FIL update. He's doing much better. The official leakage is 0 although there is still some leakage. I have no idea what that really means except that it appears that he'll keep the remaining lung parts.

They have reduced his pain meds and removed a few tubes.

His original release date was no later than tomorrow, but that is not happening. He is a lot better but they need to keep him a while longer.

The only remaining hurdle is the biopsies on the surrounding lymph nodes. Fingers crossed.

A guy came in the bait shop and asked me if the flag hanging from the ceiling was for sale. LOL, I never noticed there was a flag hanging from the ceiling. But that's not the biggest LOL.

I didn't recognize the flag at all so I asked him. He said it was the state flag of Florida. 5 years here and I don't recall ever seeing it. Sure didn't recognize it.

Coming from a state (Texas) where the state flag is everywhere, I'm not sure what to think. Maybe I'm just not paying attention.

Pretty good chance the owner's forgotten about the flag too. How much did you make from the sale?

it likely has some collector value, so that is why he wanted it.

Coronavirus!

It has officially arrived at my county. 2 patients in quarantine.

My wife is an OT that does home health. She mostly works in a assisted living center. They have officially locked it down. Nobody in or out except for health care workers.

I'm struggling to get my arms wrapped around this. Neither my wife nor I are in the danger group. We don't have any outstanding health issues. I'm 62 but in pretty decent shape. I'm really not overly concerned for our health.

I am definitely more aware of things like touching my face and washing my hands. I'm not too concerned about work, but he gym - ugh. I don't mind working out on the equipment but using those mats there seems less than desirable. I'm going to start bringing my own mat and trying to work out in the condo gym more often.

We have a trip planned for mid April. I'm not overly concerned about flying but we saw someone on TV make a good point. What if we get there and something happens, like mass flight cancellations, prevent us from getting back home.

How essential is the trip? If it's mainly for entertainment cancelling/rescheduling seems much better.

Perhaps you can come up with something else to look forward to that either involves no "virus transmission links" or many fewer virus transmission links.

i would quit before i went inside any health care facility at this point in time. not worth the risk. no one inside is risking their life for you. sometimes you have to put yourself first.

Coronavirus - emotional impact.

My wife and I were watching cnn last night. They were sort of pushing worst case scenarios. I get that we need to be vigilant here and I get that they want to get the point across about how bad it could get. But my wife is a big time worrier and it sort of hit her. She had a bit of a meltdown thinking about her family and money and, well everything.

On the other hand, I'm just not all that concerned. Humans deal with this. It won't be ideal but we'll get through it. Bad things happen all the time.

I'm completely unable to inject any of my sort of stoic viewpoint into her over worrying mind. Not sure what to do other than be sympathetic and not try to tell her to stop worrying.

Coronavirus - family impact.

We have two at risk family members.

My mother is 93 and has a history of lung issues. She's had pneumonia several times. I have no doubt that, if she gets this, it is a death sentence. She is already semi-homebound. She doesn't go out much anyway and as of now won't go out at all. She had around the clock care and so far her caretakers are taking as many precautions as possible. My wife and I had planned a trip to visit her next month but I'm almost positive we will cancel.

My wife's father is in virtually ever risk category. He is 78, diabetic, and just got part of his lung removed due to cancer. It's tough for him because he was pretty active. Golf, tennis, and a lot of eating at restaurants. He's pretty much quarantined now.

Just yesterday, though, two of his best friends called and said they just flew in from NY and wanted to go see him. Yikes! My wife nixed that immediately but his girlfriend apparently was considering meeting them at a bar. Geez. Not sure if she followed through yet.

My wife is probably more at risk than anyone. She is still doing home health care. Most of her time is spent in one assisted living facility. The facility has banned everyone except essential personnel, which includes my wife. She has to have her temperature taken every single time she enters.

Coronavirus - monetary impact.

Fortunately, we are fine financially. I have a pretty decent cash reserve and can live on social security for the most part. I don't think my part time job is in jeopardy but even if I lost it I'm fine.

I really don't want to look at my 401k. I really don't need to touch this until mandated withdrawals. 10 years maybe? It is a little scary right now but I've weathered 1987, 2001, and 2008. Bad things happen but we always find a way to come back.

My wife has a decent cash reserve as well. I don't think her job is in jeopardy either, but if she had to stop working today she would be good for at least 6 months.

We are in a lot better shape than a lot of folks.

Coronavirus - work.

Work has been incredibly busy. Everyone is home now and boating is a great activity in these times. I'm seeing lots of families come in the shop.

The captains are taking a bit of a hit. Anyone that has to fly in to take a charter is cancelling. They should weather this, though. A lot of their clients are from around here.

I have heard rumors that FWC is considering closing boat ramps. That seems ridiculous to me. Our ramp is owned by the city so if this takes effect, it will close as well.

My guess is that, even if they close the ramp, we stay open. The majority of our business comes from boat owners that have their own lifts (don't have to launch), charter clients, and walk-in business. Knowing the owners as I do, we won't close unless it is mandated we close.

health care workers are the worse to come in contact with. and the most dangerous for them to possibly get the virus.
i wouldnt let one near me unless i was in dire straits.
i am trying as much as i can to keep ten feet between me and anyone.
until it slows down every day is more likely than the day before that you catch it or be exposed to it from someone else.
good luck with your elders and your family.

Yeah, I get this. But it is my wife and I'd rather get the virus and be with her than to not be around her.

crosspost from H&E

My wife is a home health provider. She works for a pretty big company. I'm going to try to tell this the best I can but she had a lot to say and I sort of got lost in the details.

She was scheduled to see a patient when the nurse came out of the room and told her not to go in. The elderly man was coughing up a storm. After a lot of phone calls it was determined that the man's daughter was in self quarantine because she had come into contact with someone with the virus.

My wife's company has absolutely no guidelines or strategy in how to deal with this. None. And, again this is a pretty big company with lots of nurses and careworkers.

My wife was told she cannot be tested unless someone she has come into contact with is confirmed to have the virus. Even if she develops symptoms. The man was sent to the hospital but nobody knows if he is going to be tested or not.

As far as social distancing goes, she and the other nurses and personnel share an office the size of very small bedroom. They share the same phone and the same equipment. My wife was a serial handwasher before this so she's pretty careful, but his thing is airborne.

The only precautions they take as of now is to get their temperature taken before entering the building.

My wife asked about respirators. Her company says she can drive 30 miles to get fitted for one - when they become available. Which nobody has an answer for.

The local response to this is so fragmented. Nobody knows what to do or when to do it.

We had a long talk about this last night. We've sort of assumed we will both get it. I think that's the only way to think about this for us, given her profession.

On a positive note I guess. Business is absolutely booming at the bait shop. It's sort of surreal. My busiest day ever was Tuesday, only to be even busier yesterday. Everybody that can is getting out on the boat these days.

We are getting questions about possibly closing since the beaches here are going to close and many of the restaurants and bars have already closed. My boss told me that unless the governor calls her to force her to close, we are staying open.

maybe you and your wife need to take a break from your work and not get the virus. your wifes place of work is dangerous for her and the patients. she should stay away.
getting it could be a death sentence, why do it. you really cant help others that have it much as there isnt a cure or medicine. and they caught it because they were negligent in taking precautions just like you both are doing.
you will be closed soon anyway and certainly arent being paid enough to take chances.
i relate it to a boss having you go up on a roof to fix it in an ice storm and offering no additional incentives.
good luck over there buddy. no cases yet on the treasure coast.

One of the problems with that approach is how long? 18 months? Doesn't seem remotely reasonable given our ages and reasonably good health.

Update - 4-5 days to get test results.

you are in the danger group even if you dont want to recognize it. it is effecting healthy people. and even then you can easily damage your lung capacity with mild symptoms.
is that worth it.


health care workers no matter how they try will be much more likely to contact it and spread it in larger percentages than the general public just because they are in contact with it for sure.

I guess everyone looks at this differently.

My wife is a natural worrier. She's have mini-meltdowns on a regular basis now. She isn't really worried about herself getting it even though she's probably at a much higher risk than most. But worst-case scenario thoughts flood her mind. Like never seeing her daughter again, or losing all her savings. It is just how her mind works.

I'm on the complete opposite of the spectrum. I have almost no worries at all about this. That doesn't mean I'm going to ignore all the warnings and start going to the bars or not wash my hands or anything. I'll do everything possible. However, life goes on. We'll get past this and things will get back to normal and we'll be much better prepared for the next one, if that happens.

On a more positive note, my wife got a lot of PPE. That's an acronym I had never heard until recently.

She got three masks. They aren't the good ones, but they are good and she can rotate them out. She got a face shield and a robe thingy as well. And, she got some sort of pad to put under her "stuff" when examining someone.

Her and her immediate coworkers have worked out how to be in the room they work in together and maintain a distance. Also cleaning protocols.

Everyone from the federal government on down to individuals are having to sort through this new world. It takes time but every day we make progress.

Best wishes to you, biggerwife and biggermom.

Thanks!

Went on an offshore fishing trip on Saturday. It was very surreal.

We go by Ft. Desoto park on the way to the ocean. It is a very popular park. Not a single person on the beach or the pier. Really weird.

There is a place about 10 miles offshore where freighters park. I'm assuming they are waiting for a place in port to open up. There is usually 2 or 3 in the area. In addition to a couple of freighters were 5 cruise ships. Never seen them out there before. The cruise ships continue to go in and out of the bay but they appear empty.

Shot this awesome video. Check it out.

Still no test results. Still no more PPE. Women at facility still sewing masks.

On a bright note (sarcasm implied). My wife got an official letter to show everyone that she is a necessary health care worker.

Another note. My sister has a very good friend who she has recently spent time with that has tested positive.

east coast beach public accesses closed to access except to landowners properties.
parks are still open at this point but wont last. many stores are still open.
most boat ramps and marinas forced close. they are debating closing the waterways at this point after all the stupid kids made rafts of party boats in palm beach county.
and one came on tv and said he didnt care as it wasnt his thing to ruin his fun.