Monday, March 16th, 2020
Today is day 5 of COVID19 induced home based work. Like many I am all of a sudden finding myself with a lot of time on my hands.
Before Thursday our life, like everyone else’s, was busy: school, swim practice, physics tutor, guitar class, work, an hour a day in the pool, dojo for two hours four times a week, grocery shopping, chores, book club, card games, friends, church, and on and on.
At the same time I find myself going through a myriad of emotions, have questions, seek answers.
Also, there is only so much one can vent, discuss, share on Facebook. And there is the need to maintain sanity; all of which motivates this Blog. Maybe some of you out there feel the same way, if so, please comment and share your thoughts.
By Day 3 of being largely house bound I realized my life needed a structure, just like it had when I still interacted with the outside world, life and in person. So my daughter and I are developing a routine:
7-8 Early morning coffee and emails (okay, she gets to sleep in)
8-8.30 Get in some exercise (push-ups, planks, lunges, squats, crunches)
9-12.30 she school work, me office work
12.30 – 14.30 we break for lunch and a bike ride or a brisk walk around the neighborhood (while we still can). As much to exercise as to fill up on vitamin D
14.30 -18.00 back to work
18.00 Time for another walk before we start into an evening of either a board game or a movie
Rinse and repeat with minor adjustments.
This is what our new life is probably going to be like for the next few weeks months, who knows. And if the US enforces a lock down similar to Italy, Spain, France, China and Korea, maybe even the little bit of freedom we now enjoy by walking the hood will disappear. Which brings me to the question:
Question: Why the hell don’t they? No one in this country has a clue how many infected people are out there. How many are passing on the virus day to day. Why are they not finally testing?
Oh right, they do not have enough tests, laboratories and no central repository were all the private and public laborites could report results. This instills a big sense of frustration in me. No one knows how bad it is and as long as one does not test, one does not know and cannot safely claim low case numbers, continuing to make believe that this great nation is somehow not affected. Should anyone have any doubts as to why there is no or rather extremly restrictive testing please see below quote from Montgomery County meant to calm people:
“Currently, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) criteria dictates the only people who should be tested for COVID-19 are those who have symptoms AND travel history in the past 14 days to specific countries where COVID-19 is widespread (China, Iran, Italy, Japan and South Korea) or symptoms AND close contact with a known confirmed case.”
This means the US has no way to detect community transmitted cases as anyone with “just” symptoms will not be tested because
but the reality is that there are not enough test kits nation-wide currently to make 'on deman' testing available. This may change in the future, but that is the current situation. In Montgomery County, we are actively working to develop potential ways to increase access to testing for those who need it based on their medical condition”....
Based on researchers actual infections are a multiple of reported cases. One of the best articles I have read on this is by Tomas Pueyo: Coronavirus: Why You Must Act Now
And I read a lot of stuff on this virus – too much probably, which is maybe why I am so concerned that life as we have known it just a week ago has ended, if not for good, for a very long time to come.
And that is when I want to roll up in a corner and cry for my old life.
When I think of all the travel plans to foreign countries for work and pleasure.
When I cancel our scuba trip to Puerto Rico planned for April.
When I wonder if ever I will see my now 82 year old mum, who lives on a different continent.
When I worry about my friends around the world, wondering when we may get together again.
............... the list is long.