Social Circles: Maybe Not The Worst Idea If You All Happen To Live Close Together

Ontario has come up with a new system that’s supposed to allow people to get closer to at least some of their family. It’s called a social circle, and it goes a little something like this.

Creating what he called a “safe” social circle, the ministry physician said to start with your immediate household and then add other members to the circle that you would normally be in contact with on a regular basis. 
He said it was important to get agreement from others before adding new persons to the group. He said the agreement should also mean that the other members of the group would agree to maintain physical distancing from all others outside of the circle.

“And no one should be part of more than one circle,” he added. 
He said it is important to protect the social circle by limiting the number of persons you come into contact with outside the home circle.
“For example if you spent time with 10 people one day and spent time with a different 10 people the next day, that represents 20 opportunities to come into contact with someone who has COVID-19. On the other hand if you meet with the same 10 people everyday, that cuts in half the number of opportunities for exposure,” said the physician.

I think it’s my headache talking, but this sounds more complicated than it probably is.

But even if it’s not that complex, what it definitely is is impractical. Maybe not for everyone, but if you’re me it’s completely unworkable.

Thinking about the people I’m most likely to want to be in regular contact with, I’m coming up with folks from four different cities and a rural area without really trying. And if I add Carin’s wants and needs into the mix which of course I would, it gets even more fun because that’s at least two more cities, one of which is Toronto. I suppose if we wanted to we could make a friends one out of locals, but that would screw up their family circles so the chances of that happening are highly unlikely. Add to this that we live in a high rise, and lord knows who has what in here. So even if I wanted to be part of a circle, I’d probably be wise to turn it down out of an abundance of caution because murdering my favourite old people isn’t super high up on the to do list.

If this works for you, great. Enjoy your families. Seriously, I say that without a hint of bitterness or sarcasm. But for now I’m content to not be around people. The phone is just fine. It’s a lot simpler and a lot safer in our situation.

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3 Comments

  1. I think it was the headache talking. I don’t think the word I was after was complicated. What I wanted, I believe, was onerous. Unless you’re all crammed together anyway, it puts a lot of pressure on people to choose carefully. You have to consider all sorts of factors. Your living and work situations, whether or not you have to visit or help older folks and where they are, how much traveling you’ll have to do…it’s almost more trouble than it’s worth. That part I was right about. This is a good thing, since it was my main point.

    1. I wish you had any sort of idea how much time I actually spend on the damn thing.  It’s more than you know.  but priority goes to family, especially the ones who don’t text.  Forgive me for not being super eager to set myself up for even more crippling headaches.

      Yes this reads mostly like you’re kidding and that’s totally fine.  I’m not even really mad.  But this is kind of a touchy spot for me because I’ve explained it to people over and over again and it often feels like nobody cares.  Now and then that gets a little frustrating.

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