Immune Escape

Posted on by Thor

The pandemic has never followed a simple linear path. New variants pinball around as people ignore the virus, and continually change the game.

In Early May 2022, The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) designated the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants as variants of concern (VOC) and said they could fuel increases in infections in the region in the weeks and months ahead.

At least 24 countries outside of South Africa have now reported the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants. In US developments, key outbreak markers continue to rise, especially in the Northeast and Midwest. New daily cases are now over 100,000 and that is of course an under count. If you just go by your social media contacts who have been infected it seems the virus is everywhere.

With 12% to 13% growth advantage over BA.2, the ECDC estimated that BA.5 will become dominant. The growth advantage is probably due to immune escape from earlier infection, including from the original Omicron variant, and vaccination. Vaccine protection against Omicron infection has been shown to wane over time, though it still protected against hospitalization and death. Countries should have plans in place for the rapid deployment of booster doses for individuals who are 60 years and older to combat this immune escape.

COVIDCON Superspreader

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Seth Meyers  told the thousands who had packed Radio City Music Hall for NBCUniversal’s presentation, at the Upfronts, “What a historic room to be able to tell people you got Covid in.”

The NBCUniversal upfront, which kicked off proceedings at Radio City Music Hall with elaborate production numbers involving dozens of performers, was a largely mask-free affairs

Ten days later, Covid cases were sweeping through the ranks of those who attended the marathon of events in New York. Top-level executives at virtually all of the major networks and studios were impacted, along with support staff that worked on the presentations as well as media buyers and reporters who attended the string of events.

It is likely the largest Covid superspreader event in the senior ranks of the TV industry since the start of the pandemic.

The majority of attendees did not wear masks most of the time. None of the non-affiliated guests were required to take a Covid test throughout the week. Vax cards were mandated at all venues. On May 16, 2022 New York City health officials strongly recommended that people wear masks when they were in densely populated indoor spaces. But they didn’t go as far as mandating this, and for the next couple of days, there were not a lot of masks seen at the events targeting ad buyers.

So inviting senior studio executives, talent and ad buyers was a great way to spread the virus. How might you infect as many of the worlds billionaires as possible? You invite them to Davos, Sweden for the World Economic Forum. Davos returned to an in-person meeting format this year. Videos I saw showed mask less crowds huddled together gleefully spreading deals and the virus. They might be rich but that doesn’t mean they are smart.

50 Oldest Churches of NYC: Saint Patrick’s Cathedral

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Saint Patrick’s Cathedral‘s cornerstone was laid in 1858 and the doors opened in 1879. It is located at Fifth and Madison Avenues and Fiftieth and Fifty-First Streets in Manhattan.

In a ceremony at Old St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Archbishop Hughes proposed “for the glory of Almighty God, for the honor of the Blessed and Immaculate Virgin, for the exaltation of Holy Mother Church, for the dignity of our ancient and glorious Catholic name, to erect a Cathedral in the City of New York that may be worthy of our increasing numbers, intelligence, and wealth as a religious community, and at all events, worthy as a public architectural monument, of the present and prospective crowns of this metropolis of the American continent.”

Ridiculed as “Hughes’ Folly,” since the proposed, site was considered too far outside the city, in what was perceived as the wilderness. Archbishop Hughes, nonetheless, persisted in his vision of building the most beautiful Gothic Cathedral in the New World in what he believed would one day be “the heart of the city.” Neither the bloodshed of the Civil War nor the resultant lack of manpower or funds could derail the ultimate fulfillment of Hughes’ dream and architect, James Renwick’s bold plan.

The Cathedral was built at a cost of approximately $850,000, not including the altars, furnishings for chapels, organs and other furniture. The stone chosen was white marble.

From October 22 to November 30, 1878 a fair was held to raise money for the opening of St. Patrick’s. It was the largest ecclesiastical fair ever held in the U.S. Forty-five parishes sponsoring tables. Receipts of $172,625 were raised to assist in purchasing furnishings for the Cathedral.

St. Patrick’s spires were completed in 1888 and The Lady Chapel in 1908. The Kilgen Organs were installed from 1928 to 1930. Major capital improvements were made in the 1940’s and the 1970’s. The Kilgen organs were restored in the mid 1990s, and the gem of the Cathedral, the Lady Chapel, was restored in 2003.

Corsets and Cuties ICONIC at Fringe

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After sketching Bullock and the Bandits at the Abbey, Pam wanted to extent the evening by going to the Stardust Lounge (431 E Central Blvd, Orlando, FL) to see the Corsets and Cuties show ICONIC. Stardust is a very small basement space. The main room is perhaps 10 feet wide by 20 feet deep. The venue was jam packed for this performance with standing room only.

Pam her niece and I were perhaps the only people wearing masks that evening. Rather then press into the crowd, I sat off to the side in the aisle that leads back to the dressing room for the performers. At one point the stage threatened to collapse and I was front and center to watch as several stage hands or bar tenders tried to re-assemble a microphone stand using their iPhone flashlight to see what they were doing.

Who’s your favorite iconic star? Troupe co-founder Lady Jaimz warmed up the crowd and also took part in many of the performances.  The one performance that had me laughing out loud was Barbi Rhinestone who dressed as Dolly Parton using two huge pink balloons as her boobs. She had to enter the staging area with her back to the audience for the big unveiling. I could only see a fraction of the performance but when the balloons started popping the audience roared.

I got to sketch the 27 May 2022 performance and it looks like the final performance was 28 May 2022 at 07:00 pm – 08:00 pm.

Bullock and the Bandits

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Kangagirl Productions presented Bullock and the Bandits at the Orlando International Fringe Festival. A $10, reusable button is required to enter each performance. You may purchase online or in person at the box office. This show is at the Abbey, 100 S. Eola Drive
Orlando, FL.

Step inside the haunted saloon at the World Famous Bullock Hotel for a rhythm and blues, country, and rock fueled ghost rider romp across the Wild West! Orlando Fringe Festival Lifetime Achievement Award recipient David Lee’s new band performs with special guest stars Tymisha Harris and Eddie Cooper.

“I’ve always been fascinated with Deadwood, South Dakota, which is a world-famous destination for ghost hunters. Sheriff Bullock built a hotel there in 1894. It still stands and is known to be haunted with all types of bandits and heroes of the Wild West”, explained David Lee. The talented Bandits band: David Lee, Eddie Cooper, Tymisha Harris, Tanner Kasier, Bryce Hayes, Matt Lyinx, Tom O’Hern, and Randall Scandal.

Tickets are $15. The remaining show dates are today, Saturday 28 May 2022 at 4:15PM and Sunday 29 May 2022 at Noon.

Complacency Waves

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Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla warned Wednesday of “constant waves” of COVID-19 caused by complacency around the virus, politicization of the pandemic, and waning immunity.

Cases are rising in the U.S., and the rate at which people are getting vaccinated is falling. In the week that ended May 22, 2022, the US reported 790,000 new cases, more than three times as many as were reported in the last week of March. Of course these numbers are a fraction of how many are becoming infected since testing sites are closed and people test at home if at all.

People are also growing tired of COVID-19 safety regulations, said Bourla, who was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where world leaders and members of the business elite are gathered for an annual summit.

“What worries me is the complacency,” Bourla said in Davos, adding that fewer people were wearing masks and that even people who have already been vaccinated were less likely to get booster shots. The consequences will likely be seen in three to six months, he said.

Bourla said Pfizer believed that antiviral drugs would replace vaccines as the key weapon in fighting the coronavirus, at least until shots providing a longer period of immunity are developed. Pfizer is “doubling down” on producing its antiviral pill Paxlovid, he added.

COVID-19 Dating Game

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Your COVID-19 vaccination status is now a deal breaker for many singles. Your vaccination status can determine moral compatibility.

If you are dating a shlub who hadn’t gotten around to making a vaccination appointment, then that person cares only for themselves and isn’t very empathetic to the  health risks to people around them. It is a sure sign of moral ineptitude.

Across the country, about 41% of daters say they would not consider dating someone who is unvaccinated, while just over half say it wouldn’t matter to them, according to a Pew Research poll released in early April 2022. Only 2% report that they would only date an unvaccinated person.

About half of singles in their 20s and 30s are vaccinated, with some requiring that of potential partners and others having a more laissez-faire attitude. On the other hand most singles above 40 have gotten their shots, and they definitely want that in a match, too. OK Cupid, Bumble, and Tinder have added functionality where you can put your vaccination status onto your dating profile. The sites will even boost your exposure as a perk of getting the shot. Dating.com said 86% of its users list the vaccine as a deal breaker – no shot, no date. If someone is unvaccinated, then swipe left.

 

Naso Vax

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Only about 30% of Americans are fully vaccinated and boosted. That means about 70% of Americans are frightened of needles, or they are anti vax lunatics. People are tired of COVID-19. They are done with the virus although the virus is not done with us. The virus is becoming more transmissible with each new variant.

The vaccines that are available have turned the deadly COVID virus into something more akin to the common cold for the fully  vaccinated people who get infected. While these vaccines are great at protecting against severe illness and death, they cannot stop vaccinated people from contracting the virus and experiencing mild symptoms and possibly spreading the virus to others.

To help prevent mild COVID infections, what is needed are vaccines that protect us where infections start: in the mucus membranes of the nose, mouth, and throat. And for that, we are likely going to need nasal vaccines.

More than a dozen clinical trials with nasal sprays are under way, The Guardian reported, but the development process is tricky. Nasal vaccines must create an immune response but not be potent enough to make people sick. If the dose it too weak then the vaccine will not work. This sweet spot becomes even harder to find when some people already have some immunity to COVID from past infections.

A nasal vaccine could be more easily manufactured and distributed because it’s stored in a regular refrigerator rather than ultra-cold temperatures like the Moderna and Pfizer mRNA vaccines. A nasal dose could be produced for about 30 cents compared to $30 for a Moderna or Pfizer dose. Needle pansies might be more inclined to get vaccinated if they can just spray it up their nose.

Crealde First Class

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On Sundays I teach an Urban Sketching Class at Crealde School of Art. From the very first class I encourage the students to explore the beautiful campus with their sketchbooks.

In each class I press a particular point and rather quickly get the students to apply the concept in their sketches for the day.

I sketch while they work and share each stage of my sketch to show how long I take on each step of the process. As I walk around I give each student individual attention usually doing thumbnail sketches on the back of my sketch to express how I might tackle the scene they are working on.

This sketch was done back when masks were required at Crealde. That requirement has been dropped, but I remain masked in public at all times. When sketching people will often approach to see the work in progress. They never seem to stop when the line work is being done, but once color hits the page, people become curious.

My last series of classes was canceled because not enough students signed up. That should give me a breather as COVID cases are rising in Florida again. I haven’t experienced a classroom full of unmasked students yet.

Swan Boats

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On Sunday I met an advanced Urban Sketching student at Lake Eola. Out mission was to sketch the swan boats.

Fencing has been added to this area making it impossible to sketch from nearby benches. Grass areas around the swan boats were also blocked of with yellow tape probably because new seed was added.

We settled on this view down a ramp to the water. I did this sketch as a demo to explain what I include in a sketch and why.

The first five minutes of a sketch are often the most important because the entire scene will be blocked in on the page and the rest is all about detail. I did the preliminary work in pencil and then let my student get to work as well.

The excitement of working on location is that different actors keep entering the scene while the sketch is in progress. At first a guy stood with his cell phone. Then a couple came by with a bag of seed and they fed the swans. Three Italian men held up a cell phone and spoke to relatives back home. I finally settled on this mother swan and her offspring. Dog owners kept walking by and the mother swan would lunge forward and hiss at the dogs. People are clueless. These swans have to be on the defensive every minute of their lives. Swan boats were loaded and returned in quick order as we sketched. Only one swan boat had a canopy, so I bet it got hot out there on the water.

A pug owner was walking his dog and the pup lay down next to my student and refused to move. She is a pug owner and he must have sniffed out his new friend. The pug leaned into all the pets and pretty much had to be dragged off to continue huffing along on his walk. We got to learn all about the owners history with pets. Sadly his last dog did not live long since it got cancer. These sorts of exchanges are what makes sketching on location such a pleasure.