My new normal during the 5th wave
Since late Jan, Hong Kong is facing its 5th wave of the pandemic.
The number of the Covid cases has been increasing exponentially, looking as if it's towering to the peak. How I wish that was the case with our stock market.
Facing such a dramatic number of cases in the 5th wave, "to fight against it or to leave it" is a good question.
My answer is to fight against it, although I can't represent others. Compared to the former variants, omicron is way more contiguous, which makes our battle more tough.
When it refers to covid battle tips, I’m sure this list won't be strange to you:
Get vaccinated
Wear a mask
Wash hands for 20 seconds with soap and water
Wipe your hands with alcohol gel
Avoid going to crowded areas
Have you achieved them all? If you have, is it enough to fight against omicron? What else can we do?
There are some extra steps we can take.
I have literally stayed home every day since mid Feb. I've been relying on foodpanda to get meals and groceries. Foodpanda is my greatest savior during Covid.
Once downloaded, the foodpanda app will show you the restaurants or grocery stores (called “mall” in the app) around where you live. It’s as simple as finding what you want, ordering and waiting about half an hour for it to be delivered.
My starred foodpanda mall is Pandamart where there is a large collection of groceries ranging from Fresh Food to Pet Care.
I’ve also put a box outside my door so that the delivery people can just drop the deliveries there to avoid face to face contact.
As mentioned by the HK epidemiologist, the virus can spread through the Ventilation fans into the house if someone living in the same building is infected. We’ve turned off the ventilation fans in both the kitchen and bathroom.
Everyone knows staying at home is the best way to avoid the virus, but what if we go out? Yes, there are times we do need to go out.
Last Monday, I was asked to go to my daughter's kindergarten in Kennedy Town to get some learning materials. However unwilling I was to leave the house, I still had to face reality, which meant extra precautions needed to be taken.
Advised by Professor Kwok-Yung YUEN, head of the Department of Microbiology, double masks are needed. So before I went out, I prepared myself two level 3 masks (a size 14.5cm and a size 17.5cm). The small one was worn inside and the big one was worn outside. Iris from Japan and Savo from Hongkong are my favorite brands.
I also put on my cap and glasses. Both were to prevent droplet transmission by the virus.
I privilege going on foot as much as possible. For example, in an attempt to avoid public transportation, I walked to Kennedy Town from Sheung Wan via Bonham Road, which was a lot less crowded compared to Queens Road and Des Voeux Road West. On my way back, I took a taxi home after school because the learning materials were too heavy to carry by walking.
This is my new normal these days and I hope it helps me survive the 5th wave.
If you have any questions about covid please check out: https://www.coronavirus.gov.hk/eng/index.html but be prepared that all the hotlines might be busy.
Everyone stay safe!
Comments