Masks are ONLY effective when everyone is wearing them, everyone is at least 6 feet apart, and no one is exhaling forcefully

If one person isn't wearing a mask, there is a risk

If everyone is wearing a mask but you're only 5 ft apart, there is a risk

If everyone is wearing a mask and you're 6 feet apart but one person is shouting/singing/panting with exertion, there is a risk (your breath travels farther when exhaling forcefully, more distance is required)

Your mask needs to be FULLY on and ready to go before you leave your house/car

Not "I'll put it on when I get inside". Not "there won't be anyone at the park so I don't need it". Not "I'll slip it on in the parking lot." Unless you literally have a forcefield, there is a reasonable chance you will encounter someone before your mask is fully on, unless it is fully on 100% of the time you are in public

Children can still carry and spread covid. No, it is not acceptable for children to run around maskless in any public spaces, outdoor or otherwise

You can still get covid outdoors!!! The risk is somewhat lower but still very present.

You can test negative for covid while actively contagious. Most tests have a solid percentage of false negatives, and even if the test is working perfectly, it's best able to identify you as positive once you've started showing symptoms

It can take up to 14 days for symptoms of covid to appear. You are still contagious before your symptoms appear.

You could catch covid on a Monday, take a test Wednesday (while covid positive and contagious) and test NEGATIVE, then start showing symptoms on Sunday, and by the time you finally test positive the next Wednesday, you've exposed a week and a half's worth of people

This is why it's imperative that if you think you've been exposed to covid, you self-isolate for a full 14 days regardless of symptoms or test results

You can still be contagious even if you NEVER show symptoms of covid

Covid doesn't clock out because you're eating. Covid doesn't clock out because you're at the dentist. Covid doesn't clock out because you have a really, really, really good reason for taking off your mask. If your mask is off, or someone else's mask is off in a space you are occupying, there is a risk

Your best friend can give you covid. Your mom can give you covid. Your partner can give you covid. Your grandma can give you covid. The people in your life are not magically immune to infecting you just because you love and trust them. Unless you know with absolute certainty they have only interacted with people who have only interacted with them, there is a risk

I know it's inconvenient, but you really should not touch your mask, like at all. You shouldn't touch the front of your mask, because it may have effectively stopped covid from touching your face, and now that's all over your fingers, which are then all over your phone... you get the picture. You shouldn't touch the inside of your mask, because if you've touched anything with covid, you're now putting that right next to your nose and mouth. You shouldn't take your mask on and off, because while it's off, the inside may become exposed to covid. If you take your mask off, you really ought to put a new, clean mask back on. You really ought to wash your hands before putting your mask on and before taking it off, and you should only handle the straps. Do not wear a mask someone else has directly touched.

40% of grocery workers have caught covid

You can catch covid from surfaces. The risk is low, but present.

Masks with vents do not filter the air going out of them, making them completely useless at protecting other people from your potentially asymptomatic covid+ self. Masks are primarily worn to protect other people from the wearer, and just have the added benefit of providing a small amount of protection to the wearer, but a vented mask is effectively pointless.

The longer someone stays in one spot, the more saturated the air around them gets with their breath. This is why activities that involve staying in one spot with a bunch of people for a significant period of time are especially dangerous. See: concerts, church, bars, restaurants, spectator events, etc. Things become more risky if people are singing, laughing, talking loudly, screaming, exercising. Again, your breath travels further. A situation where everyone is moving around (calmly) is less risky.

If you have long hair, public health experts reccomend wearing it up while in public to reduce surface area upon which the virus could stick. (Consider how close your hair is to your face, and it's presence at the same height as everyone else's heads/mouths/breath. There is less concern about your jeans getting in your eyes/mouth or being coughed on by someone covid+).

Do not take your mask off to speak. Do not wear your mask below your nose. Do not reuse disposable masks (and ideally invest in a washable and reusable mask that you wash between every single use. Or don't even invest in one-- many places are giving them out for free.)

Just an "america is a capitalist hellscape" protip from someone who got charged $318 for a "free" covid test-- do NOT go to a privately owned healthcare provider for a test, and double check to see if there's a "*with most insurance" attached to that free test

Just because someone tells you a public space is safe to be in, does not mean it is safe. Think to yourself: does this person/organization benefit financially from me being in this space? Restaurants want your money. Airlines want your money. Stores want your money. They will do the absolute bare minimum necessary to follow any laws that might be in place and make their business seem appealing. This does not actually mean they care about your health or are actively protecting it. Ask yourself: do I trust these employees with my life? Do I trust the management of this company with my life? If I were working this job for minimum wage 40 hours a week, would I be taking every single precaution possible, for every single customer, every single time, on top of my regular duties, especially if management didn't require it?

Unfortunately, "people who benefit from you being in a public space but don't necessarily give a shit about your individual health" include politicians and governments. Just because spaces are legally open, does not mean they are safe. Just because the mayor/governor/president/prime minister says it's safe does not mean that it is

I'm not trying to suggest everyone is out to get you and you should be suspicious of everything, I just want everyone to use the factual, scientific information we have about covid to evaluate a situation and determine on their own, using science and logic, if a situation is safe. Because unfortunately, things other people say, even ones in positions of authority, are not always based on science or logic, as we should all know well by now.

Please add your own info or correct me if I've gotten anything wrong