Monday 01/10/2022
First event of the day was to go down at 7:30 and see the breakfast shift off. It was a bit confusing mainly because of one confused resident who hoped for breakfast but hadn’t placed an order. Kitchen staff dealt with his issue but it took a few minutes. However Lennie, the volunteer, was concerned and later wrote us an email proposing ways to help such residents.
Next up was the monthly Resident Association meeting. I gave a one-sentence Treasurer’s report, then later on the agenda I promoted the tray distribution activity, then Marcia addressed other volunteer concerns.
After the meeting I had time to pass before my scheduled lunch pick-up, so I took a modest walk to Gamble Gardens. Then picked up my lunch and took it to my room to eat. After, off to FOPAL where I found three boxes of computer books, but one was someone’s curated collection of books and conference proceedings from the early 1980s, all on the FORTH language. This is prime stuff for the computer historian or vintage computer fan. Not likely to sell from my usual shelves, but perfect for the Vintage Computer Fest next August.
Despite Rhonda having suggested that if we could avoid going to stores, we should, I went into the grocery store on my way home for drinks and items I keep in my room. Maybe I shouldn’t be so casual.
On my floor two of my neighbors have been sick, but not due to covid. Craig Allen got really sick from RSV. He and DIane had to quarantine a week while waiting for test results. PCR tests are taking 3, 4, or 5 days to come back. Now neighbor Doctor Margaret is in bed with upper respiratory virus, PCR test pending.
On return from FOPAL I found an email storm brewing. A bunch of people were concerned about people not being able to use the online meal ordering system, and had various ideas about how this could be remedied. Marcia and I went down to the kitchens and found today’s supervisor, Nareshni, and went over the issue with her. There are in fact just over 20 residents (of 180) who are using the telephone to place their meal orders, and a very few, maybe 3, who don’t/won’t/can’t do that and get paper printouts of the menus and circle what they want and hand them in. Kitchen staff know them all by name and deal with them routinely.
While we were in the kitchen learning this, the resident members of the Food and Dining committee had published a working plan to provide “buddies” for anyone who has trouble ordering food. So ok, maybe not needed but effective, so nothing for us to do.
At 4:45 we met on Zoom for the monthly 6th floor meeting. This is where I learned that Dr. Margaret was feeling unwell. She joined from her bed and looked very miserable. Nothing new here.
An hour before the meeting came an email: the mass testing of residents, planned for tomorrow, that we had all been urged to sign up for? Canceled due to a great shortage of staff!
During the meeting came another email detailing new Covid impacts: today 6 new employees tested positive. Two cases were cleared, net +4, there are now 11 staff on home isolation. The email said that “In the last few days, an increasing number of staff have been exposed to their children who have contracted Covid, or been exposed to Covid, after returning to school.”
This belatedly explained why the mass testing of residents had to be canceled. It also explains the next email which was from housekeeping: starting this week, we get rooms cleaned only every 2nd week.
The feeling of sliding back two years to early 2020 is really depressing, and is affecting everyone around me. We had this beaten, we were opening up, restrictions lifted — and then boom, everything shut down again.
Codgerville 