Bad news for the musical instrument industry

[westen44]

I'll update my info.  It's possible it may be of use to someone.  Without going into all the details, since I couldn't get the bass I wanted, I was trying to talk to somebody about buying the Guild Starfire II which they briefly had a price drop on.  The sales rep told me over the phone he would probably be able to help me.  I waited and waited.  Didn't get back an answer for 5 days.  Today I found a deal on a Gibson SG Standard and ordered that from Sweetwater.  I think Musician's Friend is probably still functioning okay; they're just very slow.  If they had been even one minute faster, it's very possible I'd have a Guild from them.  As it stands, what I got instead will most likely be fine.  But I won't know for sure until I have it in my hands because it's an ebony demo with a few issues. 

[Dave W]

If the price was right, hopefully you can deal with the issues.

[westen44]

Yes, I'm thinking the same thing.  I feel comfortable dealing with Sweetwater.  And except for the fact that they've become so slow, I still don't mind MF, either. 

[Psycho Bass Guy]

I stocked up on MF's Stupid Deal of the Day for rack cases last week and they took the normal shipping time.

[westen44]

It's good to hear things must be getting back to normal.  In my case, MF definitely was slow.  But it was a complicated situation.  No harm was done and I'm most likely going to end up getting what i want anyway.  I have nothing to complain about with anybody.  The only thing I feel like complaining about is the pandemic.  That's getting really old. 

[Psycho Bass Guy]

I'm in the "lucky" minority of Covid-19 patients who contracted it in early March and STILL have not shaken it, so shipping times have been the least of my concerns.

[lowend1]

I'm in the "lucky" minority of Covid-19 patients who contracted it in early March and STILL have not shaken it, so shipping times have been the least of my concerns.

Wow, sorry to hear that. Generally speaking, how do you feel?

[westen44]

I'm in the "lucky" minority of Covid-19 patients who contracted it in early March and STILL have not shaken it, so shipping times have been the least of my concerns.

Hopefully, you'll make a full recovery.  I'm being more careful about this than most other things since I have some existing pre-conditions, including allergy and asthma problems.  It hasn't affected me directly and I hope it doesn't.  In the meantime, I'm trying to take precautions, it seems more so than the people around me.  And there is obviously no way to affect what other people do about something like this. 

[lowend1]

Hopefully, you'll make a full recovery.  I'm being more careful about this than most other things since I have some existing pre-conditions, including allergy and asthma problems.  It hasn't affected me directly and I hope it doesn't.  In the meantime, I'm trying to take precautions, it seems more so than the people around me.  And there is obviously no way to affect what other people do about something like this.

Same here. No asthma, but I have scar tissue from radiation treatments that blocks >30% of my airway on a good day, plus some nerve damage in the same area. Any exertion and everything clenches up even more. I have to keep a script for prednisone handy in case I get a cold and my throat swells up. Keeping track of other peoples' illnesses has become a part-time job.

[westen44]

Same here. No asthma, but I have scar tissue from radiation treatments that blocks >30% of my airway on a good day, plus some nerve damage in the same area. Any exertion and everything clenches up even more. I have to keep a script for prednisone handy in case I get a cold and my throat swells up. Keeping track of other peoples' illnesses has become a part-time job.

I've got a friend in Denmark who also has serious preexisting conditions and he went off to a safer place for quite while away from everything.  But Denmark has handled dealing with the pandemic so well he feels safe just where he is now.  I wish I could be somewhere like that.  It must be nice. 

[Psycho Bass Guy]

Wow, sorry to hear that. Generally speaking, how do you feel?

That's the frustrating part: I'll have a couple of days where I think I'm finally recovering for real, and then the bottom drops out again. In general, the symptoms are much easier to deal with now than they were when I feel like the virus was still active (what I have now is allegedly post-viral fatigue); there were days then that I would get so dizzy I fell off the couch just sitting and my cough scared people- over the phone. Things generally feel like the flu crossed with VERY bad walking pneumonia with all attendant symptoms of both. The worst thing I deal with now is intermittent shortness of breath and random severe fatigue, but I also still have random severe headaches, insomnia, and back pain and a cough that comes and goes. X-ray says my lungs are clear. Have not had a CT, but I've had enough good days where breathing was not an issue at all to be confident that I dodged major lung damage.

[Darrol]

The worst thing I deal with now is intermittent shortness of breath and random severe fatigue

That should get better with time. This is one of those virus' that can just shock the system in a way that slows recovery a lot.

I hope everyone here is keeping as well as one can these days!

[Highlander]

We're keeping our collective heads down here...
Both my wife and daughter have asthma... my wife also has COPD and my daughter has several other conditions that put her at risk... they are both on a required 12 week "lock-down"... this was done here so most of the hospitals could cope with "regular" issues before the folks with the highest likelihood of serious complications are kept "out-of-the-loop" end up there...
We know several people that have had this and unfortunately not all with good conclusions... closest family issue (discovered it was on-going yetserday) has been since my cuz and her other half returned from Spain in December... he was hospitalised in January, on a ventilator and in a coma for nearly 2 weeks... came out in April... still not out of the woods... also has multiple complications... he was not expected to leave hospital... the NHS are denying this was C19, as it was "too early"...
Quirky medical reactions...
My mum had TB she contracted in 1949 in her early 20's working in London... she was hospitalised until 1951... finally got the "all-clear" in the late 50's when she married my dad, who had known her since before she got sick...
My wife's younger sister contracted a form of TB (NHS description) in Moscow in the 80's... it was not diagnosed for 20 years... she has been in and out of hospital too many times...
We contracted an "unknown virus" in the good-ol'-USofA when we visited in 2003... knocked us out for 6 weeks and I lost about 30lbs during that time... not describing why...
Not going down the political or business route with this but the only losers here are the in-excess of 400,000 folks considered cannon-fodder in this viral-confrontation... This figure will get larger before this is over... I expect it to reach 7 figures...
I, for one, am glad I do not live in a city...

[lowend1]

That's the frustrating part: I'll have a couple of days where I think I'm finally recovering for real, and then the bottom drops out again.

I've heard that from others. Hopefully the lungs are good. I found out a couple of years back that I have "apical scarring" on mine - from who knows what. I was never a smoker. Doc says it just happens sometimes when you get a bad cold/cough. I think that we might see a resurgence with all the "social non-distancing" of late. Stay safe.

[lowend1]

We're keeping our collective heads down here...
I, for one, am glad I do not live in a city...

Likewise.
I'm in northern NJ, so I'm in the second worst state for the virus, and the worst area of said state. My wife is working from home, and I've been here continuously as well - save for a couple of heavily-swathed trips to the hardware and auto parts stores, plus a quick cruise with the car on the weekend. If I need anything outside of that, I get it online. Frankly, that's not much different from the way I function normally. Worst part is the two twenty-something sons that are here with us, but they generally toe the line as well.