CoVid19

Well, it's time for me to write about the Corona virus epidemic that we have been swept up in.   Last Friday, Ethan and Alaina's school district closed.  At the time, the plan was for two weeks.   Since then, the Bay Area has been put on 'lock down' for 3 weeks.   So we are away from school now for at least a month.   Most likely longer.

In the meanwhile, we have had major changes at work.   Both Jason and my hospitals have stopped elective surgery to "make room" for patients admitted with CoVid19.  The truth is that we do not have that many truly positive patients, yet.   But, almost every patient who presents with any sort of respiratory complaint now becomes a "person of interest" or PUI, and if you can imagine, this causes quite a bit of general anxiety, among patients and hospital workers alike.

My poor Grandma was a PUI in a Milwaukee hospital, after she presented with shortness of breath and a pneumonia from her rehab facility.   As they have basically shut down these facilities and the hospitals to all visitors, she has also had to endure the medical system without a proper advocate--which is daunting for anyone, but certainly more so for a 97 year old.   I feel so bad for her, as she has become a second victim of the circumstances.  And I know that she is not the only one.  In fact, I'll bet that by the time this has settled down, the patients who suffered from lack of proper care due to the virus may be equal to or greater than the patients who actually suffered from the virus.

But, I am no in anyway trying to minimize the situation, which has the potential to become quite dire.   Our hospital do no have enough masks or gowns for us, and no one really knows what the coming days will look like.

Because Jason and I are very high risk for contracting the illness at work, we made the decision last weekend to quarantine Ethan in Sonoma with Jason's parents.  With his immunodeficiency, it just didn't seem responsible to keep him home.   He has been miserably lonely up there, and we miss him very much.   At least FaceTime lets us see him each day to check in.

Back home, we have started to 'home school' Alaina.   When school closed, they sent home a 2-week packet of work for the younger kids to complete (Ethan gets daily assignments on Google Classroom).   We have joined forces with one of Jason's colleagues to get school done by swapping off days at each other's homes so we can all still work as needed.   The kids have been adjusting to doing their work at home, and I think that the peer pressure helps.  I am not sure what we are going to do when the packet runs out.

Meanwhile, we feel lucky to live in a temperate climate, and have been trying to get out each day to hike.  Today, the three of us took a lovely walk on the steep ravine trail to help clear our heads.

So we are surviving.   Certainly not thriving.   I am worried about my Grandma and Ethan, and work and really, the world.   What a mess.   But, anyway,  one day at a time.