Lockdown Number 2
By Jeff Moffitt
@moffittjc (118306)
Gainesville, Florida
July 6, 2020 5:24pm CST
Here where I live, we are now 17 weeks into the coronavirus crisis. Doesn't sound like a long time, but it's been over 4 months now that we have been dealing with this pandemic. For 12 of those weeks, we were in lockdown and pretty much quarantined at home. I was lucky enough to get to work from home without losing my job or facing a reduction in pay. During those 12 weeks, we were successful in "flattening the curve" in our area, and keeping the number of positive cases in low manageable numbers. So, after week 12, things started slowly opening back up and I returned to work at the office. Things went well for a while, and over the last month we were slowly re-opening our facilities with special guidelines in place. But then things took a turn for the worse. Nationwide, cases started skyrocketing again. Statewide, cases started skyrocketing again. And locally, cases started skyrocketing again. So last Friday, we got the word that we were going back into lockdown again. Back to square one. Or round 2. However you want to look at it. So although today we were supposed to start working from home again, I had to go into the office for a little while because there was so much work I had started there that I didn't get a chance to finish or bring home with me on Friday. So I grabbed it all today. I'll be working from home again until further notice. *Sigh*
Have any of you gone back into lockdown or quarantine again for a second time? Or has everybody just said "screw it" and continued on with life as normal, despite the recent spikes in virus cases?
42 people like this
46 responses
@JudyEv (325102)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Jul 20
The virus is rampant again in Victoria and some are really suffering - large numbers in small apartments and all confined to their units. Hot spots in some schools and other facilities. Borders are closed and strict restrictions in place. I am so glad to be where I am. I'm sorry about the situation there. It can't be easy.
5 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
@JudyEv Well, I'm not going to lie, I'm a little bored.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (325102)
• Rockingham, Australia
8 Jul 20
@moffittjc You should deep-clean the house, paint the house, try out new recipes, embark on some study, learn to knit (
), - this is great opportunity to change your life!
Seriously, it must be getting old to go back to lockdown after all this time.
), - this is great opportunity to change your life!
Seriously, it must be getting old to go back to lockdown after all this time.1 person likes this
@JudyEv (325102)
• Rockingham, Australia
7 Jul 20
@moffittjc I thought maybe you were bored.
3 people like this
@Alexandoy (65308)
• Cainta, Philippines
6 Jul 20
From the usual less than 100 cases in a day, we are now getting 2,000 for several days already. We had a lockdown of 2 months. But now our government cannot impose another lockdown for lack of budget. They cannot feed the people anymore, no money, finished.
5 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
It doesn't look like our government is going to force anyone back into lockdown again, and I think they pretty much just gave up and said that the economy is more important than protecting people's lives. But the city I work for has pretty much said it wants to shut all the government buildings down again (I work for the government).
3 people like this
@Alexandoy (65308)
• Cainta, Philippines
6 Jul 20
@moffittjc it is good if your local government can afford to supply you with the basic needs so your area can be placed into another lockdown. I agree with the government that the economy should be moving amid the spike in corona virus cases. It is not good to die of hunger.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
@Alexandoy Our government doesn't provide anything. They just shut everything down. And if you can't pay your bills or afford food, then tough luck. Our government doesn't care.
2 people like this
@Tina30219 (81539)
• Onaway, Michigan
7 Jul 20
So sorry to hear this. No more lockdown here
3 people like this
@Tina30219 (81539)
• Onaway, Michigan
8 Jul 20
@moffittjc I agree on the distraction part you are definitely less distracted at home than you would be at the office
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Jul 20
@Tina30219 I just have fewer interruptions as home. At work, there's always somebody popping their head into my office to chat, or always someone calling my office phone. It gets pretty distracting sometimes.
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Jul 20
@Tina30219 Well, I still have to work, so it's not like it's vacation. I still have to go into the office on occasion, because there are just some things I can't do from home. So it's kind of a hassle in a way, but overall I'm not complaining because I get so much more work done from home than I do at the office (less distractions here at home).
@Juliaacv (48579)
• Canada
6 Jul 20
I'm so sorry that you are moving backwards. I know that people will learn and stay home with this being the second time since they see the error of their ways.
We are below 155 new cases in Ontario the past couple of days each.
We are all working so hard, and we have seen the other provinces go days without new cases, and we all want that here also. Hopefully it is coming.
You stay safe, wash your hands and please stay home Jeff.
2 people like this
@Juliaacv (48579)
• Canada
6 Jul 20
@moffittjc I know that you were terribly ill. I just really hope that your area gets the all clear soon enough. This is so hard on everyone.
I have been working from home for 3 months now, and I am not even thinking of going back. We are reopening so very slowly here.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
@Juliaacv I wasn't worried when they had us start going back to work at the office, because we all had staggered schedules so that only half the offices were staffed at any given time. There was a security guard at the entrance to our building, and you had to submit to a temperature scan in order to get in. You also had to wear a mask to get in. So people were taking all the necessary precautions, at least at my office building. So far, I'm the only one at work who caught the virus (I most likely got it at Disney World), and that was 4 months ago. So the fact that nobody else at my work has gotten it means everybody is either really lucky, or doing a really good job of following all the guidelines.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
Don't worry, I'm doing everything I can to stay safe, even though I've already had the virus! I'm just trying to do my part not to spread it to anyone else.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
I'm beginning to think--and numerous scientists are also starting to conclude--that all our efforts are a waste of time, that this virus is completely airborne and so easily spreadable that it's virtually unstoppable. I mean, I'm still taking all the necessary precautions, but in the end the virus is going to infect most, if not all, of us.
4 people like this
@DianneN (246334)
• United States
7 Jul 20
@moffittjc I'm glad you are talking precautions, but perhaps you may not get it after having had it.
I'm still taking precautions and will patiently wait for a safe vaccine to come out.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
@DianneN You are doing the smart thing. Do everything in your power to avoid getting the virus until a vaccine is available.
2 people like this
@RubyHawk (99425)
• Atlanta, Georgia
7 Jul 20
Not yet, but we're expecting it any day. Our virus cases are now higher than in March and April. If something isn't done to get people to wear masks we're in trouble. Hospitals are filling up again and from what I hear they will soon be short of supplies.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
I read today that Atlanta's mayor now has coronavirus. Yes, she who was marching alongside all the other protesters a few weeks ago! I saw that one coming from a mile away!
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Jul 20
@RubyHawk I haven't seen any news about Atlanta in the past week or so. Been so busy I haven't really had the chance to pay attention to any of the news.
1 person likes this
@RubyHawk (99425)
• Atlanta, Georgia
8 Jul 20
@moffittjc I didn’t see that but she should have known better. I guess you saw the National Guard was called to Atlanta to keep the peace. People were shooting so I heard. I didn’t see the news myself.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
I don't think our state will go back into quarantine, although they are now starting to shut a lot of things back down, like bars, gyms, beaches and other places where masses tend to congregate. The city in which I live in has been pretty good about following science over politics, and has so far stayed the course on its response. That's the good news. The bad news is, our cases are still rising at the same levels as all the other places who are not following the guidelines. So something's not working. Maybe the only true answer is quarantine.
1 person likes this
@snowy22315 (169490)
• United States
8 Jul 20
No, fortunately the virus has remained fairly constant here. We haven't seen any huge spikes. We just went into phase III July 1st, and so far things seem pretty steady..small increases. I think the worst that would happen here would be back into phase 2. Sis and brother in law are both working at home, and have been since April. They are allowed to go in to fetch files though.
2 people like this
@snowy22315 (169490)
• United States
8 Jul 20
@moffittjc Phase 1 would be a real bummer, however, Fla. opened too soon, and many didn't adhere to guidelines so there ya go.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Jul 20
@snowy22315 I agree wholeheartedly. We get what we deserve. Although I don't wish COVID on anyone. But it is what it is. You open too soon, and ignore the rules and science, and things like this are bound to happen.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Jul 20
Statewide, we went into phase 3, although the governor has backed down on some of the re-openings. But locally, we were supposed to start our own phase 3 on Monday (July 6), but because of the spiking numbers our city manager put us back into a modified phase 1 status. I say modified, because we closed some things but left some things open.
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8609)
• Norway
7 Jul 20
It's summer holiday here, so we're continuing life as normal, washing hands a bit more frequently while watching the news from the rest of the world. No spike in infections here, we had one more case in the whole region last week. Things might change when tourists start coming in, but I don't think it will start seriously before Norwegians start coming back from holiday.
So we're still happily nearly coronafree, no masks and lot of idiots driving too fast. I'm hoping it stays more or less that way, the local clusters have been really small (one school f.ex., and some families in Oslo after Id) and that people going on holiday do like me and go to safe countries and hang out with dogs. I'm going to Finland in a month, but Finland's been more effective than us. As long as they don't let their neighbours in, they'll be fine.
Hope you have everything sorted out so you can work OK from home. My main problem was that I ate all the chocolate and drank all the tea, every day for 2 months.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
If Norwegians did any traveling on summer holiday, then you can count on them bringing back the virus when they return home.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
@Torunn Well, Russia is always trouble, so there's nothing new there! haha Look what they're doing now, sending radioactive clouds to you!
1 person likes this
@Torunn (8609)
• Norway
7 Jul 20
@moffittjc They're not the best neighbour. Keep sending planes and claim that they just "got lost" ...
But because of the Russians, the Finns were much better prepared than the rest of us. They've got lots of stuff stored, so they haven't panicked about not having masks.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104632)
• United States
6 Jul 20
Here in NC we are stuck in Phase 2. Restaurants are still open, parks etc are still open. Gyms and bars are still closed. Oh, and masks are now mandatory.
The Governor in Florida is letting the mayors decide on things like that, right?
2 people like this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104632)
• United States
6 Jul 20
@moffittjc I feel like it doesn't do any good for one area to have the ordinance and the others not to, ya know? Like if there is going to be one, it needs to be everywhere.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
@ScribbledAdNauseum I agree. And the sad thing is, even with all our tougher restrictions, our virus cases are skyrocketing just like they are everywhere else, which kind of shows that none of this mask-wearing, social distancing, wash-your-hands requirements aren't working.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
It's up to the individual counties, not necessarily the cities. But some cities (like Gainesville where I live) are choosing to enact even stricter restrictions. We have a mandatory mask ordinance in place here, almost all of the rest of Florida doesn't.
3 people like this
@CinnamonGrl (7083)
• Santa Fe, New Mexico
6 Jul 20
We're still in lockdown. Not much had reopened, and when cases started growing again, our gov. stopped the next phase of reopening. Nobody should be saying "screw it." It just overwhelms the hospitals. I feel so sorry for medical personnel during this time.
2 people like this
@CinnamonGrl (7083)
• Santa Fe, New Mexico
6 Jul 20
@moffittjc Sadly I think there are some thoughtless people. Maybe it's just easier for me because I'm retired and wasn't really "out there" much anyway. But some people truly don't seem to care what happens, and I don't get that.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
@CinnamonGrl Those are the people who don't believe this whole pandemic thing is real. There's a lot of deniers out there.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
6 Jul 20
A bunch of hospitals in the Miami area are now saying they are about to be full. It's only a matter of time before hospitals all over Florida, and all over the country, are full and start turning people away. So much for "flattening the curve." I guess nobody cares anymore.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (205018)
• Walnut Creek, California
7 Jul 20
I've been stuck at home for four months. No college classes to teach. No darling 2 1/2-year-olds to teach. My sanity has been maintained by occasionally visiting my music friends to play with them, and by working on my book, which I hope will be "actually good."
2 people like this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
Please tell me you've had a source of income over that period of time! That's a long time to be out of work!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Jul 20
@TheHorse Sounds like you are living the good life. I may be joining you shortly.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (205018)
• Walnut Creek, California
9 Jul 20
@moffittjc I'll find a good spot for you.
1 person likes this
@lovebuglena (43048)
• Staten Island, New York
7 Jul 20
We are in phase 3 of reopening. We are not ordered to stay at home. But anyone traveling to NYC (or NYS) has to quarantine for 14 days. And I think cases here have gone up. But I am not sure. I have a feeling this pandemic will go well into 2021.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
I heard your governor joking that he was going to have to ban travel from Florida, sort of how Florida banned New Yorkers from traveling here.
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
8 Jul 20
@lovebuglena Yeah, but I don't think he was joking. I think he was serious.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
17 Jul 20
Yes, we keep being told that Florida is now the epicenter of the virus. Our cases are setting new records every day.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
17 Jul 20
@nela13 Where I live they are, because in our city masks have been mandatory since the start of the pandemic. We're in much better shape than the rest of our state. So, yes, in my city people are following the rules. But it's not like that everywhere else.
1 person likes this
@nela13 (55688)
• Portugal
17 Jul 20
@moffittjc are people following the rules there?
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
28 Jul 20
@kareng Of course, and it's a common sense approach. But have we done anything so far that's made any sense? Of course not. That would make too much sense! lol
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
24 Jul 20
It seems as if these places where the virus is out of control should take stronger actions, while places where it seems to be under control can proceed cautiously with their re-opening plans. No sense locking down the entire country again when it's the hot spots that need to take the most action.
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54189)
• Louisville, Kentucky
11 Jul 20
I'm so sorry you are on lockdown again. After reading how bad it was there, I had a feeling it would happen. Our governor just made it mandatory here to wear masks out in public. I don't know how they will enforce it when our own president refuses to wear one.
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54189)
• Louisville, Kentucky
13 Jul 20
@moffittjc That's good that it's not like it was before. I am surprised that the pools are still open though. Do they only allow so many people in the pool areas? I know that's how it is here.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Jul 20
It's only a "lockdown" in the sense that we closed our offices back down. They just want us to continue working from home as much as possible, but we can still go out in public if we need to. The swimming pools I manage are still open.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
13 Jul 20
@simone10 Yes, we are open for lap swimming only, and people have to make a reservation to swim. We are only allowing one person per lap lane (under normal circumstances it would be 5 per lane). Lap swimmers are allowed to swim for 50 minutes, and then everyone exits the pool so our staff can do a quick 10 minute disinfection of everything. Then the next group of swimmers are allowed in for their 50 minutes swim. We are open in 2-hour increments, then we close for an hour for a thorough cleaning. We do that all day long...open for 2 hours, close for an hour, open for 2 hours, close for an hour, etc.
1 person likes this
@gr8nana6 (6614)
• Conyers, Georgia
17 Jul 20
@moffittjc Well that is some good news, hopefully it keeps on declining for y'all
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
17 Jul 20
@gr8nana6 I hope so too. We've really got to get through this pandemic and start putting our lives back together again.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
17 Jul 20
I just read some data here locally, and it looks like we've had 4 days in a row where the number of new cases declines. So that is a good trend if it continues. They're now suggesting that the huge spike in cases in Florida may have been the result of everyone from up north traveling to Florida for the Memorial Day weekend holiday, since at that time Florida was low on the number of cases and people felt safe. So that would make sense that the number of cases spiked 2 weeks after the holiday, and are now starting to level out a little. But then we still have to be careful because if that's what happened for Memorial Day, then it's most likely what we'll also see happen soon due to the 4th of July holiday.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
13 Jul 20
@just4him I just read that Florida led the nation today in the amount of new virus cases, over 15,000 total. The whole country only had 56,000 new cases, so almost 25% of all new cases were in Florida. Not looking good for our state. And yet Disney World was still allowed to open this weekend. Guess what we're going to see in 2 weeks? More new cases!
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
11 Jul 20
We've had our mask ordinance in place almost since the beginning, and it definitely produced results initially with our county's cases being so much lower than the rest of the state. But now, our numbers are spiking at the same rate as everywhere else in the state, even though everybody continues to wear their masks like before.
1 person likes this
@just4him (305251)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
11 Jul 20
@moffittjc Our numbers are up for the third day in a row and each day is a higher number. I think another lockdown is inevitable.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
22 Jul 20
Oh wow, I'm sorry to hear that. I thought perhaps Canada was doing a much better job of containing the virus, as opposed to the spiking cases in the US.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
23 Jul 20
@paigea You're not doing too bad at all. In just Florida alone, we have over 380,000 cases, with 5,344 deaths so far. Our state population is just over 20 million people.
1 person likes this
@paigea (35612)
• Canada
23 Jul 20
@moffittjc Alberta has a population of 4,428,247 and about 9,600 cases so far. We have done the worst, per capita, in Canada.
Population of Canada 37,737,992
Cases 112,208
Deaths 8,870
I don't know how that compares to US. The US numbers sound so big, but our whole population would fit into New York. (well, close)
1 person likes this
@MommyOfEli2013 (81862)
• Rupert, Idaho
7 Jul 20
Oh wow, I am sorry to hear that you are going back into lockdown there. I think I would have a meltdown if we did. So far we are lucky to not be, even though our cases have been about 5x what they were during lockdown.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
7 Jul 20
Just my work is going into lockdown, not our entire city. I work for the local city government, and it's just the city buildings that are going back into lockdown. The rest of the community and businesses are still open for business. The swimming pools I manage are still open, albeit under very strict regulations and guidelines.
1 person likes this
@moffittjc (118306)
• Gainesville, Florida
9 Jul 20
@MommyOfEli2013 In the beginning of the lockdown, back in March, I really enjoyed working from home. Now, I don't like it so much. I find myself much happier and much more engaged when I get to go into the office to work. I just think it brings back a sense of normalcy.
1 person likes this
@MommyOfEli2013 (81862)
• Rupert, Idaho
8 Jul 20
@moffittjc Well that still is not great news! but that is good other things are still open.
1 person likes this
