Covid - 19: How is it affecting you?

[ian16th]

Our local worry, if SM & I survive, is how many of the local small traders will still be operating?

We live in a holiday/retirement area and the loss of the schools Easter Holiday season will be damaging to many.

[1DC]

Read your experience in a Saudi jail Plum reminded me of a first trip engineer in 1958. We went to Ras Tanura to load and another company ship was on the other side of the jetty a mate of the young engineer was aboard, they had both served their time together.He was caught carrying a case of beer across the jetty on his way to visit. He was detained and we were told that he was sentenced to a year in jail. In those days the jail didn't provide food it came from the family so the ships agent got the job, big oil still had a bit of stroke and he was released after three months although we understood that conditions were grim..
All this talk about decent whisky is a bit distressing for someone who is now forbidden to drink spirits.. I have plenty of beer which is allowed..

[OFSO]

I don't live in Northern Canada but even in 'crowded' London there's plenty of room to separate from other pedestrians. Queuing for the supermarket this morning we all observed the two metre lines sprayed on the street. With the absence of traffic one has the whole street to walk in. Came back on bus, nearest passenger ten feet away, I didn't touch anything, and washed my hands as soon as I got indoors, having sprayed them with a disinfectant several times while out.

Two things are in short supply in London: wallpaper paste and Viagra. Oh well, just have to go and sweep the garden again.

[larsssnowpharter]

Took the Black Bitch for a long walk through the fields this evening. There was little, if any, traffic noise in the distance. The usual helicopter flights out to the rigs didn't seem to be operating and there were no contrails in the sky.

A wee robin defended his territory robustly so we gave him precedence and ambled past.

The moon was as clear as I think I have ever seen it at sea level in the Northern Hemisphere. Obviously as a result of the lack of atmospheric pollution. That got me to thinking and I found a report saying some 30,000 deaths were estimated to be caused by air pollution in the UK.

I wonder if we will return to simpler times when all this is over instead of chasing an increase in GDP.

[llondel]

One thing springs to mind with the "number of deaths is the same last year" headline - what caused those deaths last year? If there were a significant number of road fatalities included then those have effectively been removed from this year's stats because traffic is much reduced. You can't just go on the overall number, you have to understand which categories have reduced and why, and which ones have increased.

[PHXPhlyer]

Just remember, as previously stated:
There's lies, damned lies, and statistics!
That goes for a lot of things these days.

PP

[ribrash]

Its not.

[G-CPTN]

With senior nursing officials stating that recent and future deaths of frontline nursing staff are 'inevitable', is there not a 'duty of care' that should apply with H&S implications?

As has been pointed out, nurses work in close proximity to their patients and adequate precautions should be in place.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-52165167

[Undried Plum]

In those days the jail didn't provide food it came from the family so the ships agent got the job,

Ah yes. Kanoo.

Bastards. Utter shithouses.

Corrupt and ruthless ****q, the lot of 'em.

[jimtherev]

I didn't wish to start or ignite a theology fight.

I spent half a year of my life in a ceramic 10' x 10' x 10' box, unlit other than a 24x7 lightbulb, as a result of disagreeing with a theology.

I've written about that here, though I can't be arsed to search for a link to that post here.

Theology fights are deeply silly.

Reading about your experience is disturbing to anyone, particularly to one who tries to live out the teachings of a religious faith.
I treasure the 10 years I spent in the inner-city, where a small part of my duties were to share a school chaplaincy with a Rabbi and an Imam. Discussions (often at the local Wetherspoons over beer, wine and fruit juice respectively) were friendly (one might even describe them as loving as time went on) but robust. Tho' fisticuffs never.

We admitted to each other how flawed we were/are; we all agreed that the myth of Adam was a beautiful description of the way we can fall off the wagon of good existence, and none of us even tried to justify the stupid excesses of hatred which each faith has perpetrated in its turn. But equally we learned to respect each other and our beliefs - even tho we really did enjoy our 'Theology Fights'

I miss 'em

But I don't miss not having to live in a 10x10x10 box for six months...

[4mastacker]

With senior nursing officials stating that recent and future deaths of frontline nursing staff are 'inevitable', is there not a 'duty of care' that should apply with H&S implications?

As has been pointed out, nurses work in close proximity to their patients and adequate precautions should be in place.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-52165167

What do you suggest then G-C?

[Jetex Jim]

I feel pretty fortunate, in the circumstances, I can still go to work. Our organisation is deemed essential support to the military. Most, however, have been told to work from home if they can but I'm one of a number doing integration so we must attend to the site.

To reduce the numbers onsite, facilitate social distancing and reduce cross-contamination risk, the whole site workforce has been split into two shifts with a 30 minute gap (not overlap) between the shifts. In order to reduce the risk of cross contamination on shared equipment there is a clean up slot at the start and end of each shift where all common keyboards, touch screens and controls are cleaned up.

The management team are almost to a man working from home. We do still have a few video conference meetings but these seem to be way shorter than face to face. Somehow the lack of in house management means there are fewer questions being asked that have the sort of technical answers which are met with looks of bafflement. In short, a lot less time is being wasted.

We may yet look back on these weeks as a golden age of productivity.

[Pinky the pilot]

Have had to put the now annual trip to Japan to fly the Glider Tug for the Club in Hokkaido firmly on hold.

Can't get out of Australia UFN and have just received an e-mail from my Boss in Japan with the latest ruling from the Foreign Affairs Ministry there. No-one allowed in, at least until the end of April. Further rulings expected.

And I still have to get off these flamin' crutches! At least that situation has been improving well enough. Just need a few more visits to the bonecracker.

[probes]

I miss Keef.

An 'elf-n-safety' specialist (a good one, for a change) said there are basically 2 choices: - until a remedy is found, which will probably be faster (but still take months), or a vaccine, which will take more time - one, people stay indoors, isolate, and the virus stops spreading, and two, life goes on as usual, but many die and the medical system breaks down (which has already happened in some countries). With herd immunity developing most probably, but not 100% certainty.
The society is even less ready for the last scenario.

I took a look at the announcement about the Queen's video tonight -
‘I hope in the years to come everyone will be able to take pride in how they responded to this challenge.'

Isn't it well said.

[TheGreenGoblin]

Still sitting on the bench, or rather the couch, going nowhere for Queen and country!

I am really sorry to see that Marianne Faithfull is ill and in hospital with the virus!

https://www.theguardian.com/culture/202 ... oronavirus

[Jetex Jim]

I took a look at the announcement about the Queen's video tonight -
‘I hope in the years to come everyone will be able to take pride in how they responded to this challenge.'

I wonder if Her Majesty will have a message for the people, much younger than retirement age, who descended on such supermarkets as Booth's during the designated 'Pensioners Shopping hour'?

By the time my dad, aged 89, got a look in many of the shelves were picked clean.

"What happened to the famous British stiff upper lip?"

"It should be on the shelf by the toilet roll sir."

[Ex-Ascot]

We each have to get a travel pass from the coppers every time we go into town to go shopping. Apparently many road blocks. Not allowed to be on the roads unless you have a pass. Trouble is we have to drive 5 kms along the road to get to the village cop shop.

The main road to Francistown and onto Gabs is just a km away. It sounds very quiet. Fortunately we can drive through the bush to the safari camp for an illegal beer. Not a chance of running across a copper on that route. It is all a complete pain we have 3 alive an 1 dead cases 400 miles away. It has stood at this for at least a week now so I hope all these precautions pay off.

[Pontius Navigator]

Does the Safari camp still have beer? I thought someone had done a grab and go.

[Boac]

Jetex - I went last Wednesday to my local Tesco (first time for 3 weeks) in the allocated old fogeys' hour (couldn't find any old people worth buying, though..... ) but my experience was luckily much better than your dad's. Staff extremely polite, efficient and helpful and shelves reasonably well stocked. One finds oneself wishing very un-Christian things (excuse me - forgiveness, please JtR) should happen to those 'younger people' - without infecting any NHS staff.

I trust he is being looked after.

[probes]

One finds oneself wishing very un-Christian things (excuse me - forgiveness, please JtR) should happen to those 'younger people' - without infecting any NHS staff.

Sorry to agree. I can understand people die anyway for one reason or another, but the medical staff... after all, it's not the kind of war we think of by the word 'war'. Or maybe some should be sent to trenches, if the 'isolate''-rule is so impossible to follow, without losing common decency.