Science52

Just got our refund from RC for the key.  We did not make final payment so just waiting for our deposit  of $200 as a next cruise certificate. Amtrak is also refunding our tickets from DC to New Jersey.  I will miss not cruising this summer but had to cancel because of health problems. Although people recover  Corns virus we don’t know the long term effects. People use to think chicken pox was just a childhood quick illness. But now we have to worry about shingles.  Viruses are more difficult to deal with.

I agree with everything that you say.  But I have a family that gets everything.

Me   Whooping cough in the 1960's  6 weeks quarantined in our house.

Reaction from flu meds that landed me in the hospital. I am also a teacher.

My school closed 2 days in Feb. because so many students had the flu including my two grandchildren.

Oldest son and daughter  Mastoiditis surgery at age 11 and 6  although I took them to the doctor at every ear infection.  Daughter had shingles at the age of 31 on her face going straight to her ear.  Her 6 month old son got chicken pox. My son is an OR nurse and his hospital has a case.

My husband  At his third time getting shingles which were on his face, he got viral encephalitis even though he was taking antivirals.  He has a seizure disorder which took 13 years to completely control.  He had shingles about 20 times.  Then he got prostate cancer.

One cruise he had multiple seizures (Todds) that lasted for 4 hours because of the cleaning product they were using. 

This is why my family is being cautious and we canceled  our cruise.

4 hours ago, L454S said:

Infectious Disease Specialist Dr. Abdu Sharkawy................

I'm a doctor and an Infectious Diseases Specialist. I've been at this for more than 20 years seeing sick patients on a daily basis. I have worked in inner city hospitals and in the poorest slums of Africa. HIV-AIDS, Hepatitis,TB, SARS, Measles, Shingles, Whooping cough, Diphtheria...there is little I haven't been exposed to in my profession. And with notable exception of SARS, very little has left me feeling vulnerable, overwhelmed or downright scared.

I am not scared of Covid-19. I am concerned about the implications of a novel infectious agent that has spread the world over and continues to find new footholds in different soil. I am rightly concerned for the welfare of those who are elderly, in frail health or disenfranchised who stand to suffer mostly, and disproportionately, at the hands of this new scourge. But I am not scared of Covid-19.

What I am scared about is the loss of reason and wave of fear that has induced the masses of society into a spellbinding spiral of panic, stockpiling obscene quantities of anything that could fill a bomb shelter adequately in a post-apocalyptic world. I am scared of the N95 masks that are stolen from hospitals and urgent care clinics where they are actually needed for front line healthcare providers and instead are being donned in airports, malls, and coffee lounges, perpetuating even more fear and suspicion of others. I am scared that our hospitals will be overwhelmed with anyone who thinks they " probably don't have it but may as well get checked out no matter what because you just never know..." and those with heart failure, emphysema, pneumonia and strokes will pay the price for overfilled ER waiting rooms with only so many doctors and nurses to assess.

I am scared that travel restrictions will become so far reaching that weddings will be canceled, graduations missed and family reunions will not materialize. And well, even that big party called the Olympic Games...that could be kyboshed too. Can you evenimagine?

I'm scared those same epidemic fears will limit trade, harm partnerships in multiple sectors, business and otherwise and ultimately culminate in a global recession.

But mostly, I'm scared about what message we are telling our kids when faced with a threat. Instead of reason, rationality, openmindedness and altruism, we are telling them to panic, be fearful, suspicious, reactionary and self-interested.

Covid-19 is nowhere near over. It will be coming to a city, a hospital, a friend, even a family member near you at some point. Expect it. Stop waiting to be surprised further. The fact is the virus itself will not likely do much harm when it arrives. But our own behaviors and "fight for yourself above all else" attitude could prove disastrous.

I implore you all. Temper fear with reason, panic with patience and uncertainty with education. We have an opportunity to learn a great deal about health hygiene and limiting the spread of innumerable transmissible diseases in our society. Let's meet this challenge together in the best spirit of compassion for others, patience, and above all, an unfailing effort to seek truth, facts and knowledge as opposed to conjecture, speculation and catastrophizing.

Facts not fear. Clean hands. Open hearts. Our children will thank us for it. 

55 minutes ago, gadaboutgal said:

We fall in the high risk category and are not canceling our upcoming b2b2b2b2b2b2b2b2b2b2b's =13 weeks of cruising.  If we stay home we have the same risk just going to the grocery store or anywhere else.  I will not live my last years in fear of what may or may not come and stop doing the things we love to do.  Life is nothing but risks every day so just go live.

I see your point too.  But for the last 15 years my husband has had a seizure disorder from viral encephalitis  from shingles. It was not completely controlled except the last couple of years. I don’t want him to go back to having uncontrolled seizures.

2 hours ago, pcur said:

Well, we all have our unique situations.  I got an article in my iphone news feed this morning that the CDC has warned US citizens over 60 not to frequent crowded places and not to fly.  In other words, avoid crowds.

 

We were b2b2b cruises starting late January this year:  right over Chinese New Year's with LOTS of Asian passengers.  Don't know where they were from, but long story shortened, I got a respiratory infection and ended up with (maybe) bronchial pneumonia by 2/18/20.  No fever.  Mr. Pcur got a cold, cough, and it went away within 12 days.

 

I have strong immunities due to 25 years of flu shots, and having had the Hong Kong flu during the pan/epi- demic in 1968.  Set me up up with a base immunity to all kinds future generations of Asian viruses. 

 

So, why not fly and see the grandbabies in early April?  

 

Because the original "community" infected woman with COVID19 is still in UC Davis Med Center, and one of the health care workers that treated her either there or in the Vacaville hospital, attended a Jr College about 4 miles from where we live, and was out and about in the community.  That person's incubation period is still in effect, and, well.......................................

 

We are not risking the possibility of taking the virus to our family, so we cancelled the trip in April.  Having been ill with similar symptoms and living close to a hotspot, AND the CDC's warning, it would be irresponsible of us to fly in the near future. 

I agree with you. We also canceled a trip to see my elderly mother. We were going to bring my two younger grandchildren. We don’t wanted to expose them or my mother.

2 hours ago, BND said:

Actually, there were 3 cases announced in Maryland.  All three caught it travelling overseas.  They were exposed on a Nile cruise.  At least one individual was at a large gathering of over 100 people last weekend at a retirement community center when they were probably contagious.  I live in No VA, but only about 20 miles from the county where these cases are.  While the media sits there and reports new cases and deaths, they don't report daily flu deaths which are higher.  The election has nothing to do with this as it makes neither side look good.  BTW, all three are recovering.

I live about 2 miles from Rockville, MD where these people lived. I am also a teacher and we have had letters sent to teachers and parents about the possibility of closing schools.  About a month ago, my school had to close for two days because so many students had the flu.  In my 32 years at the school this is the first time it closed because of illness. I don’t think the media is going overboard.  I grew up in the time of polio. In 4th grade, my entire school (500 students) got Whooping Cough. We were quarantined (big red sign on our front door) for 6 weeks in our house. We are so far away from when diseases got everyone sick, that we forget what it was like.  

Everyone needs to make there own decision about cruising or not. I am glad RC is giving everyone a chance to make that decision.  My husband and I are canceling our cruise at the end of June because if it is weird and medical my husband gets it. He had viral encephalitis from shingles 15 years ago. He has had shingles about 20 times. Ha had prostate cancer 14 years ago.  A couple of years  ago we went on a cruise where the previous cruise had norivirus.  He got sick from the cleaning products RC used.  But RC was great and refunded the price of his cruise. 

I noticed that several people are retiring. Some people have mentioned what their jobs were and their age at retirement. I am a teacher and have enjoyed teaching but I will be 68 in a few days.  I told my principal that I wanted to work but not have to spend my evenings and weekends correcting papers, doing lesson plans and report cards. In the last couple of years we have had many meetings after school.   Add in lunch duty and line duty at dismissal. Each teacher has to also keep their room  and hallway exciting with student work and other seasonal and subject area information. I like the last part because I like to showcase the students’ work.   Next year, 4 hours in the morning seeing 3 or4 classes to check out books and a short library lesson for some classes. Then I get to go home or run errands. I will have to go back to get my grandchildren ( their mother is a teacher in another school) but I will not have all the work to take home or have to come at6:30 am to get school work done.  

To to the nurses here -  my son is an or nurse and his wife works with kids who have cancer. They both have 19 years in. They have a hard time taking more than a few days of vacation at a time.  They did cruise with us once on a 7day but it took a lot for them to get the time off.

Since I am a teacher, my last full time day with students is June 12th.  Then a few days of cleaning and moving my stuff.  August I will go to part time (19 hours) and take care of the library.

It is official. Starting next school year, I will work part time ( as the librarian). This way I can earn a little extra money and help my daughter with tuition. I will be able to get social security and my pension.  Just have to figure out Medicare. 

Everyone has told me that you will know when you are ready to retire.  It is true. I told my principal a few days ago that I would like to work part time next year. Not full retirement but at 68 I would like a little free time.  My two grandchildren attend my school. This is my 32 nd year at this school so I want to stay connected. I have been getting my social security since I was 66.  I will take my pension but I can’t take the health insurance.  I will have to purchase Medicare and Medicare gap because my husband has health problems.  We don’t want to change doctors so we will go with regular Medicare. 

Thanks for all the info on Medicare.  I was also wondering about prices.  We keep getting info in the mail but not with a lot of prices. The couple of places I call that had workshops said you had to be ready to signup to attend. I need to compare the cost to make a choice. We will be on a limited budget. My husband was disabled 14 years ago so he has been on part A and. I got on at 65. We have never used it. The rest of our bills have been covered by my employer insurance.

Hi Lois,

Well, I think I have made a decision to either retire and sub or go to part time for next year. I will be 68 in Feb. We have paid off some bills like we planned so it is close.  I do need some help from readers.  I can’t carry over my health insurance. So who uses regular Medicare and who uses Medicare advantage? My husband has health problems so we need the most coverage we can get and we want to keep our doctors. Which is the best.  Thanks.  Science 52

On 12/3/2019 at 6:12 AM, crystalspin said:

Hi Science52!

My dad was a HS science teacher; when he retired, he became the computer consultant/network installer! (It was a small town central school somewhat behind the times on computerizing.) He was mostly self-taught on computers, having started with a Commodore 64, after BASIC lessons on mainframe computer in his Masters' studies. Paralleling my own experiences in college! I would sometimes brainstorm on a problem or two!

 

Anyway wanted to say hi to a teacher. We are in the last month of DH dr'spin's medical practice after 34.5 years. It's feeling eerily real and unreal at the same time. I had to make a horizontal color-coded calendar for the next two years, for our travels and commitments! 

Chi

I have been on this site for several years without any thought of retiring but I think l am close. I am a teacher and will be 68 in February. I have decided that this will be my last year working full time.  I hope to work part time (2 days a week) to have some extra money for cruising. Plus I want to stay close to the school because my two grandkids attend it.  I have been at this school for 32 years and have been teaching for 39 years.  I enjoy teaching but all the extra hours outside of the classroom is more than I want to do now. I had a problem with my account so l had set up anew one.  My old screen name was Read52.

Well, I still am not ready to retire.  I am going year by year.  I am a teacher.  Presently, my granddaughter attends my school and is in second grade.  Next year my grandson will be in kindergarten.  I still enjoy teaching.  Just finished 31 years in this school.  

On 7/2/2018 at 10:02 AM, Debbie's-cruising said:

I have been to Alaska too. It is beautiful! We booked the new NCL Bliss. Looking forward to both!

 

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On 7/2/2018 at 10:02 AM, Debbie's-cruising said:

I have been to Alaska too. It is beautiful! We booked the new NCL Bliss. Looking forward to both!

 

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Hi Debbie,

It is Shirley read52.  Right after I talk to you last I broke my leg  so I wasn’t on wards very much. We changed are email so I had to rejoin cruise critic. Did you like Alaska? We did not cruise in the summer because of my leg. We are going to Cuba at Easter. We are doing a back to back so we will be gone 9 days. I am still teaching. I have a good class and only 14 students. After talking with my principal I might be able to work 4 days and not lose my benefits as a resource or stem teacher.