Got the news 2 days ago that my grandma has it and the choice is to die alone at home because the quarantine no one can get to her, or die alone at the hospital where its not even first come first serve. So long as there's someone younger then her or with a better chance they get the bed and we're still not allowed to visit her anyway. So she's locked up in her home not eating anything.

I'm stuck alone in my apartment, and don't really have anyone to talk to irl about this because my friends aren't taking it seriously. Some say its a hoax. I'm so angry, feels bad, I don't really know what to do but freak out here in my home. Part of me is even afraid to talk about it, like I can just ignore it. I've just been keeping to myself and it sucks so much.

赤い蝶 wrote:...

That really sucks, I’m so sorry. Especially that you have friends that aren’t taking it seriously. Hopefully some of us on here (me definitely!) can be here for you to talk to about it. I know the thing I’m the most thankful for right now is the fact that I’m not having to suffer through being alone at home, like I would have had to only a couple years ago. I end up in a bad place emotionally if I go too long on my own.

I’ve also been leaning pretty heavily on anything virtual I can do. If you aren’t already a part of any groups that are doing virtual activities, there are artists and crafters out there hosting virtual live workshops. If you can find something you’re interested in, that’s also a great way to connect with another person for a little while.

Being alone doesn't bother me, not being able to help is what sucks.

I hadn't heard of those, I'll see what I can find. I've just been logging into games and doing nothing really. Thank you.

Oh gosh that sounds very awful. I'm so sorry to hear about your grandma, and the inconsiderate friends, Akaichou.

California went on lockdown for what seems like forever now, about a week, though my mom and I watch the news pretty often so we saw it coming, hoping it wouldn't get so bad. My dad, brother and sister are also on lockdown and doing college classes online, though my sister is on the opposite side of the country.

I already live with my mom because of stuff, so I've been doing the shopping for both of us for a few weeks now, hoping my mom won't catch COVID-19 through me or anyone else. She has a couple serious underlying health issues and is over 60. I've been using hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, and washing my hands.
A week ago (the day before the lockdown went official) I went to five stores trying to find toilet paper, and a gas station ended up yielding two rolls. None of those stores had baking supplies either.
Yesterday I got up super early and was able to grab one of the last toilet paper packs at the fifth store I tried. It should last us a few weeks at least. I was still super out of it yesterday morning though, so I didn't even think to look for baking supplies. I just grabbed onto that package of toilet paper like it was a life raft and checked out so I could head home and crash. It felt like a big accomplishment at the time. x'D

I really wish people would stop hoarding, it's so very inconsiderate and there's no need to hoard anything, no matter if we're in a pandemic or not. The news keeps reiterating that the supply chain isn't impacted, and that everything we need will keep on being delivered to stores. Part of me is very happy when I hear that stores aren't accepting returns from hoarders... I think I need a break from the news though, it's gotten me really shaken up lately and being cooped up doesn't help. I hope the weather warms up more so we can spend time in our backyard more often.

People are also being racist and harmful towards Asians because of the whole COVID-19 situation, and that's just awful too. It's not right to blame the whole for a tiny percent's wrongdoing.

Happy Bits
- If anyone misses reading, there are also apps for reading books online. I love this one called Libby, I connected my library cards over a year ago and I don't have to worry about my next read anymore. xD And if it's not for you in the long run, that's fine. This situation won't last forever. :)
- Things like Skype, video chat or voice chat is also available to anyone who wants to socialize with others.
- I saw a news special the other day about a woman who started using her florist inventory to send flowers for free to people who wanted them through her website. She left them on porches and stuff so she didn't have to meet them face-to-face.
- Disney released Frozen 2 onto their streaming service early, and other companies are doing similar promotions.
- There's a program in Long Island (called Made you Smile) where kids can upload drawings, letters and things to a woman's email and they get printed out and sent to the elderly who need something happy in their days, especially now. Made You Smile Article

As a Respiratory Therapist my heart goes out to everyone here who has family/friends/themselves sick with Covid 19.
Hand hygiene is super important right now, I really recommend watching a video online about how to properly wash your hands, most people aren't as good at it as they think.
Stay indoors As much as possible, I know we all need supplies, and talk to friends over the phone or online, don’t meet up. Call your families and let them know you're ok.
Someday things will return to normal.

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone for the well wishes, and the people who came and found me in game to ask if I was okay. It means a lot.

I am sorry to hear about your grandma. I am lucky that everyone in my family (except myself) lives in rural, sparsely populated areas where the virus is unlikely to spread - the cities are a dangerous place to be for elderly right now.

I work as a cleaning lady so I can't work from home, and Sweden isn't so badly hit that we need quarantine to the same extent as China, southern Europe or USA, so I still go to work and meet my customers. Among the elderly, those who can are leaving the city to live on the countryside since they would essentially be locked into their apartments with fear if they stayed here. We go through gloves at a more rapid pace than before, we don't shake hands with customers, and we're more alert when someone shows signs of infection, but other than that we carry on mostly as normal. For work related reasons we already were careful with hand hygiene and had a large supply of gloves and disinfectants.

Last week I had to spend a few days at home with the sniffles, I don't think I've called in sick for such mild symptoms since I tried to skip class in middle school but the recommendations are quite firm on the side of caution. Once the worst has blown over it would be interesting if I could test for antibodies and see if that really was a very mild case of corona or the garden variety cold.

The scariest for me is by far the risk that I'll infect any of my customers. I know it's unlikely as long as I'm cautious, but I spend every morning cleaning a grocery store (during open hours because hiring me for an earlier shift would cost more) before I go to the home-cleaning customers - and these days I react to every single cough in that grocery store as if it was a gunshot. There are a lot of both little kids and elderly with rollers who will just cough straight out so I try to be aware of where they are and which way they were turned while coughing.

On that note, please don't buy fresh produce unless you have to, and clean everything VERY thoroughly. I have seen so many customers coughing at the apples (not just right now, it's more of a year-round feature), I don't think I'll ever feel comfortable buying them again. Frozen or canned goods for me thank you.

I am incredibly thankful no one I know is infected. And my heart goes out to everyone who is or has a loved one who is infected. I'm deeply sorry and hope everyone here is ok and their loved ones are ok.

I'm working 10s or 12s at my "essential" job. Double overtime plus a $50 bonus each week. If I catch the virus I get my quarantine 14 days paid. I sold $40k in paint alone last Monday.

I live with my parents, and my mom is currently bedridden- she had a reaction to an arthritis shot in her knee and lost the use of her leg temporarily. She's been in so much pain from it. She's unable to even sit up on her own.
So I'm doing everything domestic on top of working. I wake up at 6 or 6.30 am every day and go to bed after midnight. I sling gallons/5gals of paint every day, run up and down ladders, and have to explain 10,000 times a day that we don't have any N95 masks and are getting none in stock. Then I come home and make dinner, do the dishes, laundry, play with the puppy so he doesn't destroy the house, pay the bills, feed the 3 elderly cats (one needs an injection twice a day), as well as check on my mom every 15 minutes in case she needs to eat or take a pill or to to the bathroom.

I haven't seen my boyfriend in a week, and when I saw him it was for 5 minutes and we couldn't touch. I'm used to sleeping next to him every weekend and seeing him every other day. He's not infected luckily.

I am exhausted, all I want to do is sleep and play animal crossing/the event here. I'm luckily if I get 10 minutes in while I'm waiting for some laundry to finish or something to finish cooking. My last day off I think I napped for 60% of it. Between my mom calling me, and letting the dog out. The other 40% was chores and trying to remember to do everything. I've started forgetting things I'm halfway in the middle of doing.

My father keeps hospital networks running so he's as busy as I am. We're discussing taking my mom to our farm that is "an hour to the closest grocery store" level isolated. Once her leg is better she would be safe up there and not have to worry about infection making her heart condition worse. Her open heart surgery is scheduled for may 5th, and I've gotta be able to take care of her. I'm so tired already. I broke down and cried for an hour yesterday because the cat wouldn't eat dinner. I am losing my mind.

This has been interesting. We're still allowed to go out for food, but I'm always worried that if I try to go across town I am going to be harassed for going too far. I want to go to the asian store to get a few things I'm out of that might be dangerous though.

Arauna wrote:...

I think it depends where you’re at, but at least in the US most states are at most just having cops “encourage” which is to say they might pull you over and ask where you’re headed and if you tell them it’s for groceries they’ll ask you to get home soon and let you go on your way.

The only exceptions to that is that I’ve read that Hawaii is actually issuing citations for not staying home, and a couple of smaller areas (like one community in new york) are on a proper full lockdown because the outbreak is really bad in that particular area.

Do you know if the particular asian store you want to go to has delivery though? A lot of places that wouldn’t normally have been enacting delivery services to help get things to people without them having to leave their homes.

LadyCopperFoxx wrote:...

I see you, and I wish I could tag in for you. I wish all the health and best for your mom. Hang in there hun (which hurts to write because the words feels empty, and I know it's so much easier said than done...).

Celestine Amine wrote:...

Thank you. They aren't empty, I know you mean it. :)

I am grateful for a great many things including having someone to social isolate with. I'm grateful my family and friends check in often not just to know my well being but express their own. I'm grateful we can put food on the table and that the store is decently stocked with what we need. I admit I miss the days when we could just pop into the car and drive over to the store and just wander the isles for fun. Go over our favourite shops like the hardware store and see what came in during the week. Come up with new project ideas and go and see what's on sale. This really is a lesson in patience. Taking each day in stride and knowing tomorrow will be one day closer to 'normal'. Worried about getting 'that' call everyone is terrified to receive. Hoping all of us get through this. All I can do is prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

I work at a paediatric hospital which has 0 cases, so that’s some good new! Beyond that, I’m floating to an adult ICU at a nearby hospital to get trained there and hopefully help with the influx of patients from the anticipated second surge in Ontario. But so far I think we have handled it very well and it doesn’t seem all too bad, here at least.