Welfare check-in: How are people faring with the shelter in place orders?

[StevenGuthmiller]

2 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

They are not! New York is opening up based on risk, as is Pennsylvania where I live. Most of my state went to yellow, with the counties closest to Philly and NJ still on red and locked down. It’s based on proximity and risk.

Fair enough.

But then I can say that they are doing it differently in your state than mine!

In Minnesota it makes no difference if you own a restaurant in downtown Minneapolis, or in Two Harbors, you're out of business, which is absolutely stupid, because they have had a whopping 1 case in Lake county, and nobody is going to be commuting to Lake county!

My whole point is that the idiotic "one size fits all" responses of some of these governors requires exactly one brain cell.

 

You're right, proximity and risk should be factors in making decisions about peoples lives and livelihoods.

Unfortunately, in far too many places, there is very little risk, and proximity is a non issue, yet those people's livelihoods are not even being considered.

They're just lumped in with what's happening in the metro areas and basically left to rot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steve

[Tom Geiger]

And for the record, both my wife and I are not getting paid, living on savings. This will affect our retirement, trying to take it all in stride. 

This weekend we had TWO offers to attend parties in New Jersey. My wife’s reckless friend who cannot sit still put out an open call invite to our circle of friends. That includes two cancer patients on chemo. Her daughter living in the home is a nurse taking care of Covid patients. 

We did talk with our two daughters about getting together and we all agreed that we had over two months of quarantine invested and didn’t want to screw that up. So we are home today. I have a big pack of ribs and a pack of chicken legs (wings are a rare commodity) so I will fire up the grill. And I’ll make one of my famous pasta salads. I may even put an hour or two in on a model. Doing the best we can! 
 

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

6 hours ago, Tom Geiger said:

And for the record, both my wife and I are not getting paid, living on savings. This will affect our retirement, trying to take it all in stride...

For the most part, I've shied away from giving any opinions on this topic, as the potential to ignite a firestorm is very real.

That said, the unkind truth is that, of the approximately 36 MILLION Americans unemployed by this mess, the great majority have no substantial savings, particularly the younger and lower-skilled members of the work force.

Many shuttered businesses will never reopen, many jobs will never return, and making a blanket portrayal of those who want to get back to work as "reckless, selfish, and cowardly", as has been heard in several high-profile comments nationally is simply beyond comprehension.

My current home state has been cautiously reopening for several weeks, and the fear-mongering predictions of catastrophe in Georgia's media-tagged "experiment in human sacrifice" have failed to materialize...though one comment from someone who should really know better stated that there was a 40% rise in new cases, an outright lie, easily discredited.

We are NOT all in the same boat, as was noted here earlier, and those who have a comfortable cushion, safety net, or sufficient government help to survive through this unprecedented mess relatively easily would do well to consider the millions of American citizens who don't have it so good.

EDIT: I include myself in the "those who have a comfortable cushion, safety net, or sufficient government help to survive through this unprecedented mess relatively easily", as I've been able to work full time and haven't been sick. I'm deeply concerned for those who aren't as fortunate.

I will also stay away from voicing or endorsing any opinions regarding the handling of the pandemic or the lockdown, as it's obviously a very politicizing situation at this time.

 

Edited May 25, 2020 by Ace-Garageguy

[tbill]

Well, luckily the weather has finally come around, so I’ve been getting outside a lot more. Golf courses have been opened up and up until the other day, I’d been walking the course ( just started using carts again). Had I been stuck inside due to weather for much longer, I think it would have really got to me. I have a large yard, so even if I couldn’t hit the golf course, I still had room at home to wander about outside. I just try to take things one day at a time. Hope you all are doing well, and hopefully soon we can find some sense of normalcy.

[Tom Geiger]

This week my wife and I thought it would be good to get our table set up on the deck so we could dine out there for a change of pace...

So I power washed the deck as first step. Now I need to run the sander over some spots, then put a fresh coat of paint on it.. of course it’s rained every day since!  ?

[Rob Hall]

Been working in my yard in my spare time..planting shrubbery, tending to the existing shrubs and trees, using the fire pit in the evenings and doing some grilling...finally looking like Spring out..love the green. 

[Joe Handley]

We’re back in the office Monday, first time back since mid March.

[tbill]

I just got the call that I’m back June 8th, my last day of work was March 20th.....

 

[tbill]

3 hours ago, Rob Hall said:

Been working in my yard in my spare time..planting shrubbery, tending to the existing shrubs and trees, using the fire pit in the evenings and doing some grilling...finally looking like Spring out..love the green. 

That’s a lovely view right there .

[Rob Hall]

3 minutes ago, tbill said:

That’s a lovely view right there .

It's my happy place..spend time out there w/ the dogs, I do my work on my laptop on the covered patio when the weather is nice.    I do miss having a pool like my previous house,  but I may add a hot tub eventually..plan to extend some stones/bricks out from the patio eventually. 

Edited May 29, 2020 by Rob Hall

[espo]

Spread another 2 cubic yards of mulch today and still just short of finished. I'll need another trailer load I think. My wife just got home from her office, she works from home now, We'll be sharing some deck time tonight and a little Vino Rojo. 

[stavanzer]

Got the word today that I can move the computer from home, back to the office on Monday.

Yea!

 I'm liked being home, but it made doing my job much harder. Now, I can do the things that need to get done much faster. I'm looking forward to it.  It's gonna cost much more in Gas tho- 18 mile round trip from Home to Office and back to Home. Ah well, you win some, you lose some.

 

 

[Snake45]

I'm doing okay, and TP has even started to reappear at Walmart the last 2 weeks! Not a full aisle of the stuff like they used to have, but small quantities of two or three different kinds--better yet, no one snatching it all up or fighting over it! Just sitting there. I got some last week and decided to NOT resupply this week. We'll see what happens. 

I'm irritated that my magazines aren't coming through, though. I FINALLY got all the May issues I should have received back in April, but so far only one of the Junes (Hemmings Muscle Machines). By now I should have received four others. 

[crazyjim]

Sounds like those magazines are taking tips from MCM.

[TarheelRick]

On 5/24/2020 at 8:47 AM, TarheelRick said:

Since I drive a school bus I knew I would be out of work at the end of May,  Luckily my retirement and SS are sufficient to keep me living comfortably, not luxuriously, but comfortably.  The local home improvement store was deemed essential and was allowed to stay open.  So wearing my mask (I am so tired of breathing lint), I have done a bit of shopping.  Since these pictures were taken I have got the wall studs in place and half the rafters up.  I was building this project as a storage for my garden tractor and implements, unfortunately the tractor's hydrostatic drive unit expired, and since it is over 20 years old there are no parts to repair it.  I know of one extensive junk yard that may have parts, but I have not had time to get down there yet to see what they have.

 

I now have the rafters on, the roofing is on order and yesterday I picked up the lumber for the roof stringers.  Also have a lead on "seconds" siding.  I know this may seem trivial in the face of what we as a nation are facing; but it has helped me keep my sanity

[Tom Geiger]

I dunno folks, you couldn’t write a story with all the crazy going on right now. Just when you think things couldn’t get worse! ☹️

[Ace-Garageguy]

54 minutes ago, Tom Geiger said:

I dunno folks, you couldn’t write a story with all the crazy going on right now. Just when you think things couldn’t get worse! ☹️

I think that anyone who's honest with himself, and who is capable of seeing the forest as well as the trees, will have to consider the idea that these days, people who are both smart enough and tough enough to run things effectively are in seriously short supply...and that those who possess both characteristics are rarely universally appreciated.

[Jantrix]

Living off the beaten path, our home life hasn't changed much. Since the hardware stores are still open I can get some projects done on the farm. I'm installing a gate in the pasture fence and digging out the rather invasive and determined thistle that's been all over our canyon. Taking time though, to relax a bit. Happily we harvested our steer just before this went down so the freezers full.

[Snake45]

[Bronzekeg]

doing fine, nobody had to tell me twice to stay safe at home.

[Joe Handley]

I was wrong about going back to the office, still working O/T from home.

[Rodent]

First group in my company started back yesterday. Mostly customer facing folks and inside sales. My group has been working very successfully from home and will probably not go back until groups 3-5. I expect to be WFM until early July at this point.

[Dave Ambrose]

A while back, I asked that we not discuss COVID-19 here. That seems to have been mislaid, as that discussion has started up here. I've hidden a few posts. Not going to warn anyone, but please keep that in mind when posting here.

Coping strategies are fine. Covid-19 medical topics are not. I know it's important information, but there are better places for that than here. 

Thanks,
Dave

[charlie8575]

On 5/30/2020 at 11:40 AM, Ace-Garageguy said:

I think that anyone who's honest with himself, and who is capable of seeing the forest as well as the trees, will have to consider the idea that these days, people who are both smart enough and tough enough to run things effectively are in seriously short supply...and that those who possess both characteristics are rarely universally appreciated.

^This.

 

In other news, one of my friend's employers, one of the most cesspool-like nursing homes in Massachusetts, and then they wouldn't get her PPE in a timely manner, died last Monday as a result of the virus. Her mother died the previous week, and then one week ago Friday (June 12), her brother died. Her employer managed to kill an entire family.

I'm helping to settle the estate. Not a fun thing at all. I'm in the middle of getting my real estate license CEUs finished up, and I have an office willing to take me on so I can get the house sold (and maybe make a few other deals in the process).

On the bright side, I was also able to pick up some additional 1099 work doing audits for banks that floorplan-finance car and equipment dealers. Not huge money, but if I can get a few things juggled around, it'll be enough.

Charlie Larkin

[charlie8575]

On 6/1/2020 at 3:07 PM, Jantrix said:

Living off the beaten path, our home life hasn't changed much. Since the hardware stores are still open I can get some projects done on the farm. I'm installing a gate in the pasture fence and digging out the rather invasive and determined thistle that's been all over our canyon. Taking time though, to relax a bit. Happily we harvested our steer just before this went down so the freezers full.

Gotta say, Rob, you have it almost perfect from the looks of it.

Charlie Larkin