Venturing Out: A Strange and Empty World

Well......it was time to venture out and see if the rest of the world was still there. So I checked Maryland's coronavirus website to see how many folks in my county have tested positive so far. The answer was one. One reported case out of a population of 113,000 folks in the county, and the site is updated every morning. So I checked our two neighboring counties and they had one and five cases reported respectively. So.........I figure it's only going to get worse, so I might as well get going while the gettin's good.

First, I hit CVS to pick up three prescriptions. Turned out I didn't need one of them and they never received one. So I ended up just getting one, but it's the one I actually need. And instead of costing 90 like last time....it only cost 6. Don't ask me why....but I just took it and ran. Now driving to CVS was interesting.......it was during what used to be "rush hour"......but the roads were empty. There was just one other person in CVS too. So far so good.....next stop WAWA for some daily fresh-baked soft pretzels and some gas.

WAWA is usually nuts with people this time of day.......but not today. There were 2 other people in there while I was there......but the pretzels were long gone. Damn. Ok, time to hit the credit union to deposit a check. The lobby is closed.....so have to use the ATM. There was no one around, so it just took a second or two and I was on my way. Next up...the Piece De Resistance.....Walmart!

Now Walmart is just a block away from the credit union, but you have to get on the six-lane highway (3 lanes in each direction) to get there (and remember it's rush hour). Well....you normally have to wait a few minutes for a break in the traffic to get on the highway......but not today. The road was eerily empty, and I was in the Walmart parking lot in like 30 seconds. Next was finding a parking spot close to the door. Normally that's impossible, but always fun to try. Today I parked 3 spots from the door.....NICE!

Ok, in I go. I got my shopping cart and once inside it was strangely quiet......and empty. Where the heck is everybody? Oh yeah.....coronavirus....almost forgot. So walking around was weird. If there was anyone in an aisle I turned down, they'd look at me and then turn their cart around and leave the aisle. I think I only ever actually walked past anyone twice the whole time I was there. They had plenty of stuff with the exception of toilet paper (what the hell is everyone doing with all the toilet paper?) And fresh meat (chicken and beef). They had milk, bread, and paper towel. I got almost everything on my list and figured maybe I should push my luck and hit McDonald's on my way home.

But I couldn't shake the thought of Johnny the teenage burger flipper coughing or sneezing on the food he was cooking, even though he's wearing his gloves and hairnet. Sooo....I'm going to pass on McDonald's.......for today. But on my way home, I realized I forgot to get a propane tank refill while I was at Walmart.....crap. But I just didn't feel like turning around, so I went to my local supermarket called Weis Markets. Parked right in front and found almost no one inside shopping (again). So I filled my cart again, but they were out of propane. Not an issue as I have 2 full spare tanks.....but it would have been nice to get my 3rd tank exchanged. Ok, that's enough....Home James! I think I passed a total of 6 cars on the way home.

So overall it was weird. It was nice not dealing with traffic, parking, or idiot shoppers..........but strange. I believe our Governor is officially locking down the state starting tomorrow, so it's only going to get stranger. But the good news is the world is still there. YEAH!

Stay safe, folks,

Bob

We too have one confirmed virus in the county and they have asked everyone to stay inside. A little bummed out as a good friend of mine was gonna fly out for a week and help me get some things done in the apt (that have been put off too long). I went shopping last week and there were no eggs! I prefer to go grocery shopping every 2 weeks but due to the hoarding I have to go weekly just to catch up on items I couldn't get.

I can feel the crunch and cabin fever. Thank goodness for social media.

P.S. I hope "social distancing" becomes a phrase soon forgotten and never to be heard again!

Small businesses can't take much more of this. If it continues for months, as some have indicated, it's difficult to imagine what life will soon look like.

Hello Bob,

Nice description of your time out on the road. As you say, the hoarding of toilet paper is strange. There is nothing in COVID-19 symptoms that says it makes you shit to death.

Hi Bob, thanks for the update on your venture out. I have been hunkered down and contemplating when I'm heading out for more supplies. Amazing there was never a shortage of toilet paper when people bought when they needed it. Glad you made it out as I was wondering if that duck in your photos' days were numbered? Stay well! Penguins7

Hoarding (even toilet paper) is just a response to fear. If we see that the world is out of control, we will attempt to exert control over what we can, even if it isn't helpful. Obviously, there are more productive ways of gaining some measure of control - one way is to check on neighbors who can't get out during this crisis and help them get what they need. Another way is to listen to the experts when they say we need to stay at home unless absolutely necessary in order to prevent the spread and keep our healthcare providers and institutions from becoming overloaded. So, there are rational and not so rational approaches to regaining control. Hope all of you stay safe through this!

Bowsprit - That's funny!!

I think everyone wants a clean butt to kiss goodbye. LOL

I think everyone wants a clean butt to kiss goodbye. LOL

I think everyone wants a clean butt to kiss goodbye. LOL

LOL

Glad you got out and enjoyed the day some. We have 17 on ventilators, at last count about 41 for observation in our state of Alabama. The number of positive tests is about 270. Mostly in the largest counties. I hope and pray the government gets a handle on this. I know New York is having a difficult time. Probably a good call on skipping Mickey D's.

Hi guys... thanks for all the replies.

Torquey... too bad you're not closer, I'm getting 2 dozen eggs a day from my flock... and running out of room to store them all.

Bow... I'm still confused by the toilet paper hoarding. I understood the initial hoarding response, but figured by now the stores would have restocked. And they do that every night... but folks still keep buying it all! Weird.

Penguins... yeah, I'll never starve! Actually, the house rule around here is we don't eat any of our pets... and they're all my pets.

So here's another update. I had to go out again today. I'm teleworking from home but I have an important test running in our altitude chamber at work (I work on a Navy base), and my crew needed me to come in to deal with an issue. So first I hit the same local supermarket as yesterday to again try to get my propane tank exchanged. Lucky for me when I got there the propane truck was there refilling their tank lockers... and I got my refill. This was right around lunchtime. Now before I left my house I again checked Maryland's coronavirus website and noticed the number of reported cases of the virus had tripled from one to three. YIKES!

After that I went to CVS (again) to pick up the coolest American flag imprinted Cool New Hat that I noticed last night when I swung by to get my prescription. Yeah, it's another cowboy hat... who would have thunk you'd find a cool cowboy hat at CVS??? Stay tuned, pics are coming.

Then I hit McDonald's!!! They recognized my voice through the drive-thru speaker... so we had a good laugh.

Now the fun part... so I get on base and head to the test cell. All the engineers and managers are teleworking, so only the mechanics and test operators were there. The whole base was basically a ghost town. So I met with my guys, and keeping ourselves as socially distanced as we could, we solved the problem and I was getting ready to leave (after I stole a few rolls of toilet paper... I just couldn't help myself). As I was heading down the hall towards the OUT door I ran into our Instrumentation supervisor. I wanted to chat with her about something... but she looked distraught and said "I can't talk now... I've got one of my guys getting tested for coronavirus right now!" I was a bit stunned, so I asked someone else who it was that was getting tested. Turns out it was someone I walked by earlier and said "Hi" to. I know him well, but didn't touch him or shake his hand. But I did get into my car cursing under my breath. If he didn't feel good this morning... why the hell didn't he stay home... like everyone is telling us to do? UUUGH

So now I understand why this virus is spreading as quickly as it is. It's because people don't follow directions... or even think! Unbelievable.

Stay safe, folks,

Bob

Hello Bob.

Thanks for your fascinating account of shopping. I was particularly interested in the fact of having a population of 113,000 folks in the county.  Most of our towns are filled with people to about that same capacity and our cities count in the millions. Following your post, I looked up the population of our county (Hertfordshire)and it was 1,215,500 so would not really be be comparable. also, I understand that the land-mass in the USA is probably much larger than we have here, so we will be living in much closer proximity to each other. This would presumably, make the spread of viruses much more likely in a more densly populated country. 

Nonetheless, when I ventured out earlier this week, my impression was that most people were obeying the instructions to stay away from others, so perhaps people are taking this thing seriously.(apart from bog rolls and pasta!) I also took my usual walk in the countryside , where to my surprise, there were hundreds of people doing the same thing, whereas usually I don't see a soul. I do hope that people continue to enjoy the countryside long after this pandemic ends, even if I need to find somewhere else to obtain solitude. 

Best wishes

Bill

Hello Bob,

How about adding an ostrich to your menagerie? One egg laid by it will more than equal all the others laid by your feathered friends. When it expires, you will have the finest leather at hand for a new hat. You are right, this scourge is now reaching alarming proportions. At least you are assured of proper healthcare, no such assurance here, if it races through in the third world countries, a catastrophe will result. Let us wish and hope that it dies out soon. Best wishes.

We went to Walmart last week to stock up (no, we didn't go crazy on the toilet paper; I always have plenty of that on hand anyway). The store wasn't mobbed, but there were a few things that were out of stock. I'll need to make an occasional run to our local supermarket. We're taking all the precautions; social distancing, hand washing, etc. It's not that difficult, as I'm semi-retired and not doing any piano tunings for now. We're in a rural area, but I'm hearing of more and more cases around here and surrounding counties. When I do go to the store, I wear gloves and a mask. My significant other has prostate cancer but isn't scheduled for another oncologist appointment until May. We're paying attention to the medical experts' opinions.

Hi Bow.........funny you should mention an ostrich! When I moved to Maryland back in 1994, there were 2 or 3 ostrich farms that I visited. I was, in fact, planning on raising a few. But as I learned more and more about them.........and went and saw them in person.......I decided it might not be such a smart move. First, they are much BIGGER in real life than most people imagine. That's not really an issue, but I also learned that when they attack (with their very powerful legs and razor-sharp claws) they aim for your belly in hopes of disemboweling you. With my Crohn's at the time, that might have felt good.........but I decided for the sake of my neighbors and friends, I'd better pass on the ostriches and went for horses and goats. But ostriches are VERY cool animals. I bet the ladies are picturing me in my cool cowboy hat riding one right now! Yeee-Haaaa!

Regards,

Bob

Bagger.......I hear ya. Funny thing is even if you think you're isolated and following all the guidance.......odds are good that at some point.......everyone will get the virus (or a similar strain of it). I guess the hope is that by that time they will have effective ways to lessen the severity. Cures are pretty pointless if they don't find one before the virus mutates, which it has twice already. So the "cure" thing is more about calming public perception than something that's actually going to come to fruition. But as long as they figure out ways to reduce the symptoms we should all fare well. Time will tell I guess.

But what I find the most fascinating is HOW QUICKLY it spreads. I found out this morning that the first reported case in the county (of the 3 total I talked about yesterday) was a twenty-something who decided not to follow directions and went out to the local Lonestar Steakhouse to hang with friends, even though he wasn't feeling great. From there he went to the same local Supermarket.....and then to the same Walmart that I've been to in the last two days. So of the 113,000 people in the county, of which only this knucklehead was infected back on Monday, I've now been to 3 places he's been........and back on Monday I was thinking to myself......what are the odds with just one person in the county affected......that I'd even come close to someplace he'd been? So despite living in a pretty rural area, with not a lot of people, I could have been exposed to this crap at least 3 times already, not counting the moron co-worker of mine who decided to go to work yesterday even though he wasn't feeling good....and has now been tested (results pending). So despite nature being on my side and giving me lots of distance around me......human stupidity could trump all that and still screw you up. Simply amazing how it all works. Unless you literally lock yourself in your house and don't come out.......no one is entirely safe from this stuff. Because there's way more stupid people out there than smart ones. Funny how nature works. (Or from the non-religious side......stupid humans are the BEST any God could come up with? That's not very impressive.)

Stay safe folks......it's nuts out there!

Regards,

Bob

I read that copper kills bacteria and viruses on contact. I can't find any reports that say it's not true, so I bought a 100% copper thermas. You are supposed to let the water sit overnight and trace amounts of copper leach into the water. I drink it all day long. Sesame seeds contain a high amount of copper. If you like tahini, it is another way of pumping up your immune system. I am also taking something called NAC. It's good for your lungs and immune system. Make your immune system strong so it can fight the virus for us.

Stay healthy,

Teal.

Hey Bob! Yeah, I am aware of, despite all my precautions, the fact that I could still end up with the virus. When I go to the store tomorrow, I'll be wondering about the other people who are and have been in there.

Hello Bob,

You reached the right decision on the ostrich. Difficult birds. Somebody I know tried to farm them commercially. Didn't work out, he suffered losses but he is an airline captain, no experience of raising any kind of animal. Their kick can be lethal. However, if you could ride them with your rattlesnake skin hat in place and bobbing in the breeze, that would be something else. You are right, this virus is alarming a lot of people. The countries that delayed action are paying the price for it while some others who took timely measures like South Korea are better off. Part of the problem is that if the population continues to grow exponentially, nature will find a way to stop it. Increasing globalization and porous borders may also have something to do with the way this scourge has spread so quickly. All the best wishes and stay safe and healthy.

Hey guys,

Staying at home is not all bad. Well, it is the usual for me anyway except my husband and I eat out most nights and that is not happening now! Really missing that especially since I never cook. My husband is the cook in this family, even though I can cook, I do not like it. Hubby is in the restaurant business so he is still working and I am just hoping he does not come in contact with anyone and bring it home. I have been cooking because he is working every day. Hell, my cooking may kill him faster than a virus. Lol.

It does look as if there is toilet paper stocked at Sam's here and there so all is good. There are many cases in my county now but because I live in the county of the capital and four major hospitals, they keep bringing all the sick people to Columbia, therefore the numbers go up. To date, I don't know anyone that has the virus or has been exposed. Hope it stays that way.
Bob, thanks for the news of your travels. One positive thing has happened. I refilled one of the medications I take and my insurance has never allowed me to get but 30 pills at a time when my old one always allowed a 90-day refill. Well, I had it filled last week and they did it for 90 days and the insurance paid for it! Yay! See, it did not hurt them one bit!
On the other side, my dryer went on the blitz two weeks ago. The repairman came and took a look at it. $400 to fix it so with it being 12 years old, I said nope, I'll buy a new one! Big mistake!! Went to Best Buy to get the one I wanted. Bought it. Paid for delivery and set up and to take the old dryer away. So bought it on a Tuesday and it would come to the store on Saturday and we could pick it up then but, nope, we wanted it delivered and set up the following Wednesday. So we get a call the day before it is to arrive that they will leave it in my driveway but they will not come in my house to set it up nor would they take my old one away! So if someone says "timing is everything", this is one of those times. So here I am, not able to wash clothes. Not that we both don't have enough to last a month but you know what I mean! I certainly did not want to go to a laundromat. I ended up doing two loads at my neighbor's house to get us through.
My neighbors helped my husband get it in the house and set up! I was a washing and drying maniac that afternoon!
It is the little things we take for granted, so be thankful for what we do have. I know I am going to kiss that dryer every day!
Puppy

Hey puppy! Glad to hear you're back to laundering. Since I'm just schlepping around the house for the most part, Mount Laundry has turned into a small heap. That's a good thing! Less laundry, less detergent (I just started using environmentally safe laundry sheets), and less electricity! Our county currently has 668 confirmed cases and 13 deaths related to the virus. All I can say on its behalf is that it is a big county, including a major metropolis. We are not under any mandatory guidelines; however, like most of the US (forgive me if I'm assuming here), we have been asked to stay inside and practice social distancing. I hope this blows over soon.

Hey, being retired, I use a lot less clothes than I used to when I worked and soon, my bathing suit is my summer attire! Going to uncover the pool this weekend and drown my sorrows! Lol wow your confirmed and deaths sound really high. I have lost track of our totals but will have to look. I do know it continues to grow. I am more than ready for the world to get back to our crazy normal! nbsp
Pup

Hi guys,

Just checked the Maryland virus website scorecard and my county is up to 4 reported cases with our 2 neighboring counties at 9 and 17 cases. No fatalities that I'm aware of. So it'll be pretty safe for me to cut the grass tomorrow, unless it rains....and then I'll head over to the Amish feed supply. That should be interesting, as those folks got their heads on straight and have a way of seeing through most bullshit. So if they're shutdown and locked up tighter than a drum I'll start getting worried. But if they're open and not wearing bubble suits it will say a lot.

I spoke to a Doc friend of mine today and he brought up a good point. A lot of the fatalities we're reading about in the big cities aren't necessarily from the virus. There's a lot of really sick people in hospitals, and a certain number of them die every day......without any virus. So if one of these folks gets the virus.....or comes in with it but also is having a stroke and dies.......was that because of the heart attack or because of the virus. There's a difference between the number of folks who die with the virus versus the number of folks who die because of the virus. Makes me a little suspect of how they're scoring fatalities.......as the areas with the highest numbers get the most help. So until the dust settles I'm taking everything with a big grain of salt. It'll all get sorted out in the end, but sometimes the day by day commentary can lead one astray.

And I'm not downplaying the severity of the problem....I get it. I had to think twice about taking my Methotrexate this morning, knowing it has a half-life of many days.......and that it will be beating the snot out of my immune system. On the plus side of all this, I doubt most folks really were ready for a disaster in terms of what they have stocked in their house. I now know what I'm going to stockpile from here on out, and take it a little more seriously. And not just for a pandemic, but for other types of national emergencies as well. We should all learn something from this.

Stay safe, folks,

Bob

Yes Bob, I agree. The numbers may not correspond to the fatalities. As a matter of fact, I do not believe any numbers given to us regarding the virus, whether they come from China or a city in the US. I don't think we will ever know or have an accurate count on anything relative. I'm going with my gut (even though it's short) lol

UPDATE TO ABOVE STATS: It appears the update I read either had a typo or just a total screw up, but last I checked it is 399 cases in my county. It appears the 668 originally quoted is for the entire state.

LOL........That's funny!! Still laughing. Thanks for that!

Hey,

We have 539 confirmed cases with 13 deaths in the state of SC but 69 and 1 death in my county. Most cases came from a nursing home and unfortunately those are the most vulnerable. A few cases came from a church that decided to continue services. Pretty sure more cases will pop up from these. You just never know where these people have been and who they have been in contact with, so I am not subjecting myself to the possibility of contact! It is certainly a domino effect. You are right New York. I think the numbers are not real anywhere and only reflect the testing and not the actual number of cases. As the testing increases, so will the cases confirmed. Probably why so many did not conform to pleas to stay home. What are the chances I will come in contact with the few people that have it? Well, pretty high I would suspect, huh Bob? Lol Who would have thought.
Ya'll take care! Be safe!

Puppy

Coralline, copper does not kill coronavirus!! There is absolutely no evidence that it does. Inconclusive testing shows that it may live only for a few hours on copper, as opposed to other surfaces, like steel or plastic, on which it can live anywhere from hours to days. Copper will not keep anyone safe; the best way to do that is to stay home unless absolutely necessary, and wash your hands frequently. Check for updates from your local public health authority - don't look anywhere else for accurate information.