Preparing for Coronavirus?

[spork]

You can wash it. I washed mine with my Whites.  (with fabric softener and an extra rinse).

It is much softer now, and smells better too.

If i could find a new one, though I would!

As far as I can tell -- haven't found any studies to the contrary -- the meltblown material in N95 respirators doesn't maintain effectiveness if it is washed in water. I do see claims that masks with filters containing a layer of meltblown material are washable (e.g., Proper Cloth company), but these masks are not N95 rated.

[nebo113]

You can wash it. I washed mine with my Whites.  (with fabric softener and an extra rinse).

It is much softer now, and smells better too.

If i could find a new one, though I would!

I have no scientific basis for what I am about to say:  I might be cautious about using fabric softener and dryer sheets.  I know that dryer sheets do put some sort of a veil on the filter, which actually stops stuff from going through.  I'd read this somewhere so put my filter under the water faucet and the water just stood in the filter.  Didn't drain through.  I didn't really like how fabric softener made towels feel and thought it inhibited getting water off by body, so stopped using them.  Never did use fabric softener.  Anyway, something that you might want to look into.

[Vkw10]

Our administrative assistant checked in and stored our COVID supplies for the semester. We have cases of face masks stacked in her office. A dozen cases of disinfectant spray are lodged in the conference room. Two cases of disinfectant wipes are tucked into the corner behind my desk, out of sight of guests, because she decided that was the secure location available. One of the campus labs is producing hand sanitizer, so it's stored in the reception area.

Pandemic life is ... odd.

My younger step daughter is an admin asst. at a university and is having to hunt down Covid supplies for her department as university admin won't do it university wide.  Stupid.

My university bought supplies centrally, then distributed some to individual units with caution that it's our responsibility to make it last the semester or buy more out of our own budget. Our admin is rationing the stuff.

The cloth face masks are in the university's red. They aren't colorfast, as a few people discovered when they washed before wearing.

[hmaria1609]

The Smithsonian is opening 4 museums with conditions on Friday:
https://wtop.com/coronavirus/2020/09/4-smithsonian-museums-to-reopen-in-dc-with-conditions/
Also, the National Zoo has been open to visitors for some time.

[apl68]

Still noticing weird patterns of availability at the grocery store.  Nothing that I personally was looking for wasn't there, but there were a number of bare shelves in places.  Even quite a bit of the refrigerated section was empty.

I hear that anything having to do with lawn care or personal fitness is now in short supply.  And our local appliance store is out of low-end washers and dryers for at least the rest of the month.

A staff member who needs to rent a car while her own is in the shop has found that there's nothing to be had at regional rental places.  My guess is that it has something to do with fear of flying during the pandemic.

[spork]

Still noticing weird patterns of availability at the grocery store.  Nothing that I personally was looking for wasn't there, but there were a number of bare shelves in places.  Even quite a bit of the refrigerated section was empty.

I hear that anything having to do with lawn care or personal fitness is now in short supply.  And our local appliance store is out of low-end washers and dryers for at least the rest of the month.

A staff member who needs to rent a car while her own is in the shop has found that there's nothing to be had at regional rental places.  My guess is that it has something to do with fear of flying during the pandemic.

I'm still seeing bare shelves at supermarkets. Different shelves empty at different times. I'm in the process of stocking up for a winter rebound of infections. I've got 50 lbs of flour. Going for 150 lbs of rice next. Firewood will be delivered soon.

[Hegemony]

The trouble with 50 lbs. of flour and 50 lbs. of rice is that critters get in them. When I get smaller bags of flour, rice, or similar, I stick them in the freezer for a couple of days after I get them home. Because frequently they already have eggs in them, which will then hatch and provide you with some surprises when you open the bag a month from now. Fifty-pound bags would be a challenge to get into a normal-sized freezer, but you might want to divide them up into smaller portions, freeze for a while, and then keep in air-tight containers. The last time I bought a bag of rice that was too large to freeze, the bag was overtaken by critters before I had used half of it.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

The trouble with 50 lbs. of flour and 50 lbs. of rice is that critters get in them. When I get smaller bags of flour, rice, or similar, I stick them in the freezer for a couple of days after I get them home. Because frequently they already have eggs in them, which will then hatch and provide you with some surprises when you open the bag a month from now. Fifty-pound bags would be a challenge to get into a normal-sized freezer, but you might want to divide them up into smaller portions, freeze for a while, and then keep in air-tight containers. The last time I bought a bag of rice that was too large to freeze, the bag was overtaken by critters before I had used half of it.

You could freeze to kill eggs/bugs and then place in food-grade buckets with gamma seals. I heard that some people use the vacuum sealed bags too.

[the_geneticist]

The trouble with 50 lbs. of flour and 50 lbs. of rice is that critters get in them. When I get smaller bags of flour, rice, or similar, I stick them in the freezer for a couple of days after I get them home. Because frequently they already have eggs in them, which will then hatch and provide you with some surprises when you open the bag a month from now. Fifty-pound bags would be a challenge to get into a normal-sized freezer, but you might want to divide them up into smaller portions, freeze for a while, and then keep in air-tight containers. The last time I bought a bag of rice that was too large to freeze, the bag was overtaken by critters before I had used half of it.

You could freeze to kill eggs/bugs and then place in food-grade buckets with gamma seals. I heard that some people use the vacuum sealed bags too.

Make sure the storage location and/or containers are also critter-proof.  We made a mouse VERY happy when we stored dried corn in a plastic bin in the garage.  It was fine for months, but then the weather got nasty and the mice found the bin. 
For bulk storage, you can build a storage "cube" with a wooden frame covered in heavy-duty wire mesh (mesh outside of frame).  Give it a hinged lid and make sure it is a snug fit on all sides. And use a mesh with a tight weave. A mouse can squeeze through a very small hole when motivated enough.  The "food lockers" at the ski cabins we stayed in as a family were this sort of design. 

[spork]

Having lived in tropical environments, I know about pests. They are not a problem for me. I make sure to rotate my stock, which helps prevent the extra protein.

[Puget]

Still noticing weird patterns of availability at the grocery store.  Nothing that I personally was looking for wasn't there, but there were a number of bare shelves in places.  Even quite a bit of the refrigerated section was empty.

I hear that anything having to do with lawn care or personal fitness is now in short supply.  And our local appliance store is out of low-end washers and dryers for at least the rest of the month.

A staff member who needs to rent a car while her own is in the shop has found that there's nothing to be had at regional rental places.  My guess is that it has something to do with fear of flying during the pandemic.

I'm still seeing bare shelves at supermarkets. Different shelves empty at different times. I'm in the process of stocking up for a winter rebound of infections. I've got 50 lbs of flour. Going for 150 lbs of rice next. Firewood will be delivered soon.

This seems. . .excessive. Reminds me of my friend in high school who's parents were pretty far-out survivalist libertarians who prepared for Y2K by burying several hundred pounds of wheat berries in metal barrels in their yard (to protect them from looters of course. I'm sure they also stocked up on ammunition). Then nothing happened and they had a lot of wheat on their hands. Not sure if they dug it back up or just left it.

Anyway, unlike TP, there was never a real food shortage- there was plenty to eat, just not all the items we're used to having all the time. Now things seem pretty normal, with a few exceptions. As a vegetarian I'm not sure whether to be pleased that so many people apparently discovered the wonders of frozen meat substitutes this spring, or annoyed that my favorite veggie breakfast sausage is now continuously out of stock.

Also, the seed and garden supply shortage of spring was inevitably followed by a canning supply shortage in late summer.

[spork]

[. . .]

This seems. . .excessive.

[. . .]

I cook a lot. It doesn't take me very long to run through basic staples. Even without a pandemic interrupting supply chains, I prefer making a bi-monthly trip to the Vietnamese supermarket to buy rice in 50 lb bags than to buy tiny bags of rice weekly at much higher prices at the white folks' supermarket. As for the firewood, I insist on having multiple ways to heat my house in case one system goes down, as happened two years ago in Merrimack Valley, Massachusetts.

[downer]

How many are you cooking for, Spork?

[spork]

How many are you cooking for, Spork?

Two, though sometimes I give away loaves of homemade bread.

[downer]

How many are you cooking for, Spork?

Two, though sometimes I give away loaves of homemade bread.

Do you ever have pasta, potatoes, or quinoa? What variety of rice are you purchasing?

My thought is that is a lot of rice for two people.