Little bottles are showing up in Manhattan office buildings. The oddest appearance which I saw was in an office building on Seventh Avenue, where there was a bottle on a stand in each of the elevators.
And finally it has appeared in my office building. I walked in this morning and there it was by the guard station - the bottle on the stand which served as a silent reminder of a city’s fear.
Fear of what, you ask? Fear of the swine flu, of course. Someone thought that placing little bottles of hand sanitizers all over Manhattan will slow the spread of the H1N1 swine flu. So I am seeing bottles of Purell in more and more office buildings.
My cynical mind thinks that this scheme was dreamed up by the company which makes Purell. But there is logic to the plan, because the major entryway for germs into the body is by a person’s hand touching their mouth or eyes. So if people start using these sanitizers then the spread of the flu should be reduced. I think that people will be motivated to use the sanitizers if and when the flu begins to widely spread throughout the City.
Meanwhile, we can only wait and make sure that our hands are clean.
Stumble It!
I would be more intimidated by the bottles than by the prospect of getting the flu. It's AIRBORNE, folks! Are you going to never walk on a busy sidewalk again? Shoot the next person who sneezes within FIFTY FEET of you? Please. Relax, be careful, eat your fruits and veggies, and keep your fingers crossed. Oh, yes -- and get a prescription for a full course of tamiflu before they "run out" of it as they did in 2005.
Posted by: Kathy Hunt | October 19, 2009 at 12:03 PM
Swine flu is probably more benign than other more potent strains. It just has a cool name.The fear itself seems more the epidemic than the flu itself.
Some say that over-sanitizing/sterilizing/vaccinating only serves to weaken our immune systems, leaving ourselves that much more susceptible to getting the bloody flu.
So, long live your sleeve. Ok, or a handkerchief, if you want. And there's something called soap and water. Eat well, sleep lots, get outside, have fun and look for alternative medicine.
Put your energy into making sure we all get decent healthcare.
Purell won't stop you from getting the flu. Using it will make your hands get dry, smell funny, and it'll make Johnson & Johnson's stock go up.
And if elevators are a problem, take the stairs.
peace and love, jane
Posted by: blueheronkitchen.blogspot.com | October 06, 2009 at 08:51 PM
I certainly hope that whomever is touching those elevator buttons has sanitized first -- which is why I always let others play elevator operator.
Posted by: jennifer rose | October 06, 2009 at 07:51 PM