D&D and the rising pandemic

[MGibster]

Here in Arkansans, where many people ignored masks mandates before a vaccine was available, precautions do not exist for the most part. It's kind of funny though, in March 2020 I felt weird for going into a gas station while wearing a mask, but in Octoer 2021 I felt odd for going into a gas station without a mask. I'm not really taking any precautions these days because I've gotten my vaccine shots and the booster. I acknowledge that I might still get COVID, but I always assumed I would get it and the social distancing was just to slow the spread and give our medical infrastructure time to take care of everyone. I don't know of anybody here who requires masks in their business, though I still see a few people wearing masks from time-to-time. Personally, I think it's a little silly to wear a mask into a crowded restaurant and then take it off once you get to your table, but folks are free to do whatever makes them comfortable.

 

[JEB]

I'm not really taking any precautions these days because I've gotten my vaccine shots and the booster.

Unless you've recently gotten a second booster, or you got your first booster within the last few months, odds are you're not particularly well protected at this point; they lose effectiveness over time. (And even the protection from booster #2 is limited, since it's still designed to deal with original Covid and not Omicron.) For your safety and the safety of those around you, I would advise you take at least basic precautions, like masking in public.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Please don't talk yourself into believing you can't be infected while grocery shopping.

Never said that. We wear our masks when we go to the grocery store, to mass, etc.

The one thing about dining in is that you have to remove your mask to eat. Like wildebeest drinking from a river full of crocodiles, it’s a known risk that can only be minimized, not avoided completely.

But she won’t even go into a restaurant to order takeout. That’s a level of exposure fractional to her exposures at groceries, mass and all the other places she DOES go to.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

It is MUCH MUCH MUCH safer to order your groceries for home delivery, full stop.

We have a friend that does that, and it works for her.

But I personally don’t trust others to pick produce to my satisfaction. Or to eyeball steaks with my level of scrutiny.

Not to mention there’s all the things percolating in my mind- new recipes, variations on ingredients, stuff I forgot the last time. And some of that isn’t optional. I had to prepare something for a small (vaccinated) gathering held yesterday. The first store I hit was completely out of cream cheese. I had to bring that dish, no option. So I had to either find cream cheese elsewhere or find a reasonable substitute. With the latter in mind, I tried another store, and lucked out. They had enough for me with a few boxes left over for others, otherwise, I was going to have to go to another store that didn’t have an online ordering option.

Etc.

 

[MGibster]

For your safety and the safety of those around you, I would advise you take at least basic precautions, like masking in public.

The number of people taking basic precautions, which includes both social distancing and masking, is pretty much nil in Arkansas. And quite frankly, if we still need masks, then business like bars and restaurants should be closed. Even if a person wears a mask, if they're going to non-essential businesses they're not really taking basic precautions. I took basic precautions prior to the vaccine, and I happily wore my mask and practiced physical distancing as best I could which pretty much limited my retail experience to the grocery store, pharmacy, and my local game store. But if a masked person is going int o a restaurant and taking off their mask once seated, well, what's the mask for?

 

[Hussar]

Well, it might not be perfect, but it does reduce risk.

Then again I live where all these precautions were automatic. Wearing a mask isn’t about protecting you. It’s about protecting people FROM you.

So you wear the mask until you sit down so you’re not infecting every person you walk past. Your server is wearing a mask for the same reason.

 

[CapnZapp]

Please don't talk yourself into believing that anyone said anything of the kind.

We can compare risks, and say one action is less risky than another, without saying that either one is without risk.

Hmm...

Saying one action is less risky than another can easily be implied as saying taking that action is basically okay.

To avoid considerable risk don't go indoors at public places.

Whether this is less or more risky than some other action is of minor importance.

Only if you you HAVE to complete a certain task is it worthwhile to compare risks of different ways to accomplish that task.

But the question is: do you HAVE to do your groceries in person?

If the answer is "no not really" and you still do it, well, we're back to my initial statement:

Don't talk yourself into the falsehood that you basically can't and won't be infected at the grocery store.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Hmm...

Saying one action is less risky than another can easily be implied as saying taking that action is basically okay.

The phrase "the lesser evil" seems to disagree with you.

 

[Zardnaar]

Hmm...

Saying one action is less risky than another can easily be implied as saying taking that action is basically okay.

To avoid considerable risk don't go indoors at public places.

Whether this is less or more risky than some other action is of minor importance.

Only if you you HAVE to complete a certain task is it worthwhile to compare risks of different ways to accomplish that task.

But the question is: do you HAVE to do your groceries in person?

If the answer is "no not really" and you still do it, well, we're back to my initial statement:

Don't talk yourself into the falsehood that you basically can't and won't be infected at the grocery store.

Well aware that the risk is greater than 0.

But we're not exactly bdoung any other form of socializing outside of dining out.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

But the question is: do you HAVE to do your groceries in person?

Yes.

The simple fact of the matter is their employee’s judgement of what I want and MY judgement of what I want are two different things. I get a reminder of that every time I buy cold cuts from the deli counter.

Because there is no standardization of the settings on meat slicers (we actually used to own one, FWIW), I can’t ask for a half pound sliced to “a 6”. Even “sandwich cut” or “a half inch” varies from place to place and employee to employee. IOW, unless I check that first slice with my own eyes, my deli meats could be shaved to the equivalent of 2-4x the thickness of the size I’d prefer.

And no, they don’t know which cheeses can be packaged without papers between the slices and which cannot.

To be clear: I’m not saying the people providing the delivery service are incompetent or uncaring. I’m saying there’s enough stuff I buy where my attention to detail is going to be greater than the average employee’s.

Don't talk yourself into the falsehood that you basically can't and won't be infected at the grocery store.

I’m pretty sure nobody in this thread has stated that they believe that.