Turns out I had very low white blood count (0.7, vs normal of 4.5 to 11), so my doctor called and basically told me to be on alert, and follow the other "neutropenia" rules:
- no raw foods
- no crowds
- no sick or recently symptomatic people
- or people who've been around sick people
This meant cancelling the big dinner at my brother-in-law's and hosting my arriving brother at our house.
I also have been wearing a mask, which I figure is so strange and distinctive that it sends a message basically like a bicycle bell: you mostly get the message, and why the sender wants to send it, without having to explain.
Technically, the mask is of very little use to me (I really should carry extra to offer to sick people I meet). It is much better to intercept/deflect germs (and tiny aerosol drops from sick people's nose and mouth), and to do so at their source, rather than me trying to filter them out at the last minute.
But, as with ringing a bicycle bell, I wear the mask as a signal to others and a reminder of what I'm doing. To others it says "something about being sick and [blogger] and don't expect to get close to blogger right now". To myself it says: "wash your hands a lot; don't touch your eyes"
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