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Washington’s efforts to restore pre-coronavirus public and business activity will happen in four phases.

Governor Jay Inslee announced May 11 the state’s stay-home order would continue through May 31, but he said phases lasting a minimum of three weeks would be used by officials to evaluate public safety at each juncture and determine when it’s safe to move to the next level.

The first phase, which began in May, allowed some outdoor recreation such as hunting, fishing, golf, boating and hiking), drive-up church services, essential travel and businesses, current construction, landscaping, vehicle sales and car washes, and curbside pickup for retail store customers.

Phase 2, tentatively expected to begin June 1, would allow additional outdoor recreation (camping and beaches), gatherings of five or fewer people, some non-essential travel, manufacturing not already operating, new construction, in-home services, and reopening of in-store shopping at retail businesses, real estate sales, office-based businesses, barbers, hair and nail salons, and restaurants (half-capacity, five people per table).

Still to come:

  • Phase 3, possibly by June 22. Would allow outdoor sports (groups of 50 people), recreational facilities (less than 50 percent capacity), gatherings of 50 people or less, all non-essential travel, restaurants ramping up to 75 percent capacity and bars at under 25 percent capacity, indoor fitness centers and movie theaters at under 50 percent-or-under capacity, government offices open, libraries, and museums.
  • Phase 4, tentatively by July 13. Would allow public interactions with physical distancing, gatherings of more than 50 people, nightclubs, concerts, and large sporting events.

As for schools, Inslee said in May that he’s hopeful students will be able to return to in-school classes this fall.

 

STATE TRACKING WHO HAS COVID-19 AND CLOSE CONTACTS

A statewide contact tracing plan will allow more businesses in Washington to open and more people to be active in public while helping to slow and prevent the spread of COVID-19, Governor Jay Inslee announced in May.

“While we need to continue physical distancing, this will allow us to get a better handle on who gets sick and how the virus is spread, which is vital to re-opening our economy,” he said.

County health departments will lead the efforts in contacting people who test positive for COVID-19. By telephone, health workers and trained volunteers will ask who that person has been in close contact with, then contact those other people to let them know they have been exposed and need to isolate or quarantine themselves. The plan is for contacting people within 24 hours of a positive test result and talking to their close contacts within 48 hours.

Contact tracing was to take effect approximately May 15. Officials said information collected in the contact tracing (including symptoms and demographics such as age, addresses, gender and ethnicity) will be confidential. Contacted persons won’t be told the name of who may have exposed them to COVID-19.

 

Pat Jenkins by — May 14, 2020 in News
Life with coronavirus: Optimistic food for thought

Shirley Robbins (left), a staff member at the Franke Tobey Jones retirement community in Tacoma, helps resident Patsy Mills set up a video chat with relatives.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to throw up roadblocks for our way of life, it’s no small feat to find reasons to be optimistic in the face of uncertainty about the future, both near and long-term. But the general outlook gets a boost from the efforts of many who are doling out help with physical and emotional well-being, food and other essentials, and just plain old positive thinking.

Want to feel better about how we’re all getting through these tough times? Read on.

 

QUARANTINE COPING

Experts at Iora Primary Care note that quarantine coping skills can help us focus on the positives and try to stay as optimistic as we can. Specifically:

  1. Stick to your regular schedule. Without one, it can be difficult to find balance or productivity in your day. For starters, keep regular wake and bedtimes. Avoid staying in bed for longer than eight hours per day. Eat regular meals and break times when you typically would.
  2. Maintain mild to moderate activity to hitch up your mood. Even if just for 30 minutes every day, find some form of physical activity that’s easy, accessible and reasonable to help cope with coronavirus anxiety and stress.
  3. Schedule relaxation or “wind-down” time for self-care. After a long day, the importance of making time for yourself can’t be overstated. Some simple ways include a bath or shower at the end of the day to wind down, unplugging from television and computers at least an hour before bedtime, scheduling a few minutes for breathing exercises, and writing in a journal.
  4. Keep your brain active. Play cards, games or word puzzles. Make crafts, knit, sew, doodle or write. Watch an uplifting movie or show, but avoid too much television/couch time all at once; it can make us feel worse. Re-read a book you haven’t read in a while. See if your neighbor wants to do a book exchange (drop at your front door and keep six apart, of course). Download an audiobook.

 

FOOD

  • Lutheran Community Services Northwest’s Meals on Wheels has expanded deliveries from two to four days a week. That includes a one-time delivery of meals for one to two weeks to high-needs, high-risk or homebound seniors. A total of 916 meals were provided in March, which is almost double the typical average of 500 meals per month. A spokeswoman lamented that due to the no-contact delivery requirement, checking on seniors’ welfare is difficult.
  • Food Lifeline, Emergency Food Network (EFN), and Northwest Harvest, which serve and supply food banks and related programs in Pierce County and King County and other areas of western Washington, have reported increased demand from the public. EFN plans to distribute as many as 300,000 boxes of food per week, and Northwest Harvest said in early April that visits to food banks doubled in the past month. Some local examples: The Bonney Lake Food Bank reported a 25 percent increase in clients, the Prairie Ridge and White River Families First group went from providing about 80 dinners on Wednesday nights to 104 and running out of food, and Bethel School District is providing 3,000 meals a week for students who normally would receive them at school.
  • Dr. Amanda Kore Schilling, an anesthesiologist at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, collected food donations from the staff at the hospital’s Walters Surgery Center and gave them to Lutheran Community Services Northwest to pass along to its clients in the Port Angeles area. Her goal was to do something extra for communities in need during the pandemic.
  • Dispatch Health, whose personnel already were out and about providing mobile healthcare for residents in Pierce County and King County, have added food-delivery to their service. They’re packaging bags of donated groceries to carry with them and give to elderly patients who need food. “Thank you for all that have donated to help keep our seniors safe, healthy, and not hungry,” said De Ann Johnson, the company’s community engagement manager.
  • “Hero meals” donated by participating downtown Tacoma restaurants are for medical workers, first-responders, grocery store clerks, delivery drivers and bus drivers. The goal is to deliver 100 meals three days a week to the front-line workers, organizers said. The effort is being organized by the Downtown Tacoma Association (Local Development Council of Tacoma), which is accepting cash donations and coordinating orders for meals. More information is available at info@downtowntacomapartnership.com.
  • In one of many ways that churches and other organizations are helping, Lutheran Church of St. Paul in Graham offers food packs on Friday mornings from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. through its food pantry. The church is accepting donations to support the food mission—various types of non-perishable food can be dropped off on Fridays from 10 a.m. to noon, and checks can be mailed to The Lutheran Church of St Paul, St. Paul Food Pantry, P. O. Box 1186, Graham, WA 98338. Financial donations can also be made online at lcspgrahm.org.

 

SANITIZING

A poll by the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) found that the majority of Americans are disinfecting properly when cleaning hard surfaces in their homes. There’s room for improvement, though. Most disinfectants must remain on surfaces for 10 minutes before being wiped off. But in the survey that contacted 1,005 adults March 18-19, 26 percent of them said they spray and then wipe surfaces immediately, while another 16 percent said they make a quick pass with a disinfectant wipe.

ACI represents U.S. manufacturers of cleaning products, a $60 billion industry nationally.

 

EXERCISE

Gym closures, cancellations of fitness classes, and closed parks and trails as a result of social-distancing are making it harder to maintain exercise routines. That’s a double-whammy at a time when exercise is especially important for physical and emotional health. Chad McCann, a Tacoma physical therapist, notes that regular exercise that can strengthen one’s immune system and help their mental outlook is possible with a little resourcefulness. For instance:

  • Try online services for a variety of daily workout routines–cardio, yoga, stationary cycling, etc.
  • Enjoy the fresh air and natural sites, but “be sure to keep your distance from passersby,” McCann said.
  • If you don’t have gym equipment at home, use canned goods as weights, towels as resistance bands, and stairs for cardio. Use your own body weight in lunges, squats, push-ups and sit-ups (to name a few exercises that are a good workout).
  • And do home projects that keep you active, such as organizing, home maintenance, yardwork and gardening.

 

Shirley Robbins (left), a staff member at the Franke Tobey Jones retirement community in Tacoma, helps resident Patsy Mills set up a video chat with relatives.

Lisa Cini, an author who speaks and writes about senior-living issues, said it’s important to remember what assisted living and other senior living facilities are doing for their residents amid coronavirus.

“These healthcare providers are patient and kind, they love (residents) as family, they treat them with respect and dignity and keep them healthy,” said Cini. “Please send your love not only to your loved one in senior living, but also to the unsung heroes who are keeping the resident’s bodies safe and their hearts happy.”

At the Franke Tobey Jones retirement community in Tacoma, each resident has been assigned a staff member to be their temporary personal concierge and link them to family and outside services. The service helps residents stay informed and mitigate feelings of isolation, said the community’s marketing director, Christine Hall, who is assigned to 10 residents.

“It’s been rewarding to deliver meals, set up Zoom happy hours with family members, and bring care packages to residents from families,” Hall said.

Shirley Robbins, who works in admissions, has enjoyed introducing residents to video chats. She said their faces “light up” when seeing relatives “pop up on the screeen from near and far. Some of these family members live in other parts of the world and it’s the first time they’ve set eyes on them in years.”

A daughter of a resident said she’s grateful for employees being a “stand-in family and doing any necessary errands while we work through the pandemic.”

Pat Jenkins by — May 14, 2020 in News
Yes, we can do this

Puyallup resident Linda Kachinsky has a new routine of sanitizing delivered groceries before allowing them in her home. (Joan Cronk/for Senior Scene)

We are all getting a first-hand glimpse of our favorite newscaster’s kitchen as they report from home. The top half looks good and very professional, but we all know that the bottom half is wearing sweatpants.

How things have changed.

Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx, formerly unheard of, are our new heroes. We hang on every word of the daily updates, hoping for good news.

While we are all sequestered in our homes, people are finally having time to clean out that closet and the garage.

My life has changed, as well. I plan my day and, even though staying at home, I manage to stay busy. I had four yards of compost delivered early on and spent three long days shoveling it into my gardens. The second day, my wheelbarrow collapsed and, after my neighbor put it back together for me, I continued shoveling. The third day I had run out of steam but told myself I was going to finish that day no matter what – which I did. It was a big job.

I found three N95 masks that I had purchased years ago for a painting project, and on my few trips to the grocery store I wore one, along with disposable gloves. The first time I did this, I felt a little silly but soldiered on, and am glad I did.

My neighbor, Linda Kachinsky, has a great system for keeping her family safe. She orders groceries online and picks them up, never having to leave her car. Once home, she unloads groceries at her back porch, where she has set up a table and supplies. After pulling on her gloves, she empties the bags, which she recycles on her next trip to the store. She wipes down everything before bringing it into her home, leaving non-perishables outside for three days.

Kachinsky plans her meals ahead and uses what she already has on hand. “I make substitutions and am more budget-conscious. It makes me a better shopper, and we are eating better than ever,” she said.

Many stores are staying open, and their employees continue to serve the public. For instance, Toni Gates works at the Costco depot in Sumner. The depot supplies Coscto products in five-state areas and is a busy place. Gates has noticed some changes.

“I have been in my position (as a receiver in the guard house) for 10 years, and as soon as early-March we noticed our numbers of inbound jumping through the roof,” she said.

November and December are the months when Costco ramps up for the holidays, but suddenly everyone was working overtime and extra days.

“Costco is constantly trying to adapt, and they have done everything they can to keep all employees working, even though some departments have closed,” Gates said.

Life has changed dramatically for political candidates, as well.

Julie Door, Democratic candidate for the state Senate, said when the crisis hit, running a campaign became difficult.

“The hard part is you lose that personal connection. Being able to have a conversation with someone at their door is important to me. It just isn’t the same on the phone,” she said.

Door, who is a member of the Puyallup City Council, said those duties come first. “People are scared and unsure, and my first priority is to the citizens of Puyallup right now,” she said.

One of my favorite photos is of a young man, wearing a mask, standing next to a bus. His elbow is bent and he is doing a fist pump to a young girl on the bus, who is doing the same fist pump back at him.

This photo says it all. I can just hear him saying “We can do this.” And we can.

 

Joan Cronk, who wrote this article, is a freelance writer and frequent contributor to Senior Scene.

Pat Jenkins by — May 13, 2020 in Spotlight
No-bake cheesecake that’s diabetic-friendly

The recipe for No-Bake Cheesecake in a Glass is endorsed by the American Diabetes Association.

In “The Clean and Simple Diabetes Cookbook,” dietitian Jackie Newgent provides 25 step-by-step, easy-cooking recipes that are endorsed by the American Diabetes Association–the book’s publisher—for meeting the ADA’s dietary and nutritional guidelines in everyday meal planning for diabetics. One of them is the No-Bake Cheesecake in a Glass. Here it is.

 

INGREDIENTS

1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole strawberries, thawed (2 cups).

1 tablespoon bottled lemon juice (not from concentrate), divided.

4 ounces Neufchatel (light cream cheese).

1/2 cup plain 0% fat Greek yogurt.

2 tablespoons fruit-sweetened apricot fruit spread (jam).

1 1/4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract.

1/3 cup Homemade Fruit-Sweetened Granola or no-sugar-added granola.

 

KITCHEN TOOLS

  • Medium bowl.
  • Measuring spoons.
  • Spoon.
  • 6 juice glasses or other 5 1/2-ounce-capacity glasses.
  • Large mixing bowl.
  • Dry measuring cups.
  • Electric mixer.

 

DIRECTIONS

Prep time: 15 minutes.  cooking time: 0 minutes

  1. In a medium bowl, stir together the strawberries with 1 teaspoon lemon juice. Spoon into juice glasses, about 1/3 cup each.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add the Neufchatel, yogurt, fruit spread, vanilla, and remaining 2 teaspoons lemon juice. Blend with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Spoon on top of the strawberries, about 3 tablespoons each.
  3. When ready to serve, sprinkle with the granola, about 1 tablespoon each.

 

NUTRITION AND SERVING INFORMATION

  • Serves 6. Serving size: 1 juice glass.
  • Choices/exchanges:1/2 fruit, 1 lean protein, 1 fat.
  • Per serving: Calories 110, xalories from fat 45, total fat 5 g, saturated fat 5 g, trans fat 0 g, cholesterol 15 mg, sodium 85 mg, potassium 150 mg, total carbohydrate 12 g, dietary fiber  2 g, sugars 7 g, added sugars 0 g, protein 4 g, phosphorus 75 mg.
Pat Jenkins by — May 13, 2020 in Food, People