Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How are things where YOU are?

[Keksie]

3 minutes ago, OnTheJourney said:

 

In FL....Approx. 8300 new covid cases per day, and nearly 1.7 million cases overall. Not entirely sure I'd refer to this as "normal" ???

I was referring to our activities.  It seems that many states have a lot of new positive tests every days.  Some have more activities open then others.

[Keksie]

2 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Things are horrible in Florida.  

I don't feel that way since at least we can go places and do things as opposed to states with lock downs.  There are several states with high positive test results not just Florida.

[OnTheJourney]

3 minutes ago, Keksie said:

Some have more activities open then others.

I still venture to say that the more activities taking place = the greater the number of covid cases. 

[Keksie]

Just now, OnTheJourney said:

I still venture to say that the more activities taking place = the greater the number of covid cases. 

Explain California then.  I don't think they ever fully opened and their numbers are bad too.

[Cruise a holic]

11 minutes ago, Keksie said:

I don't feel that way since at least we can go places and do things as opposed to states with lock downs.  There are several states with high positive test results not just Florida.

Yes. However what Florida is doing is hurting our ability to cruise and return to the new normal.  While some other states aren’t behaving responsibly, Florida isn’t also.  I have friends in Florida who have lost family and friends.  

[Keksie]

4 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Yes. However what Florida is doing is hurting our ability to cruise and return to the new normal.  While some other states aren’t behaving responsibly, Florida isn’t also.  I have friends in Florida who have lost family and friends.  

The CDC is not going to let cruises happen no matter what is going on in Florida.  There are other states that have cruise ports and cruises are not leaving from there either.  Since cruises go to other countries those are a consideration also.  I have friends in many states who have lost family and friends.  The science does not support lockdowns.  

[Cruise a holic]

1 hour ago, Keksie said:

The CDC is not going to let cruises happen no matter what is going on in Florida.  There are other states that have cruise ports and cruises are not leaving from there either.  Since cruises go to other countries those are a consideration also.  I have friends in many states who have lost family and friends.  The science does not support lockdowns.  

Not what faucci said this morning.  Obviously the odds of catching covid decrease with no exposure 

[Keksie]

15 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

Not what faucci said this morning.  Obviously the odds of catching covid decrease with no exposure 

Obviously if you have no contact with other people you odds of catching covid are low.  I don't want to live that way and don't have to.  It is perfectly okay with me if you choose to live with no contact.  To each his own.  

[Cruise a holic]

44 minutes ago, Keksie said:

Obviously if you have no contact with other people you odds of catching covid are low.  I don't want to live that way and don't have to.  It is perfectly okay with me if you choose to live with no contact.  To each his own.  

If you are in your 50’s or under in good health you probably will not join the over 430,000 covid club

[Cruise a holic]

My son and actress granddaughter are in Sydney Australia now.  When they arrived, tested for covid- negative- and were taken to a hotel to quarantine for two weeks- a beautiful hotel with guards in the lobby.  after the quarantine, they can resume normal activities.  Australia has a very low covid rate.

 

They really got with the program and understood the dangers of people not wearing masks and not quarantining.  Saved businesses and more importantly lives-  

[sgmn]

18 minutes ago, Cruise a holic said:

My son and actress granddaughter are in Sydney Australia now.  When they arrived, tested for covid- negative- and were taken to a hotel to quarantine for two weeks- a beautiful hotel with guards in the lobby.  after the quarantine, they can resume normal activities.  Australia has a very low covid rate.

 

They really got with the program and understood the dangers of people not wearing masks and not quarantining.  Saved businesses and more importantly lives-  

Australia has done this by severally limiting the number of people  coming into the country as they have to self isolate in hotels and there is a finate number of rooms available.  A lot of Australians abroad have been trying to get back home for months. 

Agree they have done very well (along with other countries like New Zealand) in keeping down rates of infection. My husband was speaking to his friend in Nova Scotia yesterday and they have zero new cases and only 11 active cases. 

Edited January 29, 2021 by sgmn

[Keksie]

Had a lovely dinner last night at our favorite bistro to celebrate our anniversary.  It was so nice to see it busy and thriving.  I was worried in March and April that it would go out of business with the lock downs.  In fact every restaurant we passed had full parking lots and it was a Thursday.  Saturday night is the Mardi Gras Parade and after party.  If the weather is not too cold we may go. 

[lenquixote66]

On 12/31/2020 at 6:35 PM, Cruise a holic said:

Please stay safe all. Social distance!  No parties or restaurants.  The sooner we cooperate the faster we cruise

We know people who were married in LI,NY in August.There were over 200 guests and I was told that only about 10 percent wore masks.

The same family will have a wedding in March with 400 invitees but in NJ.

These are intelligent people.I cannot believe that they can be so stupid.If they want to kill themselves that is their right but they do not have the right to cause harm to others.

[sgmn]

24 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

We know people who were married in LI,NY in August.There were over 200 guests and I was told that only about 10 percent wore masks.

The same family will have a wedding in March with 400 invitees but in NJ.

These are intelligent people.I cannot believe that they can be so stupid.If they want to kill themselves that is their right but they do not have the right to cause harm to others.

Weddings are not allowed in UK at moment, apart from emergency (ie when one of couple is mortally ill). My son should of got married last summer, it's been shifted to next August.  We are hoping things will be vastly improved by then and restrictions will be lifted. 

[Cruise a holic]

2 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

We know people who were married in LI,NY in August.There were over 200 guests and I was told that only about 10 percent wore masks.

The same family will have a wedding in March with 400 invitees but in NJ.

These are intelligent people.I cannot believe that they can be so stupid.If they want to kill themselves that is their right but they do not have the right to cause harm to others.

Usually the police would get involved and shut the party down.  Let’s face it morons and selfish people can be found in every state and county

[OnTheJourney]

8 hours ago, Keksie said:

Had a lovely dinner last night at our favorite bistro to celebrate our anniversary.  It was so nice to see it busy and thriving.

 

I agree it's reassuring that some restaurants are doing well; however, why do I get the distinct notion that you seem to enjoy 'rubbing it in', so-to-speak, to those of us who are more cautious and are not socializing by seemingly going out of your way to relate all the outings that you're engaged in and having such a good time doing it? It doesn't make any of us feel any better. You're obviously not on the side of social distancing, masking, etc. but, as you said, each to his own. A little humility might serve better. 

Edited January 30, 2021 by OnTheJourney

[OnTheJourney]

On 12/31/2020 at 6:35 PM, Cruise a holic said:

Please stay safe all. Social distance!  No parties or restaurants.  The sooner we cooperate the faster we cruise

 

Agree completely. IF everyone would subscribe to this advice we'd be much farther along towards ending the pandemic. 

Edited January 30, 2021 by OnTheJourney

[lenquixote66]

1 hour ago, Cruise a holic said:

Usually the police would get involved and shut the party down.  Let’s face it morons and selfish people can be found in every state and county

This was in a place that has weddings all the time .There is a private road to go on for about 3/4 of a mile before you arrive at the entrance and not in a residential area.

[Keksie]

1 hour ago, OnTheJourney said:

 

I agree it's reassuring that some restaurants are doing well; however, why do I get the distinct notion that you seem to enjoy 'rubbing it in', so-to-speak, to those of us who are more cautious and are not socializing by seemingly going out of your way to relate all the outings that you're engaged in and having such a good time doing it? It doesn't make any of us feel any better. You're obviously not on the side of social distancing, masking, etc. but, as you said, each to his own. A little humility might serve better. 

The title of the thread is "How are things where you are"  Should I just lie and say everything is shut down, everyone is going out of business and life sucks or give a report of how things actually are where I live?  I won't report again so that you who are cautious will feel better about your decisions.

[coffeebean]

On 12/31/2020 at 7:55 PM, Cruise a holic said:

We have friends that died thinking indoor dining was safe.  Over 60 but otherwise in good health and not obese.  I will not take a chance.  

Hubby and I have been dining indoors. We sit only in booths that have the added barrier at the top of the booth. We feel safe enough in our own little cocoon. We wear a mask when ordering and anytime we are not seated in a restaurant. We dine at off times when the restaurant is not busy.

 

We have not included anyone in our "social circle" so we have not dined with anyone else. It is always just the two of us at the dining table. We have family who live very close by but do not socialize without masks so that lets out eating and drinking. We did not celebrate the holidays in 2020 together. We will wait until we are all vaccinated with both shots. Hopefully 2021 holidays will be able to be celebrated.

 

[broadwaybaby123]

Both Mom and I are healthcare workers (nursing home for me, hospital for her) so sadly we are limited to only running essential errands and take-out/drive-thru for food.  It's been months since we've seen most of our family (apart from yesterday, I haven't seen my niece or nephew...both 8 and 4 respectively, since September).

[legaljen1969]

18 hours ago, Keksie said:

The title of the thread is "How are things where you are"  Should I just lie and say everything is shut down, everyone is going out of business and life sucks or give a report of how things actually are where I live?  I won't report again so that you who are cautious will feel better about your decisions.

I completely agree with you.  Why should we lie if things are not as restrictive OR if we are complying with good health guidelines but still having lower numbers.  I am so sick of this attitude that we must all be grim and gloomy and if we aren't running around like Chicken Little panicking over the supposedly falling sky that we have no compassion for our fellow man. 

Let me tell you a little story about how it is where I am.  Our local area is a beach area.  We have not closed our state's borders and there are many people from hotspot states who own second homes here, so we really couldn't tell them they can't come here.  I mean, they own property.  We were not thrilled that this influx happened, and we didn't encourage travel from hot spots, but our town leaders understood that these property owners "wanted to check on their houses." (I.E. They had homes and were entitled to be there in their homes).  It was requested that people voluntarily self-quarantine for 14 days.  That did NOT happen.  In the early stages of COVID, people fled the hotspot states and came here to their second homes- many having tested positive and knowing they were positive but just did not want to stay "Home" where their states had much more stringent rules.  Within 1-2 weeks our small hospitals were completely overwhelmed with people from "away."  Our local businesses started closing down or severely restricting their hours as the infection rate increased.  Masks became mandatory. What restaurants remained open went to carry out only or delivery.   The "second home" owners went WILD.  After all, this was their "escape" and everything was expected to run as usual to make them comfortable.   Our office building closed and we were having client meetings outside or taking papers to people in their cars to have things signed.  We lost a ton of business because people were so mad that businesses "at the beach" were trying to protect their own, after all "It's not like it's a big city like New York."  Well no, that's right.  But people from the "big city" brought a mass influx of infection to our "small town" and got mad that we had to protect ourselves. 
I have long said that there must be an invisible box on the bridge to our island, and one at the airport, where people from "away" drop off their brains and suspend all understanding of normal social constructs and laws.  They don't use turn signals. They drive the wrong way on the streets.  They treat locals like human garbage and they expect the world to fall at their feet and treat them as royalty.   Then they leave behind the mess they made as though we are their servants and underlings. 

If someone is angry that a place has less COVID, please for the love of GOD do not feel compelled to bring the infection rate here and leave it for someone else to clean up.  

 

[legaljen1969]

Like many tragedies or difficult times in our country, we try putting on the "We are One" or "America Strong" or "United we stand."  That lasts for all of about a month or two before we all turn on each other like Lord of the Flies.  

People were very united in the beginning to do what was "best" for "the greater good."  We listened to "the science" until "the science" changed every few days or every couple of weeks.  First masks were bad. Then they were "necessary." Then we were supposed to wear N95 masks because they were the only thing that really helped, but we were selfish if we bought N95 masks because there were not enough for front line workers.  We are supposed to wear PPE, but we are condemned if we buy PPE of any sort that might be useful for first responders or health care workers.  

People immediately began hoarding- from things as simple as toilet paper all the way to any small supply of masks that had any sort of proven effectiveness in actually blocking anything significant. It has been mass hysteria since this pandemic started. People went weeks or months without getting things as simple as hand soap.  

About two months before the pandemic forced the nation into full panic mode, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, About two weeks before panic and chaos, I had a mastectomy.  Thankfully, my surgeon and oncologists had me accumulate some extra anti-bacterial soap and cleaning supplies because it was "flu season."  I had gotten a few things just as precaution and I had been using them sparingly anyhow.   I had one small bottle of Lysol Laundry Sanitizer that I bought at the end of January.  The next time I was able to buy another bottle was in August.  When I ran out of cleaning supplies (Pine Sol) by mid-May,  good luck on finding any wipes, bleach, cleaning solution.  They had hours for seniors and those with serious health issues.  Because I was just 50, I was told numerous times I could not come early in the morning during the restricted hours.  I saw people coming out with carts of toilet paper. One day I saw a lady with 20 bottles of Pine Sol. I asked if she might consider letting me have one as I had been searching for over a month.   She called me an obscene name and walked away.   A guy just to the other side of her had two bottles, and I had two packs of toilet paper.   He offered to trade me one of his bottles of Pine Sol for one of my packs of toilet papers.  Seriously, it is valuable currency now.   Probably more valuable than money. 

I was recently able to buy a large bottle of hand sanitizer and a large pack of soap and some more gloves.  My neighbor's brother recently had emergency surgery and she had run out of everything. She was so worried about him going without, as supplies are so hard to come by. I gave some of my sanitizer, the rest of my Betadine, gloves, gauze pads.   You would have thought I had shared proceeds from the winning lottery ticket when she got it.  She was so thankful.    WHY did I do it? Because I know how it felt for almost six months of trying to get antibacterial soap and alcohol wipes and laundry sanitizer.  I remember worrying what I would do if I got a post-surgical infection and had no access to care and probably couldn't get a bed in the hospital because they are so needed for COVID.   I can remember many days crying when I left the grocery store or the pharmacy because I was having to stretch things out just a little longer.   I would NEVER put anyone through that if I had what they needed, and especially if I had EXTRA of what they needed.  

We have turned into an incredibly self-centered and greedy nation as this pandemic has gone on.  It is "every man for himself" and the opportunistic and selfish nature of human beings has increased about 500-fold.   I have seen the absolute worst in people over this past year in general society. 

I have seen healthcare workers and first responders go above and beyond.  I have seen people try to work themselves to the ends of their abilities to keep this pandemic at bay or keep it minimized. For those people, I am thankful.  

So how are things where I am??  The spread of COVID seems slower than many places, but the spread of unkindness and selfishness is definitely NOT going down.   The number of suicides in the US is up. 

Despair is on the rise.  Drug and alcohol use and overuse is on the rise.  Stress and anxiety are on the rise.  None of these things are good for our bodies and ALL of them are proven to weaken our immune system.   Why are they on the rise?  Because people feel so hopeless and they pass that on to others.  I truly believe just a kind word here and there, instead of so much finger pointing and anger, might start to turn the tide. 

[OnTheJourney]

legal...you raise some good points. I still hold that a good portion of the political division we are experiencing is inextricably linked with the pandemic. The one has enhanced and inflamed the other. So many people feel at their wit's end especially in terms of failed business. 

 

Keksie...never meant to discourage you from posting and, you're correct about the title of the thread. My apologies- if needed - for aiding in morphing the thread into something else. It's so easy to do that in the wake of all that's going on. I just felt that besides (objectively) reporting on how things are in your area - or at least from your perspective - there were also, in some of your posts, subjective appraisals that seem to lean on the side of discounting various scientific findings relative to masking, social distancing, etc. Perhaps I'm wrong but it came across that way. That being said, I've surely done the same. I agree that the focus should be on supporting each other rather than tearing down, as legal suggests. 

 

 

[vacationlover_mn]

Well, today here in Mn they announced new vaccine sites, and 35,000 more doses for seniors.  Reached out to my mom with the phone # for her to call (right away!) hope she can get in