Covid-19 lockdown check-in

[Josephus]

True story: I was like 18 or 19. I had an old car that badly needed tires, so my dad lent me some money and I went to Canadian Tire to get tires. I picked some Motomaster ones from the catalogue and said to the guy, I'll have four of these, and gave him the size.

So I wait, and pay, and then I see some guy wheeling out for tires for me. I'm like "Uh....don't they come installed?" and the guy says, "You didn't say so."

I know some people are DIYers, but isn't the default when buying tires, getting them installed?

[Malthus]

Heh I had fun trying to buy aftermarket roof racks to hold a cargo pod on the old car at Canadian tyre.

Did you know you need a specific hardware kit that depends on the make and model of car to attach those? I didn't. Neither, apparently, did anyone at Canadian Tyre. 😄

When questioned how to attach the racks, it took them hours to figure out that the parts required and more hours to find out where these were located - they said they could ship them the next day. A couple of weeks went by, the parts did not show despite repeated statements that they could have them the next day; one day, I called the store, and the guy I'd been dealing with no longer worked there; the new guy had never heard of these attachment fittings, wasn't sure they actually sold any such things ...

I gave up and bought one at Rack Attack instead. More expensive, but they knew how to attach the things, and had the right fittings.

[ulmont]

So if you're curious how well the current crop of COVID-19 antibody tests works:  my wife tested positive.  Which I believe - she had a really nasty "flu" in late February which came back with a vengeance in mid-March.  I tested negative, despite having been around my wife for the entire duration...

[Barrister]

So if you're curious how well the current crop of COVID-19 antibody tests works:  my wife tested positive.  Which I believe - she had a really nasty "flu" in late February which came back with a vengeance in mid-March.  I tested negative, despite having been around my wife for the entire duration...

A lot of tests have a pretty bad false positive rate.  FDA allowed pretty much allowed antibody tests with very little assessment as to reliability.

[Barrister]

Heh I had fun trying to buy aftermarket roof racks to hold a cargo pod on the old car at Canadian tyre.

Did you know you need a specific hardware kit that depends on the make and model of car to attach those? I didn't. Neither, apparently, did anyone at Canadian Tyre. 😄

When questioned how to attach the racks, it took them hours to figure out that the parts required and more hours to find out where these were located - they said they could ship them the next day. A couple of weeks went by, the parts did not show despite repeated statements that they could have them the next day; one day, I called the store, and the guy I'd been dealing with no longer worked there; the new guy had never heard of these attachment fittings, wasn't sure they actually sold any such things ...

I gave up and bought one at Rack Attack instead. More expensive, but they knew how to attach the things, and had the right fittings.

That would be the "terrible customer service" GF and I mentioned earlier...

[ulmont]

A lot of tests have a pretty bad false positive rate.  FDA allowed pretty much allowed antibody tests with very little assessment as to reliability.

1. Yes, although from what I have seen it's the tests for "do you have the 'Rona now" more than the tests for "did you have the 'Rona then".

2. I live in one of the earliest US hotspots (New Orleans), so it's more likely here that my wife caught it than elsewhere (other than my friend the Georgia State Senator, who caught it because another asshole State Senator came to the capitol to vote while coughing profusely).

[Barrister]

A lot of tests have a pretty bad false positive rate.  FDA allowed pretty much allowed antibody tests with very little assessment as to reliability.

1. Yes, although from what I have seen it's the tests for "do you have the 'Rona now" more than the tests for "did you have the 'Rona then".

2. I live in one of the earliest US hotspots (New Orleans), so it's more likely here that my wife caught it than elsewhere (other than my friend the Georgia State Senator, who caught it because another asshole State Senator came to the capitol to vote while coughing profusely).

No, it's specifically the antibody tests (the "did you have the 'Rona then" tests) that have been reported as having a shitty false-positive rate.  The test was reported as being useful in assessing an overall population, but useless on the individual level.

[ulmont]

No, it's specifically the antibody tests (the "did you have the 'Rona then" tests) that have been reported as having a shitty false-positive rate.  The test was reported as being useful in assessing an overall population, but useless on the individual level.

You got a link?  This was the article I saw, which is definitely "now": https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/05/14/856531970/fda-cautions-about-accuracy-of-widely-used-abbott-coronavirus-test

[Syt]

I'm using my last work from home day to clear my apartment of some clutter and bring it to my basement storage. I could have done that at any point during the last 3-6 months, but I finally did it. The fact that I've asked my cleaning company to come again starting tomorrow might have to do something with it.

Well, it's not quite true that today is last WFH day. We will work from home Mondays and Fridays, and at the office Tuesdays through Thursdays.

[derspiess]

I was able to get a haircut this past weekend

[Duque de Bragança]

Got a haircut today. First time in... I don't know how many months.

Self-quarantine to be on the safe side, just in case? 

[Iormlund]

Trimmed mine yesterday. I still try to keep distancing as much as possible. Haven't asked the lady that cleans my flat to come back either. As much as my flat needs a good cleaning, my mind needs to relax for a few hours a day somewhere where I know it's 100% safe.

The pandemic has had a few upsides though. Went to get some blood drawn and it was the fastest I've ever seen the process work. I barely waited for 5 minutes whereas sometimes it takes half an hour.

[PDH]

The pandemic has had a few upsides though. Went to get some blood drawn and it was the fastest I've ever seen the process work. I barely waited for 5 minutes whereas sometimes it takes half an hour.

Who did you have them draw it from?

[celedhring]

The Catalan government has finally asked the Spanish government to begin descalating my area, so if it's approved I'll be able to meet most of my family by next week (some of them live in other areas and we aren't allowed to cross the borders for non-essential stuff). Really looking forward to it, since I missed my mother's birthday, my brother's birthday, their wedding anniversary... we'll probably organize a family gathering (we're a small family so it won't break the 10 person limit  ) by the end of the month to make up for it.

[The Larch]

The Catalan government has finally asked the Spanish government to begin descalating my area, so if it's approved I'll be able to meet most of my family by next week (some of them live in other areas and we aren't allowed to cross the borders for non-essential stuff). Really looking forward to it, since I missed my mother's birthday, my brother's birthday, their wedding anniversary... we'll probably organize a family gathering (we're a small family so it won't break the 10 person limit  ) by the end of the month to make up for it.

I was able to meet my parents last week for a beer in a bar near their house, and this past saturday we had lunch (outdoors) together for the first time since the lockdown started.