Coronavirus, Covid 19 Discussion and How It Has Affected Your Daily Life Chat Thread

[SnapdragonQ]

Interesting enough. There is a way to ask or order a report from Alexa or her software to find out about all the things she has listened to and recorded while in use (or sleeping). We personally haven't done it, but my tech friend has and it was very creepy. Alexa listens all the time...

Indeed she does. She records too and the recordings are transcribed and kept for future data. Creepy! Just Eww!!!
Never had one. Never wanted one. Will never ever get one (or anything like it.)
And unless I'm actively using it, or need to have it in my purse while out and about, I don't keep my phone near me. Just somewhere I can hear it if it rings...like in the other room.

Oh and on a different note. The phrase "gaslighting" is really starting to get a workout in the last few weeks. Seems a spade is starting to get called a spade in ernest.

Now if the msm could bring it to the next ethical level of journalism: calling a lie - a lie.

Case in point. Scientific research is not equatable to pulling a burrito out of the freezer and tossing it in the microwave oven and 3 minutes later it's ready to eat.

So babbling on about having a full-on ready to go; everyone in every state will have their dose by the end of October is so laughable, it's sad.

A petry dish sample doesn't evolve during the next commercial break on Faux gnewz.

I fully expect to see a honest and reasonably safe vaccine in late spring early summer 2021 and having it mass duplicated and ready for mass application in mid to late summer. Cell development or replication isn't anywhere near as quick as a sitcom episode.

Our school sent out another email update today...... Another addition for high school; 4 staff & 6 students now..... Yet the school's website hasn't been updated in a week. No updates from Jr. High or lower levels in a while.....
One of the two big Universities in town is also seeing cases pop up as is the Denton school district too.

Guess those hoaxers can't add to well.

I find it amazing how many people have forgotten simple biology. Or basic health class.
Or know how to google for a simple answer.
Why a person would ever take health instructions or directives from a poli...um.... non-health person, is beyond me.

Maybe the next time they need stitches, a broken bone set, or a deeper look into something not working right in their body...perhaps a kidney, they should go see.... the librarian??

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I am so sorry. That is sad. People can have different opinions and believes, yet they should be able to respect each other. You can respect that she thinks it is a hoax, that is her thing. However, she should also respect that you take it seriously and it really doesn't take that much to stay apart 6 feet or wear a mask. We are all doing it. Some people for more than 8 hours straight. These times are hard, it makes it harder to go through them without our friends.

Thank you. A relative comes over unannounced and won't wear a mask. She gives me severe anxiety. So far I've dealt with it by making her sit outside and stay 6 to 8 feet away. I don't enjoy her visits at all. These two ladies were pretty much my only social contacts before the pandemic, so now I have none. But I don't really mind. I'm content to sit in my castle with the drawbridge up until it's all over! I have you guys!

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Something about this was irking me and after some thought I realized what it is. My experience is talk about how much family matters always seems to go in the direction of forgiving someone who is largely unrepentant for causing harm and rarely in the direction of expecting someone to be loving and apologize when they've caused harm.

IMO some things are worth cutting ties over. Basic morality is one of them. Extreme toxicity is another. If someone saw me doing something that genuinely put other peoples lives at risk I'd hope there would be consequences. The "But they're family!" mentality has literally nearly killed me and a few of my loved ones (and even other family members) a number of times over the years and the people I was expected to accept think they've done nothing wrong and kept on doing it.

I wish people took that same energy they have for expecting people who have been hurt to forgive and instead put it towards expecting people who have caused harm to make amends and apologies. After all, they're family, right? Shouldn't you be seeking their forgiveness if they're worth so much to you?

I agree it's much better not to waste energy fighting though. It's far easier to not communicate and keep your distance instead.

You (generic, not you specifically) can expect people to recognize that they have been wrong and/or offensive and/or hurtful, and apologize, but you can't make them do it. It's just an exercise in futility and frustration. A wise man once said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." If I can forgive people because they are too ignorant to even realize what they are doing that is hurting me, I'm a lot better off than if I make myself sick wishing they would see themselves as I see them and apologize, which ain't never gonna happen. I set myself free and walk away when I forgive, and I'll live longer and better than if I stay stuck in a treadmill of anger and resentment.

 

[Shadrach]

The thing that bothers me is none of the "vaccines" I've read about stop you catching the virus. What a vaccine may do is help prevent your bodies reaction to the virus from making you very ill.
The virus itself is pretty harmless. It's the bodies reaction to finding the virus and not having had that strain before, it chucks everything it can at it to try and get rid of it.
So, you vaccinate a proportion of the population. They still catch the virus but instead of dying, they feel a bit rough for a few days. They can and will pass the virus onto other people. No vaccine is 100% effective. Granted if the whole population is vaccinated then lots fewer people will die, but lots will still get sick.
Say next year the virus mutates and becomes less of a threat and a new one turns up. Are we going to go through all this again?
The vaccine thing isn't really going to fix it all even if we could vaccinate enough people.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

You (generic, not you specifically) can expect people to recognize that they have been wrong and/or offensive and/or hurtful, and apologize, but you can't make them do it. It's just an exercise in futility and frustration. A wise man once said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." If I can forgive people because they are too ignorant to even realize what they are doing that is hurting me, I'm a lot better off than if I make myself sick wishing they would see themselves as I see them and apologize, which ain't never gonna happen. I set myself free and walk away when I forgive, and I'll live longer and better than if I stay stuck in a treadmill of anger and resentment.

You're right, I can't make them do it. But if you're going to pressure someone into something with "they're family" type arguments, why pressure someone who's already hurting and in need of support? Why not pressure the person who's being a jerk? Kind of seems backwards to me, and like I've said, not really something I've had good experiences with.

 

[Molpet]

Something about this was irking me and after some thought I realized what it is. My experience is talk about how much family matters always seems to go in the direction of forgiving someone who is largely unrepentant for causing harm and rarely in the direction of expecting someone to be loving and apologize when they've caused harm.

IMO some things are worth cutting ties over. Basic morality is one of them. Extreme toxicity is another. If someone saw me doing something that genuinely put other peoples lives at risk I'd hope there would be consequences. The "But they're family!" mentality has literally nearly killed me and a few of my loved ones (and even other family members) a number of times over the years and the people I was expected to accept think they've done nothing wrong and kept on doing it.

I wish people took that same energy they have for expecting people who have been hurt to forgive and instead put it towards expecting people who have caused harm to make amends and apologies. After all, they're family, right? Shouldn't you be seeking their forgiveness if they're worth so much to you?

I agree it's much better not to waste energy fighting though. It's far easier to not communicate and keep your distance instead.

Holding a grudge ( not forgiving someone) doesn't phase the person who did me wrong. But it negatively affects me. Kinda like taking poison to get the other person.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

You're right, I can't make them do it. But if you're going to pressure someone into something with "they're family" type arguments, why pressure someone who's already hurting and in need of support? Why not pressure the person who's being a jerk? Kind of seems backwards to me, and like I've said, not really something I've had good experiences with.

I guess I don't see that as pressuring them (to forgive), but rather, attempting to comfort the hurting person. Forgiving is a way more of helping the hurting person find a way to peace and serenity, rather than releasing the jerk who caused the hurt. At least that is what I have found to be true. By coming to a place of being able to let go of anger and resentment, I have been able to heal and get on with my life. The person who hurt me neither knows nor cares that I have obtained that peace. What matters to me is that I have done so. My mental health, my spiritual life, depend on it.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

Hmm, how do I explain this.

My brother is abusive. My family STILL don't remember any calm explanations for why I don't want to be around him and it's been 20 years but they remember the shouting matches crystal clear. "But you're family! You should forgive him!" Was ALWAYS in an attempt to make me be willing to be around him.

I've got five niece/nephews across three mothers from him, some older than me. Of his bio kids, four have had hospitalized suicide attempts (3 have multiples), two have been arrested at least once, and three are addicts, none of them has a career, home, only one has a stable partner, etc. The youngest is a teen mom with my grand-niece just this month, no dad involved, lives with her mom still and works at a drug store as a cashier, was previously diagnosed with severe kleptomania. Some of my sisters recently tried to stop my brother from taking my fathers retirement money. One of them confessed to me that she was scared he was going to show up at their doorstep with a gun if she kept trying.

Seeing what other people went through I can't even imagine what it would have been like if I "forgave" him, and tried to exist around him peacefully. Would I even be alive right now? I genuinely don't know.

Anger, grudges, fear - these are often responses we develop to keep us safe from harm. There's no nice platitudes that make them go away - only real growth on behalf of the people causing harm or an absence of the person doing harm. Certainly if it's over something less we should develop the ability to let it go. And if you have the option to just not engage with someone without consequences, that's good! That means you can stop being hurt and move on!

But real forgiveness, the kind that lets you get along with someone, have a coffee with someone, celebrate a holiday with someone? That requires love. It's for things like "You broke my favorite tea cup", or "You called me a mean name in jest and it actually hurt" or even "You did something VERY dangerous but you realized it could have hurt me and felt bad and took steps to not do it again". Not "You did something that risked my life and didn't care and still don't and you will continue to risk my life for your own benefit". How can you try to love someone who is happy to see you in pain and refuses to try to be better? That's just toxic behavior - if that were someones husband, we'd tell them to get a divorce! It's not better if it's "family".

We live in a time when a lot of choices have the potential to risk a lot of lives. So it does not surprise me at all that people are divided. Because REAL forgiveness, the kind that lets people get along instead of avoiding one another, doesn't happen without recognizing harm.

 

[Guernsy]

Hmm, how do I explain this.

My brother is abusive. My family STILL don't remember any calm explanations for why I don't want to be around him and it's been 20 years but they remember the shouting matches crystal clear. "But you're family! You should forgive him!" Was ALWAYS in an attempt to make me be willing to be around him.

I've got five niece/nephews across three mothers from him, some older than me. Of his bio kids, four have had hospitalized suicide attempts (3 have multiples), two have been arrested at least once, and three are addicts, none of them has a career, home, only one has a stable partner, etc. The youngest is a teen mom with my grand-niece just this month, no dad involved, lives with her mom still and works at a drug store as a cashier, was previously diagnosed with severe kleptomania. Some of my sisters recently tried to stop my brother from taking my fathers retirement money. One of them confessed to me that she was scared he was going to show up at their doorstep with a gun if she kept trying.

Seeing what other people went through I can't even imagine what it would have been like if I "forgave" him, and tried to exist around him peacefully. Would I even be alive right now? I genuinely don't know.

Anger, grudges, fear - these are often responses we develop to keep us safe from harm. There's no nice platitudes that make them go away - only real growth on behalf of the people causing harm or an absence of the person doing harm. Certainly if it's over something less we should develop the ability to let it go. And if you have the option to just not engage with someone without consequences, that's good! That means you can stop being hurt and move on!

But real forgiveness, the kind that lets you get along with someone, have a coffee with someone, celebrate a holiday with someone? That requires love. It's for things like "You broke my favorite tea cup", or "You called me a mean name in jest and it actually hurt" or even "You did something VERY dangerous but you realized it could have hurt me and felt bad and took steps to not do it again". Not "You did something that risked my life and didn't care and still don't and you will continue to risk my life for your own benefit". How can you try to love someone who is happy to see you in pain and refuses to try to be better? That's just toxic behavior - if that were someones husband, we'd tell them to get a divorce! It's not better if it's "family".

We live in a time when a lot of choices have the potential to risk a lot of lives. So it does not surprise me at all that people are divided. Because REAL forgiveness, the kind that lets people get along instead of avoiding one another, doesn't happen without recognizing harm.

You are deeply hurt on so many levels. In my opinion, there are different levels of forgiveness. Everyone has a different reason to forgive or not. Family is important to me. However, I am lucky, I have a great family. Maybe I would not be saying this if I had a brother who would try to do harm to the rest of my family that is dear to me.
Situations are different for everyone, there is no manual that fits all. Not even when it comes to peace, forgiveness, or happiness, we all perceive it differently.

 

[ChocolateMouse]

The thing is - most of it I can forgive. That sister who told me about being scared? Five years before she tried to publicly humiliate me into seeing my brother. I forgave her the day she said she was scared because she understood what was happening to me then. She didn't even say she was sorry but I knew she would never try to hurt me with it again.

But if someone if actively trying to hurt you real forgiveness is impossible. You just have to find another way to move on and reconcile with it. Sometimes that means you don't forgive, but you just move on anyways.

I feel like that's just what most people are doing.