The ERJ family has a summer cold sweeping through our ranks.
We are off the rotation for Mom-care.
Kubota was the first to have symptoms, suggesting he is the one who brought it home. Then Belladonna and trailing Bella by one day, Mrs ERJ.
I have a scratchy throat so I am not far behind Mrs ERJ.
One of my family members (henceforth MFM) is reacting emotionally. She wants us to all get tested for Covid. I don't think she has thought this through. The picture in her head is that all the caregivers who followed our Friday shift should not care for mom until after they get tested.
She is attributing "testing" with magical qualities. One negative test a couple days after exposure tells you nothing.
And what would she have us do? Take half of the roster of care-givers and put them on the bench? Is she going to take the slots that are no longer covered? There are 168 hours in a week. Does MFM have 84 hours available to care for Mom?
MFM (a big proponent of women's rights) called me up and told me to take Mrs ERJ to the hospital and get her tested.
The humor of the situation did not escape me. I suggested that MFM call up Mrs ERJ directly. As a general rule, I don't order Mrs ERJ around. She is an adult.
Mrs ERJ is a peace-maker. She agreed to get tested for Covid.
Reality check
Us getting the cold was a reality check.
We relaxed. Belladonna had been taking off her work clothes in the basement and immediately throwing them in the washing machine.
Kubota had not been going out and carousing with his buddies.
Mrs ERJ and I had not been going to stores.
I had been taking all mail and packages and "gassing them" with ozone in the truck cap.
All that changed. We had relaxed. Obviously, we relaxed too much.
Like someone said "you can pick your friends but not your family". I think we all have some of those. Did you get your washing machine fixed? In regards to "gassing" packages in your truck does ozone have any effects on things like electronics and the various plastics in trucks now? ---ken
ReplyDeleteI have a cap over the bed. That is where I gas them.
DeleteOzone can impact natural rubber. I cannot vouch for other types of elastomers and polymers, but I think they are more resistant than latex.
Metals should be immune to ozone.
Don't know if I answered your question.
About the truck, yes.
DeleteColds will never be cured... sigh
ReplyDeleteCo;d or Covid -19 (some colds are also covid, BTW) yer gonna catch something.
ReplyDeleteIf you go out, you will, at some point, be exposed to someone with covid-19. The likelihood is nearly 100%, if you go out often enough.
You have about a 0.1% chance of getting sick enough to require hospitalization. about a 10% chance of dying if you get to the hospital stage.
There is no vaccine, so unless you are gonna fort up with your entire family for the next 6-12 months, when there MIGHT be a vaccine, then you gotta accept some risk.
Remember, the original "Flatten the Curve" was supposed to be for only two weeks. The rest of this "lockdown" is more likely aimed at social conditioning or politics than real public health reasons.
Again, your gonna be exposed. Unless you never leave the house, never contact anyone who HAS left the house, yer gonna be exposed. Deal with it.
I haven't been tested yet, but if I get feeling bad enough to want testing, I will also commit to getting tested for the presence of antibodies. Can't think of a single reason why I wouldn't. COVID-19 testing only tells you if you are virus positive RIGHT NOW. Antibody testing tells you if you already had it. That's what I'm shooting for, catch it and not even notice.
ReplyDelete