Topic: Trapped by isolation

[John Robison]

Just Friday night, although I've been isolating since early March I started a heavy cough and ran a fever. Test won't come back till Wednesday but matters not, doctor said if test positive for covid isolate in bedroom for 2 weeks, if negative isolate for 2 weeks anyway. (Tests are not 100% accurate.)

Bummer! Can't get to darkroom (laundry room) or any where else in house, wife on couch although if I have it she almost certainly does. I'm high risk to, 71, fat, type 2 diabetic with hypertension. That said, so far......
Only other major symptom is almost no appetite, wife said 'well finally, maybe you'll finally lose some weight.

So desperate considered ordering a roll of rubylith, some strong elastic and making a darkroom glovebox out of a section of IKEA shelving, should work for 4X5 photo paper negatives.
Edit; Holy cats, a roll of rubylith is really expensive, maybe just make it out of cardboard and tape a lith sheet on for a window.

[Bryan]

Sorry to hear that John, I hope you get well soon.  The slightest cough these days is quite a scare.  While I was isolating I kept busy taking pictures of my dogs and garden and fixing some cameras.  I also experimented a lot with photomicroscopy and doing contact prints.  On top of that I got a lot of projects done around the house. 

I got back from a project in Hawaii in March just before they started locking us down.  Right after I got home I came down with some very minor symptoms that didn't worry me much.  I also had what seemed like frostbite on my toes, not something you usually get in Hawaii.  It was painful and I wanted to go to the doctor but with everything going on I just toughed it out until it went away.  My wife and I were joking about it calling it Corona Toe.  About a month after it went away we saw a story on the news about COVID Toe, it looked exactly like what I had.  I called my doctor and he wanted me to get tested.  I figured it would come back negative since it was so far past my symptoms and it did.  I then got the antibody test but that came back negative as well.  Those tests are horribly inaccurate though. 

In late June I had to go look at a Coal Fire for work that we were being asked to extinguish.  The fire fighters led us up to the fire using instruments to monitor for CO.  Of course the wind shifted, the instruments started going off so we left, after getting a lung full of smoke.  After that I had a cough for a few weeks.  I got tested again just to be safe, the results came back negative again.  I guess I just had a mild case of Black Lung, not volunteering to go on coal fires anymore. 

This weekend I had to put two laborers working for me into isolation after they found out they came in contact with someone that tested positive.  They are young and healthy and don't have any symptoms.

Maybe I had it back in March but there's no way to know for sure.  I kind of hope that was it and I lucked out and had a mild case.  Hopefully yours just goes away and it turns out to be a minor thing. 

[Francois]

Yeah, I really do hope you get better (and I also hope it's just the flu).
And don't forget to thoroughly clean the bathroom every time you use it, this thing does spread through poo...

I personally wouldn't make much of a case for the lost appetite. The cold and the flu do cut down on your hunger.
But whatever it is you caught, have plenty of rest. It helps a lot.

Keep us posted.

[astrobeck]

I wish you well too! It's scary to get anything right now as no one wants to go see a Doctor.

Stressing about the virus may have killed your appetite. Stress does many things.
So try to relax and the rubylith idea of a window sounds pretty good.
 

[Indofunk]

Wishing you well John! Take care of yourself (and your wife)!

[hookstrapped]

Wishing you well. I had a mild case of Covid19 in April -- two weeks of body aches, headaches, fatigue, loss of sense of smell (but no fever or cough or other respiratory symptoms).

They say severity of symptoms and disease is likely linked to dosage of exposure. Hopefully if you got it, your isolation practices have limited the dose.

[John Robison]

Thanks everyone for the concern and encouragement. Yesterday the doctor’s office called to say the test was negative which, by that time I had suspected anyway as my symptoms were starting to lessen.
Just left with a persistent, non productive cough. Still quarantined for another week so I don’t give this crap to anybody else in the family.
Hope all the filmwasters are getting along well, this has got to be the most kind and pleasant photography interest group on the whole interweb.

[Francois]

Happy to see it's probably just the flu.
(Which is a strange thing that I never thought I would say).

[Skorj]

They say severity of symptoms and disease is likely linked to dosage of exposure. Hopefully if you got it, your isolation practices have limited the dose.

Correct; what is called the viral load.

I am coordinating the Covid-19 response for one company; just 100,000 people in 16 countries across APAC.
Having planned for similar for years, we ramped up for this on January 6, and this is one of the clear knowns we have understood since (coupled with our SARS knowledge) - along with the simple need to practice all known Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions (NPIs):
o Hygiene (wash hands, avoid touching face, use gels, etc.).
o Use real masks (no valves, do rags, or T-shirts).
o Avoid crowds, confined spaces, and lack of air circulation (the 3Cs).

Personally, I also avoid anything to do with poop, including aerosols from vacuum toilets on aircraft, cruise ships, space capsules, public toilets, swimming in flood waters for a cool instagram pic, and similar.
But that's one of the unknown knowns...

Sorry to continue the OT, non-film subject, but we are all in this together!
Glad to hear a few of our community are safely though this too!

[Francois]

No need to apologise Skorj. You know how much we love both information and going off topic

It's a bit funny because I recently heard someone say that"it's called a seat bowl cover, not a seat bowl backrest".
Somehow I feel that it's a good description.

I also say that"it's called a face mask, not a chin suspender"... And then I get a dirty look from the offenders.

[John Robison]

Just can’t wait to get out of solitary back into the darkroom. Load a few 4x5 holders (with Ilford MG4) and have some fun.
Still practicing strict care, staying home, easier since I’m retired, and when I do have to go out pick non busy time and always wear mask and gloves. Generous use of hand sanitizer just before I enter store and immediately after coming back out, before getting back in car. Still go for walks but folks in our neighborhood are all responsible and pass on opposite side of street. We may chat for a bit but we’re standing at least 20 feet apart.
At least one good thing, my car is a small econobox with a 10 gallon tank and my last fillup lasted 10 weeks!

[Francois]

You're lucky to live in a civilized neighborhood.
My neighbors seem to all live either on planet Hoax or planet Dontcare...
No masks, no social distancing.

Strange thing is that when I observe what's going on, I noticed that most Blacks and most of Arabic descent diligently wear masks. All Asians wear them. But the white skinned Quebeckers mostly either don't or simply wear them wrong. I see plenty of noses sticking out from under the masks and plenty of chin suspenders.

The other day I went to pick-up my order at one of the many grocery stores we have to do to get what we want and there was a huge COVID testing drive-through in the parking lot. There were at least 6 huge tents and maybe a dozen employees. Nobody went to get tested... the people working there were chatting together and since they work in a COVID testing facility, they were showing people how to behave by chatting at 2 feet distance without a mask... real bright.