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Covid-19 has struck New York and the worlds most dynamic city has become something strange and unsettling

It is a miracle that New York works at all, EB White once wrote. The whole thing is implausible.

Every New Yorker instinctively understands the truth of that observation. The citys infrastructure is a disaster; its apartments are famously tiny; everything is overpriced; there are too many people in too small a space; and the whole city will one day have to reckon with the ravages of an encroaching sea.

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Wall Street
  • Top: A construction worker in the financial district of New York City. Bottom left: New York stock exchange. Bottom right: A commuter talks on the phone while walking through the Fulton Street metro station.

Yet New York has grown from a tiny New World trading post to a muscular global metropolis whose very name evokes dynamism and fierce, unruly vitality. It has survived booms, busts, world wars, the threat of cold war nuclear annihilation, 9/11, gentrification and more, and thrived. The city swallows people of every nation and language and spits out New Yorkers; it generates vast fortunes; and it is responsible for a dazzling expression of art, literature, music and intellectual life. By comparison many other world capitals feel like sleepy museum exhibitions.

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  • Top: Grand Central Station at 3pm in Manhattan, New York. Bottom: A doorman in New York City.

Now, however, this city of eight million people has met its match: a deadly virus, invisible to the human eye and ruthlessly efficient. Covid-19 has stretched New Yorks health infrastructure to breaking point. Every day cases, and deaths, mount. A military hospital ship is docked, imposingly, in New York harbor. There are field hospitals in Central Park. Millions of New Yorkers have shut themselves into their homes.

This is a city under quarantine. No longer were there individual destinies, Albert Camus writes in The Plague: Only a collective destiny, made of plague and emotions shared by all.

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  • Top left: An EMT at Bellevue hospital center in Manhattan. Top right: A member of the press takes video of the temporary morgue at Bellevue hospital. Bottom left: Creative face masks in midtown. Bottom right: Used vinyl gloves and a dead pigeon on the streets of Manhattan.

The photographer Jordan Gale ventured out to capture this strange new world.

In Woody Allens film Manhattan, the narrator found it impossible to look at the city without feeling that it pulsated to the great tunes of George Gershwin the jazzy, life-affirming exuberance of Rhapsody in Blue. Yet New York, now, is eerily quiet.

Any noise you hear is startling, Gale said. He was walking down a street in SoHo when he realized that the only sound was a clip on his camera bag, clacking as he walked.

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  • Top left: Empty streets outside Central Park. Top right: Empty park seats at Bryant Park in Manhattan. Bottom: The Brooklyn Bridge deserted at 4pm.

The city is a vacant lot, he said. Roads are empty. Sidewalks are empty. Stores are boarded up. The owners clearly believe looting could start any minute.

In residential areas occasional people can still be seen in the street; they are making expeditions to the grocery store or bodega or taking the daily walks which increasingly feel like a minimum mental health requirement. The commercial areas of New York, on the other hand, are ghost towns.

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  • Top: A lone person along the streets in the Bronx. Middle: Gloves and surgical masks line the curb outside a Covid-19 testing facility at the Brooklyn medical center. Bottom: An empty subway car.

Times Square, a crowded intersection most New Yorkers gladly cede to tourists, has been abandoned by both. You can take a photo down 42nd Street and theres not a single person, a single car, Gale said. The only people you see are other photographers.

The more iconic the landmark, the more empty and unsettling. Grand Central Station looks like a tomb, he said.

Its eerie. To take a photo of Grand Central like that, normally, youd need some kind of special clearance youd need to shut down the whole place.

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Flushing

  • Top left: A bench outside an apartment complex in Queens. Top right: A flower arrangement in a window at the same complex in Queens. Bottom: Flushing Meadows Park in Queens.

Many parts of the city, he noted, look cleaner than they have been in years, thanks to diligent scrubbing and disinfecting. The ground, however, is littered with blue vinyl gloves and broken surgical masks.

When New Yorkers come out to scout for provisions their faces are concealed with whatever they can find surgical masks; scarves; painters masks; bandannas draped across their faces like outlaws in the old west. As they pass in the street, they keep a wary distance; if they acknowledge each other it is with terse, silent nods.

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  • Left: A customer leaves Family Dollar in the Bronx. Right: Empty shelves at the Family Dollar.

When people do talk, all conversations in some way concern the coronavirus. The rest of America tends to regard New Yorkers as liberal, unflappable, even heedless; but these days New Yorkers sound like rightwing survivalists. They speak of stockpiles, shortages, contingencies, plans.

Everyone knows someone who has lost their income to coronavirus, or been hospitalized. Everyone wonders when the present predicament will end but, of course, no one knows, and for New Yorkers, like people the world over, that may be the hardest part of all.

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  • Cherry blossoms at an empty park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/apr/04/desolate-new-york-eerie-photos-ghost-metropolis-coronavirus

The singer joined with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey to provide shelter, meals and counselling for families at risk in coronavirus pandemic

Rihanna has donated $2.1m (1.67m) to the Mayors Fund for Los Angeles to assist victims of domestic violence affected by the coronavirus lockdown. The singers Clara Lionel Foundation joined with Twitter and Square CEO Jack Dorsey to donate matching sums to the drive. Their donations will cover 10 weeks of support, including shelter, meals and counselling for families experiencing domestic violence during the pandemic in greater Los Angeles.

Alyson Messenger, a managing staff lawyer with the Jenesse Center, a domestic violence organisation in South Los Angeles, told the Los Angeles Times last month that the lockdown was a worst-case scenario for anyone in an abusive relationship: Compound that with the fact that access to services is more difficult than ever.

UN secretary general Antnio Guterres tweeted on 6 April: Many women under lockdown for #COVID19 face violence where they should be safest: in their own homes. I urge all governments to put womens safety first as they respond to the pandemic.

In Chinas Hubei province, the centre of the initial outbreak, domestic violence reports to police more than tripled in a single county, from 47 cases in February 2019 to 162 this year. A quarter of British domestic violence charities said that they could not effectively support abuse victims during lockdown owing to technical issues, inability to meet victims and staff sickness.

A statement announcing the donations by Rihanna a domestic abuse survivor and Dorsey said: Victims of domestic violence exist all over the world, so this is just the beginning.

Last month, Rihannas Clara Lionel Foundation previously joined with Jay-Zs Shawn Carter Foundation to donate $2m (1.59m) to support undocumented workers, prisoners, homeless people, the elderly and children of frontline health workers in Los Angeles and New York during the Covid-19 outbreak. She also donated personal protective equipment to healthcare providers in New York State, and gave $5m ($4m) to global organisations to protect healthcare workers and marginalised communities.

Her father, Ronald Fenty, has been recovering from coronavirus after spending 14 days inside the Paragon Isolation Center in Barbados. He told the Sun: I thought I was going to die. He said his daughter sent a ventilator to his home, which ultimately he did not need.

The 32-year old singer is the latest musician to mobilise in the effort to assist healthcare providers and people affected by coronavirus. Lady Gaga has curated the benefit concert One World: Together at Home featuring performances from such artists as Gaga, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Paul McCartney and Coldplays Chris Martin to be livestreamed globally and televised in the US on 18 April. The BBC will broadcast an adapted version the following day.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/apr/10/rihanna-1-point-coronavirus-lockdown-donation-los-angeles-domestic-violence

So you think you had a bad day during the coronavirus quarantine. Maybe your internet went down in the middle of your online work presentation. Maybe you tried making IKEA’s Swedish meatballs at home and accidentally made one giant meatball. It’s not the end of the world. Especially when you take a peek at how some people are dealing with bad luck during the quarantine.

Can you imagine how messed up it would be for your hair clippers to sputter and die while you’re in the middle of shaving your head? Or if falling trees crushed your cars?

To brighten up your day and give you a big dose of vitamin L(aughter), Bored Panda has collected the funniest times that people had a very bad day during the quarantine. So scroll down, upvote your faves, and share your own quarantine fails in the comments below. Oh, and you can find our previous post about people having a worse quarantine than you right here. We might not be able to avoid bad luck, but we can take care of our health during the pandemic. Scroll down for Bored Panda’s interview with Dr. Natalie Ashburner, Wellbeing Lead at The Doctors’ Association UK, about how to maintain your physical and mental health during the pandemic.

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Get a bird

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LOL

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My cat thought this was very funny. 😼

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But it’s not just bad luck that we have to worry about when staying at home during the coronavirus pandemic. While bad things sometimes do happen to good people, the things that we do (or don’t do) can also have far-reaching consequences.

The two main things that can have a negative impact on your well-being are a lack of physical activity and a lack of social contact. We’re called social animals for a reason: we need other people to thrive.

According to Dr. Ashburner, it’s recommended that everybody does some form of physical activity each and every day.

“For many people who are now working from home or not working at all due to social distancing, it is likely that their physical activity will also be reduced. It is, therefore, more important that they make time for this every day.”

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He looks like a perfect mix of Larry, Curly, AND Moe.

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Thank you for putting yourself on the line to help others.

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you made my day 😀 thank you! i lol’ed hard 😀

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She continued: “The NHS recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per week which is best spread throughout the week. They also recommend doing muscle-strengthening exercise such as yoga or lifting weights twice a week.”

Dr. Ashburner stressed how important it is for your mental health to maintain contact with friends and family. “We recommend that some form of social contact is made every day, even if you don’t particularly feel like it. This is best in the form of telephone calls or video calls but texting, social media, and playing games online are all ways to feel socially connected,” the doctor said.

“Try to get creative. perhaps you could set up a virtual book club, film night, or quiz night,” she added.

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How???

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That is hilarious!

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I have done that and it is a pain to get off your skin.

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The doctor said that it’s difficult to predict the effect that the coronavirus pandemic will have on mental health. “There are numerous COVID-19 related factors that could worsen someone’s mental wellbeing, both relating to effects of the virus, for example, trauma, physical disability and bereavement, and the effects of the measures used to prevent the virus, like social isolation, relationship breakdown, loss of occupation and financial difficulties,” she told Bored Panda.

“Unfortunately, many people’s homes are not a safe environment which can also put both their physical and mental wellbeing at risk. Others may have lost their usual coping mechanisms and could turn to more harmful ways of coping such as alcohol or other substances. Healthcare workers are also particularly at risk due to occupational trauma and stress.”

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Hilarious! This is great!

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Joey wearing a Turkey

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I hope the cars were insured!

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Dr. Ashburner mused that we might see the ripple effects of the coronavirus on mental health for many months (and possibly even years) to come. “However, the most crucial point is that mental health services will remain open throughout this crisis and will continue to provide support and treatment to anyone who needs it, so please do not be afraid to seek help.”

The doctor shared that the NHS provides information about mental health right here.

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Did the pipe rise up through the floor when it broke?

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I would have pee’d my pants if I saw that half asleep.

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This was literally my nightmare as a student

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A 2015 meta-analysis of over 308k people found that you are 50 percent more likely to die if you have weaker social relationships.

“If we think about loneliness as this adaptive response kind of like hunger and thirst, it’s this unpleasant state that motivates us to seek out social connections just like hunger motivates us to seek out food,” lead study author Julianne Holt-Lunstad explained to Business Insider how our need for relationships is hardwired into us.

However, she pointed out that during the pandemic, people need to endure the lack of social contact to protect their health. It’s a real dilemma, but you can maintain social connections by phoning, messaging, or video chatting with the people you care about. It’s a crutch, but it’s the best alternative at this time.

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oh must hurt bad

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Savage! 🙂

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At least it has an appropiate expression?

Meanwhile, on the flip side, most of us stuck at home are likely moving far less than we normally would. Just 2 weeks of inactivity can start reducing your muscle mass. This also affects your heart which we sometimes forget is also a muscle.

So keep moving and keep contacting your loved ones, dear Pandas—we might not be able to avoid bad luck, but we can be prepared to deal with it when it strikes. 

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My cousin also did this exact thing to her cat, lol.

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how? why?

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Another Class A stress inducer. I commend your bravado, brave citizens of the world.

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Yeah that was done likely by a cat, don’t tell me I’m wrong. Cats love messing with blinds it’s a fact but we love them anyway

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Ouch.

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Swedish candy….you need an IKEA manual.

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And you will have a better time and wake up feeling great.

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Oh that would make me so MAD

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I assume the black blob is to protect the identity of the snake.

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I admire the dedication of finishing the install even after shattering the stove.

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That’s good too, and you don’t even need pants.

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Sell it when quarantine is lifted! We’ll all want human contact after this

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well could it rlly get worse?

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That how you know you’ve had too much alone time when the toaster can sneak up on you.

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Next year? Maybe?

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Your shower is pretty clean. People need to stop posting dirty toilets and scummy bath tubs.

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I can’t decide if I should ask “what” or “why” on this one.

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When I called Alaska Airlines to cancel some flights due to Covid, there was a 9 hour wait, but they had a callback feature, I just entered my phone number and a service rep called me back later that day. Well, their computer called me back, I still had to wait a few minutes to talk to the agent but it was much better than listening to hold-music for 9 hours.

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I saw a video where in one town you could tell the police when your child’s birthday is and in the video, about 8 cops drove up with lights and sirens, and then they all sang happy birthday over their PA’s — the kid loved it.

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Oh, no! The precious!

Note: this post originally had 129 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.

Read more: http://www.boredpanda.com/funny-quarantine-fails/

One World: Together at Home, streamed live on 18 April, will support UN response fund

Lady Gaga is to curate One World: Together at Home, a live-streamed and televised benefit concert in support of the World Health Organizations Covid-19 solidarity response fund and in celebration of health workers around the world.

The lineup includes Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish and her brother Finneas, Lizzo, J Balvin, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Alanis Morissette, Burna Boy, Andrea Bocelli, Chris Martin of Coldplay, Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam, Elton John, John Legend, Kacey Musgraves, Keith Urban and Lang Lang.

The US talk show hosts Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert will host the event, which broadcasts live across the US television networks ABC, CBS and NBC, as well as being streamed online, at 8pm EST on 18 April.

BBC One will show an adapted version of the concert on 19 April, including exclusive performances from UK artists and interviews with frontline health workers. The details of the broadcast are yet to be announced.

Other celebrities expected to appear include David Beckham, Idris and Sabrina Elba, Kerry Washington, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Shah Rukh Khan and Sesame Street cast members.

The WHO and the social action platform Global Citizen have partnered to produce the event. The latters Together at Home series, launched last month, has featured performances from artists in isolation including Shawn Mendes, Camila Cabello and Rufus Wainwright.

In a WHO press conference, Lady Gaga said she had helped to raise $35m (28m) for Global Citizen in the past week. She clarified that One World was not a fundraising telethon and would focus on entertainment and messages of solidarity, with philanthropists and businesses urged to donate to the Covid-19 solidarity response fund ahead of the event.

The WHOs general director, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said:We may have to be apart physically for a little while, but we can still come together virtually to enjoy great music. The One World: Together at Home concert represents a powerful show of solidarity against a common threat.

This article was amended on 6 April 2020. Lady Gaga stated that philanthropists and businesses were being urged to donate to the organisation, rather than fans as an earlier version said. This has been corrected.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/apr/06/lady-gaga-billie-eilish-and-paul-mccartney-to-play-coronavirus-benefit

Star described by her representatives as being stable and responding to treatment

Marianne Faithfull has been hospitalised in London with coronavirus.

The singer, who became famous during the swinging London scene of the 1960s and has had a respected (and occasionally troubled) career since, is said to be stable and responding to treatment, according to her representatives.

Her friend, the performer Penny Arcade, told Rolling Stone Faithfull had self-isolated following a cold, and then checked herself into hospital last Monday, where she tested positive for Covid-19. She has since contracted pneumonia.

Faithfull, who is 73, has had various health issues in the past. She suffered from anorexia during a spell of homelessness in central London in the early 1970s, when she was also addicted to heroin. In 2006, she was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent successful surgery. In 2007, she announced she had hepatitis C, diagnosed 12 years previously. She also has arthritis, and has had other joint issues, including a hip injury which became infected after surgery and forced her to cancel a 2015 tour.

Apart from a decade-long fallow period following her 1960s breakthrough, she has steadily released music throughout her life. Her most recent album was 2018s Negative Capability, described as a masterly meditation on ageing and death in a five-star Observer review.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/apr/04/marianne-faithfull-hospitalised-with-coronavirus

How do you adapt to working from home, keep fit, maintain a social life – and maybe even cut your hair?

How to keep your hair in check Sali Hughes

Social media is awash with professional colourists pleading with absent clients not to reach for the box dye while theyre closed for business. This is partly because, like every service profession, hairdressing will take a financial beating during this crisis.

But professionals are also genuinely worried about their clients hair, and tell me theyre bracing themselves for a plethora of complex colour correction appointments when they finally reopen. Colour correction can be a long, drawn-out and expensive process, warns Luke Hersheson, my own stylist and creative director of Hershesons in London. Until we know when salons might reopen, its much safer to use a temporary fix, like a root touch-up spray or powder that shampoos out, he says.

He believes many women can buy a few more weeks by just changing where they part their hair. Theres usually more grey at the temples, so a centre parting is a good stopgap.

Top salon colourist Josh Wood isnt against box dyes he even sells them under the Josh Wood Colour brand in Boots. However, the secret to a successful home dye job, he says, is in knowing your limitations. Now is not the time to transform the colour of your hair, or for tricky techniques like balayage, ombre or bleaching, he says.

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Try a root disguiser to touch up your hair colour, Sali Hughes suggests. Photograph: Rui Faria/The Guardian

Retouching roots or toning existing colour should be the extent of your ambition as an amateur. Wood suggests applying a moisturising hair mask a couple of days before colouring, and always choosing dye in one shade lighter than you think you need from the picture, as too dark is impossible to correct. Follow the box instructions to the letter, Wood says, starting at the greyest point usually the front and cover roots for twice the length of time as the lengths. He suggests enlisting your spouse or teen to do the back.

In any case, you must always, always do a skin test in advance, according to instructions, to minimise the risk of potentially serious allergic reaction. It can be a lifesaver.

Hersheson (whose team, like Woods, is offering video consultations during the crisis) points out that its worth considering whether social isolation might be a good opportunity to push through the pain barrier of transitioning to grey. Its also a good time to grow out an unwanted fringe you can clip it back and not worry about how that looks, and not have the stress of trimming it yourself, he says.

Hersheson counsels against trimming your fringe, unless youre very adept. But I have trimmed dozens of fringes in extremis, and if you think youre up to the job, heres my own technique:

  • Always start with clean, but dry hair never, ever cut when wet or even damp. Clip back the rest of your hair, leaving the dry fringe isolated and loose.

  • Comb through, and with the comb, gather the entire fringe into a single, flat, one-inch section at the very centre of your forehead.

  • Clamp it between two flat fingers at the bottom of the section, approximately 1cm from the hair tips (use a plastic freezer bag clip instead, if you prefer).

  • Take the sharpest scissors you own and cut up into the one-inch section of tips, naturally stopping at the fingers. Do not cut across, only upwards. When youve snipped the entire inch-wide section, release your fingers and comb through to assess the length, snipping away any single hairs you may have missed.

  • If its still too long (always preferable to too short), repeat the process, nudging fingers up only half a centimetre at a time, before combing through and checking.

How to socialise online Elle Hunt

Not only is it eminently possible to maintain your friendships under lockdown, talking to people other than those you live and work with is highly advisable if you are to emerge with your sanity intact. Our social lives pivot to video just means a bit more planning.

If its a large group you are trying to meet with, you can gauge everyones availability using the easy web scheduling tool Doodle.

The best platform to use is probably the one the majority of people already have an account with. If everyone is using an iPhone or Apple computer, use FaceTime. WhatsApp permits video calls with up to four participants but, without calling on WhatsApp Web, ties you to your phone.

For many, Skype is a tried and trusted classic that supports up to 50 participants though rarely seamlessly. Otherwise, most people have a Google account, making Hangouts a straightforward choice.

The video conferencing platform Zoom, which has seen its shares spike since the coronavirus outbreak, limits free group calls to 40 minutes but you can always call back.

No matter the platform , some lagging audio and frozen faces are inevitable, especially for large groups. Adding some structure such as a book club, quiz or a table-top role-playing game such as Dungeons & Dragons can be helpful in adjusting to an unfamiliar medium and minimising people talking over each other.

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The Houseparty app a conversation with eight people. Photograph: houseparty

The Houseparty app might be geared more towards younger groups, having been a fad among kids a few years ago. But now it seems to be a royal platform of choice. Its amazing, I just press a button and all my family pop up, the Duchess of Cornwall reportedly told a friend. The app can alert you when your friends are online, allowing you to effectively drop in on them. It also has in-built games, for up to eight players at a time.

Some people have ramped up, or perhaps rediscovered, their love of gaming as a means of socialising at a distance, with popular games such as Minecraft, Fortnite and Call of Duty all allowing some in-play communication. It is also possible to play board games online, such as at Board Game Arena and for the more hardcore Tabletop Simulator.

For a more relaxed interaction and one that does not demand that you broadcast your face Netflix Party is a Google Chrome extension that permits you to sync your streaming with friends, like a remote movie night.

How to work from home Elle Hunt

Every longtime freelancer knows the secret to effective working from home: put your shoes on. Its really effective in cueing the mindset shift from home is where the couch is to productivity ninja.

The goal is to create a distinction, even one that is mostly symbolic, between work mode and home mode, especially now that you cannot go anywhere else. Setting up a home office, if only a dedicated corner of your kitchen table, that you can arrive at and leave at the days end will help (do make sure you leave).

Your new colleagues may also take some adjusting-to. Novelist Julie Cohen shared on Twitter her top tip for working around family, care of her marriage counsellor: a literal work hat. Train everyone (and yourself) that when youre wearing The Work Hat, they should leave you alone. (And when youre wearing it, you should only work), she tweeted. It will be a talking point on all those video-conferencing calls, too.

Be aware that whatever is visible behind you on your webcam will be under close scrutiny from your colleagues, and inform their judgments of your home, taste and private life. Style accordingly.

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Can you recreate the coffee-shop ambience when working at home? The secret may be in the soundtrack. Photograph: Alamy Stock Photo

Those more used to finding their focus in the informal-formality of a cafe or library are now seeking to replicate the effect at home. Gretchen McCulloch, linguist and author of Because The Internet, tweeted that her current strategy was mellow cafe songs playlist With coffee and sitting in a different part of my apartment than usual, recommending an additional background of an eight-hour YouTube stream of Magical Tearoom ASMR Ambience. With the sound of teaspoons tinkling on saucers and hissing espresso machines over gentle indie music, you wont believe its not Starbucks.

You can even fudge together your own overly sweet frappuccino concoction. On the video platform Tik Tok, enterprising teenagers have been filming themselves making dalgona coffee to replicate cafe coffee at home. It is easy to make, if high in caffeine and wasteful of milk: mix equal parts instant coffee, boiling water and sugar about two tbsp per person and whisk. Add more sugar to taste. Once the mixture is stiff and glossy, pour over milk and ice, stir and serve. And whisk it by hand, even if you have an electric maker. It takes ages; the morning will fly by.

How to keep fit in your home Zoe Williams

There is no shortage of material online about how to stay fit at home if anything, the proliferation is the problem. Choice is deadly to motivation, so start by trying to whittle down your options.

What do you want to do each day, and how long do you want to do it for? 15 minutes is reasonable, 30 shows a bit more backbone. Its more habit-forming to do some every day than an hour twice a week.

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Joe Wicks, a phenomenally popular YouTube fitness coach, shows you how to keep fit at home. Photograph: The Body Coach via Getty Images

There are whole-week programmes, such as the book Be Para Fit, or Canadian Air Force Exercises, available on YouTube, that build in your rest days. You can also follow a particular person; Joe Wicks is the obvious one, Adrienne for yoga, and theyll do a daily workout which will make your decisions for you.

If youre of a more independent bent, do a timetable more like a classic cardio/resistance workout for two days, yoga on the third day, cardio/resistance the fourth, something fun like a dance routine on the fifth, resistance on its own for the sixth, yoga on the seventh.

If you used to do regular classes, check to see if theyve gone online; a live-streamed pilates class, at a fixed time, is much more conducive to discipline than roaming freely round WikiHow, trying to find some illustrations that look a bit like your instructor. If you already have some equipment in the house resistance bands, a skipping rope, a mat, a multi-function Fitt Cube you can build your own workouts around those. I would really recommend buying a mat, which youll need for all floor work.

Find the online instructor who irritates you least: over time, itll be a love-hate pendulum, but if you find their voice grating at the start, thats never going to work. If youre feeling nostalgic, almost all the classic workouts Cindy Crawford, Mr Motivator, Rosemary Conley are on YouTube.

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Derrick Evans, aka Mr Motivator. Photograph: Sam Stephenson/Alamy Stock Photo

If you find all people basically annoying, there are some brilliant illustrated resources like DAREBEE Workouts. If you find it hard to watch and move at the same time, choose one workout and repeat it: after a week, youll be doing it from memory, which is good for morale. Swap it over after a fortnight, though, as theres evidence that you build fitness faster when you do things youre inept at.

Just because theres no professional asking you whether you have any injuries does not mean you can ignore your injuries. Look up first what to avoid with an gammy knee or similar, rather than typing routines for one rubbish knee into Google.

The single most important thing is: dont wait until you feel like it wait long enough, and youll never feel like it. In the words of the prophet Joe Wicks, the bit where you feel good is at the end of the workout, not the beginning.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/27/solitary-refinement-a-lockdown-survival-guide

Council workers take advantage of the empty streets to spruce up the crossing featured on the cover of the Beatles 1969 album

The iconic Abbey Road zebra crossing made famous by the 1969 Beatles album of the same name has been repainted while the streets of London are empty because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A highways maintenance crew quietly repainted the normally busy zebra crossing on 24 March, the day after the prime minister ordered Britain to go on lockdown in an attempt to stem the spread of the virus.

A spokesperson for Westminster City Council said: This is a very busy zebra crossing and we repainted the line markings to ensure visibility and increased safety for drivers and pedestrians. Our contractors follow government advice on limiting the spread of covid-19, including social distancing and hand washing.

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A site of national importance … the album cover for Abbey Road. Photograph: Pictorial Press/Alamy Stock Photo

The brightened markings can be seen in action on the Abbey Road webcam.

The government designated the crossing a site of national importance in 2010 and it can be altered only with the approval of local authorities. This London zebra crossing is no castle or cathedral but, thanks to the Beatles and a 10-minute photoshoot one August morning in 1969, it has just as strong a claim as any to be seen as part of our heritage, John Penrose, minister for tourism and heritage said at the time.

The remaining Beatles, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Abbey Road album with a deluxe reissue last September. In January, it was announced as the biggest selling vinyl record of the 2010s in the US. It came eighth in the UK, with British Beatles fans apparently preferring Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band.

The cover for Abbey Road was shot at 11.35am on 8 August 1969, as John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr took a break from completing I Want You (Shes So Heavy) and The End, and Paul McCartney paused work on Oh! Darling. Standing on a step ladder in the middle of the road, photographer Iain Macmillan only had time to shoot six photographs on his Hasselblad camera given the oncoming traffic. McCartney selected the fourth image as the cover shot.

Repainting
Repainting the famous crossing. Photograph: Leon Neal/Getty Images

On the albums release, fans became convinced that McCartneys barefoot appearance related to the conspiracy theory that he had died two years earlier and been replaced by a ringer. He had in fact kicked off his sandals because it was hot.

On Abbey Road we were wearing our ordinary clothes. I was walking barefoot because it was a hot day, McCartney told Life magazine later that year. Can you spread it around that I am just an ordinary person and want to live in peace?

He parodied the theory on the cover of his 1993 live album, Paul Is Live, posing with a dog on the crossing. Pop cultural figures from the Simpsons to the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Doctor Who have also re-enacted the image.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/mar/27/abbey-road-crossing-repainted-coronavirus-lockdown-beatles-album

Stelios Kerasidis says his latest work is for people who suffer and isolate because of Covid-19

Move over Mozart, here comes Stelios Kerasidis. A seven-year-old Greek prodigy has penned an isolation waltz inspired by the pandemic.

The hypnotic, fugue-like melody has picked up more than 43,000 hits on YouTube since its launch last week.

Hi guys! Im Stelios. Lets be just a teeny bit more patient and we will soon be out swimming in the sea, he beams, perched on his piano stool, feet barely touching the floor. Im dedicating to you a piece of my own.

The work, his third composition, was written especially for people who suffer and those who isolate because of Covid-19, he adds.

Stelios Kerasidiss Isolation Waltz

Born in Athens in 2012 to Fotis and Agathe Kerasidis, both pianists who now teach him, Stelios first performed in public at the age of three.

In 2018 he played Chopins Waltz in A Minor at New Yorks Carnegie Hall, and last year he appeared at Londons Royal Albert Hall performing on Elton Johns famous red piano.

Stelios says his favourite pianist is the late Canadian Glenn Gould, best known for his technically demanding renditions of Bach variations.

The Greek has shown a flare for composing. His two earlier works were written for his sisters, Veronica and Anastasia, and like Isolation Waltz were met with critical acclaim.

Greece has been under lockdown for longer than most other European nations, the government having closed schools almost a month ago. Last week the government announced that swimming was also forbidden as the measures were ramped up.

The precautionary steps appear to be working: Greece has reported 79 deaths and fewer than 1,800 confirmed coronavirus cases, far fewer than some other countries.

Stelios, who is likely to be homebound for some time yet, has not hinted whether he has another composition up his sleeve.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/06/seven-year-old-greek-piano-prodigy-pens-an-isolation-waltz

Special featuring Sean Diddy Combs, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Snoop Dogg and others to highlight disproportionate impact

Celebrities have highlighted the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus pandemic on people of color in the US, which is especially stark in cities.

Latinos across the US are disproportionately getting sick from coronavirus. In some regions they are infected and hospitalized at up to three times the rate of white Americans, a Guardian analysis found.

In a survey conducted across 14 US states, the CDC recently found that 33% of people who had been hospitalized with Covid-19 were African American, yet they represented only around 13% of the population of those states. According to research from Johns Hopkins University. of 26 states reporting racial data, African Americans account for 34% of Covid-related deaths.

The facts are sobering, theyre depressing and theyre tragic, said musician and entrepreneur Sean Diddy Combs during CNNs The Color of Covid one-hour special on Saturday night. African Americans helped to build this country and make this country great. We dont deserve to be in this position. We dont deserve to always be thought of last.

I want to say to my people: Lets not wait on nobody to save us. Lets use this as a reset, Combs added.

Combs was joined by actor America Ferrera, composer and actor Lin-Manuel Miranda and rapper Snoop Dogg. Basketball legend Magic Johnson also joined the broadcast, which was hosted by Don Lemon and and political commentator Van Jones.

If theres anything I can tell you, we got to do what were supposed to do, Johnson said. Stay at home, social distancing. You cant have car parties, you cant have parties at all, you cant have gatherings at all. You must stay at home and practice social distancing. This is killing our community, this virus.

We need each other now more than ever before, said Miranda. Stay home if you can, stay safe.

Latinos make up a large proportion of the essential workforce of grocery store staff, restaurant workers, caretakers, cleaners and delivery workers, and are putting themselves at the frontline of the pandemic. Many are unable to access healthcare systems and unemployment benefits that could bring relief.

Ferrera drew attention to US farmworkers, around 80% of whom identify as Latino, according to Farmworker Justice.

I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart to all, Ferrera said. Theyre putting their lives and health on the line by planting, picking, and packing the food we all need.

But, she noted, farmworkers are reporting that they do not have enough food to feed their own families. Even though the government has deemed them essential workers, they are being denied essential benefits. These frontline workers need our help.

Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institutes of Health, said last week that the crisis is shining a bright light on how unacceptable that is, because yet again, when you have a situation like the coronavirus, [minority communities] are suffering disproportionately.

Snoop Dogg said he joined the broadcast to send some words of encouragement to all of my people out there.

Yo, I want you to have some fun, I want you to make the most of your time at home, the rapper said. Spend some time with your loved ones, get in tune with yourself. Go to Instagram, watch some funny stuff, check out some good movies. Keep your spirits up.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/19/celebrities-decry-coronavirus-disproportionate-impact-blacks-latinos-us

David and Denise Morse were sent to Travis air force base after 21 people on their Grand Princess cruise were diagnosed with coronavirus

Retirees David and Denise Morse were celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary with a 15-day trip aboard the Grand Princess cruise liner when 19 crew members and two passengers aboard the ship were diagnosed with the coronavirus.

The original itinerary had the Morses arriving in Ensenada, Mexico, from Hawaii on 5 March, and returning home to San Francisco two days later. Instead, the cruise liner was held off the San Francisco coast for several days, until it docked in the Port of Oakland on 9 March.

The 2,000 passengers on board disembarked over the course of three days. More than 800 California residents were sent to Travis air force base in Fairfield, about 47 miles north-east of San Francisco , to serve out a 14-day quarantine.

David and Denise are keeping a diary documenting their stay there.

11 March

David, 10.35am I dont know what this is going to be a journal, story or what. I just wanted to write down some of the many thoughts I have had as we go through this surreal ordeal.We are on the fourth floor of the Westwind Inn hotel, on the property of Travis air force base. Got in our room at 9.30pm last night, after a long day that started at 6am on the ship.

We had been dressed and ready to depart our stateroom C314 on the 10th floor, at 7am. The ship had arrived in Oakland the previous day, and passengers had begun disembarking the sick and elderly first. We couldnt see much from what was going on. All the action was on the starboard side, and we were on port.

We waited more than six hours for our turn today. My impression is that Princess Cruises is very experienced in handling large groups, feeding, giving instructions and disembarking procedures. They have it together. On the land, its more politically and medically challenging, as officials have to coordinate between cities, states and the federal government.

This morning, we thought we had to get up for our coronavirus test at 7.15am. On 6 March, Vice-President Pence had announced that everyone disembarking from the boat would be tested for coronavirus.

We scrambled to the elevator area, only to find that the staff were handing out breakfast boxes. So, no testing. At 9.30am, they gave us a temperature check and symptom questions. We were told we would be tested only if we show symptoms. Is that because there is a shortage of testing supplies?

We went downstairs and found a large group of masked passengers in line for coffee and using their bare hands to get juice cartons and breakfast boxes.

12 March

David, 8.55am There are 846 Californians in our four-story hotel at Travis air force base. The majority are elderly folks, many using canes, walkers, wheelchairs and scooters. Medical staff takes our temperatures twice a day. We asked again to be tested for Covid-19 and learned this morning from a medical staff person that they do not have test kits.

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The Morses room at the Westwind Inn hotel on Travis air force base in Fairfield, California. Photograph: David and Denise Morse/The Guardian

It is likely that there are folks among us with the virus. We are advised to wash hands, wear our masks, stay six feet from others, and not gather in large groups. However, we have large groups standing close to each other in line to pick up their food boxes. Weve seen people pick up a box, look at it, then choose another box.

We skipped coffee this morning because to get coffee you have to stand in a line, then use your bare hands to separate a cup from a stack of cups and dispense coffee from a community container. I asked a medical staff person why not have staff dispense the coffee, noting they all have gloves. She said there is not enough staff.

I feel that each day we stay here we increase our chances of contracting the virus. Denise and I are doing our best to protect ourselves and stay positive. We are healthy and know that we will do well if we get the virus. We dont take the elevators; we try to stay away from groups of people. We exercise. I do tai chi every day and Denise meditates every day.

Denise, 2pm I spent much of yesterday and today talking to political folks about the conditions here, calling the offices of California senators Diane Feinstein and Kamala Harris and congressman John Garamendi.

We were feeling rather discouraged about the health and safety situation. But things are improving. At noon they started delivering our meals to our rooms.

David, 3.40pm What a day. Another passenger and I were outside playing Five Foot Two on the ukuleles we got on the cruise ship. A military guy politely approached us and said: Im sorry to interrupt, but I have orders to ask you to return to your room. I dont know why. Off to our room.

There is no alcohol allowed here. But we have a few small bottles from the ship. Just had Jack and coke, made Denise a gin and tonic without ice or limes.

13 March

David, 9.02am We are getting acquainted with how things work here. Yesterday at the reception area in the lobby I asked a friendly service woman if we could have some shampoo. She said, You know, soap is fine. I said OK, could we have some soap? She said, Sorry, we are out of soap. Later I asked another staff member for some soap. She gave me a small bottle of shampoo.

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The view from the Morses fourth-floor room at the Westwind Inn. Photograph: David and Denise Morse/The Guardian

This morning, after complimenting the staff on how they are now dispensing the box meals to our rooms, I complained that coffee is still grab and go, as are juice, water, cream and sugar.

A few minutes later a staff member knocked at our door and said the commander of the quarantine operation would like to talk to me. Denise and I thought, Oh no, now we are in trouble. We met Nate Contreras, who informed us that he is in charge of 60 staff, who serve food, deliver medications, take our temperatures and respond to any passengers medical issue. He was friendly and wanted to hear our concerns. He explained that he didnt have enough staff to dispense coffee, but he has asked for more.

We asked for more hand-washing stations, signs and hand sanitizer. The only place we can wash our hands is in our rooms. We suggested they give us packets for the coffee makers we have in our rooms, he said he would look into it. Surprise: we were not in trouble.

Denise, 9am We got our first official Travis air force base newsletter today. Heres what they said about testing: Everyone here will have the opportunity to be tested for Covid-19. You are not required to be tested. It will be your choice. If you choose to be tested, it is important that you understand that if the results of your test are pending, then it is possible it may delay your departure.

David, 10.30am 23 March is the first day of spring and supposedly the end of our 14-day quarantine. We have nine days to go; this testing statement sounds like it is a feeble attempt to be able to claim that passengers were offered the opportunity to be tested. What would you do?

Here is our list of needs: a blanket (we have a one-sheet cover on our bed and its cold in here), coffee, replacement light bulb for the light on our bed stand, hand soap and laundry detergent.

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Denise Morse out for a walk on the grounds of Westwind Inn. Photograph: David and Denise Morse/The Guardian

14 March

David, 8.03am Denise and I are healthy and in good spirits. We got another newsletter today. It repeats the same testing instructions we saw yesterday, which seem like a threat rather than an option to be tested.

We walked in the rain this morning. We have to walk on the lawn, as most of the sidewalks are outside the perimeter fence that surrounds the complex with security guards in SUVs watching 24/7.

16 March

Denise, 9.30am Woke up at 6am. While David was doing the laundry down the hall, I made the bed and cleaned the bathroom with the hand sanitizer cloths that we had brought with us on the cruise ship. They are gold, and we only use them to clean surfaces in our room and bathroom. There are no cleaning supplies. We were told we could have a room cleaning, but we prefer to not have anyone in our room.

We have decided not to be tested. Our rationale is we are in good health and show no symptoms. As required, we wear our masks when out of our room, stay six feet from individuals, dont touch handles. We take stairs and wash our hands for 20 seconds when we return to our room.

15 March

Denise, 9.31am Up at 7am. Our floor medical person took our temp at 8.30 normal. We have acquired some coffee, so David made coffee in our room. Breakfast was lighter this morning: bagel, cream cheese, banana, option for yogurt and a ketchup pack (what for?).

The daily2pm conference call with federal officials from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) left us confused and worried. They announced there have been two confirmed cases among passengers assigned to this facility. They said those with close contact with those individuals have been informed; no need to be concerned. They have begun testing those who asked to be tested only 30% of those at Travis ended up wanting a test. Those who got tested are still waiting for results.

Dinner served at 6.40pm included a hamburger bun with a piece of yellow cheese, sliced tomato and a piece of lettuce. I asked if there was anything else and the man who delivered it said no. So we used the microwave in our room to heat up the bun and cheese. Wasnt that bad, but it was not many calories. Twenty minutes later, there was a knock on the door and we were given two more boxes with a bare hamburger patty and fries. Too bad we had already eaten the cheese and bun.

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A meal served at Travis air force base. Photograph: David and Denise Morse/The Guardian

17 March

Denise, 9.30am We dont have a table for eating. We tried using the luggage rack with a towel on it but that proved to be too unstable. Now David eats at the desk and I sit on a leather chair and balance the container on my lap.

We get many emails and texts. We find we need to take breaks from our telephones and from hearing about this pandemic.

At the daily conference call, the doctor gave us more details about the two confirmed cases.One person was identified as having the virus while disembarking from the ship and was not brought to Travis. The other case was a couple that had mobility issues and one tested positive. They were not on the base long and were in their room, so exposure was minimal to others, the staff told us. A total of 37 confirmed cases as of today from the Grand Princess.

When they brought our dinner, David put on some soothing classical music. We wish we had some wine.

I want to say this staff has taken a lot of flak from many of us, me included. They have listened, and in most cases, followed up. I have seen changes and an almost daily effort and improvement, specifically around food and drink.

At 8pm, we got a call from the front desk and we have two packages! Its like Christmas! David went down and just came up with two Amazon boxes. One box is from our son Jonathan: a large bag of M&Ms. The other box is from my sister: dental floss and body lotion. Were happy with these new items to add to our simple supply of extras.

20 March

Denise, 5 pm Bad news today. More people at Travis have tested positive. If they didnt get it on the ship, they probably may have gotten it here. The conditions the first few days were appalling.

On 20 March, HHS confirmed that, with new test results still coming in, eight people at Travis had tested positive. Four of them were hospitalized with complications of Covid-19. One person was hospitalized for other reasons.

Everyone that requested to be tested was tested, an HHS spokesperson said. The government cannot force an asymptomatic person to be tested.

In a statement, the department also emphasized that it is working to improve conditions for the Grand Princess passengers under quarantine.

This unprecedented response has presented significant logistical challenges that have affected passengers. During the first two days of this massive undertaking, HHS focused on screening passengers for symptoms, addressing any underlying health conditions, providing access to prescription medication, and getting passengers settled into their rooms. At each step of the way, plans and policies were adapted as necessary to accommodate specific problems at hand.

This is the first federal quarantine in nearly 60 years. HHSs number one priority is the health of the passengers, the people caring for them, and those in the surrounding communities. We continue to focus on hospitality issues, such as food service and housekeeping, to improve the comfort of our guests.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/23/quarantine-diary-travis-air-force-base-grand-princess