Have any of you caught COVID while mystery shopping?
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@Shop-et-al..... Just to be clear, my comments in my reply are not personal. I know I use the word "you" a lot, but I don't mean You......
I have not but I have surgery coming up in January so I have been considering stopping mystery shopping so that I don't expose myself to COVID. I follow all safety guidelines and so far have been okay.
I have been working part time throughout this pandemic (Fri thru Sunday) at Walmart as an online shopper - the one who retrieves your goodies for curbside delivery. During the other days I've been mystery shopping like crazy. With that being said, this entire year I have not been sick with anything other than allergies. I do wear a mask; however, they only protect others should I have the virus, they do not protect me as the germs can and will enter through the mask, your eyes, and your ears. What I've concluded is either I've got a super immune system or this virus is not as deadly as "experts" predict. I mean, a 99.8% survival rate is not going to force me into hibernation, afraid of going out in public. That is not living, it is merely existing. I prefer to go full steam ahead until the good Lord has other intentions. BTW, I'm 73 years old.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/26/2020 04:18PM by lbtweety47.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/26/2020 04:18PM by lbtweety47.
I hate when people say if you are afraid of Covid stay home...afraid seems so rude.
I am aware of Covid and it’s potentially devastating effects on people and places. I have some issues and my husband has upcoming surgery and treatments on the horizon. He is still working but his company is doing really well keeping the workers distanced and staggering wait times. It seems foolish for us to take chances and rude for others to say we are afraid.
I do not like to wear a mask so I stay home and have not been out shopping or anything else for that matter...yet I am doing more than merely existing...I have completely redone my condo, I’m working on a number of projects I typically pass off to the side or don’t have time for.
When I do go out I absolutely wear a mask and social distance. I have not been shopping but I do have a couple of packages to mail so I took a couple of post offices. I will go early and get in and out (which is how those shops typically go anyway)
I do miss shopping but I’m waiting for the vaccine.
Liz
I am aware of Covid and it’s potentially devastating effects on people and places. I have some issues and my husband has upcoming surgery and treatments on the horizon. He is still working but his company is doing really well keeping the workers distanced and staggering wait times. It seems foolish for us to take chances and rude for others to say we are afraid.
I do not like to wear a mask so I stay home and have not been out shopping or anything else for that matter...yet I am doing more than merely existing...I have completely redone my condo, I’m working on a number of projects I typically pass off to the side or don’t have time for.
When I do go out I absolutely wear a mask and social distance. I have not been shopping but I do have a couple of packages to mail so I took a couple of post offices. I will go early and get in and out (which is how those shops typically go anyway)
I do miss shopping but I’m waiting for the vaccine.
Liz
So far, no symptoms. Luckily, he's staying put. It would have killed his dad, almost guaranteed. We're waiting for more results from all of the contacts.@Susan L. wrote:
Thats just awful. How is your son?
OK, 100% of his friends are now positive and all are sick. He was negative on Thursday. He is getting retested on Monday. He is also now sick. Literally, the only negative test was my son, and that appears to be a false negative.@SoCalMama wrote:
So far, no symptoms. Luckily, he's staying put. It would have killed his dad, almost guaranteed. We're waiting for more results from all of the contacts.@Susan L. wrote:
Thats just awful. How is your son?
No apology from the asshat who kept it under wraps for 3 days. My son and the other roommate are apologizing left and right for unknowingly causing the spread (which should have been stopped with them). Praying that nobody takes it home and causes a death.
Sorry to hear SoCalMoma. Already prayed for complete restored health for you son and friends.
Thank you. I just heard that one of the girls took it home to her sister and most likely her parents. They are probably in their 50's I'd guess? Sigh. It's not good.@1forum1 wrote:
Sorry to hear SoCalMoma. Already prayed for complete restored health for you son and friends.
SoCal..so sorry to hear this happened to you and your son. Hoping for a full recovery and he gets a new roomie
*****************************************************************************
The more I learn about people...the more I like my dog..
Mark Twain
The more I learn about people...the more I like my dog..
Mark Twain
That is terrible SoCalMama I hope none get a bad case.
Regular flu is worth avoiding IMO. Took me a long time to get my energy back after that a couple years ago.
I live my life fearlessly, spend my days in various classrooms of small children. I absolutely wear my mask and wash my hands to prevent spreading what I might have been exposed to.
Have been exposed once for sure
Regular flu is worth avoiding IMO. Took me a long time to get my energy back after that a couple years ago.
I live my life fearlessly, spend my days in various classrooms of small children. I absolutely wear my mask and wash my hands to prevent spreading what I might have been exposed to.
Have been exposed once for sure
I work in a restaurant and got covid from work in August, because I was not going anywhere else at the time.
I will not overly push the masks, because I wore one at work and still got it. However, it is incredibly disrespectful to not wear one where asked/mandated.
I also HATED the people who would walk in without a mask and say, "Well no one is here, so why does it matter?" Hello! Am I no one? That is so incredibly rude. UGH.
Anyway, I got it from some people, my coworker got it, and my mother (68, I live with her.) My father who sleeps in the same bed as her did not. My coworkers husband who also works with us, did not.
There's not rhyme or reason to it, honestly. But it is easy to catch. We all had very mild cases. I was just tired, my mom felt like the flu.
I don't want people to get it. That sucks and you can't possibly know how your body will react. I work with a girl whose dad was getting cancer treatment (She lived with him), a girl with asthma, a girl with an autoimmune disorder. We can't stay home. We are required to be there. So yes, we do get pissed when people act like our lives don't matter because they are "free and don't live in fear." Get outta here.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/30/2020 03:58PM by nolimitem.
I will not overly push the masks, because I wore one at work and still got it. However, it is incredibly disrespectful to not wear one where asked/mandated.
I also HATED the people who would walk in without a mask and say, "Well no one is here, so why does it matter?" Hello! Am I no one? That is so incredibly rude. UGH.
Anyway, I got it from some people, my coworker got it, and my mother (68, I live with her.) My father who sleeps in the same bed as her did not. My coworkers husband who also works with us, did not.
There's not rhyme or reason to it, honestly. But it is easy to catch. We all had very mild cases. I was just tired, my mom felt like the flu.
I don't want people to get it. That sucks and you can't possibly know how your body will react. I work with a girl whose dad was getting cancer treatment (She lived with him), a girl with asthma, a girl with an autoimmune disorder. We can't stay home. We are required to be there. So yes, we do get pissed when people act like our lives don't matter because they are "free and don't live in fear." Get outta here.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/30/2020 03:58PM by nolimitem.
No COVID scares from mystery shopping. Ironically, while my boyfriend and I went to Cancun for my birthday - one of the people at his work became symptomatic and tested positive for COVID. His whole office tested positive except for him because we had luckily gone on vacation.
When used properly, a N95 still lets in 5% of particles- so it’s definitely possible to inhale the virus while masked. Virions can hang in the air, floating for hours, under the right conditions of humidity and temperature. You get the wrong lungful of air, you breathe in some SARS-CoV-2.
However, this doesn’t mean that “masks don’t work.” There’s good information coming out that you’re more likely to have a mild case if your initial viral load is low. So - if your N95 or surgical mask cut 95% of the possible virions out, you’ll be in better position overall to fight this novel virus and much less likely to end up in the ER or the ICU.
Personally, I double-mask. I wear a 3M N95 and have a cloth cover that captures my exhalations, so if I’m asymptomatic and infected, I’m not venting virus to others. I feel pretty safe with this setup, plus careful distancing and hand hygiene.
Article on masking and disease severity: [www.nejm.org]
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/30/2020 10:16PM by ColoKate63.
However, this doesn’t mean that “masks don’t work.” There’s good information coming out that you’re more likely to have a mild case if your initial viral load is low. So - if your N95 or surgical mask cut 95% of the possible virions out, you’ll be in better position overall to fight this novel virus and much less likely to end up in the ER or the ICU.
Personally, I double-mask. I wear a 3M N95 and have a cloth cover that captures my exhalations, so if I’m asymptomatic and infected, I’m not venting virus to others. I feel pretty safe with this setup, plus careful distancing and hand hygiene.
Article on masking and disease severity: [www.nejm.org]
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/30/2020 10:16PM by ColoKate63.
Nolimit's experience confirms my suspicion that those in the most danger in restaurants are the staff, not the customers. The staff has to deal both with unmasked diners and the small confines of the kitchen and other restaurant workspaces. In the few indoor dining experiences I've had I noticed that the restaurants, despite being forced to operate at partial capacity, were just grouping all the diners together in booths with plexiglass dividers (which many experts now say are useless) while leaving a huge chunk of the restaurant totally empty. This may be easier for operational purposes, but it creates a much higher risk since unmasked customers from different parties are in fact well within six feet (and many experts say depending on the airflow indoor unmasked diners should be closer to 12 feet).
I'm in the Northeast where we had the big spike in the spring and then very low case numbers until the current surge started to reach us recently. From June until November I did a LOT of heavily bonused Marketforce shops (mostly burger and phone store "reviews"
plus a smattering of shops for other MSCs -- even some indoor dining on nights I was assigned to go out and the weather wasn't cooperating. Thankfully we have near universal mask wearing in this region by both customers and employees -- I'd put it at 99.9%. I can't imagine how stressful it would be to live in an area where this isn't the case. There is also a free testing site a half-mile away which I take regular advantage of.
Although I'm not in a high risk group, I live in a household where no one works from home, and I'd hate to put my relatives out of work for a few weeks by bringing the virus home. Frankly, based on their behavior, some of them do not seem to feel the same about me, but such is life. Like others I will be taking a a very hard look at what kind of shops I'm willing to do. Last week I did a trio of mattress shops. The first had an indifferent associate and I was in an out within 10 minutes. The second two (which were a half mile apart and shared staff) had fantastic associates, which meant I was in the store for the full 30 minutes. Even though we were masked and distanced, that's just a lot of time to be in the same space with someone. I did a few storage shops earlier in the fall and noticed that the employee always was unmasked until I arrived, at which point they put their mask on. Given how few customers come into those offices, they could have been breathing COVID droplets for hours and hours until I arrived. I'm still OK with the MarketForce burger dine-in shops because I can always get a table very far from anyone else and I just take my mask off for a few seconds to have a bite of the sandwich and a few fries. But if the expected post-Thanksgiving surge arrives, I'll have to reconsider those as well.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/01/2020 03:15AM by NinS.
I'm in the Northeast where we had the big spike in the spring and then very low case numbers until the current surge started to reach us recently. From June until November I did a LOT of heavily bonused Marketforce shops (mostly burger and phone store "reviews"
plus a smattering of shops for other MSCs -- even some indoor dining on nights I was assigned to go out and the weather wasn't cooperating. Thankfully we have near universal mask wearing in this region by both customers and employees -- I'd put it at 99.9%. I can't imagine how stressful it would be to live in an area where this isn't the case. There is also a free testing site a half-mile away which I take regular advantage of.
Although I'm not in a high risk group, I live in a household where no one works from home, and I'd hate to put my relatives out of work for a few weeks by bringing the virus home. Frankly, based on their behavior, some of them do not seem to feel the same about me, but such is life. Like others I will be taking a a very hard look at what kind of shops I'm willing to do. Last week I did a trio of mattress shops. The first had an indifferent associate and I was in an out within 10 minutes. The second two (which were a half mile apart and shared staff) had fantastic associates, which meant I was in the store for the full 30 minutes. Even though we were masked and distanced, that's just a lot of time to be in the same space with someone. I did a few storage shops earlier in the fall and noticed that the employee always was unmasked until I arrived, at which point they put their mask on. Given how few customers come into those offices, they could have been breathing COVID droplets for hours and hours until I arrived. I'm still OK with the MarketForce burger dine-in shops because I can always get a table very far from anyone else and I just take my mask off for a few seconds to have a bite of the sandwich and a few fries. But if the expected post-Thanksgiving surge arrives, I'll have to reconsider those as well.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/01/2020 03:15AM by NinS.
I've done hotel shops since August and thankfully I have not gotten sick. I wear a mask while in the public area as that is what they request.
So...
There's a poster in this thread that have links to XXX porn videos in their sig line. Is this allowed now?
There's a poster in this thread that have links to XXX porn videos in their sig line. Is this allowed now?
Kim
Something else to consider, with the post-Thanksgiving COVID wave about to crowd into our hospitals:
You can die because of COVID, but not FROM COVID.
ERs are filling up with “boarder” patients on respirators, waiting for ICU beds. Staff members are contracting the disease, and what used to be 1:4 ratios are now 1:8 or 1:10.
You get into a car accident, fracture your pelvis?
You may not get into an OR (they’re being retrofit into ICUs) and/or you may have to wait days to get into a med/surg bed post-op, staying in a hallway.
I’ve got medical friends, they are already talking about not venting anyone over 75-80 y.o. for ANY reason, about sending elderly COVID patients who arrive at full hospitals into hospice or comfort care instead of ICUs.
And strokes, M.I.s, aneurysms that would have been survivable are going to be fatal. Cancer surgeries are going to slow to a crawl, and patients sent to hospice.
Be careful the next 3-4 months. Wear your damn masks, and social distance. Drive defensively and cautiously: you really do not want to go to an ER beginning this week.
You can die because of COVID, but not FROM COVID.
ERs are filling up with “boarder” patients on respirators, waiting for ICU beds. Staff members are contracting the disease, and what used to be 1:4 ratios are now 1:8 or 1:10.
You get into a car accident, fracture your pelvis?
You may not get into an OR (they’re being retrofit into ICUs) and/or you may have to wait days to get into a med/surg bed post-op, staying in a hallway.
I’ve got medical friends, they are already talking about not venting anyone over 75-80 y.o. for ANY reason, about sending elderly COVID patients who arrive at full hospitals into hospice or comfort care instead of ICUs.
And strokes, M.I.s, aneurysms that would have been survivable are going to be fatal. Cancer surgeries are going to slow to a crawl, and patients sent to hospice.
Be careful the next 3-4 months. Wear your damn masks, and social distance. Drive defensively and cautiously: you really do not want to go to an ER beginning this week.
Over 75 years old and on a ventilator for 7-8 weeks before pulling the plug is an incredible waste of resources.@ColoKate63 wrote:
I’ve got medical friends, they are already talking about not venting anyone over 75-80 y.o. for ANY reason, about sending elderly COVID patients who arrive at full hospitals into hospice or comfort care instead of ICUs.
I certainly wouldn’t put a dog or a cat through that. I would put them out of their misery.
I’m also finding it interesting that they want to vaccinate the patients in SNF. They are never included in any vaccine trials or studies and don’t tolerate vaccines well. Doctors are anticipating deaths due to the vaccinations. There’s just no common sense anymore.
There are all sorts of patients in skilled nursing facilities (SNF) who may well benefit, though. Consider those recovering from auto accidents, etc. Many are there for short term care after procedures. I think that a focused approach will be needed. My older sister-in-law is in one due to complications of dementia. If she is otherwise in good condition, should she not be vaccinated?
I am not sure of the answer to that, since I do not fully understand the implications of such "complications," but surely the entire SNF population should not be ruled in or out. The medical staff will have to consult with those holding medical POAs to make many such determinations where the patient is not capable of understanding the options.
I am not sure of the answer to that, since I do not fully understand the implications of such "complications," but surely the entire SNF population should not be ruled in or out. The medical staff will have to consult with those holding medical POAs to make many such determinations where the patient is not capable of understanding the options.
Based in MD, near DC
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel
Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.
Shopping from the Carolinas to New York
Have video cam; will travel
Poor customer service? Don't get mad; get video.
@kimmiemae wrote:
So...
There's a poster in this thread that have links to XXX porn videos in their sig line. Is this allowed now?
Dang. That is some mighty fine detective work! I sure can't find it... or is it the one about Eleanor Roosevelt? Don't want to see that!
It was a poster who's forum name started with stream something. I don't see the post now.
@sestrahelena wrote:
@kimmiemae wrote:
So...
There's a poster in this thread that have links to XXX porn videos in their sig line. Is this allowed now?
Dang. That is some mighty fine detective work! I sure can't find it... or is it the one about Eleanor Roosevelt? Don't want to see that!
Kim
This is a good example of why decisions might be difficult and never clearly good. Dementia causes the brain to operate the body differently (until it stops doing even that) than it did pre-dementia. Who knows exactly how each dementia patient can respond to the same stimulus (a covid-19 or other vaccine)? If no one knows this, they don't know if/when they might do harm, even though the overall intention of limiting disease acquisition and spread is noble and beautiful. In brief, it's a crap shoot. *sigh*
@walesmaven wrote:
There are all sorts of patients in skilled nursing facilities (SNF) who may well benefit, though. Consider those recovering from auto accidents, etc. Many are there for short term care after procedures. I think that a focused approach will be needed. My older sister-in-law is in one due to complications of dementia. If she is otherwise in good condition, should she not be vaccinated?
I am not sure of the answer to that, since I do not fully understand the implications of such "complications," but surely the entire SNF population should not be ruled in or out. The medical staff will have to consult with those holding medical POAs to make many such determinations where the patient is not capable of understanding the options.
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu
[www.npr.org]
NPR has a tool that lets you know if your local hospital is overwhelmed.
Pretty neat map.
NPR has a tool that lets you know if your local hospital is overwhelmed.
Pretty neat map.
covid-overwhelmed, schmovid-overwhelmed. Hospitals are always sick buildings!
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu
No. Your personal responsibility begins and ends with yourself. All you can reasonably do is attempt to protect yourself with what goes into or onto your body. Others are free to do as they will, regardless of how this affects you and regardless of whether they have any particular intention regarding you. Anything else is over-control. The over-control is involves its own cluster of problems for everyone regardless of covid or any other issue.
Let the drinkers drink, the smokers smoke, the maskers wear masks... but do not try to force them to do otherwise.
If you dislike smoke, stay at home and let the smokers smoke. If you fear covid, stay at home. If you don't like pee-ey water, stay out of swimming pools. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen... and clever ones remember that Truman was fond of the little saying.
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But the problem is not that I dislike smoke, but it has a harmful effect on others. That is why no smoking laws were created. It is not about you (the smoker) but other people. So that line of reasoning is backwards. If you have to smoke, stay off the plane, stay out of the restaurant, stay out of the church, library, and stay out of the office. If you have to smoke, you stay home.
.[/quote]
Let the drinkers drink, the smokers smoke, the maskers wear masks... but do not try to force them to do otherwise.
If you dislike smoke, stay at home and let the smokers smoke. If you fear covid, stay at home. If you don't like pee-ey water, stay out of swimming pools. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen... and clever ones remember that Truman was fond of the little saying.
**************************************************************************
But the problem is not that I dislike smoke, but it has a harmful effect on others. That is why no smoking laws were created. It is not about you (the smoker) but other people. So that line of reasoning is backwards. If you have to smoke, stay off the plane, stay out of the restaurant, stay out of the church, library, and stay out of the office. If you have to smoke, you stay home.
.[/quote]
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. - Lao-Tzu
@ Shop- et-al...... "Your personal responsibility ends and begins with yourself." That logic is ill conceived. "Let the drinkers drink." Let the drinkers drink and drive? Let people with Aids have all the unprotected sex they want and not notify their partner? Let someone knowingly with Covid ignore quarantine hit the clubs, bars, classrooms, gyms? Personal responsibility does NOT always end and begin with yourself. Often, it affects others. Sometimes, yes sometimes, rules and laws are made in an effort to protect others who are affected by the personal responsibility, or lack thereof, of someone else.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/09/2020 08:34PM by 1forum1.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/09/2020 08:34PM by 1forum1.
My granddaughter broke her arm and had to wait almost EIGHT hours in the ER before she was seen. No pain meds, no nothing! There were also COVID patients in the hallway because there was no room for them.
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