There are now reports of more and more younger people being hospitalized in Italy. This is why the younger people in the United States should be taking this more seriously as well as knowing that a careless attitude can lead to more people (such as their older family and friends) getting sick.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/coronavirus-italy-update-young-people-hospital-luca-lorini-bergamo-a9402531.html

“In Italy, the first clusters of the infection started around hospitals, more commonly frequented by older people, and in small towns,”

“Now the virus has spread, it is travelling around the whole country way more and it is younger people, with lots of social contact, that are more at risk of contracting the disease if they do not stick to the rules of social distancing.”

That's a good point and is why we keep hearing that younger people need to take this seriously so that there enough ventilators, medication, etc to go around for everyone.

Some updates on the stimulus package here in the US, it could now reach $2 trillion or 10% of GDP. Both sides appear to be bickering about a number of things but do seem realize the urgency to get a large stimulus passed asap. I wouldn't be surprised if the stimulus package is signed into law by the end of next week.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/21/politics/stimulus-package-negotiations-congress-coronavirus/index.html

It sounds like Michigan is the next state to go on lockdown. I'm glad I sold a game early last week while I could.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/oakland/2020/03/23/whitmer-michigan-lock-down-like-ohio-six-others-coronavirus-covid-19/2896041001/

Haha. The ice cream and frozen pizza sections at my local grocery store have had low stock over these past two weeks. I grabbed the last two Ben and Jerry cookie dough pints at my local Kroger last week lol. Also, I try every week to make a Detroit style pizza at home. Flour, especially bread flour, has been hard to find over the past couple weeks.

The entire country of India, 1.3 billion people, will be under lockdown starting at midnight for 21 days. Something similar should have been done from the start here in the U.S. Instead we have states all doing different things and multiple directions from the federal government. There doesn't seem to be any consistency or a single focused plan from the top here in the U.S.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/03/24/coronavirus-indias-prime-minister-orders-nationwide-lockdown.html

2 weeks

heighwayexit2 (resized).jpg

Only in the US, can't make this crap up.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/24/health/kentucky-coronavirus-party-infection/index.html

Here's the details. From what I read this is based on 2019 tax filings.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/25/politics/stimulus-senate-action-coronavirus/index.html

"Under the plan as it was being negotiated, individuals who earn $75,000 in adjusted gross income or less would get direct payments of $1,200 each, with married couples earning up to $150,000 receiving $2,400 -- and an additional $500 per each child. The payment would scale down by income, phasing out entirely at $99,000 for singles and $198,000 for couples without children."

I don't see anything about head of household on the CNN article but a provision was in the Senate plan. I'm not sure if this provision got carried over (hopefully) to the joint plan.

"Senate Republicans have proposed a $1,200 refundable tax credit for individuals ($2,400 for joint taxpayers) which begins phasing out at a 5 percent rate at $75,000 for singles, $112,500 for heads of household, and $150,000 for joint taxpayers."

Well that was eye opening to see. This entire thing could have been better contained if a week or two ago the country was shut down for 3 weeks. Instead some states are issuing stay at home orders, others are not, and the federal government is all over the place with their response. If a major project at a company was run this way (meaning no plan, no consistency) a number of people would be fired.

One thing I heard today is that if a family member or friend gets hospitalized you can't go see them as hospital staff won't take the risk for you to become infected and spread the virus to others. There's a real possibility that if a loved one goes into the hospital that it will be the last time you ever see them. Then imagine if you are the one in the one hospitalized and there's the possibility of passing away without any friends or family around you. I don't know about anyone else but that's enough to scare the s*it out of me.

A 3 week stay at home order for all Americans similar to what Britian, India, and other countries are doing. Those 3 weeks would suck staying home but instead we are now faced with this lasting for at least another 1-3 months here in the US with far more cases / deaths.

Dyson in Britian is ramping up to build 15,000 ventilators after receiving a call from the prime minister 10 days ago.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/26/tech/dyson-ventilators-coronavirus/index.html

"This new device can be manufactured quickly, efficiently and at volume," Dyson added, saying that the new ventilator has been designed to "address the specific needs" of coronavirus patients"

In the US Tesla is looking to quickly reopen a factory in New York for ventilator production.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/electrek.co/2020/03/25/tesla-reopen-gigafactory-new-york-covid19-ventilators/amp/

New unemployment claim numbers are out...now at 3.3 million in the U.S. The previous record was 695,000 back in 1982.

The stimulus package now being passed will provide additional unemployment money.

"In an unprecedented expansion of unemployment insurance, the federal government would give jobless workers an extra $600 a week for four months on top of their state benefits, which range from $200 to $550 a week, on average, depending on the state."

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/25/politics/stimulus-package-details-coronavirus/index.html

Capture (resized).JPG

That's good your son is healthy. The testing process does seem odd. If you have symptoms, and go to a drive up testing location you are more often than not (from what I read) told your symptoms don't warrant testing and to go home to self isolate for 14 days. If symptoms get worse you are then told to come back which for some people is too late as they needed hospital care earlier.

If people are being told to go home and self isolate for 14 days why are they not being given a test?

Thanks for the info!

The extra unemployment benefits are huge and a bit of a hint as to how long the government expects this to go on for. The extended unemployment benefits ($600 extra per week on top of state benefits) is for up to 4 months.

I have a family member that is 63 working at a pharmacy during this time. She's been considering retiring at the end of the year but now doesn't know what to do in the current situation as she could bring home the disease to her husband (retired) who is a lifetime smoker. I mentioned to her that the best thing that could happen to her is to be laid off at this point. She doesn't want to quit but also may have to consider it.

Much sooner and here is what GM said prior to the DPA act being used. According to the article a plant in Warren Michigan will start making medical masks next week with 50,000 being able to be made per day. Go GM!

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/27/gm-confirms-production-of-ventilators-following-trump-criticism.html

Are you going to deny the use of a GM made ventilator if you are hospitalized? 1000 of their workers are going to be making them and putting their own health on the line to save others. This is the first time since WW2 that something like this has happened. Be happy, and be proud that General Motors is the first auto maker in the US to start production.

I think theres a big benefit in using the DPA in that it will light a fire under the ass of companies that are thankfully already stepping up to the plate to make medical equipment. Theres a big difference in someone telling their boss "sure, I'll have that done in two weeks" and your boss telling you "you have 3 days".

There was 50% off at Jersey Mikes this weekend. Bought $50 worth of subs for $25 and now feel very full.

Spoke with a friend last night and 3 of his family members who live in the same house are sick with what he suspects is the virus. No one can get tested as there doctor said their symptoms don't warrant a test...These are all people 60 or older.

The father said he's never been this sick in his life before. He's now been sick for 2 weeks and last night had chills and a fever again. The mom has shortness of breath. My friend can't see them and is dropping groceries off at the front door. One of his mom's older friends is in a hospital hooked up to a ventilator after being diagnosed with the virus.

This $hit is real. Do what you can to stay healthy.

Go Ford! Just posted

20200330_165919 (resized).jpg

One comment I'll never forget reading online throughout all of this is from a UAW line worker who said "I won't go back to work to make trucks but I'll go back to make ventilators".

Even in the hardest hit area a good number of people are not following social distance guidelines. Hell, my aunt just asked me who's coming over for Easter Sunday dinner lol. I'm going to reply that it needs to be over Skype this year.

20200401_130937 (resized).jpg

Bill Gates is incredibly smart and it's amazing to see him devoting his retirement years to helping others around the world. Everyone who lived through the Spanish Flu (except for the very few now in their 100's) are gone. It seems like governments and humanity in general got rather lazy over the past 100 years in regards to global epidemic prevention.

Here's the full video

Once this things finally ends I think people (and their family / friends) that come out unaffected are going to have some of the best get togethers and parties of their lives. The next vacation people take will be more special, the next large family get together will have more meaning, and hell I wouldn't be surprised if Pinball Expo 2020 (hopefully still occuring by then) and Texas Pinball Festival 2021 will go down as two of the best pinball expos ever. Hope everyone stays safe and healthy!

Detroit bus driver Jason Hargrove died of Covid 19 a week after he recorded the video below about a women coughing multiple times on the bus without covering her mouth.

The amount of carelessness and stupidity being displayed by some people in this country during this time is mindboggling. It seems like every other country in the world other then the United States has a greater percentage of people following the rules and not doing stupid $hit.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/detroit/2020/04/02/detroit-bus-drivers-dead-covid-19/5115450002/

Yeah I would not recommend taking the risk right now buying a used pin at someones house. I was in contact with one seller and he mentioned some health issues that would prevent him from helping to move the game. If I'm infected but don't know it I could negatively impact his health and everyone in that house. The same can be said if the seller is sick and doesn't really know it (or just thinks its a cold, doesn't care, etc). Plus a neighbor or someone could call the cops saying "hey these idiots are moving an arcade machine during all of this" or post a picture on Facebook of people moving a game with a negative message (anything is possible nowadays). Finally in Michigan I think the fine for violating the stay at home order is now $1,000 and possibly a misdemeanor charge as well.

My wife is also purposely taking unpaid time off of work as when she does get a cold she always has severe coughing (bronchitis) that lasts for a month so who knows how bad COVID 19 could affect her. I could then risking exposing her as well by buying or selling a used game at this time. I sold a game a week prior to the stay at home order here in MI and afterwards was disinfecting everything around the house. I wouldn't attempt that today with the number of cases and the stay at home order.

If I was going to buy a game right now I would only buy NIB, have the game delivered (take precautions with delivery driver moving game into garage, signing paperwork, etc), and then let it sit the in the garage for a few days. There's even a risk there but the same can be said with having anything delivered.

Anyone else notice more and more restaurants now closing indefinitely versus just being open for carry out? An owner of a local restaurant chain around my area said they will "save" more money staying closed then only being open for carryout. Then I heard this morning that my favorite local breakfast / lunch joint (family owned) is closing until this all blows over as well.

It seems like a lot of businesses that initially said they could keep people on while being closed have now started layoffs. Some of these businesses could afford to keep people on for a couple weeks while being closed but not for a month or more. No wonder this past weeks unemployment claim count jumped to 6 million +. Hope things start improving soon.

Damn ice cream isle at my local Kroger was bare bones again. I need a pint or two of Ben and Jerry's cookie dough (posting this while on an exercise bike lol).

20200405_075356_Burst01 (resized).jpg

Here in Michigan returning bottles is banned under the stay at home order and people have been buying up alcohol like crazy. Once this is all over I would expect to see some very long lines with carts packed full of beer and White Claw cans at the bottle return area lol.

I'll say this about a local company and union stepping up big time for their workers. Employees were offered to continue coming into work (with various social distancing steps taken and guidelines in place) or take unpaid time off during the stay at home order yet retain their job and benefits. A cousin of mine is taking the company and union up on the offer and staying at home for at least 2 weeks. He said his wife is working from home and that they can swing the bills on 1 income for a couple months so not a bad idea. When he gets sick he usually ends up with bronchitis and doesn't want to take the risk of going into work at this time. I wonder how many companies are offering something like this right now.

Just a side note thousands of UAW workers are now working to manufacture face masks, face shields, ventilators and other medical equipment. These workers are putting themselves at risk and are working hard to help save others. 12 hour shifts for 13 days straight?! I doubt 99% of salaried workers have pulled that off. Very thankful for these workers.

https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/ford/2020/04/06/ford-uaw-make-million-face-shields-nypd-nyfd/2951650001/

"UAW member Pat Tucker, 55, has worked 12-hour days for 13 days in a row making face shields. She starts her shift at 6 a.m. and talked with the Free Press just after getting home to Roseville on Sunday night,

"We started out doing 30,000 and then 40,000 and now we have been doing over 200,000 a day," she said. "We’re doing it all by hand.""

There seems to be some report that levels of hospitalizations in some area are starting to level off. We've seen a good number of reports of people not taking this virus seriously but I think a large majority of people are and that's helping to slow this thing down. Now people just need to keep it up and hope that state and federal government don't relax social distancing guidelines and stay at home orders too early.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2020/04/07/coronavirus-anthony-fauci-social-distancing-deborah-birx/2959335001/

"While Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, was quick to caution that the U.S. still has much work to do amid this public health emergency, he pointed to "good signs" from New York, citing data saying the numbers of hospitalizations, ICU admissions and requirements for intubations over the last three days have started to level off."

"Everybody who knows me know I'm very conservative about making projections, but those are the kind of good signs that you look for," Fauci said during Monday's coronavirus task force briefing at the White House. "You never even begin to think about claiming victory prematurely, but that's the first thing you see when you start to see the turnaround."

"I don't think anyone has ever mitigated the way I've seen people mitigate right now," Fauci said. "This has never happened in this country before. So, I am optimistic — always cautiously optimistic — that if we do what I've been talking about over the past few minutes, we can make that number go down.

Here in Michigan the stay at home order is being extended through the end of the month. Also, as of this Saturday the governor is now banning people from going to see friends and family even in small numbers. I'm not sure how they are going to enforce that one.

I saw a friend the other week who lives on his own, his folks have the virus, and another is hospitalized by it so he literally can see no one from his family in person. We sat outside 15ft a part at his house where I brought my own lawn chair. Not sure what the harm is with continuing to do that but I'm sure some people wouldn't be that cautious so instead any visiting is being banned.

Many insurers in the US are now covering Covid 19 tests and any treatment as a result of the virus. I'm not sure if the US stimulus plan recently passed is covering Covid 19 tests and treatment for those uninsured.

Not sure who's going to pay the $30 - $60 trillion for a universal health care system in the US and if people want to see their taxes go up 20-30% to pay for it.

Edit: Sorry, I know no political talk!

Inflation is going to suck

0_zjvIL7X7ZLqHdTXq (resized).jpeg

New shirts from Made in Detroit here in Michigan lol.

MS619StaySafeDetroit-shirt-frontandback_1024x1024 (resized).jpg

Once things do start to reopen does anyone else think it will be at limited capacity? For example maybe every place starts reopening but only at 25% capacity for the first month, then 50% the second month, then 75% three months later. This way any small uptick in new cases could be detected and mitigation would be eaiser if neccessary versus if the entire country is just reopened at 100% capacity.

If you want to read a good funny story check this out. Imagine being this guy lol.

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/france-fighter-jet-ejection-scli-intl/index.html

Not good. Is there a reason for such a big jump after several days of a decrease? It seems like like some states are starting to report lower hospitalization rates.

Right there is why I won't be buying a NIB pin any time soon. I've been tempted over the weeks but feel its more important to just keep saving and appreciate what ya got during this time as who knows what's going to happen with the economy. Things are going to start opening back up in some capacity come May but the effects on the economy are going to last for months to come. It may take 6 months, a year, or maybe even longer before we see consumer spending return to levels prior to the pandemic.

May 1st is now 2 weeks away. Will see what restrictions start lifting and guidelines are in place by then around the country.

heighwayexit2 (resized).jpg

This virus has unfortunately shown just how undisciplined some Americans have become with a "no one will tell me what to do" attitude. That type of mindset has been growing for years and just finally blew with this. Then if someone doesn't like one version of the facts based on science they just find another source that tells them what they want to hear. Yes its bonkers. It's frustrating for those trying to follow the guidelines while others don't give a crap and end up putting thousands of others at risk.

At the same time millions are now out of work, stressed out, can't pay their bills, depressed, etc. Its been a very difficult time for many.

I'm sorry to hear that Scary times.

Those are good questions. Some distributors have said that sales have been very good during the pandemic with many titles selling out. Part of this seems to be attributed to people wanting to have a new pinball machine in their home during this time. Personally I don't think that trend is going to last beyond a month or two as the sales from more financially stable buyers wear out.

There's now been over 25 million unemployment claims within the past 5 weeks, from what I read that's 1 in 6 American workers. Eventually the fallout from that will hit the pinball market and it likely already has considering the large uptick in for sale ads we've seen over the past month. For those workers that are not laid off only a small portion is going to be willing to drop $6k - $12k+ on a new pinball machine of all things. I bet most workers are just trying to pay their bills and or are in saving mode.

I'm with ya there on the hair. One of part of me is thinking of doing a buzz cut but another part says to go full Dude and show up to the first day back at work in the summer like this with a Hawaiian shirt on lol.

The-Big-Lebowski-Sunglasses21 (resized).png

Beaches reopened in California, this is from two days ago. Looks like social distancing guidelines are in effect...

5472 (resized).jpg

Well this is interesting regarding Texas starting to reopen.

"Texas reported its highest daily number of COVID-19 deaths, just a day before Governor Abbott’s stay-at-home order expired and the state began reopening. On Thursday, the Lone Star State death toll reached 50, bringing the total number of coronavirus fatalities in the state to 782. Positive cases increased by 1,033, the biggest one-day jump in three weeks."

https://abcnews.go.com/US/covid-19-cases-rise-state-starts-1st-phase/story?id=70454101

So many guidelines and it doesn't sound like there won't be a strict rule on enforcement of them. Every man for himself seems to be the approach?

https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/heres-whats-reopening-texas-phase-1-begins-restaurants-bars-church-nail-salon/287-4367ea93-e363-4178-99f3-6bd1a177ca9b

So one good thing about all of this has been that life doesn't seem as crazy and faced paced anymore. No more driving to multiple family parties per month, no more meeting up with mutliple friends per month for dinner or drinks, no more packed non stop weekends, no where near as much driving, etc.

Don't get me wrong I like seeing my friends and family but I forgot what it felt like to be this relaxed. Hell I read a story about how one family forgot what it felt like to sit down for dinner as a family in their own home as they were always on the go.

Anyone else feel similar?

Today sitting around drinking beer.

images (resized).jpeg

Wow. The amount of disrespect occurring during all of this and how some people refuse to be even be remotely inconvenienced is disturbing. To top it all off no one can seem to agree on the facts. There seems to be an article, a doctor, or a scientist that can contradict every viewpoint. If someone doesn't like how data on the virus is being presented they can just browse the internet for an article with "science" that they approve of. We seem to quickly be going to the "every man for himself" strategy with the way things are going.

These types of reports are sadly becoming a common occurence here in the US. Nowhere else in the world is this type of behavior occurring on such a wide and regular basis. Also, here in Michigan a security guard at a family dollar was shot and killed over asking a customer to wear a mask. Crazy.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/10/us/ice-cream-shop-closes-employee-harassment-trnd/index.html

Please tell me you don't think Bill Gates wanted the virus to happen (or created it...) just so he can develop a vaccine with secret nanobots code named "Windows 20" that he can push mind controlling monthly patch updates to lol.

Yup. Oh, but the flu and cancer kill more people! I'm so tired of hearing that argument, its insulting to those affected by this virus. These are 80,000 + unnecessary deaths that are in addition to other causes and they didn't need to happen.

"almost everyone did what they were told to do"

That's the difference maker. Americans don't like being told what to do! The acts of stupidity and disrespect are on full display here thanks to years of many Americans living with a growing "no one will tell me what to do" attitude. How many people were shot and killed in New Zealand for being asked to wear a mask, or employees at stores having customers purposely cough / wipe their nose on them, teens coughing on groceries, park rangers pushed into ponds because they asked others to social distance, or a retail store employee (Target, recent story) having their arm broken after a fight broke out over customers not wearing masks? None.

These acts only represent a small part of the US but the amount and frequency of them isn't occuring anywhere else in the world. The sad part is many of these deaths could have been avoided if there was a strict one month national lockdown in the US. Instead individual states are allowed to do whatever they want however strict or loose they want, and this thing is now lasting much longer. Why? Americans don't like to be inconvenienced in the slightest.

End rant lol.

Lol very true. There's nothing like going into one thinking "I'm starving and will eat 10 plates of food" and then leaving thinking "what in the hell was I thinking".

I'm with ya and hope cruises come back as well. It's possible a cruise line or two will go under during all of this but I bet cruising in general comes back next year. I wouldn't be surprised if all self serve dining options are gone when they do return, will probably need to ask for items at a buffet versus taking them yourself. Maybe all the precautions to come will reduce the spread of germs on future cruises making them safer then before the pandemic.

This article is a couple weeks old but pretty interesting. Americans are saving cash at the highest rate since 1981. Seems like a lot of people are in wait and see mode regarding non discretionary spending. I was just talking to my neighbor who is getting called back to work after being furloughed for 2 months. He wants to buy a new truck but is going to hold off as he's worried he will be laid off again in the fall as he doesn't see business returning anywhere close to pre pandemic levels for a while.

I can see businesses recalling only a portion of staff as consumer demand that was there before the pandemic may not exist for 6 months, a year, or longer.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/30/investing/savings-rate-federal-reserve/index.html

Annie Glenn, widow of astronaut and Senator John Glenn, has passed away at 100 due to complications from Covid 19. It's a sad ending but at the same time what an amazing life she had.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/05/19/annie-glenn-widow-astronaut-us-senator-john-glenn-dies-100/5219556002/

For those Pinsiders that don't live in the US how do you view the United States right now? I'm curious because citizens here are often brought up to believe that Americans are the best at everything, that "we are #1" in everything we do, etc. It wasn't until I went to college that I began questioning that mindset. We are number one alright, number one in the number of cases and Covid-19 deaths.

The US seems like a scary place right now with everything going on. Thank goodness for the NASA / SpaceX launch over the weekend as its one of few things that can unite people and that everyone can be proud of. I think the idea and concept of America is incredible (a mix of all cultures, races, religions, etc) but that it's people are failing each other in letting that concept thrive to its fullest.

Thank you for the post! I'm glad you have had so many good encounters with Americans over the years. I would love to visit Germany one day.

Cases and deaths are continuing to go down here in Michigan. I know our governor here received a lot of criticism for the extent of the lockdown but I do think it saved lives. There's other states that opened earlier and didn't have as many restrictions but cases and deaths are going up in many of them. Metro Detroit and the Grand Rapids area was hit very hard by Covid-19.

One of the worst things, besides the loss of life of course, that is coming out of this is the affect on some people's jobs / careers. My neighbor is a tool and die maker and was furloughed for two months. Well, he got called back to work only to be told he's laid off along with 20% of the company. A cousin of mine in a different industry also saw 20% of his company laid off. While many companies are bringing back workers many are not bringing back all of them.

Anyone else pack on some extra pounds during the pandemic? I've gained 5lbs and have been trying to keep it at that. Yeah...I just ate a 48oz container of Superman ice cream today so that probably doesn't help lol.

It's been sad seeing the latest trends here in the U.S over the past few weeks. Controlling the virus in the U.S has not been consistent as there was never a nationwide lockdown, and every state is handling controlling the virus differently. Imagine if the U.S did a nationwide lockdown from mid March to the end of April? The virus would be virtually eliminated by now but instead it's now going to drag out for months if not a year or longer.

How a good chunk of Americans view being asked to wear a mask and to social distance. No wonder we are seeing cases spiking in 20+ states. A one month national lockdown back in April looks pretty good right now.

Capture (resized).JPG

Lol. My goodness, we have to be a joke to the rest of the world with our overall response to this virus. I know some states have done better then others at controlling it but the lack of a nation wide lockdown and letting every state do whatever they want has bit this country in the ass.

Bit of a rant here.

It is sickening with the way the virus has been handled here in the U.S. This entire thing would have been nearly gone had a one month national lockdown been implemented in April but no. How could we inconvenience people for a whole month, after all no one tells an American what to do! Instead we are letting this thing drag out for months and as a result thousands more are dying. That's not freedom, it's stupidity. The federal government failed its people with its response to the virus and now states are left to respond however much, or little, they want. The problem with this approach is there's no plan, and no consistency to combat the virus. If a project manager ran a project like the federal government has handled the virus they would have been fired months ago. To make matters worse wearing a mask is now apparently a political statement versus to protect others and slow the spread. We're screwed.

The approach being taken here in the US is dangerous, beyond disappointing, and pretty much insane. Right now the approach from the federal government seems to be "let's just not talk about it and it will go away". Science doesn't work that way and meanwhile thousands more die every week. I bet we would have half, maybe even a quarter, of deaths from Covid-19 had a 1-2 month nationwide lockdown occured back in April - May but no...we had to rush to get back to going out to eat and to the bars! We are now paying the price while the rest of the world laughs at us.

For anyone else working remote due to Covid do you think you will be back in the office by the end of summer (or already back), or not until sometime next year? Been working remote here since early March.

That sounds like a good approach. Like you said the remote work will save a lot of companies money in the long run by not needing as many buildings. I think we are going to see a lot more companies switch to at least a hybrid approach of having employees come in some days, work remote the others. People will likely be more happy because of it.

I feel like I can get so much more done working from home and the 1.5 hours I would spend commuting per day can now be used for running errands, working around the house, etc. Driving 45 minutes to work, working 8 hours, then 45 minutes home, and then spending another hour cutting the grass or shoveling snow sucked. Things just seem less stressful working from home.

Wow, yeah I've heard of a few companies going permanent work from home, that's a big change. I'm with ya about seeing coworkers, every once in a while is good. With working full remote collaboration seems harder, there's little to no sense of a team, etc. Before all of this I was working 3 days remote, and 2 days in the office which I thought was a good balance. Once this is all over I would still want to go into the office at least once a week. There's something nice about getting out the house, seeing coworkers in person, and walking around the city at lunch.

Yeah just read that. What's amazing is that with 4 new cases New Zealand is already re-implementing several lockdown restrictions.

"Under the new restrictions businesses including restaurants, bars and non-essential shops will close. People will only be allowed to leave their homes to conduct essential activities such as picking up supplies from grocery stores. Gatherings over 10 people will also be restricted and schools will be closed for three days."

Meanwhile here in the U.S we've had 5 million + cases, are averaging 1,000 deaths a day, and people are getting in fights over wearing masks... A good chunk of American's could care less if 5% of citizens die of this virus, the remaining 95% can go out to eat and to the bar then! It's a sad state of affairs here to say the least.

It's frustrating that the US is still in such bad shape in regards to controlling the virus and that the numbers are getting worse going into the fall. Some people treat being told to wear a mask to the Revolutionary War with their freedom being taken away, ridiculous.

My mom is going in for a pretty major surgery next week and her doctor had one piece of advice for her to follow until then..."stay healthy". She was already in the hospital last month and the policy at the hospital is 1 visitor per day, not one at a time, 1 and that's it. Prior to September the hospital wasn't allowing any visitors. My dad and I have had to tell people not to come over and visit her to reduce the chance of her getting sick prior to the surgery, same goes for me who has a cold right now. It's interesting how this pandemic has changed how we would regularly do things.

Are you crazy?! No one is going to tell American's what to do! A lot of people here are acting like not wearing a mask is the equivalent to fighting for our freedom in the Revolutionary War. "I don't have to wear a mask, I don't have to listen to anyone"... Instead another 100k+ people may die of the virus in the US before a vaccine is widely distributed but hey at least people can go out to lunch and to the bars. It's a sad state of affairs.

Is the CDC being unreasonable expecting people not to travel, and not to gather after being vaccinated? I don't see a vast majority of American's following that guideline after being vaccinated.

"Unfortunately, vaccination is not a free pass to travel".

https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/health/cdc-vaccinated-covid-19-guidelines-wait/index.html

Sorry for your loss, that is terrible.

The whole "You won't tell me to wear a mask" and all the fights, and protests surrounding it has been the one of most insane things I've ever seen in this country. We must look like a joke to other countries when they see Americans throwing a tantrum over wearing a mask.

Found a vaccine appointment using https://www.findashot.org/. Closest I could find was about an hour away but I'll take it (early next week).

Here's an interesting story if anyone wonders "Does the vaccine actually work".

One of my friends and his wife had 4 family members recently over for a small gathering. A day later one of the family members learned they were exposed to Covid a couple days prior. Well, he got it along with everyone else at the gathering...except for the 1 person that was vaccinated a month or so back. My friend was given an anti body injection which he said helped a lot with his recovery, his sister who was at the party was hospitalized due to Covid but is finally out.

Took my grandmother, aunt, and myself to get our first shots today at a local CVS. We were in and out in about 30 minutes, very efficient and easy process. 1 down, 1 to go!

With the vaccine being around 95% effective there was bound to still be thousands of positive cases and sadly even some deaths with 100+ million people being vaccinated. Dying from Covid if you've had the vaccine sounds like a < .01% chance. One article I looked up said the chances of dying from Covid after being vaccinated are 0.00003%.

If you are vaccinated I say go and enjoy your life. I take this virus seriously but at some point we need to get back to normal or this will never end.

Below are CDC guidelines for gatherings if you are vaccinated. I understand the need to still wear a mask in public but if you are meeting other vaccinated people in a private setting a mask isn't needed.

Once fully vaccinated I'll still of course continue to wear a mask in public but I'm no longer going to fear this virus. Nothing is ever 100% guaranteed, hell there's probably a .01% we die of something else other then Covid each day.

323698_A_COVID-19_AfterVaccine (resized).jpg

That's a good point. I also think that if there was a "You no longer have to wear a mask in public if you have the vaccine" guideline that it would cause a majority of people (both vaccinated and not) to stop caring about mask wearing. A lot of people would probably just lie and say "Yup, I got the vaccine" when they didn't. Part of me thinks that's the real reason.

I can see how people can feel that way. Personally after I'm fully vaccinated its game on. I'll wear a mask of course in public but I'm no longer living in fear of this virus. If there's still a .0003 % chance I'll catch Covid and die of it so be it, the odds of sitting inside my house and dying of something else is probably greater.

Hope he finally realizes it's not a scam anymore. The sad part is him mocking the virus for months probably led to at least a handful of his fans catching the virus and potentially dying from it (as well as spreading it). What's crazy is that apparently people around him told him not to say anything about catching Covid. To not say anything just to keep up the lies that the virus is hoax is absolutely insane.

“I have had flu symptoms for the last 10 days. I thought I was dying,” the singer said. “I literally could hardly crawl out of bed the last few days, but I did, I crawled.”

So this was a bit surprising today at a local CVS. I went to get my second shot and no one was in line for a vaccine. When I went for the first shot 3 weeks ago appointments were booked solid and there was a line of wait of around 6 people even with an appointment.

The pharmacist and nurse on-site providing shots were both on their phones looking bored when I got there. Just before getting my shot I asked if it had been busy today which the nurse replied "No, a lot of people are not showing".

Is vaccine demand starting to slow?

Wow, yeah it does seem like demand is dropping. It seems like once we hit 50% vaccinated here in the US that demand started dropping. I feel great knowing that I'm now fully vaccinated (well 14 days from my second shot), I'm sure millions of other vaccinated people do as well. I've been enjoying life over the past year with precautions but it's always been a bit nerve racking not knowing if you will get Covid or pass it on to a family member / friend.

Even though a vast majority of people recover from Covid many still have long term side affects including loss of taste, and fatigue. I love to golf and cook (+ eat!) so I would like to keep enjoying those two things to the max lol.

I still have multiple people in my family refusing to get the vaccine. Here's some of the comments I've heard from family.

"I don't get the flu shot so why would I get this"

"Hospitals are lying about how many people died of Covid"

"I think I had Covid last year and was fine"

"I don't trust the vaccine, it hasn't been out long enough"

"I know someone who got Covid twice so what's the point of the vaccine"

...yup

From what I read the risk of catching Covid after getting the vaccine is < 1%, could be as high as < 5% due to the vaccine efficacy rate from the original Pfizer / Moderna trials. The chances of dying from Covid after being vaccinated are way less at something like 0.0002%. There's likely more harm living in fear / isolation at home from Covid after being fully vaccinated versus going back to enjoying life (which for now includes wearing a mask in public).

I've noticed a few people on Facebook changing their profile pictures to having this ribbon around their picture that says "I don't care if you've been vaccinated". These are the same people that then proceed to post daily (sometimes multiple times per day) pet and or baby updates lol...

That's hard to discuss when someone has that viewpoint. I can understand if someone doesn't want the vaccine because of religious, or specific medical reasons. I've heard some people say "I don't want the vaccine as it hasn't been out long enough". Ok, cool. However, once the conspiracy stuff comes up from family I can't take it. The "its a hoax", "we don't know what's in the vaccine", "masks don't work", "Not many people have died of Covid, "This is the biggest lie ever", etc BS is too much.

Here's a new one from a family member I heard over the weekend. Another family member of mine is in the hospital (non Covid related and recovering) but no one can visit due to pandemic restrictions. The family member who can't visit said "This is all just a ploy to kill the elderly in the hospital"...

One of the latest news reports from India regarding the Covid outbreak occurring there. Heart breaking, hope things get better there asap.