The CDC remains wary about international travel – More COVID restrictions lifted – Vaccines and exercise – The Canadian authorities emerge from their torpor – A potential COVID casualty averted by an unlikely intervention – Evening statistics
One must be cautious about becoming over-confident of international travel. The CDC currently ranks only seven destinations at Level 1, or low risk for COVID: Benin, China, Falkland Islands, Hong Kong, Sierra Leone, Taiwan, and East Timor. Only four nations are ranked at Level 2, or moderate risk: Cameroon, Madeira Islands, New Zealand, and Pakistan. All of the rest are Level 3 (high risk) or Level 4 (very high risk). The CDC recommends that unvaccinated people should avoid unessential travel to those in the Level 3 category and that all travelers, even if vaccinated, should avoid unessential travel to those in the Level 4 category. Nearly all countries in Europe are currently in the Level 4 category. I hope that evaluation will change in the spring, when I am scheduled for a couple of international trips to Ireland and Iceland.
COVID-related restrictions are continuing to be lifted. Starting on March 1st, Washington DC will no longer make facemasks mandatory in many indoor settings, such as restaurants, bars, gyms, and houses of worship. Masks will still be required in schools, libraries, nursing homes, public transit, and healthcare facilities. In Maryland, the requirement for masks and face coverings in state buildings will end on Feb. 22nd. In Virginia, Governor Youngkin has made amendments that would end school mask mandates on March 1st. The amendments will have to be ratified by the General Assembly, and it probably will be, since several Democratic members as well as Republicans have contended that the mask mandates are no longer needed.
A new study at Iowa State University suggests that taking exercise shortly after taking the COVID vaccines will increase their efficacy. Such a course is more easily said than done. In my own case it was not an issue. I had little reaction to any of the doses I have received and was able to hike on the same day that I received each of them. But I know some whose reactions were more severe and who were in no condition to do anything of the sort until the after-effects passed away.
Justin Trudeau has finally taken action to recover Canada’s capital. Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly has tendered in his resignation, and it has been accepted with a speed and decision that borders on being insulting; but not more so than he deserves for his inertia in the face of the protestors who have been harassing the citizens for weeks. A command center was set up so that the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Ontario Provincial Police could assume command over the situation. The Ottawa police are thus reduced to a secondary role but after their continued sloth while the residents of Ottawa have been in a state of siege, they deserve no better.
An odd little story with a happy ending: Naoki Teraoka’s miniature-railroad-themed restaurant in Osaka was doing well until the pandemic struck, but when it did his clientele dwindled and he was contemplating closing up shop as revenues decreased. During this time a couple of stray cats (a kitten and its mother) began to wander in and out, and the restaurant owners, with few customers and plenty of surplus food, began to feed them. Eventually the mother cat showed up with three more kittens, which the owners fed likewise. The cats began making themselves at home amidst the restaurant’s furniture, as cats tend to do, including the scaled model train dioramas. Though diminutive in real life, the cats towered over the miniature landscapes, reminiscent of movies that feature invasions from oversize creatures from outer space. Amused by such a tableau, Teraoka began taking photos and posting them. They went viral, as the term goes, and this reaction gave Teraoka the inspiration to transform his restaurant into a cat sanctuary where patrons could interact with stray cats as they dined, and to adopt them if they wished. The strategy proved to be successful: customers have been patronizing the newly-themed restaurant in droves. Not only has Teraoka’s business fallen on its feet (to use a phrase that, under these circumstances, seems peculiarly appropriate) but he has found homes for more than 60 stray cats and rescued dozens more from the streets.
Yesterday’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 415,774,855; # of deaths worldwide: 5,855,632; # of cases U.S.: 79,625,776; # of deaths; U.S.: 949,174.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 417,917,892; # of deaths worldwide: 5,867,379; # of cases U.S.: 79,768,256; # of deaths; U.S.: 951,953.