Surveys and Thoughts Part 2 in Book Seven: Reconstruction 2020
- April 18, 2020, 2:19 p.m.
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- Public
The following was written on Friday, April 17, 2020 between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m.
I have to admit, every morning I wake up with a CPAP on my face. Helping me breathe. And I sit there. Breathing. Realizing and embracing the fact that because of that CPAP, I breathe better in those morning moments than I do at any point in the day. And I imagine the people fighting COVID right now. As their symptoms worsen (from what I’ve been told) they go to a CPAP to a Ventilator if one is available. Then some get better. Some die. And I sit in bed and I breathe. To anyone saying “Stop panicking, this is a hoax” and to anyone saying “I’d rather get the virus than stay in quarantine” and to all the rich fuckers saying “end quarantine, I’m losing profits!” I would say this.... imagine struggling, fighting, gasping for every breath. Stop what you’re doing right now and count how many times you breathe in 1 minute. Now imagine each breath is a struggle. A fight. Sure, you’re not going to die. We’ll say you are of the proper age and formidable health that this will simply be a mild inconvenience in the grand scheme of your life. But while you’re living it… in the moment… imagine every breath you’re taking right now is a struggle. And then tell me that your profits, your essential oils, your desire to “go out” are worth more to you than the very breath you take. I’ll wait.
The website Google and Iowa suggest using is https://coronavirus.iowa.gov/ for tracking COVID throughout the state. I do not trust this. That isn’t to say I’m becoming a conspiracy freak or anything, but the State Tracking of COVID (at least for my county) disagrees with what our own County Emergency Management and Health Department say. So… whether our county is simply not reporting for some reason, or the State wants to wait until they receive the official test results (though I don’t know why that would take time) I have no idea. But our own government team confirmed new cases within the last 24 hours. So… this isn’t accurate. Not to mention the fact that this is only listing those who (1) were symptomatic and/but (2) were healthy enough to locate/reach a testing facility and/but (3) actually got tested. So… while Northeast Iowa has been put into tighter restrictions due to becoming a much higher risk area… people in my neck of the woods are saying, “It’s time to get back to normal!” I hang my head in shame for them. Many of you are older people and far more susceptible to death. We don’t have a fully functioning hospital in this county but we have 5 retirement villages. The stay at home directive is to prevent individuals who may HAVE the virus but aren’t showing symptoms from transmitting it to people like them in the retirement villages. All we need is one person in one of those homes to get sick… and it’ll spread like wildfire. 13% of all COVID cases in Iowa are said to be in nursing homes and retirement villages. 45% of all COVID deaths in Iowa are in nursing homes and retirement villages. Considering we have 5 of these and no proper hospitals… maybe taking Stay At Home seriously and protecting those vulnerable people is smart not just for humane reasons but for purposes of our economy. You’re miffed because you can’t get your haircut but if everyone in the retirement villages die at once? That is a bare minimum of 2% of this county’s population. If it spreads to the older people outside of the retirement villages and starts killing them? Let’s say (extreme example) it kills everyone “over a certain age” (meaning elderly)… that is 20% of the county’s population. Not to mention the effect it would have if it spread but didn’t kill other people. So please folks… especially after additional cases have been confirmed in the county… can you… not… act like your civil liberties are being denied to you just because you can get your beer, your alcohol, your groceries, your meth, your cell phone, your TV, your.... I mean honestly folks! The only real restrictions are “you can’t go to the bar” and “you can’t go to a restaurant” and “please conduct your church services online.” Most of what this county does hasn’t been affected, frankly. Oh… and dear old Governor… unless I missed it, she still hasn’t pushed deadlines back. So despite now having a “Hot Spot” that checks off 10 of her 12 “Shelter in Place” checkboxes… does she still think we can re-open everything on April 30th??
I went in to the office today. Was actually… not as productive as I wanted it to be. Mostly went in to handle the “large stack of things that needed to be dealt with” but that large stack was done in less than 40 minutes. I stayed anyway as nobody else was here and at least I could catch up on some other work. That’s the weirdest thing about this so far for me… I can quite literally feel the “other shoe.” When courts open back up and the floodgates burst and all the people who want a jury trial are fighting over the scraps of trial dates we have… the immense massive WAVE that is coming our way? I can feel the stillness of now looking at that.
And things never change. Meth still gets sold, people still break the law, things still get insane. We’ve got an insane case. Involving kidnapping, drug sales… like literally POUNDS of meth. And the deeper we dig, the more dirt we find. And it is proving what I’ve been saying for quite a long time. Just because my cases aren’t “drug related” doesn’t mean they aren’t drug related. A large number of the violent and angry people I deal with we are discovering without surprise are involved in the usage, sale, and trafficking of methamphetamine. But then… that really isn’t a surprise to any of you, is it? Even the non-drug taking people are showing how stupid and imbecilic we’ve all become. SO add meth to that and watch the world burn.
I’ve still been reading ya’ll but again not noting much. Just… in a funk. As I’m sure we all are. FUCK Again, my own dumb ass fault. AS I was writing the “As I’m sure we all are”… a notification. Fuck our dumb stupid ass idiotic fucking president:
“LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” Trump wrote, followed soon after by a message that read, “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” He also tweeted, “LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under siege!”
And as absolutely horrible as the tweets are coming from the FUCKING PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES… what is worse and soul-shattering is the supporting replies. My country has… quite possibly died. I honestly don’t think I want to live in the United States if Trump gets a second term. I don’t know where I’d go or what I could do but… a president that foments rebellion, armed rebellion (you’ll note his pointed statement about the 2nd amendment)… a President that insists he is worshiped and obeyed without merit or thought… a man who would insist that conspiracy is equal to facts… and there are so many in this country who have not only drunk the koolaid but have baptized themselves in it, been reborn by it, decided to dedicate their lives to supporting a man that would literally sell them as soon as look at them.... I don’t know how to exist in that world.
SURVEY
Are you an essential worker?
Well, yes and no. I do agree that it is still essential to have attorneys protecting the rights of people while simultaneously protecting people from criminals. So as a Government Attorney we are deemed essential.
How many drinks have you had since the quarantine began?
Bottles worth
If you have kids, are they driving you nuts yet?
No kids :)
What new hobby have you taken up during this?
Playing outside more with Nala
How many grocery runs have you done?
Two… maybe 3 tops
What are you spending your stimulus money on?
I don’t even know if I’m getting stimulus money to be honest.
Do you have any special occasions that you will miss during this quarantine?
COVID has taken my friend’s birthday, likely my birthday, my trip to Canada, my trip to Japan, and likely my trip to The Lake
If a burglar breaks into your house, are you prepared to suppress them?
This feels like a disturbing question… are you asking if I have firearms… are you asking this because we’ve seen a sharp uptick in purchases of ammunition....
What movie have you watched during this quarantine?
Haven’t watched many movies, to be honest. Though I may watch the remake Wolfman tonight
What are you streaming with?
Netflix, Amazon Prime mostly. Just started a trial of Hulu. Personally, I’d rather pick up a Funimation Streaming package but considering my usage, it isn’t really necessary
Nine months from now is there any chance of you having a baby?
Not even a little bit
What’s your go-to quarantine meal?
Pretty much pasta
Is this whole situation making you paranoid?
I wish this situation was making me paranoid. Instead, it seems to simply be confirming what my job has long since proven. The human world is lacking in empathy, intelligence, and wisdom to such a degree that we should all be very ashamed and very worried.
Has your internet gone out on you during this time?
No, but when I started work (WFH) a few days ago, the whole block lost power momentarily!
What month do you predict this all ends?
Here is my honest answer to that question… if we do things intelligently, which so far we haven’t this COULD end by July or August. BUT considering how things have been going? We are assured to get a new swath and a new peak and we’ll reassess Stay At Home and be doing all of this all over again come August… so, current trajectory? We’ll be lucky if it ends by 2021.
First thing you’re gonna do when you get off quarantine?
Go to the River Tap and order a Calzone and buy a round for everyone there
Where do you wish you were right now?
Back in Hawaii. If I’m going to be isolated or feeling lonely (which likely would have happened without COVID anyway) I’d rather do it somewhere beautiful where I could swim in the ocean every day
What free from quarantine activity are you missing the most?
The freedom to go to the store whenever I want. I know that TECHNICALLY I could do that now still but I’m neither an asshole nor a monster
Have you run out of toilet paper and hand sanitizer?
I have about 4 rolls of TP left and a little hand soap left. When I go to the store next I’ll be looking to see if I can get either of those things to make sure I don’t run out
Do you have enough food to last a month?
I’d say I have enough food to last the rest of April
Purple Dawn ⋅ April 18, 2020
Our prime minister has just announced that the border between Canada and the USA will remain closed for non-essential traffic for another month, making it at least the middle of May. When was your trip scheduled to Canada?
Park Row Fallout Purple Dawn ⋅ April 18, 2020
June. With the border closed through to at least the middle of may, I presume even when it opens they'll request a 14 day quarantine for people entering from other countries. ESPECIALLY considering how poorly the USA has done with containing this thing.
Purple Dawn Park Row Fallout ⋅ April 18, 2020
I wouldn't be surprised if they did request quarantining. Take care,
Rhapsody in Purple ⋅ April 18, 2020
I don’t know how people can claim it’s a hoax after having so many people die
Park Row Fallout Rhapsody in Purple ⋅ April 18, 2020
We live in bizarre and terrifying times. I would say "in the US" but... as insane as Trump and his supporters are... I don't know how bad it is in other places.
Perpetually Plump ⋅ April 19, 2020
There are a couple things that are just completely stand out odd about this post. First, the CPAP does not actually help you breathe. your airways are collapsing because the weight of the fat on top of them is more than your airways can overcome. The CPAP is providing pressure to force your airways open, which is continuing to allow oxygen to get to your brain. You don't actually stop breathing most of the time when you have sleep apnea. You stop getting oxygen to your brain, because your airways have collapsed, and they are too small for air to get through, so your body provides a life-saving parasympathetic response of a gasp to cause greater pressure on your airways and to change the level of sleep that your body is in so that you will hopefully adjust your position and resume the flow of oxygen to your brain. So the CPAP is not breathing for you, it's not assisting you in breathing, it's providing pressure to keep your airways open. A ventilator breathes for you. It takes over for your lungs when they don't want to function properly, and it makes sure that your brain and blood continues to stay oxygenated.
You seem to be discounting a major factor involved in people having a problem with staying at home. (And let me remind you, that you are not actually practicing social distancing, and several times a week you have somebody who does not live in your household come to your household): When people can't go to work, they can't make any money. When they can't make any money, they can't feed themselves or their children or their spouses or their families they're responsible for. In some cases, you are asking if someone would rather take the risk of potentially contracting this virus and maybe it's fatal, or would they prefer to see everything they've worked for in life smash to bits and ruin, and then watch their family go hungry and possibly be homeless here in the next short while? As an alpha female, and as a sole provider, 100%, I'm going to take that risk of being in public and contracting the virus and passing it on to my family and other people's families in order to ensure my family's survival to the best of my ability. And I assure you, I am not the only one that feels that way. have you looked at what the food bank lines look like in other places? San Antonio? New Orleans? Just about anywhere that has a significant population? people are getting in line at 4:00 in the morning and sitting in line for hours and hours and hours to try to get one meal to be able to feed their families. The amount of stress in the amount of mental health disorders that are going to stem from this virus is going to be insane. And of course, our mental health system is a joke. Is that worth it? Are the long-term results of millions of people suffering worth saving a small percentage of the population? The CDC has stated that the majority of people will recover from this virus. Even if we have a 10% fatality rate, we destroy the lives of the other 90% and congratulate ourselves on our best efforts? I don't understand this line of logic. Of course, I come from a blue collar family, And I know a lot of people that live paycheck to paycheck, if they can even live paycheck to paycheck. And I am watching the devastating results of them not being able to work because of this situation. And it's pretty heartbreaking.
The point of the stay-at-home order is to prevent the spread of the virus. It's not to keep vulnerable populations from contracting it, that's not how we handle contagions. The entire point of keeping people apart when a new virus is introduced is try to keep it from spreading. We failed at that. 100% we failed at that. So now, we're at a point where we protect the vulnerable population, and we allow the ones that can to go out and continue making a living and helping to take care of the vulnerable population. We have never shut the
Perpetually Plump ⋅ April 19, 2020
world down for any other virus. We didn't shut it down for the Spanish flu. We didn't shut it down for SARS. We didn't shut it down for Ebola. We didn't shut it down for H1N1.
I must say that I'm pretty glad that you are not ever going to be a prosecutor or an advocate on my behalf when it comes to drugs. The fact that you so callously said that people are upset they can't go get a bag of meth? What do you understand about addiction? do you think the people that are so heavily addicted to meth can just be like oh, I don't want Grandma to die, let me just drop my drug habit. If it was that easy, people would do it. Except it's not that easy, And as an ADA, I would expect you to have a little bit more compassion for that issue. Also, you mentioned protecting people's rights. Which rights are you protecting? You are talking about how our civil liberties are not that important, but then you go on to say that your job is essential because you need to protect people's rights. You don't need to protect our right to worship? A right to a public assembly? Things of that nature don't matter? You just have to protect people against meth heads you can quit at anytime?