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

[IamRainey]

So, I've often wondered about that too. And I almost never do. But it so happens just the other day, I did and this is why: I ran an errand in one shop, then I just had to drive across the street to another shop for my second errand, and I decided to not bother to take off my mask and left it on while driving by myself.

I had to laugh at myself because I've always been a bit .... intolerant ... when I see others do it. (By "intolerant" I just mean, in my own mind. Like, why is that silly person wearing a mask while in their car alone?). I still wonder why people do it, when I see them like on a large road where they are not likely to be stopping from place to place.

I've done the same when I'm going from one business to another nearby one. I've also forgotten to take it off from time to time, I suppose because wearing it isn't a particularly big deal.

In any case, how does someone driving with a mask on create a problem for anyone else? Is it really anything to be bothered about? I'm reminded that you can pick your friends and you can pick your nose but you can't pick your friend's nose, KWIM?

 

[feather13]

I have seen someone pull out of their driveway, alone in their car, with their mask on; and that's a real head-scratcher. I admit, I judged.

I regularly do because I wear a wear a cloth mask with ties over an N95 (sometimes with a face shield, too) when I go out. It takes a while to get all of that on and, because I'm slightly vain, I like my hair to look as neat as possible if I need to run an errand. Lyft drivers tell me they leave theirs on nearly all day to protect themselves and others because it's still not 100% known how long the droplets remain in the air.

I also wear my mask all the time when I'm out running or biking since I live in a pretty densely populated area with known cases of more virulent Covid strains. I'd much rather deal with the minor inconvenience and maybe overkill of wearing a mask when I leave the house than potentially being responsible for killing someone or contracting a virus we don't know much about and possibly dealing with long term side effects. If I lived in a rural area with a low population density and it took a while to get from my house to wherever I needed to go, I wouldn't wear a mask in the car.

Honestly, I'm much more likely to judge someone not wearing a mask in a store who potentially puts more susceptible people and themselves at risk of a deadly virus than I am of what people are doing in the relative privacy of their cars.

 

[KarynVA]

...

Honestly, I'm much more likely to judge someone not wearing a mask in a store who potentially puts more susceptible people and themselves at risk of a deadly virus than I am of what people are doing in the relative privacy of their cars.

Oh, for sure.

Thanks for your detailed response, that all makes sense to me. Now I know more about the reasoning so as to avoid judging in the future.

 

[Molpet]

When I had "something" making me cough and very fatigued, I wore my mask driving. I didn't get tested... I didn't want to have my feed guy get it, what ever it was, from loading up my vehicle. It was too cold to drive with the windows open and no one to make a feed run.

 

[Winter Creek Coop]

It does make sense going across the road. I see people on the highway pretty regularly.

 

[feather13]

Oh, for sure.

Thanks for your detailed response, that all makes sense to me. Now I know more about the reasoning so as to avoid judging in the future.

LOL... it's so hard to avoid judging in the future about anything! With all that is known/unknown about this virus and as a single parent with no family close by, I also just can't afford (in every possible sense of that word) to get sick or have sick kids. And, I realize that I may be strange in this opinion, I don't mind wearing the mask because it gives me a feeling of anonymity I like, men are much less likely to try to strike up a conversation, and I'm no longer told to smile more often . Two cents from one of the ever-maskers

 

[IamRainey]

I had an illuminating observation today and learned an interesting thing.

One of the major testing spots in the LA area is very close to my house. I drive by it on a fairly regular basis. A month ago cars were lined up on 3 sides of the block staging to enter the testing area. And then, of course, the waiting traffic snaked through an enormous parking lot that took up most of the block on their way to the actual testing tents.

Today I drove by and there was nothing. Looks like they've discontinued testing there completely. I take that to be a response to the number of suspected cases dropping precipitously. Yay for that!

Then I discovered that one of the reasons that kids don't transmit the disease so much is because they're much shorter than the adults who get more sick once infected. Because they're short, they're dispersing droplets well below the area in which adults are breathing them in and, of course, that means a shorter distance down to where the droplets and viruses become inert. So there's both a proximity thing going on and a shorter timeframe when their virus stay suspended. Also, kids haven't developed the number of receptor cells in their lungs that the virus can attach to and proliferate while adults have developed a lifetime inventory of the cells to provide the virus an environment in which to reproduce and wreck their damage.

 

[aart]

Today I drove by and there was nothing. Looks like they've discontinued testing there completely. I take that to be a response to the number of suspected cases dropping precipitously.

Or they ran out of tests?

 

[Hayden Goseek]

I don't mean to jump in late but I just found the thread.
I worried that the lone, masked highway driver was misinformed and wondered what else they may be thinking.
As far as vaccinations, I'm a 66 yo Critical Care RN working on a Covid Unit and can't even get on the waiting list.

 

[Ruthster55]

So, I've often wondered about that too. And I almost never do. But it so happens just the other day, I did and this is why: I ran an errand in one shop, then I just had to drive across the street to another shop for my second errand, and I decided to not bother to take off my mask and left it on while driving by myself.

I had to laugh at myself because I've always been a bit .... intolerant ... when I see others do it. (By "intolerant" I just mean, in my own mind. Like, why is that silly person wearing a mask while in their car alone?). I still wonder why people do it, when I see them like on a large road where they are not likely to be stopping from place to place.

Part of the reason is that after you have done errand Nº 1, your paws are now dirty from handling money or purse or card or even the merchandise or feed, etc. Yes, hand sanitizer, but there is nothing like washing your hands with soap and running water.

So, with dirty-feeling hands, you get in the car with the mask still on to do the next errand, rather than taking the mask off. If the second errand isn't 20 miles away, this is doable. That's why there are people driving around with masks in cars even though they are driving by themselves.