Getting Through Coronavirus Blues: Cute GIFs and Weird Haircuts

Here in the Bay Area, we’ve been sheltering in place for almost two months and it doesn’t look like it’s going to end soon. This week, six Bay Area counties announced they are extending shelter-in-place through May. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting impacts on the economy and people’s livelihoods are real and disturbing. KQED reporters have been answering your questions about the pandemic and what it will mean for the future of the Bay Area.

But plenty of people are struggling with more personal hardships during this time.

Reporter Asal Ehsanipour has been dating Larry Jerome for two years. During normal times, they’d see each other almost every day. But Larry has Crohn’s disease, a chronic inflammatory illness where the body attacks itself. Larry’s disease is in remission, but only because he gets regular Remicade infusions — infusions that weaken his immune system.

Normally, Asal lives with roommates in the Sunset District of San Francisco. One of her roommates is a hospital nurse, and is pretty sure she’s been exposed to the coronavirus, which means Asal has probably been exposed, too. To keep Larry safe, she’s decided to self-isolate at her parents house in San Mateo. She doesn’t interact with her parents or Larry, hoping that by being extra vigilant she won’t have to worry about getting Larry sick when they see each other again.

It’s tough to transition a relationship that has known daily intimacy into a long-distance one. To keep themselves going, Larry sends Asal cute GIFs every morning. A few of her favorites are an old couple dancing like there’s no tomorrow, the cutest dog ever and some ingenious parenting.

Asal shared more of what it’s like to date an immunocompromised person right now in an article for The California Report.

On a less serious note, two months is a long time for many to go without seeing a hair stylist. Undyed roots are showing, bangs are getting in eyes and a lot of men are taking on a distinctly puffy look.

Bay Curious listener Marcus Adams wanted to know: “Can hair stylists do home visits if they and their clients wear protective gear? If they do, are they subject to prosecution?”

The short answer to this question is: no. Hair stylists cannot do home visits during the pandemic.

“Violations of the health order can mean fines of up to $1,000, and, in rare cases, time in county jail,” said Sgt. Ray Kelly, spokesman for the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, one of a number of Bay Area law enforcement agencies responsible for ensuring non-essential businesses remain shut during the pandemic.

While the vast majority of stylists are out of work, people bored at home have been busy doing a number on their own hair.

Others are having fun with the trend.

Share your favorite quarantine GIF or hair style with us! We’re on Twitter @kqedbaycurious.