The end of the mask mandate at work
Mar. 11th, 2022 06:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mtbcFrom next week, those in my workplace will no longer be required to mask and, indeed, I suspect that many won't. The workforce is largely vaccinated, maybe half received a booster. This results from the CDC's recent adjustment of risk levels, reflecting the attitude that hospitalizations are what matters. They are not what matters to me: I expect to survive the acute phase of COVID-19 without much difficulty but I fear longer-term effects. Especially, perhaps SARS-CoV-2 may linger in some organ and, either way, I fear having to live with organ damage. I care greatly about impaired cardiac, cognitive, etc. function even if I am not hospitalized for it. From my point of view, we still do not know enough to be sure that the unhospitalized will be just fine a year later.
While we were all masking, my approach was to remain comfortable in eating with people outdoors and to mask quite substantially in the event of an indoor hour-long meeting, enough that I was too muffled for people to hear me easily. Going forward, I must rethink and find new habits. My current thought is to continue relaxing around people when outdoors, that indoor behavior is what requires review. Let us assume that I may continue arranging with my officemate to alternate our days on campus. Well, I may be required to share one day per week with them which, I fear, thus requires all-day masking on my part, such fun. More than that would require a considerable rethink.
Perhaps it can suffice for me to wear an FFP2 during meetings and to try to sit far from others, off at the side or back of the room rather than around the table, or similar. I am also curious about the idea of my donating some kind of air purifier to rooms in which I must sometimes linger. I don't know how much difference it would make for the hour-long-meeting scenario nor how much purifier one needs for a medium-sized room. Presumably, virus particles are not easily filtered.
The gym's another concern, people may become more contagious in working out hard. I should like to continue using it, perhaps I shall escalate to both FFP2 and safety goggles, I haven't worn the latter at work before.
In short, I do not know what to do, nor do I have good numbers, perhaps nobody does. I wonder what tradeoffs make sense.
While we were all masking, my approach was to remain comfortable in eating with people outdoors and to mask quite substantially in the event of an indoor hour-long meeting, enough that I was too muffled for people to hear me easily. Going forward, I must rethink and find new habits. My current thought is to continue relaxing around people when outdoors, that indoor behavior is what requires review. Let us assume that I may continue arranging with my officemate to alternate our days on campus. Well, I may be required to share one day per week with them which, I fear, thus requires all-day masking on my part, such fun. More than that would require a considerable rethink.
Perhaps it can suffice for me to wear an FFP2 during meetings and to try to sit far from others, off at the side or back of the room rather than around the table, or similar. I am also curious about the idea of my donating some kind of air purifier to rooms in which I must sometimes linger. I don't know how much difference it would make for the hour-long-meeting scenario nor how much purifier one needs for a medium-sized room. Presumably, virus particles are not easily filtered.
The gym's another concern, people may become more contagious in working out hard. I should like to continue using it, perhaps I shall escalate to both FFP2 and safety goggles, I haven't worn the latter at work before.
In short, I do not know what to do, nor do I have good numbers, perhaps nobody does. I wonder what tradeoffs make sense.
no subject
Date: 2022-03-12 07:07 am (UTC)That about sums up the entire pandemic response, I think.
no subject
Date: 2022-03-12 12:00 pm (UTC)I hear of people using portable CO2 monitors as a proxy for concentration of things in air.
I have an antiviral nasal spray and an antiviral cough medicine which I use prophylactically if work makes me go into situations I wouldn't choose to be in. I have no idea how to quantify whether this is useful. I reckon it's likely to decrease the effective dose and so improve my odds.
no subject
Date: 2022-03-12 02:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-03-12 05:36 pm (UTC)I am not wearing a mask at work, but that's just because the City required everyone to get vaccinated before DeSantis stepped in and starting trying to change things, so where I am 100% are vaccinated. (People quit rather than being vaccinated and they aren't being hired unless they are.)