Cover Smart. Do Your Part. Slow the Spread

If you could do one thing to prevent someone from contracting COVID-19, would you? If you could do one thing to help put the economy back on the path to recovery, would you? Well, you can! And, it’s a simple thing to do. Anyone can do it. But a lot of people aren’t.

If it is that easy, why isn’t everyone doing it? Good question. But here is all you have to do – wear a mask. It’s that simple. It doesn’t have to be fancy – a simple cloth face covering can make a big difference.

I have shamelessly stolen my blog title from a NIST (National Institute of Standards) engineer. Matthew Staymates published a blog in early June that really hit home for me. He has a special camera that shows his breath and the difference in projection with and without a mask. He tried a number of simple homemade fabric masks – not N95s – but, simple face coverings that are accessible to anyone.

Remember with this disease you can be carrying the virus and not even know it. You can have mild symptoms that seem like you just have a cold, so you go to work anyway or you visit with your friends and relatives. What does that mean? It means that regardless of where you have been or who you have been around, you need to assume that you are carrying the virus. This doesn’t make you a bad person and I don’t say this to accuse you of anything. It just means that we have to understand that wearing a mask anytime you are going to a store or going to work is not an affront to your personal freedom. In fact, the mask tells everyone near you that you care about them. That you don’t want to spread the disease.

I recently heard an anecdotal story of a hairdresser who became ill with COVID-19. She had been seeing customers but because she wore a mask none of her customers contracted the disease. It is sad that she contracted the disease but think how much worse she would feel knowing that she transmitted it to some of her customers. I realize that wearing a mask is inconvenient, but isn’t this inconvenience worth it?

The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) is now tying mask wearing to restoring the economy It makes so much sense. Wearing a mask is good for our collective health, which leads to being able to open up more, revitalizing businesses and the economy.

So, buy some fun tightly woven fabric. Go to YouTube and find a quick video on how to make a multilayer no sew mask. Then wear it the next time you go out.

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