On The Streets Today

L.A.C.M.T.A. bus service reduced by 15 to 20% (got some exercise), passengers must board & exit by the rear door (meaning I wasted US$20.00 on a pass this month). "Metro is also requiring all bus operators to use the transparent protective barrier that helps isolate them." (Already on the newer buses, & not an anti-virus measure as much as a defense against righteously outraged riders.) The operator seat & wheelchair seating in the front are taped off from the rear of the buses.

Note "YOUR SPEED" as opposed to "SPEED LIMIT". Traffic hasn't been this good since the Olympics*.

Driver is masked.

Ralphs at Hollywood & Western didn't have enough shoppers to impose waiting (nor did they have buttwad or paper towels) but did have blue masking tape Xs on the floor at the registers, six ft. apart so you know where to keep that bag of viruses & germs you call a body in relation to your fellow germ-bags. However, no lines at the registers.

Self-medication in the time of ...: Had to e-mail an order, wait for a reply, walk many blocks due to the transit reduction, shove money through what's usually the I.D. card slot & then pick up the goods from a stool in the dispensary airlock. Stocked up too, as one never knows when/if non-essential enforcement will start (It's essential to me, & as the mayor is now allowing bars & restaurants to sell take-out booze, if he gets pissy about muggles we can at least call him a two-faced hypocrite.) & to avoid unnecessary trips.

Troops, germs, whatever.

This whole virus thing might actually affect me. My avoidance of human contact has served me well enough; haven't had a cold or flu since around the turn of the millennium, when I was still wage-slaving. Didn't contract anything even when sleeping in the West L.A. Armory w/ scores of the also wretched & dispossessed or when urban camping. None-the-fucking-less, better safe than sorry. For example, this made me a little nervous:

William Feuer / CNBC:
CDC says coronavirus survived in Princess Cruise ship cabins for up to 17 days after passengers left  — The coronavirus can survive on surfaces for up to 17 days, a study published Monday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says.  — The study examines two public health responses …

The sun sets on the Murkin Empire.

---

*The '84 Olympics, smart-ass. This reporter was not here for the 1932 Olympics.