national St. Patrick's Festival parade in Dublin on March 17.
Boston cancels annual St. Patrick’s Day parade
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh announced on Monday afternoon the city would not hold its annual St. Patrick’s Day parade, which was set to take place in the city’s South Boston neighborhood March 15.
(and yet the L.A. MARATHON went ahead yesterday.)
The entire country of Italy is now own lockdown. 16 Million Peoplez
The restrictions will include banning all public gatherings and preventing all movement other than for work and emergencies. According to the Reuters news agency, he has said the decision was necessary to protect Italy’s most vulnerable citizens and that the right course of action now is for people to stay at home.
All Universities and schools in Madrid have closed
I just got back from a store I shop at pretty regularly. (not Costco) Wiped out of anything that stores well-canned chicken, rice, instant potatoes, soups, toilet paper. I've never seen anything like it. Little Debbie's rack was full. I guess nobody wants their last snack to be a zebra cake.
I have been really positive, until today. I can't post a link, but a twitter thread from a doctor in Europe who is an anesthesiologist and his good friend works in Italy gave him an update of what the hospitals are like in Italy right now...describing how much worse it really is than the news is reporting. Is it really going to be this bad? You can look up his twitter handle @jasonvanschoor. It is pretty upsetting. I am here in San Francisco and things are starting to go into panic/lockdown mode. Trader Joes was 1/3 empty today. It is hard not to cry tonight.
I started a new thread under this topic called CANCELLATIONS, if anyone wants something to refer to quickly without having to search.
not sure where this came from, but i think it's true:
Sip water / fluids frequently. If your throat is moist much of the virus will be washed into your stomach where acids kill them. If your throat is dry it is more likely the virus will stay in the throat and get into the windpipe and lungs.