[mrs bouquet]

I have tried to make sense of all the news, but I am not sure.      Does the virus live on my gloves ?   Does it live on library books,   and anything else unmentioned but maybe overlooked.     
I am glad I have a couple of aspects of OCD,  ie:    I am always washing my hands even when I don't go out, and I use a fair bit of bleach.    I have always been bought up with the saying drummed into me "coughs and sneezes spread diseases"      Thanks for any advice.    Mrs Bouquet

[Goosegirl]

MB, do not worry because all I know about viruses is that most only live a couple of days after they leave whatever host they lived in.

[John]

According to the WHO the virus can live on surfaces like door handles for a few hours. Sunlight is a great steriliser, btw. So outside handles in the sun are safer than indoors.
Your skin is designed to resist penetration but the danger is that you have the virus on your hands and then touch your mouth, nose or worst rub an eye. Thorough hand washing with ordinary soap and water will kill the virus.
A lot of youngsters didn't get the handwashing lesson in primary school - it's important to do it properly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PmVJQUCm4E WHO official "How to wash your hands"

[wighty]

I'm just so glad I left community care as a manager when I did.  Met an ex- colleague today in the Co-op and the guidelines they have been issued with are apparently really ambiguous.  My replacements replacement has spent two days trying to interpret them.     

[mrs bouquet]

Because I have had my tear ducts permanently cauterised shut, my eyes stream down my face, so I am always wiping them.    But, if they are now closed off, the virus won't e able to get in them - will it !
Anyway, thanks for all your answers.    I have decided just to get on with it, whatever.  Having said that, I did wear my gloves into Town today, but had to take them off when I bought something    .   Mrs B

[John]

I think the best thing to do is follow government advice but if there are cases in your area, avoid going out to where other people are as much as possible. On the positive side, the Chinese have it under control and the UK strategy is working. 200 cases is a very small number in a country of 60 million. Of course that will go up but it's the rate of increase to keep an eye on.

[Growster...]

If the 'authorities' applied the same reporting 'science' to flu, we'd never ever get out of the house at all, and have to eat grass!

We are however, being extra vigilant, such that I'm cancelling a much-looking-forward-too lunch in a fortnight, with some old chums...:0(

The upside is that I'll have twenty quid to buy Mrs Growster a new hat, so it's not all bad, even though she doesn't want one!

[rowlandwells]

that's a good un Growster a new hat yes I must remember that one  hopefully he says we mite and I say we mite see some sun today  when I got up this morning it was actually not raining and the sun was shinning so I hope to I can get some  vitamin D today if the sun stays out that's where you get your vitamin  from is it not

we are due to open our garden up for charity in a couple of weeks time along with some others but me thinks that could be put on hold

we went to town the other day on the bus that's usually half empty but that day it was packed we where reluctant to go but because of the present situation but we had some banking business to attend to and since the closed the bank here we have to go into town

 as we was walking to the bank a man came out of an empty  shop doorway and spitted on the path my wife went mad called him all the so and so's under the sun what's the point of tying to contain this virus when you've got people doing that I called him a dirty B------- but he didn't take a blind bit of notice

[WeavingGryphon]

The upside is that I'll have twenty quid to buy Mrs Growster a new hat, so it's not all bad, even though she doesn't want one!

Does she like hats?

[mrs bouquet]

Another thought crossed my mind today.    Yesterday at the bus stop a man was puffing away and belching out smoke from these new type of vape ciggies.         She asked him to move away from the crowded queue.  To which he replied.   Well its not a cigarette, its not going to harm you.     She said,   Excuse me,  that has been in your mouth and down into your lungs.   Do us all a favour and move away.  Several others started to agree with her.       He moved !!      Surely there must be some danger there  ( don't mean a fight breaking out  )      Mrs Bouqiet

[John]

Best evidence is that vaping is 95% better than smoking cigarettes (and half as satisfying ) The secondary 'smoke' risk is negligible - probably much less than the traffic passing on the bus queue on the road.
However it is more visible and some flavours are more noticeable smells.
Does go to show how far droplets containing the virus will spread in the air - I suppose the complainer was using breath to speak with that hadn't been in her lungs?

[WeavingGryphon]

Has anyone noticed anything changing in school numbers?

The local nursery is about deserted, when I was signing in youngest there was maybe 20 kids out of over 60. We were late to get in and there was only one other child in his sign in group. This past week there has been fewer children being signed in and the school playground was emptier, fewer adults and children. Including younger ones playing on the playground furniture.

There has also been near fights over the soap and hand wash in the supermarket shops.

[Aidy]

We have noticed a slight drop in appointments, I was also chatting with a dentist on Friday and he said they had noted a slight drop too.
The funny thing is we have to work to higher standards of hygiene to what Covid requires and yet people seem to panic, need to stop watching the news and reading the papers I think.

[Plot 1 Problems]

We have noticed a slight drop in appointments, I was also chatting with a dentist on Friday and he said they had noted a slight drop too.
The funny thing is we have to work to higher standards of hygiene to what Covid requires and yet people seem to panic, need to stop watching the news and reading the papers I think.

Or reading the utter tripe on social media...

[John]

I don't feel at risk from the dentist etc. but sitting in the waiting room, elbow to elbow... And the doctor's doesn't feel too safe either for the same reason. However, we seem OK in N Wales at the moment

Maybe the BBC should re-run Survivors now as a training course 

The Walking Dead is, perhaps, a little extreme though. The authorities my take a dim view of beheading people for coughing and looking poorly!

Anyway, time to settle down and read a really scary book about a plague - The Death of Grass by John Christopher