I think people are hearing the aforementioned conspiracy theories, and then repeating them, without understanding all the safeguards which are built into the system, or thinking the whole process through for themselves. The ideas just fit into their preexisting ideas and so are registered as "likely to be true" without any critical thought at all.

Well, the day before dd was supposed to start isolating herself for two weeks in preparation for returning to campus, her college has pushed the return back to mid-September. They're saying they still think the campus can open, but cite generally rising rates of Covid-19, difficulty obtaining tests, and slow testing results for the decision to wait. I don't know how they honestly think that is going to improve in the next two or three weeks.

In my case, it would sit on an island, so no upper cabinet. The price is more of a deterrent. So far I've used the old mixer even for the 14-dozen-cookie recipe, though it's an annual struggle.

Yeah, I just don't foresee using attachments, though who knows. Mostly I find things like that take up space without being used: like the wedding present food processor which lurks under my counter, while I just use a knife to chop. Too many bits and pieces to wash, kwim?

Same when I look. I'm wondering if I could just get my Sunbeam repaired, if anyone still does that. A bigger mixer would be so useful, but the prices on the Kitchen Aid site for larger capabilities are mind boggling.

My beloved, inherited, 60+ year old Sunbeam Mixmaster may be giving up the ghost. Do I want a KitchenAid, or something else? I do want a large enough capacity for big cookie recipes (6 1/2 c flour, plus sugar, chocolate chips, etc), and I do want a bowl which is safe to use as the top of a double boiler when I'm making boiled icing (so, it needs to be able to get hot). While I regularly make bread, I'm fine kneading by hand. No need for a mixer there, unless there's some special sort of recipe I might want someday...? Haven't made pasta, don't really foresee making pasta. Same for grinding meat. I think maybe my old mixer is the classic Speed Queen of mixers, and I want a durable, reliable, large capacity new Speed Queen of mixers, something simple and rugged. Does that exist? Or should I be open to more bells and whistles?

This. Eta: We have gone to the store a few times, gone to a few essential appointments. We also had a week at a state park cabin, where we managed to avoid others pretty successfully. No dining out, no public restrooms. We have gone on drives, and gone hiking in local areas. Dh has had to return to work in his public contact job, where they're doing their best to socially distance. I am helplessly furious at the careless behavior people expose him to. Dd1 will soon be off to college, where she is required to live in the dorm. Fingers crossed. Dd2 has elected to do virtual school.

One in this category for me was The Underneath. The book got glowing reviews, and may end up being good enough to redeem the appalling cruelty depicted at the beginning: I don't know, because the cruelty was too much for me. It was given to one of our kids as a gift, but after I read the first few chapters I just set it aside. I've always felt like I, as an adult, should give it another chance, but some things are just more than an animal-loving child needs to read. And, really, I don't want to either. Dh and I hated The Rainbow Fish. Didn't even donate it, just pitched it.

One problem is that we're all dealing with delayed information. Testing is still limited and so slow as to be useless in many areas. By the time cases start to perceptibly rise, the people getting positive test results have been infected and spreading the virus for days. So, areas that are starting to look like they might be hot spots have already had a large, undetected group of people transmitting, before anyone can see what's happening. Either WaPo or NYT had an article on how states like Missouri and Oklahoma are on the way toward serious problems, but those aren't the states people think of as hot spots. People there could, so easily, think of Florida and Arizona and Texas as the areas where people need to be careful, just not realizing that their own state is really already in the same situation, just not visibly yet. I'll try to find the article and link it. But-- risk calculations are so difficult with this virus, because we do not have a picture of where it is today. What we know today represents where it was weeks ago. It's the same way it spread invisibly in NYC, and then everyone was shocked by how quickly it got so bad. That could be happening anywhere. Eta: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/coronavirus-threat-rises-across-us-we-just-have-to-assume-the-monster-is-everywhere/2020/08/01/cdb505e0-d1d8-11ea-8c55-61e7fa5e82ab_story.html

This is completely valid. At this point, though, I think we probably all need to expect it, even though it may still be a visual shock the first time we're there. And this is valid, too. It sounds like you've taken a lot of steps to make this work, and that's great. But some people are just complaining and resisting, which doesn't make adjusting to the situation any easier for their kids. I'm sure this is so true. If I were in a job where I was dealing with the public every day, and especially if I were, say, a dentist, lol, I'm not sure how well I'd be coping. Just a trip to the grocery store makes me uncomfortable, even though we're in an area with high mask compliance.

I've got a child on the spectrum, too, and so I know this can be true. The behavioral reaction typically does come later, in the safety of home. All the more reason, then, to make wearing masks a safe, familiar, normal part of a child's life. I know @PeterPan is really thoughtful and intentional about how she works with her son, so this is not aimed at her, just a general comment. Honestly, the parental anxiety about wearing masks makes things so much harder for kids. Same goes for practitioners in PPE. This is going to be normal life for a while, so we might as well settle in and treat it as normal.

The dimmer switch analogy seems to describe what's happening in Australia pretty well, though. Or he also mentions embers... There's a low level that doesn't go away, and you have to stay alert and vigilant, or else the flames break out again. At that point, they spread rapidly.

This whole article is appalling. Very worthwhile reading, though. Thanks for linking it.

Volunteer work, community groups, hobbies. Real activities, where they'll meet people with similar interests. Focus on being out in the world and being themselves, and let the relationships follow naturally. All of this is unusually hard right now, unfortunately. But this is what I'd suggest.

This is just what I need to do. Maybe your example will get me moving...

A recent article on the continuing legacy of redlining: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/23/black-homeownership-gap/?arc404=true The whole article is worth reading, but WaPo does have a paywall. This is a case where the policy has been changed, but the damage done by that longtime policy has not been redressed. The damage is pervasive and ongoing.

Yep, same. Any time dd leaves her dorm room, she is expected to be masked. Group size limits apply, too, though I'm not sure what they are precisely, and obviously that could change. All meals will be picked up and carried back to dorm rooms.

https://halolife.io/pages/our-story These are $$$$$ but have very good filtration, surpassing n95s. Unfortunately they are manufactured in China and take a long time to arrive, but everyone in our family feels like they're comfortable. I like the fact that, although mine doesn't press down hard on my nose, I can tell it's got a good seal around my face because I feel it inflating and deflating slightly as I breathe. The instructions say to change the filter weekly if you're in high public contact situations, which I'd assume a dorm would be. We're thinking that if the whole mask is simply put in a paper bag for several days, though, the virus should die, so I'm not sure if that's necessary. I think these masks were originally designed for use in areas with wildfires, so changing filters entirely makes more sense to me in that situation. I am sending dd off with extras, though. https://easymasks.com/collections/easy-masks These are made in NC and shipped quickly. The filtration isn't as good, but if you read the product description for the filters, they still capture a fairly high percentage (80%) of particles down to .3 microns. They feel comfortable to me, though I don't think the seal is as good as on the Halo masks, but ymmv.

Dd's college has said only residents may enter each dorm building, and also that no one may enter another student's dorm room, even if they live in the same building. OP, I do worry about dd's safety, like I worry about her every time she drives. But I don't obsess about it, and I'm not keeping her home: not that I could, as she's an adult now, and she's been looking forward to this for so long. Realistically, I think the worst risk for her is that she'll have a rotten semester of online classes and spend most of her time sitting in her dorm room, because she doesn't want to be sent into quarantine. She is acutely aware that her risk of quarantine (and, of course, infection) is dependent on the behavior of every other person she comes in contact with. Seeing contact with hallmates and classmates as dangerous is so very much not how I would like her to start freshman year, sigh. Now, if she brings the virus home from campus to us at Thanksgiving or whenever they get shut down, that's a bigger risk due to dh's and my preexisting conditions. Again, not going to obsess. We'll take reasonable precautions based on conditions at the time and the best information we have then. Editing to add that I probably should point out I did invest a possibly unreasonable amount of money in the best masks I could find for dd, with plenty of extra, high-quality filters. Might as well stack the decks as much in her favor as possible...

May I add a question about pick-up service? Do you tip the person who brings out the groceries? I've been unsure about this. Stores in our area used to have a strong no-tipping policy, but the grocery chains have changed in the last few years, and Covid adds a new wrinkle.

Hugs. I'd be fed up too.

Good question. I hope we find out more soon.

This sounds promising. https://www.bbc.com/news/health-53467022

Maybe this would be a good time to recommend the various supplements @Pen has mentioned to the parents and grandma? At a minimum, vitamin d and zinc. They might be able to improve their odds a bit still, especially if they didn't get a heavy viral load.

Yeah, it's hard to know exactly what they're envisioning. In our case, they said to have the bag ready to go, but didn't give a list. I hate to be that parent, but I may get in touch with someone in Residence Life and ask some questions.