"rapid blindness" - I guess I would take the surgery option. I've had two procedures to my hands (fingers) under local, and the most painful part was that massive fuzzy juice needle. But it was interesting to hear the banter from the surgeons etc while they were operating.
I think restrictions will lift slowly. I'm sure you can have small meets with less than 10 people shortly, but it would be hard to do the social distancing unless you have every second machine in a lineup off.