damont

(Originally posted to my GoFundMe, and backdated to the date of that original post. This is basically copied verbatim (modulo formatting), including the fundraising stuff at the end; I *was* posting to GoFundMe after all. Feel free to ignore those bits if you want. Link to the fundraiser will be provided in the comments and upon request.)

In today's episode of "SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 related PSA meets the traditional begging post" I'm checking in once again with pharmaceutical chemist Derek Lowe's blog for Science Translational Medicine. The long holiday weekend means not as many posts to link to this time around. First up, a couple of entries updating some things with respect to hydroxychloroquine:

Taking Hydroxychloroquine (May 19 Update)

Hydroxychloroquine: Enough Already?

And then, updates on the development of one or more vaccines. The first is the previous omnibus update post, and the second is yesterday's post which will carry the updates moving forward.

A Close Look at the Frontrunning Coronavirus Vaccines As of May 1 (updated)

Coronavirus Vaccine Update, May 26

Note that the vaccine update posts include plenty of links to other posts about the hunt for a vaccine. I consider it all worthwhile reading.

Now it's time to move on to the usual begging stuff. If you've read any of these non-photo posts in the past several weeks, you know what comes next: before and in addition to the usual plea for help for ourselves, I'm going to ask those of you who are able to SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL BUSINESSES that are still open. Help keep your local economy a little bit more afloat, as and if you can. And remember that once the worst of this has passed, locally owned businesses will be struggling to get back on their feet, so please be ready to patronize them as much as you can when it's time for them to reopen. Please however, do so in a safe manner. Recent news shows that a lot of people are acting quite UNintelligently about this. Don't be one of those.

And now, because after so long we STILL can't afford shame, here's my shameless and desperate plea for help. Please PLEASE spread the word as much as you feel able; share this fundraiser on lots of social media, by email, even by writing the link on pieces of paper and passing them around. Encourage folks you know to donate and to spread the word themselves. I've long since estimated that I'll need about 1,000 different contributors to make the goal, so getting the word out is important. And IF YOU ARE ABLE TO, please donate! We know that some of you have done so in the past two months (for which A GREAT BIG THANK YOU) and lots of you just can't. But even a spare 5 or 10 bucks, if that's all you can afford, is appreciated. Every little bit helps. (Remember, NO FEELING GUILTY if you don't have the means to contribute, or enough spoons to spread the word as far as you'd like.) And as I also keep saying: unlikely as it may be in these times of pandemic-fueled recession, if you have any job leads for either of us, PLEASE contact us! Relocation is TOTALLY an option.

Again, if anyone here actually is in a position to help out, right now would be a truly awesome time to do so. If you can't, you can't; I understand that better than most... thanks in advance for whatever you are able to do. If where you live is relaxing restrictions now (more and more common), please practice the UTMOST caution: stay home as much as you can, go out to do what you must, and as I said last week, keep tabs on the infection rate for your vicinity, not just your state/province/country. STAY SAFE. Wash your hands, keep hydrated, boost your immune system by whatever means works for you. Practice social distancing as much you realistically can. Keep in touch with your friends and loved ones from a safe distance. Tell them you care and that you're thinking of them. And as always, thank you for your continued support.