Alas, I didn't have the opportunity to say that last bit though, because as I noted, the nitwit was bravely doing a drive-by, barely-intelligble as it was. 🙄

Probably best I didn't add to his distractions in the smoke-laden air.

😂😂😂

2/2

#wildfires
#yegwx
#yegAQ
#PPE
#elastomerics
#P100

Had another person approach me in the wild to more-or-less ask me about my mask, except it started with this question:

THEM: Excuse me, is there an epidemic going on or something? I've seen a lot of people masking now all of a sudden.

ME: Well, there's the pandemic, and it's still ongoing …

#yeg
#COVID
#CovidIsNotOver
#CovidIsAirborne
#MaskUp
#Respirators
#Elastomerics

1/2

Amanda Abbott @quackduck314
created a spreadsheet with lots of info on various #elastomerics .

This might be useful to some in the #CovidIsNotOver bubble.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1NuYVJasqD08cqrROVwoL9COoYtCHrLRYXShg4MtTHe4/edit#gid=0

"...suggest is the need for more research designed to maximize effectiveness. In other words, how do we help healthcare workers get a good fit even after re-donning?

To me, the answer is PRACTICE... Doff, don, fit-test, repeat. Learn to gain confidence in a fit. Learn where the gaps are. That's what I do. That's why I can go with confidence into just about any setting.

The study did not evaluate #elastomerics. They found cup-style N95s performed best. Anyone passing a fit-test initially in an elasto would have a very high success rate after extensive re-donning and re-use. If people can find an elasto that fits them well, it's often a wise choice.

The study also did not evaluate the fit of surgical or procedure masks. The reason was that none of these could pass fit-testing. They are not designed to protect against COVID. The focus should be on increasing N95 use in healthcare & taking practical steps to optimize benefit. "

The N95 trifold fit failures are..."

4/n

3/3

I'm telling you, this is the future. You can not tell me #LongCovid isn't affecting people, society, and the simplest of things, never mind the difficult. As a human race, we've handed over our cognitive function. Archaeologists will look back at these few years as when evolution turned back. #CovidIsNOTover Please #MaskUP #N95 or better #Elastomerics #Covid #CovidVax & #CovidBooster is not enough

Maybe they should develop #Elastomerics to look like #FloppyBlues #SurgicalMasks to freaking "normalize" them...

#CovidIsNotOver #LongCovid #MaskUp #Covid

@CassandraSmiles

You should get #elastomerics. #P100. But the Bluna is VERY good so it may be enough.

I suggest a qualitative fit test to see how well the Bluna is doing.

Help please. I'm going to be #flying with my daughter for the first time since #covid. I have #POTS she has #PANS #PANDAS. We have avoided COVID so far with Bluna Facefit KF-94 masks.

The flight is 2 hours. How do I keep us safe? Is an N-95 enough? Do we need #elastomerics? Suggestions?

Thank you!

#MaskUp
#COVIDisAirborne

@hfentonmudd
I don't try to address those in wilful denial.

I know that over half of Americans want #mask mandates in public places, so I figure that the majority *wants* to do the right thing.

I want to help that majority know what the right thing IS (most don't know about #P100 #elastomerics, don't know that they need #N95 or P100, don't know about #HEPA filters)

Then I want regulations forcing #doctors & #nurses to do the right thing or lose their licenses.

Politicians can be pressured.

@toad From the start of the pandemic, it was always easier for those of us who were introverts.

But now we KNOW how to protect from Covid -- well-fitting #N95 or #KF94 or #P100 #elastomerics (#respirator #mask) and #HEPA filters and #CorsiRosenthalBox es.

These precautions, together, are sufficient to do nearly all *extroverted* activities, except for eating in public. So now I just don't get it.

People want their party, great, just have it with masks on & HEPA filters. Why not?

@gotklss2 @shrinkthinks Don't forget Judith Miller lying to start the Iraq War.

And to go further back, I learned that the NYT made excuses for GM and Standard Oil creating leaded gasoline in the 1920s. Joseph Pulitzer's paper, the NY World, was trying to expose the scandal.

NYT has never been a good paper. However, a lot of people read it.

So if I can get information into the NYT which raises awareness that #P100 #elastomerics exist and that #HEPA filters work against Covid, I will do it.

@jonn #Elastomerics are like this:

They're reusable and have a rubber seal with the face. I've done fit-test comparisons with over a dozen #masks, and with every single disposable #N95 (even high end ones) I could taste the bitrex through it, while I couldn't get any bitrex taste whatsoever through any elastomeric I tried. Excellent seals and P100 (99,97% filtration) #filters, vs. 95% for a N95.

Downsides: more visible, sometimes less comfy, and distort your voice more (depends on the model).

@jonn A lot of people have been told - or convinced themselves - that "the #pandemic is over".

As for me, I plan to keep wearing #elastomerics in crowded places even if there's a near-100% effective universal #coronavirus vaccine. Why would I choose even "getting infected by non-#COVID respiratory diseases" over wearing a mask?