The COVID-19 coping thread

[Magnetic]

i got a text from my stepmom last night that her husband has covid. she said he’s struggling but theyre hanging in there. they’re in florida. he’s at home. she’s had one test that’s negative and took another yesterday. he’s a vietnam vet with multiple health problems in his mid 70s. i’m so worried for them both. i had to tell myself there’s nothing i can do and to go bed.

I'm sorry. That really sucks.

[Jinsai]

I do wish there was a "concerned" button rather than just like or dislike, something like that. I'm sorry @sweeterthan

[allegro]

@sweeterthan , I’m sorry. I hope he’ll be okay.

I now know THREE people who’ve had COVID; one died, one was in the hospital for two weeks, one for two months. The longer this goes, the closer this gets to all of us.

[zero]

Well, when the pandemic began I was terrified and operating in panic mode. I developed coping methodologies but that was only a short term solution. While I still enjoy long walks in the woods, and other decoupling strategies such as excessive bread consumption, transitioning into the long term reality of this situation has been much more difficult than the initial adjustment.

I wear a mask when I must be in public. But seeing (almost) everyone around me wearing a mask really bothers me. I should feel grateful that they are complying with the guidance, but it makes me feel very uncomfortable. And I am not really sure why.

Having several family members on the front lines of this pandemic used to cause me great discomfort. But now I realize that despite the ongoing shortage (yes it is not really resolved yet) of PPE they have cobbled together a haphazard yet somewhat effective way to stay safe. And it has been working reasonably well. So despite the increased exposure, they are perhaps safer than the rest of us. For this I am most grateful.

Where do we go from here? I have no fucking clue. Some states are getting worse really quick. Some states like mine are getting a grip on things for now. But that could obviously change. How many new cases of Covid19 and deaths will be the result of protests and demonstrations? Ten thousand, or perhaps one hundred thousand? While I support the long overdue social change, do we really need to exterminate so many individuals to make it happen?

Just fuck it all. Nothing seems to matter anymore.

[allegro]

We had to go to the marina in Kenosha to pick up the dingy on the trailer to take it up to Racine for repairs. We haven’t been up there since last summer.

Masks are MANDATORY in Illinois.

Masks are elective in Wisconsin.

Hardly anyone was wearing masks, anywhere, in Kenosha or Racine. I saw, honestly, about FOUR people wearing masks, tops, in both cities.

People looked at us funny because we were wearing masks.

I’m not going back there, again.

[eversonpoe]

yesterday, sarah took a half day (she's been working from home, in case i haven't mentioned that) and we drove up to wisconsin to visit an ETS friend (not sure if he wants me specifically mentioning him on here). about a 2 hour drive, listening to fun music, and then we hung out with him in his beautiful backyard, spaced well apart, just talking and enjoying each other's company. it was so, so nice. we haven't seen any friends in months, and finally meeting him in real life after years of being ETS friends (and him gifting me a couple concert tickets, including two to one of the aragon NIN shows in 2018) was just magical. plus, he gave me a brand new 20" computer monitor he doesn't need, so now i can stop squinting at my 13" laptop when i'm trying to work on music. i baked him cookies and brought him my old band's record & tape, as well as my 7" EP, and finally gave him the PHM longbox CD i had picked up for him a while back.

and today it's thunderstorming and i love it. spooky weather is such comfort to me.

[piggy]

Last weekend, I had my first night of socializing since February. Hung out with one of my best friends out at the lake at night, and we got a little hammered. It's difficult when the "I have to pee like my life depends on it" moment comes along and you're a girl.

[zero]

So, maybe you can take comfort in the fact that this sort of thing made most of your fellow countrymen uneasy even just a year ago. Me? I'm living my best life. And quietly judging not just the folks not wearing masks, but the ones whose masks are goddamned hideous

I appreciate your thoughts regarding masks. It really has not been something commonly accepted in USA. And I think that's a big part of why it makes me uncomfortable. But another perhaps more practical reason came to mind. I simply can not easily understand what people are saying when they are wearing a mask! My hearing started going downhill several hundred concerts ago, long before they had anything resembling current SPL limits.

Going forward I am sure I will adapt, and mask wearing will seem perfectly normal. Is that a good thing?

[hologram parade]

yesterday, sarah took a half day (she's been working from home, in case i haven't mentioned that) and we drove up to wisconsin to visit an ETS friend (not sure if he wants me specifically mentioning him on here). about a 2 hour drive, listening to fun music, and then we hung out with him in his beautiful backyard, spaced well apart, just talking and enjoying each other's company. it was so, so nice. we haven't seen any friends in months, and finally meeting him in real life after years of being ETS friends (and him gifting me a couple concert tickets, including two to one of the aragon NIN shows in 2018) was just magical. plus, he gave me a brand new 20" computer monitor he doesn't need, so now i can stop squinting at my 13" laptop when i'm trying to work on music. i baked him cookies and brought him my old band's record & tape, as well as my 7" EP, and finally gave him the PHM longbox CD i had picked up for him a while back.

and today it's thunderstorming and i love it. spooky weather is such comfort to me.

thanks again for everything. means a lot

[sweeterthan]

I do wish there was a "concerned" button rather than just like or dislike, something like that. I'm sorry @sweeterthan

Thanks. I said the same thing to @Leviathant about this exact thread. Social media is strange sometimes but I am grateful for it during this time of isolation. We all know what a like in this thread means.

@sweeterthan, I’m sorry. I hope he’ll be okay.

I now know THREE people who’ve had COVID; one died, one was in the hospital for two weeks, one for two months. The longer this goes, the closer this gets to all of us.

Yes! It's too close now. My stepmom is a healthy person in her early 60s. Can her husband get it and not her? Is that possible? Until this week, I've known a few people with grandparents who died from it. I didn't know them personally. There was also an ex-coworker who's brother in law died. He was 48. This happened in April. That's when I got pretty scared and really isolated. I'm 42 and have fought for my life on ventilator before. My sister is like "oh you have the fear" like I'm so scared of nothing. I wish she had more fear. She thinks she's been being safe by wearing a mask which I support but she still goes places all the damn time. My niece wants a slumber party with my kids and I can't do it if they're not being safe. Same with my mother in law. She's the only person I really trust with my kids and she wants them to come for the night next weekend. But she posted yesterday that she went to six flags.

I haven't heard from my stepmom since Thursday morning. I'm hoping it's coz she knows I'm overly concerned and she's just busy being his nurse and not because she's sick.

edit: my stepmom just texted that they're good. He's doing better since Thursday night and she's still feeling fine. I'll wind down my worry now.

[allegro]

Six Flags?!?

I don’t care if people think my family is paranoid. We might be the last people standing.

[eversonpoe]

...I grocery shop in headphones and so am functionally deaf to others while doing so; with no lips to read, I’ve seen people really develop this skill since lockdown began...

i feel like i would be way more calm being able to listen to music while i shop, but i'd be so paranoid about people getting too close to me. it's bad enough when i CAN hear and someone is approaching and doesn't give me the space or time to get out of the way, or when people just stand there, with their cart, blocking the aisle for several minutes. ugh.

[sweeterthan]

Six Flags?!?

I don’t care if people think my family is paranoid. We might be the last people standing.

six flags is a roller coaster theme park here. they just opened back up this week.

i don’t care either.... i guess. it’s just hard coz i miss my extended family and all we used to do.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Sarah_Munn]

My work is planning on reopening on 4th July. There is a risk assessment and promises of PPE. I have two risk factors so I'm now stressing about either returning to work and facing a certain level of risk or staying shut in and facing financial difficulties and/or risk to mental and physical health. I work in public libraries so handling stock will be a risk in itself and I have little faith in the public wearing masks or social distancing. Another peak seems likely following crowded beaches during the warm weather this week. So it's work and maybe die or shield and maybe starve/go bankrupt/go mad. What a time to be alive.

[MrLobster]

Another peak seems likely following crowded beaches during the warm weather this week.

Okay, now I gotta ask... ever deal with sand in your returned books?

[Sarah_Munn]

Okay, now I gotta ask... ever deal with sand in your returned books?

Not yet, I live in the Midlands, about as far away from the beaches as you can get (unfortunately). I have found odd stuff used as bookmarks, banana skin (urgh) really important or private letters which you wouldn't want strangers to see, food wrappers, tea bag. As any public service work soon proves, people are dirty bastards.

[allegate]

i feel like i would be way more calm being able to listen to music while i shop, but i'd be so paranoid about people getting too close to me. it's bad enough when i CAN hear and someone is approaching and doesn't give me the space or time to get out of the way, or when people just stand there, with their cart, blocking the aisle for several minutes. ugh.

If I am in the world at large by myself, I have headphones on. I've had several people tell me that's weird but I'm fine with it. If I need to talk to someone I take them off and talk to them, it's easy!

As for people in the aisles, I have taken to walking in the direct center of the aisle because there are arrows at each end and I'm 100% sure I'm going the right way. Your ass can get the hell out of my way if you're that big of a idiot.

The greatest thing about the masks is you can say some shit but now everyone wearing one is a fucking ventriloquist so no one knows who really said it. Get some real zingers off like that.

I fully embrace the fact that I'm an asshole to other assholes. I know, and I do not care.

[allegro]

six flags is a roller coaster theme park here.

No, I know what Six Flags is, there’s one not too far away from my house. But ours is CLOSED.

[allegro]

i feel like i would be way more calm being able to listen to music while i shop, but i'd be so paranoid about people getting too close to me. it's bad enough when i CAN hear and someone is approaching and doesn't give me the space or time to get out of the way, or when people just stand there, with their cart, blocking the aisle for several minutes. ugh.

I get irritated when people are going the wrong way down the grocery aisles, lol.

[eversonpoe]

I get irritated when people are going the wrong way down the grocery aisles, lol.

[Jinsai]

so, I was in quarantine with a significant other, and now I'm just camped out in the house w/ my parents, and I'm finding the whole thing kind of awful. I really want to go out in public, and I could now because stuff is "opening back up," but I really can't. I can't risk bringing anything back into the house because my parents are high risk. I'm actually moderate risk.

I'm just finding the whole "being by myself" thing to be rough. It's really just me and the dog. Doesn't help that I'm having these crazy crippling panic attacks, but I really feel the need to just talk to people right now, and this whole quarantine thing is making that impossible. I hate this year so much. I've chatted on the phone with people and on the internet, but I really feel the need to go out and talk with people in real life...

[piggy]

^^^

Can you arrange to do some safe meetups with people where you're both/all wearing masks and distancing? I know things are really bad in L.A., but if you know someone who's been carefully quarantining like you have, maybe you could get together.

[Jinsai]

^^^

Can you arrange to do some safe meetups with people where you're both/all wearing masks and distancing? I know things are really bad in L.A., but if you know someone who's been carefully quarantining like you have, maybe you could get together.

Maybe, but it feels like a pretty big undertaking. It would probably be worth it for everyone actually... Then again, I have friends who are going through stuff that laughs at my complaints. This really is an unbelievably awful time.

[piggy]

Maybe, but it feels like a pretty big undertaking. It would probably be worth it for everyone actually... Then again, I have friends who are going through stuff that laughs at my complaints. This really is an unbelievably awful time.

I'm sorry. This time and your personal situation are so sucky. Sending you huge hugs.

[Jinsai]

I'm sorry. This time and your personal situation are so sucky. Sending you huge hugs.

Thank you... though, like I was saying I guess, I'm reminded by some of my friends' situations that things could be so much worse. This year is cursed. Everyone I know is hurting. I actually found myself saying a prayer for a friend. I'm an atheist, I don't believe in supernatural powers, and I made myself put all that aside and pray for someone. This is a crazy time.

[zero]

This really is an unbelievably awful time.

Put that on a t-shirt and I will buy it. Life in general can be difficult in the best of times. The current pandemic situation just amplifies the difficulty of both ordinary and extraordinary aspects of existence. Going through a major life event during this crisis must really suck, because all the wild emotions are amplified.

As I have stated previously, the mental health impact of covid-19 is grossly underestimated, in my opinion. The impacts will be felt for a very long time.

[Magnetic]

so, I was in quarantine with a significant other, and now I'm just camped out in the house w/ my parents, and I'm finding the whole thing kind of awful. I really want to go out in public, and I could now because stuff is "opening back up," but I really can't. I can't risk bringing anything back into the house because my parents are high risk. I'm actually moderate risk.

I'm just finding the whole "being by myself" thing to be rough. It's really just me and the dog. Doesn't help that I'm having these crazy crippling panic attacks, but I really feel the need to just talk to people right now, and this whole quarantine thing is making that impossible. I hate this year so much. I've chatted on the phone with people and on the internet, but I really feel the need to go out and talk with people in real life...

I totally understand. I moved back to the US for family reasons. The idea was to fly my partner over this spring for a visit. I have no idea how the long term will play out....but basically I'm living alone with my mother. I can't socialize at all because of coronavirus, and I have no friends locally. I'm completely isolated, and I probably won't be able to see my partner until a vaccine is available. I'm alone, isolated, and will continue to be for the next year. I don't know what to do anymore. Most of my friends are in a different region of the US and don't really care about connecting or video chatting. It would me a lot to me even for a phone call, but since they're used to me being overseas, they don't care to connect.

[MrLobster]

[eversonpoe]

spent all day monday and all day today working on a 14-minute song (i had three songs mostly done for my upcoming album, this is the fourth). everything i've been working on lately has been on my baritone, which i have in drop-A...but i don't have a 5-string bass, so i have to tune the E down to an A and let me tell you, it's very floppy. i tried to record a clean bass part and it honestly just sounded like farts.

[MrLobster]

sounded like farts.

And you can never trust a wet sloppy floppy fart....