Covid-19 Observations

[Karen]

It was an extremely busy day here at the Post Office, and for the most part, my dear postal patrons were vigilant about maintaining social distance. I do have bleach wipes and hand sanitizer on the counter, and several people sanitized the door handle on their way out for the next person.

Many people were mailing packages - more than normal - so I was busy with postal matters even in my midday "off" time, though I did get to go home briefly and see the animals, pet the puppy and Dusky, and enjoy the sunshine.

I am also working the next two days, the woman who usually works Friday and Saturday is maintaining quarantine out of an abundance of caution, as she was in Washington State just as it broke out there, and her husband may have come down with Covid 3 days after they got home, and two weeks later she is symptomatic. She has not been tested, but many of the PO box holders and people who come in are elderly, so we agreed she should err on the side of caution.

Vermont is on a lock-down of sorts, people in nonessential businesses are only supposed to leave home for groceries, pharmacy, etc. Lots of businesses have closed for now - theoretically until April 15th. We will see.

[snakemama]

I quit my job today. I was planning to work until the end of April, two weeks before my due date, but I just can't. Need to put the baby first. I miss my job and my coworkers and my patients.

[Karen]

I quit my job today. I was planning to work until the end of April, two weeks before my due date, but I just can't. Need to put the baby first. I miss my job and my coworkers and my patients.

Absolutely understandable. You will be in our prayers.

[mon]

My husband is a forklift mechanic so he doesn't have to have human contact and always wears a mask. I'm staying home but was wondering about the newspaper and fliers left at the door.... is that paranoia or common sense? Threw the top sheet of the newspaper away and washed my hands....🙈😜😜 should we not eat fresh vegetables, do cans have germs on them, I'm not sure, got so tired of all the television info, Trudeau and specifically Trump, he's a freaking chimpanzee, I stopped watching, maybe I shouldn't have. Sorry to the chimps.

[snakemama]

My husband is a forklift mechanic so he doesn't have to have human contact and always wears a mask. I'm staying home but was wondering about the newspaper and fliers left at the door.... is that paranoia or common sense? Threw the top sheet of the newspaper away and washed my hands.... should we not eat fresh vegetables, do cans have germs on them, I'm not sure, got so tired of all the television info, Trudeau and specifically Trump, he's a freaking chimpanzee, I stopped watching, maybe I shouldn't have. Sorry to the chimps.

There is a virologist posting on another forum I belong to, she says that the risk of contamination from food is VERY low and as long as produce is getting a good rinse it should be fine. The virus can live on cardboard and paper-like surfaces for ~24 hours, so I'm letting packages and mail spend a night in the garage before I open them. Said virologist is emphatic that just because there is some detectable virus left on the packaging doesn't mean it's enough to cause infection so mail and packages should be just fine.

[mon]

Thank you SO much!

[Karen]

I work at the Post Office, and from my experience, most everyone handling your mail is wearing gloves these days, out of an abundance of caution. .

[fghoieks]

Is there anybody here who could help me with a private consultation? I tried to follow the step-by-step guide but failed. It seems to me that access is restricted from my area worldpostalcode.com/united-states/georgia/atlanta. Can it be the case? Or what else can cause this issue? Please write to my private messages to discuss if you have a free hour this or next week. Thanks in advance.

[Karen]

Is there anybody here who could help me with a private consultation? I tried to follow the step-by-step guide but failed. It seems to me that access is restricted from my area worldpostalcode.com/united-states/georgia/atlanta. Can it be the case? Or what else can cause this issue? Please write to my private messages to discuss if you have a free hour this or next week. Thanks in advance.

A private consultation about what? And what step-by-step guide?

[cats4ever]

You all have probably seen the reports how pet adoptions have been surging during the pandemic, partially through encouragement from shelters, to "ease" social distancing.
I kept wondering how this is possible when people are out of work and they don't have any money to spend.
In normal times, lots of people have no idea what the price tag is on taking proper care of a pet.
I am happy for all the dogs and cats being welcomed into new homes, and I hope their new families received proper counseling on what it takes for this lifelong commitment.
The following article might be helpful, even though I thought there were some exaggerated examples ( a Casper dog bed, really?)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/...cid=spartandhp

[Karen]

I am glad of the adoptions, and we all have no idea how long this will last. I would rather the animals be in long-term homes, rather than shelters at this time. Yes, there will be expenses down the road, but the situation now is so uncertain, why not choose love? If civilization collapses, at least you will have a non-human companion!

[snakemama]

You all have probably seen the reports how pet adoptions have been surging during the pandemic, partially through encouragement from shelters, to "ease" social distancing.
I kept wondering how this is possible when people are out of work and they don't have any money to spend.
In normal times, lots of people have no idea what the price tag is on taking proper care of a pet.
I am happy for all the dogs and cats being welcomed into new homes, and I hope their new families received proper counseling on what it takes for this lifelong commitment.
The following article might be helpful, even though I thought there were some exaggerated examples ( a Casper dog bed, really?)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/...cid=spartandhp

A LOT of people are opting to foster instead. My local shelter had to stop accepting foster applications while they process the 4,000 they have already received.