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23 Dec 21 - 07:36 PM (#4129812) Subject: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: robomatic I am going to assume for purposes of this thread that Covid is real, that the U.S. government approved vaccines are effective and worthwhile, including boosters. And these are positions I believe and assert. I also have been using facemasks since March 2020. What helped me go positive on masks was remembering that so many people I saw on airtravel in the early 2000s were wearing masks. Having not traveled in the Asia, I was aware just above dimly that there was an infectious virus known as SARS and that it was probably the reason so many people came from that region with face masks on. I barely gave it thought. But in early 2020 it occurred to me that I possibly should be grateful to those people, who took that kind of trouble. And that it was a small effort after all. I have mainly been close to other people my age or older, who are very careful with whom they come into contact. All of us wore masks and got vaccine injections. None of us have had Covid, or for that matter, the flu. Now that the Omicron variant is coming round to all states, Alaska included, I'm thinking of upping us to N95 masks. And if that is worth doing, it's worth doing sooner rather than later. There is another approach, which I am NOT taking but it occurs to me that it might be inevitable. That is that the recent strain is so infective and relatively mild that we might as well get it and get over it. That is a thought I am not following up on, but I'm sure if I have it plenty of others are having it, too. One reason not to go that way is that we are still learning about Covid and its variants. Having gone the vaccine way, and not being sick, I will continue in that course and trust that there are medical experts who will line us out with real facts as we learn them. I also have a history with masks having gone into work environments with hazards of dangerous gas releases. We learned to be aware of masks that would seal our breathing parts and keep 'em oxygenated. |
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23 Dec 21 - 10:35 PM (#4129824) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Rapparee Here's something. |
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24 Dec 21 - 04:19 AM (#4129833) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Thompson If you're upping to N95, why not up further and go to N99, which I think are more or less equivalent to what Europeans call FFP3? You can reuse these, after laying them aside for a few days, and they catch the nasty little coronas before the rascals reach your nose. |
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24 Dec 21 - 04:52 AM (#4129834) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Doug Chadwick Having not traveled in the Asia, I was aware just above dimly that there was an infectious virus known as SARS and that it was probably the reason so many people came from that region with face masks on. It is my recollection that tourists in London from the far East were wearing masks way before the SARS outbreak. It had more to do with protecting themselves from air pollution in a big city. DC |
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24 Dec 21 - 05:20 AM (#4129835) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Backwoodsman Your recollection is correct Doug, Far-Eastern nationals have been wearing face-masks in cities and other busy locations routinely for many years now. I first noticed it when I was working in Sweden for a period around twenty years ago, when a coach-load of Japanese(?) tourists were staying in my hotel, and many of them came into the restaurant wearing masks. This was in a small town near Gothenburg. Since then I’ve noticed, on my frequent periods spent in London - business and pleasure - that they seem to have been de rigeur amongst tourists from the Far-East. |
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24 Dec 21 - 06:00 AM (#4129838) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Steve Shaw Gosh, what a miserable world we live in. My mask is worn so as not to give offence to others, to avoid their feeling vulnerable and to comply with the law. I'm not going into pubs, clubs, theatres or stadiums, nor flying in planes, just yet. It will happen. I've had all my jabs. I'm not otherwise going out of my way to avoid this variant, nor am I feeling neurotic. That's the balance that will work for me. I forgot to buy the Weetabix for my Christmas visitors. I'm off to what will be a very crowded Morrisons in a minute. I'll wear a mask because I'm supposed to wear a mask. Otherwise, the shopping holds no terrors for me. Pass the sherry! |
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24 Dec 21 - 10:10 AM (#4129860) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Jeri I bought N95s a while back, but have only worn cloth masks. I figure I'm going on a trip in March, and will save them for the airplane...if it doesn't get cancelled. For a while, people recommended double-masking. I guess they gave up on that idea. I find that being a recluse is very effective. |
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24 Dec 21 - 03:02 PM (#4129884) Subject: RE: BS: MASKS - N95 and others From: Stilly River Sage I have a photo of my daughter and two friends in their three-layer masks (the ones I made) on their flight to Italy last September. That's a long time to wear any kind of mask; I would double-mask in an airplane. |