Coronavirus

I've never stopped wearing a mask in indoor public spaces, even though masks are no longer required. When I see most people maskless, sometimes I wonder if I should join them. But since wearing a mask is no big deal, and I'd much rather do that instead of getting Covid and running a significant risk, about 30% I believe, of having nasty Long Covid symptoms persist for months or even years, I always end up putting my mask on. That decision is looking even wiser given the recent rise in Covid cases both statewide in Oregon and here in Marion…

I readily admit that if you look at photos of me with and without a mask, there's good reason to feel that the reason I'm still wearing a mask out in public, even though it isn't required now in most places, is that I look better with my face covered up. (For sure, I look younger.) But actually I have some pretty good reasons to buck the clear maskless trend, now that Governor Brown has lifted the indoor masking order (which still remains for health care facilities and pharmacies). These reasons are based on public health advice/information I've been getting…

For about a week I've been collecting Twitter tweets from people knowledgeable about the current state of the Covid crisis. Most of them deal with the danger of relaxing public health measures too soon. Denmark did away with all restrictions, and now is paying the price in deaths and cases. Below you'll find screenshots of my carefully curated tweet collection. Most recent are shown first. The top tweet from yesterday has some possible good news for those of us in Oregon. Schmidt is referring to the fact that Governor Brown has announced that the indoor mask requirement in public spaces will…

After almost two years, we're all tired of dealing with Covid. A lot of people in Salem are going to want to party-on tomorrow night.  I urge you to do that responsibly.  Just as the admonition, "if you drink, don't drive," is intended to both protect the person who's drinking and others who could be harmed if they drive, the same applies to Covid. You might think that it would be no big deal if you were infected, which probably would be with the Omicron variant. But keep in mind the risk to your friends, family members, co-workers, and such.…

Omicron, the newest Covid variant to impact our country, is more attractive than original Covid and the Delta variant. But even though it looks like a Christmas ornament, don't be fooled.  It appears Omicron could devastate Oregon in the coming weeks. So says an excellent Oregon Capital Chronicle story, "Governor, health experts brace Oregonians for a serious impact from Omicron by February." In the past week, the Covid-19 outlook for Oregon shifted dramatically, with the state now facing the prospect of having the highest surge yet of infections and hospitalizations. A new forecast by Oregon Health & Science University indicates…

Since March 2020 -- almost two years -- I haven't sat inside a home with friends to eat, drink, and talk. My wife and I, being in our seventies, have been Covid-cautious.  Even though we're fully vaccinated with booster shots, we've been reluctant to take the risk of getting together with other people indoors for an extended period. Laurel has eaten occasionally at restaurants with friends. I haven't.  But today I dove into the deep end of life with Covid. And it felt great! This afternoon we hosted a three hour meeting of our monthly Salon discussion group at our…

Public health experts say we shouldn't shame people who choose not to be vaccinated or ignore mandates to wear a mask in indoor public spaces.  OK. I get that. Shaming isn't a good way to change behavior. Anyway, I'm too polite and well-mannered to go around telling maskless Oregonians what I think when I see them scoffing at Governor Brown's order to wear a mask because of the highly contagious Delta variant that has filled up almost every general hospital and ICU bed in this state.  This is causing non-Covid patients to die unnecessarily, because the mostly unvaccinated Covid patients…

For the past few days I've been collecting tweets from my Twitter feed related to the current Covid state of affairs. Most have to do with the horror show of Republican governors in Florida and Texas doing their best to kill people in their states by trying to prevent mask mandates, including in schools -- where children younger than 12 can't get a vaccine yet. Several tweets pertain to the worsening state of affairs here in Oregon. And one humorous tweet, my favorite, is from a woman in Tennesee who sent a marvelous email to school authorities regarding their policy…

Driving into Salem today, listening to a news channel on satellite radio, I heard a public health expert say something that made me grab a piece of paper and write it down as soon as I came to a stop: Thoughts are not facts.  She was referring to wearing masks in schools as they reopen after a summer break. Like when a student or parent says, "But I thought that wasn't going to be necessary since Covid cases were declining so much a few months ago." OK. You thought that. But thoughts aren't facts, they're just thoughts. The only way…