N-o-l-a

Covid cases are finally exploding here. 
 
one employer wants me to wear the same surgical mask for 4 days, but the N95 only for 5 patients and then toss. The other wants a surgical mask per day, but the N95 is apparently infinitely reusable after hitting it with UV. 
 
Ok, I guess. Both seem to think that a brown paper bag somehow quarantines the thing and makes it germ free for the next use. 

Covid cases are finally exploding here. 
 
one employer wants me to wear the same surgical mask for 4 days, but the N95 only for 5 patients and then toss. The other wants a surgical mask per day, but the N95 is apparently infinitely reusable after hitting it with UV. 
 
Ok, I guess. Both seem to think that a brown paper bag somehow quarantines the thing and makes it germ free for the next use. 

Covid cases are finally exploding here. 
 
one employer wants me to wear the same surgical mask for 4 days, but the N95 only for 5 patients and then toss. The other wants a surgical mask per day, but the N95 is apparently infinitely reusable after hitting it with UV. 
 
Ok, I guess. Both seem to think that a brown paper bag somehow quarantines the thing and makes it germ free for the next use. 

Covid cases are finally exploding here. 
 
one employer wants me to wear the same surgical mask for 4 days, but the N95 only for 5 patients and then toss. The other wants a surgical mask per day, but the N95 is apparently infinitely reusable after hitting it with UV. 
 
Ok, I guess. Both seem to think that a brown paper bag somehow quarantines the thing and makes it germ free for the next use. 

Covid cases are finally exploding here. 
 
one employer wants me to wear the same surgical mask for 4 days, but the N95 only for 5 patients and then toss. The other wants a surgical mask per day, but the N95 is apparently infinitely reusable after hitting it with UV. 
 
Ok, I guess. Both seem to think that a brown paper bag somehow quarantines the thing and makes it germ free for the next use. 

And since he was born this year, some (non-prepaid) stimulus check credit, too.
/think it kind of amusing that despite very little change in my income, based on my 2018 return I would have gotten 0, based on my 2019 return we got $2400, and based on my 2020 return we'd likely (barring me and/or PRG somehow becoming wealthy business typhoons while caring for mini-Dave) get $2900.
 
Needed lbs and oz and inches to tell Americans, and PRG needed grams and centimeters to tell Russians (because we were much too tired to do math in our heads or even ask Siri or Google to do it).
But he's 6 lb 5 oz, and 19 3/4" inches long.
 
You already know the answer in that format, man ...
 
He was born at a little after 1 am. We weren't settled into the postpartum room until about 4. Was much too tired to drive home even on nearly-empty roads then, so slept for a few hours there.
 
PRG was wide awake after giving birth, despite getting little sleep the night before or her usual late pregnancy afternoon nap. Claims epidurals are great.
 
Was surprised they thought I was awake enough to be trusted with sharp objects when I cut the cord, but they said I did good.
 
/surprised no "fotos of mini-Dave now" request, but still ...
 
 

Yesterday morning, PRG says she thinks she had some false labor and (other fallopian chant thing) and thinks she will give birth to mini-Dave in a few days. Not very surprised, as he was due in nine days anyway.
 
Yesterday afternoon, she says something rather painful is happening and we should call doctor (note -- this is our first baby, so we're fairly clueless about things that aren't in books). Immediately abandon routine teleconference where I almost always say very little to do so. On-call nurse says it sounds like you're having contractions, so when they reach proper frequency for an hour come in. So an hour later we start packing up and go to hospital.
 
And very early this morning, mini-Dave was born. 😃 Someone may have failed to calculate that if we got to the hospital at 4:30, the odds were pretty good that mini-Dave would not make an appearance until late that night or early this morning, and so only PRG had a change of clothes, toiletries, and such. So I'm home alone for the night (also because pull-out couch in postpartum room, while not horrible, wasn't great either).

Himself passed away this evening at 18:30. Once I finish up a few details I will be heading for home the first of the week.
 
 

I'm glad this doctor is on your side. What we need at times like this is people in our corner who can take some of the weight off our shoulders.
 
Did he get the Hep C from them reusing needles in the army?  I ask because I've had two patients now tell me that same thing. 

Between Friday and Wednesday, I work 96 hours.  All 96 of those hours, my face has to be covered. 
 
And this is how I feel about Covid and PPE at the moment:
 

 

I'm glad this doctor is on your side. What we need at times like this is people in our corner who can take some of the weight off our shoulders.
 
Did he get the Hep C from them reusing needles in the army?  I ask because I've had two patients now tell me that same thing. 

Between Friday and Wednesday, I work 96 hours.  All 96 of those hours, my face has to be covered. 
 
And this is how I feel about Covid and PPE at the moment:
 

 

I'm glad this doctor is on your side. What we need at times like this is people in our corner who can take some of the weight off our shoulders.
 
Did he get the Hep C from them reusing needles in the army?  I ask because I've had two patients now tell me that same thing. 

Between Friday and Wednesday, I work 96 hours.  All 96 of those hours, my face has to be covered. 
 
And this is how I feel about Covid and PPE at the moment:
 

 

Mrs. T-B. was distraught and in tears for much of today, cry she man.
Guayaquil in Ecu, where she up-grew, is devastated by the Covid-Many (2x2x2x2+2+1) virus, sigh man.
A distant cousin of hers plus the father/brother of a classmate have died, croak they man.
Ecu's airports are closed, and Mama-Mrs.-T-B. is staying with us for at least 2 more months, stay senior she man.
She & Mrs. T-B. are both terrified of the "coronaveerus," Spanish pronunciation man.

Well the bed was set not at 8 this morning. It was set at 12. It is meant to be 30.
 
The VA have given us an earlier effective date, 3 years earlier. That is wrong. They are also trying to take his 100 percent away and reduce it to 80. No pension for me.

Vitals every two hours? Do they not have a different hospice protocol?
 
I'm so sorry that you are going through this. I hope that things progress peacefully and he is in as little discomfort as possible. 

Vitals every two hours? Do they not have a different hospice protocol?
 
I'm so sorry that you are going through this. I hope that things progress peacefully and he is in as little discomfort as possible. 

Vitals every two hours? Do they not have a different hospice protocol?
 
I'm so sorry that you are going through this. I hope that things progress peacefully and he is in as little discomfort as possible. 

Himself is in Hospice care as of this morning. As it is the VA, of course the process was not without screw ups. It is all well and good to cancel orders, but new ones need to be entered. 
 
When I arrived this morning he had a respiratory rate of 72. Unrousable.  I thought he might have taken the final decision out of my hands.
Rang the nurse twice with no response, so sent for the charge nurse. She paged the medical team twice with no answer.
So being me, I rang the Doc myself. 2 minutes and he was on the spot. Did heads roll? Youbetchabygolly.  New team, from Vanderbilt.
 
After tinkering most of the afternoon with morphine we found the sweet spot.
 
Also had to bite my tongue when dealing with the 'tech". He doesn't need a finger stick, he in won't be getting insulin. He doesn't need his vitals taken every two hours, they are irrelevant to the process. And do NOT stand next to the bed and bellow "how are you feeling today"? He can't tell you. He doesn't even know you are there.  Go away. Stay there. 
 

He had a quiet day. Stayed awake for long periods of time, fascinated by the tv. Hasn't said anything I could hear, although his lips are moving there is no sound at all. His breathing is back to where it was before, and he did not need suctioning today at all.
 
One bit of very good news as an aside. After 6 years of filing and submitting and denials and fiddling about with the VA, he won his claim today. Service connected.

His color looks great. Even the night I called the ambulance in he looked himself, other than the raging dyspnea. From pulmonary flash edema as it happens.
 
Today again he did very little. He nodded a few times at the speech swallow chap, but that was about it. He spends most of his time more or less staring off into space. He will track anyone moving, and look at you when you speak or call him, but that is about all.
His transplant doc came by as he does every day once clinic is over. He's been great, all along. We sorted things out by way of going forward.
 
Taking him home isn't an option. Taking him back to AR is out of the question; the only care facility is in LR and I am adamant he will not go  back there.
 
He said that if I choose to put him in long term care in TN he would have to be moved to the Murfreesboro VA. That's about half an hour south of Nashville. As it is a separate VA to the one he is in, his doc would not have any say at all in how we proceed. He also doesn't believe they will be allowing visitors of any sort admission until the end of the summer. So in effect, he would end up in a strange place with no one he knows, possibly for a very long time, warehoused .
That's a hard no from me on all counts.
 
If he goes into hospice, he can stay right where he is. He won't be moved from the room he is in, and his Doc is still in charge. They will stop the feeding, no more meds, or insulin. They will still treat his hypertension, and of course see that he is comfortable.
 
I have asked to see how he goes until Sunday. If there isn't any  improvement, and I don't see how there can be at this point, that is what we will do.
It certainly isn't the outcome any of us wanted, but it is the best I can do for him.
 
I wish I had better news. I'm sorry for all the miserable depressing posts of late.
 

You are not a failure. This pandemic is destroying businesses and lives. There is not much any small business could have done to prepare for it or even predict it.

Seems like lots of you are having a bad week so far.  😔
 
Since coming off quarantine on Friday, I've now worked 48 hours and another 12 tomorrow.  Plus, we've been holding class, which was last minute moved from 6 feet apart to over skype. Spending 9am - 3 pm on skype is a lot.
 
As an unexpected bonus, despite profits being down, my employer is giving us all bonuses and paying about $500/month extra to cover health insurance premiums until this covid thing is over. They get major props from me for that.

Seems like lots of you are having a bad week so far.  😔
 
Since coming off quarantine on Friday, I've now worked 48 hours and another 12 tomorrow.  Plus, we've been holding class, which was last minute moved from 6 feet apart to over skype. Spending 9am - 3 pm on skype is a lot.
 
As an unexpected bonus, despite profits being down, my employer is giving us all bonuses and paying about $500/month extra to cover health insurance premiums until this covid thing is over. They get major props from me for that.