How's 'that' situation going now?

[Emerkeith Davyjack]

1. How is the Coronavirus situation where you live? What's closed down? Have you gone out much? Are you (Oh, what's the trendy term now " Self-distancing "?) staying inside as a precaution or actually infected or is anyone else you know? I hope, if so, you're well. Let's...well, exchange comments.
2.   I am now in Portland, Oregon. The Govenor, and then, locally, Portland declared a state of emergency. I saw the comment made that Oregon was the furthest behind on dealing with CV of the 3 West Coast states.
3.   I went out yesterday ( Sun.), I am ill and had sleep to make up to-day (Mon.) and ended up not going out - I may go out across the street to a all-nite grocery tonite-early Tues. I have not heard of a regular medical appointment Tues. being cancelled.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Yes, it is exactly like that. 

Apparently, "detected" and "positive" mean pretty much the same thing, too (although they are different diagnoses). I plan to take a rapid test myself tomorrow before deciding whether or not to take my weekly trip to my LCS. 

[Richard Willis]

The rapid tests apparently can have false negatives, so you might want to take it more than once.

I know that 5-day isolation is now recommended for health care workers. This is a combination of the shortage of health workers and the determination that the likelihood of being infectious drops off after the fifth day. Someone also pointed out that if a doctor or nurse is past the fifth day, is fully vaccinated and only deals with COVID patients there isn't much chance of a problem. I believe the 10-day isolation is still recommended for everybody else.

More mixed messaging, which only helps the anti-vax side. 

[Travis Herrick (Modular Mod)]

I found out earlier a friend of mine got out of the hospital today after a 25 day stay. I don't know his vaccination status, but I do know he is a long time smoker. Well over 30 years at this point.

[ClarkKent_DC]

Richard Willis said:

The rapid tests apparently can have false negatives, so you might want to take it more than once.

I know that 5-day isolation is now recommended for health care workers. This is a combination of the shortage of health workers and the determination that the likelihood of being infectious drops off after the fifth day. Someone also pointed out that if a doctor or nurse is past the fifth day, is fully vaccinated and only deals with COVID patients there isn't much chance of a problem. I believe the 10-day isolation is still recommended for everybody else.

More mixed messaging, which only helps the anti-vax side. 

Yeah. I still think of Richard Burgi, the actor who was fired from The Young and the Restless because he returned to work after quarantining for five days and getting two negative COVID tests, because he didn't stay away for 10 days. By all accounts, it appeared he was acting in good faith and I wish the show had extended the same to him. He wasn't like the two rabid anti-vaxxers who got themselves fired from General Hospital; Burgi was following the rules as he understood them, and he accepted their decision to cut him with grace.

On the other hand, one of those two anti-vaxxers who got himself fired from General Hospital is not going away gracefully.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Tracy tested positive so she offered to sleep in another room.

I made a big pot of ham & beans last night so I offered to sleep in another room.

I tested negative this morning and learned a few things. This is the first time I've taken a rapid test (or a COVID test of any kind) and I discovered that, although "positive" and "negative" are the common terms, the tests use "detected" and "not detected" (but the two sets of terms mean exactly the same thing). Also, every rapid test yields a purple line, but the positive results show a blue line in addition to the purple one. The blue line can range from very faint to very dark, but any blue at all is "detected" (or "positive"). I'm sure that's what Tracy's co-worker meat by "slightly positive" (he must've had a faint blue line). 

Tracy's HR okayed her to go back to work today, but she decided to work from home, anyway. If she remains symptom free and tests negative tomorrow morning she may go back to work then. 

[Tracy of Moon-T]

Actually, they said I could return Thursday but I am choosing to return on Friday as long as I continue to not have symptoms. Jeff forgot what day it is despite buying comic books at lunch. 

[Richard Willis]

Glad you're both doing OK. All the people who think vaccinations don't do anything have been severely mislead.

[ClarkKent_DC]

There's the line of thinking that if the vaccine doesn't fully prevent catching COVID, it's not worth taking ... willfully overlooking that the vaccine does prevent the worst symptoms, like dying.

[Richard Willis]

This was on writer Jan Strnad's FB page and I reposted it on mine. It very clearly explains the value of vaccinations.

[Peter Wrexham]

Jeff of Earth-J said:

I discovered that, although "positive" and "negative" are the common terms, the tests use "detected" and "not detected" (but the two sets of terms mean exactly the same thing). Also, every rapid test yields a purple line, but the positive results show a blue line in addition to the purple one. The blue line can range from very faint to very dark, but any blue at all is "detected" (or "positive").

A more detailed explanation of how to interpret the results of a test, from xkcd.com:

[Jeff of Earth-J]

[Jeff of Earth-J]

From a story I was reading yesterday:

"Even so, I would not have to explain the importance of variables in an experiment to you if you had been given any prior appreciation for the rudiments of science. But because in your modern world the antiscience that is thriving in your paradoxically technology intensive time has done so fine a job of convincing people that science, and intelligence in general, is something to ridicule and avoid, a time in which scientists are usually portrayed in the popular media as either insane or uncaring of the dangers and consequences of their discoveries, I cannot assume you have even the most basic notion of what it it to think in a scientific way.

"I can appreciate why the powers that be have manipulated you in this manner. The less knowledge you possess, the easier you are for them to confuse and control. But it also means I must assume you need an explanation about variables in a scientific experiment."

The above was written 26 years ago.