Coronavirus in Massachusetts (Boston, Nantucket: domestic, unemployment, university)

[BostonMike7]

Same sort responsibilities here with regards to working globally. I work with asia a lot and it's a 11-12-hour difference. SO my 9PM is their 9AM and that's when the emails start flying in. If someone needs to know something on the manufacturing floor in Asia at 9AM their time, I usually like to give them an answer to they don't waste a day waiting for my response. I've typically answered emails or been in meetings as late as 11PM. I draw the line after 11-midnight though, but there's been some times I've been awake at 2AM and fired off an email. Just saves time if i can get them critical info.

But like you said, my phone and internet is compensated for so there is somewhat of an obligation. My salary is nothing to complain about, so i don't mind this sort of work structure. I also structure my workday with gaps to account for this if I know i'm going to be on the phone for 3 hours with asia later on. I don't feel bad about closing the laptop screen at 10AM to go change my oil, or go play with the kids for a bit. My laptop is always powered up and ready to go, and email and Jabber IM's go to my phone so if someone needs to get in touch with me, they can. I can then walk inside, and fire off the file they need, or take another action.

Believe it or not, i communicate globally with coworkers using other media like Facebook IM, and Snapchat. My local team has a dedicated Snapchat group that we use to group text. No IP gets shared through it, but it's a good way to ask "Does anyone know where the bottle of HF went?"

While i do go into the office 2 days a week, WFH has allowed me to be more flexible and adapt to a global schedule and maintain a decent personal life. Not gonna like....I kinda like it.

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by id77

I sometimes envy people who can just turn off their work and go home at the end of the day. This isn't possible, at least for me, for two reasons:

1. I work for a global company with global employees. I spend hours a week on international calls. We all have to be as considerate as is practical with time zones, but there's going to be times I'm on a 9:00 PM call simply because it's the only time we can have both San Francisco and Hong Kong on the same call.

2. My employer is paying for my phone and my unlimited data/international roaming plan, with the reasonable expectation that if they call, I answer. They get it's not practical to expect me to answer at 2:00 AM on a Saturday, but I should answer when I'm awake. Also, given my travel profile, someone calling me at what they think is 2:00 PM in Boston may not realize I'm in Tel Aviv at the moment and it's really 9:00 PM.

9pm? I wish. When I had endless Asia calls, they often started at 10pm or 11pm in the summer when we’re on DST. The engineers were rarely in the office much before 9:30am due to the rush hour. Most people flexed later in the day.

I had some projects where I had both Israel and Asia calls in the same day. Israel was often 6am or 7am and they work on Sunday. When things were crazy, the only time I could ignore email was 8pm on Friday when California went home to 8am on Sunday when things started coming in from Israel. If something went off the rails, I was doing emails, Skype texting, and phone calls at all hours. Thankfully, that kind of crunch was unusual.

[mdovell]

I don't think I'll get on the mbta for a long time if this continues
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/07/...ent-having-it/

I'm sorry but there's no way. I'm all for public transit but if they don't enforce this it's just going to get worse in the fall and winter. I've been on the red line before with a half an hour delay. That vs telecommutting? Yeah many should just stay home.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by mdovell

I don't think I'll get on the mbta for a long time if this continues
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/07/...ent-having-it/

I'm sorry but there's no way. I'm all for public transit but if they don't enforce this it's just going to get worse in the fall and winter. I've been on the red line before with a half an hour delay. That vs telecommutting? Yeah many should just stay home.

I’ve been on the T (Red Line) a few times in the past month. I’ve not once seen someone without a mask, and there’s been so few people (even at rush hour) that spacing has t been an issue. It’s actually been the most pleasant experience I’ve had on the T. They’ve done a good job with station cleanliness too. I don’t doubt that there are people who aren’t wearing masks, but I’ve yet to see them.

[yesmaybe]

New cases still look flat to very slightly downward. But only very slightly. Seems this is about as good as it's gonna get.

[porterhouse]

Total Covid hospitalizations under 500 today. That’s a nice milestone. The numbers are smaller so the declines may not seem as significant. However, the trends continue downward.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by yesmaybe

New cases still look flat to very slightly downward. But only very slightly. Seems this is about as good as it's gonna get.

Positivity rate < 2%, but Rt (effective reproduction rate) has crept back up >1.0. Need to get that down again. I'm seeing compliance with masks indoors, but seeing a lot of large (private) outdoor gatherings as if nothing's changed.

[LeavingMA]

https://boston.cbslocal.com/2020/07/...y-coronavirus/

[yesmaybe]

Originally Posted by htfdcolt

Positivity rate < 2%, but Rt (effective reproduction rate) has crept back up >1.0. Need to get that down again. I'm seeing compliance with masks indoors, but seeing a lot of large (private) outdoor gatherings as if nothing's changed.

I don't know how that website calculates that number, but it can't be correct.

[redplum33]

Originally Posted by lrfox

My girlfriend and I got tested at CHA Somerville (Highland Avenue) which is appointment only. My brother got tested yesterday at Mass General Chelsea, the free (for all MA residents) site that takes walk-ins (and allows appointments), and had his results via the app this morning. Better yet, he said he was in/out in less than 30 minutes as a walk-in.

I don't at all doubt that there are delays in some cases. It's probably highly dependent on the particular lab processing the tests. But it doesn't appear that delays are standard across the board for everyone at this point.

Originally Posted by lrfox

I’ve been on the T (Red Line) a few times in the past month. I’ve not once seen someone without a mask, and there’s been so few people (even at rush hour) that spacing has t been an issue. It’s actually been the most pleasant experience I’ve had on the T. They’ve done a good job with station cleanliness too. I don’t doubt that there are people who aren’t wearing masks, but I’ve yet to see them.

It must be nice living in your world - where everybody wears masks on the T and gets their test results in 24 hours.