Thursday, April 30, 2020
Yesterday, I had a lovely phone call from my friend, Rene, in Alabama. It is fun to talk to old friends. Today, I kind of miss seeing Rene in person (please do not tell him that). Rene put the phone on speaker near the end of our call, so I could tell his wife that she is a far better woman than he deserves. Rene’s wife is amazing; she is a fantastic cook, a genuinely caring person, and was a professional seamstress. I do not think Rene’s wife still sews, other than for fun, but she was cooking dinner for him while he was talking to me.
Rene and I chat about politics and life events when we talk. We both can have a spirited disagreement and still respect the other when we finish our conversation. Rene asked how our family was faring with the stay-at-home order. I told Rene our order had been lifted Monday, and I do not like the idea of the people of Colorado being the guinea pigs. Somebody needs to be first, and my life is not any more precious than someone’s life in Texas.
I tried to find a chart of new hospitalizations due to COVID-19 since the news has been reporting Colorado does not meet the 14-day threshold for loosening restrictions, but I struck out. I found infection data broken into counties, but none of it was daily data; it was all cumulative. We have 28 counties in Colorado that have reported cases of COVID-19 in the single digits, eight of those counties have not reported a single case. Those counties could probably open without any restriction, other to stay in their county for another week or two It would help people make more informed decisions if the state released how many COVID-19-related hospitalizations happen each day.
El Paso county is number five in reported cases and deaths, I would like to know how many cases are severe enough to require hospitalization each day. I found a chart on Colorado’s COVID-19 website that plotted the number of COVID-19 patients admitted or discharged/transferred. The chart split hospitalized persons with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and persons under investigation. The number of persons under investigation was dropping from April 17th until April 27th, when the numbers started climbing again. The slightly higher numbers could be people who felt the lifting of the stay-at-home order was a green light to go to the hospital with their symptoms. The confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations are still 250 people higher than one month ago. That does not make me feel like it is time to relax very many restrictions.
I am perfectly fine with the micro businesses opening with restrictions. I am still not sure why hair salons are opening tomorrow, because I think it will be difficult to protect the stylist’s health. I could be wrong. A small shop selling instruments, clothes, hardware, or other goods can limit the number of customers in their stores and require everyone to wear masks. I am appalled that stores open across the country are not requiring masks be worn by every person that comes in their store.
I am ready to browse my local bookstore, but if masks are not required, I feel the store owner does not care about my safety. I have seen people say, they are not “afraid” and do not need to wear a mask to protect themselves. Your mask is there to protect me, not you. Your right to not wear a mash does not supersede my right to life. When the Declaration of Independence lists our unalienable rights, Life is listed before Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness Put on your big-kid pants on and wear a mask when you are inside a business. The person you might save has people who love them and will be devastated by their passing.
My piece of advice to you is to use caution when interacting in public for a while. You do not need to be “afraid” of COVID-19 to respect its power. Being cautious does not mean you are afraid.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.
Yesterday, I had a lovely phone call from my friend, Rene, in Alabama. It is fun to talk to old friends. Today, I kind of miss seeing Rene in person (please do not tell him that). Rene put the phone on speaker near the end of our call, so I could tell his wife that she is a far better woman than he deserves. Rene’s wife is amazing; she is a fantastic cook, a genuinely caring person, and was a professional seamstress. I do not think Rene’s wife still sews, other than for fun, but she was cooking dinner for him while he was talking to me.
Rene and I chat about politics and life events when we talk. We both can have a spirited disagreement and still respect the other when we finish our conversation. Rene asked how our family was faring with the stay-at-home order. I told Rene our order had been lifted Monday, and I do not like the idea of the people of Colorado being the guinea pigs. Somebody needs to be first, and my life is not any more precious than someone’s life in Texas.
I tried to find a chart of new hospitalizations due to COVID-19 since the news has been reporting Colorado does not meet the 14-day threshold for loosening restrictions, but I struck out. I found infection data broken into counties, but none of it was daily data; it was all cumulative. We have 28 counties in Colorado that have reported cases of COVID-19 in the single digits, eight of those counties have not reported a single case. Those counties could probably open without any restriction, other to stay in their county for another week or two It would help people make more informed decisions if the state released how many COVID-19-related hospitalizations happen each day.
El Paso county is number five in reported cases and deaths, I would like to know how many cases are severe enough to require hospitalization each day. I found a chart on Colorado’s COVID-19 website that plotted the number of COVID-19 patients admitted or discharged/transferred. The chart split hospitalized persons with confirmed cases of COVID-19 and persons under investigation. The number of persons under investigation was dropping from April 17th until April 27th, when the numbers started climbing again. The slightly higher numbers could be people who felt the lifting of the stay-at-home order was a green light to go to the hospital with their symptoms. The confirmed COVID-19 hospitalizations are still 250 people higher than one month ago. That does not make me feel like it is time to relax very many restrictions.
I am perfectly fine with the micro businesses opening with restrictions. I am still not sure why hair salons are opening tomorrow, because I think it will be difficult to protect the stylist’s health. I could be wrong. A small shop selling instruments, clothes, hardware, or other goods can limit the number of customers in their stores and require everyone to wear masks. I am appalled that stores open across the country are not requiring masks be worn by every person that comes in their store.
I am ready to browse my local bookstore, but if masks are not required, I feel the store owner does not care about my safety. I have seen people say, they are not “afraid” and do not need to wear a mask to protect themselves. Your mask is there to protect me, not you. Your right to not wear a mash does not supersede my right to life. When the Declaration of Independence lists our unalienable rights, Life is listed before Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness Put on your big-kid pants on and wear a mask when you are inside a business. The person you might save has people who love them and will be devastated by their passing.
My piece of advice to you is to use caution when interacting in public for a while. You do not need to be “afraid” of COVID-19 to respect its power. Being cautious does not mean you are afraid.
Until next time,
Susanne
Please check out my GoFundMe page.