Cinema visit - yes or no?(another Covid-19 related thread-sorry)

A lovely report on Twitter of a 100 year old with three chronic conditions now discharged from a hospital in China after two weeks treatment.

If you wash your hands on arrival and leaving, and use gel if you have to touch a handrail, I can't see why you shouldn't go. Of course if someone has a persistent dry cough in the area where you are due to sit, then that would be another matter!

Cinemas and theatres ( especially packed ones) must be germ heaven.
I am avoiding them for the foreseeable future for DH’s sake.

My son is an actor. He has just started a tour with a play he is in. Ticket sales in some venues are so low they may have to cancel and if the government decrees that theatres must close he won't get paid. The play is supposed to run until June so we are all hoping the virus will have run its course by then. We have tickets to see it in Harrogate in a couple of weeks time. Fingers crossed it will still be going ahead.

I was due to attend a concert by an artiste from the USA at beginning of April. It's now postponed, as is the European tour. I think there will be many more cancellations in the coming months of various things.

One problem with the virus is the lack of symptoms in many of the people carrying it. A British couple on a flight from Heathrow to Hanoi in February were told last Saturday that they had contracted the virus from a woman on their flight who had previously visited Milan and Paris. They are now in quarantine. Several other people on the flight had also contracted the virus.

The way in which you get to the cinema is important. At the end of February we went to Bordeaux by car to see the Cirque du Soleil and did park and ride. The tram was packed as was the shuttle bus to the arena. Two mornings later I woke in the early hours to feel a cold coming on and was ill for two weeks (I'm asthmatic). I'm 99% certain that I caught the bug on public transport because the only other times I'd come into contact with people was when I was in a small group of 4 or 5 people, none of whom had colds.

Apparently Italy has had more deaths than other European countries because it has a larger proportion of elderly people and most of those who have died have been 80+ with underlying illnesses such as diabetes, lung complaints and heart problems and dodgy immune systems. The latter includes children.

Our French teacher said yesterday that cinemas and theatres are to restrict the numbers to 50 and open air events are to be restricted to 1000. I haven't yet checked these figures.

I was planning to go to a live transmission of Fidelio next week but am now debating whether I should go. (Night not be able to get in if the numbers are restricted to 50)

Just been to see Darkwater at 12:15 today at odeon cinema .Only 8 people in all. Plenty of room to stretch legs. Also an excellent film

I would choose to go to a less well frequented showing.

DH and I went to see David Copperfield, on a Monday afternoon.we had the cinema almost entirely to ourselves. You can check by not buying tickets online until just before you go so that you can see how many seats have been sold.

www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/new-cdc-guidance-says-older-adults-should-stay-at-home-as-much-as-possible-due-to-coronavirus/ar-BB10QLvV?ocid=AMZN

Seniors in the US are being advised to reconsider travel and socializing, especially if they've underlying health conditions - For their own well being, and others as well-

In other words, (my own) if you've no concerns about contracting the virus, spreading it to other seniors, elderly and unwell despite the fact that the world is currently in a frenzy of global effort to protect seniors, elderly and the unwell?

One word:

No, two: Fucking Selfish

As hand gels are now impossible to find and mine don't have much alcohol in them, is it a good idea to pour a little neat vodka or white spirit into the ones I have. Didn't do chemistry at school and don't want an explosion!!

My lot are on the front line. ( Doctors and Zoonoses experts) they are taking precautions. One of them was in with the first UK citizens shipped from Wuhan. I was worried sick, much more than her.
Disease spreads both ways. Dogs have the diphtheria Bacteria in their throats and I do feel a bit sick when I see owners letting dogs lick their faces...or that of their young children. We should have all been vaccinated !
Mine are all quite relaxed about it, and say, just take precautions. Wearing a mask only reminds you not to touch your face. The virus lives on clothes for approximately 12 hours. Wash your hands when using a public lavatory and have a alcohol rub with you. Buy some zinc tablets to suck...apparently they inhibit the Covina 19. One of my Gurus scoffed at that idea, but I have them.
Just remember that most people don’t die of it.
It makes for your lungs and you would be unlucky to be directly sneezed upon.

Thank you for all the advice on hand gels.
If only I could get one single pot. (angry)

They say it will get worse before it gets better. Go now while you have the chance!

I have just done my weekly Sainsbury's order. For the first time ever I have to wait three days. All the slots were booked.
This is surely a sign that people are avoiding supermarkets.

With all the advice being given I shall today contact my stockbroker ( , I wish) to purchase lots of shares in hand cream manufacturers.

Has anyone any thoughts about public libraries and book/dvd borrowing if there is a local outbreak? Maybe, the virus can live on the pages for some while.

I also heard the 80% comment on the BBC news last night, but the important point stressed was that was absolutely the worst case scenario, and highly unlikely.

Obviously there is still a huge amount of uncertainty regarding this virus, but what we DO know for certain is that for the vast majority of people who do catch it, the symptoms are very mild.

Of course it’s understandable that some people with particular health issues may have more cause for concern, but for the majority of us, it’s life as normal.

I was pleased to see that this virus was compared to others over the years, and the point again was made that the worst case scenarios with them never happened.

So, would I go to the cinema, restaurants shops, in fact out and about generally? Yes!

I think I would be happy to stay local and visiting supermarkets, cinemas, theatres, restaurants wouldn't bother me. I would avoid airports at all costs, maybe even train stations because there are so many random people from different places all intermingling.

Your husband is right

So much for thinking the cinema wouldn’t be very busy yesterday afternoon!

Not only people either side of us by the time the film started, but a party of 6 arrived after it started, took ages to sit down, faffing, then proceeded to crunch/rustle bags of crisps or whatever they were - and talk on and off!
Grrr rage mad anger! as they used to say in the Beano.

We did wash hands asap on returning home.

Dark Waters was good, but disturbing (not in a violent way). Can’t say more for fear of spoiling. Glad I saw it, though.

Some cinemas are taking people's temperatures before they go in. This is supposed to weed out people who are ill with anything they could pass on.

I am not sure whether this will work really.

I'm carrying on as normal at the moment but being careful about washing hands etc.

We started to use sanitiser on supermarket trolleys after my husband got a trolley that had sticky handles and then noticed dirty tissues thrown into the actual trolley. Needless to say he caught an awful virus that he passed on to me. It lasted weeks and weeks and was truly awful. Some time later in a supermarket, I saw an old man who sneezed and coughed into his hand, then passed his hand basket into the snotty hand and carried on. Now, someone will have picked that basket up after him, an old person, a mother, a person who has an illness, who knows, but germs stay on handles etc., there are some dirty, dirty people out there!

Re-posting to say that I will NOT be going to visit my sister who is in hospital, as there is norovirus on her ward and she has got it. Now that is much more contagious and the risk is high.

My husband has various health conditions so I instigated a conversation as to whether we should change our behaviour in any way. At first he thought I was being ridiculous, but then said he would not be using the bus ( he rarely does anyway) or going to any concerts at the moment. I can understand that, and he will continue to go to local shops, and practise good hand washing.
On the other hand I went about my normal activities today, with his blessing: bank, shop, voluntary work, involving four buses. The town was full of people doing their normal thing. No signs of masks or any precautions. No cases anywhere near here, as yet.
So I can understand anyone with health concerns staying at home, but equally life has to carry on. If you are retired you have a choice. Most people don’t, they need to work, businesses need customers. At the moment it is up to the individual. We each have to do what we feel is best.

I went to a WI meeting last night - an area meeting with a full room.

Went to bingo in our local pub this afternoon. The numbers were down by a third not sure if this was because of the icey wind or the virus fears.

Everyone has to do what they feel best. No point in going out if you are fearful and won’t enjoy yourself.

We are not going to cinemas, Shopping malls or restaurants until it’s over. After all, it’s no great hardship, whereas the illness could be very serious or worse. We are both over 60. I have asthma. He has diabetes.