We need some kind of “sympathy” or “empathy” button along with agree/like/helpful… @Stuffedquahog , hope it gets better soon.
@MWolf and @SJ2727 Thank you guys. I am typically a very positive and optimistic person. I just had a moment yesterday. I will focus on the good times that are bound to return. They have to, right?
@Stuffedquahog - very sorry for your son. That really stinks for him and for your family. As much as these schools try make things up to their seniors, it will never be what it was supposed to be and it is a pretty big loss for them. Of course, so many are suffering and going through other challenges too. I’m trying to be optimistic too but having a few down days. Hang in there parents!
@Stuffedquahog this week feels extra hard to us too. I personally think it’s OK to have an occasional “this sucks!” vent, but still realize the positives, then move on; just like you are doing. I too am so grateful for being able to take walks. It’s my sanity saver and I think my kids are starting to realize that they felt better when they were getting outside, too. And, you know those first warm spring days that feel SO GOOD? Many of us will get to take more advantage of them this spring…windows open, a quick break outside. Maybe even work outside!!!
@TS0104 LOL we got 5 inches of snow yesterday! Yay spring! We have had quite a few nice days here and there though and DD and I take the dog down the dirt road. Doggie is doing good for being 15.
DD did start her naturalist internship this week in the conservation office. Of course it’s starting off slow but it’s going. Right now one of their things is making videos for kids at home. At some point she could be tagging geese and counting frogs, clearing trail, kayaking, and learning stand up paddleboard. And hopefully eventually, doing some kids camps.
Before about senior year I never would have thought that this might be the direction her life would take!
@TS0104 Thanks! I have been getting outside a lot. It was super cold and windy today here in CT. This will sound silly but I bought a second hand pet stroller this week for $20. I have been taking my 15 year old cockapoo (dog) with me on my daily 3 mile walks. He absolutely loves it! For years and years he was my walking companion on all walks no matter how long. In recent years he has slowed down quite a bit and can only walk a block or so (he has a heart condition). I may look very silly pushing a pet stroller with my 30 lb dog in it but I have to tell you he is soooo happy! Lots of fresh air for him and as a team we are walking our favorite routes again. So that’s a huge positive this week.
@Stuffedquahog love it!
They’ve closed the High Schools down for the rest of the year here in MA as of yesterday. Feel bad for all of the kids missing out on learning, exploring, playing, performing etc. It really stinks.
I keep reading about colleges considering staying closed through the Fall already. Big events like Oktoberfest in Germany already cancelled, and that’s 6 months away! I’m usually pretty optimistic, but now I’m leaning towards the schools my 2 kids attend in Boston will not reopen in the Fall. There is still a lot of fear and uncertainty around here, and as more things get pushed back and cancelled it seems to create more uneasiness and the feeling that maybe everything stays on lockdown for a really long time.
It’s an interesting paradox to the places around the country that are opening back up this week. I think there are people around here who would consider opening up things slowly, but there are just as many who say stay closed for a very long time.
I’m not sure where I personally stand in my thoughts on the matter. I do think social distancing has been good as it has helped hospitals get a handle of the situation. I’ve also read that doctors think the virus is much more widespread than originally thought and thus maybe less lethal. It does not seem to be affecting the younger population in great numbers. My family is in good health, no underlying conditions, not obese etc. I think we’d be fine if we were exposed to virus. Last week I felt that I had a somewhat limited lung capacity and a runny nose. I am an avid cyclist so I am in tune with my lungs functioning on a high level, and. would say I had a 30 percent reduction in air capacity. Could I maybe have had the virus? Allergies? I feel fine today, no other symptoms. I ‘ve been exercising every day, and feel quite strong. No one else in the house has any symptoms. I’d like to take a test to see if I had the virus.
I guess I’d probably lean to open things earlier than later, as long as a sufficient amount of medicine and treatment is available. The CDC is now saying we could get a bad second wave over the winter. So what does that mean, stay cooped up in the house for another year? I don’t see that happening. It would possibly lead to massive societal uproar. Those images of people protesting walking around with rifles and screaming in the streets is a bit alarming.
We are going to have to figure out a plan very soon where society can get back to doing stuff, while protecting those at great risk.
Hope everyone stays safe. Enjoy the time with your kids.
@RightCoaster K-12 closed for the rest of the year here too and our governor just announced that he doesn’t think the curve in Illinois will peak until mid June. It was supposed to be mid April. We are in for ten more weeks of this before the next phase? Ugh that is just too long. S19 is very busy with homework and class and the rigor is still there. He’s running and working out. But I can feel the boredom setting in. He was kind of joking but asked if he can drive to NH to stay with a Bowdoin friend for a month this summer in their lake house. He misses his friends. He has his high school group here, of course, but they can’t see each other and there’s no where to go so ugh.
I feel like we’re going to have to settle into this at some point or we will be even more miserable. I am keenly aware that this is bonus time with S19 and we are all enjoying time together but the uncertainty of everything is sometimes a lot.
S19 does not want to do online again. Classes are as good as they could be but it’s not that - he just misses the campus experience and wants six more semesters at school. If the option is online in the fall (or God forbid all year) then he would use up one or two of those semesters taking class in his bedroom. We are definitely considering a leave of absence as are all of his friends.
Stay safe everyone. This is rough.
D picked her classes this morning over zoom with her advisor. She’s planning on taking 4.5 credits, since her Russian class is a 3 credit year long course instead of the standard 2 credit language sequence. She’s also taking an advanced Italian class, a Ling class, and a history class. The last was chosen because the teacher gets good reviews and the topic is interesting. It’ll fulfill the random electives across departments requirement without being overly taxing (that’s the thought anyway).
One of her best friends at school found out that she has covid this morning- her parents were both diagnosed last week. Obviously my daughter is afraid for her friend’s whole family. It’s such a scary time in general.
My son is registering today, too. He was debating between two classes and asking my advice and I reminded him that the may want to consider that it could possibly be online, so that swayed the decision (to the less interesting yet required class). He also completed an application for study abroad in Italy during J Term (Jan 2021)…we’ll see. No deposit needed on that for a while.
He hasn’t talked about a leave of absence if online continues into fall, but my D17 has.
She goes back and forth…she’s having a harder time as she didn’t really live here any more until now, and she had a very full exciting spring semester with all kinds of projects that she had earned herself that all got cancelled.
I received communication from my daughter’s dean that the school is indeed expecting an uptick in requests for leaves of absence, and that they intend to grant all of them. She also said there is no plan to cut aid for any student below full need. Both were very reassuring bits of info.
@RightCoaster - I was counting on you to remain the optimistic one in the group! I’m trying to just take one day at a time and not think too much about the months to come. However, that’s not easy living in Ga. with an absolute idiot in charge.
Anyway, S19 registered for classes on Monday and got 4/5 of the classes he wanted. He’s thinking about taking a Calc 2 class at a local college this summer. I don’t think it will be accepted but he thinks he can successfully appeal. We’ll see.
D17 found out she got into a year-long creative writing course next year for her senior year and only 10 students are accepted into the class. I really hope she will be able to do that and be able to have a somewhat normal senior year. Oh yeah, I’m not supposed to think that far ahead. I’ll just go ahead and schedule my massage and tatoo for Friday.
@elena13 ha! get your hair cut too! Apparently, it can be done from six feet away!
Glad S got some good classes and your D got into creative writing. That’s exciting!
D19 registered this morning–got all her classes and a really nice schedule. She flipped her O chem classes (pushing the one with lab out to the spring) anticipating an online fall semester. And will look to doing a medical internship in the spring (through her school) in case spring is online as well. Since she is going back to school (living off campus) in the fall regardless, she is as happy as she can be at the moment.
@elena13 I’m still quite optimistic, although I understand that not everyone else is or wants to be. I’m not one of those crazy flag wearing protestors demanding to go back to work right now, but I do understand that people who run small businesses need to get back to work to provide for their families so the economy won’t wind up in total shambles soon. It’s a tough situation. I feel really bad for the people missing out on work, school, major life events, etc. I don’t feel bad for people that want to go bowling, getting nails done, or get tattoos this week lol
I did like to see that Purdue decided to open in the Fall. Hopefully this serves to encourage other schools to open up vs the mass closures we had this Spring. I think the schools can figure out a way to operate in a safe manner. Like I said, I’m not particularly worried or scared about the virus for me or my family, but I am concerned about others getting sick. The schools have to figure out a way to protect those “ others”. If this means certain professors have to teach remotely for a bit, that’s fine. Maybe some sort of hybrid, such as live on campus, take some classes and labs in person and a few online classes. That’s better than sitting at home for another semester. Obviously there will be kids affected by this too, and they are going to have to figure out if the new norm is safe for them, or is it better to stick with e-learning, I feel bad for those kids.
I’m also confident that the medical community will come up some sort of treatment or vaccine soon. Lots of research being done locally and throughout the world right now, and they will get it done. I am mostly worried about the older generation as they are the most susceptible, and I have 2 active parents in their 70’s. The nursing home dilemma is problematic and obviously they need to figure out a way to keep those people safe, patients, nurses, caregivers etc.
Based on the data and science presented so far I’m pretty comfortable with my kids going back to school this Fall, even in a hard hit zone like Boston. In fact I just paid the summer school bill for son17, he is enrolled in 2 classes for the summer term and will start a co-op after that hopefully.
@RightCoaster Purdue isn’t opening for sure. They layed out how fall could look and “expect” to have kids back on campus but a lot of schools are using that wording in their communication. Lots of people think Purdue put that info out there so that kids who are still deciding where to go will choose Purdue because it sounds like they will be open on campus.
I also am in GA and some of what is allowed to open tomorrow is really puzzling. (bowling alleys?). I dont think many of these places will open in Metro Atlanta, but I could see in Rural GA, where counties have not had any cases, having more businesses open. Also there are smart ways to open these up. For example, a hair salon could have only a few clients at a time and the stylist wears a mask and gloves , and when possible so does the client. Even moreso for someone that gives massages. That is what my neighbor does and she is really hurting. She can between clients wipe everything down and have fresh bedding. She can wash her hands and wear a mask, and make sure that her clients wear masks as well. Any immune compromised person should stay home. For restaurants here, now that its warm, maybe some open up outdoor seating with “togo” containers still. Movie theatres, if everyone wears masks and showings have limited seating could work. The Gym thing… well… not sure about that… also most people pay monthly membership that likely has not stopped.
What I hope opens soon is limited retail. I believe if grocery stores can be open and bixgbox stores, why not other retail with precautions in place. This makes more sense . Masks, no trying things on, distancing when checking out. I went a few weeks ago to Walmart near me, and I will see people were not behaving well. That is the one place I will not go to.
I do hope schools are open in the fall, the hybrid model might work where the kids that are not immune compromised could return, and classes would be socially distanced between the professors and students (lets face it , many young people will likely not SD regardless ), This is not going away for at least a year right now and for many it can be asymptomatic. The only issues is when someone does get sick at school , how will they isolate and will their roommates and friends also have to. I would have no problem sending both my kids back and even with them catching this. I would rather they do it away, as my Husband is in the High Risk group.
For my S19 , he signed up for classes but was not allowed to sign up for this one class that he really wants. Trying to get a hold of the department head. His online learning has not been the same as the in person. He is a kid who really thrives on routine. He has nothing right now for the summer, and is already a self isolating type. Will have to find a job somewhere. If the fall is online, not sure what he will do. My D17 has said no way will her last semester be online. She will take a LOA , but I am not sure how that will affect scholarships, etc.
My gym says they pro-rate the fees for the time they’re closed…we’ll see. But, before the shutdown, they had implemented social distancing by leveraging their online class scheduling system, to limit the number of people in the gym. So, only 25 people (the state mass gathering limit at that time) could be in the entire gym at one time, and you had to schedule your time thru the app.
I’ve always felt that way about Walmart, lol, even before covid-19.
I’ve always wanted to do a documentary called “ A thousand feet way, a world apart” about the tale of 2 stores near me, a Walmart and Target. Separated by a roadway. It’s literally like 2 different worlds and they shall never collide. At the Target it’s basically people from the 3 community zones of upper middle class, and Walmart I’d say leaning to middle-to lower. They sell the same exact stuff, yet 90% different clientele.
I occasionally go into Walmart because they sell a few items I need that Target doesn’t sell and am always perplexed by the whole scenario. I personally find the Walmart sort of gross, and the Target at least clean and presentable. I don’t think the savings at Walmart on many items to be significant vs the same items at Target. So why do the shoppers prefer one over the other? Where do they live? Jobs and lifestyle, etc. How do the shoppers feel about the customers and shopping experience at the other place. I think I could make an interesting Netflix documentary on this, and lately have been giving some real thought to it. I have a friend involved in film/tv production and I may talk to him about this, could be an interesting and fun project for me.
I feel this way even more now, since the virus. You go into Target, people are trying to be careful, masks, store employees wiping things down, The Walmart is like a total crazy house. People walking around with no masks or gloves, including workers. Snotty nosed kids runnng wild. Old people just walking around with no cares, no masks just buying random crap like plant fertilizer. Whole families out for a morning stroll. Nobody following social distancing and going single file down aisles.
@homerdog I thought. Purdue was definitely opening, I didn’t read the whole piece. I just thought it was interesting for a university to stake a claim that they were trying to open vs let’s just throw in the towel right now because doom and gloom. I think the doom and gloom feeds on each other and puts pressure on others to follow suit. The doom and gloomers seem to harp on the concept of this dragging on for at least another whole year, and the other side is chomping to open it all up and let the chips fall wherever with no regard to the dangers associated with that.
I have a more centrist approach and lean to soft openings, especially in places with low levels of outbreaks. See how it plays there, expand outward when possible and reasonable. Keep working on testing and treatment. But I just don’t see how we move forward past this if we are all stuck in the house, when the reality is most of us will be able to fight off the virus and move on. Hopefully we can look at what someplace like Sweden is doing and implement some of their plans into our practice.
Figure out a way to protect the most vulnerable. Get some more people working again. There are so many people in our country that live paycheck to paycheck and do not have the $$ to live, it;’s sad to see. The economic divide grows even stronger during this unprecedented time in our history. I feel really bad for people worrying about food and shelter and literally living on no money.
I also hope that after we move past this time that the United States population can become more aware of the harm they put themselves in by letting themselves become obese and completely out of shape. Heart disease, diabetes, hypertension etc. are completely out of control in the US. All of these things place an enormous risk on our population and burden on hospitals as we try to fend off these viruses that seem to be sprouting up more frequently. Hopefully people can have a little more self awareness to keep themselves more healthy, and maybe there are ways our government and medical system can help people figure it out.
LOL, that’s my rant. Eat better, get some exercise stay healthy my friends.