Author Topic: Some sanity for the current situation  (Read 12511 times)

Offline bonneyman

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Some sanity for the current situation
« on: March 12, 2020, 07:07:49 PM »
With all the fear-mongering going on in the news (one can't get any real info from the main stream media) I thought I'd start a thread that might give some comfort and advice to my forum buds and anybody else willing to read on.

Disclaimer: I am no medical professional. "I'm a mechanic - not a doctor, Jim!" What I offer here is some of the things I've done and continue to do as this crisis unfolds. (Will these step guarantee safety? No. Hopefully you'll be able to beat the odds if you're careful and meticulous). Take it FWIW - anybody's opinions or advice would be a welcome addition.

Seems to me from all I've read from reliable sources that avoiding big crowds is the number one thing to do. I'm not going to go into lockdown at my house (though I have tons of fun projects to keep me busy!), but on the other hand I ain't going to go to any movie theaters or concerts any time soon. I'm prudent but not paranoid. Probably will avoid eating out much as well. You don't know if the staff is not feeling well but didn't stay home cause "I can't afford it!".  :38: So, they can afford getting you sick? No thanks.

Face masks IMHO won't stop virus-sized particles. So, trying to stop from getting infected with a mask is probably a waste of time. The pores in most masks aren't fine enough to filter out the thing, and most cheapo masks don't fit well enough  (or people don't wear them properly). Heck, doctors overseas have died while working around sick patients while in HAZMAT suits, so.
I'd use a gas mask. After a bad landfill fire some years ago and awful smelling stuff drifting to my house (2-3 miles away) I invested in some military surplus gas masks. The filters will stop gas molecules - they should stop virus particles.

If things get any worse I'll start wearing neoprene gloves when I go out in public (and just toss them when going back private). (I think it's better than applying hand sanitizer a hundred times a day). And public restrooms are out - in an emergency I spray sanitizer on the seat and try not to sit down!
If you don't have any commercial hand sanitizer, suitable chemicals to make your own disinfectant would be any alcohol-containing product (witch hazel, mouthwash, washing machine sanitizer, chlorox or pool chloronizer, etc.). Try medical supply stores - I'm betting those are under most peoples radar right now. These are for surfaces - not your hands. Most people don't know enough chemistry to do this, so, most of the alternative products will probably be available when the sanitizer and wipes are long gone.
For skin use I'd use a disinfectant soap or try and get some of the disinfectant triclosan (the active ingredient in most antiseptic human products). Though it's an anti-bacterial (not anti-viral) it won't directly kill the bug but will help mitigate the odds. One could try a home-made bar soap. Many of those tend to run overly alkaline (for cleaning purposes or sloppy production) and that will kill viruses.

Since the virus is air-borne, I use a nasal flush like the NeilMed system and an eye wash regimen like Bausch and Lomb. Kind odd getting used to the nasal flush, but once you're over the hump it's really not that bad. It really helps flush out contaminants - I think it's worth a try.

And I REALLY recommend you stay away from hospitals. Elective surgery should be postponed if possible. (Visitation is out unless you have a family member). Remember, all the poor sick people flock to the ER - a hospital is the last place I wanna be! And if this thing gets as bad as they're "predicting", hospital staff is going to be exhausted and supplies will be low - being there won't guarantee you get treatment.

More to come!
« Last Edit: March 12, 2020, 10:19:04 PM by bonneyman »

Offline bonneyman

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #1 on: March 12, 2020, 10:24:42 PM »
When I went into Walmart yesterday (and the supermarket today), I saw first hand the decimated shelves. So I immediately started thinking about alternatives.

First was the Dollar store near me. They had an ample supply of toilet paper, but only one register opened and a LONG line with customers and overflowing carts. pass!

Though it might go against the "don't go to community events" rule, estate sales and thrift stores would probably be a good place to hunt for supplies. We're all pretty much used to that, so, 'nuff said!Getting through a lean time will probably require a generous stash of food and water, but if your the prepper type you're probably already ahead on that. Though a long break in the supply chain (6 months or more) will probably deplete all but the most ardent prepper's.

Offline Lookin4_67GalaxieConv

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #2 on: March 13, 2020, 05:56:43 AM »
I don't understand this run on toilet paper.  Are people afraid they're going to be quarantined at home for months and aren't going to be able to wipe their rears?
boop/bop/beep

Offline coolmercury

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #3 on: March 13, 2020, 07:55:49 AM »
I don't have gas masks, but masks my wife and I used when spraying in our nursery with restricted pesticides. In addition to the charcoal and mixed filters they have a particle filter on the outside.  I think these will work.  When I recently walked into the grocery store with one of these masks on people nearly did back flips.  It was only a test, but almost everyone stayed away from me.

Offline fatfillup

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #4 on: March 13, 2020, 10:23:45 AM »
Went to the grocery store this morning to get some extra groceries.  Given the hysteria, I figured it might not be a bad idea to have some extra food on hand.  Since the kids are gone, we have little in the freezer and I tend to shop 2 or 3 times a week as the grocery store is within a mile of the house so we have no stockpile.  My goal was to have a weeks worth of food, figuring I will still shop as normal while having a little extra just in case.

Well the store was quite busy and it is normally dead on Friday mornings.  And other folks I talked to have said the same about all the grocery stores.

No toilet paper at all, few paper towels.  Spaghetti sauce and frozen pizza was thin and frozen orange juice was nonexistent or I just missed it. 

Regular hamburger was gone but the better stuff was there.

While the stores will love this boom, they will be slow for a bit when things settle down 

Offline Lookin4_67GalaxieConv

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #5 on: March 13, 2020, 10:54:58 AM »
Take away their electricity, plant some doubt and suspicion, and the rest takes care of itself.

Twilight Zone, The Monsters are Due on Maple Street
boop/bop/beep

Offline bonneyman

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #6 on: March 13, 2020, 11:23:32 AM »
It's quite strange at the stores considering what items are out. TP, tuna, disinfectant wipes, hand sanitizer. Most other things as far as I've seen are just fine. I'd figure canned foods and rice and flour would be totally gone. But nope.

Having done several diets (Atkins, Ornish, pure vegetarian, no sugar, and others) I've amassed quite a bit of knowledge on what works for me when needing alternatives. Even though now I'm mostly vegetarian i use things that I discovered on some of the diets that fit right in with the current eating, taste good, and are available. While people are making a run on certain foods I go for the alternatives and find plenty.

Meat substitutes: For chicken - Quorn     https://www.quorn.us/
                          For ground beef and chicken strips - LightLean   https://lightlife.com/
                         
As far as commercial burgers go the new Impossible Burger at Burger King has become a fav.

Baking substitute: For wheat flour I've found soy flour works well (though with last years flooded soy crop the availability has dried up alot)     
Both Bob's Red Mill  https://www.bobsredmill.com/  and Sprouts https://www.sprouts.com/  used to have soy flour offerings but they seem to have discontinued them in my area. You might be luckier.
I've also found the local health foods stores (and places like Whole Foods  https://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/  and Natural Grocers  https://www.naturalgrocers.com/) offer meatless substitutes also. Makes for multiple stops on shopping day but one can find stuff to eat that most consumers pass by. Admittedly since Amazon bought Whole Foods the mood there has definitely taken a nose dive.

Most restaurants have vegetarian options these days, so, cutting back on meat doesn't mean rabbit food only. The Chinese, Indian, Mediterranean, Pizza, and mom and pops all have meat less options. Plus Vegan restaurants have some tasty stuff.
                         
« Last Edit: March 13, 2020, 11:26:47 AM by bonneyman »

Offline fatfillup

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #7 on: March 13, 2020, 11:34:22 AM »
One of my suppliers whose products come from both Italy and China sent this email out.  Basically says that there has been little disruption in the supply chain at this time with is comforting.

 Hello Veloci Dealers,
 
We would like to take a moment and address the topic that’s been dominating the news cycles…Coronavirus. As you may have seen, both China and Italy are being hit hard by the virus. Veloci has suppliers in both China and Italy. Thankfully, our suppliers in those countries have not been largely affected by the spread of the virus. To date, we have seen little to no impact on their abilities to meet product manufacturing and ship times.
 
To ensure we have current information, we have been talking with the managers of these factories daily. Based off their feedback, we currently don’t expect any supply chain disruptions. In China, 100% of our products are meeting their normal manufacturing and ship times. In Italy, the businesses and people are working as usual. The Italian government has instituted a nationwide quarantine, but this doesn’t apply to business activities. The quarantine is an attempt to reduce social gatherings with the goal of slowing down the spread of the virus. Our ability to meet your orders has shown that we have reliable suppliers during this uncertain period in our economy.
 
At this moment, we do not have any reason to expect this to change. We know how important it is for Veloci to have reliable supplies for your businesses. Now, more than ever, cleaning and sanitation are under a microscope. The products we all supply are being looked at to help fight this global virus which continues to dominate headlines.

Offline highland512

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #8 on: March 13, 2020, 01:12:31 PM »
I think we are living through the biggest "fake" news story. Look at the stats, yes people get sick, yes people will die, and yes it is contagious. All at lower rates lower than the common flu. This entire thing is  :spam:

Offline DeadNutz

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #9 on: March 13, 2020, 03:07:16 PM »
I was down to a half tank of gas in the truck so I ran down to town to fill up. I figured since it was mentioned to have a full gas tank by the authorities I better get some before everybody ran down to fill every container and vehicle they have. ::)

Offline slip knot

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #10 on: March 13, 2020, 04:33:06 PM »
Well crap!! :character0029: :character0029: somebody needs to put a stop to this fake pandemic BS right now. When the World of Outlaws sprint car series is cancelled things are just getting out of hand :character0029: :c002: :character0029:

Last year it was the weather, this year its the corona faux virus.... I was on my way and they cancelled, both times! :c002:

Offline DeadNutz

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #11 on: March 13, 2020, 04:39:33 PM »
Well crap!! :character0029: :character0029: somebody needs to put a stop to this fake pandemic BS right now. When the World of Outlaws sprint car series is cancelled things are just getting out of hand :character0029: :c002: :character0029:

Last year it was the weather, this year its the corona faux virus.... I was on my way and they cancelled, both times! :c002:

Can the virus even survive with all the exhaust and beer fumes? :party0036:

Offline fatfillup

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #12 on: March 14, 2020, 05:09:38 AM »
Yep, 2 great swap meets are canceled for today  :03: :c002: :38: :a102:

Offline goodfellow

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #13 on: March 14, 2020, 07:49:45 AM »
Be glad they cancelled it. This isn't the flu, but more like SARS. People my age (over 60) are especially vulnerable and can be hit devastatingly hard. Higher fevers than regular flu, more congestion and lung constriction, greater aches and pain, and a much longer recovery period. Plus, the damn virus remains active in recovered patients. Meaning they can be fully recovered and feel absolutely great, while in reality they are still very highly infectious.

It truly is a zombie-like infection -- perfectly healthy looking people without any symptoms can be the carriers and infect everyone around them.   


Offline bonneyman

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Re: Some sanity for the current situation
« Reply #14 on: March 14, 2020, 09:57:28 AM »
Yep, 2 great swap meets are canceled for today  :03: :c002: :38: :a102:

Yeah that stinks, but I've been re-evaluating my tool hunts considering what's going on. Prudent not paranoid.