Those kind of charts change constantly with new reporting. You can assume COVID is here and somewhat steady recently but assumed could go up again when people venture more indoors with coming cold weather. We recently made a run south from Minnesota to Ozark National Scenic Riverways in southern Missouri. You just have to use caution and interact sparingly. Use your own bathroom, credit card only at the pumps, where gloves at the pump handles (always do with diesel anyway), wash hands frequently if you do shop for food, wear mask of course, keep social distance, etc. We stayed at Harvest Host winery sites coming and going with little interaction but to buy courtesy bottles of their wine when we were the only customers for a free stay. We did go to two restaurants for my hobby, the breaded pork tenderloin sandwich intending to take out, midway between lunch and dinner and stayed when we were the only one on the outside patio in one and the only customers in the other inside.
We did meet about 20 fellow RVers for a social at our destination. The campground fire pit circle got humongous with social distancing and we dispensed with potlucks and sharing of food we normally do. One couple did survive COVID already in July. They wore masks. The husband still has lingering effects, so it is not like the flu.
Our other trips since March have been in remote forests in northern Minnesota with no one around.
We had delayed wedding for our daughter from April to August with the guest list paired down from about 150 to immediate family and friends of about 30 and a change in venue entirely outdoors in a back yard and a winery reception outdoors with temporary tent shelters.
We have been getting together with our son and family living in La Crosse, WI midway at a park outdoors for a picnic and dispensed with the hugs about every month but on our local news last night there was a report that La Crosse was a COVID hotspot at the UW-la crosse and people were warned not to travel there. My son is an administrator and DIL a professor and live across the street from the University. Our grandsons are remote learning but active in sports. We cancelled this month. We use Zoom a lot with our families.
We get together with our HOA neighbors on our cul-de-sac street two Tuesdays every month this summer outdoors with social distancing and masks. We had nearly everyone from our 16 households last Tuesday. It might have been the last outdoor get together if the weather turns cold and it may be a longtime before we get together inside sharing food.
My wife is more active. She does the most shopping, outdoor swims at Lifetime Fitness, gets together with her two sisters a lot, volunteers at WeCan, a food shelf and today is meeting at Como Park in St. Paul with her fellow U of Minnesota Raptor Center volunteers for her retirement from that activity of 20 years. I buy beer and go to my condo garage man cave.
If you are into podcast there is an excellent series called the "Olsterholm Update COVID-19" Episode 23 is on Mental Health, coping with this COVID isolation which I listened to on my walk yesterday. Dr. Michael Olsterholm is an epidemiologist at the University of Minnesota. He has been a frequent commentator on cable news. I trust him to tell it like it is.
COVID September 2020 trip planning
Linear Mode
