Life in the Age of Corona
A Daily Diary
Wednesday, February 3rd, 2021
French
Today saw the usual routine of work, swim, eat and so on. Fortunately, no major melt downs, though EM thinks this has been a shitty week and it is time for it to be over.
I have been monitoring three different weather channels for the Friday forecast. Today the clouds lifted, and the sun came out every now and again. I love the sparkle it brings to the snow. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny, then rain on Friday for the sun to shine again on Saturday. I’d much rather it stay dry through Saturday noon so I can have my BBQ on Friday. And why would it rain for one day only? T0 ruin my birthday party?
The only break in the daily routine came late in the afternoon. Via the ListServ a lady who has recently relocated to the DMV asked if anyone was interested in practicing French or Italian as she found it very hard to make friends and connect to anyone with the pandemic going on. Since I have given up on learning Spanish, I figured polishing up my French might not be bad, and this could be a good opportunity and so arranged a call with her. She seems fun and I think we might meet for a walk or otherwise chat twice a week or so.
The other excitement of the day is the PTSA Senior Celebration Committee which I have joined. I have taken on the lead for the IB student celebrations but have also joined the outdoor graduation sub-committee as well as the prom sub-committee. I doubt the latter will happen, even though they did circulate prom dates. All in all, some 40 parents have volunteered to help celebrate our seniors. Maybe I should have gotten involved in the PTSA sooner.
Virus numbers continue to move into the right direction, though there are concerns they will be trending upwards again in about three weeks as the coming weekend is super bowl weekend, where Americans apparently gather in groups to shout and cheer, preferably gathered around a TV indoors, just what the virus likes. The nation added 105k new cases to bring the total to 27.1 Million.
This morning’s read began with some sad news. In early in 2020 a 99 year old man made headline news in the UK, walking around his garden to raise money for the NHS COVID responders. Yesterday, a 100 years old, he died of Covid. Captain Sir Tom Moore's story help him raise GBP 45 million to fight COVID, so it is somewhat ironic that he dies with this disease. I am sure at 100 he has lived a long and fulfilled life, but his passing is sad as the world has lost a shining light and example of a decent human being.
Presumably banking also on successful vaccine roll outs, Japan has presented a plan how it will go ahead with the summer Olympics this year. A large part of the strategy relies on testing and minimizing movement / interactions. I am certain the athletes had expected a very different experience.
However, vaccine news continues to be full of promises. A vaccine currently under development by Vaxart is exciting as it comes as a tablet, not a shot. A tablet taken once or twice, makes shipment, distribution and administration of this vaccine super simple. Initial results are positive and phase 2&3 trials are expected to launch shortly, with results available in early 2022.
Also good news: Pfizer has announced an increase in delivery of vaccine doses to the US due to increased production capacity. 200 million doses, enough for 100 million Americans are to be delivered by May. I hope this is not at the expense of shipments to other countries. It also begs the question why production in the US can be increased to increase delivery and deliver sooner, when exactly the opposite is happening in Europe, where Pfizer is increasing its production capacities leading to a shortfall in deliveries for the next few months.
While it is clear that the vacines can help reduce the spread and are certain to make the illness les severe, it is not clear whether they will also stop transmission. AstraZeneca now reports the Oxford vaccine reduces transmission.
Hardly surprising research results indicate that young and middle aged adults are responsible for most of the spread. After all these age groups are the economically active, so maybe change vaccine roll out strategy to cover densely populated areas and focus on those economically active, starting with least well paying jobs and essential workers like health care workers, first responders and so on.
Like people with comorbidities smokers will get priority in the vaccine line. This is very contentious as smoking is a choice on the one hand, but on the other smokers are more vulnerable to contracting lung diseases, which is the main argument health experts field.
And finally, some feel good news. A medical student shares his experiences vaccinating people. This reflects what my mum’s reaction to her shots has been. Overwhelming relief, happiness and feeling special to be among the first.
