Tuesday, May 19, 2020

A Canadian report suggests that dental hygienists, barbers, and child care and restaurant workers will be the most at risk in reopening areas

The report looked at occupations where workers frequently come into close proximity with others. The report also mentioned flight attendants, construction workers, physical therapists, cashiers, and teachers as those with high-risk occupations. The report said mitigating infections will require increased physical barriers in certain occupations and the ability of employees to “refuse unsafe work.” A poll found that close to 60% of Americans who work outside their homes were worried about being infected and bringing the virus back to family members. (Behind The Numbers)

A new study finds that men are less likely to wear face masks in public than women because they think it’s a sign of weakness

“Men more than women agree that wearing a face covering is shameful, not cool, a sign of weakness, and a stigma,” write study co-authors. “These gender differences also mediate gender differences intentions to wear a face covering.” The researchers of the study, which was conducted by researchers from Middlesex University London in the UK and the Mathematical Science Research Institute in Berkeley, California, also found that men are also more likely to believe that COVID-19 won’t seriously impact their health, despite data showing that more men are dying from the disease than women. The co-authors believe “women are generally less willing to take risks, and are thus more compliant with preventive behavior than their male counterparts.” (PsyARxIV)

**WARNING: MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR ALL AUDIENCES!**

Dutch singletons advised to seek ‘sex buddy’

The Dutch government has issued new guidance to single people seeking intimacy during the pandemic, advising them to find a “sex buddy”. The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) says singletons should come to an arrangement with one other person, but pairings should avoid sex if one of them suspects they have coronavirus, the advice says. The guidance comes after critics said there was no sex advice for singles. Social-distancing measures have been in place in the Netherlands since March 23rd when the government imposed what it called an “intelligent” or “targeted” lock-down. The rules were far less strict than those of the country’s neighbors, permitting small gatherings of people if social distancing was observed. But in guidance published recently, the RIVM said “it makes sense that as a single [person] you also want to have physical contact” during the pandemic. Should singletons choose to engage in sexual contact, precautions should be taken to minimize the risk of coronavirus exposure, the authority said. The RIVM has also issued advice for people whose long-term partners suspect they have contracted the coronavirus. “Don’t have sex with your partner if they have been isolated because of (suspected) coronavirus infection,” it says. “Sex with yourself or with others at a distance is possible,” it adds, suggesting “erotic stories” and “masturbating together” as possible solutions. (BBC)

Man regrets doubting COVID-19 as ‘hysteria’ after infection lands him in intensive care

A Florida resident who at one time blew off the novel coronavirus as “hysteria” now says he regrets not taking it seriously. The man said that he initially downplayed the threat of the virus when it first hit, and he avoided wearing a mask in public even though his job involved driving around multiple strangers every day. “I thought it was maybe the government trying something, and it was kind of like they threw it out there to kinda distract us,” he says. “I’d get up in the morning and pray and trust in God for his protection, and I’d just leave it at that. There were all these masks and gloves. I thought it looks like a hysteria.” His feelings about the virus changed, however, when both he and his wife contracted it and were treated in an intensive care unit. While he has started recovering, he says that his wife is still on a ventilator at the ICU. In a Facebook post, he admitted that he got COVID-19 wrong and encouraged everyone to listen to public health experts. (Raw Story)

A Surprising Number of Professionals Are Going Pants-less on Video Conference Calls

According to a recent survey of users, Fishbowl found that one in 10 professionals are video conferencing in their skivvies. Of these, men were three times more likely than women to report going pantsless on Zoom, with men coming in at 14.27% vs 4.72% for women. It’s estimated that three percent are still putting on a suit to video chat. Meanwhile, more than 75% of respondents are at least putting on some kind of pants, even if those pants are meant for sleeping in. In addition, more than half of women surveyed responded that they have completely stopped wearing makeup, while on the men’s side 29.78% have given up shaving. In another Fishbowl survey, we learned that 42% of employees say they drink while working from home. (Fishbowl)

Man arrested after slapping girlfriend with cheeseburger

Martin County, Florida Sheriff’s Deputies say that a 30-year-old man was arrested after his live-in girlfriend called them. She claimed she woke up to her boyfriend slapping her in the face with a cheeseburger. The woman said he then pulled her hair and kicked her down the stairs. According to an arrest report, when deputies arrived, the woman had “several remnants of said cheeseburger” on her. Deputies said he admitted to getting into an argument with his girlfriend that turned physical, but he refused to comment further. He has since been released from jail on bond. (WPLG)

Woman loses towel, gets mad, sets fire to shed

A 57-year-old woman in Florida was arrested this week after she set fire to a shed another woman was living in, following an argument with the shed’s resident over a missing towel. The tenant told Alachua County deputies that she was renting the shed and living there with her two dogs. The tenant said the landlord had been drunk and threatened to “burn her out” because of a missing towel that had sentimental value to her. About 20 minutes after the fight, the tenant said she smelled something burning and then saw smoke. The woman said she got out of the shed, but her puppy fled under the furniture and died in the fire. A neighbor’s surveillance showed landlord crouching next to the shed several times, just before the building caught fire. The landlord faces charges of attempted murder, arson and animal cruelty. She was being held on $80,000 bond. (WKMG)

Man breaks into cancer ward and downs two bottles of sanitizer before falling asleep on hospital bed

A 39-year-old man broke into a hospital cancer ward, drank two bottles of alcohol sanitizer, urinated on the floor, threw up and pulled down a curtain to use as a blanket. He was found slumped on a bed the next day by a horrified cleaner at the Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby, England. He apologized to all of the staff at the hospital when he appeared in court. He said he had such a problem with alcohol that he needed help and if he walked out of court, he would go and steal some. The prosecutor told Grimsby Magistrates’ Court that the man had caused problems at the hospital many times before and was well known to security guards as a nuisance. The man was sentenced by the court to be jailed for 20 weeks. (Grimsby Telegraph)

Man fights child, tells him to “fight like a man”

A 36-year-old man, was arrested and charged with child abuse after he assaulted a young boy while yelling at him to “fight like a man.” The Santa Rosa County, Florida Sheriff’s Office arrested the man after they received several callers feared may have turned physical. A woman told deputies that he had grabbed her hair and forcibly pinned her down on a couch, holding her there until the boy ran into the room and yelled for the man to let her go. The woman said the man also threw a bookshelf at her that hit her leg, and deputies observed the woman’s leg was injured. According to the report, the man grabbed the boy’s arms and dragged the child down a hallway. He then forced him into a bedroom and shoved him onto a bed and demanded the boy “fight him like a man,” the report stated. The boy provided deputies with a video of the incident in which deputies noted they could hear the man was yelling that the boy needed to fight him like a man as the boy yelled back that he was only trying to protect the woman, the report stated. (Pensacola News Journal)

Man dives into Bass Pro Shop fish tank, posts video on Facebook

Lee County, Florida Sheriff’s deputies say they’re looking for a 27-year-old man who faces a charge of trespassing. Deputies say he can be seen in a Facebook video jumping over the fenced barrier at a Bass Pro Shop and diving head first into the aquarium. The diver lingers for a moment, swims to the surface and exits the pool. The man was captured on surveillance cameras fleeing the shop and entering a silver sedan. Deputies said the man posted the video on Facebook with the caption “Yup well would you look at that? #FloridaCheck”. Bass Pro Shop will have to spend $3,000 to decontaminate the water. The man has a history of arrests on charges of robbery, aggravated battery and the sale and delivery of illegal drugs, LCSO said. Authorities believe he is residing in the North Fort Myers area or in San Carlos Park. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the man is asked to call Crime Stoppers. LCSO is offering a cash reward of $3,000 for helpful tips. (Orlando Sentinal)

700-home power cut caused by bull with ‘itchy bum’ that broke transformer box

A broken transformer box which cut power to around 700 homes recently was damaged by a bull with an “itchy bum”, according to a local farmer from Chapelton in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. She said the electricity outage was caused by “Ron”, a four-year old Limousin bull on her farm. Engineers managed to restore power at around 4am the following morning, and the pair realised what had caused the problem when they went to feed the cows. “We noticed the transformer had been knocked off,” she explained. “We have seen the bull scratch himself on the pole before, so we knew what had happened.” Thankfully Ron wasn’t hurt in the accident, and locals have taken the news with good humor. In a post of facebook, she said “Our bull Ron would like to apologize to everyone in Chapelton and Strathaven for causing last night’s power cut. He had an itchy bum so scratched it on the electricity pole and knocked the transformer box off! He’s just happy to be alive this morning after somehow escaping 11,000 volts and a large bump on the head!” She and her husband have promised to rename their bull “Sparky” to commemorate his near miss. (The Scotsman)

Hong Kong shop offers ‘tear gas’ flavor ice cream

Tear gas is among the new flavors at a Hong Kong ice cream shop. The main ingredient is black peppercorns, a reminder of the pungent, peppery rounds fired by police on the streets of the Chinese city during months of demonstrations last year. “It tastes like tear gas. It feels difficult to breathe at first, and it’s really pungent and irritating. It makes me want to drink a lot of water immediately,” one customer said who experienced tear gas at a protest. “I think it’s a flashback that reminds me of how painful I felt in the movement, and that I shouldn’t forget.” The flavor is a sign of support for the pro-democracy movement, which is seeking to regain its momentum during the coronavirus pandemic, the shop’s owner said. He tried different ingredients, including wasabi and mustard, in an effort to replicate the taste of tear gas. Black pepper, he said, came closest to tear gas with its throat-irritating effects. “We would like to make a flavor that reminds people that they still have to persist in the protest movement and don’t lose their passion,” he said. At about $5 a serving, tear gas ice cream has been a hit. Prior to social distancing regulations over the coronavirus outbreak, the shop’s owner said he was selling 20-30 scoops per day. (Associated Press)

Four day work week may help stop virus

As leaders around the world weigh the risks of reopening workplaces in the wake of the pandemic, researchers from the Weizmann Institute in Israel and the London School of Economics have a suggestion: Start off with a four-day in-office work week, followed by 10 days off. It typically takes three days for someone infected with COVID-19 to become infectious to others. So, if someone becomes sick during their in-office period, it’s likely they will be off during the moments they are contagious. Such a method could help reduce the number of new infections, paving a path to a fuller return to working life. (The New York Times)

Tuesday Comes At Us With:

• Boys Club Day
• May Ray Day
• National Hepatitus Testing Day
• National Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
• National Scooter Day
• World IBD Day