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2021-07-16
A Tale of Two Regions
Since we aren’t getting on a plane any time soon, we road tripped it up to Tahoe. Taking advantage of having our car, we decided to drive out to places we would normally never visit, such as Sutter’s Mill and Donner Pass. As my husband called it, it was the Huell Howser California Gold tour. Something that was immediately noticeable was the rarity of people wearing masks around Tahoe and through the desert. Though mask mandates were lifted in CA June 15 for the vaccinated, I’d say about 50% of people still wear them (including my family) where we live. However, out in the more rural deserts and mountain areas, there was not a mask to be seen. I thought it was extremely interesting at Sutter’s Mill, which is a state park a couple of hours from Sacramento. The Park Rangers all wore masks indoors, and signs indicated unvaccinated must wear masks indoors. However, the tour of Sutter’s is all outdoors, with the exception of going into some of the historic buildings. I was a little nervous because I worried about my unvaccinated children going on a tour with possibly unvaccinated strangers who wouldn’t have to wear masks. However, when the tour began, I noticed all the families (all strangers to us) on the tour were wearing masks. Our docent asked each family where they were from and we were all from Los Angeles or Orange County. We all remained masked the whole tour. Our docent even commented “you know you can take off your masks outside?” He said it really nicely, but everyone remained masked. This regional difference was extremely interesting to me. I suppose Southern Californians may have a different way of thinking because our case counts were so incredibly high during the winter that they built field hospitals and ambulances were unable to pick up patients. Maybe that has made us more cautious. It was a literal war zone with the enemy being an invisible virus. Or maybe it’s just that every family on our tour took the same kind of vacation we did for the same reason - wanting a vacation but wanting to be outdoors, avoiding planes, and being able to safely distance. Donner State Park also had COVID protocol still in effect, with their interactive displays turned off. -
2021-06-24
Stanislaus National Forest Forest Order No. STF-16-2021-06
The Forest Supervisor of Stanislaus National Forest issued a Forest Order on June 24, 2021 that prevented "using a fire, campfire, or stove fire" in most of the Moderate Fire Hazard Area of Stanislaus National Forest. This impacted the Calaveras County portion of Camp Wolfeboro, which is located entirely within the Moderate Fire Hazard Area. Although the Tuolumne County half of Camp Wolfeboro is in the Low Fire Hazard Area, meaning wood fires were technically allowed, the Golden Gate Area Council prohibited any wood fires at any of its summer camps for the 2021 camp season. Also attached is a photograph of a copy of Forest Order No. STF-16-2021-06 hanging at the top of the Camp Wolfeboro Program Office, taken on July 21, 2021. -
2021-04-11
EMT psychomotor exam regulations
At the start of the pandemic, the state of Massachusetts Department of Public Health shut down EMT psychomotor exams which meant that we could not certify new EMTs for several months. This is a terrible thing for an industry that was already having staffing problems before the pandemic began. Then in the summer, the state began to allow us to hold the exams again but under significant restrictions. We had to limit our exams to 8 students which meant that we were forced to hold several small exams instead on one larger one (a logistical nightmare). The students had to do the exam in full PPE with constant hand-washing and sanitation requirements. This past week, the state sent out new provisions regarding psychomotor exams. Thankfully, now we can hold larger exams again. Many of the other regulations are still in place, but the fact that we can have all of our students test at the same time makes things so much easier. -
2020-11-21
The much-hyped Hong Kong-Singapore 'travel bubble' is postponed amid Covid-19 spike
The "travel bubble" planned between Hong Kong and Singapore has been postponed due to a spike of COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong. -
2020-11-19
Canadian Mink Farms Should Be Shut-down due to Covid-19
As minks have shown the ability to contract Covid-19, many countries have attempted to cull mink populations. This opinion piece covers the topic of Mink farms in Canada, suggesting that the federal government should take the opportunity to end the practice during the pandemic. This is due to animal rights abuses, decline in the industry, and possible new mutations. Hamer states, "If the Canadian government is serious about building Canada’s economy back better and more resilient, it should help this declining industry transition." -
2020-11-19
California Governor Announces Curfew
California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a limited stay at home order on Thursday that would require non-essential work and gatherings to stop between 10 pm and 5 am in counties with high rates of COVID-19. The order is set to take effect on Saturday at 10 pm and will last for one month. -
2020-06-16
How the Airbnb ban led to lower rental prices in Canada's major cities
Many of Canada's largest cities have been experiencing what have been dubbed housing crises in the past few years; rental and purchasing prices have shot through the roof while availability shrinks, pushing out many poor or even middle class residents. This article explores how the drop in demand and government restrictions for AirBnBs (short term online rentals), as a result of the pandemic has impacted the market. To ensure they are still receiving income from their properties many who were renting their units for short term stays are instead turning to leasing them out traditionally, causing an influx in housing availability and driving the prices down with the increased supply. While this is not the best for those looking to turn a profit off their real estate it is an unexpected benefit of the pandemic for many average citizens.