Dare we Feel Optimistic?

Tonight, a glimmer of hope.  The number of infections seems to have slowed down, at least in the last 24 hours (“only” a 10.4% increase overall, and, for Lombardy a 6.6% increase which looks very encouraging). Of course, it’s only one day. Let’s be cautiously optimistic, just for a moment. Good news also from my friend Frank, who is still in the hospital but getting better. I asked him to share an update with us:

 I thought I would get to go home two days ago, but then the doctors told me that they would need to keep me under observation until I’ve finished my cycle of meds. I am trialing two pharmaceuticals, one that is used for Malaria and one which is used for HIV, both of which may also be effective against Covid19, to be confirmed. After a few days spent in a makeshift bed in the Emergency Room, I was finally transferred to a ward specifically for the Covid19 emergency. I feel better every day, which is confirmed by the results of my medical tests, as well as the return of my taste buds!  As for the circumstances here in the hospital, it’s truly tragic. Every day sick people flood the hospital. The medical system is buckling under the pressure of this pandemic. Doctors and healthcare professionals are burning out. Not the least, every day many of them are contracting the virus themselves in their heroic attempt to help others. No one is spared of the pain.

 Thank you, Frank for this dispatch.

 And now, for some comic relief:

 My first year at university I had a roommate from Mill Valley, California. She was, from my point of view, pretty crunchy. There was a story she told me which I’ve never gotten over. She had been on an “Outward Bound” mission* where she had camped off trail. Having to use “nature’s toilet”, she had also had to resort to natural ways of cleaning herself. It was absolutely forbidden to disturb the ecosystem with any polluting trash. So, she learned to wipe her bum with a stone. A soft, smooth stone apparently, but nevertheless a stone.  Where am I going with this? Well, I am sure some of you can guess. I have learned that in the U.K they are having sewage problems because people, unable to source toilet paper (due to others hoarding it) have had to resort to using newspaper (for the full horror story, see here) and this is clogging up the plumbing. I think it’s time for a tutorial video on how to use that stone instead!

 *A U.S outdoor adventure program