We’re ‘staying home’ in Arizona rather than Alberta. The Car Guy did a risk analysis (it is probably on a spreadsheet with a couple of graphs) and decided there were more reasons at this time to stay put than to go back to snowy, cold Alberta!
Let’s start with more Toilet Paper (see previous post Reality Check – Why Toilet Paper.) The next eight photos are from a Facebook feed by a lady who has some extra time on her hands while she ‘social distances’. Maybe you would like to exercise your creativity and ‘personalize’ your toilet too!
LEGO seems to be a popular way to express an opinion about toilet paper!
People in many countries are being asked to Social Distance, which is defined as “remaining out of congregate settings, avoiding mass gatherings, and maintaining distance (approximately 6 feet or 2 meters) from others when possible.”
Under other circumstances, people are directed to practice Social Isolation which requires the person to stay away from all people for two weeks.
My last post ‘covered’ toilet paper. Here are some other observations that might make you smile. Which one do you like best?
Why are people stockpiling toilet paper as a response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19)? The answer to this might be found by following an internet ‘paper trail‘ (like anything else found on the internet, I can’t attest to how true this is, but it seems reasonable):
It likely started in China where the motivation to stock up on white ply was probably consumers who thought that toilet paper could be used for tissues, napkins and to construct makeshift facemasks. It is probable that people did not realize that home made masks could not protect them – it only give them the feeling they had taken control. Even high quality masks are of limited value to healthy people, though they are of some value in limiting the spread of the virus if worn by people who have the flu.
As manufacturers in some countries ramped up mask production, greed and dishonesty also increased. In February 2020, a company in Vietnam was shut down when it was discovered they were using toilet paper to replace the antibacterial layer usually found in masks.
By the time the virus had moved on to other countries, hoarding toilet paper was no longer closely linked to using it for facemasks. The behaviour was almost completely irrational – a clear example of herd mentality fueled by social media and news coverage. FOMO — the fear of missing out, had become the prime motivation. When people saw other people bulk buying toilet paper, they thought there had to be a reason. Though they didn’t know the reason, they still felt they had to buy toilet paper too. They become fearful that if everybody else bought toilet paper before they did, they wouldn’t be able to buy any.
Apparently these hoarders were not comforted by the fact that a seemingly unending supply of toilet paper keeps showing up on store shelves… and the only reason there might be temporary shortages was because they had hoarded it.
The only upside to all this is the jokes and memes that are floating around the internet. Here are my favourites. Which ones do you like best!?
“Where are we going Piglet?” asked Pooh.
“We need to get supplies,” said Piglet. “For the Coronavirus”
“Ahh,” said Pooh, nodding in understanding. “Things like bread, milk, cough mixture, tissues and cat litter even though we don’t have a cat?”
Piglet did a little laugh, and a sort of leap and bit of a cough. “No,” said Piglet. “No, those aren’t the sort of supplies we need at all! What we need are family sized bags of chocolate buttons, massive toblerone, jelly babies and crunchies and a freezer full of stuffed crust pizzas, and all of the Prosecco that we can possibly carry, so that when we get quarantined we won’t mind it even slightly. THOSE are supplies.”
All of a sudden, Pooh thought that the idea of coronavirus didn’t seem quite so bad, and actually, getting quarantined with Piglet and their supplies really didn’t sound such a terrible thing after all. “Oh Piglet,” said Pooh. “I really do think you are a very wise animal.”
As they walked along they spotted Eeyore stood by a stream watching the sticks float by…..
“Hello Eeyore.” Said Pooh, “we’re off to buy supplies to sit out the quarantine, would you like to come?”
“No thank you.” Said Eeyore “I’m just going to stand here, look at the stream and contemplate the Economic impact of a media induced panic that several companies are projecting folding straight out of Brexit. Also the NHS being brought to its knees by a huge panic, and the social impact of people distrusting others because they look or are associated with China. People are dumb.”
“Well that’s sad.” Said Pooh “I much prefer eating Pizza.”
“The ironic thing” smiled Eeyore “is that Panic induces the Stress Response, and the first thing the stress response does is switch off the immune system.”
“Huh.” Said Pooh. “why would the media do that.”
“I don’t know.” Said Eeyore “I just watch sticks.”
– Cass Clayton, UK, on Facebook, March 5 –
A bit of practical information from a number of websites (facts will undoubtedly change as more information about the virus is discovered):
The new Coronavirus (called SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease Covid-19) is thought to have originated in wildlife and been passed to humans via a live animal market in Wuhan, China… or it escaped from the Wuhan lab.
Most people who are infected with the virus will have mild symptoms (dry cough, high temperature) and will recover. Tiny droplets from coughs and breathing are the most likely method of transmission. Keep your distance from people who are coughing and sneezing. You have to be in close contact with an infected person to be at risk.
Older people and those with other health conditions, such as asthma, heart disease, cancer and diabetes, are most vulnerable to the new virus. The resulting symptoms (pneumonia, breathing problems) have killed a relatively small number of people at this time.
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom and before eating. To protect others, wash your hands after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing. Also cover your mouth and nose while sneezing. Use a tissue or your elbow.
A comparison of Coronavirus to the flu:
So far, the new coronavirus has led to more than 100,000 illnesses and more than 3,000 deaths worldwide. But that’s nothing compared with the flu, also called influenza. In the U.S. alone, the flu has caused an estimated 34 million illnesses, 350,000 hospitalizations and 20,000 deaths this season, according to the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
– How does the new coronavirus compare with the flu? –
Update from WHO
However, there are some important differences between COVID-19 and influenza. First, COVID-19 does not transmit as efficiently as influenza, from the data we have so far. With influenza, people who are infected but not yet sick are major drivers of transmission, which does not appear to be the case for COVID-19. Evidence from China is that only 1% of reported cases do not have symptoms, and most of those cases develop symptoms within 2 days.
– WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the media briefing on COVID-19 – 3 March 2020 –
Incident Report:
Date: March 2, 2020
Location: Our property on an Arizona Street (a cul-de-sac)
Nature of Incident: Hit and Run
Details: Truck pulling a trailer misjudged their turning radius. Golden Barrel Cactus was unable to get out of the way.
Medical Analysis: Bifurcation of cactus with distal crushing on road side
Patient Prognosis: Certain Death
I wonder if the cactus fought back and gave the truck a flat tire…
Amusives 