This is it!! We have been in this weird lockdown, to a greater or lesser degree, for 700 days and we’re still in the throes of the pandemic.
If someone had told me we still be in this mess 700 days later I wouldn’t have believed them. We returned from a fabulous trip down the Amazon in late February 2020, oblivious to what was going on in China and Europe. Within weeks we were fully locked down. We actually locked down before it became official. Being a biologist I could see what was going on and the health risks were not very obvious. It sounded a lot worse than it actually is. We took no chances and completely isolated.
I can remember the fear going around back then. People were terrified of catching it. We went out for a daily walk in the open but nothing more. We had home deliveries, did not meet up with family and friends. I remember the roads were deserted. Nobody was on the streets. On one occasion we went into town and it was deserted. The shops were all shut. There were no cars and not a soul to be seen.
Nature blossomed. On our daily walks it was noticeable that nature was coming out from the shadows. We saw all manner of amazing sights – stoats, hares, deer, owls, buzzards, kestrels.
We are no longer in lockdown as such, though life has changed.
We are triple vaccinated and, despite our age, feel quite secure. If we do go down with Covid now we no longer think it is likely to kill us. We do meet up with friends, go out to events, go shopping.
But that isn’t to say that life has returned to normal. It hasn’t. We weigh up risks. We do not go to crowded indoor events. We limit our contacts and shopping. We wear masks indoors.
It feels as if life will never get back to normal.
Meanwhile, out in Coronaland, Johnson is in for a torrid week. Sue Gray’s report is coming out. They are reopening an enquiry into his flat refurbishment, the reports on parliamentary bullying are being taken to the police, new reports of more partying and actual parties in Johnson’s apartment, there are other enquiries rumbling on concerning various sleaze and we have a report on this pathetic government’s handling of the pandemic looming.
If all these sleazy law-breaking instances are confirmed the Tories are doomed. I believe a number of them will be. Is Sue Gray going to tell the truth? Or will the Tories put a spin on an ambiguous report? Time will tell.
Never have we had such a nasty, useless self-serving bunch. They project themselves as upright, capable people but in actual fact are self-serving psychopaths. The loonies are in charge.
I wonder how many million Rees-Mogg has made for himself while pretending to be a public servant?
Can Johnson survive? I don’t think so. We’re in a little lull. The Tories have emerged trying to put a gloss on things – bragging about Brexit, Covid handling and Vaccination. I can’t see that holding up. The majority of the country have seen the mess Brexit has made and they are against it. Covid was handled badly and that will come out in the report – we’ve already had the reports of alternating panic and complacency in Number 10. We’ve had the dithering and lousy decision making – the dumping into care homes, bodges over PPE, sleazy contracts and terrible policies – opening too soon, shutting down to late. You don’t become among the worst in the world for nothing. You earn it! Johnson getting vaccination done? A joke! The scientists developed the vaccine and the NHS, despite all those Tory cuts, rolled it out. It’s the NHS who have been the heroes and the Tories the villains.
People see through their lying spin. They’ve had enough.
The Tories are 12 points behind. When Gray reports I bet they dump the squealing clown!
So yesterday there were another 75,799 cases – going up! There were 297 deaths.
Look like a good time to take out all restrictions?? Not in my book. Any sensible government would consult the experts and keep reasonable restrictions in place – working from home and masks for instance. But this is not a reasonable government; they are a bunch of populists.
I was reading some of the horror stories of those suffering long covid. My friend Jack in America was fit and healthy. He went down with Covid over a year ago, was on a ventilator for six weeks and was expected to die. He survived. A year and a quarter later he’s in a wheelchair on oxygen. He’s had to sell up and move to an apartment.
I don’t think I want Covid.
Stay safe!! This is not over yet!! Let’s hope there isn’t another 700 days of Covid ahead of us!
Opher – Quite a shock for you when returning from Brasil! Quite a shock for the rest of us as well, though we did have some forewarning of its emergence and spread, albeit drip-fed, as reports started flowing from China, and Italy. Of course no-one knew the severity of Coronavirus 19 back then, nor that its impact on the U.K would be so severe…I think most people believed that China and Italy were a world away from their leafy slice of the U.K, and that it wouldn’t last long: Wuhan was out out of first lock-down in 72 days. How wrong those people were! 700 days, who would have believed it! Crazy!
Like you Opher, I adopted best practices from 24th March 2020, and have maintained those practices ever since. I do not think mask-wearing, hand-washing, and social distancing are difficult adjustments to make, nor do I think such practices compromise personal freedoms. Others, of course, feel very differently. Some of those resisting vaccine take-up and adherence to mitigation measures, for whatever reason, are currently filling ICU. For the rest of us, daily life without mandated restrictions resumes. Good luck navigating a post-Covid U.K!
The eerie silence, the sense of peace, and tranquility that resulted from lock-downs and restrictions will be sorely missed by some. One could walk for miles without encountering another person or have thoughts interrupted by the constant hum of distant traffic. Nature sprung back and the world had a very different feel to it. However, I’d not like to go through the whole experience again in a hurry: the thought of catching Covid and unwittingly passing it to another, young or old, is difficult to live with. Now better protected (until vaccine and booster immunity wanes) life is becoming less planned, and more spontaneous and impulsive, but it will take time to readjust. Normalcy as we once remembered it is likely not to return for a while yet. Some may even be embracing new ways of living.
Regards Partgate…I’m getting fed-up waiting for Gray’s report! Its release cannot come soon enough. I know it’ll not be the end of the matter by a long chalk, but its impact should help start the ball rolling in cleaning up the practices and scurrilous antics of Tory politicians. People have the right to expect the highest standards from those working in government…I am hopeful Gray’s report will pull the plug on some of those contemptuous of voters and the rule of law. BoJo needs to go and should never be let anywhere near power again. Drain the slimy, sleazy, stinking swamp of its toxic debris and detritus.
I also hope the Inquiry into the governments handling of Covid highlights failure where it occurred, proportions blame directly by naming individual ministers, and concludes in criminal prosecutions. Politicians are not above the law. Many of them need reminding of that.
Next week in British politics should be most interesting! I think we are in for a bit of a roller-coaster ride so buckle up, gird your loins, and keep fingers crossed for the best possible outcome for the people!
Catch ya tomoz!
DN
And now we have Muslimgate!! It’s all melting around him. They are gunning for him. When they turn on someone they don’t let up!! They couldn’t turn on a better person!! (That’s the only time I’ll use Johnson and better person together!).
I am looking forward to Gray’s report even though I think they’ll find a way of wriggling out of it.