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Corona Vi "R" Us
Mar. 14th, 2020 07:02 pmSo we are now in the midst of a global Covid 19 pandemic. A number of the cultural activities - theatre performances, museum and art gallery exhibits, public libraries - are no longer available to us. Schools in Ontario will be closed for the next three weeks. In Quebec, the premier is urging everyone over the age of 70 to Just Stay Home. Travel restrictions have either been imposed or are strongly recommended. Forget about shaking hands, hugging, or doing that peck on each cheek popular in francophone parts of the country. Is this really necessary?
Frankly, I don't really know. I do see the value of cancelling or postponing large events like international conferences and music festivals, as well as performances at the NAC where you're basically cheek-by-jowl with your neighbour for several hours on end. But museums and libraries? Not so much. In most cases, you go to these venues, spend an hour or so browsing, maybe visit the gift shop or second-hand bookshop, and you can come and go as you wish. There may be the odd line-up, but you're not stuck next to the person sneezing and coughing out a lung. You can visit the washroom and wash your hands thoroughly.
There wasn't this level of reaction with the SARS epidemic. I do remember in my early childhood the ever-present fear of polio. If I was feeling unwell, my mother would ask me to put my head as far down onto my chest as possible and if I could sort of go through the motions, she would say, "Well, I don't think you have polio - thank goodness!" And the older kids were urged not to visit beaches or swimming pools. There were the inevitable iron lung jokes too. But once I started kindergarten, there was a vaccine against polio which I got and which was duly recorded in my little yellow vaccination booklet.
I expect the vast majority of us will get through this thing unscathed even though we're now in a higher-risk group, being in our mid-to-late sixties. But I sure hope the restrictions and limitations don't last too long.
Frankly, I don't really know. I do see the value of cancelling or postponing large events like international conferences and music festivals, as well as performances at the NAC where you're basically cheek-by-jowl with your neighbour for several hours on end. But museums and libraries? Not so much. In most cases, you go to these venues, spend an hour or so browsing, maybe visit the gift shop or second-hand bookshop, and you can come and go as you wish. There may be the odd line-up, but you're not stuck next to the person sneezing and coughing out a lung. You can visit the washroom and wash your hands thoroughly.
There wasn't this level of reaction with the SARS epidemic. I do remember in my early childhood the ever-present fear of polio. If I was feeling unwell, my mother would ask me to put my head as far down onto my chest as possible and if I could sort of go through the motions, she would say, "Well, I don't think you have polio - thank goodness!" And the older kids were urged not to visit beaches or swimming pools. There were the inevitable iron lung jokes too. But once I started kindergarten, there was a vaccine against polio which I got and which was duly recorded in my little yellow vaccination booklet.
I expect the vast majority of us will get through this thing unscathed even though we're now in a higher-risk group, being in our mid-to-late sixties. But I sure hope the restrictions and limitations don't last too long.
