#or even a uk based cruise queen

[but-im-unbreakable]

i mean never say never but with the 4th uk tour queens leaving and likely becoming the six team's first contacts in case of an emergency (assuming they contact recent former queens when castle hopping isn't possible and they need an emergency cover), it does look like west end 4.0 is on track be the first uk cast to not have an emergency cover queen from the previous cast!

og uk tour: renee lamb (arts theatre aragon)

west end 1.0: genesis lynea (arts theatre cleves, this one technically isnt the previous cast but the arts theatre cast was the only other previous cast so im counting it)

west end 2.0 + uk tour 2.0: maiya quansah-breed (og uk tour + og west end parr)

west end 3.0: courtney bowman (west end 2.0 boleyn), collette guitart (west end 2.0 swing, if you want to count her as an e/c but i'm not)

uk tour 3.0: athena collins (uk tour 2.0 parr)

uk tour 4.0: harriet watson (uk tour 3.0 alt), elena gyasi (uk tour 3.0 parr)

[lightleckrereins]

Loving the blog, the game, and the hot takes! You mentioned in a recent ask about the cancelled Breakaway 2.0 cast from a while back, and perhaps I just missed it (could VERY WELL be the case) but could you say or provide a link to who that cast was? Again, thanks so much for all the work you do for Six (and despite how Six might not realize it, you and Elizabeth are helping to grow this fandom and ensure that it stays out of the “toxic fandom” realm)!

Thank you! Thats mostly my brand. And yes we do try to keep it positive, we are here to talk about costumes and love the queens (but probably won't hesitate to be petty against or stand against people who constantly try to start drama or to gatekeep parts of the fandom lets face it if its costumes that can probably get traced back to us. It is a musical people chill)

There were two six productions that were cancelled the original Breakaway 2.0 cast (that would have been announced about a week after lockdown started) and a third cruise production that would have been Getaway 1.0 (set for right after of Breakaway 2.0 finished rehearsals). Those would have had the usual mix of six principals, two alternates and two rehearsal swings.

Even if we never got any announcements on who would have been in either of those casts a few queens have mentioned being cast back then (with the costume timeline both casts would have been completed at that point). Maddison Firth was Howard in Breakaway 2.0. Aside from her Ellie Sharpe and Sadie Hurst (alt and rehearsal swing on Breakaway 2.0) mentioned they were cast for 2020 productions but have never said which cast or role. I think I saw Artemis Chrisoulakis (Breakaway 2.0 Howard) say it too at some point but can't find the source on that. A few other performers have mentioned booking UK based six productions in 2020 but it is unclear if it was cruises or UK tour as both were casting at that time.

[theatricallythespian]

Let’s Talk: Is Six Racist?

The answer: Yes, but it’s complicated

Disclaimer: As fans of SIX, this post is not to disrespect or undermine the brilliant people involved in it, but to evaluate and critique SIX in the context of race. Gifs used in the post are made by the lovely @karisoka​ on Tumblr

Note: This was written before Carly Mercedes Dyer was announced as Seymour on 2UKT, however, the fact that it took over three years to cast a non-white woman as Seymour is still embarrasing. Because she is the exception, all points regarding Seymour still stand.

The racial problems with the show largely arise from the casting of the show. There are clear casting trends for each character. These trends derived from each principle actress per character and are as follows:

Aragon: Non-white actress with a medium to dark skin tone

Boleyn: White actress 

Seymour: White actress 

Cleves: Non-white actress with a dark skin tone

Howard: White actress 

Parr: Non-white actress with a light to medium skin tone

These casting trends result in an approximately half-white, half-non-white cast, but looking at the cast of each production, this does not hold up, especially as rehearsal swings and covers are counted. Productions with less than 30% non-white actresses are: Edinburgh, 2UKT, Breakaway, and Bliss 2.0. Productions with 30%-50% non-white actresses are the original Arts production, 1UKT, Bliss 1.0, and Australia. The highest percentage of non-white actresses are in the West End production (10/18) and the US cast (7/10). From this, we can clearly see that higher profile productions have a higher percentage of non-white actresses, whereas less-visible productions like the cruise casts have an extremely low percentage of non-white actresses.

Another instance where less visibility results in a lower percentage of non-white theatre artists are the Ladies in Waiting–9 out of 45 total band members have been non-white (Note: Rebeca Caldera (Bliss) and Julia Subatin (Breakaway) are Argentinan and considered non-white here). The original Arts production, the first UK tour, and the West End production have not had a non-white musician in the band. Even Broadway, with a total of 11 band members for the different tour stops only had one woman of colour total. For a show that touts diversity, these statistics seem extraordinarily low. 

The casting trends may have started out as an innocuous way to pay homage to each queenspiration, the female pop icons who inspired each queen's song and style, and as an attempt to be equitable and cast more women of colour, but these trends are hugely problematic within the context of the show itself, as they create unbalanced racial dynamics and enforce stereotypes within a text that most likely did not intend to create.

One example of the former is Cleves' storyline–being rejected for her looks. While may have been historically true, it is curious when the “ugly” character  is often played by the actress with the deepest skin tone out of the entire cast. In the two exceptions where Cleves was played by a white actor, one is nonbinary and one is a plus-sized woman. Here, ugliness is Black, trans, and fat. The arts cannot be separated from societal context, and given that white beauty standards have an immense influence due to an extensive global history of colonization, this is clearly problematic. In addition to this, there’s one particular scene where Howard makes comments about Cleves’ looks. The original intent was simply to add a #savage quip that aligns with Howard’s character, but given that Howard’s casting trend is skinny white women, the scene becomes rife with uncomfortable racial tension.

In regards to stereotyping, we can talk about how as characters with a white casting trend, Boleyn and Howard can exist beyond being promiscuous characters, or even about how Parr, the empowered woman, is a woman of colour with light skin, but here we'll be focusing on Aragon, Cleves, and Seymour. Aragon and Cleves both exhibit racist stereotypes surrounding Black women, whereas Seymour, who has never been played by non-white principle actress, is seen as the epitome of purity. Please note that this section is based on both the original text and fandom perception of the characters as presented by the text. Of course, the show is not in control of the fandom, as evidenced by problematic fanart, including whitewashing dark-skinned actresses or even depicting a white actress holding three non-white actresses on leashes, but there are elements of the projections of the characters by the show that exacerbates racist ideas.

First, let’s talk about Aragon and Cleves–Angry, sassy, masculine, and gold-digging, just to name a few traits. Just looking at the show and casting trends alone, Aragon and Cleves, both played by women with medium to dark skin tones, have the deepest vocal parts. This by itself might not seem like a huge deal, but combined with race-based casting trends and the show’s perpetuation of stereotypes surrounding Black women, small things add up.

In Six, each queen’s solo song defines their key character traits. For Cleves, Get Down puts an emphasis on Cleves flaunting her wealth and her obnoxious behaviour. She refers to her palace numerous times, flexes that she isn’t fake because she’s paid for her acres and acres with her own riches, and there’s even this line–’Now, I ain’t sayin’ I’m a gold digger, But check my prenup, and go figure.’ In moderation, many of her characteristics would be fine–we love us some confident women, however, Cleves only has these two characteristics, even during her bits of dialogue. For Aragon, No Way is a valid response to her husband cheating on her and her issues with religion despite her devotion to the Catholic church. However, there are no other qualities portrayed other than anger. The vulnerable moment during the bridge is extremely brief and in the show, is a comedic tool to segue back into indignation. While her anger is entirely justified, this lack of nuance makes for a very one-dimensional character, making it easier to pigeonhole her into stereotypes.

On the other hand, Seymour is perceived as the pinnacle of femininity and motherhood. Even her costume is the most conservative compared to the other queens, with no cutouts aside from that one strap underneath her collarbones, long sleeves, and a full knee length skirt. Heart of Stone revolves around her love for Henry VIII and her role as a mother and a wife rather than her characteristics as a person. Because of this, the only exhibited characteristics are ones attributed to a caretaker–she’s a loving person, whose love is set in stone, and she’s dependable like a stone and can weather whatever storm comes her way. Thus, when she doesn’t align with this characterization, such as in the queens fighting scene where they compare miscarriages among other tragedies, it’s forgivable–after all, she is a grieving mother. On the other hand, when Aragon exhibits the same behaviour, it’s non-permissible as it aligns with and supports her existing characterization, reinforcing the idea that she is indeed an angry Black woman.

So, can Six’s issues with race be resolved? Like its racism, the answer is: it’s complicated. The ideal course of action would be to break casting trends, but it’s quite difficult to do so in an equitable manner. To cast a white woman in existing non-white roles would be to prioritize whiteness even if the casting is mixed up between all characters. A good step forward would to cast a 100% non-white cast and at least a 50% non-white band. This is the only way to respectfully break casting trends and prioritize inclusivity, especially seeing as Toby, Lucy, and most, if not all, of the creative team are white. Going forward, Six as a whole needs to actively be anti-racist and prioritize women of colour.

[tabloidtoc]

Star, January 11

You can buy a copy of this issue for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover Story: Hollywood’s Best and Worst Bosses 

Page 1: Shia LaBeouf currently accused of relentless abuse and sexual battery by his ex FKA Twigs was snapped making out with Margaret Qualley after she arrived at LAX for a solid 10 minutes and holding up traffic -- the PDA session was the first time Shia and Margaret who is the daughter of Andie MacDowell were spotted out in public together but the two got well-acquainted a few months ago rolling around naked for a NSFW music video for a song by the actress’ sister Rainey Qualley a.k.a. Rainsford -- Shia went out of his way to charm Margaret as soon as they met and he wooed her with compliments and gifts and flowers and texts and spur-of-the-moment dates where he’d just show up at her house but her friends are concerned because Twigs’ lawsuit against Shia alleges multiple incidents of abuse including choking her in her sleep and knowingly giving her a sexually transmitted disease -- Shia said many of those allegations are not true and he is in a 12-step program and therapy for PTSD and alcoholism

Page 2: Contents, Prince William and Duchess Kate with kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis for a Christmas card 

Page 3: Candice Swanepoel in a bathing suit in Miami, Jennifer Garner stepped out to run errands in a mask and an expressive sweater in L.A., Ryan Reynolds cuddled up with a puppy to encourage his Instagram followers to donate to the SickKids Foundation 

Page 4: Friends of Johnny Depp are keeping their distance as he gears up for another ugly defamation trial against ex-wife Amber Heard -- after losing the case against a U.K. newspaper that called him a wife beater and a scathing feature in The Hollywood Reporter that dubbed the star radioactive and his career all but dead, former pals want nothing to do with him -- the likes of Jude Law, Leonardo DiCaprio and Channing Tatum have been backpeddling on Johnny and it’s making him furious but to be fair Johnny had already alienated Leo and Channing by calling them Pumpkin Head and Potato Head and accusing them of having affairs with Amber -- Jude’s indifference cuts the deepest because for a time he and Johnny were brothers-in-arms as they filmed the second Fantastic Beasts movie and from Johnny’s perspective Jude hasn’t lifted a finger to defend him 

Page 5: Mossimo Giannulli’s son is speaking out claiming the fashion designer is being treated harshly at California’s Federal Correctional Institution in Lompoc and Gianni Giannulli took to social media to complain that because of the pandemic his dad has been locked in solitary confinement for one full month and is only let out every three days for a few moments to shower and Gianni, Mossimo’s son from an earlier relationship, is irate that his father is being mistreated and he feels sorry for his dad and doesn’t want to see him languishing in prison however his half sisters Bela and Olivia Jade don’t seem too bothered by it

* At age 74 Susan Sarandon has had it with men -- she said she hasn’t really had a large dating career and in fact hasn’t had a guy in five years and it’s not that she can’t get a man, it’s just that the men she attracts are losers or sub-par in some way -- she is happy hanging out in her NYC apartment but still friends can’t help trying to fix her up because she’s attractive and in phenomenal shape but the problem is she scares guys away; she’s a force they can’t handle 

* Two years after sharing her shock diagnosis with multiple sclerosis Selma Blair is struggling with pain and fear -- she was recently spotted getting emotional outside a West Hollywood cannabis shop and she has turned to medical marijuana to soothe symptoms of the chronic immune-system disorder which can include fatigue, spasticity, walking issues, numbness, weakness, vision issues and pain -- on some days she can’t even get out of bed but she’s trying to stay strong for her son Arthur and smile more for him but it’s been hard 

Page 6: Julianne Hough appears to be sweetness and light but she’s a heartbreaker according to her ex Chuck Wicks who split from Julianne in 2009 -- in a revealing podcast Chuck blasted Julianne saying they were both loving life then out of nowhere you find out that they are not the person you thought they were and you break up -- Chuck admitted that he and Julianne agreed to say their split was amicable but it wasn’t fine and it wasn’t his fault

* After holing up at his Oklahoma spread Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani are having a blast decorating their 13,000-square-foot $13.2 million new home in the Encino area of California’s San Fernando Valley -- the home sits on 1.6 ultra-private acres behind double gates and extensive walls and features a pool and fabulous views -- inside the engaged pair give each other space: Gwen wants a dance studio and Blake gets his own man-cave with a big screen and high-tech surround sound 

* Star Spots the Stars -- Nicky Hilton, Katharine McPhee Foster, Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt making dairy-free and plant-based holiday appetizers, Jenna Dewan, Natalia Dyer

Page 8: Big Losers -- these stars shed pounds and got healthy in 2020 -- Jessica Simpson, Rebel Wilson, Kelly Osbourne 

Page 10: Star Shots -- Gwen Stefani on the way to the recording studio in Santa Monica, Jerry O’Connell started his morning off with a fresh mimosa and a kiss from one of his dogs, Jodie Turner-Smith is the first Black actress to play Henry VIII’s ill-fated queen Anne Boleyn in a major U.K. TV series in Emley, UK 

Page 11: Nick Cannon pitched in to help distribute 2000 free meal boxes to the Hollywood Food Coalition

Page 12: Demi Moore in a yellow bow for a selfie thanking readers for checking out her memoir, Paris Hilton kicked back for a Coach campaign reintroducing the early-2000s ubiquitous Swinger bag

Page 13: Derek Hough and his dogs Romie and Luna, Irina Shayk striking a pose 

Page 14: Sofia Vergara during a photoshoot, Real Housewives of New York City alum Kristen Taekman is taking advantage of the California winter weather in a bikini in Malibu, Wells Adams takes out the trash in L.A. 

Page 16: Carrie Underwood showed off her comfy at-home style, Vanessa Hudgens and her favorite condiment, Katherine Schwarzenegger celebrates her dog’s birthday 

Page 17: Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval picked up a holiday-themed centerpiece ahead of Christmas in L.A., Katie Holmes slung a guitar over her shoulder in NYC, Dame Joan Collins dropped by The Jonathan Ross Show in London 

Page 18: Normal or Not? Hailey Baldwin shares a glimpse into her beauty routine -- normal, Tiger Woods’ son Charlie showed off his skills ahead of the PNC Championship -- normal 

Page 19: Pete Wentz playing tennis in L.A. -- normal, Pete Davidson hurt himself a few times while making a scarf -- not normal 

Page 20: Fashion -- stars charm in romantic ruffles -- Keke Palmer, Gwyneth Paltrow, Lupita Nyong’o 

Page 21: Kirsten Dunst, Halsey 

Page 24: Ariana Grande announced her engagement to realtor Dalton Gomez with some celebratory shots and she’s telling everyone how she never thought it was possible to be this happy -- the couple began dating in early 2020 when Dalton helped Ariana find a home in L.A. and things hit the fast track amid the health pandemic which saw the two enjoying quality time together in lockdown and realizing they were a perfect fit because they never fight and are totally in sync about how they look at life -- Ariana went straight into wedding mode already deciding on an intimate outdoor setting in mid-2021

Page 25: Jon Hamm stepped out in L.A. recently with girlfriend Anna Osceola and she was showing off a noticeably rounder midsection and there’s a good chance the two are pregnant because they’ve been actively trying to get into the family way -- though Jon admitted in 2016 that having children isn’t necessarily an imperative Jon may have changed his tune after his year-long relationship with Anna and hitting the big 5-0 in March has him reassessing his life and now having a child has become important to him 

* Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher will be camping in style now that they’ve purchased a $140K Mercedes Benz Sprinter and they’re preparing to embark on an adventure  -- with sleeping accommodations for four and a kitchen the spacious luxury vehicle is perfect for the couple and their two kids -- other stars can spend their vacations in five-star resorts but Mila and Ashton prefer to keep things alfresco and it’s a tradition they’ve kept all these years; this is their idea of a perfectly fun vacation

Page 26: Cover Story -- Hollywood’s Best and Worst Bosses -- who’s great to work for and who makes employees’ lives a misery -- Jennifer Hudson -- best

Page 27: Jennifer Lopez -- worst, Rihanna -- best, Kenny Chesney -- best, Mariah Carey -- worst, Gwyneth Paltrow -- worst 

Page 28: Keanu Reeves -- best, Sandra Bullock -- best, Emma Watson -- worst 

Page 29: George Clooney -- best, Ellen DeGeneres -- worst, Guess the Bad Boss 

Page 30: Tom Cruise and Hayley Atwell: Man on a Mission -- amid all the tension on the set of Mission: Impossible 7 Tom has been pursuing his costar Hayley to be his next girlfriend and it seems to be working -- Tom has become very active with the U.K. Scientology Branch and is very taken with English women like Hayley and he’d like to make the U.K. his home base -- handcuffed to each other for several scenes in M:I7 Hayley and Tom were also spotted holding hands when the cameras weren’t rolling 

Page 32: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s very L.A. Christmas -- the prince spends the holidays 5000 miles away from the royal family but Meghan’s mom Doria Ragland was on hand for the festivities -- the couple were intending to call Queen Elizabeth on Christmas morning otherwise they were happy to celebrate a low-key holiday 

Page 38: Entertainment 

Page 48: Parting Shot -- Sophie Turner and Joe Jonas suited up to hit the slopes stopping by a local store to pick up goodies before changing into warmer gear in Mammoth Lakes in California -- the couple are familiar faces in the ski town and looking forward they will be able to plan even more snowy getaways now that they’ve listed their NYC apartment for $5.9 million and moved full-time to Encino 

[josh-dot-d]

1988 Jaguar XJ6 Sovereign ( XJ40 ) The most un-loved Xj model of all time. Jaguar enthusiast at the time loved the twin headlights, curvy and swooping lines that the previous models came with. The aesthetic gave the Xj models quite a big presence on the road, but without being too obvious, rude and loud. Jaguar Xj is a majestic cruiser that when you see it, you know immediately its all about style. Well what about this 1988 XJ6, why does the Jaguar enthusiasts are not incline of supporting this one? At this point, Jaguar is run by old men with old thinking. If old ways made things perfect why replace it anyway? 80's came along with the rise of technology. In 2021, we think those tech are quite adequate and antique. Back in the 80's they we're revolutionary. Wedge shape and angular lines meant modern ways of thinking. Jag wanted to get younger buyers to replace the image of being "Old man's car". Which didn't really worked because BMW came out with their own 4 seat luxury car. Far more sportier, more tech to boast about, and youthfull ness. The Jag on the other hand, is a hand build car crafted with wood that came with cruise control. Not sporty at all, its a car that gave you this feeling that you don't want to drive it, you want to be driven in it. It is still old fashioned at that point, But the whole aesthetic didn't help, it did look modern but it still got that "old man's car" vibe to it. So you say " what's good with this particular jag? " There's alot to like about this XJ40 Jag. Let's start with the engine. They called it the AJ6, all brand new (sort of) straight six engine that is based to the old XK straight six. It's mildly powerful at 230 hp and 380 nm of torque. The power delivery is very relaxing. It picks up at 2k rpm and it surges. It's not as fast as the XJR's but fast enough for daily driving and daily overtaking. The ride is amazing, soaks up bumps really well, the interior is godly by any luxury sedans. At this price point, you would never consider it as a 10,000 dollar car. It feels very special indeed. The blend of wood and leather is just perfect. The smell is specific, it's like getting inside a pub and you know very well you're in a safe place. The driving experience? I spent alot of time thinking about it. I even went on a trip while there's a storm raging and pouring water down the Earth. The Jag made me feel like it's just another event. Relax and comfortable in 7 hours of driving. Starts flawlessly everytime and cheap on fuel. Managed to achieve 14.2 litres per 100 m, that's 19 mpg in UK english. Yeah I know it isn't as cheap as any other car, for a big car? That is GOOD NEWS. Everytime I park people stare at it, somehow it makes you feel special like you're Queen Elizabeth. This Jag is in between being old fashioned to modern thinking. People often ask me " Is that your dad's car? " I'll be like " Nope it's mine. " with my pink beanie on my head. Conclusion. I'm still in my search of what cars I should keep forever. I have been on a hunt of luxury sedans. Driven some but not as special as the Jag. Its charming, characterful and fun to drive. I thought Old people drive this because it gives them status and relaxed ride, however there is more into it. The more you spend time, the more you'll like jazz music, slow music or city pop. Jag makes you recalibrate your thinking when you go drive, it encourages you to go slow down just moderate speed and seeing the sorrounding slowly fading. I love it I really do.

[corona-extra-newsletter]

3/16/20 corona extra: cracking open cold covid facts

Announcements & Thank Yous

Thank you to everyone who’s messaged me or sent asks! Specific thanks go to:

@hoothootmotherf-ckers​ for checking my math on California

@ainwesley for sending me a source for more up to date information about Norway

@sister-cna-reader​ for sending me a source for Washington State and for suggesting I put closure information in here

Several people for correcting the misinformation I had about Vietnamese tests being ~1 hour, this is not true unfortunately. I apologize for the mistake and will keep you posted on testing developments as they occur.

@halcyonhowl​ for sending me sources and tips on North Carolina

Twitter users @molly0xFFF and @goblinartificer for helping me with the Wordpress site

Wordpress staff for support

To several other anons for suggesting I include closure/group restriction information, positive news of the day, and numbers of recovered patients. I’ve implemented all of these as much as possible.

If you have reliable information from a good source that I don’t seem to have, please shoot me a message/ask/pigeon!

Places now included in the newsletter are: Montana, Vermont, Delaware, Maryland, Washington, DC, Greece, North Carolina, South Carolina, Connecticut, Alabama, Tennessee, Arizona, Ireland, and Switzerland. Please send an ask or a message if you would like a place included!

There is now good news at the end of the newsletter because this is a lot, all the time. Please take care of your mental health. I am being one with the numbers so you don’t have to follow every minute, panic-inducing development. Also, there is good news related to the pandemic!

I have started a website for the newsletter, which I may be able to update in real-time? Uncertain. At the very least it’ll be a mirror of the tumblr content so you can skip around and not be stuck in scrolling hell since these are all mega chonky. Find it at coronaextranewsletter.com. If you know me from fandom, please be chill about my meatspace identity. Please.

Asks are now on for this blog, which should help things. Please send asks to this blog in the future, thank you!

Just The Numbers

Case numbers

Total cases: 167,511 (13,903 new)

Total deaths: 6,606 (862 new)

Mortality rate: 3.9%

China: 81,077 (29 new) cases, 3,218 deaths (14 new)

Mortality rate: 3.97%

Excluding China: 86,434 cases (13,874 new) and 3388 deaths (848 new)

151 countries/territories reporting cases, 4 are new today including: Uzbekistan (4), Uruguay (4), Rwanda (5), and Seychelles (2)

Rwanda is confirming local transmission at this time

Italy is reporting over 24,000 cases (3500 new) with over 1800 deaths

Iran is reporting approx 15,000 cases with over 800 deaths

South Korea, Spain, and Germany are reporting over 5,000 cases

SK reports 75 deaths/8236 cases

Spain reports 288 deaths/7753 cases

Germany reports 12 deaths/4838 cases

International/General News

Please stop buying toilet paper unless you are actively out of toilet paper. My butt thanks you in advance.

Vaccine testing began today in Seattle, Washington. This is the first phase of vaccine testing, where healthy volunteers take the vaccine to make sure it is safe.

The World Health Organization will stop separating Chinese cases as today is the first day that cases outside China outstripped cases inside China

France is now on lockdown

We are seeing the difference that social distancing can make in this epidemic: look at the difference between European countries that have and have not shut down.

Virology Corner

Today’s topic is recovery from COVID-19: how do we know that you’re recovered and that you’re no longer shedding the virus?

We know from Chinese studies that in people who recover clinically (i.e. when they stop feeling like death’s ass) they can shed virus for up to 20 days from the onset of symptoms. People who die shed virus until after they die.

Fortunately, we have a way of testing for active virus shedding: the same tests we use to detect viral genes at the start of an infection work to show that you are clear of infection!

This is super useful to know because we do not always test for cure in infectious diseases - for example, we don’t usually test flu patients for cure.

It’s pretty clear that when people have two negative tests separated by 24 hours, they are considered “recovered”. That’s the definition the WHO uses, and the one I will use here unless I specify otherwise.

Question Tuesday

Today’s question comes from @dasyuridae: “does the UK’s response make sense?”

HELL NO it does not

That’s the short answer

The long answer is that herd immunity works as a prevention strategy in certain types of infections, and this is not yet that kind of pandemic.

We use herd immunity to prevent against diseases when we have a vaccine for them. By immunizing everyone who can be immunized, we prevent those who cannot be immunized from getting and/or spreading the disease. This is essential to protecting people from things like measles and the flu.

If humans are the only host for a particular virus, we can even use herd immunity to totally delete the disease from planet earth. Ask smallpox. Oh wait. You can’t. We deleted it. (except for the highly secure samples in Russia and the USA, shh)

COVID-19 likely has a reservoir in animals so we can’t delete it, but once we have a vaccine, herd immunity will be awesome for preventing further outbreaks.

To have herd immunity now, likely upwards of 90% of the UK would need to get the virus and recover, thereby developing immunity. That is a bad idea because no health system can handle that.

A better way to do this is what most other countries are doing, mitigating spread by isolating affected people, offering lots of testing, and quarantining areas with lots of asymptomatic spread.

In conclusion, fuck Boris Johnson, he doesn’t understand how epidemiology works and that’s gonna hurt/kill a lot of people.

I have two elderly grandparents in the UK. Fuck Boris.

If you have questions, ask them and they’ll appear here in the next issue of corona extra!

Regional News (if you want somewhere added just let me know. Don’t be shy!! I highly recommend you just skip to your area if you don’t wanna be overwhelmed.)

Canada: last updated 3/16/20 at 9 AM EST

Total cases: 324 confirmed (+75), 17 presumed (+13), 1 death (3/9/20, no change), 5 recovered

Symptoms began for these cases between 1/15 and 3/13

13% of cases have required hospitalization (up from 12%)

74% (down from 79%) of cases are in travellers, and a further 6% in their close contacts

Affected provinces include: Alberta (56, +17), BC (73, +0), Manitoba (7, +3), New Brunswick (6, +4), Newfoundland and Labrador (1, +0), Nova Scotia (5, +2) Ontario (172, +69), PEI (1, +0), Québec (50, +9), and Saskatchewan (6, +4).

Totals here include confirmed and presumptive positives

4 cases in repatriated travellers (no change)

Restrictions/Closures:

No formal restrictions/closures at the federal level

Recommendation to avoid non-essential travel, particularly cruise ships

All international travelers directed to self-isolate for 14 days upon arrival

Alberta: last updated 3/15

56 cases, 17 new, 0 deaths

Community spread confirmed in Calgary

Restrictions/closures

K-12 schools and in-person post-secondary classes/training are closed

Licensed childcare facilities, out-of-school care programs, and preschools are closed indefinitely

British Columbia: last updated 3/14

73 cases, 9 new, 4 recovered, 1 death

Affected public health units include: Fraser, Interior, and Vancouver Coastal

Vancouver coastal has the most cases as far as I can tell

Clusters of infection have been reported at Lynn Valley Care Centre, Hollyburn House Retirement Residence, and Lions Gate Hospital (admin staff).

Manitoba: last updated 3/16 AM

7 cases, 3 new, no deaths

Visitor restrictions for hospitals are in effect

New Brunswick: last updated 3/16 1 PM

6 cases, 4 new on 3/15, no deaths

Affected areas include Zone 3

I don’t live in NB so I have no idea what this is beyond one of at least three zones

Schools are closed starting 3/16 for two weeks

Newfoundland & Labrador

1 case

Sorry that’s all the info I have

Nova Scotia

5 cases

Gatherings over 150 people are disallowed

Casinos are closed starting 3/16; VLTs are not allowed in bars

Childcare facilities are closed starting 3/17 through 4/3

Public schools are closed until 4/6

Long-term care facilities are closed to visitors until further notice

Ontario: last updated 3/16 at 10:30 AM local time

177 cases, 69 new, 5 recovered, no deaths

Affected public health units include: Durham (1), Halton (1), Hamilton (4), Niagara (1), Ottawa (3), Peel (4), Sudbury (1), Toronto (11), Wellington Dufferin Guelph (1), York (5)

Only cases from 3/16 on will be counted under here based on how the site works

P.E.I.: last updated 3/16 AM

1 case, in Queens County, connected to a cruise

Closures/restrictions

Libraries and community events are closed/canceled

Child care facilities are closed for two weeks starting 3/17

Public schools are closed until April 6

Québec: last updated 3/16 AM

50 cases, 9 new, no deaths

Affected regions include: Capitale Nationale (2, +0), Mauricie - Centre du Québec (3, +0), Estrie (3, +0), Montréal (18, +5), Chaudière-Appalaches (4, +1), Lanaudière (3, +1), Laurentides (3, +0), Montérégie (10, +1), and undetermined/outside Québec (4, +1).

State of health emergency as of 3/13

Closures/restrictions

Indoor gatherings of >250 people prohibited, many public buildings closed until further notice

Daycare/childcare facilities and all schools closed until 3/27

Elections scheduled for 3/15 have been rescheduled to after late April

Non-essential visits to hospitals and long-term care institutions are prohibited

Saskatchewan: last updated 3/15

6 cases

Sorry this is all I have right now

Greece: last updated 3/16 at 1:45 pm local time

Note: I do not speak Greek, and I therefore am struggling to find official data from somewhere more granular than the WHO. I’m sourcing most of this from the WHO and from Ekathimerini, but if you know where I can find better/more up to date info, please let me know. Thank you!

331 total cases, 141 new

4 deaths total (1 new on 3/15)

Restrictions/Closures:

All arrivals to the country are required to isolate for 14 days

Parliament has suspended all committee meetings and restricted each party to one MP in attendance at a time

Businesses are closed starting Wednesday 3/18, with the exception of gas stations, pharmacies, and groceries

Supermarkets are restricting the number of patrons to allow 1 person per 10 square meters

Ireland: last updated 3/15

169 total cases, 40 new, 2 total deaths

Deaths occurred on 3/11 and 3/14

Community transmission is confirmed

The following regional breakdown is available of the new cases: 25 eastern, 9 western, 6 southern

Restrictions/Closures

All pubs & bars are closed until March 29. House parties are strongly discouraged.

Schools, colleges, and childcare facilities are closed until March 29

Indoor gatherings of >100 people and outdoor gatherings >500 people are prohibited

State run cultural institutions are closed until further notice

The Netherlands: last updated 3/16 at 2 PM local time

I still do not speak Dutch, please please correct me if I get something wrong!

Seriously this is all run through Google Translate, I won’t take it personally

1413 confirmed cases, 24 deaths

278 new cases, 4 new deaths

Average age of decedents is 79, with a range from 59 to 94

Provinces affected include: Drenthe (16, +1), Flevoland (22, +3), Friesland (13, +3), Gelderland (135, +35), Groningen (10, +1), Limburg (149, +20), North Brabant (554, +108), North Holland (115, +25), Overijssel (36, +8), Utrecht (140, +31), South Holland (136, +26), and Zeeland (17, +1).

I think this is all of them based on a quick Wikipedia investigation?

There are 70 non-residents/unknown location patients

Restrictions/Closures

Schools, restaurants/bars, sports and fitness clubs, sex clubs, saunas, and childcare facilities are closed until April 6

Tae Bo is about to undergo a renaissance, I can feel it. Bring on the 80s outfits and the Jazzercise too!!

New Zealand: last updated 3/16 at 2 pm local time

8 confirmed cases, 2 probable cases

NO NEW CASES, YAY!!

The new patients from 3/15 are doing well and remain in quarantine; one was not hospitalized and the other has been released from hospital

Travel into and out of the country is restricted and those returning from overseas are asked to self-isolate for two weeks.

The Golden Princess has left port and the passenger in question tested negative.

Norway: last updated 3/16 at 8 pm local time

I still don’t speak Norwegian so if I screwed up lemme know

Everyone is still on lockdown, and apparently salty about being banned from their rural cabins 

1332 cases, 3 deaths

53 hospitalized, 11 critical

96 new cases during the 24h of March 15

359 cases acquired in Norway, 752 acquired outside of Norway, the rest are undetermined. Community spread is confirmed.

Locations where people became infected include Austria (513), Italy (148), Switzerland (18), UK (14), Spain (14), France (10), USA (7), Iran (5), Germany (5),  other countries with more than 3 cases (18), and other countries with less than 3 cases (58).

Breakdown of cases by area: Agder (87, +32), Innlandet (88, +16), Møre og Romsdal (20, +0), Nordland (11, +3), Oslo (292, +11), Rogaland (164, +37), Troms og Finnmark (23, +3), Trøndelag (74, +24), Vestfold og Telemark (69, nice, +21), Vestland (131, +13), and Viken (373, +95)

Yay no new cases in Møre og Romsdal!

Switzerland:  last updated 3/16 at 5:45 pm local time

Whole country is on lockdown as of 3/16: no entry or exit until further notice (maximum of 6 months), schools are closed until 4/19, all events are canceled, and all personal service establishments are closed.

1,680 confirmed cases

14 deaths

United Kingdom in general: Last updated 3/16 at 9 AM local time

Boris is still a stupid shit, surprise surprise.

Fuck Boris

He’s ~encouraging~ people to stay home, which is kind of laughable given the severity of the pandemic and how strict other countries are having to be

1,543 total cases (+12.4%), 152 are new today

55 total deaths, 20 new today

England

1,196 total cases, 97 new

Affected UTLAs with at least 10 cases are as follows: Hampshire (55), Kensington & Chelsea (43), Westminster (37), Southwark (33), Hertfordshire (29), Lambeth (26), Barnet (25), Surrey (25), Oxfordshire (23), Camden (22), Hammersmith & Fulham (21), Brent (20), Hackney & City of London (20), Wadsworth (20), Devon (20), Essex (20), Ealing (18), Greenwich (18), Lewisham (17), Haringey (16), Sheffield (15), Birmingham (15), Leeds (14), Harrow (14), Nottinghamshire (14), Hillingdon (13), Hounslow (12), Merton (12), Tower Hamlets (12), Buckinghamshire (12), Cambridgeshire (12), Derbyshire (12), Kent (12), Northamptonshire (12), Walsall (11), Wolverhampton (11), Bromley (11), Islington (11), Sutton (11), Nottingham (10), Brighton & Hove (10), Oldham (10), Barking & Dagenham (10), Cumbria (10)

As things continue to escalate I will figure out a better way to display this

Deaths are not being reported by the PHS but I will do my best to split these out in the next few editions using news reports etc. It will hopefully be included by the 3/18 edition but no promises? If you have a good source for deaths by county/area, please let me know.

Scotland: last updated 3/16 at 2 pm local time

171 cases, 18 new, 1 death

Affected health boards are as follows: Ayrshire and Arran (7, +1), Borders (7, +0), Fife (7, +0), Forth Valley (10, +0), Grampian (12, +0), Greater Glasgow and Clyde (44, +5), Highland (2, +0), Lanarkshire (20, +4), Lothian (29, +1), Shetland (15, +4), and Tayside (17, +2)

Clearly the ones I listed yesterday were not all of them because…

Newly affected health boards are as follows: Dumfries and Galloway (1)

Wales: last updated 3/16 at 11 am local time

124 cases, 30 new

1 death (3/16)

Affected areas include: Blaenau Gwent County (5, +1), Bridgend County (1, +0), Caerphilly County (14, +3), Carmarthenshire County (7, +0), Ceredigion County (1, +0), City & County of Swansea (23, +1), City of Cardiff (11, +3), Conwy County (1, +0), Flintshire County (1, +0), Isle of Anglesey (2, +1), Monmouthshire County (7, +2), Neath Port Talbot (11, +0), Newport City (14, +7), Pembrokeshire (2, +0), Powys County (3, +0),  Rhondda Cynon Taf County (2, +0), Torfaen County (2, +0), Vale of Glamorgan County (1, +0), and Wrexham County (2, +1).

Note that some of these numbers have changed more than you might see from looking at yesterday’s report; this is because residential locations of patients are being confirmed. 12 cases remain unlocalized and 2 are residents outside of Wales.

Northern Ireland: last updated 3/16 at 9 am local time

52 cases, 7 new

Health dept is not providing more detail than this at this time as far as I can tell

US in general: updated 3/16 at 4 pm local time (EST for CDC numbers)

3,487 total cases, 1,858 new with 46 states and DC reporting cases.

This is the start of the explosion of cases I’ve been expecting because of increased testing. This is a good sign that we’re catching more cases. It also indicates that there’s been spread going on for a while.

68 deaths, 27 new (1.95% mortality rate)

53 jurisdictions are reporting cases: 49 states, DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, and US Virgin Islands

Only West Virginia continues to not have cases. Impressive.

CDC is now recommending all in person gatherings with more than 50 people be canceled for the next 8 weeks. This sucks for me personally and probably a lot of you all too. Hang in there.

Trump told states that they should “try to get” ventilators and other critical supplies themselves. Fuck him too.

Not that it’s not the states’ jobs too, but also the federal aid and stockpile is like, a huge thing in disaster response (wait, oops, Trump cut that too)

Alabama: updated 3/16 at 1 PM local time

28 cases, no deaths

Affected counties include: Baldwin (1), Elmore (1), Lee (1), Jefferson (17), Limestone (1), Montgomery (1), Shelby (3), and Tuscaloosa (3).

Arizona: updated 3/16 at 11:36 AM

18 cases, no deaths

Affected counties include: Graham (1), Maricopa (8), Pima (4), and Pinal (5)

California: updated around 10 AM PST, 3/15/20

The Governor has recommended the following:

Those with chronic health conditions and those over 65 should shelter in place.

Gatherings over 250 people should be canceled.

Drinking establishments should be closed but restaurants can operate at 50% capacity.

Hospitals and long term care facilities should prohibit visitors except for end of life situations

Total cases not including the ones at Miramar (discussed below): 363, with 6 total deaths

Deaths have occurred in the following counties: Placer (1), Sacramento (2), San Mateo (1), Santa Clara (2)

The following counties report recoveries: Humboldt (1), San Benito (2)

The following counties report numbers of hospitalizations: Los Angeles (2), San Diego (8), Santa Clara (52)

Affected counties include: Alameda (18, +11), Calaveras (2, +0), Contra Costa (34, +5), Fresno (2, +0), Humboldt (1, +0), Imperial (2, +0), Los Angeles (94, +25), Madera (1, +0), Marin (9, +4), Orange (17, +3), Placer (8, +0), Riverside (15, +5), Sacramento (33, +4) San Benito (3, +0), San Diego (33, +25), San Francisco (40, +12), San Joaquin (8, +0), San Luis Obispo (3, +2), San Mateo (41, +9), Santa Clara (138, +47), Santa Cruz (9, +2), Shasta (1, +0), Solano (9, +3), Sonoma (5, +1), Stanislaus (3, +1), Tulare (2, +0), Ventura (5, +0), Yolo (2, +0)

Note regarding San Diego: The four federally quarantined people are not included in the county statistics.

Unaffected counties include: Alpine, Butte, Colusa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Glenn, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Monterey, Napa, Plumas, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, Yuba

Counties with confirmed community transmission include: Los Angeles, Marin, Orange, Riverside, San Francisco, San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Sonoma

Ventura County retested a possible case of community transmission and did not find evidence as of 3/16/20.

Newly affected counties include Amador (1), Nevada (1), San Bernardino (1), Santa Barbara (1)

Closures/Restrictions by County

Alameda: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Contra Costa: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Del Norte: Schools closed through 4/20

El Dorado: Schools closed through 3/20

Marin: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Mendocino: Modified schooling starting 3/17

Mono: Schools closed through 3/30, Alterra Mountain closed

Nevada: Schools are closed until 4/13, libraries closed until 4/12

Riverside: Schools & daycares are closed, gatherings >250 people prohibited

San Benito: Schools are closed

San Francisco: Shelter in Place until 4/7

San Luis Obispo: Alcohol sales on site are banned through 3/18

San Mateo: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Santa Clara: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Santa Cruz: Schools are closed until 3/20

Stanislaus: Gatherings of >1000 people are prohibited indoor and outdoor from 3/16 to 3/31

Tuolumne: Schools are closed from 3/16 to 3/30

Ventura: All schools and public libraries are closed starting 3/16 until further notice

Yolo: Many schools are closed at the local level. The County website has a list of closures: https://www.yolocounty.org/health-human-services/adults/communicable-disease-investigation-and-control/novel-coronavirus-2019

Counties with no closures/restrictions beyond those mandated by the state: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Los Angeles, Madera, Merced, Modoc, Monterey, Napa, Orange, Placer, Plumas, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Joaquin, Santa Barbara, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tulare, and Yuba

Drive through testing is available in Marin County

Colorado - last updated 3/15 at 145 pm local time

131 cases (+30), 1 death

Counties reporting deaths include: El Paso (1)

Affected counties include: Adams (6, +0), Arapahoe (15, +5), Denver (24, +4), Douglas (8, +4), Eagle (22, +4), El Paso (4, +1), Gunnison (8, +2), Jefferson (12, +3), Larimer (1, +0), Mesa (1, +0), Pitkin (2, +0), Pueblo (1, +0), Summit (1, +0), Weld (5, +2), with one case reassigned from Summit to unknown status

Out of state visitors who have tested positive are tallied separately, 15 in total (+0). They are located in the following counties: Pitkin (9), Eagle (2), Routt (1), Denver (1), unknown (2).

Confirmed community spread

Newly affected counties include: Boulder (3), Clear Creek (1),

Drive through testing is available in: Denver and Lowry

Residents of Gunnison, Eagle, Summit, Pitkin are recommended to minimize social contact

Anyone who visited the Colorado Springs Bridge center in late Feb-early Mar may have been exposed, call the DPH for more information

Events of >50 people are “strongly encouraged” to be canceled

Schools are closed in many places, local news is your best bet for this. I’ll try to include this eventually but it’s too much today.

Connecticut - last update 3/16 at 5 pm local time

41 cases

The following counties are affected: Fairfield (29), Hartford (4), Litchfield (4), New Haven (4)

Connecticut’s small, right? You can’t have more than 4 counties?

Restrictions/Closures

Gatherings >250 people are canceled through 4/30

No gatherings >50 people until further notice

Nursing home visits restricted

Schools closed through 3/30

Restaurants are carryout/drive through only through 4/30

Fitness/recreation centers and movie theaters closed through 4/30

Delaware: last update 3/16 at 1:40 local time

8 cases, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: New Castle (8)

Do you guys have any other counties?? This is gonna be another Rhode Island sitch, I think.

Restrictions/closures:

Events over >100 people are encouraged to cancel/reschedule

Schools closed through 3/27

District of Columbia: last update 3/16 AM

17 cases, no deaths

There’s no counties in DC, you can’t trick me

Restrictions/Closures

Food service/drinking establishments are restricted to <250 people, <6 people/table, no standing or bar seating, and tables separated by 6 feet

Nightclubs etc are closed

Florida - last updated 12:38 pm local time 3/16/20

155 (+40) cases and 4 deaths (+0)

Florida has not yet confirmed community transmission but it’s almost certainly happening. I’m no longer separating counties with and without confirmed community transmission because of that.

Affected counties  include: Alachua (2, +1), Broward (39, +3), Charlotte (1, +0), Citrus (1, +0), Clay (3, +0), Collier (6, +1), Duval (5, +1), Hillsborough (5, +1), Lee (4, -1), Manatee (5, +1), Miami-Dade (23, +10), Nassau (1, +0) Okaloosa (1, +0), Orange (3, +0), Osceola (4, +2), Palm Beach (8, +3), Pasco (2, +0) Pinellas (4 +2), Santa Rosa (1, +0), Sarasota (3, +2) Seminole (4, +3), St. Johns (2, +1) Volusia (7, +2)

A case was removed from the record of Lee County. Since FLDPH changed their website, I don’t know where it was reassigned.

Newly affected counties include: Escambia (1) and Lake (1)

Georgia: last updated 3/16 at 11:21 AM

121 cases, 22 new, 1 death

Affected counties include: Bartow (9, +0), Charlton (1, +0), Cherokee (7, +1), Clayton (5, +3), Clarke (3, +1), Cobb (22, +3), Coweta (2, +0), Dekalb (10, +0), Dougherty (6, +0), Fayette (5, +0), Floyd (4, +0), Fulton (27, +7), Gordon (2, +0), Gwinnett (5, +1), Henry (2, +1), Lowndes (3, +1), Lee (2, +0), Newton (1, +0), and Polk (1, +0).

Newly affected counties include: Forsyth (1), Hall (1), Paulding (1), and Troup (1)

Illinois: last updated 3/14/20

105 confirmed cases, 16 new

Confirmed community spread

Affected counties include Champaign, Clinton, Cook, Cumberland, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Sangamon, St. Clair, Whiteside, Winnebago, and Woodford

ILDPH is not publishing numbers per county. I will try to include this for tomorrow’s update.

Newly affected counties include: Peoria and Will

Closings/Restrictions

Bars and restaurants are closed (except for carryout and drive through) until 3/30

All gatherings >50 people prohibited

Gyms/fitness centers/clubs/theaters are closed

DMV is closed! I personally hate the IL DMV so this isn’t like, sad news in particular…..

Community colleges and public schools are closed - like in other places I will attempt to include county-by-county news soon.

Iowa: last updated 3/16

Total cases: 22, 4 new

Affected counties include: Carroll (1, +0), Dallas (1, +0), Harrison (1, +0), Johnson (15, +1), and Pottawattamie (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Allamakee (2) and Polk (1)

Community spread confirmed

Closures/restrictions

Schools closed for 4 weeks starting 3/16

Kansas: last updated 3/16

11 confirmed cases (+3), 1 death

Affected counties include: Johnson (8, +3), Wyandotte (1, +0), Butler (1, +0), Franklin (1, +0)

Closures/Restrictions

Schools closed through 3/23

Kentucky: last updated 3/16 at 4 pm local time

22 cases (+4), 1 death (+1)

Counties reporting deaths: Bourbon (1)

Counties reporting recoveries: Harrison (1)

Affected counties include: Bourbon (1), Clark (1), Fayette (5), Harrison (6), Jefferson (6), Montgomery (1), and Nelson (1).

Closures/Restrictions

Restaurants and bars closed to in-person service

State Capitol closed to nonessential personnel

Schools are closed statewide

Louisiana: last updated 5:30 pm 3/16

136 cases reported, 45 new

3 deaths, 1 new

Parishes affected:  Bossier (1, +0), Caddo (3, +2), Jefferson (21, +9), Lafourche (2, +1), Orleans (94, +29), St. Bernard (2, +1), St. Charles (3, +1), St. John the Baptist (1, +0), St. Tammany (6, +2), and Terrebonne (2, +0)

New parishes affected: Ascension (1)

Maryland: last updated 10 AM 3/16

37 cases, 0 deaths

Counties affected: Anne Arundel (1), Baltimore (4), Baltimore City (1), Carroll (1), Charles (1), Harford (2), Howard (1), Montgomery (15), Prince George’s (10), Talbot (1)

Community spread confirmed

Exposure risk advisory for Lorien Elkridge

Closures/restrictions

Casinos, racetracks and other gambling situations are closed

Gatherings >250 people prohibited

All schools closed through 3/27

Senior centers closed until further notice

Massachusetts: last updated 4 pm 3/16

197 cases (59 new)

Affected counties include: Barnstable (1, +0), Berkshire (11, +2), Bristol (2, +1), Essex (8, +3), Middlesex (83, +18), Norfolk (36, +8), Suffolk (36, +9), and Worcester (6, +4)

Newly affected counties include: Hampden (1) and Plymouth (3)

10 cases are undetermined location

14 hospitalizations (+3)

They finally stopped making me download a goddamn word doc, thank you Massachusetts <3

Michigan: last updated 3/16 2 pm

54 cases (+21) 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Bay (1, +0), Charlevoix (1, +0), Ingham (1, +0), Kent (5, +2), Macomb (6, +4), Monroe (1, +0), Montcalm (1, +0), Oakland (14, +5), St. Clair (2, +1), Washtenaw (7, +3), and Wayne (14, +6)

Wayne County includes Detroit (6 cases)

Likely community transmission

Closures/Restrictions

Bars and restaurants are carryout/drive through only

Public spaces (casinos, theaters, etc) closed

Public offices open by appt only

Minnesota: last updated 3/16 at 12:00

54 cases (+19)

Affected counties include: Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Olmstead, Ramsey, Renville, Stearns, Waseca, Washington, and Wright

Newly affected counties include: Benton and Blue Earth

County numbers are not currently being provided by MN dept of health, just ranges. Hennepin county has >20 cases.

I will start working on these numbers for tomorrow’s edition

Drive through testing available in Olivia

Montana: last updated 3/15 at 7:45 pm

6 cases

Affected counties not being reported at this time, I’ll try to untangle that tomorrow

Closures/Restrictions

Public schools closed until 3/30

Many counties have closed libraries, these will be included tomorrow

Nebraska: last updated 3/16

Community transmission confirmed: many locations in Douglas County are potential places where transmission has occurred; if you live or have traveled to Douglas County (Omaha), please check the Douglas County COVID-19 monitoring site at: https://www.douglascountyhealth.com/latest-news.

There were also two exposures in Knox County on March 5, at basketball games at Lincoln Southwest HS and North Star HS.

18 cases (+1), no deaths

Affected counties include: Cass (1), Douglas (15) and Knox (1)

New Jersey : last updated 3/16 at 2 pm

178 cases (+109), 2 deaths (+1)

Affected counties include: Bergen (61, +36), Burlington (5, +2), Camden (3, +1), Essex (20, +13), Hudson (19, +14), Mercer (6, +5), Middlesex (17, +7), Monmouth (14, +6), Morris (6, +3), Ocean (3, +2), Passaic (8, +6), Somerset (5, +4), and Union (8, +7)

Newly affected counties include: Hunterdon (1)

Closures/Restrictions:

No gatherings >50 people

New York: last updated 3/16 at 3 PM

950 cases (+337), 2 deaths

Affected counties include: Albany (12, +7), Broome (1, +0), Delaware (1, +0), Dutchess (10, +6), Erie (6, +3), Herkimer (1, +0), Monroe (10, +8), Nassau (109, +30), Orange (11, +5), Rockland (16, +4), Saratoga (5, +2), Schenectady (4, +3), Suffolk (63, +22), Tioga (1, +0), Tompkins (1, +0), Ulster (7, +2), Westchester (220, +42)

NYC has 463 cases (194) as of 3/16 at 11:30 am

Areas/counties reporting deaths are: NYC - Brooklyn (1), Rockland (1)

Newly affected counties include: Allegany (2), Greene (2), Montgomery (1), Onondaga (1), Ontario (1), and Putnam (2)

Drive through testing in New Rochelle, Long Island, Staten Island, and Rockland County

Closures/Restrictions

Bars, restaurants, entertainment venues closed

No gatherings >50 people

Public schools closed until 4/1

Village elections delayed until 4/28

The governor dunked on the federal response hard in his press conference, which was great tbh

North Carolina: last updated 3/16 at 10 AM

33 cases, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Brunswick (1), Cabarrus (1), Chatham (1), Craven (1), Durham (1), Forsyth (2), Harnett (2), Johnston (2), Mecklenburg (4), Onslow (1), Wake (14), Watauga (1), Wayne (1), and  Wilson (1).

Advisory for an exposure at Raleigh convention center on March 8

Please call Wake County if you were there, they are tracking exposures

Closures/Restrictions

Schools are closed statewide until 3/30

Events >100 people canceled

Ohio: last updated 3/16 at 2 pm

50 confirmed cases, 14 new

14 hospitalizations

Affected counties include: Belmont (2, +0), Butler (6, +0), Cuyahoga (24, +10), Franklin (3, +0), Lorain (3, +1), Lucas (1, +0), Medina (2, +1), Stark (3, +1), Summit (2, +0), Trumbull (2, +0), Tuscarawas (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Geauga (1).

Closures/Restrictions

Bars/restaurants are closed

Gatherings >50 people canceled

Oregon: last updated 3/15 at 12 PM

39 cases (+3), 1 death

Counties reporting deaths: Multnomah (1)

13 hospitalized at time of positive test

The following counties are affected: Clackamas (1, +0), Deschutes (4, +1), Douglas (1, +0), Jackson (2, +0), Klamath (1, +0), Linn (10, +1), Marion (2, +0), Multnomah (1, +0), Polk (1, +0), Umatilla (2, +0), and Washington (13, +0).

Newly affected counties include: Yamhill (1).

Pennsylvania: last updated 3/16 at 7 pm

Gritty continues his dark work.

76 total cases (+13)

Counties affected include: Allegheny (5, +2) Bucks (5, +1), Chester (2, +0), Cumberland (5, +0), Delaware (7, +0),  Lehigh (1, +0), Luzerne (1, +0), Monroe (8, +2), Montgomery (30, +6), Northampton (1, +0), Philadelphia (8, +2), Pike (1, +0), Washington (1, +0), Wayne (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: NONE TODAY! \o/

Closures/restrictions:

Restaurants and bars are closed in the following counties until 3/30:  Allegheny, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery

Presumably this will deter Gritty

Rhode Island: last updated 3/16

21 confirmed cases (+1), no deaths

Chanston High School West had an exposure; 1700 people are currently quarantined after this exposure

I will attempt to sort out county level data soon, since apparently y’all have counties

South Carolina: last updated 3/16 at 3:50 pm

33 cases, no deaths

Will try to find more granular data for tomorrow’s edition

South Dakota: last updated 3/16

10 confirmed cases (+1),  no deaths

Affected counties include: Beadle (1, +0), Bon Homme (1, +0), Charles Mix (1, +0), Davison (1, +0), McCook (1, +0), Minnehaha (4, +1), and Pennington (1, +0)

No community transmission

Tennessee: last updated 3/16 at 2 pm

52 cases, no deaths

Affected counties include: Campbell (1), Davidson (25), Hamilton (1), Jefferson (1), Knox (1), Rutherford (1), Sevier (1), Shelby (2), Sullivan (1), and Williamson (18)

Texas: last updated 3/16

57 total cases, 1 new.

Highly likely that there has been community transmission, unconfirmed currently

Affected counties include: Bell (1, +0), Bexar (3, +2), Brazoria (2, +0), Collin (6, +1), Dallas (8, +0), El Paso (1, +0), Fort Bend (9, +0), Galveston (1, +0), Gregg (1, +0), Harris (10, +0), Hays (1, +0), Lavaca (1, +0), Matagorda (1), Montgomery (3, +0), Smith (4, +1), Tarrant (3, +0), and Travis (2, +1)

Newly affected counties include: None today!

Utah: last updated 3/16

29 total cases

Affected health districts include: Davis County (4, +1), Salt Lake county (18, +2), Southwest Utah (1, +0), Summit County (11, +9), and Weber-Morgan (2, +1)

Newly affected districts include: Tooele (1), Utah County (1), and Wasatch County (1)

First case of community spread identified on 3/14/20, in Summit County

Exposure at Wasatch High School identified

Schools: canceled

Mormons: canceled

Skiing: canceled

Public places in SLC: Canceled

Vermont

12 cases total (+4)

Affected counties include: Bennington (3), Chittenden (4), Orange (1), Springfield (1), Washington (1), and Windsor (3)

Hospitalizations are reported in the following counties: Bennington (3), Chittenden (1), Springfield (1), Washington (1), Windsor (1)

Closures/restrictions:

No gatherings >50 people or >50% capacity, whichever is lower

Schools are closed starting 3/18

Virginia: last updated 3/16

51 cases total, 6 new

Affected counties/cities include: Alexandria City (2, +1), Arlington (9, +1), Chesterfield (2, +1), Fairfax (10, +0), Hanover (1, +0), Harrisonburg City (1, +0), James City (10, +2), Loudoun (5, +0), Prince Edward (1, +0), Prince William (3, +0), Spotsylvania (1, +0), and Virginia Beach City (4, +0)

Newly affected areas include: Stafford (1) and York (1)

Washington: last updated 3/16 at 3:45 PM

Things are still super rough. Hang in there.

904 total cases (+262), 48 deaths (+8)

Current mortality rate: 5.3%

Deaths have occurred in the following counties: Grant (1, +0), King (43, +8), and Snohomish (4, +0).

Affected counties include: Clark (4, +1), Columbia (1, +0), Grant (3, +1), Grays Harbor (1, +0), Island (7, +1), Jefferson (3, +2), King (488, +101), Kitsap (7, +4), Kittitas (3, +0), Pierce (38, +12), Skagit (7, +3), Snohomish (200, +46), Spokane (3, +0), Thurston (4, +1), Whatcom (3, +1), and Yakima (4, +0).

126 cases are currently unassigned to a county. These are expected to resolve in the coming days, hopefully.

Newly affected counties include: Lewis (1) and Lincoln (1)

Closures/restrictions: widespread, will have county-by-county info soon.

Wisconsin: last updated 3/16 at 2 PM

47 total cases (+14), 0 deaths

Recovery is being reported by the following counties: Dane (1)

This is updated every Friday, next update expected 3/20

Affected counties include: Dane (10, +4), Fond du Lac (11, +0), Milwaukee (13, +6), Pierce (1, +0), Racine (1, +0), Sheboygan (3, +0), Waukesha (3, +0), and Winnebago (3, +2)

Newly affected counties include: Outagamie (1) and Wood (1)

Closures/restrictions

Schools closed starting 3/18 for minimum of two weeks

Today’s Hot Tips

Social distancing can be really crappy for people who are prone to feeling isolated. Try to schedule time to hang out virtually, especially if you’re stuck at home alone. I highly recommend the Jackbox party games to stream over Discord, or tabletop RPGs played through a service like Roll20. My friends and I have been doing all these things and it’s helping a lot!

If you have a favorite quarantine activity, let me know and I can include it in the next issue!

Everyone knows that sex is an option, there’s gonna be a lot of November, December, & January babies

That said, make sure your quarantine supplies include contraception and condoms and stuff. If you have a uterus, you can buy emergency contraception (plan B) online and it’s real handy to have around in a situation like this.

Hand washing is so hot right now

Hand Washing Song of the Day

If you hate singing happy birthday while you wash your hands, I certainly do, try Barrett’s Privateers!

Sing the first verse and chorus to feel like a pirate and follow CDC handwashing guidelines! Use soap and water for maximum virus-murdering.

Good News, Everyone!

The Shedd Aquarium took its penguins around to explore the whole aquarium since there were no people, and boy were those lil guys fascinated by everything!

Check it out here: https://twitter.com/shedd_aquarium/status/1239248971006185478?s=21

Chill Cat Corner

This one’s a classic: “where’s the babies???”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rELs4jl64k

I wish I could summon a bunch of smol kittens to scream at me like this

About this newsletter

I’m Emily, I’m a 4th year med student w/ a degree in molecular biology. I started this because I’m an infectious disease and epidemiology nerd and also all my friends have questions & anxiety. Hi internet!

The archive/proper website is located at coronaextranewsletter.wordpress.com.

All this info is sourced from regional & national public health organizations, plus the WHO. It’s as up to date as humanly possible. I’ve been beaming information about this outbreak directly into my brain 24/7 but I still miss stuff. Please let me know if I miss something!

Most public health departments stop updating their information around 4-5 PM local time on weekdays. That means that the earliest this will come out is around 6 PM Pacific time on weekdays going forward. On weekends things update more sporadically and earlier, so who knows what I’ll do then, but I’ll do my best.

The excellent title is courtesy of @marywhal​ and the Wordpress site is courtesy of @molly0xFFF and @goblinartificer on Twitter, thank you all!

For More Information

JHU COVID-19 data center: https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

List of peer-reviewed publications: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/publications.html

WHO daily sitrep: https://www.who.int/docs/default-source/coronaviruse/situation-reports/20200316-sitrep-56-covid-19.pdf?sfvrsn=9fda7db2_2

WHO FAQ: https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses

CDC cases in the US: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-in-us.html, this also has links to each state’s health dept

[theastrophilearchitect]

February 2021 wrap-up.

Every book, audiobook, tv show and movie I consumed in February.

The phrase ‘wrap-up’ is so boring. I want to talk about books, TV shows and movies, so I can’t even call it a ‘reading wrap-up’, however pleasingly alliterative that sounds despite the fact that ‘wrap’ actually begins with a W. One of my favourite YouTubers, polandbananasBOOKS (that capitalisation is loud) calls her wrap-ups ‘Stories I Ate This Month’ which I love, but using exactly that seems wrong. I genuinely debated calling this ‘My Media Diet’, but the word ‘diet’ has so many negative connotations to me, so I dropped that. Besides ‘wrap-up’ all in lowercase followed by a full stop is aesthetically pleasing.

The Hunger Games and Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (audiobook) I’ve read this series countless times. I read the series first time through six years ago, and, after finishing it, I just kept rereading it during silent reading time at school, so God only knows how many times I’ve read it at this point. This is actually the second time I’ve listened to this audiobook, and I still, of course, love it. When I first read it, this book stuck with me. It was the first teen book I ever read and, most unfortunately, put me into a dystopian phase. However, we got over that. I’m good now. I promise.

You know what this is about, but here it is anyway: in a dystopian future (of literally just North America, it never mentions what’s happening anywhere else), a country called Panem (literally the whole of North America) is divided into the luxurious, utopian Capitol, and thirteen districts, all of which gather or produce something for the Capitol. Some of the districts live in poverty, while others are afforded some luxuries but nowhere near those of the Capitol. It never really explains how this system came to be, but then there was a rebellion against the Capitol in which District Thirteen was destroyed, and every year two teenagers from each district are chosen to compete in the Hunger Games, where twenty-four tributes are put in an arena together to fight to the death, and the last person standing emerges victorious. It feels so strange to talk about the basic premise of this book without going into the rest of the trilogy, but I’ll leave it here.

I hate how the media washes this book out and plays it off as just another love triangle, which it barely even is. It has such an important message about society, and the fact that the media does that just proves how accurate it is. I can’t believe when I first read it I was actually Team Gale, but in truth I think that was just because I liked Liam Hemsworth better than Josh Hutcherson, which I still do, but not the point. Anyway, the narrator is excellent.

I’m not giving these booksa rating, both because it’s a reread and I like to base ratings off my initial opinion, and because the first time I read this book I was literally a small child, and part of my love is the nostalgia.

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab

This was the first book I read with my eyes this month, and I ended up getting the ebook because it was just so much cheaper than getting a physical copy - I may have invested if I loved the UK cover as much as the US, I’m ashamed to say (above is UK). It was not what I was expecting.

This book was much more contemplation-heavy than I was expecting and actually very light on plot. In 1714, Adeline LaRue runs away from her wedding and prays to Gods, wishing to be free, and is answered by the darkness, who makes her a deal: he grants her immortality, and she promises him her soul when she doesn’t want it anymore. He, wanting her soul, twistedly grants her freedom by cursing her to be forgotten by everyone she ever meets. Three hundred years later, she meets someone who remembers her.

It’s really about life, freedom and time - there’s no direct message or moral, at least not that I picked up on, but it really makes you think. I do enjoy that in a book, but not as much as one where i just love the story. I generally prefer books where I’m rooting for the characters, and it’s full of ships - the kind of stories you would write fanfiction about, but this is the kind of book that I think will stick with me. I take issue with how cliché the ending was, though.

Anyway, I’m not actually sure how I want to rate this. As a British teenager, I’m not actually that familiar with lettered ratings, and I don’t really want to use stars, but I think I’m going to suck it up. Maybe I’ll think of something else eventually.

Rating: 4.5 stars - books that get five stars from me are generally based on the enjoyment factor, but this book deserved more than four.

Arrow Season 1

I’ve been semi-interested in the Arrowverse/DC TV universe for a while, and finally took the opportunity to delve in. This show is so insanely CW - everyone has that look, it has that tone and it takes itself way too seriously. By the 23rd time you’re hearing it, the recap becomes painful to listen to.

This was the first show in DC’s saga - the show picks up as Oliver Queen returns home from being stranded on an island for five years after a cruise ship sank. When the ship went down, his billionaire father sacrificed himself to save Oliver, and left him with a list of ‘the people poisoning [his] city’. Upon returning home, Oliver becomes the vigilante who will eventually become known as ‘Arrow’ or ‘Green Arrow’ (currently unclear; I’m not a comic book person) but is currently dubbed just ‘the Hood’ or ‘the vigilante’, with the goal of taking down the people on the list. It’s very intense.

It took me about ten episodes to actually get invested - which is nearly seven hours watch time - but, ultimately, I’m glad that I did. Aside from the excessive CW-ness of this show, I love the characters and I want to see what happens.

Still, why is everyone so obsesses with Laurel? What’s so great about Laurel? I don’t get it. Felicity is 10000% the best character - she’s relatable, cute, and I high-key ship her with Oliver.

This little rant of mine was unintelligible.

Rating: 4 stars

Guardians of the Galaxy

I’m not explaining what this movie is about. Honestly. This was just a rewatch: I’m currently rewatching every MCU movie in chronological order (as in, starting with Captain America: The First Avenger instead of Iron Man). For every TV season I finish, I watch a a movie, and I alternate between movie series, one of which is, at the moment, MCU films. It’s hard for me to briefly explain my weird watching patterns.

I love this movie so much. It was the first really upbeat MCU movie, and I love the characters.

I don’t really have much to say about this, but if you haven’t watched MCU movies, please watch them. Even if you don’t want to, this movie is absolutely worth watching and you don’t need to watch any other MCU movies for context.

I Am Not Okay With This Season 1

I’m reeling from this show. I literally can’t tell whether or not this is getting a second season; it seems like it was meant to, but then got cancelled, and now I can’t tell.

This show follows a high school student named Sydney. She’s your typical outcast, and isn’t interested in getting ‘in’ - she’s best friends with a girl named Dina; they both came to their school around the same time and ended up friends, though Dina is your typical pretty girl. Then Syd discovers she has powers that operate based on her emotions, and I really don’t want to say anything else. But it does star Sophia Lillis and Wyatt Oleff, who you likely know as two of the kids in IT (the clown movie, not like computing).

Honestly, episodes 1-6 were very chill, more focused on teenage life than her powers, then episode 7 brought it. Up until the end of episode 7, I enjoyed the show and would be happy to watch a second season, but I wasn’t particularly invested or excited by it. Then episode 7. I would love a second season of this show. I have to at least know where the writers were going with it.

This show came out last year, and I only just got to it, but I can’t believe I haven’t heard anybody talking about it. It’s intense, it’s entertaining, and the first season will only take up about two and a half hours of your time (it’s seven 19-28 minute episodes).

Rating: 4 stars

Blue Lily, Lily Blue and The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater

I listened to The Raven Cycle audiobooks in 2019, and I’m not sure why because I didn’t even enjoy them that much. I did, however, decide I wanted to read Call Down the Hawk, the first book in the spin-off series, and that meant I had to reread The Raven Cycle since I had paid so little attention to the audiobooks, which I started in January and I love this series. Not what I expected from a reread of a series I paid virtually no attention to, but here we are.

This is book 3 in The Raven Cycle series, book 1 being The Raven Boys, which is a paranormal book in which the protagonist Blue, is the only non-psychic in a family of psychics, and has been told her whole life that if she kisses her true love, she will kill him. Then, on St Somebody’s Eve (Mark’s? I want to say Mark’s but I’m not sure), when she goes with her aunt to see the spirits of the people who will die in the next year, she sees one of the spirits, a boy from Aglionby Academy, the local private school, meaning he is either her true love, or she is the one who kills him, which in her case, could very much be both. Then that boy schedules a reading with her psychic family to help him find an old Welsh king, and there is so much more than that to this glorious series, but I’ll stop here.

I think my main thing in books and general media is the characters. They have to follow some kind of sensible plot, but if I’m not invested in the characters, I can’t get invested in the story. I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever been so in love with a cast of characters, not even in Six of Crows - this story is so character-driven, and I can’t get enough. This was an excellent continuation, and so much happened, but it did feel like its purpose was just to set up the final book, so I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as the previous two.

Rating: 4 stars

As for The Raven King - this was the last book I read this month, finishing it on the morning of the 27th because I knew I would have very little reading time from mid-afternoon until twenty-four hours later.

In complete honesty, I found the climax of this book to be a little rushed - we spend the whole series aware that Gansey’s looking for Glendower, but it never seems to be more prevalent than just their general investigations as to what the hell is happening. As a result, when it came to that in this book, it felt a little out of the blue (no pun intended).

Regardless, this series so well balances strong characters and strong plot where so many others fail, and I love it.

Rating: 5 stars

Fate: The Winx Saga Season 1

This show is a live-action rated-15 Netflix adaptation of one of my favourite childhood shows, Winx Club. And, honestly, you can tell.

I tried to watch this objectively, instead of complaining about how they cut some of my favourite characters and changed so many (Tecna, Riven, Beatrix, Stella, Brandon etc.). While I was upset about some of the cuts, I can agree that they were best for the story. Where in the original, every fairy had their own unique powers, this adaptation splits it into five elements: fire (Bloom), water (Aisha - on another note, screw Aisha, honestly), air (Beatrix), earth (Terra) and mind (Musa), though Stella still has light powers? Which is never explained?

Anyway, this follows teenage Bloom as she discovers she’s a fairy and goes through her first year at a fairy school called Alfea.

I’m not going to go too deep into this because I have so much to say about this show that i think I’m going to make a whole separate review rather than bore you with it now. 

Quality-wise, this show was mediocre, but enjoyment and nostalgia raise its rating for me because I’m biased.

Rating: 4 stars

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

This is both Bardugo’s first adult novel and her first novel not set in the Grishaverse. I read the Grisha trilogy for the first time years ago and didn’t like it that much, but followed that right up with the Six of Crows duology which I loved. I read King of Scars in 2019 when it came out, and started listening to the King of Scars audiobook just before I started reading this in preparation for Rule of Wolves at the end of March.

I loved this. I don’t think I have anything to criticise quality-wise - the characters had depth, there were plot twists and strong subplots, the world was incredibly well built, and the only thing that got me to put this book down was taking a week to start working on my own writing project (post coming soon). Because I took that week completely off reading, this book took me about two weeks total from start to finish, but it was so worth it.

This novel follows Alex Stern, a twenty-year-old whose friends have all been murdered. She was found beside one of them who died of a overdose, with the same drug in her system. But Alex can see ghosts, and, soon after her friends’ deaths, is consequently offered a scholarship to Yale University, on the condition that she works for the ninth House of the Veil to monitor the activities of Yale’s secret societies.

In complete candour, I found this book somewhat convoluted, though most of that was probably mainly my own poor reading comprehension. Regardless, I loved the plot, and am very highly anticipating the eventual release of its as-of-yet unnamed sequel.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

So I actually finished this audiobook briefly after finishing Blue Lily, Lily Blue, but I’m tacking it on here because I forgot to add it to the list and already explained my Grishaverse experience in my Ninth House comments.

So, yes, I love this duology, and it really opened a new compartment in my writing brain, even though I haven’t really taken advantage of that writing brain until now (again, post coming soon).

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

I am realising I’ve read eight books this month, and nearly half of them were by Leigh Bardugo. Which makes sense, considering how much I enjoy her books.

This book is slower-paced than most of hers, but it does follow two (one of which splits again) completely separate storylines, and is still excellent and entertaining.

I listened to this for a recap before Rule of Wolves is released on March 30th.

[thehifiproject]

1989: a vintage year for classic albums

What was in the water 30 years ago? Today, in 2019, a surprising number of artists and bands are celebrating the 30th anniversary of some of their greatest albums. Sure, 1988 and 1990 have their fair share of significant releases, but 1989 was a stonker of a year. 

Read on to discover our favourite ‘Big Albums’ from 1989.

The decedent 80s drew to a close with landmark releases across all genres. The ‘second summer of love’ had pushed dance music and rave culture into the mainstream, whilst indie guitar upstarts suddenly found themselves playlisted on daytime Radio One. As these contrasting acts rubbed shoulders on TOTP and across NOW compilations, influences began to cross-pollinate, lighting the touch paper for Madchester and beyond.

In the studio, samplers and digital recording kit had become more affordable. Artists could realise ideas without the mortgage-scale budgets of the Fairlight pioneers earlier in the decade (Bush, Gabriel, Horn, Clarke et al).

At home, the CD format was firmly established but still in its infancy compared to its dominance in the late-90s. Cassette tapes sold more than vinyl in 1989, mainly driven by the US market. 1989 was also the year Comet Group bought up all 31 branches of the Laskys hi-fi chain – remember Laskys? You could still buy hi-fi separates in stores like Boots, but the masses mainly wanted neater ‘stack’ or ‘midi’ systems from brands like Aiwa, Kenwood, Technics and Sony.

So, what were we playing on these systems?

If we squint our rose-tinted vision just beyond hits by Jive Bunny, Kylie & Jason and, ugh, Band Aid II, 1989 offers a plethora of genre-defining debut LPs alongside creative peaks from established artists.

Before I ruffle anyone’s feathers, I admit this is a totally subjective piece. I have not been studying sales figures or cross-referencing reviews in Q Magazine, but many ‘89 albums pop up in the ‘Top 10’ lists of Pitchfork, NME or Rolling Stone etc, and they’re frequently referenced as key influences by artists and producers today.

Here’s a selection of my favourites. It’s by no means exhaustive.

Which albums were you cueing up on your Technics linear-tracking deck in 1989, and what type of TDK tape were you recording them onto?

Let us know in the comments.

1. The Cure – Disintegration

Last week the band completed a five-night run of gigs at Sydney Opera House, celebrating 30 years since the release of their landmark Disintegration album. No doubt many of its tracks will also feature when they headline Glastonbury this summer.

I was a big Cure fan as a teenager. I nipped out of school at lunchtime to buy Disintegration on the day it was released. It was a hot, sunny day and I drew the curtains to listen in the dark.

2. The Stone Roses – The Stone Roses

Before Spike Island or even Fool’s Gold, 1989 introduced us to this genre-defining eponymous Mancunian debut. Nothing quite chimes and grooves like the Roses’ early output and its unrivalled sing-along nostalgia.

3. De La Soul – Three Feet High & Rising

Rhymes, skits and daisies. This funky and humorous collage of samples from the NY trio has been referred to as “genius”, “a hip-hop masterpiece”. It was reissued by Vinyl Me, Please as a double LP in their Essential series earlier this year.

4. Kate Bush – The Sensual World

How do you follow a career-defining work like Hounds of Love? It seems you turn inwards, re-write the closing passages of Ulysses and employ a Bulgarian male choir. You also deliver one of the most heart-breaking performances committed to tape in This Woman’s Work.

The Sensual World may not reach the heights of its predecessor (it was one of the albums Kate reworked significantly for the Director’s Cut project), but it remains a convincing release from such an enigmatic creative talent. It earned her Brit Award nominations for both Best Album and Best Producer.

5. New Order – Technique

Ibiza, Factory, The Hacienda, ecstasy, even sheep sound effects. The stories behind this album have sold thousands of books for each member of the band. It was their first LP to reach No 1 in the UK and still sounds magnificent today.

6. Tears For Fears – The Seeds Of Love

The band’s third studio album took almost two years and £1million to make. Considering the hugely successful Songs From The Big Chair cost nearer £70,000, this could have led to the end of their record contract and career! Luckily, they had the chutzpah to see it through. Seeds reached No 1 in the UK and achieved platinum status in numerous territories across the globe.

Sadly, the album took its toll on Orzabal and Smith’s relationship. It was the last one they could work on together for over a decade.

Immaculately produced, the album features many established session players (including Phil Collins on drums, who himself released But Seriously… in 1989), but is most noted for introducing the world to the voice of Oleta Adams.

7. Neneh Cherry – Raw Like Sushi

If you came to Raw Like Sushiexpecting nine more tracks like the huge hit Buffalo Stance, you would have been disappointed. The album stood out for its range of styles and depth of influence. When you reflect on Cherry’s debut as an album envision by a ‘musician/artist’, rather than fronted by the ‘rapper/singer’ Buffalo Stancesuggests, it’s no surprise that she is still recording and performing today.

8. Pixies – Doolittle

Back in the late 80s, nothing else sounded quite like The Pixies. With their second full-length, the band perfected their loud-quiet-loud pop blast, offering up a key blueprint for Nirvana’s looming commercial breakthrough Nevermind.

9. Tom Petty – Full Moon Forever

Louder Sound describes Petty’s ’89 release as“a remarkably consistent collection of wonderfully constructed rootsy rock songs. Petty teams up with ELO guru and fellow Travelling Wilbury Jeff Lynne, who does an immaculate production job as well as co-writing the album’s standout tracks, Free Fallin’ and I Won’t Back Down.”

10. Soul II Soul – Club Classics Vol 1

In the summer of 1989, the single Back To Life and its accompanying MTV-friendly video took Soul II Soul’s London slant on R&B/Soul around the world. The album goes deeper (Back To Life features only as an acapella) but brings underground club vibes to the mainstream, going triple-platinum in the UK and Top 20 in the US (No 1 in the R&B chart).

“A happy face, a thumping bass for a loving race.”

11. Paul’s Boutique

Sorry! I couldn’t keep this list to just ten albums! The Beasties’ now-beloved second album was considered a flop at the time, but, in the ensuing years, has been embraced as a landmark of sample-based hip-hop.

The Best Of The Rest

It doesn’t stop there. The list of landmark 1989 albums rolls and rolls.

What have we missed in the list below?

10,000 Maniacs, Blind Man’s Zoo

Elvis Costello, Spike

NWA, Straight Outta Compton

Tracy Chapman, Crossroads

Eurythmics, We Too Are One

Simply Red, A New Flame

Ian McCulloch, Candleland

Lenny Kravitz, Let Love Rule

The Beautiful South, Welcome to the Beautiful South

The Jesus and Mary Chain, Automatic

Nirvana, Bleach

The B-52s, Cosmic Thing

Queen, The Miracle

Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Mother’s Milk

Lou Reed, New York

The Cult, Sonic Temple

The The, Mind Bomb

The Wedding Present, Bizarro

Pop Will Eat Itself, This Is the Day…This Is the Hour…This Is This!

Throwing Muses, Hunkpapa

The Wonder Stuff, Hup

Julee Cruise, Floating into the Night

Simple Minds, Street Fighting Years

The Primitives, Pure

Jesus Jones, Liquidizer

Tin Machine, Tin Machine

Kirsty MacColl, Kite

808 State, 90

Kitchens of Distinction, Love is Hell

[cruiseworld]

Cruising From Southampton, England

 Introducing Southampton Southampton found fame in the 20th century as England's most important port for the major cruise lines. In terms of number of passengers, the busiest route used to be the transatlantic crossing to the USA.  However in 1939 the first ever Pan Am  passenger flight across the Atlantic Ocean signalled the finish of this golden era of ocean travel. In the following years Southampton came to prominence as a major Cruise port. Southampton is known as the 'Cruise Capital' of England and is home to many of the world's finest cruise lines.  Southampton's natural deep harbor, unique double tide and effective Ship Traffic Control allow the port to berth the largest vessels, from large container ships to today's huge cruise ships. The port is split between the Eastern Docks and Western Docks. The Mayflower and City Cruise Terminals are to be found at the Western Docks, whilst the QE2 and Ocean Cruise Terminals are to be found at the Eastern Docks. The Eastern Docks saw probably Southampton's biggest moment in history. In 1912 the Titanic departed from White Star Dock (near Ocean dock) on its maiden voyage. When the ship went down, of the 1500 lives lost, 500 were crew who lived in Southampton and the impact on the city was huge.

Take a Tour of The City of Southampton The City of Southampton is normally viewed as a port of departure, and not many cruise passengers linger to investigate Southampton itself.  But if you've spare time either before or after your cruise, there's a lot to do and see. Old Town During medieval times, the city was encircled by a stone wall with imposing gateways. The 'Bargate' at the northern entrance to the old town, is still the city's most famous landmark. The building makes a good point to begin the walk of walls. Visit the wall's towers, the remains of the castle, the West Gate, the ruins of the old friary and God's House Tower where you'll find is home to} the Archaeological Museum (free entry). Other noticeable places are the fully restored Medieval Merchants House, the Maritime Museum found in the Wool House (free entry), with its moving Titanic exhibits,  and the remarkable Tudor House, another (free) museum with gorgeous grounds.

Theater The Mayflower theater puts on leading  shows throughout the year. Aviation Museum The Solent Sky Aviation Museum showcases the pioneering work of the Supermarine Spitfire's creator, RJ Mitchell. The Titanic Trail Stroll around the city taking in memorials and places with connections to the Titanic. The walk commences at the Musicians Memorial and stops at the Maritime Museum, located in the Wool House at Town Quay, which presents the history of the tragic voyage. The Jane Austen Walking Trail Jane Austen first visited Southampton as a child and she vacationed in the city. Later on she lived in the city. The Trail visits buildings associated with the author. Available Cruises Cruises from Southampton go to the Baltic Sea, Canary Islands, round Britain, Norwegian Fjords and the Mediterranean.   Transatlantic and even round-the-world cruises are also available. If you're UK based cruises departing from Southampton are easily accessible, thanks to its excellent rail and road links. For a comprehensive listing of cruises leaving from Southampton see Cruises from Southampton at Cruise Schedules.

Cruise Ship Terminals Eastern Docks Queen Elizabeth II Terminal The QE2 terminal was opened by HM Queen Elizabeth II in 1966. The dock is the home of Cunard's cruise liners, Queen Mary II, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria. Facilities include a short stay car park, a bar, a taxi rank and a cafe. The viewing area is not open to visitors. Ocean Cruise Terminal The first Ocean Cruise Terminal was an iconic Art-Deco construction. Sadly this was demolished in 1983 The replacement building, completed in 2009, is hugely different from the earlier building, being a large up-to-date design with curved lines. Facilities available are  a short stay car park, a taxi rank, a bar and cafe. Western Docks

City Cruise Terminal This Terminal has completed a 7 year refurbishment to increase its size. It can now handle the large 'Freedom Class' cruise ships of Royal Caribbean International. Facilities available include a short stay car park, a taxi rank, a bar and cafe. The nearby Mayflower Park is a great place to watch ship sailings.

Mayflower Cruise Terminal The Mayflower Cruise Terminal, opened in 1960, has long been associated with the P&O fleet of cruise ships. Facilities include a taxi rank, a bar and cafe, and viewing gallery.

Horizon Cruise Terminal

Horizon Cruise Terminal Berth 102

The newest terminal in the Western Docks is the Horizon cruise terminal, which was inaugurated in 2021.  A full range of facilities for checking-in are available.

Getting to the Cruise Terminals

By Car The M27 motorway, linking towns bordering the south coast of England, passes to the north of Southampton. The M3 motorway links Southampton to London and also, by linking to the A34 road at Winchester with the Midlands and North. The M271 motorway, off the M27, connects it with the Docks and city centre.

On the Train Direct trains connect Southampton with London, and many parts of the UK. There is an every 30 minute service between London Waterloo and Southampton Central. Rail routes run eastwards towards Portsmouth, north towards the Midlands and beyond, and west to destinations like Salisbury,  Bath, and Bristol. From outside the train station you can either catch a taxi, or there is a free CityLink bus service between the rail station and Town Quay every fifteen minutes.

By Aeroplane From London Heathrow There is a National Express coach  running to and from Heathrow Terminal every hour. From London Gatwick Airport Take the train to Southampton Central rail station. From Southampton Airport  Catch a taxi to the docks. The airport is excellently connected, with  flights from Belfast, Newcastle, Edinburgh,Jersey, Guernsey, Leeds Bradford, Manchester, Glasgow, Isle of Man, Alderney, Liverpool, Aberdeen.

[divulgacion-alternativa]

Ben Ful Links | August 16/2021:

Source: benjaminfulford.net

The publication does not contain links.

The March 11, 2011 Attack on Fukushima and Its Aftermath

After the Fukushima mass murder event of March 11, 2011 (3.11) the Rothschilds sent a representative to explain why Fukushima was attacked.  He said they planned to move their Asian headquarters from Tokyo, Japan to North Korea.  To accomplish this they intended to move 40 million Japanese from Greater Tokyo to North Korea.  They even showed me a map of their planned industrial zone there.

Prime Minister Kan Naoto, who was in power at the time of the attack, told a packed press conference at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan that he had been encouraged to evacuate Tokyo in the aftermath of the attack.  Not a single corporate media outlet reported this.

The other thing that happened was that immediately after 3.11, Israeli crime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Prime Minister Kan and told him that if Japan did not hand over its entire $7 trillion or so in foreign currency, then electro-magnetic weapons would be used to cause Mt.  Fuji to erupt.

However, at this point, something unexpected happened.  Hundreds of earthquakes hit the Atlantic Island of La Palma immediately after 311.  There was a very real danger that it would collapse into the ocean and cause a 100-meter tsunami to hit the U.S. Eastern and European Southern coasts.  The earthquakes stopped only after the U.S. military contacted the White Dragon Society and promised that no further attacks would be allowed against Japan.

Nonetheless, the Khazarian Mafia headquartered in Switzerland succeeded in re-imposing a slave Prime Minister on Japan.  Abe Shinzo was put in place via a fraudulent election.  Following this, he was invited to be a keynote speaker at the gathering of Western oligarchs in Davos, Switzerland.

At Davos, Abe told the international community that China was like Germany before WW1.  What he was referring to was a plan by George Bush Sr. to have the G7, Russia, and Japan all gang up and attack China.  The plan was to divide China into five or six separate countries to prevent it from ever again being a threat to Khazarian Mafia power.

Abe set up an openly fascist government and proceeded to carry out a massive, secret military build-up to participate in Bush’s planned invasion of China.  A huge amount of military equipment was secretly stockpiled in the Kumamoto region of Japan that is nearest to China.  At the same time, Abe set up a biological warfare facility disguised as a veterinary school.

However, the planned invasion of China was called off because both Russia and the Pentagon refused to go along.  The Pentagon has done war game after war game simulating an attack on China and the end result is always the same.  The war turns nuclear, 90% of humanity dies and the northern hemisphere of the planet becomes uninhabitable.

In 2016, a series of mysterious earthquakes, each centered exactly on a Japanese military base, destroyed this equipment.  The earthquake seismographs all indicated they were artificial earthquakes.  Abe was also secretly poisoned and told that if he did not go along with China he would not be able to receive the antidote, Asian secret society sources say.

At the same time, the White Dragon Society reached out to the global warming faction of the Western elite.  If you recall, the year 2000 U.S. presidential election was a contest between the global warming faction under Al Gore and the Nazi fourth Reich faction under George Bush Sr.

The global warming faction, centered around Queen Elizabeth, believed that the environment could be saved by putting a tax on carbon and using the money to pay third-world countries to preserve their forests.  The Nazi faction wanted to kill 90% of the global population.

This writer has a tape recording of an invitation to join this faction.  They said that in order to preserve the environment it was necessary to eliminate the “useless eaters.”  These were people like subsistence farmers who could feed their families but did not work at factories making things.  They said that war did not kill enough people so that they would use starvation and disease to accomplish this goal.

This is why the Bush Jr. administration set up biological weapons factories all over the world.  They released SARS, Bird Flu, Ebola, Mers, etc. in their attempt to kill people off.  At the same time, they subsidized farmers in developed countries to use their grains to produce “biofuel,” instead of food.

However, the plans failed because none of their bio-weapons were able to kill the intended billions of people.  The attempt to starve people to death was also stopped after insiders blew the whistle and explained that biofuel subsidies were causing starvation crises in 33 countries.  This put an end to those subsidies.

A letter was sent via diplomatic pouch from the UK embassy in Tokyo to Queen Elizabeth asking for her blessing for a campaign similar in scale to World War III but this time the enemy would be “poverty, environmental destruction and everything else that plagues this beautiful but fragile planet we all share.”

Following this, a series of countries, England, Germany, France, Canada, Switzerland, Italy, etc. decided to join the China Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.  The multi-trillion-dollar Chinese Belt and Road Initiative followed this.  The money was spent building highways, ports, schools, railways, hospitals, bridges, and other such infrastructure around the world.

Japan and the United States were the only major countries that held back from this initiative.  They called it a Chinese debt trap.  However, it clearly put the Bush Nazi faction on the defensive.

The other thing that happened in 2016 was that the Gnostic Illuminati decided to form a temporary alliance with the British commonwealth to prevent Hillary Clinton (Rockefeller) from becoming president of the United States.  A meeting was held in Antarctica on the November 8th, 2016 election day that was attended by Skull and Bones John Kerry and many other members of the secret Western elite.

We have interviewed two people who were present at that meeting.  They say a decision was made to flip the election so that designated loser Donald Trump would be elected president with the very votes intended for Clinton.  This was accomplished after a firefight between Special Forces at the underground base near Denver Airport took over the election stealing computers on behalf of the Trump forces.

It is interesting to note how in the 2016 election things seemed to be going Clinton’s way and then they suddenly flipped and went Trump’s way.  The opposite happened when the Nazi forces regrouped around Rockefeller proxy Joe Biden in 2020 and flipped a real Trump victory into a fraudulent Biden victory.  We will get back to that later.

In any case, Trump became president of a bankrupt nation and there really was very little he could do about it.  The $23 trillion raised for Barack Obama was running out.  Trump tried many things, including tariffs to try to turn the situation around.  Remember he also said things like China would buy $200 billion worth of goods every year, He also tried unsuccessfully to take over the World’s largest oil reserves in Venezuela and offered to “buy Greenland.”

However, a nation with a GDP of about $20 trillion and over $200 trillion in debt and unfunded liabilities really has no choice but to go bankrupt.  The U.S. corporate government has external payment deadlines every September 30th and January 31st.

In September of 2019, the U.S. was able to avoid bankruptcy only by stealing Japan’s national pension fund.  In January of 2020, they failed to make their payments.  They were given a two-week grace period lasting until February 16th, 2020 but were unable to make their payments.

That is when all hell broke loose as we all know.  The owners of the U.S. corporation lashed out with a massive 5G electromagnetic attack on Wuhan China.  Remember, mass deaths began in Wuhan only after 10,000 5G transmission towers were activated, subjecting the population to deadly low-level electromagnetic attacks.

The official story that it was a “coronavirus” is provable nonsense.  That is because if it was a biological attack then the pandemic should have spread first to the suburbs of Wuhan and then to other parts of China.  Instead, it was restricted exactly to the 5G zones inside Wuhan proper.

After this, the spread of Covid-19 around the world coincided exactly with maps of where 5G networks had been activated.  To understand 5G think of the defrost mode of your microwave.  That operates at around 200 watts, while 5G is equivalent to about 30 watts.  However, if it is transmitted 24 hours a day, it starts producing symptoms that resemble lung disease.

Japan warned the world about this danger after they subjected 5,000 passengers aboard the cruise ship Diamon Princess to 5G and started getting multiple deaths.  After this, all 5G was stopped worldwide.

So the Khazarian Mafia was forced to resort to plan B.  They went ahead with medical martial law and started renaming influenza, the common cold, pneumonia and tuberculosis, and all sorts of other deaths as being from “Covid-19.”  At the same time, they used their access to fiat money printing presses to pay huge sums of money to doctors to diagnose Covid-19.  Since Western doctors operate under a military regime, they were told to go along with the pandemic story or lose their licenses.

The Khazarian Mafia also used their corporate media to spread pandemic fear porn 24/7.  Also, since the KM failed to kill their planned billions of people with 5G radiation, and since all their bio-weapons had proved ineffective, they next resorted to vaccines.

What has now happened is that the secret government of the West has been exposed by this campaign.  The world’s military, police, and intelligence agencies began a counter-attack.

Next week we will report on the status of that counterattack and also on plans for running the planet after the Khazarian Mafia have been ousted from power.

---------------------------------------------------

[captainmartinisblog]

The Coronavirus Roller-Coaster

2nd April 2021 - 5 Cruise cancellations so far....

Even as we returned to the UK in February 2020, coronavirus was spreading throughout the world. Indeed, we were still cruising around South America when the news reached us aboard Viking Jupiter that ‘Diamond Princess’ had been quarantined in Yokahama with a number of cases of the new ‘covid-19′ aboard. But China and Japan seemed a long way away at that point and we remained cocooned in the safety of our ship. How were we to know then that Diamond Princess would eventually claim 14 deaths and that the entire worldwide cruise industry would be shut down for more than a year!

We had been home only a few weeks when the UK went into its first ‘lockdown’. Fortunately, so we thought, our next cruise wasn’t until November 2020, which was 9 months away; surely everything would be ok by then?

Sadly, things began to get progressively worse and our planned Transatlantic crossing to New York via the Azores and Bermuda aboard Anthem of the Seas was cancelled - but not before we had already paid for it! It took until January to get our money back!

The next trip to be cancelled would have been in January aboard Viking’s newest ship, Viking Venus.

It was supposed to be rather special because, as ‘Survivors’ of Viking Sky’s ill-fated encounter with rough seas off Norway in 2019, we had a special free invitation to join the Chairman, Torstein Hagen, on a ‘Chairman’s Inaugural Cruise’ from Rome to Barcelona. Sadly, our ‘free cruise’ wasn’t happening!

Meanwhile, during the summer of 2020, Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth had made the long voyage home from Australia and following the tentative announcement that Cunard would be starting-up again in April, a number of new UK-based itineraries were advertised......

So we booked a 7-night trip to Northern Spain in April 2021. However, we had not long booked it when Cunard announced that they would be extending their “pause in operations”. So that was another cancellation!

But also during that summer respite from the dreaded ‘covid-19′, we had booked an itinerary on Azamara Quest. The trip was to depart Venice in May 2021, where we booked an extra 3-night hotel stay before our cruise of the Dalmatian and Amalfi Coasts, finally disembarking in Rome.

But then it was announced in January 2021 that Azamara Cruises was being sold to private investors Sycamore Partnership. Our initial fears that this would scupper our plans proved unfounded, however, when it was later announced that Sycamore had also bought the Pacific Princess (another ex-’R-ship’) to increase their fleet to four ships. But that relief was short-lived. Azamara then announced that they were extending their pause in operations until at least the end of June. So that was another cruise to bite the dust!

Another cruise booked during the heat of summer 2020 was to be aboard Celebrity’s brand new ship Celebrity Apex in August 2021. Surely......?

Nah!  With a dreaded ‘third wave’ of coronavirus already threatening Europe during March and April, this 12-night voyage from Barcelona to Malta and the Greek Islands was looking less and less likely. Then Celebrity announced that they were cancelling our cruise and redeploying Apex to Athens to do short cruises to the Greek Islands. We had the option to switch to one of those but we were becoming increasingly disenchanted with the idea of flying to and from any European destination for the time being. So that went in the bin!

However, we had other plans, much closer to home........  Watch this space!

If you’ve enjoyed my Blog and would like to read about any of my other trips, here’s a link to an Index of Cruises & Holidays

[corona-extra-newsletter]

3/17/20 corona extra: cracking open cold covid facts

Announcements & Thank Yous

Thank you to everyone who’s messaged me or sent asks! Specific thanks go to:

@catrope for verifying Netherlands information

@ruffboijuliaburnsides​ and @fleurdeneuf​ for helping me collect county level data and for extra sources

@ineloquent-tumbling​ and Dr. Mehta for sharing an excellent source of data

@stebuklai for info about NJ

@halcyonhowl​ for the homeschooling resources

@stone-stars​ for info about FL

@planb-is-in-effect​ for sources about Canada

Georgia anon for information about Georgia State

Twitter users @molly0xFFF and @goblinartificer for their continued help with the Wordpress site

@marywhal​ for the cat videos

@epersonae​ for the Gritty tipoff

If you have reliable information from a good source that I don’t seem to have, please shoot me a message/ask/pigeon!

Places now included in the newsletter are: Australia, Indiana, Missouri, New Hampshire, Arkansas, and Wyoming. Please send an ask or a message if you would like a place included! Germany will be included in full tomorrow.

I have started a website for the newsletter! Find it at coronaextranewsletter.com. If you know me from fandom, please be chill about my meatspace identity. Please.

Sorry the newsletter is late today. There was some late breaking news and also a lot of stuff happened today! Tomorrow I will make more of an effort to be on time. :)

Just The Numbers

Case numbers

Total cases: 179,112 (+11,526)

Total deaths: 7,426 (+475)

Mortality rate: 4.15%

WHO is now breaking cases down by region, and I will follow their lead from here on out

Western Pacific: 91,779 cases (+289), 3,357 deaths (+23)

Europe: 64,189 cases (+8,507), 3,108 deaths (+428)

SE Asia: 508 cases (+124), 9 deaths (+2)

Eastern Mediterranean: 16,786 cases (+330), 873 deaths (+3)

Americans: 4,910 cases (+2,234), 68 deaths (+18)

Africa: 228 cases (+42), 4 deaths (+1)

159 countries/territories reporting cases, 8 new including:

Guam (3), Somalia (1), Bahamas (1), Aruba (2), US Virgin Islands (2), Benin (1), Liberia (1), and Tanzania (1)

Italy is reporting 27,980 cases (+3233) and  2,503 deaths (+349)

Iran is reporting 14,991 cases (+0) and 853 deaths (+0)

Germany is reporting 6012 cases (+1174) and 13 deaths (+1)

International/General News

Italy has had approximately the same number of cases three days in a row. This means that their strict lockdown/quarantine procedures are working! GOOD NEWS EVERYONE!

China is endorsing the use of favipiravir as an experimental treatment for COVID-19. It has been used to treat influenza before and is showing some promise in COVID patients, by decreasing the duration of the illness and the severity of their lung disease. Watch this space for more!

Virology Corner

Today’s question comes from @greenfairyarmadillo​ and @heturnedleft​. Both asked a variation of the same question: Do we know yet if people who recover from COVID-19 are immune to reinfection or not? Do we expect COVID-19 to be like measles, like flu, or somewhere in between?

We don’t know yet! We know that people have protective antibodies, but my guess based on what I know about other coronaviridae is that the protection will wane pretty quickly, which is more like the flu. But we’ll see! Watch this space for data from China, where we’ll see hard data first.

The other thing to consider is the way that coronaviruses can attenuate, or get less strong, as they spread through populations. So it may be mitigated in the future less by herd immunity and more by attenuation of the SARS-CoV-2 strain itself. But I’m not sure! If I could predict the future I’d be super popular right now. Like, super popular.

If you have questions, ask them and they’ll appear here in the next issue of Corona Extra!

Tomorrow’s topic: Why 6 feet of separation? How does that help? How is COVID-19 spread? Stay tuned!

Regional News (if you want somewhere added just let me know. Don’t be shy!! I highly recommend you just skip to your area if you don’t wanna be overwhelmed.)

Australia: last updated 3/17 at 6 am

375 cases, 5 deaths, 27 recoveries

189 cases acquired overseas (US, Iran, Italy, UK)

Community spread not confirmed

States affected include: ACT (2), New South Wales (170), Queensland (68), South Australia (29), Tasmania (7), Victoria (71), and Western Australia (28)

I have to question why y’all have states called just “South Australia” and “Western Australia”, where’s the panache??? Where’s the creativity?

COVID-19 information line: 1800 020 080

Canada: last updated 3/17 at 10:30 am

Total cases: 424 confirmed (+100), 16 presumed (-1), 5 deaths (+4), 5 recovered

Symptoms began for these cases between 1/15 and 3/15

13% of cases have required hospitalization (no change)

74% of cases are in travellers, and a further 6% in their close contacts

Affected provinces include: Alberta (74, +18), BC (103, +30), Manitoba (7, +0), New Brunswick (7, +1), Newfoundland and Labrador (1, +0), Nova Scotia (5, +0) Ontario (177, +5), PEI (1, +0), Québec (50, +9), and Saskatchewan (7, +1).

Totals here include confirmed and presumptive positives

8 cases in repatriated travellers (+4)

Restrictions/Closures:

No formal restrictions/closures at the federal level

Recommendation to cancel or postpone gatherings of >50 people

Recommendation to avoid non-essential travel, particularly cruise ships

All international travelers must self-isolate for 14 days upon arrival

Wash your damn hands

Federal information line: 1-833-784-4397

Alberta: last updated 3/17 at 1:40 pm

74 cases, 18 new, 0 deaths

Community spread confirmed in Calgary

Affected zones include: Calgary (52), Edmonton (18), Central (2), South (1), and North (1)

This is all of them I think

Restrictions/closures

K-12 schools and in-person post-secondary classes/training are closed

Licensed childcare facilities, out-of-school care programs, and preschools are closed indefinitely

State of Emergency declared 3/17

Sit-down restaurants are operating at lower capacity

All events over 50 people are prohibited

Rec centers, bingo halls, casinos, theaters, other entertainment/public spaces are closed

British Columbia: last updated 3/16 evening

Dedicated phone line: 1 888 COVID19

103 cases (+30), 5 recoveries, and 6 critical cases

4 deaths, 3 new

Affected public health units include: Fraser, Interior, Island, and Vancouver Coastal

Clusters of infection have been reported at Lynn Valley Care Centre, Hollyburn House Retirement Residence, and Lions Gate Hospital (admin staff).

An exposure occurred at the Pacific Dental Conference 2020 (Vancouver Convention Centre, 3/6 and 3/7)

All present on those dates are in self-isolation until 3/22

Poor teeth man :(

Restrictions/Closures

All hospitals have postponed elective surgeries and are on Outbreak Response Phase 2

Lions Gate Hospital is going to open a dedicated COVID 19 unit and is in Outbreak Response Phase 3 (emergency patients only)

Long term care facilities have restricted visitors to end of life only

Public gatherings & buildings with >50 people are prohibited

All casinos are closed

Manitoba: last updated 3/17 AM

HealthLinks Line: 204-788-8200 or 1-888-315-9257 (toll free)

8 cases, 1 new

Affected regions include: Interlake-Eastern (1) and Winnipeg (7)

Closures/Restrictions

Hospital and long term care visitors restricted to only exception circumstances (incl. end of life care)

Licensed child-care centers are closed effective 3/20

Casinos are closed effective 3/17

Health care workers and first responders who need child care due to school closures are advised to call  204-945-0776 or 1-888-213-4754

New Brunswick: last updated 3/17 4 PM

8 cases, 2 new, 0 deaths

Affected areas include Zone 3

I don’t live in NB so I have no idea what this is beyond one of at least three zones

Closures/Restrictions

Schools are closed starting 3/16 for two weeks

Newfoundland & Labrador: last updated 3/17

1 case, 0 new

Sorry that’s all the info I have ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Nova Scotia: last updated 3/16 at 12:58 pm

7 cases, 2 new

Affected areas include: Halifax Regional Municipality (2)

Closures/Restrictions

Gatherings over 150 people are disallowed

Casinos are closed starting 3/16; VLTs are not allowed in bars

Childcare facilities are closed starting 3/17 through 4/3

Public schools are closed until 4/6

Long-term care facilities are closed to visitors until further notice

All incoming international travelers are required to isolate for 14 days upon arrival

Hospitals are limiting visitors but limitations vary by centre

Ontario: last updated 3/17 at 10:30 AM

Telehealth Ontario: 1-866-797-0000

177 cases, 69 new, 5 recovered, 1 death

Affected public health units include: Durham (1), Halton (1), Hamilton (9, +5), Middlesex London (2), Niagara (1), Ottawa (3), Peel (4), Sudbury (1), Toronto (11), Wellington Dufferin Guelph (1), York (6, +1)

Only cases from 3/16 on are counted under here based on how the site works

No hospitalizations since 3/16

Closings/Restrictions

All schools, restaurants, libraries, childcare facilities, theaters, public venues, and recreational spaces are closed

Events over 50 people (incl. parades and worship services) are prohibited until 3/31

P.E.I.: last updated 3/17 AM

1 case, in Queens County, connected to a cruise, no new cases

Closures/restrictions

Libraries and community events are closed/canceled

Child care facilities are closed for two weeks starting 3/17

Public schools are closed until April 6

General queries: call 1-800-958-6400

Business-related queries: call 1-866-222-1751

Québec: last updated 3/17 at 1 pm

74 cases, 24 new, no deaths

Affected regions include: Capitale Nationale (3, +1), Mauricie - Centre du Québec (3, +0), Estrie (9, +6), Montréal (22, +4), Chaudière-Appalaches (4, +0), Lanaudière (6, +3), Laurentides (7, +4), Montérégie (13, +3), and undetermined/outside Québec (7, +3).

State of health emergency as of 3/13

Closures/restrictions

Indoor gatherings of >250 people prohibited, many public buildings closed until further notice

Daycare/childcare facilities and all schools closed until 3/27

Elections scheduled for 3/15 have been rescheduled to after late April

Non-essential visits to hospitals and long-term care institutions are prohibited

Saskatchewan: last updated 3/16

8 cases (+2), no deaths

Restrictions/Closures

School K-12 is suspended indefinitely effective 3/20

Gatherings >250 people are prohibited, except for distributed places (malls, universities, etc)

Public gatherings >50 people with attendees who have traveled internationally in the last 14 days are canceled/prohibited

Hospital and long term care visitors are only allowed in end of life care

Dammit Saskatchewan, why are you making me download PDFs :(

Greece: last updated 3/17 at 6:45 pm local time

Note: I do not speak Greek, and I therefore am struggling to find official data from somewhere more granular than the WHO. I’m sourcing most of this from the WHO and from Ekathimerini, but if you know where I can find better/more up to date info, please let me know. Thank you!

387 total cases, 56 new, 14 recoveries

5 deaths (1 new)

Restrictions/Closures:

All arrivals to the country are required to isolate for 14 days

Beginning 3/19 at 6 am, the country is closed to non-Greek and EU nationals unless exceptional circumstances warrant

Parliament has suspended all committee meetings and restricted each party to one MP in attendance at a time

Businesses are closed starting Wednesday 3/18, with the exception of gas stations, pharmacies, and groceries

Supermarkets are restricting the number of patrons to allow 1 person per 10 square meters

Migrant camps on various islands are on total lockdown for 2 weeks

Religion is canceled until 3/30

Ireland: last updated 3/17

292 total cases, 69 new (nice), 2 deaths (0 new)

Community transmission is confirmed

The following regional breakdown is available of the new cases: 48 eastern, 5 north/west, 3 west, and 13 southern

Restrictions/Closures

All pubs & bars are closed until March 29. House parties are discouraged.

Schools, colleges, and childcare facilities are closed until March 29

Indoor gatherings of >100 people and outdoor gatherings >500 people are prohibited

State run cultural institutions are closed until further notice

The Netherlands: last updated 3/17 at 2 PM local time

1705 confirmed cases, 43 deaths

292 new cases, 19 new deaths

314 hospitalizations

Average age of decedents is 79, with a range from 63 to 94

The report of a decedent aged 59 years was in error, this is now corrected

Provinces affected include: Drenthe (17, +1), Flevoland (24, +2), Friesland (14, +1), Gelderland (173, +38), Groningen (10, +0), Limburg (197, +48), North Brabant (634, +80), North Holland (152, +36), Overijssel (45, +9), Utrecht (173, +33), South Holland (175, +39), and Zeeland (20, +3).

There are 70 non-residents/unknown location patients

Restrictions/Closures

Schools, restaurants/bars, sports and fitness clubs, sex clubs, saunas, and childcare facilities are closed until April 6

If it’s fun it’s probably closed unless it’s your house

New Zealand: last updated 3/17 in the morning

13 cases, 5 new

12 confirmed, 1 probable

2 in Wellington contracted in the USA (sorry guys :c)

1 in Dunedin contracted in Germany

2 family members of the case in Dunedin

No hospitalizations reported

Exposures are reported on the following flights and in the following locations:

AA83 on 3/14, Los Angeles to Auckland, seats 4A and 10H

NZ419 on 3/14, Auckland to Wellington, seats 1B and 1C

Logan Park HS in Dunedin, now closed for 48h while contact tracing and thorough cleaning occurs

If you are concerned about possible exposure please call Healthline (number below)

Testing capacity: 770/day, expected to be 1500/day by the end of the week

Anyone coming into the country from anywhere except a small list of other Pacific islands is directed to self-quarantine for 14 days. This started on 3/16 at 0100 and is expected to continue for at least the next few weeks.

New Zealanders currently overseas should register with SafeTravel (https://register.safetravel.govt.nz/login)

Healthline number: 0800 611 116

Norway: last updated 3/17 at 10 pm local time

I still don’t speak Norwegian so if I screwed up lemme know

1469 cases, 3 deaths (+0)

67 hospitalized (+14), 15 critical (+4)

139 new cases during the 24h of March 16

423 cases acquired in Norway, 757 acquired outside of Norway, the rest are undetermined. Community spread is confirmed.

Locations where people became infected include Austria (513, +0), Italy (148, +0), Switzerland (20, +2), UK (15, +1), Spain (18, +4), France (8, -2), USA (7), Iran (5), Germany (5),  other countries with more than 3 cases (128), and other countries with less than 3 cases (18).

Breakdown of cases by area: Agder (67, -20), Innlandet (88, +0), Møre og Romsdal (20, +0), Nordland (11, +0), Oslo (329, +37), Rogaland (150, -14), Troms og Finnmark (24, +1), Trøndelag (61, -13), Vestfold og Telemark (59, -10), Vestland (141, +10), and Viken (358, -15)

I’m not sure if the numbers dropping means that those are people recovering or people being moved from place to place for intensive care/hospitalization. If you speak Norwegian and can clarify, please shoot me a message!

Restrictions/closures

The whole country is under shelter in place type restrictions for two weeks. Hang in there, y’all.

Switzerland:  last updated 3/17 at 1:45 pm local time

2650 cases, 19 deaths (+5)

Restrictions/closures:

Whole country is on lockdown as of 3/16: no entry or exit until further notice (maximum of 6 months)

schools are closed until 4/19

all events are canceled

all personal service establishments are closed

United Kingdom in general: last updated 3/17 at 9 am

Boris is hopefully starting to realise how severe this thing is, fuck Boris and his stupid cronies for not acting earlier. I’m still furious about how this has been bungled in multiple countries.

Where’s that milkshake guy who got Nigel? He could probably hit Boris from 6 ft away to both do a public service and maintain social distancing.

Given the numbers, it might be too little too late. I personally would encourage everyone in the UK to shelter in place, but I have zero authority there.

1,950 total cases (+26.3%), 407 are new today

55 total deaths as of 3/16, deaths on 3/17 have not been announced

England: last updated 3/17 at 9 am

1,557 total cases, 361 new

Affected UTLAs with at least 10 cases are as follows: Barnet (24), Bexley (14), Birmingham (20), Brent (24), Bromley (23), Buckingham (23), Cambridge (12), Camden (20), Cornwall and Isles of Scilly (10), Cumbria (22), Devon (24), Ealing (21), Enfield (10), Essex (21), Gloucestershire (11), Greenwich (19), Hackney and City of London (22), Hammersmith and Fulham (23), Hampshire (69), Haringey (17), Harrow (15), Hertfordshire (36), Hillingdon (16), Hounslow (15), Islington (11), Kensington (49), Kent (18), Lambeth (43), Lancashire (15), Leeds (11), Lewisham (18), Liverpool (11), Manchester (14), Merton (13), Newham (17), Northamptonshire (12), Nottingham (12), Nottinghamshire (13), Oldham (10), Oxfordshire (25), Slough (12), Southwark (58), Staffordshire (10), Stockport (10), Surrey (30), Sutton (10), Tameside (10), Tower Hamlets (23), Trafford (12), Walsall (13), Wandsworth (21), West Sussex (10), Westminster (58), and Wolverhampton (18)

I had to download an Excel spreadsheet situation for this, hopefully it is being updated the way I think it is. Let me know if these numbers are totally off.

Also, I am alphabetizing starting today because the hardest-hit areas will change day to day. Tomorrow will have deltas and all that good stuff.

My dad is from Cheshire, I know a fair amount about the UK, I was still fucking SHOOK by the fact that Nottingham and Nottinghamshire are two separate places.

Also “Slough” is kind of a gross name for somewhere, are y’all ok?

Deaths are not being reported by the PHS but I will do my best to split these out in the next few editions using news reports etc. It will hopefully be included by the 3/18 edition but no promises? If you have a good source for deaths by county/area, please let me know.

Scotland: last updated 3/17 at 2 pm local time

195 cases, 24 new

2 deaths, 1 new

Affected health boards are as follows: Ayrshire and Arran (6, -1), Borders (7, +0), Dumfries and Galloway (1, +0), Fife (7, +0), Forth Valley (12, +2), Grampian (22, +10), Greater Glasgow and Clyde (49, +5), Highland (5, +3), Lanarkshire (21, +1), Lothian (30, +1), Shetland (15, +0), and Tayside (20, +3)

Maybe this is all of them? Time will tell.

If anyone knows whether negative numbers are patients dying, being moved, or recovering, please let me know.

Wales: last updated 3/17 at 4:30 pm

136 cases, 12 new

2 deaths, 1 new

Areas reporting deaths are: Swansea (1)

Affected areas include: Blaenau Gwent County (8, +1), Bridgend County (3, +2), Caerphilly County (15, +1), Carmarthenshire County (7, +0), Ceredigion County (1, +0), City & County of Swansea (22, -1), City of Cardiff (14, +1), Conwy County (1, +0), Flintshire County (1, +0), Isle of Anglesey (2, +0), Monmouthshire County (8, +0), Neath Port Talbot (11, +0), Newport City (24, +3), Pembrokeshire (2, +0), Powys County (7, +2),  Rhondda Cynon Taf County (2, +0), Torfaen County (3, +1) Vale of Glamorgan County (1, +0), and Wrexham County (2, +0).

Note that some of these numbers have changed more than you might see from looking at yesterday’s report; this is because residential locations of patients are being confirmed. 0 cases remain unlocalized and 2 are residents outside of Wales.

Northern Ireland: last updated 3/17 at 2 pm

62 cases, 10 new

Health dept is not providing more detail than this at this time as far as I can tell

If you know more or know where I can find more info, please let me know!

US in general: updated 3/17 at 4 pm

4,226 total cases, 739 new

75 deaths, 8 new (1.75% mortality rate)

54 jurisdictions are reporting cases: 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, and US Virgin Islands

Shelter in place orders and curfews are coming into effect in lots of places

Alabama: updated 3/17 at 3:30 pm

39 cases, 11 new

0 deaths

Affected counties include: Baldwin (1, +0), Elmore (2, +1), Lee (3, +2), Jefferson (21, +4), Limestone (1, +0), Montgomery (2, +1), Shelby (4, +1), and Tuscaloosa (3, +0).

Newly affected counties include: Madison (1) and St. Clair (1)

State hotline: 1-888-264-2256

Arkansas: updated 3/17

22 cases, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Cleburne, Cleveland, Desha, Garland, Jefferson, Lincoln, Pulaski, and Saline

Exact numbers by county are not available from the state department of health

Y’all have a county called YELL, that’s the best county name I’ve seen yet

Graphic design is their passion

State hotline: 1-800-803-7847

Arizona: updated 3/17 at 11:36 AM

20 cases, 2 new, no deaths

Affected counties include: Graham (1, +0), Maricopa (9, +1), Pima (4, +0), and Pinal (5, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Navajo (1)

Community spread is confirmed in: Maricopa, Pima, and Pinal counties

Closures/Restrictions:

“Strong recommendation” that restaurants in areas of community spread close their dine-in services

Recommendation to cancel/postpone gatherings >10 people

Schools are closed through 3/27

State hotline (rolled into poison control): 844-542-8201

California: last updated 3/16 at 6 pm

The Governor has recommended the following:

Those with chronic health conditions and those over 65 should shelter in place.

Gatherings over 250 people should be canceled.

Drinking establishments should be closed but restaurants can operate at 50% capacity.

Hospitals and long term care facilities should prohibit visitors except for end of life situation

Total cases not including the ones at Miramar (discussed below): 472, with 11 total deaths

Deaths have occurred in the following counties: Los Angeles (1, +1), Placer (1, +0), Riverside (3, +3), Sacramento (2, +0), San Mateo (1, +0), Santa Clara (4, +2)

The following counties report recoveries: Humboldt (1), San Benito (2)

The following counties report numbers of hospitalizations: Los Angeles (2), San Diego (9, +1), Santa Clara (56, +4), Tulare (1, +0)

Affected counties include: Alameda (27, +9), Amador (1, +0), Calaveras (2, +0), Contra Costa (39, +5), Fresno (2, +0), Humboldt (1, +0), Imperial (2, +0), Los Angeles (144, +50), Madera (1, +0), Marin (9, +0),  Nevada (1, +0), Orange (29, +12), Placer (8, +0), Riverside (15, +0), Sacramento (40, +7) San Benito (3, +0), San Bernardino (2, +1), San Diego (51, +18), San Francisco (43, +3), San Joaquin (13, +5), San Luis Obispo (3, +0), San Mateo (64, +23), Santa Barbara (2, +1), Santa Clara (155, +17), Santa Cruz (13, +4), Shasta (1, +0), Solano (8, -1), Sonoma (6, +1), Stanislaus (3, +0), Tulare (3, +1), Ventura (10, +5), and Yolo (4, +2)

Note regarding San Diego: The four federally quarantined people are not included in the county statistics. Cases of non-residents diagnosed in San Diego are included.

Unaffected counties include: Alpine, Butte, Colusa, Del Norte, El Dorado, Glenn, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Mariposa, Mendocino, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Napa, Plumas, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, Yuba

Counties with confirmed community transmission include: Los Angeles, Marin, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Francisco, San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Sonoma, and Yolo

Newly affected counties include: Monterey (2)

Closures/Restrictions by County

Alameda: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Alpine: County activities are canceled, schools closed, no non-essential services

Contra Costa: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Del Norte: Schools closed through 4/20

El Dorado: Schools closed through 3/20

Los Angeles: gatherings >50 people prohibited

Marin: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Mendocino: Modified schooling starting 3/17, gatherings >50 prohibited

Mono: Schools closed through 3/30, Alterra Mountain closed, libraries closed through 3/31

Monterey: Shelter in Place beginning 3/18 until 4/8

Napa: gatherings >50 people prohibited

Nevada: Schools are closed until 4/13, libraries closed until 4/12

Orange: Shelter in Place until 3/31

Riverside: Schools & daycares are closed, gatherings >10 people prohibited

Sacramento: Shelter in Place until further notice

San Benito: Shelter in Place until 4/7

San Bernardino: County operated attractions are closed

San Diego: gatherings >50 people prohibited, restaurants are carry-out and drive through only, all schools are closed, and entertainment establishments are closed

San Francisco: Shelter in Place until 4/7

San Luis Obispo: Alcohol sales on site are banned through 3/18

San Mateo: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Santa Barbara: Dining is takeout/drive through only

Santa Clara: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Santa Cruz: Shelter in Place until 4/7

Siskiyou: gatherings >50 prohibited, hospital/LTAC visitors prohibited

Stanislaus: Gatherings of >1000 people are prohibited indoor and outdoor from 3/16 to 3/31

Tuolumne: Schools are closed from 3/16 to 3/30

Ventura: All schools and public libraries are closed starting 3/16 until further notice

Yolo: Many schools are closed at the local level, non-essential gatherings canceled through 3/31

School closures listed here: https://www.yolocounty.org/health-human-services/adults/communicable-disease-investigation-and-control/novel-coronavirus-2019;

Counties with no closures/restrictions beyond those mandated by the state: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Fresno, Glenn, Humboldt, Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Kings, Lake, Lassen, Madera, Merced, Modoc, Placer, Plumas, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Solano, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tulare, and Yuba

Drive through testing is available in Marin County

Colorado - last updated 3/16 at 4:00 pm

183 cases (+52)

2 deaths (+1)

20 hospitalizations

Counties reporting deaths include: El Paso (1) and Larimer (1)

Affected counties include: Adams (8, +2), Arapahoe (18, +3),Boulder (8, +5), Clear Creek (2, +1), Denver (38, +14), Douglas (10, +2), Eagle (34, +12), El Paso (6, +2), Gunnison (11, +3), Jefferson (17, +5), Larimer (1, +0), Mesa (1, +0), Pitkin (11, +9), Pueblo (1, +0), Summit (3, +2), and Weld (5, +0)

4 cases are designated “unknown”

Out of state visitors are now included in the tally of the county where they were diagnosed/are being treated

Confirmed community spread

Newly affected counties include: Garfield (2), Routt (2)

Drive through testing is available in: Denver and Lowry

Residents of Gunnison, Eagle, Summit, Pitkin are recommended to minimize social contact due to potential exposures

Anyone who visited the Colorado Springs Bridge center in late Feb-early Mar may have been exposed, call the DPH for more information

Closures/restrictions

Public places are closed, restaurants are takeout only until 4/16

Gambling is canceled

Schools are iffy, check your local district news

Colorado’s new website looks way nicer but takes 5ever to load

Dark colorado give me the forbidden numbers

Connecticut - last update 3/17 at 4:30 pm

68 cases, 27 new

The following counties are affected: Fairfield (48, +19), Hartford (7, +3), Litchfield (5, +1), New Haven (8, +4)

This continues to support my conjecture that Connecticut only has 4 counties

Restrictions/Closures

No gatherings >50 people until further notice

Nursing home visits restricted

Schools closed through 3/30

Restaurants are carryout/drive through only through 4/30

Fitness/recreation centers and movie theaters closed through 4/30

Gambling is canceled until the end of April

Delaware: last update 3/17 at 2:55 pm

16 cases (+8), 0 deaths

Affected counties include: New Castle (15, +7) and Sussex (1).

Update: you apparently have three counties

Restrictions/closures:

Events over >100 people are encouraged to cancel/reschedule

Schools closed through 3/27

District of Columbia: last update 3/17 at 7 pm

31 cases (+14), no deaths

There’s no counties in DC, you can’t trick me

Restrictions/Closures

Food service/drinking establishments are restricted to <250 people, <6 people/table, no standing or bar seating, and tables separated by 6 feet

Nightclubs etc are closed

Most government stuff is telework so if you want to report a Ponzi scheme you have to email them or call them

Florida - last updated 3/17 at 6:03 PM

216 (+61) cases and 7 deaths (+3)

Community transmission remains unconfirmed but highly likely

Affected counties  include: Alachua (6, +4), Broward (55, +16), Charlotte (1, +0), Citrus (2, +1), Clay (4, +1), Collier (7, +1), Duval (10, +5), Escambia (1, +0), Hillsborough (9, +4), Lake (1, +0), Lee (7, +3), Manatee (7, +2), Miami-Dade (43, +20), Nassau (1, +0) Okaloosa (2, +1), Orange (6, +3), Osceola (7, +3), Palm Beach (13, +5), Pasco (2, +0), Pinellas (4, +0), Santa Rosa (1, +0), Sarasota (4, +1) Seminole (4, +0), St. Johns (3, +1) Volusia (9, +2)

Newly affected counties include: Brevard (1) and Polk (1)

State hotline/call center:  1 (866) 779-6121

Georgia: last updated 3/17 at 11:34 AM

146 cases (+25),1 death (+0)

Affected counties include: Bartow (10, +1), Charlton (1, +0), Cherokee (7, +0), Clayton (4, -1), Clarke (3, +0), Cobb (25, +3), Coweta (3, +1), Dekalb (15, +5), Dougherty (6, +0), Fayette (5, +0), Floyd (6, +2), Forsyth (1, +0), Fulton (33, +6), Gordon (2, +0), Gwinnett (7, +2), Hall (1, +0), Henry (2, +0), Lowndes (4, +1), Lee (2, +0), Newton (1, +0), Paulding (1, +0), Polk (1, +0), Troup (2, +1)

Newly affected counties include: Barrow (1), Columbia (1), Rockdale (1), and Richmond (1).

Closures/Restrictions

USG universities are closed through 3/29 and will be online after that for the semester

Athens-Clarke County has a curfew in place from 5pm to 9 am probably. There’s a lot of uncertainty as I have heard. I will try to clarify this in tomorrow's edition provided the government clarifies things.

Asks from Georgia Anon can provide more details

Illinois: last updated 3/17

160 confirmed cases (+55), 1 death (+1)

Confirmed community spread

Affected counties include Champaign (1), Clinton (2), Cook (107), Cumberland (1), DuPage (26), Kane (3), Lake (7), McHenry (2), Peoria (1), Sangamon (3), St. Clair (2), Whiteside (1), Will (2), Winnebago (1), and Woodford (1)

ILDPH started publishing numbers for each county, YAY.

Med students have been infected (not at my school, but still yikes)

Deaths are reported in the following counties: Cook (1)

Closings/Restrictions

Bars and restaurants are closed (except for carryout and drive through) until 3/30

All gatherings >50 people prohibited

Gyms/fitness centers/clubs/theaters are closed

DMV is closed! I personally hate the IL DMV so this isn’t like, sad news in particular…..

Community colleges and public schools are closed - like in other places I will attempt to include county-by-county news soon.

The IL governor dunked on Trump for a really long time during his press conference tonight and it was totally fucking awesome.

Indiana: last updated 3/17 at 10 AM

30 cases, 2 deaths

Affected counties include: Adams (1), Bartholomew (1), Boone (1), Floyd (1), Franklin (2), Hamilton (1), Hendricks (3), Howard (2), Johnson (3), Lake (2), La Porte (1), Marion (9), Noble (1), St. Joseph (1), and Wells (1)

Deaths are being reported in the following counties: Johnson (1) and Marion (1)

Indiana, good job on your website. Thanks for making this easy on me.

Iowa: last updated 3/17

29 cases (+7)

Affected counties include: Allamakee (2, +0), Carroll (1, +0), Dallas (3, +2), Harrison (1, +0), Johnson (18, +3), Polk (1, +0), and Pottawattamie (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Adair (1) and Black Hawk (1)

Community spread confirmed

Closures/restrictions

Schools closed for 4 weeks starting 3/16

Public places closed, restaurants carryout only until further notice

Kansas: last updated 3/17

16 confirmed cases (+5), 1 death

Affected counties include: Butler (1, +0), Franklin (1, +0), Johnson (10, +2), and Wyandotte (3, +2)

Newly affected counties include: Douglas (1)

Deaths are being reported in the following counties: Wyandotte (1)

Closures/Restrictions

Schools closed through 3/23

Gatherings >50 people prohibited

Public places must maintain a 6ft bubble

Phone line:  1-866-534-3463

Kentucky: last updated 3/17 at 4 pm local time

27 cases (+5), 1 death (+0)

Counties reporting deaths: Bourbon (1)

Counties reporting recoveries: Harrison (1)

Affected counties include: Bourbon (1, +0), Clark (1, +0), Fayette (6, +1), Harrison (6, +0), Jefferson (9, +3), Montgomery (1, +0), and Nelson (1, +0).

Newly affected counties include: Lyon (1)

Closures/Restrictions

Restaurants and bars closed to in-person service

State Capitol closed to nonessential personnel

Entertainment/nonessential services are closed

Schools are closed statewide

Phone line: (800) 722-5725 (rolled in with poison control)

Louisiana: last updated 5:30 pm 3/17

196 cases reported, 60 new

4 deaths, 1 new

Parishes affected:  Ascension (1, +0), Bossier (1, +0), Caddo (4, +1), Jefferson (35, +14), Lafourche (2, +0), Orleans (136, +42), St. Bernard (2, +0), St. Charles (3, +0), St. John the Baptist (1, +0), St. Tammany (6, +0), and Terrebonne (3, +1)

New parishes affected: East Baton Rouge (1) and Washington (1)

Parishes reporting deaths: Orleans (4, +1)

Maryland: last updated 3/17 at 10 am

57 cases (+20), 0 deaths

Counties affected: Anne Arundel (3, +2), Baltimore (6, +2), Baltimore City (1, +0), Carroll (1, +0), Charles (1, +0), Harford (2, +0), Howard (3, +2), Montgomery (24, +9), Prince George’s (14, +4), Talbot (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Frederick (1)

Community spread confirmed

Exposure risk advisory for Lorien Elkridge

Closures/restrictions

Casinos, racetracks and other gambling situations are closed

Gatherings >250 people prohibited

All schools closed through 3/27

Senior centers closed until further notice

Elections postponed - vote by mail implemented for urgent elections

Massachusetts: last updated 3/17 at 4 pm

218 cases (+21)

Affected counties include: Barnstable (2, +1), Berkshire (14, +3), Bristol (5, +3), Essex (8, +0), Hampden (1, +0), Middlesex (89, +6), Norfolk (43, +7), Plymouth (5, +2) Suffolk (42, +6), and Worcester (8, +2)

1 case of undetermined location

21 hospitalizations (+7)

Michigan: last updated 3/17 at 2 pm

54 cases (+21), 25 hospitalizations, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Bay (1, +0), Charlevoix (1, +0), Ingham (2, +1), Kent (5, +0), Macomb (8, +2), Monroe (1, +0), Montcalm (1, +0), Oakland (16, +2), St. Clair (2, +0), Washtenaw (7, +0), and Wayne (17, +3)

Wayne County includes Detroit (8 cases, +2)

Newly affected counties include: Jackson (1), Leelanau (1), Otsego (1), and Ottawa (1)

Two employees of the corrections department have tested positive

Jackson County Probation Office and Detroit Detention Center have both been exposed, contact the health department if you have been exposed

Closures/Restrictions

Bars and restaurants are carryout/drive through only

Public spaces (casinos, theaters, etc) closed

Public offices open by appt only

Minnesota: last updated 3/17 at 12:00

60 cases (+6)

Affected counties include: Anoka (3-5), Benton (1-2), Blue Earth (1-2), Carver (1-2), Dakota (6-20), Hennepin (20+), Olmstead (3-5), Ramsey (6-20), Renville (1-2), Stearns (3-5), Waseca (1-2), Washington (1-2), and Wright (1-2)

Still working with just ranges due to everything popping off today. I apologise for the imprecise data.

Drive through testing available in Olivia

Missouri

13 cases, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Boone (1), Cass (2), Cole (1), Greene (4), Henry (1), Jackson (1), St. Louis City (1), St. Louis County (4)

Hotline: 877-435-8411

Montana: last updated 3/16 at 7:22 pm

8 cases (+2)

Affected counties not being reported at this time, and due to everything being all the time all the time I haven’t sorted out where the cases are. Please forgive me and watch this space, I’ll try to get to it asap.

Closures/Restrictions

Public schools closed until 3/30

Many counties have closed libraries

State of Emergency

Nebraska: last updated 3/17

Community transmission confirmed: many locations in Douglas County are potential places where transmission has occurred; if you live or have traveled to Douglas County (Omaha), please check the Douglas County COVID-19 monitoring site at: https://www.douglascountyhealth.com/latest-news.

There were also two exposures in Knox County on March 5, at basketball games at Lincoln Southwest HS and North Star HS.

21 cases (+2), no deaths

Affected counties include: Cass (1), Douglas (18, +3) and Knox (1)

Nebraska, please update your shit. (Or possibly I can’t find the updated shit)

Hotline (bling): (402) 552-6645

New Hampshire: last updated 3/17 at 9 AM

26 cases, 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Carroll (1), Grafton (7), Hillsborough (4), and Rockingham (14)

Nashua (1) is included in Hillsborough county totals

Exposure reported at the Manchester DMV on 3/2, 3/3, 3/4, 3/5, and 3/10.

My desire to avoid the DMV at all costs continues to be vindicated

Your governor has a really good last name, btw

He announced a state of emergency

Sununununununu

New Jersey : last updated 3/16 at 2 pm

267 cases (+89), 2 deaths (+1)

Affected counties include: Bergen (84, +23), Burlington (5, +2), Camden (3, +0), Essex (32, +12), Hudson (24, +5), Hunterdon (4, +3), Mercer (6, +5), Middlesex (22, +5), Monmouth (22, +8), Morris (7, +2), Ocean (3, +0), Passaic (10, +2), Somerset (7, +2), and Union (15, +7)

17 cases are unassigned to a county

Closures/Restrictions:

No gatherings >50 people

Restaurants, bars, entertainment venues, and other public spaces are closed

Curfew in effect from 8 pm to 5 am, anyone out without a valid reason is committing a misdemeanor and is also a total dick, don’t expose people

New York: last updated 3/17 at 8 PM

1,374 cases (+424), 10 deaths

Affected counties include: Albany (23, +11), Allegany (2, +0), Broome (1, +0), Delaware (1, +0), Dutchess (16, +6), Erie (7, +1), Greene (2, +0), Herkimer (1, +0), Monroe (10, +0), Montgomery (1, +0), Nassau (131, +22), Onondaga (2, +1), Ontario (1, +0), Orange (15, +4), Putnam (2, +0), Rockland (22, +6), Saratoga (9, +4), Schenectady (5, +1), Suffolk (84, +21, Tioga (1, +0), Tompkins (2, +1), Ulster (8, +1), Westchester (380, +160)

NYC has 644 cases (+351) as of 3/17 at 2:30 pm

Areas/counties reporting deaths are: NYC (7), Rockland (1)

I can’t find the two others, if you have information leading to the whereabouts of these last two deaths in New York State please let me know. There is no reward other than my gratitude.

Newly affected counties include: Clinton (1), Rensselaer (1), Sullivan (1), and Wyoming (1)

Why do so many states name their counties after OTHER STATES

Drive through testing in New Rochelle, Long Island, Staten Island, and Rockland County

Closures/Restrictions

Bars, restaurants, entertainment venues closed

No gatherings >50 people

Public schools closed until 4/1

Village elections delayed until 4/28

New legal protections and stuff from the state came down today

Job protection and pay are guaranteed for those quarantined

Permanent comprehensive sick leave policy

If you are a retired doctor or nurse, New York needs you. Like, real bad. Contact the state or local health dept to see how you can help.

North Carolina: last updated 3/17 at 8:57 AM

40 cases (+7), 0 deaths

Affected counties include: Brunswick (1, +0), Cabarrus (1, +0), Chatham (1, +0), Craven (1, +0), Durham (1, +0), Forsyth (2, +0), Harnett (3, +1), Johnston (2, +0), Mecklenburg (7, +3), Onslow (1, +0), Wake (15, +1), Watauga (1, +0), Wayne (1, +0), and  Wilson (1, +0).

Newly affected counties include: Iredell (1) and Sampson (1)

Advisory for an exposure at Raleigh convention center on March 8

Please call Wake County if you were there, they are tracking exposures

Closures/Restrictions

Schools are closed statewide until 3/30

Events >100 people canceled

Restaurants and bars are closed

Ohio: last updated 3/17 at 2 pm

67 confirmed cases (+17)

17 hospitalizations (+3)

Affected counties include: Belmont (2, +0), Butler (6, +0), Cuyahoga (31, +7), Franklin (4, +1), Geauga (1, +0), Lorain (4, +1), Lucas (1, +0), Medina (3, +1), Stark (3, +0), Summit (4, +2), Trumbull (2, +0), Tuscarawas (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Coshocton (2), Lake (1), and Mahoning (1)

Closures/Restrictions

Bars/restaurants are closed

Gatherings >50 people canceled

Oregon: last updated 3/17 at 9 AM

65 cases (+26), 1 death (+0)

Counties reporting deaths: Multnomah (1)

13 hospitalized at time of positive test

The following counties are affected: Clackamas (6, +5), Deschutes (6, +2), Douglas (1, +0), Jackson (2, +0), Klamath (1, +0), Linn (15, +5), Marion (4, +2), Multnomah (3, +2), Polk (1, +0), Umatilla (2, +0), Washington (21, +8), and Yamhill (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Benton (2)

Pennsylvania: last updated 3/17 at 5 pm

GRITTY HAS SPOKEN: https://twitter.com/GrittyNHL/status/1239962668208779266

96 total cases (+20)

Counties affected include: Allegheny (7, +2) Bucks (8, +3), Chester (4, +2), Cumberland (10, +5), Delaware (9, +2),  Lehigh (1, +0), Luzerne (1, +0), Monroe (8, +0), Montgomery (32, +2), Northampton (1, +0), Philadelphia (10, +2), Pike (1, +0), Washington (2, +1), Wayne (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include:  Beaver (1)

Closures/restrictions:

Restaurants and bars are closed in the following counties until 3/30:  Allegheny, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery

Rhode Island: last updated 3/16

21 confirmed cases (+1), no deaths

Chanston High School West had an exposure; 1700 people are currently quarantined after this exposure

I will attempt to sort out county level data soon, since apparently y’all have counties

If anyone knows where to find more frequently updated information than that from RIDOH, please let me know. I apologise for this data being out of date.

South Carolina: last updated 3/17 at 4:35 pm

47 cases (+13), 1 death (+1)

Affected counties include: Anderson (2), Beaufort (4), Calhoun (1), Charleston (3), Fairfield (1), Greenville (2), Horry (4), Kershaw (22), Lancaster (2), Lexington (3), Richland (1), Spartanburg (1), and York (1)

Deaths are reported in the following counties: Lexington (1)

South Dakota: last updated 3/17

11 confirmed cases (+1),  1 death (+1)

Affected counties include: Beadle (1, +0), Bon Homme (1, +0), Charles Mix (1, +0), Davison (1, +0), McCook (1, +0), Minnehaha (5, +1), and Pennington (1, +0)

Closures/Restrictions:

Schools closed week of 3/16

Tennessee: last updated 3/17 at 2 pm

73 (+21) cases, no deaths

Affected counties include: Campbell (1, +0), Davidson (42, +17), Hamilton (1, +0), Jefferson (1, +0), Knox (2, +1), Rutherford (1, +0), Sevier (1, +0), Shelby (2, +0), Sullivan (1, +0), and Williamson (21, +3)

Texas: last updated 3/17 at 12 PM

64 (+7) total cases, 1 death (+1)

Highly likely that there has been community transmission, unconfirmed currently

Affected counties include: Bell (1, +0), Bexar (3, +0), Brazoria (2, +0), Collin (6, +0), Dallas (9, +1), El Paso (3, +2), Fort Bend (9, +0), Galveston (1, +0), Gregg (1, +0), Harris (10, +0), Hays (1, +0), Lavaca (1, +0), Matagorda (1, +0), Montgomery (3, +0), Smith (3, -1), Tarrant (3, +0), and Travis (3, +1)

Newly affected counties include: Denton (1) and Webb (1)

Hail Satan for the best ever death metal band out of denton

(this is what the kids call a Reference)

2 cases are pending county assignment

Utah: last updated 3/17 at 12:45 pm

51 cases (+22)

Affected health districts include: Davis County (4, +0), Salt Lake County (22, +4), Southwest Utah (1, +0), Summit County (15, +4), Tooele (1, +0), Utah County (1, +0), Wasatch County (2, +1), and Weber-Morgan (4, +2)

Newly affected districts include: Bear River (1)

I wonder what Bear River has in its rivers

Definitely not bears

Community spread confirmed in the following counties: Summit and Utah

Exposure at Wasatch High School identified

Schools, Mormonism, skiing, and restaurants are canceled until further notice

The zoo and a bunch of museums are canceled too :(

Vermont: last updated 3/17 at 1 PM

17 cases total (+5)

Affected counties include: Bennington (3), Chittenden (4), Orange (1), Springfield (1), Washington (1), and Windsor (3)

County by county data was not updated on 3/17

Hospitalizations are reported in the following counties: Bennington (3), Chittenden (1), Springfield (1), Washington (1), Windsor (1)

Closures/restrictions:

No gatherings >50 people or >50% capacity, whichever is lower

Schools are closed starting 3/18

Bars/restaurants are closed until 4/6

Virginia: last updated 3/17

67 cases (+16)

Affected counties/cities include: Alexandria City (2, +0), Arlington (13, +4), Chesterfield (4, +2), Fairfax (12, +2), Hanover (1, +0), Harrisonburg City (1, +0), James City (12, +2), Loudoun (5, +0), Prince Edward (1, +0), Prince William (4, +1), Spotsylvania (1, +0), Stafford (1, +0), Virginia Beach City (4, +0), and York (1, +0)

Newly affected areas include: Charlottesville City (1), Goochland (1), Henrico (2), Williamsburg City (1)

Are we being pranked by the Commonwealth naming something Goochland? Studies are inconclusive

Washington State: Last updated 3/17 at 3:15

1012 total cases (+108), 52 deaths (+4)

Current mortality rate: 5.1%

Deaths have occurred in the following counties: Clark (2, +2), Grant (1, +0), King (43, +0), and Snohomish (6, +2).

Affected counties include: Clark (4, +0), Columbia (1, +0), Grant (7, +4), Grays Harbor (1, +0), Island (14, +7), Jefferson (3, +0), King (569, +81), Kitsap (7, +0), Kittitas (3, +0),  Lewis (1, +0), ,Lincoln (1, +0), Pierce (45, +7), Skagit (9, +2), Snohomish (254, +54), Spokane (4, +1), Thurston (5, +1), Whatcom (6, +3), and Yakima (5, +1).

70 cases are currently unassigned to a county

Newly affected counties include: Chelan (2) and Klickitat (1)

Closures/restrictions: widespread, will have county-by-county info soon.

Hotline: 1-800-525-0127

Wisconsin: last updated 3/17 at 2 PM

72 total cases (+25), 0 deaths

Recovery is being reported by the following counties: Dane (1)

This is updated every Friday, next update expected 3/20

Affected counties include: Dane (19, +9), Fond du Lac (11, +0), Milwaukee (24, +11), Outagamie (1, +0), Pierce (1, +0), Racine (1, +0), Sheboygan (3, +0), Waukesha (4, +1), Winnebago (3, +0), and Wood (1, +0)

Newly affected counties include: Kenosha (4)

Community spread is confirmed in the following counties: Dane, Kenosha, and Milwaukee

Closures/restrictions

Schools closed starting 3/18 for minimum of two weeks

No gatherings >10 people until further notice

Wyoming: last updated 3/17 AM

11 cases (+1)

Affected counties include: Fremont, Laramie, and Sheridan

Today’s Hot Tips

If you’re a parent, you’ve likely been charged with homeschooling your kids, no small feat not in the middle of a pandemic. A kind reader (@halcyonhowl) hooked me up with a collection of resources that I’m excited to share with you all!

Find it here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rcV0cLYYj7TftfyTYU-3Z1bvI90tOqAz6yR7XenzYHA/edit?usp=sharing

I’m not a teacher by any means but I checked out some of these resources and they seem super super cool.

My personal favorite resource is SciShow, and they make a great podcast for curious adults called SciShow Tangents! Check it out here: www.youtube.com/scishow

Hand Washing Song of the Day

If you hate singing happy birthday while you wash your hands (I certainly do) try Bohemian Rhapsody!

Sing from the beginning through “as if nothing really matters” as dramatically as possible to follow CDC handwashing guidelines! Use soap and water for maximum efficacy. And then finish the song, you monster.

If you’re this talented, you can sing it on a rubber chicken. And then sanitize the chicken with bleach. And wash your hands again. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDrdZM1iGrc

Good News, Everyone!

The Shedd Aquarium penguin adventures continue!

Check it out here: https://twitter.com/shedd_aquarium/status/1239661654629023747?s=21

People in Italy are singing from the balconies, whereas New Yorkers are yelling “GO THE FUCK HOME” to people who are out. Different ways of coping, I suppose…

Italy’s lockdown is working - transmission has slowed dramatically over the past few days!

Vaccine testing continues in the United States, where testing kits are finally becoming more widely available.

China has sent the United States a massive aid package with tests and personal protective equipment (PPE) since many hospitals in the States are completely out of materials.

Chill Cat Corner

This is a thread of cat cams for people in quarantine, it’s totally amazing and will provide you with so much fucking serotonin.

https://twitter.com/margiehousley/status/1239545102831366144?s=20

This makes me want to post pictures of my cats all the time though

About this newsletter

I’m Emily, I’m a 4th year med student w/ a degree in molecular biology. I started this because I’m an infectious disease and epidemiology nerd and also all my friends have questions & anxiety. Hi internet!

The archive/proper website is located at coronaextranewsletter.wordpress.com.

All this info is sourced from regional & national public health organizations, plus the WHO. It’s as up to date as humanly possible. I’ve been beaming information about this outbreak directly into my brain 24/7 but I still miss stuff. Please let me know if I miss something!

Most public health departments stop updating their information around 4-5 PM local time on weekdays. That means that the earliest this will come out is around 6 PM Pacific time on weekdays going forward. On weekends things update more sporadically and earlier, so who knows what I’ll do then, but I’ll do my best.

The excellent title is courtesy of @marywhal​ and the Wordpress site is courtesy of @molly0xFFF and @goblintinkerer, thank you all!

For More Information

JHU COVID-19 data center: https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

List of peer-reviewed publications: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/publications.html

WHO FAQ: https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses

CDC cases in the US: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/cases-in-us.html, this also has links to each state’s health dept

[stevetervet]

Tasmania

Marketing executives of Australia, I bring good news. Your advertisement campaigns are working on my five-year-old daughter. Ivy only needs to hear the words “Did someone say KFC?” and she’ll instantly launch into a chorus of I Love It by Icona Pop. When asked what she hoped would happen in 2021, she didn’t wish for anything existential or even material, but rather answered: “That I get to watch Holey Moley.” But there’s one brand which stands out among the rest. We’ll pull up behind a ute at the traffic lights and hear from the back seat those immortal words: “Oh, what a feeling - Toyota.”

And there were certainly plenty of those moments as we started the new year with a road trip around the island state of Tasmania - 240km south of the mainland across the heaving Bass Strait. Right until the last moment, it looked like the trip might be scuppered by COVID as clusters in Sydney and Melbourne prompted other states to shut their borders but on this occasion, we were in the right place at the right time and the Apple Isle lay before us.

Needless to say, there were a few raised eyebrows along the way when we declared we had travelled from New South Wales - at one point we were even removed from a queue and had to answer further questions from management before gaining entry - but Tassie’s welcome couldn’t have been warmer. The people we met were so friendly and as for the place: well, where do you start?

At the beginning, I suppose, and the absolutely stunning Cataract Gorge in Launceston. Photographs simply can’t do its forested cliffs, glassy lake and ancient boulders justice and the temperature of the public swimming pool in the centre of the gorge took our breath away for a second time as Rachel wisely watched on with the towels poolside. We emerged from the water shivering - and with fellow tourists peering down bemused from the chairlift above - but very much refreshed.

Launceston, the second-largest city in Tasmania, hadn’t been forecast as one of the trip’s highlights but it proved to have been rather under-sold. The macaque monkeys (behind glass) in City Park, the windswept Tamar Island Wetlands and the hands-on Queen Victoria Museum were free attractions you’d pay good money to see elsewhere and Riverbend Park, in the city centre, boasts the best children’s playground I’ve ever seen. It’s no exaggeration to say Ivy would have spent all day there, so vast and varied is the site. Peering down over the park are four huge grain silos, now converted into a plush hotel with a fancy restaurant on ground level. Pricey, yes, but quality grub.

When you’ve been to Peppa Pig World, the bar for any other ‘world’ is set pretty high but where Seahorse World in the Tamar Valley might have been lacking Grandpa Pig’s Little Train, it compensated with a genuinely interesting tour of the tanks and even a chance to hold a little seahorse. From this breeding centre on the banks of the Tamar, seahorses are shipped to aquariums all around the world so if you’ve ever seen one, it probably came from there.

Our four nights in town were spent above a pub - better than it sounds or than we thought when we first pulled up - but there was a change of pace when we hit the east coast.

We quickly realised the weather in Tasmania can change almost as quickly as Boris Johnson’s COVID response and so it was that we huddled on a beach somewhere along the Bay of Fires eating our picnic lunch wrapped in jumpers and waterproofs as some pretty mean waves pounded the white sand. Even us crazy northern hemisphere types weren’t about to try swimming here.

Conditions at our east coast base were more clement, and naturally we hit the pool hard but also made full use of the other sports facilities - putting green, table tennis and basketball court to name but a few. Ivy’s ping-pong skills have improved exponentially since the turn of the year and some of our rallies were even worthy of the name. But every now and then comes a wild shot from the other end of the table which forces you to take evasive action as if facing a Pat Cummins bouncer.

Down the coast we drove, into the spectacular Freycinet National Park where the views across to Wineglass Bay are postcard-perfect. Peer over the edge and it’s a sheer drop to the rocks and waves below, look down at your feet and lizards are scurrying for cover. Disaster was averted at the last minute when the family parked next to us managed to retrieve the stuffed toy whose temporary loss had sent a little girl into floods of tears. What looked like a little elephant had in fact only been dropped a few yards from the car park at the top of the cliffs.

Swansea was a handy stopping point after that - a bit different to its Welsh namesake - but it was now all about the long run into Hobart. Of all the driving we did in Tasmania, less than 5% would have been straight and flat at the same time and those sweeping bends and undulations were never more evident than on the Tasman Highway which hugged rock faces and followed the bends of the Prosser River on the challenging and invigorating approach to the state’s capital.

Hobart, with a population of 250,000 or so, must be the hilliest city I’ve ever visited. There were cars parked at angles that didn’t look natural and even a walk to the closest intersection could be enough to raise a sweat.

But on flat ground a stone’s throw from the waterfront, the Salamanca Market truly showcases Hobart in its best light every Saturday. From tourist tat and cuddly toys to ornate wood carvings and local farm produce, there’s something to lighten everyone’s wallet although by far the longest queues were at the coffee vans. Classic Australia. The pandemic has forced Salamanca to trim its stall numbers and patron capacity, although social distancing in a market is about as likely as it is on the London Underground. However, in a part of the world which is totally COVID-free at the time of writing, mingling in a Tasmanian crowd carries none of the worries it would elsewhere.

Our thoughts were constantly drawn back to the UK not only by the daily news bulletins - reporting daily infection rates higher than Australia has faced in 12 months - but also its role in shaping Tasmania as we know it today. Nowhere is that more evident than Port Arthur, the former penal settlement where thousands of convicts were shipped in the 1800s for crimes ranging from cheese theft to murder. The remains of the penitentiary and neighbouring prison buildings are beautiful; their stories by comparison quite chilling and utterly thought-provoking as to the physical treatment and mental disintegration of so many men, young and old, having been extracted from their homeland with no hope of ever returning. Walking around the site makes you acutely aware of your liberty, even more so in the current climate.

You see, for all the places we visited in Tasmania, for all the experiences, the food tasted and selfies taken, it was simply the freedom to choose and to move which we had to be most thankful for. With the majority of our friends and family locked down on the other side of the world, doing it tougher than ever, there was absolutely nothing about our trip to take for granted.

It’s said Australia is the lucky country, and that rings true to an extent, although political choices have more to do with the state of play around the world than luck. Australia’s consistently tough stance on international arrivals during the pandemic has been a huge factor in keeping the COVID numbers here so low. Two week in hotel quarantine, at your own expense, is mandatory. Around the corner from where we were staying in Hobart was one such hotel with two soldiers guarding each door. Rules are rules here and they don’t muck about. On the one hand, it’s reassuring that we are in such a safe corner of the world right now - but what about getting back to England to see those loved ones again? When will a journey of that nature be feasible and, more to the point, when will Australia relax its stance to the point where we know we can make a ‘normal’ re-entry to the place we now call home? Forget the quarantine, simply getting a plane ticket is like finding a needle in a haystack. We hope to see you all again soon, we really do, but it's just impossible to put a date on that happening.

Meanwhile, sun-kissed Hobart looked a picture from the top of Mount Wellington and equally from the water as we took a ferry to MONA (the Museum of Old and New Art). The exhibits here were all to an incredibly high specification but often weird for the sake of being weird. More rewarding was the time we spent outside in the grounds, watching a band on stage while chowing down on chicken burgers (in the case of the meat-eating members of the family).

Another ferry carried us and the car to Bruny Island, where the pendulum of Tasmanian weather swung like never before. One minute we were slithering along muddy unsealed roads in search of the Cape Bruny Lighthouse (where the winds were too strong to reach the top of the walking track), the next emerging into warm sunlight at the Truganini Memorial overlooking the ‘Neck’ - a narrow spit of land joining the north and south parts of the island.

After the best part of a week in and around Hobart, it was nice to put the hammer down and cruise through the straw-coloured Midlands on the way north. A long line of red bricks running the length of the high street in Campbell Town bore the names (and crimes) or convicts who had not even survived the epic voyage to Australia, dying in transit. There were reminders everywhere of Tasmania’s convict past; less so the treatment of its Indigenous people.

While we had already been exposed to the island’s varying landscapes and weather patterns, entering Cradle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park can only be likened to walking through the wardrobe into Narnia. Gone was anything even resembling summer as harsh alpine vegetation stood out against steely skies, with a cold wind blowing down the back of the neck in the way that makes you instantly reach for hooded tops. The steep climbs and harpin bends were all worth it just to witness the spectacle at altitude approaching 1,000 metres above sea level. “It’s due to snow the day after tomorrow” said the girl behind the Visitor Centre counter as she handed over our shuttle bus tickets. You could spend days bushwalking around Cradle Mountain, if you like that sort of thing, whereas we chose the hop- on-hop-off approach and still copped a fair pasting from the wind, rain - and UV. The chance to see Tasmanian devils and quolls up close, as well as a wombat in the car park, further added to the experience.

Back through the wardrobe into summer, or at least a north coast variant of it, and the final stop on our tour at tiny-but-picturesque Boat Harbour Beach. With water so clear you could almost count the grains of sand on the bottom, and rock pools and caves to explore every time the tide flowed out, the beach in itself might have fully sustained our four-day stay had the temperature been a smidgen higher.

As it was, we ventured slightly further afield to The Nut at Stanley (where one of the information boards mused ‘when is a nut not a nut?’ - an important consideration for allergy sufferers), Sisters Beach (horizontal rain although not unpleasant) and to Burnie one night to see Little Penguins emerge from the sea and return to their burrows. In rather less salubrious surroundings than the corresponding experience on Phillip Island, the night sky was pierced by the luminescent green glow from a nearby BP filling station. David Attenborough meets Alan Partridge, if you will.

Soon enough, those penguins would be heading back into the Bass Strait and so it was for us, boarding the Spirit of Tasmania for our overnight crossing which marked the end of our Tassie adventure. Housed in a cabin at the extreme bow of the vessel, our plunging path through a sea that was even choppier than normal felt like taking a ride in a washing machine being hit with cannon fire, so loud was the metallic crash of the hull against the waves every few seconds.

So the mouth of Port Phillip Bay had never looked more welcoming and it was a relief to set foot - or rather, wheels - on terra firma back in Melbourne.

But what a journey. In the land that time forgot, the extraordinary diversity and natural beauty of this island have carved out unforgettable memories. The devil is in the detail and I’ve no doubt we’ve only scratched the surface.

Oh, what a feeling - Tasmania.

[viteducation]

Explore Your Career Opportunities with Patisserie Course Australia

If your aim is to become a chef with Patisserie Course Australia, counting on opportunities available to you, you will wish to start out from rock bottom as an assistant or intern to a chef. In Patisserie Course, you will be liable for preparing all types of food and desserts from scratch, create new recipes, and train or supervise the staff.

The job of a pastry chef is a highly creative, challenging, and dynamic. One can work as during a restaurant, hotel, patisserie, cruise liner or they might become an educator, writer, or entrepreneur (or all of the above!)

One can continue and specialize even further to become an expert at a specific aspect of their craft. Some of the specialties include frozen desserts, French pastries, and cake decorating. Generally, more in standalone restaurants the boundaries tend to be rather blurred, as a chef is usually expected to seem into quite one area of experience and areas of pastry making course, also as be responsible of all the aspects of the business-like purchasing inventory and managing accounts.

Should you have entrepreneurial aspirations, it is best to specialise in any single area of interest. As an entrepreneur, one can open a retail cafe, bakery, or restaurant, or one can start their own home-based business undertaking catering and personal orders.

Keep these pointers in mind to assist you opt what career path is true for you as knowledgeable Patisserie course. the sole thanks to know is by getting Vocational Education and Training, taking advantage of the opportunities available to you within the field and much of persistent, dedicated work. you will get on your thanks to living out your baking dreams in no time!

If you select to travel for a professional establishment found out, you will need to think about factors like space availability, budget, staff, salaries and benefits, licenses, insurance, equipment- all of which can need thorough planning, research, and an enormous investment. Having a home-based found out will greatly reduce overheads; however, the business may outgrow the amateur set-up very quickly.

Choosing the best course to study Patisserie Course Australia

Patisserie Course Australia do significantly quite show understudies the way to just heat bread. Understudies who got to finish up fruitful bread pastry shop graduates got to select in bread shop school courses which will give them the elemental capabilities to hunt after a vocation within the nourishment preparing industry, specifically, the heating business. With an ensured with capability of Pastry course from an institute, a universe of chances opens. you only got to search through the vocation promotions to ascertain that proficient bread cooks are wanted, and therefore the wages are unquestionably better than average.

Quality Patisserie Course Australia are by and enormous a part of a broadly perceived capability in sustenance handling, which may set about as a stand-alone accreditation, otherwise you can finish the complete confirmation course to urge to a much more noteworthy scope of professions inside the nourishment preparing industry.

Take a Patisserie course that gives you a certificate

You can choose one among the simplest Patisserie Course Australia especially when the training institute provides you with comprehensive certificates after you complete a selected module on Patisserie making. These are the certificates you would like to hold while you join a patisserie unit or a renowned Patisserie canter.

Various aspects of pastry-making and baking

You need to settle on a patisserie chef course classes to find out from an institute that prepares you on various aspects of Patisserie or cake-making. you would like to find out the techniques concerning making cakes, icing, or frosting, glazing topmost layers of the cake, decoration, and lot many. Likewise, you would like to pick an institute that also teaches you ways to form chocolates, jellies, vegetable puffs, candies, sweeter and spicy breads and fun-filled mock tails or cocktails. This way, you will gain all the expertise to start out your own bakery unit or a classy restaurant in town. search for one among the fabulous Patisserie Course Australia that trains you on the multi-faceted aspects of Patisserie making.

International accreditations

While choosing the proper Patisserie institute, you furthermore may get to search for one that gives its students with certificates that have international accreditations. American Culinary Federation or UK based accreditation would be apt alongside a desk accreditation.

you will pursue Certificate IV in Patisserie Australia albeit you get a chance to need settled abroad. You can make cakes, donuts, pastries, and chocolates for your relations and loved ones also. Gifting a cake or a pastry adds to the personal touch, then just gifting cards, or ceramic dolls.

For getting more information visit here VIT - Victorian Institute of Technology.

14/123 Queen St, Melbourne VIC 3000, Australia

1300 17 17 55 (or) support@vit.edu.au

[girlspartydresses96]

couples waiting to board the popular floating resort@~%&*() lalamira phone number

Ask yourself whether you have properly considered your venue. An elaborate embellished ballgown with a cathedral train will look extremely out-of-place in a beach wedding. Likewise, a simple Jenny Packham sheath dress with lace cap sleeves and a gathered waist will be perfect for a garden solemnisation but too simple for Chinese-style banquet affair short mermaid dress. Also, your colour theme ?C the colours with which you adorn the venue and clad the bridesmaids in ?C will ultimately influence whether you choose a white or off-white shade. So, settle on the venue before you even step into a bridal boutique.

In typical Sammy D style, I hardly wanted to be 'middle.' Thus, enter the wedding veil. Of course we see brides wear veils ' whether short or long, sheer or practically blinding ' most brides opt for the oddly innocent-sexy-glamorous face cover-up on their big day.But have you ever seen a bridesmaid wear a veil? Or rather, the entire bridesmaid party, standing next to the bride and rocking their own set of luxurious lace jsweddenladress20107 to add some needed pizazz to what [may] potentially be a middle-of-the-road dress? Having a small and intimate wedding meant that I was able to take time to catch up with my family and friends leisurely throughout dinner Christmas gift ideas, which would have been impossible at a larger scaled wedding dinner. The whole day felt more like a family and friends get-together rather than a formal wedding celebration queen victoria wedding dress. Everyone loved that it was different from the usual hotel wedding dinner, and enjoyed the food, drinks and ambience ?C the most important thing in my opinion! It wasn't difficult to locate the boarding area at Vivocity's Habour Center'it was filled with families and couples waiting to board the popular floating resort lalamira phone number. The friendly marketing team at Star Cruises ushered us into priority boarding along with the rest of the media group. The 50-tonne SuperStar Gemini was massive. A whopping 230 meters in length, and we soon got discovered just how long that was on our tour of that grand dame.

After that, we chose some vendors such as our florist, photographer and makeup artist based on our online research. We left our wedding planning as it is due to our busy work schedules and only picked it up two months before our wedding. With time running out, we quickly outsourced some of the work to our planner, VaraWedding, and our friends as we needed help. You want to be the prom queen, but how can you find the perfect gown? Girls dream about the special nights for years, and they should be as perfect as possible. Details can be seen at the following list of Top 12 prom dresses 2020 for edgy. You'll find the perfect prom dresses sale uk that will make you stand out. Vintage education: 'Millinery' refers to hats sold by a hat maker. From Wikipedia: The origin of the name is likely the Middle English Milener, as in an inhabitant of Milan or one who deals in items from the Italian city known for its fashion and clothing non white wedding dress. Do you know a hat maker company today? Neither do I. You May Also Like: Sweetheart Ball-Gown Wedding Dresses Tulle Beading Sequins Bow(s) Sleeveless Floor-Length Charmeuse Mermaid Sweetheart Prom Dresses retail outlet that you'll be appointing prior to... - It's time to ... Spaghetti Straps Mermaid Deep V-neck Wedding Dresses wedding dresses with sleeves&flower girl dresses — Do not ...

[kentonramsey]

From The ’70s To TikTok, We’ve Fallen For Roller Girl Style

If your Instagram feed has transported you from the four walls you’ve been confined to since March to a sun-soaked SoCal, where people in halterneck tops and booty shorts soar down palm tree-lined streets, smooth beats soundtracking their fluid moves, then you’re not alone. You might even have bought a pair of skates yourself, wanting to leave the temptation to doomscroll through Twitter at home and instead tap into the uninhibited joy you remember from the roller rink birthday parties of your childhood. 

Between social isolation, an inability to plan for the future and general global anxiety about where this pandemic will leave us, many of us have sought solace in nostalgic pursuits, and roller skating has taken centre stage. Globally, Google searches for the sport more than doubled between March and May and Pariss Cozier, marketing executive at Rookie Rollerskates, one of the UK’s original skate brands, tells me that they have “seen an influx in sales and people sharing the love with us online.” TikTok has been credited with casting a spotlight on the scene this summer, as beginners and pros alike use the platform to show off their skills from empty parking lots the world over. 

“I’ve been skating for five months and, like most other new skaters, TikTok was where I got my inspiration,” says California-based Marician Dedeaux Brown, whose posts on the app receive up to 400k likes. “Everything is closed, so the great outdoors can relieve that pent-up feeling we all have in lockdown.” Marician’s feed is swimming with dreamy, light-leaked videos of her gliding across deserted basketball courts in sunshine yellow crop tops and cut-off shorts, headphones positioned carefully over her space buns. The skate obsession has reached London, too, where R29 journalist Jessica Morgan has been hitting the tarmac. “I bought my skates three weeks ago, after I saw loads of videos of young female skaters flood my social media,” she says. “It just looked so cool and – dare I say – easy to do, so I thought, Why not?” Bestselling author Candice Brathwaite has also taken up skating for the first time. Posting a photo of her bubblegum pink Rookies (“TikTok has a lot to answer for”), she’s been sharing her progress with her 191k Instagram followers.

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A post shared by ✨Marician Dedeaux Brown ✨ (@oh.thatsreese_) on Jul 22, 2020 at 1:38pm PDT

For the uninitiated, the surge in roller skating may feel like a throwback that’s thrived in lockdown but seasoned pros will tell you that the eight-wheeled pursuit never went away. Skates have been around since the 1760s when, the story goes, Belgian inventor John Joseph Merlin attached two wheels to each of his shoes and cruised into a dinner party, smashing into a full-length mirror in the process. One hundred years later, the American inventor James Leonard Plimpton made the whole affair much easier by patenting four-wheeled skates which could be steered simply by leaning to the left or right. By the turn of the 20th century, roller rinks were flourishing – from Madison Square Garden to virtually every major city in Europe – as the sport became a major pastime for adults and children alike. 

It’s not all wholesome scenes of smiling families gliding in unison, though. Skating has a chequered past, as highlighted in 2018’s United Skates, a Tina Brown and Dyana Winkler-directed and John Legend-produced Storyville documentary now streaming on BBC iPlayer. A love letter to the sport which explores how it has served America’s Black community over nearly 100 years, there’s breathtaking footage of skaters repping styles unique to their states at Skate Jamz. Talking heads from Coolio and Salt-N-Pepa highlight the musical importance of rinks, too: rappers and hip-hop artists who were shunned by mainstream radio and MTV, including Queen Latifah, Dr Dre and Eazy-E, cut their teeth at rinks like LA’s Skateland. The film also shows how style and skating are inextricably linked: people dismissed uncool hire skates and upped their foot game by attaching metal brackets and wheels to customised sports and dress shoes, from Timberlands to Air Jordans to Converse All Stars. TikTok’s statement skaters have picked up on this DIY style today, Cassandra Napoli, digital media and marketing strategist at trend forecaster WGSN, tells me.

While the documentary is celebratory, it also draws direct lines between racial divides and the rapid closure of rinks across the US. During segregation, the Black community was unwelcome at rinks, with Klansmen violently attacking protestors who fought for their right to skate. Throughout the 1950s and ‘60s, many white people refused to skate at reintegrated rinks so owners came up with specific sessions for Black folk using extremely coded terms: “Martin Luther King Jr. Night”, “Soul Night” and “Gospel Night” all appeared but “Adult Night” stuck and is still used up and down the country today. This discrimination was just another way to segregate the community but in the ’70s and ’80s African American culture thrived in these hard-won spaces and the jam, hip-hop and rhythm skating that was born out of this scene led to mind-blowing regional skate dance styles which remain hugely influential, from Chicago’s James Brown to Washington DC’s Snap and Detroit’s Open House Slide. Sadly, despite roller rinks providing joy and safe spaces for Black communities across America, United Skates documents how the scene is under threat from a racially charged police presence, clothing and music restrictions (“No baggy clothes, no rap music”) and rising rent prices. 

Yet there is hope. Activism remains alive and well in the skate community – Cassandra highlights how, during the recent Black Lives Matter protests in LA, “skateboarders and roller skaters united for a protest led by the group Skate For Justice, its hashtag gaining momentum on TikTok” – and as lockdown and the global surge in skate sales has proved, a new generation is being drawn to life on eight wheels. “While stuck indoors over the last few months, roller skate content offered respite from the monotony of everyday life,” she notes. “Viewing roller skate influencers on TikTok freely glide along the pavement became a cathartic experience and a welcome escape from the present tough realities we were enduring inside our cramped homes.” 

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A post shared by O U M I J A N T A (@oumi_janta) on Jun 22, 2020 at 2:23pm PDT

Berlin-based Oumi Janta may well have been the influencer to put skating back on your radar. Her video, now with over 2 million views on Instagram, set the internet alight and for good reason: don’t you, too, want to wear a ‘70s-inspired yellow co-ord while jamming on wheels to some vibey house music at golden hour? Oumi made skating look deceptively effortless but she also gave us a glimpse of a carefree life. Isn’t that exactly what we need right now? Having picked up her skates six years ago, Oumi says this joyfulness is key to her sticking with the sport. “It’s so much fun you don’t even realise it’s a sport,” she tells me. “It looks easy but it’s hella hard. But when you’re skating it’s like you’re on drugs; you just space out, you don’t think about the bad stuff, and you just embrace that very moment.” 

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A post shared by toni nicole (@gr00vyquads) on Oct 11, 2019 at 1:13pm PDT

The breezy escapism of these viral videos is key to our piqued interest in skating but we can’t overlook the importance of aesthetics. Oumi’s penchant for cropped tees, shirts tied at the waist, retro running shorts and tube socks is the archetype of roller girl style, rooted in the 1970s and California beach culture (think Boogie Nights‘ Rollergirl). Cassandra says: “References include a combination of beach, sport and disco influences, with key items including retro gym shorts, lots of cropped denim and flared jeans, jumpsuits, crocheted halter tops, bikini tops and striped tube socks which peek out of colourful four-wheeled skates. Looks tend to be topped off with [bum bags] and scrunchies to further enhance the retro nostalgic feel. It’s about durable fashion that’s easy to move in, that’s comfortable and breathable and, in many cases, flashy enough to stand out in a sea of skaters on social media.” After months of loungewear, when the idea of jeans feels so alien, isn’t durability and comfort exactly what we’re looking for in our post-pandemic wardrobe? With many of the scene’s best moves formed in rinks to the sounds of 1970s disco, funk and soul, it’s no wonder the skate aesthetic is frozen in time. “Nostalgia for the ‘70s is so strong because the era was such a unique time where groove really found its way into the mainstream,” says Toni Nicole, who dons corduroy flares, ringer tees, halternecks and striped tank tops while she skates. “Everyone unapologetically expressed themselves as they pleased – it’s the carefree element of that time that draws everyone in, myself included.”

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A post shared by Ana Coto (@anaocto) on Apr 28, 2020 at 10:08pm PDT

This ultra cool ‘70s aesthetic is largely why Ana Coto’s viral skating video sent the internet wild: 2.2 million people on TikTok have now watched her gliding along a boulevard at sundown in high-waisted trousers, a slogan tee tied at the waist, hoop earrings and tinted shades. Once again, skating painted a picture of a woman living her best summer life in the face of all the troubles 2020 has thrown up. “Roller skating is fantastic for the mind, body and spirit in my opinion,” she tells me. “It offers an escape, a safe space. A community.” Ana says she’s “gotten over heartbreak at the rink and fallen in love there too,” something Shove, who has been skating for three years, echoes. Sharing her skate life with her 42k followers on Instagram, Shove credits the sport with saving her life after a toxic and controlling relationship. While she, too, turns out some excellent ‘70s-inspired looks – think baby pink boilersuits, flared denim and tube socks – it’s her brighter, bolder outfits that have captivated her audience, from rainbow-striped and leopard-print shorties to American flag-print bodysuits. “I love fashion no matter what I’m doing but while on skates I feel like a flying superhero! The confidence you learn in endlessly falling and getting back up tends to flow into other parts of your life, like fashion,” she says. 

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A post shared by Fat Girl Has Moxi (@fat_girl_has_moxi) on Jul 2, 2020 at 2:32pm PDT

The appeal of the ‘70s skate aesthetic is undeniable, honouring as it does the scene’s roots, but what’s exciting about the 2020 spotlight on quad skating is that there is no one way to look. “Now, more than ever, people are putting certain stereotypes and forms of gatekeeping in the trash, as they should,” Toni says. “Wheels are for everyone!” The biggest misconception, Shove says – which your Instagram explore page might well have you believing – is that to skate “you have to be a white, skinny, cis woman and wear booty shorts. The community is filled with all sizes, ethnicities, genders and non-genders, trans, queer and every kind of person in between.” Much like cycling – another wheeled trend to emerge in lockdown – skating is the antithesis of spin classes and intensive HIIT workouts: it’s great for your health but the end goal isn’t maintaining a prescribed body type. It’s about going outside and getting out of your own head. In 2019, Jonathan Van Ness was praised for posting videos of himself, like Bambi on ice, trying to master tricks while learning to ice skate. He showed a far more realistic journey, one peppered with falls, scrapes and fails, than we’re usually privy to on social media. The skate scene’s most accomplished influencers are doing the same thing, making it all the more inviting for rookies worried about starting. “Falling is a part of skating and when you get really good at skating, you also get really good at falling,” Ana says. “You will fall no matter how good you get and that’s okay because it doesn’t matter how you fall, it’s how you get back up,” reiterates Shove. 

For those looking to take up skating (eBay and Gumtree are your best bets until new skates arrive in store), Toni says: “My biggest tip is to listen to your body and don’t compare your progress to others. Be patient and have fun!” For Oumi, initial motivation can be found in skate movies, while Ana says that investing in wrist-guards is a number one priority: “And remember, where your nose goes, you go – so don’t look down!”

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