The Coffee House-Come & Chat With Us!(May 2020)

[Amy SF]

Okay, I have to finally come clean. I just don’t like sweet potato fries. I’m okay with sweet potatoes. I’ll eat those. But sweet potato fries I just can’t eat anymore. Regular fries are one thing, but sweet potato fries are a novelty run amok. I first encountered them at, I think, the Veggie Grill in Santa Monica. Or was it Native Foods elsewhere? I considered them an interesting novelty, nothing more, something to try once. But here at Meadowbrook, they serve them ALL.THE.TIME. Apparently the old farts here really like them. I ask for French fries, I get SPF. I eat just two, and the server says, “I thought that’s what you wanted.” I said, no, I asked for regular French fries. “Oh! We don’t have those today! They’re unhealthy.” SPF aren’t exactly a health food.

 

[Chryssie]

Hey everyone! I am beyond exhausted after my 5 hour cashier shift. My feet are killing me! It was as busy as the holidays with a constant really long line with very few breathers. Things go slower now that we have to wipe down the pin pad and counter after each customer. There is hand sanitizer for us (not the customers) at the registers also. I was told to wear gloves by one of the coordinators but that is stupid because to make gloves actually effective you would have to put on a new pair with each customer. I asked Jeanette (who has more authority) and she said we didn't have to wear them. I used the hand sanitizer after every customer. My poor hands will get so dry! And wearing a mask is very annoying. I can't breathe!
Speaking of masks: Lots of people are making them and selling them around here. The "buy, sell, trade" FB groups have several vendors.
I have had my early dinner/late lunch and will have a beer and go to bed early. I do the same shift tomorrow.

 

[Val]

@Poppy , these are...

So...

What do we have here...?

This!

It's all about...

Hooraaay!

 

[Raven]

I still don't have a mask. My husband got some from work but they were made from paper and I think there would be no point to wearing them.

 

[Lou]

I still don't have a mask. My husband got some from work but they were made from paper and I think there would be no point to wearing them.

The paper masks are fine. There has been so much misinformation and misunderstandings about masks. I've sort of made it a point to study up on them.

The paper masks are commonly called surgical masks cause that is what the doctors use during surgery. But they are not meant to protect the surgeon. they are to protect the patient. Surgical masks are intended to be one-time use. You take them off and throw them away. But during the early days of the pandemic, there was a mask shortage and many hospital workers were re-using them. The guideline they were recommending is that if you store your mask for a day or two you can re-use it. The virus does not stay viable on a surface for that long. Nurses in NYC were keeping their masks in paper bags overnight in their lockers.

I have a bunch of paper masks that were given to me at the hospital. I have simply been rotating them. I like the paper masks best cause they are light and comfortable.

The big advantage of the cloth masks is that you can wash them and reuse them.

All the recomendations about wearing masks has got to do with not spreading the virus to other people. To protect yourself from the virus you need a much better mask. The commercial mask that has been approved to do that is the N95. It is frowned upon for the general public to be seen wearing those masks. They are in short supply and should be used only by front line hospital workers and first responders.

Not that long ago I had to go to the hospital for a small procedure. Everyone was wearing surgical masks - even the surgeon.

There has been some discussion about homemade N95 like masks. "The 'N95' designation means that when subjected to careful testing, the respirator blocks at least 95 percent of very small (0.3 micron) test particles."
Some of the suggestions were about using nylon (pantyhose). I don't know how well that would actually work. The HEPA vacuum bags design might work.

If everyone wears a mask when they are near other people then we don't need really good masks. To protect yourself, shelter in place, physical distancing, and washing hands is the best strategy to avoid the virus.

 

[Raven]

I was reading up on masks too. I don't understand why you can't wash them as that seems like a massive drawback. I was also worried about catching something from the masks I got as they were from London Underground and I have no idea how contaminated they were before! You need at least two of them to rotate them and leave one of them outside in fresh air after use.

I have managed to avoid people quite well these last few weeks anyway so I will probably just carry on with that.

I actually spoke to a paramedic friend on the phone last night and it didn't exactly put my mind at rest from what he said!

 

[silva]

I bought a box of 50 paper/surgical masks. They're not the same- at work we were given 5 and they're short enough to move down whenever you talk or just move your mouth around, and they don't bend around the nose at all. I used double sided tape at the nose bridge, but the shortness made it really uncomfortable. I saw them available on Newegg.com that had reviews saying they were larger than most and got 50 for about $34. They are much much better, seal better, fit better, breath way better than the cloth masks I have. I can actually wear it all day, although we're not required to wear if working at our bench
The cloth ones need a lot of tweaking. So freaking hot and suffocating!
Ive heard the nylon pantyhose idea was to go around the face, to secure the mask in place, not for filtration so much

 

[silva]

Think is, most people aren't wearing them right at all, I see so many with the mask under their nose, or such gaps it isn't doing much.
I'm not at all sure these measures are being followed enough to give any data on usefulness. All the tape and arrows aren't going to counter the people who refuse to care

 

[Amy SF]

Here at Meadowbrook they’re giving us disposable paper masks. The first one I got came apart, so I got another one. I can’t breathe very well with it on. They also gave me a cloth mask, but my breathing is even worse with that one on. I’m rarely leaving my room right now. They’ve been bringing our mail and packages directly to us so we don’t have to go out to the mailboxes or the concierge desk to get them.

 

[silva]

Here at Meadowbrook they’re giving us disposable paper masks. The first one I got came apart, so I got another one. I can’t breathe very well with it on. They also gave me a cloth mask, but my breathing is even worse with that one on. I’m rarely leaving my room right now. They’ve been bringing our mail and packages directly to us so we don’t have to go out to the mailboxes or the concierge desk to get them.

Can you get outside and walk?
I feel so badly for you, surprised you're not on here like, all the time!

 

[Chryssie]

Hey everyone! Another hectic day at "the Maxx"! There were already people lined up outside when I got there 30 minutes before opening. It continued like this all day but since I knew what to expect, I wasn't as stressed out. It is really complicated keeping within the guidelines! We are allowed 107 people in the building. An employee is stationed at the front to count people using number cards (actually from the dressing room). When it gets to the maximum, someone has to go outside and stop the people out there from coming in and as people leave then they let people in. What a nightmare!
I was really hungry when I got home. I am not as exhausted today but still pretty tired. It will take a little while to get back "in the groove."
No plans for tonight.
Amy I hope they let you go outside for some fresh air! It is good for you!

 

[HappyRoxy]

Good Morning All. It's a nice, sunny autumn day here today (in South Australia).

 

[Amy SF]

I feel like a bird in a gilded cage.

 

[Val]

The paper masks are fine. There has been so much misinformation and misunderstandings about masks. I've sort of made it a point to study up on them.

The paper masks are commonly called surgical masks cause that is what the doctors use during surgery. But they are not meant to protect the surgeon. they are to protect the patient. Surgical masks are intended to be one-time use. You take them off and throw them away. But during the early days of the pandemic, there was a mask shortage and many hospital workers were re-using them. The guideline they were recommending is that if you store your mask for a day or two you can re-use it. The virus does not stay viable on a surface for that long. Nurses in NYC were keeping their masks in paper bags overnight in their lockers.

I have a bunch of paper masks that were given to me at the hospital. I have simply been rotating them. I like the paper masks best cause they are light and comfortable.

The big advantage of the cloth masks is that you can wash them and reuse them.

All the recomendations about wearing masks has got to do with not spreading the virus to other people. To protect yourself from the virus you need a much better mask. The commercial mask that has been approved to do that is the N95. It is frowned upon for the general public to be seen wearing those masks. They are in short supply and should be used only by front line hospital workers and first responders.

Not that long ago I had to go to the hospital for a small procedure. Everyone was wearing surgical masks - even the surgeon.

There has been some discussion about homemade N95 like masks. "The 'N95' designation means that when subjected to careful testing, the respirator blocks at least 95 percent of very small (0.3 micron) test particles."
Some of the suggestions were about using nylon (pantyhose). I don't know how well that would actually work. The HEPA vacuum bags design might work.

If everyone wears a mask when they are near other people then we don't need really good masks. To protect yourself, shelter in place, physical distancing, and washing hands is the best strategy to avoid the virus.

My mom obtained some paper masks either. She bought them in "Fix price" discount store (something like "Dollar general")... These masks are quite stupid, but, perhaps, it's better than nothing,- at least, when you are in those places where you can be caught by the police and fined for not wearing a mask. She also bought some gloves for gardening (in addition to the surgical gloves that i'd bought some time ago in a pharmacy shop). I'd bought a bunch of cloth masks too, but they are quickly becoming useless, because after a couple laundries, they look like Chewbacca.
Our paper masks with incomprehensible instructions:

 

[Raven]

I'm feeling so tired today, I only just got up and it's 3.30! I just had a strawberry soya yoghurt to take my second antibiotic of the day.

 

[Chryssie]

Morning/afternoon y'all! Cloudy day today with scattered showers. I am doing laundry and have no plans. I will read my book.

 

[PTree15]

Hi everybody! I am tempted to take a day off from walking, but the weather might call me. It's not as sunny as yesterday, but it's still warm enough. I should go out because the weather is not going to cooperate for outdoor activities in the next few days. We'll see. I still need to finish crocheting that dang afghan.

 

[Urban Gardener]

Hello! I just want to admit that I'm here partly just to be social somewhere other than social media. A more peaceful and positive kind of place.

It's a beautiful day here. The dog and I just hit the beach and went wading in the sea.

 

[KLS52]

I think we need a thumbs down rating icon. Sometimes the disagree doesn’t really apply.

 

[KLS52]

Sometimes you just want to go “booooo”.
And the winner one was cool too.