Make Homemade Preventive Masks

These are lovely and will help, but you don't need to be this talented.

Mask up! 

The COVID-19 invasion is spread by people like you and me. Once the virus enters, you become a COVID-19 mucus factory. You won’t know it unless you regularly test for it, which you can’t. 

Do us all a favor and wear a preventive mask. Stop the spread, or at least slow it down. I’ll do the same for you, and for all those who may be more at risk.

That covers who. Every one of us. Read on for the why, how, where and when.

(This post is a work in progress, published due to time sensitivity.  If you have answers to questions within, please comment!)

COVID-19 must enter your body to infect you, usually via eyes, nose, or mouth. Preventing access via these pathways is preferred.

Surgical masks are preventive — worn so surgeons don’t infect the patients being operated on and infectious patients. They are not designed to prevent healthy medical professionals from contracting the virus from ill patients.

N95/protective masks are designed to provide an airtight fit around the nose and mouth. The metal tab over the bridge of the nose allows the mask to shaped to the face. The mask uses a low restriction HEPA filter (High Efficiency Particulate Air), which traps very small particles larger than 0.3 microns. N95/Protective masks may have additional enhancements to protect the air inlet from pulling in aerosolized* viruses.

The size of the COVID-19 virus is 0.5 to 1.5 microns. <???seeing numbers down to 0.125. Also seeing that aerosolized virus is in droplets bigger… 0.3> Even so, the N95 masks are not perfectly protective, however, the data shows great utility for these disposable masks. The 0.3 micron filtering capability seems adequate in most cases, although the high number of infected health workers clearly indicates the need for better protection. It is not known if the infections in the medical community occur through failure of filtration or by other means such as poor fit, contact with infected surfaces, and so on.

Unfortunately, COVID-19 is most reproductive BEFORE and AFTER the patient’s immune system kicks in. This results in the virus being most infectious when showing the least symptoms of infection.

Preventive masks make great sense for a population where there are many asymptomatic carriers. These folks have no idea they are infected, but can and will spread the disease and infect others. The incubation period of the COVID-19 virus can be many days or even weeks long, so it is helpful to minimize the ejection of the virus from an infected lung. Even though not 100% effective at stopping the virus, preventive masks can reduce the pace and extent of the spread of infection in our shared environment.

The portion of the population that should be widely wearing preventive masks have been told not to wear masks by many authorities. This is mainly because ALL masks are needed by medical people — preventive as well as n95/protective due to short supplies. ALL are needed by medical people even though preventive masks are not protective. Medical people wearing preventive masks are only protecting others from the potential infections they may already have. We should all note that these dedicated and selfless people are working to save others while not fully protecting themselves.

Also note that their infected patients need preventive masks so the spread is minimized.

Medical authorities are telling the population not to buy preventive masks because the current hoarding behavior of toilet paper and sanitizer is evidence that the urge to protect oneself can overwhelm logically determined needs. Thus the behavior of a fearful few can create a shortage of masks needed by caregivers and known infected patients.

So the supply of preventive masks can’t currently meet the demand. Worse, the supply of n95/Protective masks is woefully inadequate for medical professionals.

We citizens NEED to be wearing protective masks while performing tasks like shopping for food. Social distancing and smart personal practices like not touching one’s face, particularly when in public, are adequate to minimize contagion. Even better, wearing preventive masks will further minimize the chance of spreading the virus from those unknowingly infected to those who are not. And since even the preventive masks are in short supply, we citizens help by making our own masks.

Call To Action: What we all can and should do.

• Everyone — Make and wear your own preventive mask, or use something close, like a neck warmer designed to be pulled up and over the nose and mouth. See below for links to mask making instructions.
• Wear your mask now. Don’t wait. You may be infected and not know it.
• Keep wearing your mask until the mask supply meets medical demand, or until the crisis has passed.
• Understand how to use the preventive mask you made. <tips or links?>
• Use your mask whenever you leave the house and will be in the presence of other people. For example, use it when you shop for food, or if you are among the essentials, when you go to work.
• Gloves can also help prevent the spread.
• When you return home, dispose of or sanitize your mask <how does this happen?> Be sure to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds.

You are not helpless and powerless. You can make a difference by making and wearing a mask, and thereby, protect others from what you may not know you are carrying. This is the time to take a few simple steps to protect the lives of others. And by doing so, maybe even your own.

Mask-making instructions:

• Quick but not dirty, from the CDC -   https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=40&v=tPx1yqvJgf4&feature=emb_logo
• Make a mask - one approach - https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/2020/04/04/coronavirus-face-mask-tips-how-make-fabric-instructions/2945209001/
• Make a mask - a similar approach -   https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/04/health/how-to-make-your-own-mask-wellness-trnd/index.html
• Fabrics - https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/making-your-own-face-mask-some-fabrics-work-better-others-n1175966
• Masks vs. No-masks: https://makezine.com/2020/04/03/the-benefits-of-masks-for-all-to-fight-covid-19/
• And a little humor, since smiles are good for your immune system.   https://www.demilked.com/funny-coronavirus-diy-masks/

Note that you do not need the materials and expertise shown.  Though not all created equal, some mask is generally better than none.  There are many other ways to make a mask.  Use what you have.

Use what you have!

*Aerosolized — Your body’s antibodies fight infection in part by producing greater amounts of mucous to nasal membranes to capture the viruses and take it to the stomach for an acid bath. But excess mucous produces sneezing, sore throat, coughing. These symptoms spray droplets of virus-containing mucous (gel droplets) into the air (they’ve been aerosolized). The threat they pose being in the air decreases rapidly from the time of the sneeze/cough but the COVID-19 virus has a fatty shell that allows it to persist on a nonporous surfaces like slick plastic or metal. Like invisible chicken wing fat getting sprayed into the air , the virus can stick around for awhile and be picked up later by unsuspecting people. 

(Authored with Ed Covannon.  Information gathered from many diverse sources.)

Thank You, Coronavirus!

Transmission Electron Microscopic image from the first US case (CDC/ C.S. Goldsmith and A. Tamin)

Well, not really the Coronavirus. Covid-19, you can hop back on your bat and fly straight to hell.

Better stated, thank you to all who toil at great risk to keep the disease at bay, to keep us connected, to make sure essential services are not disrupted.

Thank you to the overworked medical professionals who go into the danger zone every day, all day, to treat the sick. Those masks and garments are not 100% effective, so many, many people are risking their own health to treat those in need, multiple times every day! And a good way to depress the immune system and increase risk is to be overworked and tired.

Thank you to everyone who is pulling together by staying apart. Thank you to everyone flattening the curve by social distancing, and particularly to those who are quarantined so that we lower the probability of communicating the disease.

Thank you to those of you who are hurting due to your loss of paycheck. Thank you not because you are hurting, or because you don’t have work, but because you are doing the right thing by staying home and are suffering in support of everyone’s health.

Thank you to all who are maintaining the food supply. Farmers, truckers, supermarkets, and more who keep famine from being part of the pandemic.

Thank you to all the folks who work behind the scenes, and always have, to support our infrastructure. The power is still on, we can meet via the internet, our mail and packages are delivered. One can even fly and find a hotel room if travel is essential. And we’re not buried in mounds of trash.

Thank you to all working in warehouses, sending us the stuff we want so that we can stay comfortable and somewhat less than stir-crazy while we wait this out.

Thank you to all the skeleton crews keeping manufacturing and business on life support, awaiting the day when coronavirus control is real.

Thank you restaurateurs for continuing to provide meals as takeout. May you earn enough to tide you over to the huge rush that pent-up demand will deliver when this is over.

Our canine companions deliver a hearty thank you. There are many, many happy pooches now that we humans are steadfastly going for daily walks. We finally understand why our dogs get so excited when it’s time for their single daily escape from the house.

Thank you to all who are working to ameliorate the virus crisis, unfortunately unmentioned here.

And not a thank you, but a salute to those who contracted the virus and did not make it to recovery. If this is a war, you were the first wave, and hopefully we are learning from your example how to better treat others.

What to do? What to do?

You may have implemented some changes in your lifestyle recently.  Sometimes ya gotta do whatchya gotta do, eh?

"Stay well," seems to be the current favorite departing phrase.  And it is spoken with greater verve than ever before.

Regardless, it's difficult to stay well when one is shut in all day long, watching news reports of gloom and doom.  Gallows humor says your odds of dying are 100%.  It's just a matter of when.  Assuming living long in good health is your goal, hedge your bets and carry on with your life.

Exercise is part of staying well.  Fresh air doesn't hurt either.  As luck would have it, the two can be combined by going for a hike.  And hiking doesn't require you to be in proximity to anyone!  It is a completely non-contact activity, as long as you don't surprise any bears.  Additionally, one of the hiking jewels of New York State is within striking distance of a whole bunch of folks living near 42-41'06'' N, 077-57'33'' W.

The views are striking, even on a gray approaching-spring kind of day.
We headed north into the portion of the park
where the roads are closed for the winter.

Letchworth State Park rocks!

Stone structures permeate the park
thanks to the efforts of the Civilian Conservation Corps.
Perhaps the organization will be resurrected soon.

The Genesee River winds through the gorge it has cut.

Lots of great trails in the park,
and you need get close to no other people.
Or dogs.

The color of the river
was the inspiration for trade dress of
Genesee Cream Ale.

When we can huddle together once more,
a raft trip will be on the agenda.

They weren't tired after 2 miles.
This was a photo op stop.

The falls on Wolf Creek were quite impressive!
The timing was right to show the full flow
of what is commonly a trickle.

I've seen this look from these two before.
The thought bubbles say,
"What? Another picture?  We're here to hike!"
and
"Squirrel?  I didn't see a squirrel!"

The leprechauns decorated this wall on March 17.

This is a tough one to lock in visually.
The view is looking down from the top of the falls on Wolf Creek.
The frothy white visible at the top of the image
is where the creek is about to meet the river,
 WAY down there.

Hiking back southward, a final glimpse of the snaking river.

The hike was complete, but one must visit at least 2 of the 3 falls when they're so close.  The lower falls is a little less accessible, even if no less interesting.  Next time.

A nice look at the middle falls
from the grounds of the Glen Iris.
The sign said the restaurant would be opening on April 10.
Good luck with that.

Look at the SOT (Standard Old Tourist) sitting on the wall,
bisecting the view of the falls.
The plan was to present this in tandem
with the similar shot my father took of me 65 years ago,
but a disorganized photo collection is almost the same as no collection at all.

Any bets on the future of this birch tree,
still hanging on above the gorge just below the middle falls?

Here's a view of the upper falls,
with it's north facing snow mass and spiffy new bridge.
The arch is such an aesthetic improvement over the old trestle.
And you are correct, I couldn't find the trestle image either.

Love the frozen natural graphics.
Do you see the muscular Frankenstein?
How about the long-nosed golem?
The singing orangutan?

Take a hike in Letchworth soon,
or your opportunity will be mist.

Social Distancing? BAH !!!

We Techies SCOFF at your puny attempts.  Social distancing? We’ve been perfecting the technique for years!  No, wait, not just years, our entire lives!

Push the donuts and coffee under the door and just let us do our jobs.  Nothing has changed!

Where is Mr. Popular now?  I’ll tell you where. He’s in the hospital, fighting for his life, because he always glad-hands everyone he meets.  And he’s there with the people who think that face-to-face meetings are the key to progress.  

Those of us with ravaged faces, lacking in the social graces, prudently remained at home, inventing technology enabling cell phones (and computers).  Where would you be now, if not for us? Reading a paper book, that’s where. By candlelight.

WE ARE THE FUTURE!  Those of us who put electrical tape over selfie cameras are the new generation (selfie video is wasteful of bandwidth for those of us not part of the glitterati, who are all sick).  We can work effectively with minimal human contact. We invented email so we don’t have to talk directly to anyone, and so we can keep working without inhaling what you sneeze.

Learn to code!  Read schematics!  Close the door!

Join us. Stay healthy the Techie way!

Interpreted - Coronavirus prevention - advice to the public

There is no shortage of advice on how to prevent COVID-19 from making you sick.  Who provides the best?  Perhaps the World Health Organization is near the top.

For your own safety, please read this culturally-adjusted (for residents of the USA and maybe Canada, eh?) interpretation of their guidelines . 

There's the little mother infector.
Image courtesy of the CDC

Wash your hands frequently

Regularly and thoroughly clean your hands with an alcohol-based hand rub or wash them with soap and water.  Or douse them in gasoline and light them up. Make sure a pail of uninfected water is nearby.

Why? Well, duh!  Washing your hands with soap and water or using alcohol-based hand rub or gasoline immolation kills viruses that may be on your hands.  And you know where those hands have been. Shame on you.

Maintain social distancing

Maintain at least 1 meter (3 feet) distance between yourself and anyone who is coughing or sneezing.  Better yet, stay at least that far away from everyone. You never know when some low-life is going to explode into a coughing fit.  Shouldn’t be that hard for most of us, given how attractive we are. Wear your haz-mat suit if you must ride the subway.

Why? When someone coughs or sneezes they spray boogers and small liquid droplets from their nose or mouth which may contain virus. If you are too close, like less than a kilometer (0.62 mile), you can breathe in the droplets, including the COVID-19 virus if the person coughing has the disease.  And who wants to suck in a stranger’s fluids in any case? Or even most loved ones?

Avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth

Stop picking your nose!  Mom was right. Besides, you really don’t want a lifetime of nostril-enlarging picking to create this big bulbous honker in the middle of your face, do you?

Why? Hands touch many surfaces and can pick up viruses. Did you wash your hands after that quick trip to the restroom?  Once contaminated, hands can transfer the virus to your eyes, nose or mouth. From there, the virus is on the fast track to enter your body and can make you sick.  Little bastards.

Practice respiratory hygiene

Make sure you, and the people around you, follow good respiratory hygiene. This means breathe as little as possible.  If you must breathe, be sure to cover your mouth and nose with your bent elbow or tissue when you cough or sneeze. You can buy Bent-Elbow-Tissues at CVS or Walgreens. Then dispose of the used tissue immediately by using the remaining gasoline and matches.

Why? Droplets spread virus. By following good respiratory hygiene you protect the people around you from viruses such as cold, flu and COVID-19, even if they don’t really deserve it.  And don’t be tempted to go sneeze on Mom in the nursing home. She’s the one who was on the money about nose-picking, right?

If you have fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical care early

Stay home if you feel unwell. If you have a fever, cough and difficulty breathing, seek medical attention, but call in advance. They really don’t want to see you, and will try to get you to medicate yourself in the comfort of your own home. Follow the directions of your local health authority.  Someone may be sent in a haz-mat suit to take your keys.

Why? National and local authorities will have the most up to date information on the situation in your area. Calling in advance will allow your health care provider to quickly direct you to the right health facility, or to build a 40-ft high wall around your house or apartment with funds from the federal budget. This will also protect you and help prevent spread of viruses and other infections.

Never buy anything from China

Hey, you never know what you’re getting.  It’s your patriotic duty to buy more expensive and uninfected American-made goods.

Why? The Vice-President has stated that some people are saying that infected Chinese factory workers are breathing into products slated to be shipped to America.  This is doubly troubling considering that the Chinese could have contained this outbreak if they didn’t deny it to begin with.

If you’re over 60, and particularly if you have underlying health conditions, prepare your will

Always a good policy to be prepared.  The odds say that you’ll be OK, but are you really sure?  When was the last time you won anything?

Why? A well written will can prevent a post-mortem fight over your assets, which will certainly happen in an infected courtroom where court-officer coughing fits will expose all your heirs.  Don’t be lazy. Do your part to prevent the spread of the infection.

8 Years And Counting

Calendar page courtesy of French Toast Prints

If my future is the same as Dad’s history, I have 8 years until the brilliant functions of my mind begin to dull.  OK, maybe the average functions will fall below the midline. And OK, maybe accelerate, not begin. Dull is the active word.

In 8 years, I’ll reach the age at which Dad’s organizational and speech abilities went into noticeable decline.  I’m taking steps to delay that onset, but my crystal ball is less than perfect. I don’t time the stock market well, either.

Smoking for 55 years could not have helped Dad very much.  I never developed a fondness for tobacco, so avoiding that pitfall was easy.  Let’s not talk about the Scotch.

Though Mom and Dad were physically active for most of their lives, that all changed after Mom took a bad fall while playing tennis.  One ailment led to another. The culmination was serious back surgery from which she never fully recovered. At that point, Dad greatly increased the time spent as supportive caregiver, and their activities became much more sedentary.  Walking their little dog around the block became Dad’s cardio for the day.

My good fortune includes the fact that my wife is extremely active, only occasionally taking a day off from her workout routine.  I just need to be able to keep up with her when we snowshoe, paddle, or walk the same little dog for miles. And she doesn't play tennis. Lucky me!

Not being the most trusting person in the world, Dad kept all the bills and receipts for each establishment neatly organized in box after box, each corresponding to a specific year.  All the cancelled checks were in other boxes, sorted by number.

This was the process without variation up until the year of demarcation.  The box for that year had some of the receipts missing, and the bills were not stapled together after being put in chronological order.  The next year, the bills and receipts were not sorted at all. They were all mixed together in the box, and the checks in the other box were not in order.  

There was still a box the year after that, but everything was just tossed in.  I don’t believe he even opened most of the bank statements. Thereafter, the records were only a large pile without any attempt at organization.  Junk mail drowned the documents of significance.

Get the idea?

After denial evaporated, when I finally realized that I needed to be involved in their finances, the downward progression revealed itself.  The financial records documented the onset of Dad’s Alzheimer’s. Months of after-work effort evenings were required to unravel the mess.

In my case, this won’t be a problem.  I’ve never been organized, so I can’t lose organizational ability.  Score one for chaos!

Dad’s world collapsed into a much smaller space as he and Mom aged.  His last attempt at learning something new was woodcarving. The loon-feather brooches he made were quite beautiful.  But he put the knives and paints down soon after, being more concerned with the routine affairs of daily living than forestalling mental decline by exercising his brain muscle.

Embracing new things is on my to do list.  I’ve switched to brushing teeth with my left hand.  Try it yourself, but be careful. Your eye will recover. 

I tried learning a few words of French. C’est de la merde, but at least it was an attempt.  

My complicit wife gave me a drone at Christmas.  The controller was clearly designed by people who previously perfected those two-handed video game controls I’ve never used.  It must have 15 knobs and buttons! Just recently, I’ve finally summoned the courage to take the drastic step of leaving beginner mode. Amazing how fast that thing can fly out of sight, particularly while you're looking for the return-to-home panic button. 

The bottom line is that if I persist long enough to actually learn to fly the damn thing with some semblance of skill, a great number of new neural pathways will have been formed.  That oughta help.

And this is without the bells and whistles

added when the cell phone is connected.

Clever to use the phone as the cockpit view screen.

It would be great to prevent history from repeating itself.  I actually like my children, and hope not to punish them unknowingly.  If they must be punished, it’s much better to appreciate the task, don’t you agree?  Hence having things in order by a certain age is also on the to do list. And maybe finding documents in the wrong places will alert my addled brain to unwanted changes, if I don’t rationalize and blame my wife.  Again.

Dad knew what was happening.  The only time he ever asked for real assistance beyond manual labor, Dad handed me a folder.  He thought it contained the financial records for his household, though it was only an incomplete sample.  “I need help,” he stated. “I just can’t do this anymore.”

Touching and sad at the same time.  Whether he grasped the full significance or not, he knew things had changed.  Better to acknowledge and adapt than to rail against or deny. Like Dad tried to do, even though it was well past the time when the finances had moved into my hands.

Even if this is the path I’m on, I’d be a fool to proclaim, “Woe is me.”  The joys of having lived long with my wife and family, and alongside generations of great people, far outweigh eventual mental diffusion and a distasteful end.  And I’m sticking with that story, at least until it happens. And since I may not know if it happens, I suppose I’m just sticking with that story.

Now that the mental exercise of writing this is complete, it’s time to get out there to stretch my legs and get some physical exercise.  At least for now, I’m pretty sure I’ll know which way to head to return.

Or maybe someone can use the drone to find me.

If The Snow Shoe Fits

The forecast called for frigid beauty.

It was a sunny day with bright white snow under a clear blue sky
and only a gentle wind, so most of the snow remains on the branches.
Can you think of any better contrast?

The amount becomes "significant"
when the snow on the railing is higher than it is wide.

Yep, gotta get out there to enjoy the winter beauty.

Snow and ice and everything nice.

Red, white, and blue, with a little green added
for the Italian-Americans.

The ice was probably frozen harder away from the edge
where the snow had insulated the flow from the recent cold.
FYI, snowshoes coated with ice are really, really heavy.

It's good to have a warm place to return to
after being outside in single Fahrenheit digits,
even if one warms up from walking in weighted shoes.

Later that same day,
over the still-open channel,
the reverse sunset illuminate the tops of the trees.

In the opposite direction, all that whiteness turns golden.

And the sky is no longer blue.