The COVID-19 pandemic

[jeffster]

Current 7-day Covid-19 cases per 100k

• Algoma Public Health 179.1
• Timiskaming Health Unit 168.3
• Public Health Sudbury & Districts 127.1
• Windsor-Essex County Health Unit 124.8
• Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health 111.9
• Brant County Health Unit 91.5
• Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit 90.3
• Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit 86.2
• Southwestern Public Health 82.3
• Hastings Prince Edward Public Health 75.4

• Region of Waterloo Public Health and Emergency Services 33.4

• Middlesex-London Health Unit 24.2
• Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health 23.7
• Toronto Public Health 23.3
• Peel Public Health 22.0
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit 21.2
• Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit 18.5
• Northwestern Health Unit 17.1
• Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit 16.2
• North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit 11.6
• Porcupine Health Unit 10.8

• TOTAL ONTARIO 38.7

[ac3r]

Re: noticing more people without masks in stores. I personally don't see it very often inside of businesses. But if you want to see low compliance, ride the LRT daily. Almost every single time I'm on it, there's someone without a mask. Doesn't matter what time of day, how busy it is, what stations you're near...there's always someone without a mask.

[jeffster]

Re: noticing more people without masks in stores. I personally don't see it very often inside of businesses. But if you want to see low compliance, ride the LRT daily. Almost every single time I'm on it, there's someone without a mask. Doesn't matter what time of day, how busy it is, what stations you're near...there's always someone without a mask.

Yes — this area is an issue. I know the times I’ve ridden the TTC Subway and LRT in Toronto, compliance was relatively high, but there is zero compliance on the Ion and GRT. That’s a problem, and I wouldn’t recommend that just any ride it. I can’t, as I take care of my 81 year old mom, and would rather minimize the risk. It also means my son can’t take the bus to work. He was scootering in the wam months, but now I have to cart him to work.

[bgb_ca]

Has anyone else noticed more people unmasked in stores? I haven't seen many, but I have encountered a couple this past week. It's a little jarring, because mask compliance has seemed very high through the pandemic up to this point.

I saw one at Walmart on Bridgeport on Saturday. Just figured it was one of those Anti-Maskers and I just stayed clear.

[bgb_ca]

one elderly lady in the grocery store with a face shield and an oxygen tank,

That is probably one of the few exceptions I am fine with. At least she took the time to wear a face shield

and vastly less sympathetically a woman wearing an "I'm exempt" anti-masker button who checked out in front of me and was chatting up the anti-vaxxer protestors outside when I got out.

Maybe they should make some counter "I'm not a douche that thinks of only myself" buttons to counter these "I'm exempt" buttons that Anti-vaxxers wear.

[danbrotherston]

one elderly lady in the grocery store with a face shield and an oxygen tank,

That is probably one of the few exceptions I am fine with. At least she took the time to wear a face shield

Oh yes, I had no objection to this, it was just notable for the very few times I saw someone without a mask.

and vastly less sympathetically a woman wearing an "I'm exempt" anti-masker button who checked out in front of me and was chatting up the anti-vaxxer protestors outside when I got out.

Maybe they should make some counter "I'm not a douche that thinks of only myself" buttons to counter these "I'm exempt" buttons that Anti-vaxxers wear.

Hey, that'd be a great idea...I think the message probably got through in my eyes rolling across the floor...visible even from the 15 foot berth I gave her.



FWIW, a much more frustrating problem is the number of contractors who are not wearing masks in my building. This is neither something I can avoid, and a significantly higher risk seeing as how they jump onto the elevator with me.

I was actually pretty ticked off about that one.

[tomh009]

FWIW, a much more frustrating problem is the number of contractors who are not wearing masks in my building. This is neither something I can avoid, and a significantly higher risk seeing as how they jump onto the elevator with me.

We have signs in our building asking people to NOT enter the elevator if someone (from another unit) is already in it -- and have had them for a year and half now. Our compliance rate on those is quite high, even though it's just a request.

[danbrotherston]

FWIW, a much more frustrating problem is the number of contractors who are not wearing masks in my building. This is neither something I can avoid, and a significantly higher risk seeing as how they jump onto the elevator with me.

We have signs in our building asking people to NOT enter the elevator if someone (from another unit) is already in it -- and have had them for a year and half now. Our compliance rate on those is quite high, even though it's just a request.

Our board agreed on a specific instruction (not a request) of no more than two people or one family unit. People are generally respectful if you ask them to wait, which I usually do with my unvaccinated daughter who is too young to reliably wear a mask.

Usually I don't mind people getting on when it's just me, we each stand in a corner, but not when they aren't wearing a mask.

[ac3r]

Yes — this area is an issue. I know the times I’ve ridden the TTC Subway and LRT in Toronto, compliance was relatively high, but there is zero compliance on the Ion and GRT. That’s a problem, and I wouldn’t recommend that just any ride it. I can’t, as I take care of my 81 year old mom, and would rather minimize the risk. It also means my son can’t take the bus to work.  He was scootering in the wam months, but now I have to cart him to work. 

That's got to be annoying. During 2020 - before anyone was vaccinated - I had personally confronted people at times telling them to put on a mask or at least move to the end of the train when there were clearly elderly people in the middle, since they tend to prefer the seats near the centre doors (particularly when they had walkers/wheelchairs). Most people would be fine with it and not argue.

These days, I notice it's often certain "types" who get on without them. I don't know how to describe them other than...the riff-raff of the city, especially when they get on with bikes and need to use the centre doors. At least now, most Canadians are vaccinated at this point so there is less risk. I could care less about maskless people at this point and I'm at risk from health issues myself. It's very unlikely to catch the virus just riding transit or walking through the grocery store anyway, you need fairly direct, sustained contact (like 10+ minutes) with someone in a closed setting such as a home or somewhere with poor ventilation.

[jeffster]

Not entirely covid-19 related -- but Wal*Mart at Fairview Park Mall had a pop-up flu clinic today. Not sure how long it will be up. I got the shot, but mother wouldn't (I never get the flu -- though she's 81, likewise my son didn't want it either). For me, don't want to use sick time at work, so I got the jab. Arm was a little tender about 30 minutes after the shot, but all good now. Nothing like Moderna Arm that I contracted, which caused grief for a good 4 months.

[ac3r]

Ontario Accelerating Booster Eligibility to Adults Aged 50+: https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/10012...ts-aged-50

[jeffster]

Current 7-day Covid-19 cases per 100k

• Algoma Public Health 201.9
• Timiskaming Health Unit 143.8
• Windsor-Essex County Health Unit 132.8
• Public Health Sudbury & Districts 128.1
• Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox & Addington Public Health 112.4
• Haldimand-Norfolk Health Unit 90.3
• Brant County Health Unit 90.2
• Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit 89.6
• Chatham-Kent Public Health 79.0
• Southwestern Public Health 74.7

• Region of Waterloo Public Health and Emergency Services 34.6

• York Region Public Health 26.8
• Toronto Public Health 24.6
• Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health 24.0
• Peel Public Health 23.7
• Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit 20.6
• Renfrew County and District Health Unit 18.4
• Northwestern Health Unit 17.1
• Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit 15.6
• North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit 10.0
• Porcupine Health Unit 7.2

• TOTAL ONTARIO 40.1

[danbrotherston]

Everyone in my family got the flu vaccine, it was also no big deal, much better than the COVID vaccine, I suspect it is better tuned.

FWIW...the flu vaccine should be pushed more...the flu is no joke, I was utterly shocked how many people it kills every year when I learned (and yes, it's still less than COVID...but in a bad year, it could be more than car crashes).

[plam]

Yes — this area is an issue. I know the times I’ve ridden the TTC Subway and LRT in Toronto, compliance was relatively high, but there is zero compliance on the Ion and GRT. That’s a problem, and I wouldn’t recommend that just any ride it. I can’t, as I take care of my 81 year old mom, and would rather minimize the risk. It also means my son can’t take the bus to work.  He was scootering in the wam months, but now I have to cart him to work. 

That's got to be annoying. During 2020 - before anyone was vaccinated - I had personally confronted people at times telling them to put on a mask or at least move to the end of the train when there were clearly elderly people in the middle, since they tend to prefer the seats near the centre doors (particularly when they had walkers/wheelchairs). Most people would be fine with it and not argue.

These days, I notice it's often certain "types" who get on without them. I don't know how to describe them other than...the riff-raff of the city, especially when they get on with bikes and need to use the centre doors. At least now, most Canadians are vaccinated at this point so there is less risk. I could care less about maskless people at this point and I'm at risk from health issues myself. It's very unlikely to catch the virus just riding transit or walking through the grocery store anyway, you need fairly direct, sustained contact (like 10+ minutes) with someone in a closed setting such as a home or somewhere with poor ventilation.

I do not think that is true about 10+ minutes in a closed setting. Certainly there are cases where it's jumped from one hotel room to another with seconds of doors being open. Here's some discussion.

https://www.fastcompany.com/90662386/jus...ant-spread

[tomh009]

Yes. The virus doesn't wait. Prolonged exposure increases risk, as does proximity and poor ventilation. But it is feasible to pick up the virus in seconds, outside, too, it's just a much lower risk of doing so.

As for the booster shots, 50+eligible as of 13 December, 168 days after your second dose, so anyone who got the second one on 28 June or before will be immediately eligible.