How Do You Feel Today? v4

[Avatar]

...Too quiet...

--A

[StevieG]

[Linna Heartbooger]

I use a diacritics remover

https://pteo.paranoiaworks.mobi/diacriticsremover/

^ I read that as "I use a didactics remover."
I was like, "I need one of those."

Anyway, HI PEOPLE.
I am having some ridiculous happiness in my week.

Here's a funny moment.
Homeschool moms talking at a table.
Two families are exchanging contact info so their kids can potentially game online together at home.
A mom says something to the effect of, "If she doesn't have a microphone, [for one type of device] she can get Discord."
And I'm sitting there thinking, "Haha, I use Discord!"
Then the GRANNY sitting next to me who brought her grandaughter to the event is like, "I'm on Discord." (A local Pokemon Go! server. Hah!)

I've been brainstorming how to get a bunch of my old friends from school (who I haven't talked to in a long time) on to Discord.

To me, Discord "feels" a lot like the late-90s-til-like-2003 Real-Time messaging programs that we loved so well.
You know how you could have an hour-long session talking to your friend, or counseling each-other about problems? (anyone else with me, who remembers this?)
That was awesome.

(Also, thank you for recommending Discord to the Watch awhile back, Sorus!!)

[Avatar]

Haha, I've been pretty active on a Discord server myself lately.

--A

[Cord Hurn]

All 6 US deaths due to coronavirus occurred at the hospital I frequent for monitoring my leukemia. The senior living center 5 of the cases came from is about 5 miles away from where I live.

Even though I am immunocompromised due to my chemotherapy, I am not self isolating or avoiding social events and gatherings.

Instead, I am continuing my standard of hygiene. I sing through Happy Birthday twice as I wash my hands. I use paper towels to open doors, and discard them in the trash immediately after. For now, I avoid shaking hands, and am surpressing my natural inclination to be a hugger.

Coronavirus is in my community. Life goes on. I will live my life, take reasonable precautions, and refuse to panic.

this is admirable and sounds very sensible, Menolly; good for you! As i understand it, coronavirus prevention is much like cold prevention, though it is not supposed to be airborne (so masks aren't needed).

[Cord Hurn]

Monday again. It's like some sort of endless cycle or something...

Ooooh whats on the agenda? Whats being protested?

A bit unfocused, as is so often the case. An opposition political party marched on the head-offices of the state owned power company to protest against the load-shedding (rolling blackouts) that are being implemented in order to perform vital maintenance, (ignored for the last 10 years) on the national grid.

(So in other words, essential if we plan on having any electricity at all.)

They are also protesting against the planned "unbundling" (semi / partial privatisation) of the utility, which is being mooted in order to begin undoing all the corruption and waste at the utility, which caused the perilous state of the national grid in the first place.

So, they sorta want to have their cake and eat it too.

--A

I hope they can work something out so that the unbundling goes smoothly, and you all can have some forewarning when the power's going to be out, Avatar. Sounds like a stressful situation.

[Avatar]

(Edit: Oh, we have warning...it's all scheduled and stuff well in advance, so can always be prepared. Big money here in inverters and generators at teh moment. )


Can be air vectored, but surface contamination is a far more prevalent vector. (Just had first confirmed case here in SA.)

Masks actually make things worse, because you'll be constantly adjusting it, so touching your face a lot more.

Masks are to prevent you from compromising others, not to prevent you from getting the virus. Don't buy masks guys.

And right now, TBH, with a mortality rate of 3.4% I'm not all that worried. The old, the infirm, the very young and of course, the immune-compromised are at much higher risk though.

So yeah...washing your hands (and keeping said hands away from mouth / nose) is really the best thing you can do.

--A

[Cord Hurn]

So there you have it Av, we are not so much devastated by the loss of our critters but defined by our love for our critters.

Yup. They'll break your heart (and your bank), but there were days when the only thing that kept me going was knowing they were waiting at the door for me to come home.

I strongly agree with both these sentiments! I miss having pet ferrets, as they were loveable and never failed to make me laugh, even when I'd come home tired and in low spirits.

[Cord Hurn]

Heading out to Colorado to go Ski'ing for a week. I am glad to say that at 57 my "check engine light" has still not come on although my check oil and service engine soon has a number of times. LOL

I've been pushing my time on my 3 mile runs and did about 5 miles of hills at a local State park on Monday. That was all so I am not so sore the first few days.

Congratulations on making that awesome-sounding adventure a reality, SoulBiter!

[Cord Hurn]

I noticed some spring flowers yesterday. Or at least I seem to remember long ago daffys and snowflakes popping up in april, not february. It felt like I should be sad the wold has become dysfunctional, but then, Big Jeff will be donating 10 $billion to scientists so they might do something about it.

So come on guys, sort it out. We want our spring flowers in spring, not in winter.

Seems a reasonable expectation, Luke.

[Cord Hurn]

I love animal lovin stories ... cuz theyre mostly just adorbs I can read em all day long ... if I had the time.

Keep coming and pics are fab

I'm with Linna: it's great to have you back on here, Skyweir!

[deer of the dawn]

Agreed!

I had a good reminder this week of just how crazy sick malaria can make you. I think I threw up from depths in my soul I didn't want to know about. The next day I could barely walk. Yesterday was actually the first time I woke in the morning feeling good in a really long time. Today, a bit of a relapse, but work that piled up that's due Monday had to get addressed and I'm leading music at a retreat all weekend, so no rest for the wicked.

Hey, I did lose 5 lbs pretty much overnight, so there's that!

[Skyweir]

Not the nicest way to drop 5lbs ... sounds absolutely awful Deer hopefully you are on the mend. Jeez malaria is the illness that just keeps giving

You are too kind Cord I am truly grateful for every wonderful Watcher we have here, its a joy to rub shoulders with you

How do I feel today? Well I dont have malaria, so nothing really to complain about. But alas Im having an insomniac night. Its 3am and sleep is not on the agenda ... mores the pity.

Ive also had a very busy day and tonight just as I was settling in to the evening and ready for my Battlestar Galactica eps ... I got a call to go out and do some sand bagging. So I went ... had a lot of fun in the pouring rain filling sandbags, digging trenches and other such fun. I genuinely love mucking in .. its satisfying. Got back home at about 9pm .. had dinner, watched my shows and went to bed. But got sick of just lying there. So am here lol

[Sorus]

To me, Discord "feels" a lot like the late-90s-til-like-2003 Real-Time messaging programs that we loved so well.
You know how you could have an hour-long session talking to your friend, or counseling each-other about problems? (anyone else with me, who remembers this?)
That was awesome.

(Also, thank you for recommending Discord to the Watch awhile back, Sorus!!)

Like IRC? I miss Telnet. Nobody uses Telnet anymore. I probably wouldn't be into WoW if I hadn't gotten my start in text-based MUDs. I'd probably still play a couple of those if they were around.

You're welcome on the Discord. I rarely use it myself - too social-media-y for my taste. I just can't handle the need to instantly respond to messages. I have to jump when devices chirp at me at work; I don't need that in my downtime.

Ive also had a very busy day and tonight just as I was settling in to the evening and ready for my Battlestar Galactica eps ...

Ooh, hope you were able to make time. Old BSG or new BSG?

[Menolly]

And right now, TBH, with a mortality rate of 3.4% I'm not all that worried. The old, the infirm, the very young and of course, the immune-compromised are at much higher risk though.

Well, yeah...

I'm over 60.
I'm a Type II diabetic.
I have chronic myeloid leukemia.
I'm on walking chemo which supresses my immune system.
I'm a two year breast cancer survivor.
I'm an eight year thyroid cancer survivor.
I live within five miles of the largest outbreak of CORVID-19 in the US.

Despite all of that, I'm still going to socialize and not self isolate myself. I'll do what reasonable flu preventative precautions that I'm aware of.

And I'll enjoy the less crowded roads, restaurants, and retail spaces the past week has brought to the greater Seattle metro area.

[Skyweir]

Seems reasonable Menolly.

New BSG Sorus totally love the new series. Like to binge watch at least annually. My binge watching is an episode or two in the evening before bed till its done .. then grieve at its passing lol

I have read theyre making new BSG series very excite.

[Sorus]

Had not heard about the new series. That's cool, though I will be surprised if it can meet the standards set by the last one. Caprica couldn't, though I think they should have given it at least another season to try.

It's weirdly quiet here. People are really pretty freaked out. I'm bouncing back and forth between they're overreacting and maybe I'm not taking this seriously enough.

Don't know what my personal risk level is - I have autoimmune issues that usually put me in the high-risk category, but not much I can do about that. Can't work from home, can't avoid public transportation. I go for years without getting sick, and when I do get whatever flu is going around at work it's usually a very mild version, but I've had the fully icky version twice in the last six months, and I hope that isn't a trend. No point in losing sleep over it, but probably good to be prepared.

[Skyweir]

No Sorus, no point in losing sleep over it.

Wash your hands regularly, if there is a health threat in your location, where a face mask.

Out here its totally different .. I live in remote rural NSW in a village of 28 or so. I have a higher risk of contracting Q fever than COVID 19.

So I can be more relaxed.

But you live in densely populated urban environment so theres that.

I tend to think that at this stage its the elderly and weak that are at greatest risk of infection.

I read last week about a baby that recovered .. which are usually vulnerable to such infections. But with the risk of reinfection a lot is still unknown.

[Sorus]

Yeah. Given the shortage of tests, I think the numbers here are probably much higher than reported. There's a pretty good chance that I have already been exposed. I'm more worried about the economic fallout. Downtown is spooky quiet. Business at work is down, and it's only going to get worse. Again, this is something that is affecting a high percentage of the population, and there's nothing I can do about it. Just a reminder of how fragile our infrastructure is.

[Skyweir]

Definitely.

The knock on effects of something like this are potentially catastrophic.

We experienced the same with the bushfires, businesses like mine really felt it.