HAPPY NEW WEEK and HAPPY NEW MOON!
The new moon (the dark moon) is on 20 July.
Everyone have a safe and content week!
Lindy: I'm sorry that you can't enjoy a visit with your eldest and Amber without being frightened. 2020 is a bad, bad year.
I thought I'd make one suggestion, although I admit I don't know a lot about this technology. If you're going to allow your son and Amber to visit anyway, you may want to consider buying one of those air cleaners or air purifiers. Some of the small ones aren't very expensive here in the U.S.
According to the scientists at the United States Environmental Protection Agency, an official agency of the federal government, an air cleaner or air purifier is not enough by itself to completely protect you from the novel coronavirus, but the EPA says it can be a part of a good plan to protect your family when it's used along with other best practices, such as hand washing, distancing, etc.
HERE is a page with the EPA's guidance. Links on that page will take you to information about choosing, placing, and using an air purifier or air cleaner.
I'm not giving you advice, just pointing you toward an idea to explore. I can tell you that when my Dad had tuberculosis and I was caring for him, we used a small air cleaner/purifier beside my Dad's chair based upon the advice of an infectious disease specialist. (Neither me nor my Mom--who had lung damage from cancer--contracted tuberculosis, but that was a different situation than you're facing.)
Thanks for all the support, and to Diane for her advice. Its appreciated. We decided that we will have a visit from our son & Amber, in early August. As we are lucky enough to have two bathrooms, we can easily limit ourselves to only using the upstairs one whilst they are here, and then I can thoroughly clean the downstairs one once they are gone. Amber has been going to school but of course by the time they arrive to see us, she will not have seen her playmates for a long time. So she is unlikely to be a carrier. Its been creasing me as we have not seen either of them since before Christmas, which now seems a whole lifetime away. Our d.in law will not be coming as she will have to work - she is working from home plus one day a week in an office. They are all going together on a mini break to the South Coast after they have visited us, so that will break up the long summer holidays for them nicely. No, Heather, we haven't made any bubbles of our relatives - we have only seen my OHs sister at a distance, left things on the doorstep for his other sister, and went to see our Youngest and family by being at a distance in the garden. I did pause to photograph baby Rosie on the carpet, taking great interest in her Mums mobile phone, as we were greeted and went through to be outside. Otherwise we've taken great pains not to touch anyone nor have hugs -- not easy! Been busy today getting ready to go back to Wales (already??!) as we are hoping that we can sort out the boiler problem and at least we might as well have a few days there at the same time - there is still lots of cleaning to do to bring her up to looking bright again after a whole winter shut up.
DIANE – To answer your questions from an Aussie view. No. No. We are advised to have a test if any symptoms. Tests are free for Aussie residents. In Adelaide available at designated hospitals, clinics & 2 drive-through sites. Many also across country towns. In Melbourne they did target certain suburbs, going door to door, advising people to be tested anyway. Those in the locked-down towers were tested at home.
HEATHER – North-facing windows DownUnder are not a good idea in our hot summers. Those 2 windows facing west are going to make that top room unbearable in late summer afternoons. Too many people here rely on air con, uncaring about global warming. Aussies huddle around the coasts as the inland is so dry, no reliable rainfall.
DIANE – Our winters here in Adelaide are not really very cold, so heating that house won’t be too much of an expense. This morn temp dropped to 2 C; it doesn’t get much colder than that.
OH has left for lunch out. Yeay! Now where is that list of thing to do when he’s not around.
There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full. (Henry Kissinger)
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Then quit. There’s no point in being a damn fool about it. (W C Fields)
Tomorrow seems forever. Do it now.
AQ: Thanks for the answers from an Aussie perspective. It's interesting because your country has had a different experience of COVID-19 than the U.S. and even the U.K.
ALL: I have some critical personal tasks that I need to finish right now, but this weekend or early next week I'm going to sit down and read about the new research on this virus. I'll let you all know, then, why I was curious about your tests or lack of them. I may push my local system and see whether I can get an antibody test.
Thanks, folks, for answering my questions. I'm a nosy old woman. LOL!