COVID-19 | Effects on Skoolies - No Politics please.

[Biscuitsjam]

My buddy's grandmother is currently on life support up in North Pole, Alaska. She's a very sweet lady with a lot of people that really care about her. Last I saw her was a couple months ago - she rarely sits down because she doesn't ever stop doing things and almost never gets sick.

My sister in NYC is still not over it but she's feeling better. Her boyfriend's fever has been over 102 for a few days, but he's young and healthy. They say the ambulance sirens are going nonstop in New York.

 

[Oscar1]

My buddy's grandmother is currently on life support up in North Pole, Alaska. She's a very sweet lady with a lot of people that really care about her. Last I saw her was a couple months ago - she rarely sits down because she doesn't ever stop doing things and almost never gets sick.

My sister in NYC is still not over it but she's feeling better. Her boyfriend's fever has been over 102 for a few days, but he's young and healthy. They say the ambulance sirens are going nonstop in New York.

God bless and stay strong. wishing the best for your sister, family and all those affected by this horrible situation.

Curtis

 

[Native-SKO]

My prayers go out to all those already affected. This is starting to get personal for pretty much everyone. We all know someone that has or had it or was in contact with those that did/do. Hang tight all.

 

[miltruckman]

I just got out of the ICU, was there for three days on IV antibiotics because of a drug resistant strain of pneumonia following a case of Influenza A. That was after fighting it for three weeks,, almost too sick to stand up, and having to go the ER for a third time. I tested positive for the flue, then they refused to test Me for Covid 19 as state guidelines forbid testing for Covid 19 if you test positive for the flue. My only recourse was the ER as my doctor told me I couldn’t come in the building because he was afraid of Covid 19, then he closed his office altogether and stopped seeing patients. It was getting pretty crazy in the hospital as the covid cases are getting bad and they were triaging patients in the ambulance garage of the hospital. they finally tested me for Covid 19 my third visit to the ER And second time on IV antibiotics, and I tested negative. Now I’m home living in the bus by myself as I was in the covid 19 wing of the hospital, and I have to isolate for two reasons. If I caught covid 19 at the hospital I don’t want my family to get it, and hopefully I haven’t caught it, but if I get it from family now it would likely be fatal in my weakened condition. As I do have underlying medical conditions. (6 stents). these are crazy times, and it’s reached a point it’s difficult to get regular care for any condition because of the pandemic. everyone should be careful out there and don’t get hurt or sick as you could be on your own.

Bill, Lebanon, IN

 

[Native-SKO]

Thank you for sharing, Bill!


I really feel for you. Please stay safe. Are you feeling up to doing a bit of work on the bus while you are isolated in it?

 

[Oscar1]

I just got out of the ICU, was there for three days on IV antibiotics because of a drug resistant strain of pneumonia following a case of Influenza A. That was after fighting it for three weeks,, almost too sick to stand up, and having to go the ER for a third time. I tested positive for the flue, then they refused to test Me for Covid 19 as state guidelines forbid testing for Covid 19 if you test positive for the flue. My only recourse was the ER as my doctor told me I couldn’t come in the building because he was afraid of Covid 19, then he closed his office altogether and stopped seeing patients. It was getting pretty crazy in the hospital as the covid cases are getting bad and they were triaging patients in the ambulance garage of the hospital. they finally tested me for Covid 19 my third visit to the ER And second time on IV antibiotics, and I tested negative. Now I’m home living in the bus by myself as I was in the covid 19 wing of the hospital, and I have to isolate for two reasons. If I caught covid 19 at the hospital I don’t want my family to get it, and hopefully I haven’t caught it, but if I get it from family now it would likely be fatal in my weakened condition. As I do have underlying medical conditions. (6 stents). these are crazy times, and it’s reached a point it’s difficult to get regular care for any condition because of the pandemic. everyone should be careful out there and don’t get hurt or sick as you could be on your own.

Bill, Lebanon, IN

Keep fighting Bill and stay strong.

 

[miltruckman]

I haven’t had the energy yet, but I hope to get the cable ran between the tv antenna on the roof and the tv In The bus. Everything is mounted. I just never ran the cable. The kids just used the tv for DVD’s.

Bill

 

[Jsneeb]

I have not read the whole thread, but on March 7th I took off in my bus from the urban area I was previously working in.

I remain 5 hours drive outside the urban area, but right now am living in the desert.

I am healthy, My bus was already set up off grid ( solar, inverter, 40 gal water).
I have plenty of non-perishable food, though I have ran out of beer and vegetables.

I was down by Moab in Grand county Ut for a while, but they shut everyting down and kicked people out, even from remote BLM land. Now I'm in Wayne County which hopefully remains less impacted than the tourism heavy Grand County.

Temps are nice, 25-30 at night, and 60 during the day.
Sun almost every day.
Precipitation is usually snow but melts the next day in the intense sun.

I am parked about half a mile walk from a canyon with three springs in it. Lots of fresh water. I can carry 25 liters at a time, and do so twice a week. I boil it for drinking but not to shower or clean the dishes.

My job is still stable, working remote. I haven't been back to the mill for over two weeks now but will have to go back mid April. I still pay monthly on my lease in town even though Im not living there. Some of my stuff is there and my Suzuki I'm swapping a diesel engine into is occupying a space in the garage. They got us on a mandatory coverage schedule at work where a few engineers are needed at the mill at all times. So when it's my turn to go back I'll resupply on food and complete my job assignments with as little human interaction as possible.

The desert is very isolated. I see a few vans & rv's pull in further down the canyon on weekends. But less than one person seen per day. usually no-one.

For fun and exercise I go running on the canyon rim, or up on the mesa, steep climb, 1500ft, but after that the run is pleasant. Otherwise I hang out down by the spring and take photos around the canyon. there are some pictographs and old Indian drawings that are not marked on any maps. I'm sure the natives used this spring for water too.

As the weather heats up I'll move up onto Boulder Mountain. I need to stay in range of 4G service for my work, but besides that need no other services.

Good luck to all.

 

[Oscar1]

I have not read the whole thread, but on March 7th I took off in my bus from the urban area I was previously working in.

I remain 5 hours drive outside the urban area, but right now am living in the desert.

I am healthy, My bus was already set up off grid ( solar, inverter, 40 gal water).
I have plenty of non-perishable food, though I have ran out of beer and vegetables.

I was down by Moab in Grand county Ut for a while, but they shut everyting down and kicked people out, even from remote BLM land. Now I'm in Wayne County which hopefully remains less impacted than the tourism heavy Grand County.

Temps are nice, 25-30 at night, and 60 during the day.
Sun almost every day.
Precipitation is usually snow but melts the next day in the intense sun.

I am parked about half a mile walk from a canyon with three springs in it. Lots of fresh water. I can carry 25 liters at a time, and do so twice a week. I boil it for drinking but not to shower or clean the dishes.

My job is still stable, working remote. I haven't been back to the mill for over two weeks now but will have to go back mid April. I still pay monthly on my lease in town even though Im not living there. Some of my stuff is there and my Suzuki I'm swapping a diesel engine into is occupying a space in the garage. They got us on a mandatory coverage schedule at work where a few engineers are needed at the mill at all times. So when it's my turn to go back I'll resupply on food and complete my job assignments with as little human interaction as possible.

The desert is very isolated. I see a few vans & rv's pull in further down the canyon on weekends. But less than one person seen per day. usually no-one.

For fun and exercise I go running on the canyon rim, or up on the mesa, steep climb, 1500ft, but after that the run is pleasant. Otherwise I hang out down by the spring and take photos around the canyon. there are some pictographs and old Indian drawings that are not marked on any maps. I'm sure the natives used this spring for water too.

As the weather heats up I'll move up onto Boulder Mountain. I need to stay in range of 4G service for my work, but besides that need no other services.

Good luck to all.

Wow! Other than the threat of this damn virus that sounds like a great place to be. I don’t understand why they close and remove people from these wide open spaces when you are clearly able to take care of yourself and are in a way better position to avoid people. They will say it’s for safety because they can’t respond out there, oh well you’re still better off taking your chances out there.
Stay safe.

 

[Drew Bru]

I have not read the whole thread, but on March 7th I took off in my bus from the urban area I was previously working in.

I remain 5 hours drive outside the urban area, but right now am living in the desert.

I am healthy, My bus was already set up off grid ( solar, inverter, 40 gal water).
I have plenty of non-perishable food, though I have ran out of beer and vegetables.

I was down by Moab in Grand county Ut for a while, but they shut everyting down and kicked people out, even from remote BLM land. Now I'm in Wayne County which hopefully remains less impacted than the tourism heavy Grand County.

Temps are nice, 25-30 at night, and 60 during the day.
Sun almost every day.
Precipitation is usually snow but melts the next day in the intense sun.

I am parked about half a mile walk from a canyon with three springs in it. Lots of fresh water. I can carry 25 liters at a time, and do so twice a week. I boil it for drinking but not to shower or clean the dishes.

My job is still stable, working remote. I haven't been back to the mill for over two weeks now but will have to go back mid April. I still pay monthly on my lease in town even though Im not living there. Some of my stuff is there and my Suzuki I'm swapping a diesel engine into is occupying a space in the garage. They got us on a mandatory coverage schedule at work where a few engineers are needed at the mill at all times. So when it's my turn to go back I'll resupply on food and complete my job assignments with as little human interaction as possible.

The desert is very isolated. I see a few vans & rv's pull in further down the canyon on weekends. But less than one person seen per day. usually no-one.

For fun and exercise I go running on the canyon rim, or up on the mesa, steep climb, 1500ft, but after that the run is pleasant. Otherwise I hang out down by the spring and take photos around the canyon. there are some pictographs and old Indian drawings that are not marked on any maps. I'm sure the natives used this spring for water too.

As the weather heats up I'll move up onto Boulder Mountain. I need to stay in range of 4G service for my work, but besides that need no other services.

Good luck to all.

We're in a similar situation. BLM camping in the Nevada desert, nice weather, good cell service and pretty isolated. We source our water from a gas station in town and carry it in 10 gal at a time. We try to keep our 100gal tank as full as possible.

Do you plan to disinfect your water tank at all? Bleach or anything?

 

[BarnYardCamp]

I second (ammendment, pun intended) that notion!

I'll second your second!

 

[Jsneeb]

I agree, I think they just wanted to make a statement and hold firm on it in order to discourage others from coming here.

The sheriff when he came to kick me out was very kind about the whole deal. He said I could remain for another day to rest and pack up, and that he didn't want to write people tickets but it was his job to enforce the law.

Most campers are not self contained, rely on a shared bathroom, shared water source, etc.

Whats funny is the Governor of Utah encouraged people to go the parks or go out camping, but then Grand county, a prime destination immediately shut down and banned camping, largely in response to the governor.

I think this lack of coordination and lack of cooperation between town, state and federal government is going to end us up with all the downsides of a shutdown, but also all the positive virus cases of not shutting down. Sort of like shitting on your cake and eating it too.

 

[Jsneeb]

Drew, I did disinfect my tank a few times last year in the peak of the summer. So far it gets so cold at night ( sometimes my water line won't thaw out until 10am ) that I think the tank is staying cold and nothing funky is growing in it. Somehow the chinese pump has survived multiple thaw freeze cycles. ( I do have a spare for when it dies ).

If I get any kinda funky smell from the water tank I will disinfect it with bleech.

My drinkable water is stored inside in three 25 liter jugs, so I seldom drink the water from my tank, just shower and do dishes with it, it lasts about two weeks. 100 gallons would last me over a month, and at that point I would worry about disinfecting it.

 

[gs1949]

I have read the entire thread, twice now, and the second time has convinced to do something I don't normally do, which is offer advice to people who have not asked for my advice.

Let me say first that I lived and worked in China for several years while teaching at 2 different universities. So I am quite familiar with Chinese society and I still receive emails from former students.

I'm sure most people in the West have heard that the rate of new infections of covid-19 in China has fallen significantly in recent weeks and are encouraged by this news.

I keep hoping that someone will speak out about the obvious fallacy inherent in anyone in the West being encouraged by the currently low rates of infection in China. From my perspective comparing what is happening now with new cases in China with what we can expect to see here in a couple of months if we continue on the course that we are now on is like comparing pomegranates to pineapples. Despite a few obvious similiarities on the surface there are deeper, fundamental differences between the 2 societies that matter very much here.

What I have heard from my former students in China lately is that life is returning to normal. Other than telling me to be sure to wear my mask at all times when I go out, the emails I get from students lately do not mention wearing masks. That is because wearing masks has been a part of their "normal" life since SARS.

I was never in China before SARS, but now EVERYONE has a supply of masks at home and is ready to put one on at the slightest hint that it is needed. And as far as I have seen masks are readily available in China. Every cold and flu season it seems that 25 to 50 percent of the Chinese population wear masks almost all the time. Most of these are the paper masks, but those are a lot better than nothing, and wearing them 2 at a time in a double layer seems like it would be effective.

I have even heard from a friend about Filipina women making masks out of old brassieres. Those also would be a lot better than nothing.

But here in the US, nothing is exactly what we get as far as masks go. And we also get Trump and Co. telling us that "social distancing" is enough to inhibit the spread of the disease. Then they tell us that "social distancing" is not always necessary because we need to open America for business again, before finally telling us that lots more people than they originally expected are going to die.

Fortunately I have a small supply of paper masks AND a 3M P95 mask for organic vapors and a good supply of cartridges and dust filters for that mask, so I can take care of myself. And I have been doing that by wearing a mask everytime I go out.

After that long introduction, my advice is simply that EVERYONE should wear some kind of mask EVERY time they go out.

Otherwise, I am convinced that Trump and Co. will become the Admin known for enabling the Chinese economy to become the dominant economy in the world. I don't care even a little about Trump's reputation, but I do care about the American People.

 

[Oscar1]

I have read the entire thread, twice now, and the second time has convinced to do something I don't normally do, which is offer advice to people who have not asked for my advice.

Let me say first that I lived and worked in China for several years while teaching at 2 different universities. So I am quite familiar with Chinese society and I still receive emails from former students.

I'm sure most people in the West have heard that the rate of new infections of covid-19 in China has fallen significantly in recent weeks and are encouraged by this news.

I keep hoping that someone will speak out about the obvious fallacy inherent in anyone in the West being encouraged by the currently low rates of infection in China. From my perspective comparing what is happening now with new cases in China with what we can expect to see here in a couple of months if we continue on the course that we are now on is like comparing pomegranates to pineapples. Despite a few obvious similiarities on the surface there are deeper, fundamental differences between the 2 societies that matter very much here.

What I have heard from my former students in China lately is that life is returning to normal. Other than telling me to be sure to wear my mask at all times when I go out, the emails I get from students lately do not mention wearing masks. That is because wearing masks has been a part of their "normal" life since SARS.

I was never in China before SARS, but now EVERYONE has a supply of masks at home and is ready to put one on at the slightest hint that it is needed. And as far as I have seen masks are readily available in China. Every cold and flu season it seems that 25 to 50 percent of the Chinese population wear masks almost all the time. Most of these are the paper masks, but those are a lot better than nothing, and wearing them 2 at a time in a double layer seems like it would be effective.

I have even heard from a friend about Filipina women making masks out of old brassieres. Those also would be a lot better than nothing.

But here in the US, nothing is exactly what we get as far as masks go. And we also get Trump and Co. telling us that "social distancing" is enough to inhibit the spread of the disease. Then they tell us that "social distancing" is not always necessary because we need to open America for business again, before finally telling us that lots more people than they originally expected are going to die.

Fortunately I have a small supply of paper masks AND a 3M P95 mask for organic vapors and a good supply of cartridges and dust filters for that mask, so I can take care of myself. And I have been doing that by wearing a mask everytime I go out.

After that long introduction, my advice is simply that EVERYONE should wear some kind of mask EVERY time they go out.

Otherwise, I am convinced that Trump and Co. will become the Admin known for enabling the Chinese economy to become the dominant economy in the world. I don't care even a little about Trump's reputation, but I do care about the American People.

Very well said and I fully agree with the need to wear masks at all times when out. One other very important difference between China and the west that you failed to mention is communism, the Chinese people were ordered into lockdown early
at the very real threat of violence or jail, for the most part they are a very controlled society and that may have greatly contributed to them slowing it down. We had plenty of warning months in advance and very few seemed to listen. Look out your windows right now and see how many people are still out roaming around doing whatever they want because they are stubborn, ignorant, or too damn stupid. I have great respect for everyone that has prepared as best they can and those who are self isolating however they feel works best for them but I will have no remorse for those who did not take this seriously enough and no mercy for anyone that jeopardizes the safety of my family.

Stay safe and strong everyone

 

[gs1949]

@Oscar1, I am hoping I don't come across as critical, but the idea that the Chinese govt is still communist is a common misconception in the west. They still call themselves the Communist Party of China, but it has slowly morphed into a fascist organization.

The difference between fascism and communism in this particular case is probably not obvious to someone who is not as well-read about fascism as I am. And the difference is quite academic because the Chinese people can be easily, and accurately, described as susceptible to authoritarianism because that's what they get from their families from a very early age. Independent thought is not encouraged in Chinese society, not as far as I have seen or heard.

 

[Native-SKO]

I haven’t had the energy yet, but I hope to get the cable ran between the tv antenna on the roof and the tv In The bus. Everything is mounted. I just never ran the cable. The kids just used the tv for DVD’s.

Bill

I hope you are able to run the cable soon. Even the TV will keep you connected and entertained. At least you have the internet.


Best wishes!

 

[BarnYardCamp]

Very well said and I fully agree with the need to wear masks at all times when out. One other very important difference between China and the west that you failed to mention is communism, the Chinese people were ordered into lockdown early
at the very real threat of violence or jail, for the most part they are a very controlled society and that may have greatly contributed to them slowing it down. We had plenty of warning months in advance and very few seemed to listen. Look out your windows right now and see how many people are still out roaming around doing whatever they want because they are stubborn, ignorant, or too damn stupid. I have great respect for everyone that has prepared as best they can and those who are self isolating however they feel works best for them but I will have no remorse for those who did not take this seriously enough and no mercy for anyone that jeopardizes the safety of my family.

Stay safe and strong everyone

what you fail to mention was that the Chinese government first suppressed and denied, even punishing the Doctor(s) who first sounded the alarms, then after the virus had a healthy head start they started taking action. So, they did not order everyone into "lockdown early".

 

[Native-SKO]

what you fail to mention was that the Chinese government first suppressed and denied, even punishing the Doctor(s) who first sounded the alarms, then after the virus had a healthy head start they started taking action. So, they did not order everyone into "lockdown early".

Right, it was discovered at least a month before China "announced" its first case.


After all, COVID-19 stands for coronavirus disease 2019.

 

[gs1949]

@BarnYardCamp, yes, they did that. The first instinct of the CCP still seems to be cover up and deny, but they have made some effort at being more open in the last few years.

The CCP allowed retired journalist and lifelong CCP member Yang Jisheng to use classified party sources to write the book that was known in the English translation as Tombstone: The Great Chinese Famine, 1958-1962.

The original Chinese language edition was published in Hong Kong, and banned immediately in the mainland, but it has been required reading for some time now for those hoping to enter the upper ranks of the CCP.

I set out to read the English edition, but it was such a depressing read that I could not finish all of the province by province descriptions of what people did to each other during the famine, so I skipped the last provinces discussed and went directly to the conclusion.

But if anyone is interested in acquiring more understanding of how the Chinese got to be the way they are: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008MWNEXI

And, by the way, the 36 million deaths mentioned on the Amazon page for this book is the conservative figure. The likely death toll is at least double that.