I read a few articles a few weeks back, by some Doctors with some pretty decent credentials, that stated that 70% of humanity will be affected by corona. So every perspective I have revolves around that number.

I live in NYC.

I fully reason that my husband and I have been exposed to corona. Logically, that seems feasible.

Any mortality rate being reported is considered a biased statistic, because it is not a clean sample of what is happening. We have no idea how many people actually have been exposed or are actually sick from it. There is no way to determine a mortality rate at this time unless every person in the world is tested. The world.

So if you’re me, and you are pretty confident that you’ve been exposed because of the sheer number of people that inhabit your direct universe…

How do you act?

If indeed these end up being my last days on earth, do I want to go out banging my head against a wall worrying about something that I can’t control?

Or do I just continue to do the things I love?

I’m a control freak of the first order, and even I know that there is nothing to do to control this. There is no way to plan. There is really no way to prepare.

Stay hydrated. Wash you &^%$ hands. Wash them again. Don’t touch your face. Sleep a little bit more.

Stay calm. Keep rational.

What is panic going to do to help the situation?

Maybe I’m being an ostrich. But right now, I prefer that to Chicken Little.

And when a vaccine is created, which will be soon, because we’re not complete morons…think about who should get it first. I will not be first in line. I will leave that to the people who do have immune issues and respiratory issues, people whose health is much more precarious than my own.

I know when I go to book club and we read books about people who face diversity head on and do the noble thing, everybody in the club (except me) wholeheartedly says that they would be hiding Jews in closets, or facing the hordes at the door, but you know, looking at how people are reacting now….I’d say they’re all a bunch of liars. Right now, everyone is only out for themselves, and humanity can take a leap for all anyone cares…

You never know how you’ll react in a crisis until you’re in one…

How you doing?

74 thoughts on “How you doing?”

  2. From the standpoint of someone who sorta has a thing about watching society and social norms and how outside influences will or won’t impact humans I am now surrounded in my own social experiment. It’s a doozy for sure, but playing out just as I was taught in Soc 101. Humans continue to be predictable in so many ways… and I mean that in both positive and negative ways.

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    1. I love to here your point of view and wish I had taken more than one semester of sociology and taken any psych….I’m just sitting on the sidelines of this one, as much as I can be….but yeah….there’s a book in this

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      1. If we truly play out like every dystopian novel ever written (and geez, I hope this doesn’t go down that road) we could be in for some crazy sh*t before long.
        I am cautious, like you LA, but take the days as they come at this point. The world right now is a fascinating place…

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  3. I don’t think anyone needs to panic. But the thing with this particular virus seems to be that you’re contagious before you know you have it. And you may not develop bad symptoms or worse, but you may unknowingly pass it along to someone far more vulnerable. So I don’t think the advice about social distancing and containment is so much to protect the individual, although obviously that is part of it, but to contain uncontrolled spread across the population. I don’t think you need to see everyone out for self-preservation so much as contributing to the common good. And that’s no different than trying to protect innocent Jews or anyone else at risk. Stay well!

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    1. Thanks. It’s just tough because I feel like everyone is turning on one another. If you cough people give you nasty looks. It’s highly contagious. And yes…nist people will hit show symptoms. How do you contain that? High risk groups should be cautious, but they should always be cautious. I just dont want all if a sudden asians being put in internment camps because people think if they’re asian they’re carrying the virus…which us what’s happening here.

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      1. I know. This business of people’s ignorance and racism coming out in times of crises is heartbreaking. Very sadly, Trump actually encourages that kind of thinking, along with Pompeo. Shameful.

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  4. I’m pretty much in your court. Yesterday, though, a woman coughed right behind me in line at the store, and I must’ve given her a nasty look because she wheeled her basket around and went to another checkout line.

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  5. Corona is a respiratory virus. This isn’t going away any time soon. I doubt most people with intact immune systems are in any imminent danger but at the same time, getting sick sucks. I have a parent with Parkinsons, I don’t want to add misery to his current symptoms even if it’s just “a cold”…

    I’m used to respiratory illnesses, I got kids in school and sports, but they have healthy immune systems due to practical parenting with common sense. Plus partly robust genes. Still, I take it seriously. I am proactive and preventative. Kid is sick? I keep them home. I have this luxury, most people don’t. It needs to be addressed, especially in America.

    In terms of prepping, I usually keep a stash of TP. I mean, I’m a perimenopausal woman, it gets messy. 😂

    And the food stash in my bedroom closet? Let’s just say I have a teenage boy who never before entered my bedroom as frequently as he does now… 😀😛

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  6. We’re doing fine so far. I am worried about our local food bank that has put out a plea for food. Apparently they’re running low on stock, so I’ll be going to the grocery this afternoon to help with that need. I can’t save the world, but I can help in my own small way.

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  7. I am F####King pissed!!! The PODUS now has interfered with my trip to the US!!! Yup, I get it he thinks it was Europeans that carried it into the country (what about every American returning from vacation from somewhere overseas?). I get it that he is in an election year and needs to seem like he is in charge of the situation. I get that! But, this has gone way out there on the crazy wheel.

    We are not panicking. I always have about a month of stuff around (just in case). Growing up on a farm I guess I was raised to expect anything, the military only enhanced that. But, really it has gotten totally out of control and you are right. Most of us most likely have been exposed some how and if we get it we get it.

    Common sense people!

    The worst part is that as an American if I fly home right now I will be placed on 14 day quarantine even if I don’t have any symptoms just because I am coming from Europe. Not really the way I want to spend my first 14 days of my vacation, so the entire day I was cancelling my hotels, my camping locations, rental cars, contacting kids, friends, and others of my change of plans until someone changes this restriction. Yup…I think I will go back to knitting to keep my mind off this crazy crap!!!

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    1. My daughters friend had been studying in Italy. Quarantine when she came back. Things are shitting down here. The NBA suspended its season. Colleges are sending kids home. The NCAA tournament will be played without spectators. Coachella and state coach have been postponed. South by Southwest is cancelled….

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      1. I saw all that this morning when you guys were still sleeping and then I have been chatting with a friend in MN who still thinks she will be heading for vacation to FL on Monday… yeah… I didn’t have the heart to tell her she might be disappointed if the airlines cancel her flight. My hubby has two planes leased to an American airline in MN that we were going to pick up in April, thus my vacation. I am pretty sure those planes will be stuck there for a time… Also all military personal have been told that they will not be going anywhere for the next 60 days. Locked down here in Europe with all sorts of restrictions on their travel (only military aircraft and must be approved by a General Officer). The crazy shit has just started get ready for the ride everyone!!!

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  8. The Dean household is holding up well even if 100% of its current occupants have colds… definitely not Covid-19. Just your usual run-of -the-mill winter cold. Luck for us, we live waaaaaay out in the back of beyond in rural England. So far our county has zero cases… probably because the population density is low. I think we have more sheep than people.
    The supermarkets are holding up well here. Maybe it’s the Yorkshire way… we fix things with a nice hot cup of tea!
    That said, we are running short on disposable tissues as it’s unusual for all of us to have a cold at the same time. Hey ho. Roll on summer and warmer temperatures.
    Stay safe and well xx

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      1. I’m chilled out and looking forward to a hot toddy. I figure lemon juice for vit C, honey for antiseptic properties and a good dram of whisky ought to blast the little germs into oblivion… and help me sleep too 🙂

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  9. I am finding the reaction to this virus a head scratcher. People have forgotten that the flu is worse and more prevalent (at least for now). I think it is more fear of the unknown and man’s unreasonably need to control everything. Sometimes you just have to let nature take it’s course.

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  10. I’m no thrilled with the fact that I work with the public and most of the changes they’ve made here are changes that are for office workers, not public service. I’m not going to panic, but I wish I trusted the people in charge here to make the right decision for their employees.

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    1. People don’t even know they have it. And people who think they have it aren’t going to get tested. Assume you’re getting it. You live in Connecticut. Assume you’ve been exposed. Then think about what to do

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      1. It’s unfortunate that some don’t understand we aren’t all rich and some people have to go to their jobs, sniffles or not. That person may have a minor case of something, but they don’t really think it is this virus people seem to be freaking out about so they go in anyhow. Gosh, I hope those truck drivers delivering all your toilet paper quarantine themselves. I mean, I’m sure they are so rich they can do that and you can handle it without your toilet paper, right?

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  12. I’m not worried at this point. Our local community doesn’t seem to be in a panic. But I haven’t gone shopping for anything in particular, since I tend to have a well-stocked home, anyway. Im sure we’ll be seeing plenty of overreaction that is going to negatively impact livelihoods all around the world. What we really have to prepare for is the coming recession.

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  13. Due to my transplant drugs I have been immunosuppressed since 1986. Still I am not overly concerned, I am fairly careful, but if I get sick then I will deal with it as best I can. I never expected the reaction worldwide that is happening, including to stocks, sports teams, and some of it makes sense. I hope people don’t become so self-centred they forget that countries and communities are woven together for strength and we only flourish if we all flourish.

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  14. Well, good for you for not panicking. How stoic to be so sanguine while bearing witness to such offal Oval Office ineptitude. You did watch, right? Within minutes the Whitehouse had to walk back POTUS statement after POTUS statement. And this morning, it took six minutes for the market to go to circuit breakers.

    We are a fur piece, from a book club attendance and a treasure trove of T.P. now. Hoarding paper products maybe bottom up irrational-or maybe not- because the top down and virulent incompetency by Potomac potentates is scaring the fecal matter out of Wall Street, Main Street, and an ass-load of rest stops in-between.

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    1. No one is handling this well. And no matter what decision is made, people are going to be annoyed. My daughters college goes virtual as of Monday. I’m pissed. Other parents are mad it wasn’t done a month ago. No one is going to be satisfied.

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  15. I appreciate your post. The news media is driving me crazy so I turn it off. I completely understand how the elderly and those with immune deficiencies can be at risk. I do worry about my patent but this is so crazy. They make it sound like the world is coming to an end. People are buying stuff off the shelves leaving them empty. 😬😬😬😬 I’m just going about my business and if I feel sick, I will stay home until I’m better. But I will continue to live my life the way God intends for me to live and I refuse to worry. ❤️

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  16. It is affecting us in that the school where our daughter teaches is closing for two weeks so she will be working from home and a play that I was supposed to see this weekend with my other daughter may not be happening since they are restricting gatherings to 1000 people or less. I haven’t gone shopping lately but I’m pretty stocked with things. I work from home but haven’t gotten any transcription in a few days so I’m wondering if that is being affected some way. My worry is the stock market. Our retirement money dwindles by the day. My mom is 96 and I do kind of worry about her. Not panicking yet though.

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  17. I think that Angela Merkel has a pragmatic speech about this yesterday. Stay calm, realize that the vast majority of us will get it. The goal is to flatten the curve of cases so we buy time to develop a vaccine and treatments while not over-whelming our hospital system. Young people are transmitters so while they may have few symptoms, we don’t need them giving it to older family members.

    I am not hoarding. My conservative company has banned all travel, all business entertaining. Any personal travel could result in a work from home situation. All of these measures are to protect the herd. And that is the crux of it. Do your part to protect the herd.

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  19. I like your analogy about the book club as we are such a Me First society now and I doubt very much that people will even be obedient about quarantine. I always keep lots of supplies ahead, so no worries there, but I am worried about my mother who is 94. I’m not so worried about myself as I’m retired now from health care, but also tend to have a poor immune system as I was the only one in my pharmacy who got H1N1 and it was two weeks of misery, although no danger of dying. Time will tell I guess. The best we can hope for is an early spring with mild temps so that it might burn it out, although even that isn’t predictable.

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  20. I made sure all my bills are paid this month so I have a home, electricity, and internet. I’m hopefully getting more groceries on Tuesday. THAT requires making arrangements for a vehicle. But I have some if I can’t. My Kindle is full. I have solar and handcranck power boxes, and extra cords. I Have some water stored and a couple of those straw things that let you drink almost any water. I have a case of tp because it was the month to buy it. Don’t have hand sanitizer, but don’t like to use it much because of a bad reaction. I figure I’m going to be fine. And if I’m not? It’ll work out the way it’s supposed to.

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  21. one of the first real world lessons that I learned the hard way while I was in the military was to remain calm and rationale during a crisis because others will panic. just settle yourself down and then adapt to the new environment to maintain your survival. I’m not scared of what is going in the world right now; rather, I’m shaking my head at the number of idiots who don’t or won’t adapt to what they need to do for themselves to survived a changed landscape.

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  22. My husband is 65 and has asthma so I suppose he is at higher risk than I am, but we are washing hands, staying hydrated, getting plenty of sleep and eating properly. I know I am glad I am not working in retail anymore, because people would be so inconsiderate and come into the store being sick themselves or bring their sick child(too sick to go to school) in with them and expect us to be super attentive to them. You can be exposed and not know, not get sick and pass it on without being even aware so I think that is what is frightening to some. I would like to think that people would watch out for the more vulnerable among us and maybe that is a lie but I have to hold on to the hope that humanity is good.

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  24. I’m fine. My partner who works in NYC a couple of days a week decided that maybe he has it and maybe not so he isn’t going to touch me in case I get it. Fine–that’s his whackoness, maybe accurate and maybe not. I think life happens, so wash your hands, be happy, don’t do dumb things, enjoy. What else can you do, other than suffer and impose a curfew on yourself that the militia could never have been so effective in imposing worldwide…?

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  26. Our Government today shifted from containment to delay because alas 10,000 people in the UK are carriers yet don’t know it yet! The ‘genie couldn’t be kept inside the bottle’ so to speak, and the PM has just told us to prepare for the loss of loved ones, holy crap when did you ever hear a politician make that kinda statement?

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  27. I haven’t been watching the terror news at all. While I’m careful when out, it hasn’t stopped me from running errands. I’m doing all that I need to and I’m usually good on having supplies on hand so that’s not an issue either. While I worry about older folks, and a little about the kids and me, I’m not going to freak out until something happens. Prepared. Yup, I am. And that’s how I put my head on the pillow in peace at night.

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  28. How am I doing? Conflicted but pragmatic probably covers it. I’ve bought no more than I usually buy during my weekly shop, although TP has become more than scarce and I’m contemplating having to get up uber early to shop while the shelves are re-stocked as we’re running out :O Also, not sure how to feel about my mother – elderly, robust & healthy but with high blood pressure. She lives alone and Does.Not.Like.It. But her family will not live with her as she’s … let’s say, not easy to live with. I’m in recovery following knee surgery and already work from home, so quiet stay-at-home is normal for now. My elderly neighbour has started to check on me, which I found rather sweet (she’s in her 80s, I’m in my 60s – but I guess my crutches made her feel less vulnerable than I as the checking-in is usually the other way round). I’m in no way convinced that the preparations are in place, nor am I convinced that health is being given precedence over economics – but what else is new? So we keep on keeping on … although Winston Churchill had a variation of that term I’d use in less polite company 🙂

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  30. Again, like you, I want to have total control of my life. Yet, expecting to have control over everything is, of course, impossible. Whatever I don’t have control over, I learned long ago to just accept and go on the best I can. Staying level-headed through this pandemic disease, I surmise is the only sensible thing to do. After all, there doesn’t seem to be any concrete information anywhere in the world that will help us handle this historical circumstance.

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  31. Not panicking just &%%^* annoyed with it all, I am just going to lay down and die. Well I don’t stand much chance with my asthma, high blood pressure, age and all the rest of it. 🤨 I must say you are very optimistic on the vaccine front, we are told a vaccine if a long way off.

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  32. You’re right, no one knows how that would act in making a critical decision until they’re faced with it. Anyone who says otherwise is not being honest. There are some who walk toward the gunfire and some who run. No one knows until you’re there.
    I think many people are scared right now because they’ve lost control of their lives, to a certain extent. So they stock up on toilet paper and a months worth of groceries because it’s something they can control and believe they’re doing something to protect themselves. Once the panic dies down, I’m hoping the good will surface, as it usually does with us, and we come out the other side better than we were before. Complaining, criticizing, pointing fingers doesn’t do any of us any good in a time of crisis. I just watched a video of a neighborhood in Italy where everyone was out on balconies and rooftops singing and dancing. Attitude is important. We’re all going to be inconvenienced in some small or big ways. Deal with it and move on. Stay safe.

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  33. I’m concerned but also relieved to be home with my kids. I feel lucky that I have a home and someone to help pay for stuff while I hibernate. And I feel guilty about my luck. Perhaps I should spend some time really getting to the bottom of why I always feel this guilt. #childhoodissueslikely BE well !

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  34. My concern has been my kids, who are both teachers. Never mind that I work with the public on the daily, I don’t fret my self. The only “control” I have over this uncontrollable situation is the mindset that I will be fine, which I believe. But I do worry very much about them.

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  35. My county in NC as of 2010 census had about 203000 pop. Now probably around 225. We have 25 positives, 23 travel related. As of Monday we have a shelter-in-place order from the governor for the whole state through April. What I don’t get is the hoarding toilet paper.

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