I wore my #HongKong govt-issued mask for the first time yesterday and would like to submit a product review to the internets. Thread. https://twitter.com/caitschult2/status/1257969839437643776

First, this mask works great to avoid facial recognition technology. FIVE stars for fuck the government.

The first photo was a joke. This is more realistic, with it under my chin. Still can't see.

But in all seriousness, it is HUGE and even if you loop it, there's extra fabric on the sides that I also had to tuck in. I also find it too long in the nose (coming from someone with a large, white person nose). ZERO stars for fit and utility.

Given that it is giant and loose on my face, of course it did not protect against tear gas yesterday in everyday, real-world conditions of a police state. I could feel the tear gas burn in my nose and throat, even though I was a couple blocks away.

A friend who has less of a problem with fit pointed out that after a few hours of wear, it starts to sag and become less effective. It kind of hangs off your nose and is loose at the chin. I also experienced this phenomenon, although our baselines were different.

However, I can say that it is lightweight and soft, and much more comfortable than a medical mask. FOUR stars for comfort. (Speaking of, you can probably see the red rashes on my neck from medical masks - sensitive skin )

After wearing it yesterday, I washed it in my clothes washing machine, and didn't really think about whether to air dry or not... I was machine-drying other items in the load, so left it in by default, and this was a...

WINNING DECISION because the dryer shrunk my mask to half its original size and now it fits!!!

Slight problem is that the filter insert no longer fits inside the mask, but seems like I can cut it in half and have two sets, so also a major win?

Summary: terrible mask, terrible government, do not recommend either one. But at least it's soft, like underwear on your face