Drip, drip, drip…
… The U.S. Food and Drug Administration set June 14-15 as the new meeting date to review Moderna Inc’s emergency authorization request for its COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 6 months to 5 years and Pfizer Inc’s vaccine for those aged 6 months through 4 years…
White House COVID-19 response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha said on Sunday he expects a U.S. Food and Drug Administration decision on authorizing Moderna’s vaccine for children under age five within the next few weeks.
Moderna completed its application and FDA experts are looking closely at the data, Jha said on ABC…
Drugmakers Pfizer Inc and BioNTech SE said on Monday that three doses of their COVID-19 vaccine generated a strong immune response in children under age 5 and was safe and well-tolerated in their clinical trial. https://t.co/2GKUv0oiFf
— Reuters Health (@Reuters_Health) May 23, 2022
Parents hoping to get their youngest children vaccinated against COVID-19 got some encouraging news Monday when Pfizer said three doses of its vaccine offers strong protection to those under 5.
But a few steps remain before the shots are available. https://t.co/WvMG9SOrES
— The Associated Press (@AP) May 23, 2022
<Breaking News>
Pfizer-BioNTech's Covid-19 vaccine succeeds in children ages 6 months to 5 years.
At last.
It’s time to vaccinate our under-fives and now we've got options.
Here's what we know so far and how things stack up against Moderna:https://t.co/6Aymp28kQl
— Jeremy Faust MD MS (ER physician) (@jeremyfaust) May 23, 2022
U.S. COVID update:
– New cases: 98,541
– Average: 109,138 (-3,152)
– States reporting: 26/50
– In hospital: 24,441 (+453)
– In ICU: 2,667 (-5)
– New deaths: 240
– Average: 321 (-5)More data: https://t.co/IMVlOJGU63 pic.twitter.com/ljieKTFuYX
— BNN|Medriva Newsroom (@medriva) May 24, 2022
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Beijing stepped up quarantine efforts to end its month-old COVID outbreak as fresh signs of frustration emerged in Shanghai, where some bemoaned unfair curbs with the city preparing to lift a prolonged lockdown in just over a week https://t.co/VF5ajAuiPT pic.twitter.com/fCj3AdpsRG
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 24, 2022
China is trying to navigate its biggest coronavirus outbreak without vaccines by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, despite evidence they offer the best protection against the worst outcomes from COVID-19. https://t.co/GbRy6d8wzq
— The Associated Press (@AP) May 24, 2022
North Korea said on Tuesday there were no new deaths among fever patients in the country, the first time since it flagged a COVID-19 outbreak nearly two weeks ago, adding that it was seeing a "stable" downward trend in pandemic-related cases. https://t.co/CwEumsMww7
— Reuters Health (@Reuters_Health) May 24, 2022
How did Japan manage the pandemic far better than the US and many other peer countries?https://t.co/OUooDGH5yp@Nature by Hitoshi Oshitani
the 3Cs (closed environments, crowds, close-contact); lockdowns are prohibited, clear messaging
"But we are nowhere near back to normal" pic.twitter.com/DML3ddtiyx— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) May 24, 2022
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A new prospective, multi-system assessment of patients after Covid hospitalization indicates the extent of heart, kidney, lung abnormalities, and activation of clotting proteins during follow-up vs controls https://t.co/u0ivZSp20V @NatureMedicine https://t.co/OUooDGH5yp pic.twitter.com/bTAr4o29mc
— Eric Topol (@EricTopol) May 24, 2022
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Manhattan return-to-office plans face persistent headwinds over COVID, safety https://t.co/Yh6m2oxdKI pic.twitter.com/gbwkrjoKcF
— Reuters (@Reuters) May 24, 2022
"Think about it: 50% as lethal x 400% as contagious = 200% the mortality in a given time frame. That’s exactly what happened in Massachusetts and in other places (we have not yet published data from other states) during the Omicron wave." — @jeremyfaust https://t.co/q1UVeVitS8
— Benjy Renton (@bhrenton) May 23, 2022
Monroe County, NY:
207 new cases reported for 5/23. At least it’s not in the 700s anymore.
Deaths now at 1862, up 7 from last week.
Vaccinations now at 72.3%
On 5/22 Mainland China reported 141 new domestic confirmed (56 previously asymptomatic), 498 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 0 new domestic suspect cases, & 1 new death.
Guangdong Province did not report any new positive cases. 14 domestic confirmed & 11 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 74 active domestic confirmed & 28 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks. 1 business at Zhanjiang is currently at Medium Risk.
At Guangxi “Autonomous” Region 1 domestic confirmed & 1 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Hechi) & 21 active domestic asymptomatic cases (13 at Fangchenggang, 6 at Baise, & 2 at Chongzuo) in the province.
At Hunan Province 1 domestic confirmed case recovered. There currently are 6 active domestic confirmed & 1 domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
At Manzhouli in Hulun Buir, Inner Mongolia “Autonomous” Region, there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case remaining.
Tianjin Municipality reported 16 new domestic confirmed (6 previously asymptomatic, all mild) & 8 new domestic asymptomatic cases, 15 of the new positive cases are traced close contacts under centralized quarantine & 3 via screening of residents under movement control. There currently are 128 active domestic confirmed & 106 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
Shandong Province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case. 2 domestic confirmed & 5 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 6 active domestic confirmed cases & 25 active asymptomatic cases in the province. As not all of the administrative divisions in the province provide data on recoveries, I cannot track the count of active cases in all of the administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
* Jinan reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, a person coming from elsewhere & under centralized quarantine since arrival. 2 domestic confirmed & 5 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 4 active domestic confirmed & 18 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city
* At Yantai there currently are 3 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
At Taiyuan in Shanxi Province 1 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently is 1 active domestic asymptomatic cases remaining.
Shaanxi Province reported 4 new domestic confirmed (3 mild & 1 moderate) cases, all at Xi’an, all traced close contacts under centralized quarantine. There currently are 6 active confirmed (5 at Xi’an & 1 at Ankang) cases in the province.
At Hebei Province 13 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed & 31 active asymptomatic case in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks. 1 produce market at Tangshan & 1 village at Chengde are currently at Medium Risk.
Liaoning Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed case (previously asymptomatic). 24 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 5 active domestic confirmed & 203 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
* Shenyang reported 1 new domestic confirmed case (previously asymptomatic).
* Yingkou did report any new domestic positive cases. 4 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
* Dandong did not report any new domestic positive cases. 8 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
At Heilongjiang Province 1 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently are 4 active domestic asymptomatic (2 at Mudanjiang & 1 each at Harbin & Qiqihar) cases in the province.
Jilin Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed (mild) & 7 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 13 domestic confirmed & 26 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. As the province does not consistently break down recoveries by confirmed & asymptomatic cases or by jurisdictions, I can no longer track the count of active case counts in the different jurisdictions.
* Yanbian Prefecture reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic (at Tumen) case, via screening of residents under movement control. 5 domestic confirmed & 2 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 4 domestic asymptomatic cases in the city
* Baishan reported 5 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all at Changbai County, all traced close contacts under centralized quarantine. 4 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 13 active domestic confirmed & 36 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
* Tonghua reported 1 new domestic confirmed & 1 new domestic asymptomatic cases, both at Ji’an, both found via proactive screening.
* At Changbaishan there currently is 1 active domestic confirmed case remaining.
* At Jilin City 3 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered.
* At Changchun 8 domestic confirmed & 17 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered.
Beijing Municipality reported 41 new domestic confirmed (2 previously asymptomatic) & 7 new domestic asymptomatic cases. Of the 63 domestic positive cases (9 asymptomatic, 58 mild & 3 moderate) reported between 3 PM on 5/22 & 3 PM on 5/23, 58 are traced close contacts under centralized quarantine or residents under movement control, & 5 via community screening. As the city does not break down recoveries by imported vs. domestic cases, I cannot track the count of active domestic cases there. 11 sites are currently at High Risk. 25 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
Shanghai Municipality reported 58 new domestic confirmed (39 previously asymptomatic) & 422 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all of the new positive cases were already under quarantine. There was 1 new death (85 y.o., w/ a range of underlying conditions, unvaccinated). 379 domestic confirmed & 5,094 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 2,414 active domestic confirmed (134 serious & 38 critical) in the city. The city is no longer publishing the number of active asymptomatic cases. 3 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
At Hubei Province 1 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently are 9 active domestic asymptomatic (4 at Jingmen, 2 at Ezhou, & 1 each at Enshi Prefecture, Qianjiang & Suizhou) cases in the province.
Jiangsu Province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, at Suzhou, found via screening of persons in high risk occupations. 27 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. The currently are 2 active domestic confirmed & 86 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in each administrative division, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
Anhui Province did not report any new domestic positive cases. 7 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 42 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
* Huangshan did not report any new domestic positive cases. 6 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently are 41 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
* In the rest of the province 1 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently is 1 active domestic asymptomatic (Anqing) case remaining.
Zhejiang Province reported 1 new domestic confirmed (at Shaoxing) & 3 new domestic asymptomatic (1 each at Jiaxing, Shaoxing & Taizhou) cases. 1 of the cases at Shaoxing was found via community screening & the other is a traced close contact. The case at Taizhou came from elsewhere & tested positive upon arrival, & the case at Jiaxing is a person under centralized quarantine. As the province does not break down recoveries by imported versus domestic cases, I cannot track the count of active domestic cases there.
Fujian Province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, at Nanping, a person coming from elsewhere & under centralized quarantine since arrival. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed & 4 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
At Guizhou Province there currently are 1 active domestic confirmed (at Zunyi) & 3 active domestic asymptomatic (all at Qiannan Prefecture) cases remaining.
Jiangxi Province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case. 21 asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed & 43 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
* At Shangrao 3 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently are 2 active domestic confirmed & 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the city.
* The rest of the province reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, at Fuzhou, a person coming from elsewhere & under centralized quarantine since arrival.
Henan Province reported 23 new domestic asymptomatic cases. 8 domestic confirmed & 23 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 142 active domestic confirmed & 476 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
* Zhengzhou reported 1 new domestic asymptomatic case, a traced close contact under centralized quarantine.
* Xuchang reported 22 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all at Changge.
Sichuan Province reported 19 new domestic confirmed (8 previously asymptomatic) & 24 new domestic asymptomatic cases. As the province does not break down recoveries by imported vs. domestic cases, I cannot track the count of active domestic cases there.
* Guang’an reported 17 new domestic confirmed (8 previously asymptomatic) & 24 new domestic asymptomatic cases, all at Linshui County, all of the new positive cases are persons under centralized quarantine. 3 sites are currently at Medium Risk.
* The rest of the province reported 2 new domestic confirmed (1 each at Chengdu & Guangyuan) cases, both coming from elsewhere & tested positive upon entry or under centralized quarantine since arrival.
At Chongqing Municipality 1 domestic confirmed & 1 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 4 active domestic confirmed & 2 active domestic asymptomatic cases remaining in the city.
At Qinghai Province 5 domestic confirmed & 13 domestic asymptomatic cases recovered. There currently are 12 active domestic confirmed & 38 active domestic asymptomatic cases in the province.
At Yunnan Province 1 domestic asymptomatic case recovered. There currently are 1 active domestic confirmed & 4 active domestic asymptomatic cases remaining in the province. As the province does not break down recoveries by administrative divisions, I cannot track the count of active cases in administrative divisions, given the multiple simultaneous outbreaks.
Imported Cases
On 5/22, Mainland China reported 15 new imported confirmed cases (1 previously asymptomatic), 34 imported asymptomatic cases, 1 imported suspect cases:
* Xiamen in Fujian Province – 5 confirmed cases, all coming from Taiwan
* Guangzhou in Guangdong Province – 2 confirmed cases, 1 each coming from South Korea & Canada; 3 asymptomatic cases, 1 each coming from Malaysia, Canada & the US
* Shenzhen in Guangdong Province – 5 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Hong Kong
* Foshan in Guangdong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Oman, off a flight that landed at Guangzhou
* Chongzuo in Guangxi “Autonomous” Region – 2 confirmed & 10 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Vietnam
* Chengdu in Sichuan Province – 2 confirmed cases, 1 each coming from Hong Kong & Pakistan; 2 asymptomatic cases, 1 each coming from Canada & the Netherlands
* Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province – 1 confirmed case (previously asymptomatic); 3 asymptomatic cases, 1 each coming from Hong Kong, Chile & Mexico
* Chongqing Municipality – 1 confirmed & 2 asymptomatic cases, all coming from Germany
* Nanjing in Jiangsu Province – 1 confirmed case, coming from the UK
* Kunming in Yunnan Province – 1 confirmed case, coming from Australia; 2 asymptomatic case, 1 each coming from Indonesia & Japan
* Yunnan Province (location not specified) – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Laos, via land border crossing
* Jiangsu Province (location not specified) – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
* Shanghai Municipality – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from the US; 1 suspect case, no information released
* Tianjin Municipality – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Serbia
* Zhengzhou in Henan Province – 1 asymptomatic case, no information released
* Rizhao in Shandong Province – 1 asymptomatic case, coming from Canada
Overall in Mainland China, 474 confirmed cases recovered (11 imported), 5,369 asymptomatic cases were released from isolation (58 imported) & 57 were reclassified as confirmed cases (1 imported), & 26,317 individuals were released from quarantine. Currently, there are 3,956 active confirmed cases in the country (203 imported), 192 in serious/critical condition (all domestic), 30,323 active asymptomatic cases (429 imported), 1 suspect case (imported). 229,951 traced contacts are currently under centralized quarantine.
As of 5/22, 3,372.243M vaccine doses have been injected in Mainland China, an increase of 1.147M doses in the past 24 hrs.
On 5/23 Hong Kong reported 250 new positive cases, 34 imported & 216 domestic (55 via RT-PCR & 161 from rapid antigen tests), 0 deaths.
On 5/23, Taiwan reported 82,435 new positive cases, 72 imported & 82,363 domestic (including 198 moderate & 53 serious). There were 42 new deaths (ages ranging from 10+ to 90+, actual dates of death between 5/13 – 5/22, 39 having a range of underlying conditions, 26 partially/fully vaccinated).
That excess mortality rate through the Omicron wave in MA, in a place w/ good vaccination rate, using the most effective vaccines, & has had a lot of prior infection where many of the most vulnerable have already died. No visibility to truly getting back to pre-pandemic normal, unless more effective vaccines that better block transmission (which is none of the current ones) become available.
Depressing…
Cases appear to have peaked in the Northeast everywhere except NH, PA, and possibly RI. In the Midwest they appear to have peaked in IL, MN, WI, and may be peaking in MI. Cases have also peaked in PR. They are rising everywhere else.
Hospital admissions have risen to 25,604. Deaths, at 342, are up over 25% from their trough of 265 one week ago.
In the States where BA.2.12.1 has peaked, cases have on average increased by 5-6x. If we extrapolate to the nation as a whole, this gives us a peak of roughly 140,000-170,000 cases about 2 to 3 weeks from now, with hospitalizations peaking at 50,000-60,000 (vs. over 150,000 for Omicron and over 85,000 for Delta), and deaths peaking at about 1500 one to two months from now (vs. 2650 for Omicron and 2100 from Delta). If so, this will suggest that both the virus and the human populations ability to cope with it are co-evolving.
The CDC will release its variant proportions data later this morning. It will likely show BA.2.12.1 makes up 80% or more of all cases in most areas where cases have peaked.
well, I was at three events this weekend, two memorials and one birthday karaoke party, and I feel like shit. Sore throat and cough but a negative test and no temp. My neighborhood geneticist just walked by and said keep testing!
I’m waiting impatiently for my birthday so that I can go get my second booster. I have already messaged my doctor to ask if I could get it earlier, but I was told to wait until I hit the big 5-0.
Re the Manhattan return-to-office piece: man, I *really* don’t get this, I figured everyone would already be back at the office by now, because, you know, everybody says they’re done with even the least Covid-related hassle.
Seriously, people are still unwilling to go back to the office because of Covid risk, but they won’t pull a mask on before walking into a store? WT everloving F?
We went to a HUGE bar mitzvah in NJ this weekend (currently in a hotel midway through Pennsylvania).
We still feel fine, knock on wood, but another guest tested positive on Sunday afternoon. She thinks she caught it from the dog sitter who came to her house Friday.
We don’t really know her, didn’t go near her, but plenty of people we do know did go near her (my favorite cousin, who relayed the news to me: “She kept hugging me!”)
The irony is that the sick woman and her family stayed in a Airbnb instead of the hotel the rest of the guests did because they thought that safer. Well, for everyone at the hotel, i guess it was.
In his tweet about Japan, Topol’s link goes to an entirely unrelated article, unfortunately.
But I remember hearing, early on, that people in Japan generally mask up when sick, so there was no anti-mask resistance there the way there was here. That by itself would have made a huge difference.
@lowtechcyclist: Seriously, people are still unwilling to go back to the office because of Covid risk, but they won’t pull a mask on before walking into a store? WT everloving F?
Commuting in Manhattan is *always* a nightmare. People want to go into those stores, they DON’T want to spend the time / effort / money to jam into crowded spaces with dozens of other disgruntled (sometimes armed!) strangers every workday.
Businesses with expensive long-term leases in Manhattan skyscrapers don’t want to give their employees permanent work-from-home or off-shift permissions. A lot of those businesses are having their bluff(s) called, right now.
Malaysia’s Ministry of Health reported 1,544 new Covid-19 cases yesterday, for a cumulative reported total of 4,492,864 cases. It also reported two deaths for an adjusted cumulative total of 35,645 deaths – 0.79% of the cumulative reported total, 0.80% of resolved cases.
There were 25,148 active cases yesterday, 1,363 fewer than the day before. 1,078 are in hospital. 39 confirmed cases are in ICU; of these patients, 25 confirmed cases cases are on ventilators. Meanwhile, 2,905 more patients have recovered, for a cumulative total of 4,432,071 patients recovered – 98.6% of the cumulative reported total.
1,541 new cases reported yesterday were local infections. Three new cases were imported.
The National Covid-19 Immunisation Programme (PICK) administered ,435 doses of vaccine on 23rd May: 3,267 first doses, 3,316 second doses, and 1,852 booster doses. The cumulative total is 70,813,162 doses administered: 27,935,333 first doses, 27,009,117 second doses, and 16,082,337 booster doses. 85.5% of the population have received their first dose, 82.7% their second dose, and 49.2% their booster dose.
I’m eligible for my second booster, but I’m also having an intense fibromyalgia flare, probably brought on by the insane physical demands of a move I had to do mostly by myself. I didn’t have a bad reaction to any of the previous vaccinations, but I’m planning on Moderna after having Pfizer and don’t want to risk feeling any worse than I do now. It’s so nice that spring is here, as three friends and I try to have lunch together once a week. We’re all old and very cautious, so we’ve been limited. Look for us on Portland’s Eastern Promenade soon. We’ll all have folding chairs, as we sat on a blanket last time, and two of us needed derricks to get vertical again. This is my first spring in New England for many years, and I’m loving the blossoming trees and plants.
In terms of just official deaths, the Omicron wave in MA was comparable to the winter wave of 2020-21. Lower per-case fatality, but there were way more cases to compensate.
Now, the original spring 2020 wave was actually considerably more deadly than that, with a lower number of cases. I initially assumed that was just because of case undercounting, but the wastewater counts show a roughly consistent story, so maybe it really was vastly more deadly in spring 2020. It makes some sense since aside from no prior immune or medical experience of COVID, the spring 2020 wave in MA was also absolutely ravaging nursing homes–it was an older unvaccinated p0pulation.
@lowtechcyclist: These are two completely different things. People who like the convenience of working at home don’t want to go back to commuting to the office. I think it has little or nothing to do with Covid or worries about Covid at this point. Just because they don’t want to go back to being in the office all the time doesn’t mean it’s because they’re concerned about Covid.
There is research showing that Omicron 1.0 was nearly as deadly in truly naive individuals. That what we saw last winter – this attenuated fatality rate – was largely the effect of almost everyone in the population either being vaccinated or previously infected. Not to mention that the prior waves of Covid19 had relentlessly reduced the population of the very frail, who are most likely to show up in the death statistics.
I was told on Friday by my Fox watching mother (76 years old) that COVID was no big deal anymore. Guess who has COVID on Monday? Her and her husband. At least vaccinated but not boosted. They have not been masking for months. Whatever happens, happens. They did this to themselves.
“Seriously, people are still unwilling to go back to the office because of Covid risk, but they won’t pull a mask on before walking into a store? WT everloving F?”
I think the issue is far less that of disease and far more that everyone who got time off from COVID had time to realize just how toxic and shitty the American workplace environment is, and businesses that insist that people come back in are seeing those people leaving. By the millions, apparently. The problem is not COVID.
I suspect the dropping case fatality rate is, indeed, all or nearly all due to the human population becoming more resistant (either through vaccination, infection or both), rather than the virus evolving to be less severe.
…We really do need some better medical means of reducing *transmission* of the virus, which the existing vaccines do but not to a degree that effectively suppresses Omicron outbreaks. I’m hoping nasal-spray vaccines can cut things off at the source. It sounds as if they’re more complementary to injections than a replacement for them.
Happy to finally have more news on the under 5 population. Baby Mouse has his 2 month appointment tomorrow, and I plan to ask his to setup an appointment for his sister, for after it’s approved.
Re: Back to office . . . As I sit here in my office, contemplating the pluses and minuses of “workplace culture” . . . There are definitely upsides to continuing to work remotely, especially if you have a long commute and are sitting in an “open plan” work space that requires “hot desking” with a micromanaging boss or worse. On the other hand, if this is your first job and you have literally never met any of your co-workers in person, you might feel like no one is willing to mentor you or invest in your skills or future with the company. Your allegiance is likely very shallow. That’s what we are facing, and in talking with friends and family members, others are as well. Remote working removes the worst features of a toxic workplace, but it also seriously erodes some of the best features of a vibrant work culture as well. No, I have no idea how to figure this out, but I come to work a few days a week to try to interact with some of my younger and less senior colleagues for whatever good it does.
Wife and I got our 4th Moderna shot yesterday. No apparent reaction for either of us… My second dose really set me back, overwhelming sleeping for the first two nights after that shot, then whole body charley horse ache for a couple of weeks.
Retired now, was reasonably happy with my workplace environment the last few years, before that we were in an office building across the RR tracks from hazardous chemical plants in a formerly abandoned office building, which was pretty much worst case workplace world. Was working for the Department of Environmental Protection, which did bupkis to protect its own staff…
Newest variant case rates are creeping up in Western Washington, but our hospital alert status is still mild-medium, last I checked. Which only means they still have available beds and are not overwhelmed.
I’m hoping my workplace keeps its hybrid schedule – basically, 2.5 days in-office and 2.5 days WFH – forever, or at least until I retire.
My commute isn’t bad, now that the lightrail station near me is open, but I find I just don’t want to have to even get up early, get dressed, and get my lazy ass out the door. Mind you, I am genuinely glad to see my coworkers (we’re a good group, knock wood) when I get there.
Spending 2+ years mostly in the house has taught me this: I really like my house 🙂
Link to the article: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-01385-9
COVID lessons from Japan: the right messaging empowers citizens