My sons daughters school has been locked down for a week. My daughters area has locked down a neighborhood...:(

Angie, I haven't been on this forum a lot lately but after learning about my across the hall neighbors being quarantined, I came here first. And I did that as a testament to YOU. I can always count on you for your level headedness. I know how hard it is for you right now, in current US epicenter. I am just saying I really appreciate this community you've built, and come back here time and time again. You make a difference, way beyond fashion.

On lighter subject I hope to see future posts about what to wear while you are at home quarantining, or out in public social distancing! Fashionable spring weight gloves? Scarves which may be not as effective as N95 masks but better than nothing? Bleach-friendly clothes and shoes?

Love you and this community, and look forward to your leadership.

I agree with everything Shiny said!! We can share information and commiserate and if people are in quarantine or isolation the forum can be a real outlet.

It's been pretty close - but not yet too close - to home here! My parents and my inlaws both live in the epicentre that is emerging in Sydney. In Brisbane, there has been one case of a student at the Uni where I work, but fortunately he did not come on campus. However, we do not yet know how many other people he saw in transit, or what other cases are around. Lots of handwashing and care when I am on campus, and I am working at home on days I can. I would not be at all surprised if we were shut down in coming weeks.
My work has implemented a total travel ban - first it was international travel, then all travel, including trips already booked. I have several speaking engagements in other cities booked in the next couple of months - not that I want to go to the airport particularly, but those cities have had no cases so far, while my own campus is pretty high risk, so it is all a bit puzzling.
I hope everyone is ok, and that the impacts are not too horrendous. I am quite worried about my parents, especially my mother who has a chronic chest condition.

Wow, this thread exploded. Last time I looked there were a couple responses I planned to get to in a leisurely way, and then it just took off!

Thank you all for your comments and good wishes. Many of you are in situations similar to ours, and of course we all are aware and wondering. Wishing the best to all of you, powering through in level-headed style.

I'm not so worried about myself but I do worry about my parents. I've been going about life as usual. My job requires my presence so the best I can do is close my office door. I've been going to the gym and the grocery store but have cut out any unnecessary public places. I don't use public transportation and generally don't eat out. My dad has surgery in a couple of weeks--kind of wondering whether that might get postponed. If not, I'm wondering if I should be self quarantining myself before I spend any time with him.

My heart goes out to those directly affected, those caring for the ill, and those in quarantine and lockdown. And cheers to what Shiny said. Angie, you've made this place a safe one for those who need companionship in any of those situations. Thank you for that.

I flew from Ontario to Vancouver two days ago on a full flight. A few people were wiping down surfaces; one or two wearing masks. We do have cases in Vancouver (and have, for some time) and also at least one case of community contagion, but so far the city is maintaining calm and people are going about more or less as usual.

https://nationalpost.com/news/.....dian-cases

Shiny, thanks for the kind words. WOW. I'm very touched. Thanks to Sal and Suz, for endorsing Shiny's POV. More touched

Seattle has been dubbed Ground Zero of the Coronavirus at the moment. The Cox Castle is calm and prepared. Taking the precautions that we can. Reducing travel. Seattle is very organized and level headed. And although it's at the epicenter of the virus at the moment in the US - we feel safest here because the city is doing a brilliant job.

Kelly, I get the worry with your parents. Do what you can to educate and prepare them. Try to get them to wash their hands regularly, use sanitizer, and stay away from crowds. I know you'll be a great daughter.

Sisi, I believe that a lot of Italy has just locked down. Hang in there. We are here to support each other.

Jessikams, how are you doing in Beijing?

I have been thinking of you Sisi - I can imagine life has taken quite a different turn for you all in North Italy.

I have also been thinking of Jessikams in Beijing.

It is so heartening to hear that Seattle is doing a fantastic job. That is very encouraging.

We are currently quarantined in our home, far from any Corona Virus hotspots. One of us had direct, multi-day exposure to someone who tested positive. Hoping to be tested this week. Unfortunately our state and local health department isn’t on top of things.

My family flew here from from India via a layover at a European stop. None of the passengers were tested at origin or end?! Seems very risky to me but I am hoping they had good reasons not to. I am staying off public transportation.

At this point I am dreading the panic more than the illness, but that might change. DH is WFH, we have sanitizer all over the place and are wondering about the next time we will be able to travel. My sister's planned trip here is cancelled, my daughter's debate tournament postponed, schools may have an extended holiday, and (soon to be) everyone entering from out of the country has to self-isolate for 14 days. Social distancing is my newest vocabulary phrase. Hope everyone stays well!

A young doctor being interviewed for the news said the “ elderly” should just say home and went on to say “people over 50 years old”! Lots of shelves are empty in stores.

Joy, “ The elderly, over 50.” I had to laugh, I never considered my self elderly before!

That’s hilarious, Joy! So... Denny’s gonna be empty and all the Sweet n’ Low packets gonna be mine!

MsMaven - It may be time to cancel that cruise vacation. State department has just updated its travel advisory: "U.S. citizens, particularly travelers with underlying health conditions, should not travel by cruise ship."

https://travel.state.gov/conte.....iKr6B0EseM

Thank you Angie and Sal for your kind words, they mean a lot to me.

The situation here in Northern Italy and especially in my area is increasingly worrying. I wish health and good luck to the all of you, to your families and your friends.

not to get off topic, but in yesterday's NYTimes someone talked about holding the door open for an "older women" who turned about to be Patti Smith! and while i know she's older than i'm LOL, i never thought i'd hear Patti Smith called that!

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/0.....diary.html

Sisi, 16 million people in Italy in quarantine. Hang in there. xo

26 deaths in the US - 22 of them in WA. Most in King County. That is SEATTLE. We live in King County. 

Hong Kong has been an epicenter for COVID-19 for months. ONLY 3 deaths in HK. Mind blowing.

We are deciding about travel MUCH closer to the time. Personally, I think planes are not too bad. They have been preparing for months because of travel to and from China. Much fewer people on planes now too. That helps. I don't want to put my Papa at risk. That's my worry.

My company has cancelled all travel, even that to a tradeshow that only happens once every three years. Even after having paid for the tradeshow.

They are asking all employees to consider cancelling non-essential travel as well.

My family has as we decided it wasn't worth the risk. We live in the frozen Midwest, and there have been very few if any cases here so far. Figure it's a good place to be right now

I have colleagues in China, so it was interesting hearing their experiences so far, too.

I think the fear is the worst part. And the not-knowing. But otherwise, we have not been severely impacted. I feel for those who have. I am very concerned we don't have the right kind of leadership to handle this kind of crisis, either locally or at the federal level.

Bella, we are postponing the cruise as of this morning after reading state department and CDC warnings. We also will heed the warnings about taking long air journeys. DH has been particularly vulnerable to coming down with illnesses after a long plane trip.

I just noted on the WHO website that another 8 or so new countries have reported cases of COVID-19, and the list of countries already reporting cases astounded me. We live in such an international world--it's amazing how much we have taken for granted.

Financially, I have lost two gigs in March, totaling around $400. I am hoping not to lose more.

We’ve just started rehearsals for The Merchant of Verona - and the director is talking about online rehearsals, if things get crazy. Which I can’t quite wrap my head around, as a big part of rehearsing is the physicality and movement through space. Dunno.

Thistle is correct - right now, fear is the worst part.

It doesn’t help that our elected officials won’t stand calmly before the citizens of this nation, and say, “yes, this is spreading, these are the symptoms, these are the current, confirmed statistics. Keep calm, and cautiously carry on”. And because I am so accustomed to seeing this current government call scientific facts “fake news”, and politicians stubbornly cling to their party stance, in the face of scientific fact, I feel I cannot actually trust that our government is disseminating correct information, or helping the citizens of this nation,

I believe the employees and agencies that wish to be helpful, are being muzzled. For the layman, the CDC site is couched vaguespeak and general terms.

The media has thin slices of useful information, sandwiched in big thick slices of sensationalism and liberally spread with fear.

So while I find the hysteria annoying, frustrating, and catching, by turns, I thoroughly understand why stores are out of hand sanitizer and soap.

We were supposed to go on a cruise at the end of March but have cancelled that trip. I'm not worried so much about actually getting COVID at this point, but I would lose my mind if I was quarantined for 3 weeks with my 3 kids in two small staterooms.

My company headquarters are in Seattle and they've closed the office there and everyone is working remotely.

There aren't any cases in NM yet but I think it's here - it's just that people haven't been tested.

It's scary! I'm still working as normal, but may postpone my trip to visit my dad.

As part of our Apocalypse shopping at Costco last week, I bought artichokes. I’m pressure cooking them right now. As you might expect, they are so big that only three fit in my Instant Pot.

My just-turned-90 year old Dad is appropriately concerned. He's "healthy" but has multiple compromising things going on. He will not purchase airfare to the college graduations and military commissioning of not one, but 2, grandchildren, including my son. The events are scheduled between May 15 -20, one in AZ and the other in CT. It would break my heart if my parents cannot attend these events. It occurs to me these once-in-a-lifetime events might well be cancelled altogether.

My other son works in Boston at a research lab in a building close to BioGen where 70+ people were infected at a conference. It feels very close to home to him. He is still considered "essential" to be present at work, but thinks they might shut down offices and labs all together within days.

I literally feel chest constriction when I think of being stuck on one of those cruise ships - glad to see Fabbers making a decision not to cruise in the near term.

Fortunately I have worked from home for 20 years. My CA based co has cancelled all travel, and given all employees who work in the office a choice to stay home. Very accommodating. I'm so sorry for those on this forum who do not have this flexibility in work situations.

I feel relatively safe as we have been on a MH trip and are camping in the desert SW. We are about a thousand miles from home and trying to decide whether to stay here or go home. We are half way through our trip and it's tempting to just head for home in case one of us gets sick since we are both in the high risk group. DDs are teachers and granddaughters are students and we worry about them. The news is not very encouraging.

JAileen, I totally want your Instant Pot Artichoke recipe! How did it work out?

Laurie, I have been following the Biogen situation closely. Boston has 70 cases (out of 90 in the state!!) that are all from a conference that had just 175 people. And the same conference also exported 2 cases to Indiana, 5 to NC, and 3 international. I'm not sure how many were directly infected vs secondarily, but that infection rate is mind boggling to consider! Luckily they've been able to contact trace and quarantine.

And now my sister is in self-isolation the next two weeks. She's in CA and a sales rep. She was exposed last week in a customer meeting. She's fine, no symptoms. "Abundance of caution" and all that.

DH's university has cancelled all classes. He's still going into work, scrambling to set up virtual meetings in lieu of in person. Soon I hope he'll have enough of a handle he can do the rest of his work from home until it all blows over.

I've got one DD who's a school teacher (there's been school cancellations here already but not hers) and another who's a CNA for assisted living facility.

My parents are in the high risk category. Luckily they live in a very remote area and have full stocked pantry and multiple freezers. I am not about to get on a plane to see them, I think it's just too much of a risk to them right now.