With the relaxing of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions, visitors crowd the boardwalk on Memorial Day weekend in Ocean City, Maryland. REUTERS Photo by Kevin Lamarque pic.twitter.com/jTLCizWwr4
— Jim Bourg (@jimbourg) May 23, 2020
Happy belated Memorial Day. Memorial Day in the US, for anyone who doesn’t know, is a nationally observed holiday to honor those who have died while serving this country in the military. Many of those we honor died on the battlefield defending the rights and beliefs laid out in the Constitution of the United States of America. To honor those brave men and women this year, in the midst of a pandemic that has claimed the lives of almost 100,000 Americans, many flooded beaches, water parks and regular parks, without masks, not adhering to social distancing, and endangering everyone around them. The photos of the mass gatherings were met with disgust by many of us, including those currently risking their lives while serving their country: the frontline workers.
As states across the country begin reopening during the Memorial Day weekend, many are flocking to beaches, restaurants and bars in large numbers, despite pandemic warnings.
Beaches have seen an influx of visitors, as many people pack the beaches in Texas, Florida and more coasts while observing the summer holiday.
“I have never seen this many umbrellas,” Tiffany Mathers, 44, told the Tampa Bay Times after stopping by the Madeira Beach, which is located across the street from her home. “This is not social-distancing at all. There are way too many people.”
Mathers added that she felt awkward asking people to move further away from her to maintain social distancing when setting up towels and chairs nearby.
“I don’t want to be ugly to visitors,” she said, as many of the people she met on the beach appeared to have come in from out of town. “But I feel like we’ve been educated for too long about social-distancing for it to be this way.”
Similarly, a video shared by Scott Pasmore, an anchor for CNN affiliate KTVK, showed hundreds of people packing bars and pools while partying together at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri.
“No covid concerns at the lake of the ozarks #loto,” Pasmore captioned the video, which was filmed at Backwater Jacks Bar & Grill in Osage Beach on Saturday.
The bar announced the launch of their summer party called “Zero Ducks Given Pool Party” on Facebook, sharing that they had “worked with and taken the advice of government officials and management teams and will be following social distancing guidelines.”
Dr. Stephen M. Hahn issued the warning on Twitter, writing that the deadly virus “is not yet contained.”
“With the country starting to open up this holiday weekend, I again remind everyone that the coronavirus is not yet contained,” he shared. “It is up to every individual to protect themselves and their community. Social distancing, hand washing and wearing masks protect us all.”
I know how hard it is to figure all of this out. It would be terribly frustrating to head to a beach only to have to leave because there was no safe spot six feet from others in every direction. Nobody said reopening would be easy. But it will take cooperation and sacrifice from all of us. But, as witnessed in this article and by examples like this public ousting of a women in a Target who refused to wear a mask, people are starting to come together against those who think their indignation is enough to protect them against a virus that has killed close to 350,000 people worldwide.
Before my husband’s university locked down, his boss told the department to start preparing for COVID to get personal, meaning that eventually, we would all likely have a name we can put to a COVID death. Last week I was accused of Isolation Shaming because I didn’t think Amanda Stanton was setting the right example by bragging about driving from So Cal to Arizona for a haircut. Tomorrow, they will take a very dear friend off her ventilator to see if there is any hope of her breathing on her own, something she is not currently responding to. There is a Do Not Resuscitate order in place. She is unconscious and alone, unaware of the devoted hospital staff that surrounds her. So yeah, I might Isolation Shame on occasion. But I will also do my part of sticking to pandemic precautions so that I don’t ever again have to pray to a God I stopped believing in to save a good person from such a lonely death.
People pack Indiana beach on Memorial Day weekend https://t.co/OVSmlpGysb pic.twitter.com/yh3pNEaqzU
— WDRB News (@WDRBNews) May 25, 2020
No covid concerns at the lake of the ozarks😳 #loto pic.twitter.com/Yrb4UNM64u
— Scott Pasmore (@scottpasmoretv) May 24, 2020
Photo credit: Twitter and Getty Images
@Hecate I’m so sorry about your friend. That’s devastating.
As for the social distancing – its hard, because there isn’t a lot of guidance besides “maintain social distancing.” The boardwalk in OCMD was super crowded this weekend, and that’s super annoying bc those people aren’t local. I have so many friends whose parents have condos at the beach etc and they ALL went there this weekend and are justifying it because “we wore masks” or “the restaurants are all closed anyway so we just got French fries.” It’s hard bc you don’t always know if some place is going to be crowded – if you want to go to a park to hike or something, and it ends up being really crowded, are all those people to blame? They wanted to hike just like you did. So the lines get blurred.
Our governor told people they should still home as much as possible but I don’t think anyone is listening to that.
My Governor issued a “safer at home” order and then caved in to pressure and opened all of the campgrounds ahead of Memorial weekend.
Here in Colorado the cases have been overwhelmingly on the Front range while Western Colorado, after a bump in the beginning due to ski traffic, has been largely Covid free. So what happened this weekend? DROVES of people flooded out of Denver, to all of the places that have largely been protected by the lock down orders.
Honestly, yes. All those people are to blame and should stay home. The country isn’t opening up because it’s safe. The country is opening up because Republican are pretending that numbers going down slightly in some areas is a sign that the virus is “going away.” It’s just as unsafe now as it was in March and April. Anyone who can stay home should be staying home.
Oh I agree. but as soon as our governor said “we can start phase one of reopening” people heard “WE CAN DO WHAT WE WANT” even though he tried to say “stay home as much as possible” etc. I feel like this is just going to keep getting worse and I’m frustrated bc my governor was handling this well, and now it seems he just gave into pressure.
Apparently a the photographer used a trick to make the boardwalk photo appear more crowded than it actually was. There were a lot of people in OC (I drove through to pick up dinner on Sat afternoon) but it wasn’t quite as jam packed at the photo shows. Still, way too many people there though.
Eh, I have heard that defense, and I’ve heard that it was an old photo (it wasn’t) – there were a few pictures from different angles, including some videos. It was too crowded.
My family and I were camping in Georgia over the weekend and took a drive to Tybee Island. I couldn’t believe how many people were there. Yes, so were we, I get it. But I was still surprised it was as crowded as it was. We found a quieter area and enjoyed some time in the sun and waves where people were spread out really far, but there was little to no mask wearing that I saw. My kids got to burn some energy and have fun, but I was so uncomfortable the whole time.
“I couldn’t believe how many people were there. Yes, so were we, I get it. But I was still surprised it was as crowded as it was.”
That’s like complaining about being stuck in a traffic jam when really you ARE the traffic jam. 😀
I know it! But with so many people who are still uncomfortable with traveling or going anywhere other than the store, I guess somehow I thought I would see smaller crowds? More caution? And to be clear, I wasn’t complaining. Just sharing what I observed. 🙂
I know. It’s just funny. All good. 🙂
The big push now is for people to claim that they won’t be held back by “fear” and that those staying home are only doing so because they are so afraid. Ted Nugent had quite the little tantrum as one example, claiming that he will not be beholden to the fear of others.
If you’re going to refuse to follow simple guidelines, at least own up to your feelings instead of pretending to know what motivates others. If you need to justify your actions by being belligerant and calling everyone else a coward, maybe you need to look a little closer at your own actions and motivations.
I have seen that as well, especially on social media posts (I have a large family of rednecks) and not only are they pushing the “your fear” angle, I am seeing people in public pointedly refusing to remain six feet away. In line the other day a woman made it a point to stand right behind my husband…I was standing several feet away to the side so that only one of us was in line and every time he took a step or tried to take a precaution to make distance, she smirked and stepped back into him. I finally said to her “ma’am, I know you find it funny, but he’s the Coroner and he’s just trying to maintain space for your protection.’ He isn’t but the look on her face was priceless.
Yes! hahaha love it
Brilliant!
High fives to you Melissa! I absolutely LOVE your response. I hope she went home and took 6 showers in fear for her life.
Melissa I’m a healthcare professional but I don’t mind what you said at all.
I wish people realized I’m masking so I don’t unintentionally infect THEM, in case I’m asymptomatically carrying COVID. Which many of these fearless wonders could also be doing. Ya can’t see it folks, but it’s still there!
People can mock or bully me all they want for wearing a mask and gloves in public places. I decided weeks ago that my response (if directly approached) would be, “I choose to do this to protect you and others. That’s my choice – to be responsible.”
There is a known, invisible threat among us, and if people don’t have the common sense to act responsibly, then that’s their issue. I am floored, though, by how many people seem to be oblivious to physical distance, avoiding risky situations, etc.
Add to that how spoiled we are, as a society. We have so much compared to other societies and generations, yet cannot give up optional activities “fun time” for just a few weeks out of our lives.
@Christin what you are articulating is what I am concerned about as well. How far, exactly, will this antagonism for people wearing masks/ face shields/ gloves – actually go? I’m trying to prepare myself to be more and more of an outlier with regard to my behavior. Even my husband is pushing back a little and trying to get me to let my 4 year old have one of her friends over for a playdate on her birthday. I’m not afraid of being unpopular. But I don’t know where this road is leading, and I’m uneasy but staying the course.
@Heylee – I have always tried to avoid peer pressure that goes against common sense. During my teens, my mother often asked, “If everyone else is running off a cliff, would you follow them?”
The way I figure it, I have to live with my decisions and cannot control others’ actions. If I fail to social distance and spread the illness, that is something I cannot reverse once it happens. I’d rather err on the side of caution. The virus is still out there and little has changed since March. Still no vaccine or effective treatment for severe cases.
We have a company picnic coming up this summer, and I have concerns about how hard it is for children to effectively socially distance when playing. I would have serious reservations about holding a party during this time as well. We want all of our family to have another year of life, right?
There is a lot of this going around, that trying to stop the spread of covid any way we can is due to fear. When did we put such a negative spin on human decency? People like this will not change their mindset until covid becomes personal to them as well. Just like the spring breakers that flocked to Florida and stupidly went against earlier guidelines.
We have a friend that got sick early on and family because of their profession and living in NYC. Thankfully, none of them needed a ventilator, but their symptoms were serious. I have a healthy respect for covid, I know secondhand what it can do, and I will wear a mask and stay 6 feet away from people.
And why is fear of a deadly virus a bad thing? It’s like making fun of someone for obeying traffic laws and not driving recklessly. Like, grow up assholes.
We will continue what we’re doing and hope numbers don’t rise. If cases escalate because of Memorial Day, the holiday will take on a new meaning.
I just came here to say that I am so sorry about your friend. I don’t have any words beyond that.
And who on earth would get upset about “isolation shaming”? You know, if someone is out there ignoring public health warnings and putting other people at very real risk of illness and death… I don’t think I see the issue with calling them out for it.
12 days ago Wisconsin had those idiots protesting the government to “open up”. I saw it on TV & went to Hopkins STAT website to see the numbers in Wisconsin that day & I took a screenshot. I checked back today & saw that the number of cases has jumped 5,869 in that time. This is no joke. I understand people want to go out & want to go back to work. However the more this overcrowding & behavior goes on we will never get to a safe point.
Be safe & take care everyone. Wear a mask.
People just don’t care. I don’t understand how EVERYONE isn’t fearing this virus. I have people in my neighborhood who are healthcare workers and aren’t social distancing at all. They’ve had a few parties already ! I just can’t believe the stupidity of people. I feel like I’m the only one in my neighborhood taking this seriously. This will go down as the DUMBEST time in human history. Motherf*ckers had ONE job to do ! Is a party more important than lives?
@Me …in solidarity!
I’m the ME in my neighbourhood and family. My head might explode.
I live on the Eastern Shore of MD, about a half hour from OC, and unfortunately the majority of these people are not local. I’ve seen comments on OC’s Facebook page from out-of-towners/staters about how they need to “escape” and “get away from it all” like people don’t live around here and aren’t dealing with this pandemic in their own community. Yes, OC is mostly a resort town, but there is an actual year-round population in and around the area. It’s just more of the “I only care about myself and to hell with how my selfish actions effect anybody else.” This part of the state is going to wind up back in lockdown if this dumb shit continues.
Also in MD and afraid we are never going to get out of lockdown because of these idiots. I have asthma and don’t want to die. I also don’t want to risk infecting anyone else. How this turned into the politicized craziness of (you are just chicken I don’t have to respect the law stating others stand 6 feet away) I just don’t know. As others have said Trump has a lot of blood on his tiny little hands. I get it now. The Trump crew likes people telling them it is ok to be selfish a$$holes. We have a lot of selfish countrymen. I am so sorry about your friend Hecate.
I am so sorry about your friend. I will hope for the best.
My mom died from the virus May 6, alone in the hospital. She was in assisted living on lockdown and one of the employees tested positive on April 23.
We didn’t even visit her on her birthday, March 21, because we wanted to avoid her being exposed.
Some people, I suppose we are all guilty of it at some point, live so myopically that’s until they get the virus, they can continue to spew Fox News talking points about the liberal hoax.
I am so sorry for your loss, Ariel.
Dear Ariel, I am so sorry for the loss of your precious Mom. It is beyond me how people seem to have so little empathy for others in that “their freedom” is far more important than other people’s right to live safely. We are all supposed to be protecting each other from a contagion that spreads like wild fire and KILLS people randomly and viciously, that was the whole idea of the lockdown in the first place. I saw a heartbreaking documentary on the impact of C19 on a doctor and her family in Northern Italy. What some people don’t seem to understand is it is all a hoax until it comes for you and your loved ones! With this sort of behaviour it can, and it will! Not to become political about a social threat/menace, but this behaviour is actively encouraged by the Despicable Don, and history will not judge him and his minions well for his murderous/cruel intentions. It all just breaks my heart, and Hecate, I am so sorry about your dear friend. IT IS PERSONAL.
oh, god, I am so sorry to hear about your mom. the whole thing sucks, but I think one of the worst things about this is so many folks dying alone and scared. just gut-wrenching. my thoughts are with you and your family.
you, too, Hecate. so sorry about your friend.
I’m so sorry Ariel and I’m sorry Hecate. You are right on, people just choose not to care if they don’t know someone who has gotten it. Even my in-laws who are in their 70’s with health issues have been pushing to see our kids in person which I get but also like is it worth dying alone in a hospital? Is it worth not being able to even have a proper funeral? I virtually attended a zoom funeral for a former work colleague in march and it was awful.
Sorry to all of you, for all the lives lost, and for all the people who are desperately trying to figure out if they’re short of breath because of anxiety or infection (or both), and weighing the decision to go to hospital or not. And front-line workers (the people with true courage) who can’t stop because of commitment or financial need, who often don’t have adequate protection even if they want it, gambling every day whether this is the day they’ll accidentally bring the virus home to their loved ones.
Memorial Day definitely has a more nuanced meaning to me now.
I’m so sorry Ariel.
My friend lost her stepfather to it, he was in a care center as well.
I know 2 people who have lost loved ones, and at least 15 other people who have had it, probably a lot more if we ever get antibody testing here.
Sincere sympathy to you and your family, Ariel.
I’m so sorry for your loss. We are losing people, not just numbers. Part of this tragedy is the inability to give hugs to those that need them so much. My friend lost her husband to COVID 19. He was only 59 and they loved karaoke. Every time I see her on Zoom, I want to reach through the screen and just hold her. I hope you can hold onto good memories with your mom as you go through this difficult time.
So sorry about your Mam xx
i have to admit i have mixed feelings about the mask wearing. i have tried so hard to wear them, but after having one on for 5 minutes, i have a pretty severe panic attack. i’ve tried different styles and scarves, and nothing makes a difference. i just feel like i can’t breathe (i never could stand to have my mouth and nose covered at the same time). i was already in therapy, so this is something that we’re working on, but in the meantime, i have things i need to do. i’m lucky enough to be able to work from home, and i don’t leave the house anymore than i need to, but i have no one to run my errands for me, and where i live, there aren’t that many delivery services to rely on. i go out as infrequently as i can, but i still need to go out sometimes. luckily, i’m in a place where masks are still optional. i don’t know what i’ll do when/if they become mandatory. just to be clear, i do believe that if you are in a place or are going somewhere where masks are mandatory, you need to wear them. public safety is a thing.
maybe try a face mask? not the ski mask kind but the face shield, like a welder but clear plastic?
news this AM says they’re likely MORE effective to protect both the public and the wearer than a mask. and it’s more like just having to wear a hat; the shield doesn’t touch your face at all.
Thank you for this suggestion…my husband has COPD and the first time he tried wearing a mask to the grocery store, he could not breathe and started having a full-blown panic attack. So now when he goes, the first thing he does is approach the manager on duty and ask if it’s okay if he shops without a mask, and they’ve always said yes and thanked him for checking (our state made an exception in the executive order for people who cannot medically tolerate a mask).
But what I’M terrified about is the violent vigilantism that we’re seeing on the news…the manager may have said yes, but the nutter over in Aisle Five may not agree. I’ll bring up the clear plastic shield mask to him, hopefully that will work. In the meantime, I just hope that people think before publicly shaming or threatening someone in at the grocery…he’d give his right arm to NOT have COPD and to be able to wear a mask, trust me.
I have two chronic illnesses, and am blessed to be able to work from home, so I’ve only left the house four times since March 15th…and one of those was due to hospitalization for one of those illnesses. So we’re staying home for everything but essential trips. The way these people have twisted and justified in their heads (and to the national news) why going to a crowded beach or boardwalk or bar is is a good idea or even worth it because of cabin fever is incomprehensible to me.
Hecate, so sorry about your friend. Covid is no joke. My friend (middle age, no risk factors) has it and after six weeks she is still weak and prone to fevers and chills coming out of the blue. It is not like the flu, as people try to insist.
I read that many, like 50%, of the “open up now” posts on Twitter are by bots. Russia really knows how to divide us, don’t they? We are such suckers.
When I saw these pictures Sunday and yesterday, particularly the one of the Lake of the Ozarks, I became sick to my stomach and almost vomited.
I am afraid every time the phone rings or I get a text message. I dread looking at my email box or my Instagram or Facebook page or the local newspaper. Friends and relatives work in major Boston hospitals and I hear their anguish. While my immediate family has been safe, so far, that has not been the case for so many near to me. My neighbor was one of the first diagnosed on the East Coast (Biogen conference attendee). A man a floor below us in my office building was one of the first deaths in Massachusetts. At least 4 coworkers have lost family members. At least a dozen friends have lost family members, ranging in age from 26 to 95. Three of my high school classmates have passed, that I know of. A college classmate called me to verify whether a name she recognized in the obituaries was a classmate, as I looked at it, I was able to assure her that person wasn’t but the woman listed directly above her was in the class below us and the man listed a few below was our history professor. I know at least 8 people currently fighting the virus.
There is just so much loss, so much grief. I can only believe those people don’t know, that they are in places where the virus has not reached. But their ignorance and arrogance will be their undoing. Death is coming, slowly but surely, and they just invited Death to come in and party.
I just can’t.
Where I live most people do not know anyone who has even had Covid19 much less has died from it. This is BECAUSE our state locked down and locked down early. Because of a lack of connection to the victims it is not personal to most. We live in a west coast state in a county larger (land mass wise) than some states in the NE USA. We have had less than 10 fatalities. Our hospitals were never overwhelmed.
When I go into our little town which is a satellite community to the state capital I am often the only one wearing a mask. People stare at me. I happen to know someone who is a nurse and she legit had it. Very ill for 2-3 weeks. It’s like she has amnesia now. Last weekend she helped throw a large BBQ party for about 25. Her kids and grandkids and best friend were all there.
Am I correct that you are in Oregon?
Beach in Indiana?
I’m not going anywhere. I do grocery pickup, I do have to go to my parent’s house to help take care of them (elderly and have health problems). But that’s it. My husband is immune compromised and I can’t take a chance. These people are crazy, and there will most likely be new spikes starting a few weeks from now. This behavior will most definitely mean we can’t open school in mid-August.
Yes, there are beaches on Lake Michigan in northern Indiana. Actually, there is a lovely state park called Indiana Dunes with stretch of sandy beaches that are crowded every summer with people from neighboring Illinois (an hour drive from Chicago), Indiana and Michigan.
Same here. I’m at the NJ shore, and thankfully overcast weather kept the hoards off the beaches this weekend, but I’m not going to feel comfortable going anywhere or doing anything for a long time. Going to stay home as much as possible, work from home as long as I can, etc.
@Hecate So sorry about your friend. One of the cruel things about covid-19 is being stuck or even dying in a hospital alone, not only for the sick person but also for the family who does not have a chance to say goodbye. 🙁
Hecate, I’m so sorry about your friend. I pray she’s able to breathe on her own.
My dad had COVID. We had no idea. Just knew he was really sick and his doctor wouldn’t bring him in to the office. I thought we might lose him. He had 2 negative tests, only to find out weeks later he was positive (antibody test). All these people congregating together are crazy. Georgia’s infection rate hasn’t spiked, but it hasn’t decreased either. People are still getting sick and that’s because we reopened & folks are acting like COVID has been eradicated. It’s sheer insanity. Those pool and beach scenes were disturbing and a slap in the face to all the sacrifices everyone has made to fight this disease.
In 1942, eight Jewish people hid from the Nazis in a secret annex that was only 450 square feet in size. They couldn’t move around the space a great deal out of fear they’d attract attention to their presence. They had a radio they could only listen to at night and some books to entertain themselves with. They relied on a group of friends to sneak in food and supplies, which not only they had to carefully ration among themselves but also became harder to procure at time went on. The helpers, if caught providing aid would be arrested and possible sentenced to death. Two years later, the group in hiding was discovered by the Nazis. Children separated from their parents, the group was disbursed to different concentration camps. Only one of them survived the ordeal.
We (Americans) were asked to stay inside our comfy homes for the most part. We have books, television, mobile devices that stream entertainment and the internet. We can go to the grocery store to buy food and even order delivery or take-out. We’re allowed to go outside for walks. All that’s asked of us is that we stay six feet away from each other and wear masks to help slow the spread of a deadly virus.
I feel like most are so lacking of character that even the slightest bit of sacrifice is unfathomable to them. I’m so embarrassed these are my fellow countrymen right now.
So well put. I‘m nor from the US but I agree with you, people have no sense of history and of how good they have it. A small sacrifice is needed from all of us, we all have to rally and work together to get over this complicated time.
Not all of us have been relaxing, streaming entertainment and ordering take-out. We’ve been up late nights worrying about how we’re going to pay our bills or feed our children if our small business tanks. We’ve been busy applying for government loans that were gobbled up by franchises. We’ve been calling our customers, staying in their good graces so we can have a chance to re-open our business while Costco and Lowe’s are jammed full of people. We’ve been battling depression as we watch all our hard work and sacrifice go down the drain. We are terrified of losing it all. (Our PPP loan application was for 11k. 11k! That’s all we were qualified to borrow. And we couldn’t even get that!). My family and I didn’t get a single penny in assistance, no stimulus, no government loans, no unemployment, nothing. I don’t agree with what is going on in the pictures above, but do the livelihoods of millions not matter to you? The whole point of staying home was to flatten the curve and not overwhelm the health system, not whole up in our homes indefinitely. How much longer are we supposed to stay home while we watch our lives crumble around us?
Yes, Susan, the livelihoods of millions matter very much. Which is EXACTLY WHY people disregarding life saving policies is so infuriating and irresponsible. If we had leadership in the white house who acted sooner, we could have taken precautions. If we had citizens who cared more about containing this virus by staying the hell inside instead of shaking fire arms because ‘MURICA we could have gotten a handle on this instead of prolonging it. That’s the problem – there is no cohesive way of addressing this because we have no top down leadership – so everyone is shrugging, caving, trying and learning as they go. That’s not how you contain a pandemic.
The argument “don’t you care about livelihoods” is a false equivalency. My family is struggling too, and if everyone would just be DECENT ADULTS instead of petulant children this could have been contained with far less financial casualaties. Please (and I mean this as a general, not personal plea) channel rage to those who deserve it: be angry the PPP program was perverted by preference for giant corporations and provisions for the most at need were cut just to get something out the door. Be angry we have leadership who won’t lead by example and downplay public Heth professionals. Be angry at people who consider the elderly or compromised expendible even when many of those people were the ones who fought in wars and were drafted for their right to shake fire arms at the sky calling the rest of us sheeple. We are where we are right now and being angry is natural. Let’s be angry at the right people, the people who facilitated this shitshow in the first place.
My mom saw a co-worker of hers at the grocery store yesterday not wearing a mask. My mom said “Where is your mask??” The co-worker responded ” Oh I don’t wear a mask. I’m building up my immunities”. My mom replied “Uh-huh, good luck with that. ” and walked away.
This woman is in her sixties.and works at a rehab facility that cares for post surgery patients and patients who recently suffered strokes!
I mean, these type of people (MAGAS) are too stupid to understand that wearing a mask is to protect others! This dumb ass woman thinks she can build up immunity to this virus! They don’t understand basic science and health practices. It’s appalling.
I’m so sorry about your friend, I hope that she improves. It hasn’t happened to me (yet?), but I can imagine the anger and pain you are all feeling. I’m so sorry
We have so much to be ashamed of right now. But I place it all squarely at the feet of the Republican cabal that has been defunding education and spreading division and misinformation for the past 40 years. They wanted a stupid, malleable populace, and now they’ve got it. Putin must laugh his ass off every time one of his agents posts “Frog!” on FB and half our populace jumps.
My anxiety and worry about Covid 19 really came to a peak this past weekend with all of the Memorial Day stupidity, here in Texas we have had our share and then some! Reading everyone’s comments has helped me though— really a safe haven of sorts. All my love to all of you celebitches and your loved ones. Stay safe y’all!!
We went to the beach on Sunday (North Carolina) and we put our extra towels all around us to make a perimeter, otherwise people would have been right up our asses!!
Here in Toronto, too. :\ Parts of Canada are really no better.
My condolences to everyone that has lost a loved one to COVID-19. I am so in fear that so many people are not taking it seriously in the US despite being the country with the most cases and deaths. I fear for my family and friends as they live in the Southern and GOP areas of the US and work in medicine. In a few weeks time, the US cases WILL increase and things will get even worse. Hang in there and be safe everyone. Social distance, hand washing and masks all help to reduce the risk and transmission. As a result (I am in Asia) – we just finally drop down to zero cases or a single digit new cases for the past weeks (the govt has screen, test, quarantine and track all the new cases from workers returning from abroad).
@Hecate, I am so sorry about your friend too. My friend lost both her parents within days of each other in April. I have not much else to say about this all, people are unbelievably selfish and self-involved, not following guidelines. I am in NYC and have been in my house the past two months, alone. I wish people would be more kind. I honestly don’t think much will change once restrictions are lifted; people will still be self-involved and rude.
My immune comprised mother went food shopping. A man LAUGHED at her when she politely asked him to back to step back at the self serve check out. (Please note that she lives in an Australian state that hasn’t had an active case in over a fortnight). She is now too terrified to go to a grocery store.
Face masks aren’t mandatory here. So I’ve been wearing a bandanna instead. I’ve decided to get a reusable mask tomorrow. Our Prime Minister and the NSW Premier are idiots. There’s already been two outbreaks in Sydney today because they both insisted it’s safe to reopen schools.
Hecate, I am so sorry about your friend. This disease is most cruel in the way people die alone. It is so heartbreaking.
Our local high school is hosting an in-person graduation. I am stunned. Over 600 graduates, each allowed 4 guests. Long list of “precautions” and “rules” but masks are optional. Good luck to the volunteer teachers trying to enforce distancing rules for over 3,000 people. People won’t even listen to the cops. Families have viewed the capitulation to in-person ceremony as reasons to have grad parties. Social media has been filled with pictures of events, no one in masks, no one social distancing. We are going to have an explosion of cases here and it did not need to happen.
I always wear a mask when i go out…the few times I have left my house. I have most of my stuff delivered. People forget that we’re still in a pandemic. Just because the news doesn’t broadcast numbers 24/7 doesn’t mean the pandemic has stopped. February was the last time I spent time with friends for dinner, went to Target, or even had a haircut. And there have been times where I would do anything to have that again. But for me it’s just too dangerous. Seeing all those people in crowded places makes me think the 2nd wave coming in a few months will be awful than what we have now. I wear a mask because I care. I don’t want to think I caused harm to people just because I refused to wear a mask. I could never live with myself.
Thank you, that’s how I feel too.
The USA is rapidly approaching 100k deaths due to Covid-19 so far, in a little over 3 months, with no end in sight. Right wingers say ‘but people die from the flu, too, blah blah blah’. According to the CDC, there were 34,157 deaths from the flu in the USA for the entire 2018-2019 influenza season. Covid-19 is far more contagious and deadly, yet those of us who are taking this disease seriously, wearing masks and following the social distancing mandates, get flack from those who claim that their rights are being violated by being told to wear masks, not gather in large crowds, etc. Sadly, my home state of Ohio caved to pressure and now is only ‘suggesting’ masks rather than ordering us to wear them. My state is reopening despite the fact that new cases and deaths are not declining, and it is all due to pressure from the people who claim that the virus is a hoax. There was a surge in new cases after people gathered here for Mother’s Day, and in a few weeks we will see the surge caused by Memorial Day gatherings. There won’t be a vaccine for perhaps 12-18 months, (or who knows when because the guesstimates keep changing). There isn’t a cure. What the hell will it take to make people take this seriously?
If they could keep the illness among themselves, I would say “Darwinism” and “good riddance.” But the problem is, they will end up hurting innocent people who tried to do the correct thing, and that is the real tragedy. I wish the combination of stupidity and selfishness was a crime.
A nurse I knew in NYC passed away a couple of weeks ago. My friend’s parents in London was sick, but have now recovered.
It seems like people are bored of isolife and have decided that the pandemic is over. Yesterday I ran to the beach and passed a lot of people – only three were wearing masks. 🤦🏽♀️
There’s so many people on my insta timeline that took trips this weekend. I know two workout studios that have reopened last week, even though gyms aren’t approved for opening yet. And six more are opening next week. I feel like I’m the only one who is taking quarantine seriously.
There are too many people here in Otero County, NM who are not taking precautions.
Hell, we even had a County commissioner say that the only good Democrat was a dead one and then later, in true weasel fashion, claimed that he didn’t mean precisely what he said.
Mom and I will remain in self-quarantine. The numbers have begun to climb here at last and it won’t be pretty. There are cases now at the Mescalero Apache reservation and they have just shut down for mandatory quarantine for the next two weeks – after everyone saw what has happened in the Navajo nation.
wishing the very best outcome for your friend, hecate. heart-wrenching 🙁 hang in there. xo
I’m so sorry Hecate, my tears and hope for you and your friend. I’m in California as well. My anger is directed at the manager of our HOA who has an excuse not a reason for wearing a mask. We have a food service at our clubhouse with no proof of decontamination despite repeated warnings it is recommended by the CDC. Stay safe Cele’s.
I’m so sorry about your friend.
Yep. My mother and I went to a nearby national park, which was more or less jam packed this weekend. She and I were in the minority wearing masks. We are absolutely going to see a new crop of infections two weeks from now. People were bound to get lax as states started opening up. A lot of them really just don’t get it in terms of how long this is going to last, and frankly, a lot of them just don’t care.