I believe the census was actually mailed out before we were aware of all this Coronavirus stuff and the effects it was going to have.

I remember getting the census and filling it out online before we went into lockdown and before Covid was a thing.

Butterflybabe, now more than ever is census data important. It decides where funding needs to go and allows public funding for healthcare to be distributed in most needed areas.

Me too Marian (although I mailed mine in) and if other people did the same, the information is now skewed (if that's the right word). I think that might be Butterflybabe's point.

No, Ana is correct. Now more than ever the census data is important.

Yes, Ana is correct and I'm aware of the reason for the census and that it's mandated by the constitution, but oldbroad gets my point. The way I think of it, 2 million citizens send in their info/data, within the following month 20,000 die from covid. Doesn't that mean that a lot of that reported data changes? Maybe I'm oversimplifying it, but I just don't understand how the data can be trusted to be accurate with so many changes happening right now. The number of people and their needs are changing more rapidly than has happened for a long time, if ever.

I don't remember ever getting something in the mail about it either. First learned about it from Local library send out a notice that their computers were available for people to use to complete it online. Village were I live also sent out a notice that if a resident didn't complete it, a village official would contact that person to remind them. When I went online, the site asked for a number, which I didn't have, but site is designed to account for that. I was done in 10 seconds. I've heard very little else about it anywhere, esp on the news.

I also feel the date will now be inaccurate but the Census was sent out in the mail before this all happened. Who could have known? And while I know this is supposed to be every 10 years, I only remember doing this 3 times and I'm 62??? Seems more like every 20 years only.

Well, when you think about it though, the census is basically a snapshot in time. People are going to die in the weeks and months after completing it with or without a pandemic. Statisticians take that into account. That's probably why we wait 10 years between snapshots. In that period we would realize the overall major shifts in population...people moving into and out of states and regions are the main reasons, as well as demographics. Deaths are going to occur everywhere and it's likely assumed it's proportional to population.

You know what's weird and probably sounds stupid? I actually wrote on the census where it asked about address as of April 1st (or something like that), I wrote next to my answer "if I'm still alive", because, hey, you never know, and that was a couple weeks into my future.

So, I won't get into the math, but there are specific techniques used to take into account the range of variance due to events or whatever, that are built into their data analysis.

Gathering and leveraging the data are two very different things, and those who use it for reporting are aware of the circumstances.

They never use straight counts, it's always subject to analysis. A simplified example would be something like removing outliers from a dataset. There are lots of other things they can do to balance the results, like Predictive Analytics that would give a more accurate view.

Thanks for that, Trail. I always wondered how they actually made use of the data. Between seasonal flu, vehicle accidents, cancer, old age etc, there are hundreds of thousands of deaths every year and I've wondered the same thing.

I just found a site called 'census data', and found a chart showing all sorts of percentage data done in 2019 covering the population dating back to 2014. At least I think that's what I saw. Very interesting. Info on all sorts of stuff.

Over at census.gov they've got a bunch of info on how they calculate and use the data. Their "Census Academy" has some good info.

Oh, jeez... we are starting to have COVID cases spike in our county, which was to be expected with the lackadaisical approach of our governor on reopening. Our town is very small, but two local restaurants are closing completely - no curb service, no nothing - for a minimum of 2 weeks. One had an employee in the kitchen test positive and other is closing out of an abundance of caution. I have a feeling there will be more closings to follow.

Yes, Drac. That seems to be happening in a lot of places right now. This is actually starting to feel more scary to me now. Before, you could feel there was an end in sight somewhere, but now it is starting to feel like, maybe not. I'm starting to imagine a really weird future.

I have felt very wary since news of relaxations to "Lockdown" was first announced. Too many and too soon for my liking ....

We had a spontaneous neighborhood (cul-de-sac) BBQ on Sat evening under a couple of trees. All of us were mindful of sitting away from each other; usually all gathered near food table. It was fun, but weird. Talked about how eerie to find everybody's car at home during the beginning of the shutdown. Some women shared about not going for a haircut in way longer time than usual. Who's working and who isn't. We normally have this gathering around Labor Day but who knows what the state of things will be at that point. Fireworks weren't quite as extensive as usual, just enough to make my dog shiver.

The trick of this virus is, no matter how frustrating it is, we can't get complacent about it, that's when things get bad again.

That actually sounds kind of nice butterflybabe!

It is Draclvr. It was a new experience for me when I first moved here in 2013. It is a cul-de-sac in back of a community center building. Most people don't know it exists unless you are visiting, checking out a place for sale or take a wrong turn. Sad part is that about 20 people live in this small area, but people from only 5 houses typically show up. Don't know why. It's good for me because those who show up live near my own home and I've gotten to know them pretty well. Very helpful and kind people. I always bring my dog and they give him lots of cuddly attention until he gets annoying. At this past party, one of the neighbors went to his house. Minute he left, my dog jumped up and sat in his chair. We all laughed. When the guy came back, laughed and pushed him off. Close friends who knew me, esp after my divorce, were happy I found the place because the area is quiet, well kept and safe.

We have had a big spike in our county in California as well as many other counties in the state. Indoor dining has been shut down again here after having reopened. I canceled a cleaning appointment at the dentist that was for this morning because the Covid situation here is worse now than it was two to three months ago. I did not want to cancel the appointment but felt that I should nevertheless. The dentist and the hygienists come from areas that are actually worse than ours in terms of the numbers.

I find myself wondering how long before I feel like it's safe to go back to the dentist? All of our doctor's appointments have been over the phone, and still are. I don't like going too long without a visit to the dentist, but it just didn't feel right to me. I changed the appointment to the end of August, but who knows what the status of things will be then. I have a feeling it might well be worse.

These are very strange times in which to live.

Here, the news lately is about reopening the schools. I was just telling my brother that I don't even know why they are discussing it right now (the dates). Yes, they need to have a plan for when they do reopen, but normal time to open is over a month away still. Who knows what will be happening then.

I took my first trip out today in 5 months. My brother took me to the drive through at the bank and I finally got to wear my mask.

Five months is a really good run, oldbroad. I'm kind of a hermit when given the opportunity, so that sounds good to me.

We don't have the option of going to the dentist... my appointment was canceled long ago and they are only doing emergency's

Yes, that was the case here for a good while, Winfrey. I am surprised they are doing appointments here now for anything other than emergencies.

Yeah, cancelled my dental appointment too. I will just have to take extra care of my teeth for awhile.

I spent last Monday night in the hospital and was nervous the whole time. Appears I have another blood clot and tiny little pieces have been traveling to my lungs over the last several weeks. So, I'm back on a blood thinner forever. I feel fine and was going nuts when they made me stay several extra hours to take my next blood thinner dose... no option to take it home with me! I made a deal with the hospitalist - disconnect me from all these heart monitor leads so I can get dressed and go walking and I'll stay until 4:00! She said OK and the third time I went trucking by the nurses station at a pretty good clip, they laughed at me and said it sure appeared I wasn't having any trouble breathing! I just hated being there because I know there are a lot of COVID patients there too and who knows what else. Couldn't wait to get home to my little sanctuary and my 114 tomato plants!