Now It's Fucking Personal .

[queenbookwench]

A friend of mine--who crossed the invisible barrier awhile back from work-friend to friend-friend--just tested positive for COVID.

Yes, she's young and healthy, but we all know that's no guarantee; and I'm extra concerned because she lives alone and doesn't have a car, though her sister and brother-in-law also live in the area.

I'm honestly shocked because I know her to be very safety-conscious.

The only remotely high risk things she's done have been go to work (at the library, which recently started letting people back in the buildings on a limited basis), take the Metro to and from work (and she specifically asked to switch branches so her commute would be shorter), and go to the grocery store or occasionally Home Depot, and she always wore her mask.

Comments

[ambyr]

Socially distant hugs. I'm sorry :-(. It's scary right now.

[sobriquet9]

Scary. What kind of mask?

[melannen]

The library system where I work just had its first post-reopening staff member test positive today. (I'd wonder if it's the same one but we're not on the metro. And have no union.) It's increasingly clear that we reopened too early and I have no faith that we'll shut back down if it keeps trending up. :( I hope your friend does well

[southerncontinentskies]

Oh no! I'm in the DMV as well, and though I'm lucky enough to still be working from home, I'm dreading the day when we have to go back in. I don't have a car, so I'd be taking the Metro as well, and that just seems like a nightmare of a petri dish if there are any significant numbers in the car - which there likely would be, since the service is so slimmed-down at the moment.

I just don't see how any cities reliant on mass transit can go back to "normal" until there's a vaccine. Riding in a crowded bus or train car for 30-90 mins (or more!) just does not sound safe, even with masks. I'm crossing my fingers that the federal govmt is reasonable (on an agency level...) about sending people physically back to work, since that's such a huge portion of the 9-5ish Metro crowd, but who knows.