Coronavirus tales
Week 8. And it looks like it'll still be a while before I can even start thinking about being back on the road. I have 2 reasons for that skepticism: (1) the apparent absence of common sense from people celebrating the Memorial Day weekend by gathering in large groups without masks and without any attempt at social distancing; (2) the report this week that nearly every state in the country has been reporting inaccurate information about the progress of the coronavirus.
Regarding the first reason, I sincerely hope I'm wrong, but I expect to find a sharp spike in cases of the virus within another week or so from now (2 weeks from Memorial Day). This insidious virus that is easily transmissible and is often not detectable for 2 weeks or more after it's been contracted - and sometimes has no symptoms at all, so the infected people don't know they're carriers - this virus is still very much among us. Just look at Iowa, for example. Two months ago, they had zero cases there; now they're past 19,000 and still moving up. And these are the ones that are confirmed. It's even worse in Indiana, going from zero to more than 30,000 now. Both states have much of their population in rural areas, areas lacking the medical resources of big cities. A gap in medical care can make the situation even worse than it might have been, but news reports a while back suggested these rural residents had gotten complacent, as if this big bad virus would never dream of attacking these innocent farmers, far from Sin Cities. More than half of the states have Republican governors (27), most of whom seem to be doing what the president tells them to do (despite his rapidly changing positions). So when Trump says open up everything as fast as you can, governors around the country are doing just that. And because this is a free country where we can all travel anywhere we want, if even one state is opening up regardless of the public health dangers, then all states are at increased risk.
So the virus continues to spread at just the time government officials around the country want to move back to the way things were. Except we can't do that. We'll never again be quite the way we used to be. Even if a vaccine is found, which isn't a sure thing, that vaccine just protects us; it doesn't kill the virus; it's not like calling in an exterminator for a pest problem in your home. What we have to protect us from the flu, COVID's close relative, is a vaccine that's good only for 1 year. We also have 25% of respondents to a recent poll saying they won't get the vaccine if it's discovered.
Regarding the 2nd reason, news reporting says some states count those in nursing homes while others don't; some states have information computerized while others are still using pencil and paper; some states have a dearth of needed equipment, including the ability to administer tests, while others have plenty. But beyond those technical problems is the misreporting of the data we have. There are 2 types of tests - an antibody test that says whether someone once had the virus and now has antibodies, and a virus test that says whether someone has the virus right now. Those tests are aimed at different populations and produce different results that can't be combined. But many states are combining them. Result: we don't actually know how many tests have been administered or how many people have tested positive or negative. In other words, a positive test saying someone once had the virus is being reported as if that person has the virus today, or vice versa. Further, authorities have recently learned those tests aren't even necessarily accurate. And even if the data were accurate, the antibody test may not be of much help in the future because no one knows whether those antibodies will protect that person (after all, some people get the regular flu more than once). I found this subject confusing, but this article in The Atlantic is fairly clear. https://www.theatlantic.com/cdc-and-states-misreporting-test-data
And I'll add a twist to that situation. Big announcement in the paper this week that new testing sites have been set up in this area. So I went online to the CVS site, because they're the ones administering the test, found that I had to make an appointment, and tried to do that. First they wanted me to answer some questions. My answers told them I wasn't showing any of the most common symptoms for the virus, so they turned me down. Apparently I had to be obviously sick before they'd tell me I was sick. No matter that many people never show symptoms; no matter that places around the country (including here in Dallas) are complaining about people not wanting to get tested, no matter that my age and health problems put me in a high risk category. There were no questions about those things at all. If I wasn't clearly sick, they didn't want to see me.
So much for the claim that everybody who wants a test can get one.
But if that's what happened to me, it's no wonder this virus keeps spreading. And if the states aren't even reporting data properly, none of us can make sensible decisions about when and how to begin resuming the normal life authorities claim we should.
So yes, I'm more than ready to get moving again, but I won't be doing it in June. I'm going to wait and see if state and federal authorities can get their act together, and see if the virus is truly abating during the hot summer months as they'd hoped a while back. Meanwhile, I'm trying to get some things done I haven't had the time for before.
RV repair
My repair appointment at Luxury Coach Service was last Wednesday. I've ended up spending my entire stimulus check at that place, between this week and the repairs 2 weeks ago. But after all, it's gone to support a locally-owned business employing local workers and it's left me much happier, so how can that be wrong?
Alex, who did such good work for me 2 weeks ago, worked on my RV this week and did an outstanding job. See for yourself.
What you're looking at is the new molding around both sides of the overhang on my RV. Looks ordinary, right? That's the point. After he stripped off the old, shrunken trim and installed the new trim, Alex took the time to get off the yucky residue from the duct tape that'd been trying to hold the old molding in place. I'd figured I'd have to spend the week doing that (unwelcome in the summery Texas weather), but Alex took care of it for me.He also installed my new TV antenna, so I can now get the morning weather reports and local news like I used to. Amazing to turn on the TV and actually get a signal. 52 signals to be accurate. (A lot more TV stations in the Dallas area than in some of the places I've been.)
And he installed my new kitchen faucet, resulting in an actual water flow. No more trickle unless I want a trickle. A complete gyp by the faucet company for making me buy a whole new assembly and get it installed instead of just the little cheap nozzle that was plugged up and couldn't be unplugged. But I've got water now. Indoor plumbing is a miracle we all take for granted, but I sure appreciate it now.
Weekly Cleanliness Trip
I heard on the radio that a waterspout had been spotted at Toledo Bend Reservoir on the TX/LA border. A waterspout is basically a tornado that forms over the water instead of the land. I noticed this report especially because I camped at South Toledo Bend Park for a couple of days when I was traveling in Louisiana. Nice place. I was comfortable there.
I also heard about a new concept in entertaining that's a result of the ingenuity needed for businesses to survive the challenges of this virus. Richardson is now the home of a Drive-In CarBaret - probably the world's first. It sounds completely dopey and completely fun. Here's a link for it. https://artandseek.org/pop-up-drive-in-and-live-cabaret-all-in-a-parking-lot
I went to dump my tanks at a TA Travel Stop that I hadn't been to before; it had a large parking area with some grass so I also walked the dogs. I saw stickers on a couple of light poles from a group called Patriot Front. One of them said One Nation/Against Invasion. Wondering which nation they meant and what invasion I'd missed, I went to the website and was completely appalled. Wikipedia describes it as a white supremacist, neo-Nazi, neo-fascist, American nationalist group, and from what I saw on Patriot Front's website I'd say that's pretty accurate. You can see for yourself at this link. https://patriotfront.us To get the real flavor of this group, go to their "manifesto" section. I honestly find it terrifying. Or for an overview, here's the link to what the Southern Poverty Law Center has to say about them. https://www.splcenter.org/patriot-front
I went from there down County Road 309 for a few miles. I figured a county road in Texas was bound to be a decent drive, even if small. What I didn't figure is that this road, which was once paved, has deteriorated so thoroughly I had to drive 15 mph (in a 35 mph zone) just to keep from being shaken to death. There was no place on the road that was smooth until I got right to the end. But that's where I was going: Ham's Orchards in Terrell TX, apparently well-known in these parts.
It also had about 80% of the customers that weren't wearing masks and hadn't ever heard of social distancing. I wore my mask and a pair of gloves, and I did the best I could to stay away from other people. It was very discouraging.
But the peaches were great.
As I was driving back into town I passed several signs about something called Smurfit Kappa. For instance, they'd volunteered to clean up part of the highway. I thought maybe it was some strange fraternity until I passed a building with that name on it, but still nothing at all to tell me what on earth it was about. Smurfit Kappa turns out to be one of the world's leading paper-based packaging companies and Europe's leading corrugated packaging company. They've got 5 locations in the DFW area, one of which is in Mesquite, which I was passing through at the time. But "Smurfit"? I'd have thought when they came to the US they might want a name that doesn't sound like a cartoon character.
And on a more positive note:
In today's Sunday Comics, the one for Luann was really nice. I tried to find a copy I could post to show you, but you'll have to look it up yourself. It showed her sitting in a chair in her yard with her dog on her lap watching the sun rise (or maybe set). It was peaceful and a reminder that in the midst of all this anxiety and uncertainty, Nature is still doing her best to tell us to take it easy, stay calm, and enjoy what we've got. Because we really have a lot more than we think.
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