Week in Review: Closed Sunday, no kissing, home movies, stay away, mask maker
Catch up on all the big stories that happened this week in Montreal.
Article content
Catch up on all the big stories that happened this week in Montreal.
Most Quebec stores will close on Sundays as coronavirus cases mount
With a sudden upswing in positive COVID-19 cases and three more deaths, Premier François Legault has announced nearly all stores — including grocery stores — will close on Sundays for the month of April to give workers under intense pressure a break. Pharmacies, gas stations, dépanneurs and restaurant take-out services will remain open Sundays. The new measure came as Legault used his daily media briefing on Monday to announce that three more Quebecers have died, for a total of 25. That is the highest number of deaths in Canada.
Brownstein: Post-coronavirus, will Montrealers ever want another two-cheek kiss?
Many of us — but, regrettably, not all — have become rather adept at following basic hygiene rules in seeking to ward off the coronavirus. So much so that it’s hard to imagine we’ll ever be able to return to our touchy-feely ways when — if? — our leaders give us the all-clear to resume our social lives. It’s been fascinating to observe so many formerly blasé friends, family members, colleagues and neighbours now religiously hand-washing, social distancing and self-isolating.
Movies, my cat and depression in the time of COVID-19
If this were a movie, I’d open it in the locked unit of the Douglas Mental Health University Institute. It’s the dead of night on July 2 and the benzodiazepines have all but shut my central nervous system down. So I just sink into the cot and listen to my roommate explain what it’s like to hear the voice of God echoing in his skull. He knows it’s not really God but sometimes he can’t be sure. Like me, he’s soft spoken, he has a good sense of humour but he’s also a danger to himself.
Keep your distance during the coronavirus crisis — yes, you
Much of the solution to the COVID-19 crisis lies in our own hands — frequently and thoroughly washed, of course. Social isolation, washing your hands and not touching your face are crucial. “This can’t be overstated,” says Dr. Lawrence Rosenberg, president and CEO of the health authority responsible for Montreal’s west end, the CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l’Île-de-Montréal. “And if you can do that — and that is entirely in your control — that is probably 90 per cent of the solution.”
Coronavirus: Colourful masks address need during bleak times
Photographer Vivian Doan has recently shifted focus from the camera lens to the sewing machine to make free, brilliantly coloured cloth protective masks. The coronavirus pandemic was making Doan feel anxious. The mask project helped channel her energies into doing good for others while easing her feelings of anxiety. The learning curve was sharp and she came to the mask project in circuitous fashion. “Sewing is a new skill for me,” Doan said. “My boyfriend gave me a sewing machine as a gift.”
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.