Week 3 - School closure days 11 and 12

I don't have a lot to update on the virus - just thought I'd post this as a chronicle / to document where things are at.

A cool thing I heard on the news... there's a company that has a sterilization process that FDA fast-paced rolled out yesterday (apparently it was debuted 5 years ago) that can clean 10,000 masks and personal equipment in one shot.  They're in "containers" (like trucking) and they're using vapor-phased hydrogen peroxide that they pump in for about 2 1/2 hours... and then there's an off-gassing period... but they can run 2 shifts with each unit and can take care of 20,000 masks in one day.  The masks are safe to reuse 20 times.  Fascinating and this could be a real solution to a problem.  People are hand-sewing mask covers that can be washed.  High school kids are 3-D printing components that they can make face shields out of.  Just love how all of these problem-solvers are stepping up!  I wonder if this is sort of like in the war when people needed bullets... melt down whatever you have to make them.  (Different, but seems like people are all coming together / problem solving to attack this head-on for our country and for humanity.) Hospital staff are exhausted.  There's a shortage on masks and personal protective gear and there's a shortage on ventilators.  They are being hailed as heroes and being on the "front-lines" of this war.

I called one of my colleagues today - I'll mention why later - but... when I called her... she sounded awful.  Could hardly breathe, coughing, exhausted.  She was so labored.  She said she has not had a fever any higher than 99.9 degrees.  Her doctor recommended that she not go to the hospital... but she said that her doctor believes she absolutely has Covid-19.  Wow... it was so hard to talk to her!    I'm worried about her because she has several underlying medical conditions. 

On the news, there was someone who had it... documented his journey... and the ONLY advice was to rest at home, drink a lot of fluids, rest.  This person on the news did not have it so bad that he had to be hospitalized, but he tested positive and talked about how absolutely horrible he felt.  I am sincerely hoping that my colleague recovers like this reporter did and NOT need to go to the hospital.  

I called my colleague to personally tell her that I accepted a teaching position at another school next year.  (I didn't want to text her or email her this news.)  I knew as of last week, but I started telling people today (I had a science team meeting via Zoom and wanted to tell them personally too.)  I'll write more about the job stuff soon. It's late.... I was trying to post on 3/31 instead of 4/1.

Here are some photos from Isabella's class challenge Monday of making chalk art.

And...

Mercer doesn't have a lot of work right now (He was loaded up at first, but he has had less work than Isabella for the past several days.)  He's been working on some Boy Scout stuff -- finishing a few things he's started... and... working on some drawings to submit to turn into the middle school to get into an art class.  Really proud of him for tackling a landscape and a self-portrait by watching videos on the internet to learn how!!