Bottomless

Posted on by Thor

So far, the COVID waves are not spiking as high as they did back in January of 2022, but the lows keep getting higher. There is no relief, hospitalization remain at a high plateau and are climbing. More people died in 2022 than in the previous years of the pandemic. With the wide variety of new COVID variants the amount of COVID flooding the country keeps getting higher. The death rate is higher than the birth rate.

Politicians and the media have been selling the idea of herd immunity. The general premise is that everyone should become infected, starting with the children and then the pandemic will be over. Vaccines as well were sold as the solution to the pandemic. The trouble is that neither offers lasting immunity. The other problem is that repeated infections cause increasing risk of complications and death.

What we are left with is a population who thinks the pandemic is over despite that fact that it will drag on endlessly until people take meaningful steps to stop the spread of the virus. The steps are simple, but if you even mention a mask people fearfully start shouting out about their personal freedom to spread the virus.

Despite the flood of virus, most people no longer wear masks or social distance. Kraken has changed the game being the most contagious variant of COVID so far. You should note that tools that were being used to combat past variants no longer work against the Kraken. At home tests are even less effective at being able to test for the variant. One at home test, DxTerity, was pulled from the market for being useless.

While everyone else is living their pre-pandemic lives, I have decided to upgrade my mask by getting N-95s. I used to use a KN-95 held in place with a cloth mask but this new variant is so contagious I feel the need to upgrade. Even if you wear a well fitted N-95 mask you shouldn’t be around unmasked people, indoors or outdoors. If you are the lone N-95 mask wearer you might become infected within an hour if others are unmasked.

Kraken has proven itself more effective at binding to cells which means fewer viral particles can cause an infection. The original strain of COVID might infect two other people and it spread around the world quickly. With the original Omicrom variant, an infected person could infect maybe 5 other people, but with Kraken an infected individual could infect up to 18 other people. That would make this one of the most infectious viruses ever known.

The next month is going to be a wild ride, since no one sees what is coming. They have been told the pandemic is over, since capitalism is more important than human life. Brace yourself and take every precaution you can. Regardless several thousand people continue to die from COVID every week, that being the new norm of “living with the virus”, but things are about to get a whole lot worse.

Masks Work

Posted on by Thor

Masks Work. Should you ever make that statement, or happen to do a painting of someone in a mask. You would be shocked at the number of selfish sheep that start baa-ing about their freedom. They are all quite arrogant, ignorant, and boring, only talking about themselves with no concern for others.

Here is a simple check list to remind you what is gong on, should you be one of the 10% who are paying attention…

  1. You can catch COVID multiple times. Sometimes just weeks apart.
  2. Re-infections are common and not rare.
  3. Breaktrough infections are common.
  4. COVID can cause brain damage.
  5. COVID can cause blood clots vascular damage and heart attacks.
  6. Children are the primary spreaders of the disease. Children will suffer long term consequences along with adults.
  7. Vaccines help prevent death but not infection.
  8. COVID can kill you months after you “recover”.
  9. Social distancing works, but the virus is airborne and can travel much further than 6 feet.
  10. Masks work.

Those who are re-infected more than double their chance of death and they triple their chance of hospitalization.  They are also three times more likely to develop lung problems and 60% more likely to develop neurological disorders. Those who are catching COVID over and over are destroying their immune systems along with their heard and minds.

COVID Elected Speaker of the House

Posted on by Thor

A mask less Congress elected COVID-19 the speaker of the house. Here is a list of the members of Congress that have been infected by COVID-19 as of January 2021…

1) Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.)

2) Rep. Ben McAdams (D-Utah)

3) Rep. Joe Cunningham (D-S.C.)

4) Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.)

5) Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Pa.)

6) Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.)

7) Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.)

8) Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.)

9) Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.)

10) Rep. Tom Rice (R-S.C.)

11) Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.)

12) Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)

13) Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.)

14) Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.)

15) Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.)

16) Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa.)

17) Rep. Jenniffer González-Colón (R-P.R.)

18) Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.)

19) Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah)

20) Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.)

21) Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.)

22) Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.)

23) Rep. Mike Bost (R-Ill.)

24) Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.)

25) Rep. Drew Ferguson (R-Ga.)

26) Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.)

27) Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska)

28) Rep. Cheri Bustos (D-Ill.)

29) Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.)

30) Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)

31) Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.)

32) Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.)

33) Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.)

34) Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.)

35) Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.)

36) Rep. Bryan Steil (R-Wis.)

37) Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.)

38) Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.)

39) Rep. Rick Allen (R-Ga.)

40) Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.)

41) Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.)

42) Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.)

43) Rep. Ted Budd (R-N.C.)

44) Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.)

45) Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.)

46) Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.)

47) Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.)

48) Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.)

49) Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Wash.)

50) Rep. Gwen Moore (D-Wis.)

51) Rep. Kay Granger (R-Texas)

52) Rep. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.)

53) Rep. Jake LaTurner (R-Kan.)

54) Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas)

55) Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.)

56) Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.)

57) Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.)

58) Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.)

59) Rep. Brad Schneider (D-Ill.)

60) Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.)

61) Rep. Lou Correa (D-Calif.)

62) Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.)

63) Rep. Ron Wright (R-Texas)

64) Rep. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.)

65) Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.)

152) and counting… More that one quarter of Congress has been infected.

Oh and some Rep. named Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) had COVID when he attended his son’s mask less wedding. At the time of the event, state mandates required masks at weddings and banned receptions altogether. He could have been infectious, but asymptomatic, as he mingled with family members and others at the ceremony. He also could have contracted COVID at the wedding. The wedding was a super spreader event since 19 others were infected who attended the ceremony.

COVID won the speakers seat by a landslide.

COVID Found in 96% of Fights

Posted on by Thor

 

 

I bet you thought it was safe to fly maskless over the holidays. Well think again, new research has shown that COVID has been found on 96% of flights tested. Scientists analyzed wastewater samples from 29 flight from Kuala Lumpur and found tests came back positive on 28 flights. Testing on the 29th sample was not yet been completed, per the laboratory. Samples were taken from June through December 2022 from International arriving flights. COVID was detected in 288 samples.

The aircraft sewage surveillance process involves systematic sampling and testing for untreated wastewater and sewer contamination. RNA fragments of the COVID virus are found in the feces of infected individual regardless of health status (symptomatic, asymptomatic, pre-symptomatic, recovered) and can be detected in sewage. This form of the virus is not infectious and can’t be transmitted via feces.

After this report, the CDC announced they intend to begin testing wastewater on incoming flights to check for new variants. They fear variants coming from China and yet they were oblivious as the Kraken emerged from New York State. Health officials in Australia and the United Kingdom announced similar plans.

1918 vs. Today

Posted on by Thor

Fire escapes are a fairly modern invention. By the 1890s fire escapes began appearing on NYC buildings. Why should buildings have fire escapes? Isn’t fire a hoax? How often do fires happen? Why should we protect people from being burnt alive?

The Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918 was rather short lived, or so I thought. Actually every flu death since 1918 is a result of the Spanish flu. So how was the pandemic of 1918 different that the continuing pandemic of today? In the U.S. alone the 1918 influenza epidemic killed an estimated 675,000, around one in five people who contracted the virus. With well over a million deaths today we have far eclipsed the 1918 pandemic.

Buildings of today are built to be thermally insulated which requires air re circulation instead of open ventilation. Back in 1918 they kept windows open. Steam radiators which were positioned under windows were created so that windows could be kept open. At camp Funston in Kansas where the 1918 flu pandemic began, guards were kept on patrol in the evenings to be sure that the troops kept their barracks windows open, no matter how cold it was outside. Some guards got smart and poured cold water over the window hinges which froze the windows open. 100 years ago building were drafty. Bedding and clothing was put out in the sunshine to air out.

Today when it is hot people keep the windows closed to recirculate air conditioned air. When it is cold, they keep the windows closed to re circulate heated air. When you traveled in 1918 a trip to Europe would involve a long ship voyage over the ocean. Today flights take a few hours to help spread the virus from country to country. Back in 1919 an airborne virus like COVID could burn itself out since people were further apart and travel took time. It took WW I to allow the virus to spread around the world thanks to troop movements.

People were deniers and buried their heads in the sand back in 1918 as well as today. But they didn’t have the same opportunities to spread their stupidity on social media. Today the virus is misinformation and humanity is loosing.

 

 

 

 

 

Masks Work

Posted on by Thor

Masks work. COVID is airborne. COVID variant XBB.1.5 (Kraken) now accounts of 75% of cases in the north east. Kraken is the most transmissible variant of CODID to date. It does not care if you have been previously infected or if you have been vaccinated. If you breath air you will become infected unless you wear a quality and well fitted  N95 mask.

Masking during the pandemic means that you care about protecting other and protecting yourself. American society does not pivot fast enough for people to recognize the benefit of masking as case numbers exponentially rise. Wearing a mask protects you from inhaling airborne virus and it also protects others because you may be infected but not know it.

The science of masks is NOT complex, nor is it conflicting. Science shows very clearly that masking is effective in reducing transmission of SARS-CoV-2. This has been shown in laboratory studies, natural experiments, modelling studies and randomized controlled trials. Masking is most worthwhile when COVID rates are high (which they will be in the coming weeks) and when vulnerable people are around.

Evidence for masking is strong, consistent and clear. A high-quality, well-fitting mask which meets a filtration standard (like an N95) works better than a home-made cloth mask with gaps round the sides, but even the latter is a lot better than nothing.

Kraken XBB.1.5

Posted on by Thor

Happy New Year.

XBB.1.5 nicknamed Kraken, is the cause of an increase in Covid cases and hospitalizations in New York. This new variant is a recombinant or combined version of two Omicron variants and has an increased level of transmissibility and is highly immune evasive.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) didn’t notice this variant until it  accounted for 40% of new infections in the United States. They were blindsided by the sudden surge. Cases have been doubling exponentially. From literally nowhere, XBB.1.5, aka the Kraken variant, has leapt to 40% of sequences on the US CDC’s weekly-updated variant tracker page. Last week, it wasn’t even listed as a variant.

Why are these figures so stunningly bad? For the simple reason that if you take a hyper-transmissable variant like XBB.1.5 and add a Delta variant like lethality to it, the country, or indeed the entire planet, could be facing an unprecedented and potentially irreversible disaster. The lethality of XBB.1.5 is unknown. It has a great affinity to ACE2, so likely it will be able to infect the lungs and the cardiovascular system with worse outcomes than previous Omicron variants.

XBB.1.5 has a “greatly enhanced” ability to bind to cells. It is a sub variant of Omicron but far more transmissible. “We’re projecting that it’s going to be the dominant variant in the Northeast region of the country and that it’s going to increase in all regions of the country,” said Dr. Barbara Mahon, director of the CDC’s proposed Coronavirus and Other Respiratory Viruses Division, in an interview with CBS News. More than 70% of infections in the regions spanning New Jersey through New England are now from XBB.1.5, the agency projected. Kraken is quickly spreading in Florida, Texas and Washington State.

Hospitalizations continue to tick upwards all across America. The Kraken is coming at a time when most of the public has abandoned masking and every other simple and basic mitigation measure. The Kraken is here to open the New Year. It is is resistant to many of the monoclonal antibody drugs that doctors had relied on earlier in the pandemic.  Omicron has caused more death than any other variant since the start of the pandemic simply because of the huge number of people infected.

The latest bivalent boosters appear to offer better “neutralizing activity” for Omicron variants, including XBB. So if you haven’t had your booster, it is advisable for the new year. The CDC has quietly begun recommending masking indoors but we all know that recommendation will go largely ignored and the lemmings will crowd together and infect one another. At home tests may prove less effective in detecting the new variant. One test, DxTerity’s saliva test for the virus, has proven itself useless.

Crealde casual

Posted on by Thor

This is another casual sketch to demonstrate that the figure does not need to fill the page when doing a sketch on location. I will usually one of these for each student to show how I might approach the scene they are sketching. I seldom push these to a finish. The main thing I stress is how to block in a scene quickly without getting caught up in minor details to start.

I am also pointing out how to set the stage. You can see a faint hint of the space under the tent and that mirrors the shape of the top of the table. The student is maskless So I make sure to sketch from a distance outdoors.

COVID Abducts Santa

Posted on by Thor

Hospitals are on high alert after the Christmas anticipating a surge of COVID infections associated with holiday gatherings. Flu cases seem to have peaked in the United States, but COVID cases are on the rise. The Omicron variant is still responsible for the new surge in cases.

The advise given is that everyone should test for COVID prior to any gatherings. The White House has warned that the pandemic is far from over, and people should take precautions. The White house response coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha stressed that the stakes are even higher since we now face a trio of threats, COVID, Flu and RSV.   Americans however prefer politics over personal protection or caring about others.

A new study had found that children are the primary spreaders of the virus. While children were being protected at home skeptics claimed that children could not get COVID and they were too small to spread the disease. SO children were sent back to cramped classrooms to infect one another and then their parents. Both asymptomatic and symptomatic children carry high levels of the virus and they can spread it. Children are infectious and no one is trying to protect them. These same children are then taken to sit in a strangers lap, namely Santa so that he might breath in their face and they in his.

Children act as reservoirs for the virus and new variants. The viral load in children is the same as the viral load in adults. There is no difference. Exactly how many children are being infected is unknown since wide spread testing has been dismantled. Masking is effective for children and adults in stopping the spread of the virus.

COVID 19 related pediatric emergency room visits have risen every year of the pandemic. One fifth of all pediatric deaths occurred during the Omicon surge of the virus.

“It’s no longer fair even to insinuate that Covid doesn’t affect children, that Covid deaths are only in unhealthy children or kids with risk factors. That’s just not true, by the data.” said Jason Kane, a pediatrician and associate professor of pediatrics at the University of Chicago Comer children’s hospital. Allowing your children to become infected is not the way to protect them from this deadly virus.

 

 

Maskless

Posted on by Thor

During the pandemic, I hold most of my Crealde Urban Sketching classes outdoors. These sketches were done on the back patio of the studio. I would always demonstrate how to work fast, so these sketches were done in 5 minutes each. I demonstrate how to use every tool in the toolbox, including quick watercolor washes, to block in a sketch. To this day I am always mask when I teach students.

Students on the other hand have a choice at this stage of the pandemic, and many choose to go maskless when outdoors. I miss the masked days. It is impossible to draw a nose too large when you sketch a mask instead. It makes drawing faces so much easier. I however tend not to approach a student unless they mask up while I offer advice. So far this approach has worked since to the best of my knowledge I have not been infected.

I continue to sacrifice holiday gatherings and social events,which used to be what I sketched every day prior to the pandemic. I remain in a holding pattern, waiting to see what this year’s winter surge will look like. On the other hand, after 3 years of the pandemic it is becoming tiring to document the everyday horrors and ineptitude of the public response to this ongoing health crisis. As the proverbial artist canary in the coal mine I realize that people are happy to ignore the virus even though it continues to kill over 300 people a day.