Subj : Isolation Diary To : Nancy Backus From : Barry Martin Date : Sun Apr 26 2020 10:43:00 Hi Nancy! NB> So I'm now 10 days behind... and who knows when I'll catch up.... NB> but I'm still plodding along... Well someone has to be at the end of the line! MP>>> Here they are doing distance learning (via the internet or some MP>>> sort of computer lesson plans). In Indiana, they have closed out MP>>> for the year and have promised that all Seniors who have kept up MP>>> with their school work will get diplomas. BM>> Hopefully Indiana's early closing doesn't cause problems: semester BM>> hours (and the like) are based on so many clock hours in the classroom, BM>> so they can't use that designation. Prior to this last term they BM>> could, just for this last academic term they could not. I know, BM>> technicalities, but. NB>> Here in NY, there was an announcement/decree/whatever that the hours NB>> stipulation would be waived for this school year.... it's still unknown NB>> here whether or not school will reopen or just be closed for the rest NB>> of the school year.... BM> That waiver makes sense, plus it's not like just about everywhere else BM> in the country isn't having the same problem. ...Did a quick bit of BM> looking and appears Iowa is also allowing waivers at local discretion BM> -- try to keep as close to established rules and regulations as BM> possible but if need be do it. (Make sense.) NB> This year is certainly an extraordinary situation, extraordinary NB> times call for non-typical solutions... There have been years in NB> the past when way worse weather than normal caused some NB> deviations in the requirements for classroom hours... but this is NB> even more out of the ordinary.... And unlike school closings for NB> weather, there has been more of an effort to continue the NB> schooling via the distance learning, so the virtual "classroom" NB> probably counts for something... Right: with the weather-related delays it was just a longer weekend or days off than usual. Some anticipated time off is even built in to the school calendar so don't have to do a last-minute extension. Do regular schoolwork then? Nah! ...The only time I remember having school work at home was when I had the mumps. I suppose one good thing about the timing of the COVID-19 is it didn't happen years ago: most people, schools, businesses, etc., are comfortable with going on-line and doing something, to one degree or another. Download files, upload pictures, etc. I and a lot of people have not done videochatting but probably could figure it out relatively easily. It seems the connectivity is more of a problem than the doing. (Poor or lack of ISP.) MP>> I have been craving oranges lately but am afraid to buy any fresh MP>> fruit or veg, even though it'd probably be good for me to do so. MP>> I am not real sure how one would sanitize one without poisoning BM>> The main recommendation experts shared with USA TODAY along with BM>> guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is to BM>> rinse produce under running water before eating it. NB>> And that's what I've been doing.... just running water is pretty NB>> efficient at cleaning things... :) And safer for you than the NB>> more stringent sorts of cleaning, which have their place, but not NB>> for food you are about to eat.... ;) BM> There are times and places for everything! Using scouring powder BM> doesn't make sense to clean food. Water alone doesn't seem enough BM> though 'a quick rinse' is frequently all that is needed. A highly BM> diluted dish or hand soap, rinsed under running water, seems like more BM> than sufficient. NB> Exactly... MORE than sufficient.... even detrimental... There's NB> good reason why "washing your mouth out with soap" was considered NB> a rather harsh punishment.... You'd have to rinse very NB> thoroughly to get rid of all the soap or detergent.... I never was _that_ bad -- my parents probably would have thought it a waste of soap with Dad born during the Depression and my Mother WWII. May have tasted by accidentally dripping bubbles into the mouth during a bath -- do recall some very untasty tastes. BM>> As for vegetables: "cooking vegetables would also 'take care of the BM>> virus'." NB>> Yup, that works too. :) And one might cook some fruits as well... :) BM> Compote?! NB> Things like apple sauce, baked pears, and the like.... I'm getting hungry! It seems sunlight, heat and a third item destroys the coronaviruses, which is one reason for the anticipated decline in summer and the potential for it to return in the Fall. BM> ...Not coming up with the word right now but a short stay of the fruit BM> in boiling water is used to make removal of the outer layer easier. NB> I think you are referring to blanching the fruits/vegetables... NB> also useful for a quick partial cooking prior to freezing,,, That was it! Again, heat involved. ...And so heat has been used for a long time as a 'cleanser' and preservative. BM> I don't know if hitting the fruit and vegetables with steam would work BM> -- thinking the steamers sold some time back to clean stoves, kitchen BM> counters, etc. NB> I'd think so.... steaming the produce is also a valid way of NB> cooking them.... ;) I'm surprised that hasn't been considered as a sanitation method, or maybe it is being used as part of the regular prep on the production side of things and so just the natural way it is prepared for market. Would seem steamers would have popped up as another way to sanitize at home, etc. BM>> S.N.: I read maybe a month back where drinking something hot BM>> (coffee, tea) will kill the virus in your mouth. I drink coffee in BM>> the morning anyway; in winter like to have tea in the afternoon (no, BM>> not just at 4 o'clock!). NB>> Hmmm... a nice ginger tea would probably be pretty effective, too... :) BM> Plus healthy! NB> That, too... ;) I was looking at the variety packs for tea at Hy-Vee a couple weeks back. Didn't like the price that much -- was also the national brands; I didn't see a Hy-Vee offering. Don't recall seeing a pack of Ginger Tea. ¯ ® ¯ Barry_Martin_3@ ® ¯ @Q.COM ® ¯ ® .... "Be yourself; everyone else is already taken." -Oscar Wilde --- MultiMail/Win32 v0.47 þ wcECHO 4.2 ÷ ILink: The Safe BBS þ Bettendorf, IA --- QScan/PCB v1.20a / 01-0462 * Origin: ILink: CFBBS | cfbbs.no-ip.com | 856-933-7096 (454:1/1) .