Coronavirus changes that you will continue to adopt ...

[Stirchley]

even when (and if) we get through this pandemic.

I was thinking about this in church yesterday. (Yes, my mind wanders horribly.)

For sure I will always use hand sanitizer in future. Never ever gonna change that now. And I will never stop being vigilant about using it coming & going from stores, church, etc.

I might even continue mask wearing. I always thought Asians were nuts for wearing masks pre-coronavirus, but they were right to do so.

What about you? Any permanent changes for you?

[Yoda]

Probably working from home a couple of days a week, since I have the option and I've found it pretty enjoyable when not constant (going in occasionally is very helpful on many different fronts).

[Stirchley]

⬆️ Definitely a lot of people are gonna do this or want to do this. It’s gonna change the entire concept of “going to work”. Some good changes, some very bad. Fewer lunch crowds are hurting restaurants, parking lot attendants are losing their jobs, all kinds of impact.


Yoda, how is your hand?

[Austruck]

I'm going to stay in my house as much as possible and not come in direct contact with other humans.
Oh wait, I already did that. :D

Actually, I will probably continue to use the Walmart grocery pickup feature... and Instacart/Aldi delivery service... and Amazon Pantry. I can easily "shop" on Walmart's pickup site in minutes, even late at night, and then just pop over to the store and let them load everything into my car for me. So easy, and it doesn't cost anything extra. I started out concerned that maybe I'd get terrible produce/fresh veggies, etc., but I have been amazed at the stuff they pick out. Top notch, the best stuff. It's a complete time-saver for me compared to meandering around the actual store.

And yes, Yoda, how IS your hand??

[John McClane]

I will continue to despise humans. :yup:

[Citizen Rules]

Good topic!

Let's see, Coronavirus changes that I will continue to adopt...

Mostly my life is the same as it was, except I wear a mask, eye protection and gloves when I go out. One thing that changed is I won't be eating out ever again or even buying fast food. Not that I did that much, but it cost too much anyway so now that I'm in the habit of not doing it, it's out. Oh and picking my nose while driving, that's out too!

[Stirchley]

Actually, I will probably continue to use the Walmart grocery pickup feature... and Instacart/Aldi delivery service... and Amazon Pantry. I can easily "shop" on Walmart's pickup site in minutes, even late at night, and then just pop over to the store and let them load everything into my car for me. So easy, and it doesn't cost anything extra. I started out concerned that maybe I'd get terrible produce/fresh veggies, etc., but I have been amazed at the stuff they pick out. Top notch, the best stuff. It's a complete time-saver for me compared to meandering around the actual store

Only used Instacart when I have been sick & alone & couldn’t make it to the end of the street convenience store.

I don’t go often to the supermarket, but I still prefer to go myself.

Glad this is working for you and, no doubt, many others are doing what you are doing & will continue to do so.

I will continue to despise humans. :yup:

LOL.

Mostly my life is the same as it was, except I wear a mask, eye protection and gloves when I go out. One thing that changed is I won't be eating out ever again or even buying fast food.

I always forget gloves. And I have boxes of them. Annoying. And I forgot my mask too this morning.

Interesting that you won’t eat out again. I dare say many other people won’t either.

[Yoda]

Hand's decent, thanks for asking. :) Still pretty stiff, but they warned me the swelling would take weeks to go down. Not much pain or anything, except in the knuckles, even in the finger next to it since I've had to grip things with that finger a lot more. That's basically the only thing: tightness in the finger, sore knuckles, and a weird grip. But moment to moment there's not a lot of pain or discomfort any more.

[cricket]

I'll go back to normal

[Austruck]

We've eaten out a few times. Those places have made a bunch of changes: paper disposable menus, employees all wearing masks and/or gloves and/or face shields, every other table not in use, stuff like that. We've felt safe eating in places that adopt these sorts of policies. But we don't do it often.

We've done the fast food drive-thru thing about the same amount as before, especially when it was the *only* option if you didn't want to cook. And I hate cooking, so... :D

Last night we ordered contact-free delivery of pizza. That's crazy-easy -- just order online and include the tip, leave instructions about how/where to put the pizzas, and it all shows up a half hour later on your front porch.

Our numbers here are fairly low, so I just don't feel overly concerned and will continue to wear masks where asked and follow the protocols in place at various places of business.

The biggest annoyance here is that the local post office (where we rent a post office box) now has curtailed its 24/7 access to its lobby, so we can only get our mail during their reduced hours, which includes *no* evenings and not at all on Sundays. Still trying to remember that since we used to check routinely in the evenings and weekends.

[Stirchley]

Last night we ordered contact-free delivery of pizza. That's crazy-easy -- just order online and include the tip, leave instructions about how/where to put the pizzas, and it all shows up a half hour later on your front porch.

The biggest annoyance here is that the local post office (where we rent a post office box) now has curtailed its 24/7 access to its lobby, so we can only get our mail during their reduced hours, which includes *no* evenings and not at all on Sundays. Still trying to remember that since we used to check routinely in the evenings and weekends.

The pizza delivery sounds amazingly simple.

Don’t have a POB, but one thing that has returned that I noticed today is we don’t have to make an appointment for a bank teller now. (Seemed ridiculous at my branch of WEBSTER since the ladies sit behind bulletproof glass, but, whatever.) Now we can just walk inside the bank like we used to do. (ATM was always between the front door & the bank interior.) I very rarely enter a bank, but I was glad to see something return to normal.

[Stirchley]

I don’t think I want Sunday Mass to go back to how it was before. I assume others don’t either. We all wear masks & hand-sanitize like crazy, which is all over the church. Only every-other-pew is open. Entire seating area is sanitized after every Mass.

No offering of the gifts, no singing, waving the sign of the peace with no physical contact, communion by hand only, etc., etc. and it’s all over in 45 minutes. None of the ceremonies we used to have that could drag on for 30 minutes or more.

I kinda like it this way.

[doubledenim]

Oh and picking my nose while driving, that's out too!

The only reason I have hand-sani in my car, is so that I can pick n’ drive.

[John McClane]

I haven't been to church in awhile but, if I was a regular, I'd want this mess over ASAP. If you ain't swapping bodily discharges with random strangers you're doing it wrong. For real.

[Chypmunk]

Can't really think of anything I do now that I didn't do before and would deem worthwhile in a more 'normal' environment.

[Stirchley]

If you ain't swapping bodily discharges with random strangers you're doing it wrong. For real.

So that’s why the Catholic Church congregations are slipping!

[Citizen Rules]

Can't really think of anything I do now that I didn't do before and would deem worthwhile in a more 'normal' environment.Posting green list...:p

[Chypmunk]

Posting green list...:p
I'll have probably stopped doing that well before any return to 'normal' :D

[Austruck]

I don’t think I want Sunday Mass to go back to how it was before. I assume others don’t either. We all wear masks & hand-sanitize like crazy, which is all over the church. Only every-other-pew is open. Entire seating area is sanitized after every Mass.

No offering of the gifts, no singing, waving the sign of the peace with no physical contact, communion by hand only, etc., etc. and it’s all over in 45 minutes. None of the ceremonies we used to have that could drag on for 30 minutes or more.

I kinda like it this way.

Now you're starting to sound like a Reformed Presbyterian. :D We have every other pew roped off now, most of us wear masks, but we *do* still sing. (We feel God expects singing in his worship. It's kinda a thing.) :D That would explain why there are so many masks... although with every other pew roped off, you're always more than six feet from anybody. We don't have a huge congregation to begin with, and we are still also doing online Zoom-type services live, so folks who don't feel ready can worship from home. I did that this past weekend because I'd been at a gun range pistol class the previous weekend, where safety instructors were yelling in my ear since we were all wearing ear protection.

We also have hand sanitizer "stations" around the building so you can use those if you didn't bring your own. I feel safe at church when I go. We even had communion in early August, though we don't do it like the Catholics anyway. (Individual little plastic cups, individual little pieces of Scottish shortbread.) I also felt safe taking communion. The protocols seem wise, and the options (mask/no mask, home/in person) mean there is something for everyone right now.

[John McClane]

So to be a little more serious: I will probably stop caring about others reactions, which is kinda a good thing. Not having that lower part of the face makes reading people difficult. So it’ll just be easier to become a curmudgeon.

I greatly miss eating out and water fountains. I think the loss of water fountains is going to cripple our supply of potable water even more. I’m not seeing any signs yet that they will bounce back.

[MovieGal]

I'll go back to normal

When were you normal? :D

[MovieGal]

I'm not sure what I will continue to do. I have to wear a mask while at work when I am not at my desk. I just continue to use the mask after work when I need to go out. I stick with the same restaurants and the same stores since the beginning of the pandemic. Other than going to my mom's or my sister's houses, I don't go anywhere else near their side of town or anywhere other than whereabouts I live.

[MovieGal]

I will continue to despise humans. :yup:

I think you and I need this one...

https://res.cloudinary.com/teepublic/image/private/s--uYufjeTP--/c_crop,x_10,y_10/c_fit,h_405/c_crop,g_north_west,h_460,w_733,x_-186,y_-28/l_upload:v1589317030:production:blanks:zwlstpaxcoxnwwfdagtz/fl_layer_apply,g_north_west,x_-450,y_-368/b_rgb:000000/c_limit,f_jpg,h_630,q_90,w_630/v1591239123/production/designs/10964271_0.jpg

[gbgoodies]

We've stopped eating out, and it will probably be a very long time before we go back to a restaurant, or even fast food. The only food or drink we've bought while out since March is Big Gulps and Slurpees at 7-11. But on the bright side, we've found a lot of great "quick and easy" and "5-minute microwave meals" recipes on the internet, so we'll be trying some new meals a lot in the future. :)

We used to go to buffet restaurants a lot, but it's unlikely that we'll ever feel safe eating in a restaurant where customers serve themselves anymore, so I doubt we'll ever go back to a buffet restaurant again. :(

We used to go to Dave & Busters a lot, but they still haven't reopened. I doubt they'll find a safe way to reopen any time soon, so we probably won't be going there for a long time either. :(

We'll probably continue to keep hand sanitizers and wipes with us whenever we go out, and I doubt we'll go back to shaking hands with people when this is all over.

[gbgoodies]

I think you and I need this one...

https://res.cloudinary.com/teepublic/image/private/s--uYufjeTP--/c_crop,x_10,y_10/c_fit,h_405/c_crop,g_north_west,h_460,w_733,x_-186,y_-28/l_upload:v1589317030:production:blanks:zwlstpaxcoxnwwfdagtz/fl_layer_apply,g_north_west,x_-450,y_-368/b_rgb:000000/c_limit,f_jpg,h_630,q_90,w_630/v1591239123/production/designs/10964271_0.jpg


I love this! :lol:

[Powdered Water]

I'm definitely going to be picking my nose in my vehicle more. What a great idea! Whoever said that is a genius.

[doubledenim]

You can scratch your brain with that feeng.

[Yoda]

We've stopped eating out, and it will probably be a very long time before we go back to a restaurant, or even fast food. The only food or drink we've bought while out since March is Big Gulps and Slurpees at 7-11. But on the bright side, we've found a lot of great "quick and easy" and "5-minute microwave meals" recipes on the internet, so we'll be trying some new meals a lot in the future. :)
This may not be your reasoning, but I'll piggyback on this and say that the pandemic has definitely made it clear how little most of us "need" a lot of fast food or restaurant craving items. There's stuff I miss, and I'm sure I'd like it, but on those occasions where I've been able to stop myself from having stuff for a couple of months, I've found it does sorta break the spell it has on you. It comes right back if you have it again, of course. ;) But I imagine a lot of people have gone a month or two without that stuff and realized "hey, I guess it's not so bad not to have that."

[Austruck]

This may not be your reasoning, but I'll piggyback on this and say that the pandemic has definitely made it clear how little most of us "need" a lot of fast food or restaurant craving items. There's stuff I miss, and I'm sure I'd like it, but on those occasions where I've been able to stop myself from having stuff for a couple of months, I've found it does sorta break the spell it has on you. It comes right back if you have it again, of course. ;) But I imagine a lot of people have gone a month or two without that stuff and realized "hey, I guess it's not so bad not to have that."

Food-wise, I totally agree with you. But since I hate cooking, it was really tough there in the beginning when everything was closed because that meant cooking ALL THE TIME. And remember, since I'm the homebody in our relationship, I also cook breakfasts and pack lunches for work. And I hate doing that stuff, so it's been vexing to be not only stuck in the house so much, but stuck inside doing the stuff I like the least. :D

But yes, we are inadvertently eating healthier when we're here (most of the time, of course), since ordering via Instacart, Amazon Pantry, and Walmart grocery pickup means more thoughtful choices and virtually no impulse purchases. I grab my shopping list, sit at the computer and type in each item on the site, add it to the cart, then checkout. No alluring packaging staring at me from the aisle as I waltz around the store...

[Chypmunk]

No alluring packaging staring at me from the aisle as I waltz around the store...
If'n'when things get more back to normal you could try foxtrotting rather than waltzing as you may find you move through the aisles that bit faster ;)

[gbgoodies]

This may not be your reasoning, but I'll piggyback on this and say that the pandemic has definitely made it clear how little most of us "need" a lot of fast food or restaurant craving items. There's stuff I miss, and I'm sure I'd like it, but on those occasions where I've been able to stop myself from having stuff for a couple of months, I've found it does sorta break the spell it has on you. It comes right back if you have it again, of course. ;) But I imagine a lot of people have gone a month or two without that stuff and realized "hey, I guess it's not so bad not to have that."


For me, it's not just about not craving fast food anymore. It's more about having to worry that the person making the food could be positive for the virus, but not know it because they're asymptomatic. How do I know if they're following all of the protocols properly, and even if they are, is there still a chance that they could pass the virus to their customers? It's just not worth it to me to take that chance.

[gbgoodies]

Food-wise, I totally agree with you. But since I hate cooking, it was really tough there in the beginning when everything was closed because that meant cooking ALL THE TIME. And remember, since I'm the homebody in our relationship, I also cook breakfasts and pack lunches for work. And I hate doing that stuff, so it's been vexing to be not only stuck in the house so much, but stuck inside doing the stuff I like the least. :D

But yes, we are inadvertently eating healthier when we're here (most of the time, of course), since ordering via Instacart, Amazon Pantry, and Walmart grocery pickup means more thoughtful choices and virtually no impulse purchases. I grab my shopping list, sit at the computer and type in each item on the site, add it to the cart, then checkout. No alluring packaging staring at me from the aisle as I waltz around the store...


I hate cooking too, but I've found a lot of easy-to-make microwave recipes on the internet. There's very little actual cooking involved, and most of them have a prep time that's under 5 minutes. Plus, you can experiment with them to make them more to your own tastes than the way they're listed.

This is one of the videos that I found a few days ago. I have all the ingredients for the pizza, and I'm planning to try it later this week. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eslIRo9als

[Stirchley]

we *do* still sing.

We have all the safety protocols that you have. I just didn’t mention them all.

No, singing is strictly forbidden. Actually last Sunday our female cantor returned (sans choir), which was nice. She sang from the organ loft & sounded in fine voice. I was disappointed that our priest did not acknowledge her return so we could all applause her. Very strange omission IMO.

So to be a little more serious: I will probably stop caring about others reactions, which is kinda a good thing. Not having that lower part of the face makes reading people difficult. So it’ll just be easier to become a curmudgeon.

I greatly miss eating out and water fountains. I think the loss of water fountains is going to cripple our supply of potable water even more. I’m not seeing any signs yet that they will bounce back.

I’m doing the same thing. People are so annoying & I am starting to speak up, which I usually don’t do.

Water fountains? Do you mean drinking water fountains? Ugh, always avoided those before COVID & not gonna go near one ever again.

[Austruck]

We have all the safety protocols that you have. I just didn’t mention them all.

No, singing is strictly forbidden. Actually last Sunday our female cantor returned (sans choir), which was nice. She sang from the organ loft & sounded in fine voice. I was disappointed that our priest did not acknowledge her return so we could all applause her. Very strange omission IMO.

Our denomination sings psalms only, a cappella. (No hymns.) It's a vital part of our worship, and since we feel God commands singing in his worship, we've taken extra efforts to be sure we can keep singing safely.

Your cantor would have been beautiful to hear, especially after an absence of any singing at all. (It should have at least been acknowledged in the church bulletin or something!)

Glad you are staying safe!!

[Stirchley]

Glad you are staying safe!!

Thanks. Same to you.


Another thing I didn’t mention that I will continue to use are handi-wipes, baby wipes, etc. I got rather addicted to using these.

[Citizen Rules]

I'll probably continue to stock pile and buy in larger quantities than I use to. So far this has worked to my advantage as I'm able to buy a case of beer whenever we go to Costco, just in case there's ever a beer shortage:)

[Stirchley]

... just in case there's ever a beer shortage:)

Now that would really tip my husband over the edge. :rolleyes:

[Citizen Rules]

Now that would really tip my husband over the edge. :rolleyes:I limit myself to one 12 ounce beer before dinner and after the work day is done. I wish the work day was done right now! But it's not, I'm just on a break.

[John McClane]

Water fountains? Do you mean drinking water fountains? Ugh, always avoided those before COVID & not gonna go near one ever again.
Yup, drinking water fountains. I like legit depend on them. I was drinking from them before they cut them off. And I think it’s insane to cut out something that we haven’t even studied.

Like no one knows if Covid spreads via water fountains so why are we closing them? Lack of sense from everyone involved in this mess. The longer it goes on the more I disbelieve everything they are saying.

And not getting a haircut has been working out great. I think I will keep that up. :yup:

[Stirchley]

I limit myself to one 12 ounce beer before dinner and after the work day is done. I wish the work day was done right now! But it's not, I'm just on a break.

Life’s too short. Treat yourself to a beer right now.

Yup, drinking water fountains. I like legit depend on them. I was drinking from them before they cut them off. And I think it’s insane to cut out something that we haven’t even studied. Like no one knows if Covid spreads via water fountains so why are we closing them?

I wasn’t thinking about Covid, per se. I don’t drink water from a drinking fountain because people’s mitts & mouths have been all over them. So very yuck. And I never came across a fountain where the water wasn’t pukey warm. Ugh.

[Stirchley]

A funny thing we now have at church. At least it’s funny to me. Holy Water was totally removed from the fonts months ago. But I noticed a while back we now have Holy Water dispensers the same as we have sanitizer dispensers. Leaving aside the fact that I have never managed to extract even a drop of holy water from these dispensers (am I doing it wrong?), it so reminds me of a Fellini movie. One of his movies - Roma - featured a fashion show runway of liturgical garments. It was so absurd & the holy water dispensers strike me the same way.

[John McClane]

I wasn’t thinking about Covid, per se. I don’t drink water from a drinking fountain because people’s mitts & mouths have been all over them. So very yuck. And I never came across a fountain where the water wasn’t pukey warm. Ugh.It is a God given right to have access to cool potable water. I am a public water connoisseur.*

I’ve had water from a lot of far off places and our public water system has become a joke because of bottled water and bad interactions much like what you’re saying about warm water. I know precisely what you mean.*

I once made the mistake of drinking from a PetSmart fountain and dear Lord to this day that was the nasty worst experience I ever had. I was sooo parched but I learned. To this day I have a standing rule of not using pet store fountains because there are some nasty ass people that will let their dog jump up and drink.

[doubledenim]

Did they ever line you up in elementary school, so that you could all drink from the fountain?

Remember the kid that would make out it with? Yeah.

[John McClane]

Did they ever line you up in elementary school, so that you could all drink from the fountain?

Remember the kid that would make out it with? Yeah.Where I’m from we call that flavor. :rotfl:

[Stirchley]

I’ve had water from a lot of far off places and our public water system has become a joke because of bottled water and bad interactions much like what you’re saying about warm water. I know precisely what you mean.*

The very same day there was a N.Y. Times article about drinking fountains. How they are being put off limits now. What’s really icky is returning to an air-conditioned building & the water circulating the building hasn’t been “refreshed” since the start of this pandemic. This is what causes Legionnaire’s disease. So gross.

[John McClane]

Indeed, they have already found legionella in a bunch of public schools after reopening. I mean, sure COVID is bad, but Legionnaire's disease is for real. We know exactly what causes it and how dangerous it is...yet we're OK with putting ourselves at risk to maybe/kinda/not really do anything to protect from COVID. Like I said...lack of sense.

And if we really want to crunch numbers this is straight from CDC's website.

"About 1 out of every 10 people who gets sick with Legionnaires' disease will die due to complications from their illness. For those who get Legionnaires' disease during a stay in a healthcare facility, about 1 out of every 4 will die."

[scarletxxxx4]

im supposed to travel to brazil but i have to delay it because of the corona virus

[Stirchley]

im supposed to travel to brazil but i have to delay it because of the corona virus

Heck, no, wise decision. Nobody should go to Brazil right now.

[Stirchley]

I think some things that we now consider temporary will become permanent in 2021. Minimally-occupied office buildings, for example, will be the norm. Where I live there are huge empty parking lots. The companies are still working, but whatever staff is in the building now parks exclusively in indoor parking. I don’t see this changing next year.

Especially in a big city like NYC, this has a huge adverse impact on neighboring businesses that feed off office workers. Restaurants, bars, shoe repairers, dry cleaners, newsstands, beauty parlors, nail salons, etc., etc.

[Nausicaä]

The companies are still working, but whatever staff is in the building now parks exclusively in indoor parking

Umm wouldn't it be safer virus wise to park outdoors in the fresh air... Or did i read that wrong. :dizzy:

[Stirchley]

Umm wouldn't it be safer virus wise to park outdoors in the fresh air... Or did i read that wrong. :dizzy:

I knew I would mess that up. I meant in a covered parking lot rather than uncovered. Covered, but it’s still open to the air. Where the bigwigs used to park, but now any employee can park there.

[EddieM]

Yeah I think the outdoor parking is safer. Although not so good for rains.

[Stirchley]

Yeah I think the outdoor parking is safer. Although not so good for rains.

Outdoor parking lots are closed. No sense to park outside if there is space inside. And it eliminates the need for a security guard.

[Cobra]

Working out every morning. It helps wake me up usually

[hell_storm2004]

Try not to bulk cook. But I say that now, can't say I will be doing it when the offices open.