Covid And The Rest of Us

[ronandannette]

Chiming in from Montreal. What to say, what to say. 896 new cases in the Province of Quebec today, I believe 360 in Montreal. We are to become red tonight, tomorrow ? Nobody really knows what this means. We were asked to do NOTHING for 28 days. No socializing at all. Please stay home.

I believe it was stated school will not be closed no matter what, we will see if this is retracted. We only have medical exemptions for online learning, soooo... our health minister says he is trying to find a way to keep our economy going while avoiding a shutdown.

The photos of the bars, mont-royal, etc, from this weekend are downright embarrassing. I realize it was 90 degrees, and I once was young too, and so I keep trying to tell myself what would you have done at 20, I hope I would not have been in a crowd of thousands in a pandemic in the worst hit city in the country, who is now once again emerging as the same.

Personally, this is very hard week for me and my family. Friday will be 3 years that I have lost my daughter , and we have never been home, in this house, we always leave, it is just that much harder mentally that we can not. My sister has offered her place in Tremblant, and they won’t be allowing Montrealers, they will once again be stopping on the highway and asking Id.

Oh Dear Mommasita - I'm so sorry and I understand. Hop a plane to Calgary. I and several of the bereaved parents in my circle would love to give you a hug in person.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Chiming in from Montreal. What to say, what to say. 896 new cases in the Province of Quebec today, I believe 360 in Montreal. We are to become red tonight, tomorrow ? Nobody really knows what this means. We were asked to do NOTHING for 28 days. No socializing at all. Please stay home.

I believe it was stated school will not be closed no matter what, we will see if this is retracted. We only have medical exemptions for online learning, soooo... our health minister says he is trying to find a way to keep our economy going while avoiding a shutdown.

The photos of the bars, mont-royal, etc, from this weekend are downright embarrassing. I realize it was 90 degrees, and I once was young too, and so I keep trying to tell myself what would you have done at 20, I hope I would not have been in a crowd of thousands in a pandemic in the worst hit city in the country, who is now once again emerging as the same.

Personally, this is very hard week for me and my family. Friday will be 3 years that I have lost my daughter , and we have never been home, in this house, we always leave, it is just that much harder mentally that we can not. My sister has offered her place in Tremblant, and they won’t be allowing Montrealers, they will once again be stopping on the highway and asking Id.

Keeping your family in my prayers, mommasita. You've had quite a hard year.

 

[mommasita]

Keeping your family in my prayers, mommasita. You've had quite a hard year.

Thank you.

 

[Jrb1979]

I was in Ontario last week and was surprised that all restaurants were taking contact information before they would seat you. I'm curious what happens next. Will I get a call if any person that was present reports testing positive? Who will report it to whom? Who would contact all of us? FWIW, collecting contact information isn't happening like that here in Alberta so I'm not sure how contact-tracing is taking place or what priority is being put on it.

The health department would probably be the ones to contact you. I was more talking about the under 40 that test positive and conviently forget where they have been as not to " rat on their friends". IMO that helps no one only hurts us.

 

[mommasita]

Oh Dear Mommasita - I'm so sorry and I understand. Hop a plane to Calgary. I and several of the bereaved parents in my circle would love to give you a hug in person.

Thank you. My husband won‘t fly now. We are going to see what happens with our new “rules”. We are often very spontaneous, and so if there is no blockage of wtv, I’m going to insist on some kind of road trip. Maybe to see the whales in Tadoussac. .

 

[mommasita]

The health department would probably be the ones to contact you. I was more talking about the under 40 that test positive and conviently forget where they have been as not to " rat on their friends". IMO that helps no one only hurts us.

Yes, the health calls you, it is happening here as in Ontario, sad part is people aren’t answering the Private caller when it shows up, and they are getting frustrated. They will call everyone that was in that bar/restaurant in the hours that person was. Advice here is to get tested, as we have quite the spread

 

[ronandannette]

Thank you. ❤ My husband won‘t fly now. We are going to see what happens with our new “rules”. We are often very spontaneous, and so if there is no blockage of wtv, I’m going to insist on some kind of road trip. Maybe to see the whales in Tadoussac. .

Grace and peace. How about Niagara Falls or for something much quieter, Niagara-on-the-Lake? It's truly beautiful there right now - the vineyards are resplendent.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

@mommasita

 

[Karin1984]

• No more curfew (this one I’m actually annoyed about as I think it was actually beneficial and I think it is only being dropped for political reasons)
• Outdoor gatherings for up to 5 people from 2 households (but must be within your 5km radius - so if your family and friends don’t live locally you’re SOL)
• Primary school (prep to grade 6) and year 11 and 12 students returning to school
• Daycare available for all children (previously you needed a permit)
• Increased capacity at building sites, distribution centres, manufacturing sites, abattoirs
• Sole trader outdoor workers (e.g. gardeners) allowed to operate on their own
• Dog groomers open
• Private real estate inspections permitted
• Dentists and other allied health open for non-urgent matters
• Outdoor pools open (the only thing on the list that I may take advantage of)
• Weddings with up to 5 people plus celebrant
• Outdoor religious gatherings with up to 5 people plus a faith leider

Because I am curious. What is it about dog groomers that they are singled out?

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

My little area of Wales is back in lockdown from 6 pm this evening, probably for 2 weeks.

 

[elphaba91]

What I think will be interesting to see is what happens when certain restrictions are lifted - most specifically kids going back to school and people returning to their places of work. You've locked down HARD twice now and dwindled your cases to extremely low numbers under those conditions. If world-wide trends hold, you will see a rise in cases. I simply don't believe we can entirely eradicate transmission and I don't see that as a target to aim for with revolving-door restrictions.

The aim of doing such a harsh and long lockdown is to avoid those revolving-door restrictions; the modelling they've done showed that if we re-opened today there is a 40% chance we'd be back at over 100 cases within 4 weeks whereas if we wait until the average of 5 cases a day then there is only a 3% chance of needing to go back into lockdown. While worldwide trends have definitely shown that second waves are possible/probable (with us leading the way!), I think the fact that every other state and territory in Australia has got it under control gives our authorities some confidence that it is achievable. We were really the outlier and the cause was due to a 'muck-up' (that word should start with a different letter!) in the hotel quarantine system. And because the other states and territories have closed their borders to us we really have no other choice if we want to travel domestically.

That being said, yeah, it's really sucky. It seems absurd that we had 5 cases today and are still locked down while other countries have thousands and aren’t.

Because I am curious. What is it about dog groomers that they are singled out?

It is apparently on animal welfare grounds. The groomers were actually really vocal about it and then were backed up by vets.

 

[MommyinHonduras]

We are moving into phase 2 reopening here which means 60% of the workforce in each business can return to work. (There are 3 different sectors. some just moved to phase 1 which is 40% and some to phase three which is 80%) We are all still limited this month to circulate only on our day, which is every 5 days as it is 2 numbers a day based on the last number of our ID.

You can get formal permission to travel to work when you are scheduled.

We can also travel if we have a hotel reservation or vacation activities booked, we have to print off our reservation and it is used as legal way to travel when it is not our day. This of course applies to those who travel here on vacation.

What can not openublic transportation , normal driving not on your day, bars, dance clubs, theaters, gyms, sports events, schools at any level, kinder through University for in person classes, groups of more than 10 at anyone's home, seating in restaurants.
*** Other than schools and theaters, all these are open here and have been since they put us in phase one and nothing is being enforced****

Churches can open for those to come on their day to circulate EXCEPT children, adults 60+ and anyone with a chronic illness are not excluded from being able to go.

Yesterday was day 200 of the shutdown.
As of yesterday the country has processed 175,217 PCR tests. (Population about 9.2 Million)
We have had 75,109 of those test positive, and 2,289 of those not recover.

 

[mousefan73]

I was in Ontario last week and was surprised that all restaurants were taking contact information before they would seat you. I'm curious what happens next. Will I get a call if any person that was present reports testing positive? Who will report it to whom? Who would contact all of us? FWIW, collecting contact information isn't happening like that here in Alberta so I'm not sure how contact-tracing is taking place or what priority is being put on it.

That’s how it works I’m in Germany they call you. Unless you tell them your name is Mickey Mouse and give a fake number. A bar in Hamburg had a huge outbreak and a good portion of the contact Infos was false.

 

[mousefan73]

What baffles me is that international travel continues to be restricted yet many areas with these restrictions are opening up more to allow mass gatherings/ events and bars. ( FL) And their own numbers are worse than many countries who have more restrictions.

 

[ronandannette]

We are moving into phase 2 reopening here which means 60% of the workforce in each business can return to work. (There are 3 different sectors. some just moved to phase 1 which is 40% and some to phase three which is 80%) We are all still limited this month to circulate only on our day, which is every 5 days as it is 2 numbers a day based on the last number of our ID.

You can get formal permission to travel to work when you are scheduled.

We can also travel if we have a hotel reservation or vacation activities booked, we have to print off our reservation and it is used as legal way to travel when it is not our day. This of course applies to those who travel here on vacation.

What can not openublic transportation , normal driving not on your day, bars, dance clubs, theaters, gyms, sports events, schools at any level, kinder through University for in person classes, groups of more than 10 at anyone's home, seating in restaurants.
*** Other than schools and theaters, all these are open here and have been since they put us in phase one and nothing is being enforced****

Churches can open for those to come on their day to circulate EXCEPT children, adults 60+ and anyone with a chronic illness are not excluded from being able to go.

Yesterday was day 200 of the shutdown.
As of yesterday the country has processed 175,217 PCR tests. (Population about 9.2 Million)
We have had 75,109 of those test positive, and 2,289 of those not recover.

Oh goodness - those numbers in your last line seem shocking for such a small population but I did a quick comparison and they’re actually quite on par with ours in Canada, being as there are 4 times as many people here. That’s very interesting to me considering the two countries are so different in terms of density, culture, living standards and access/quality of health care.

You mentioned return to work and pardon my ignorance but I would assume tourism is the main industry there as in many Caribbean countries. Have your borders opened back up for leisure travel and if so are vacationers returning in droves? I would imagine the shut-down of cruising has had a harsh impact on Roatan.

How does that work with the churches? Do they hold services every day so everybody gets a shot at it?

That’s how it works I’m in Germany they call you. Unless you tell them your name is Mickey Mouse and give a fake number. A bar in Hamburg had a huge outbreak and a good portion of the contact Infos was false.

Wow - I’ve given contact information dozens of times since March and it never occurred to me to fake it. What’s the motivation for that?

 

[BadPinkTink]

What baffles me is that international travel continues to be restricted yet many areas with these restrictions are opening up more to allow mass gatherings/ events and bars. ( FL) And their own numbers are worse than many countries who have more restrictions.

Tell me about it... sigh... Ireland has some the most strict international restrictions, there is a Government Travel Advisory which states no non essential travel off the island. This means that travel insurance is void but people are still travelling for tourist reasons and not caring. The Irish Government is however allowing tourists into the country. There is a green list of countries where you can travel from into Ireland without having to do a 14 day quarantine but wait that list is only 4 countries, none of which are major tourist destinations for Irish people. There is approx 100 flights a day into Dublin airport, but again none of these flights are from the countries on the green list.

There are huge numbers of UK tourists on the island. Technically they should be doing the 14 day quarantine but they are getting around this by travelling via Northern Ireland, which is part of UK. There is no border between Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland, so people are either flying into Belfast airport and renting a car or getting the ferry into Northern Ireland and then driving to places like Galway or Cork.

There are also large numbers of American tourists, who again should be doing the 14 day quarantine but they are not. They are using loopholes such as having a European passport and flying in through Belfast to travel to Ireland.

 

[mousefan73]

Tell me about it... sigh... Ireland has some the most strict international restrictions, there is a Government Travel Advisory which states no non essential travel off the island. This means that travel insurance is void but people are still travelling for tourist reasons and not caring. The Irish Government is however allowing tourists into the country. There is a green list of countries where you can travel from into Ireland without having to do a 14 day quarantine but wait that list is only 4 countries, none of which are major tourist destinations for Irish people. There is approx 100 flights a day into Dublin airport, but again none of these flights are from the countries on the green list.

There are huge numbers of UK tourists on the island. Technically they should be doing the 14 day quarantine but they are getting around this by travelling via Northern Ireland, which is part of UK. There is no border between Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland, so people are either flying into Belfast airport and renting a car or getting the ferry into Northern Ireland and then driving to places like Galway or Cork.

There are also large numbers of American tourists, who again should be doing the 14 day quarantine but they are not. They are using loopholes such as having a European passport and flying in through Belfast to travel to Ireland.

Well I am actually against any quarantine. It’s unfair that one is assumed “guilty“ in being positive when there is a less than 5% chance they are. ( I am basing this off the data we got at work more like 1-2% in Aug .who got tested at German airports when arriving ). So 95% of travelers are forced to stay home. The American tourists you mention above are no more ( most likely less) likely than localswho are out and about going to weddings, parties etc in spreading the virus. now unless you are a country in a very restricted lockdown and close to zero cases- pointing the finger at those entering the country is counter productive. And there are almost no countries who can claim this. Most tourists, remain to themselves except to dine and follow all local restrictions including mask wearing. Where locals go about and party. Who is the danger here? What is frustrating is a city near me Is red in the map. Had this city been in a different country I would be forced to quarantine if i went there. . So I can commute daily to this . But god forbid I visit a friend in Vienna, I have to quarantine. Does that make sense? No, It’s just killing the airline industry.

best example is the UK. Weeks ago they basically closed borders with their quarantine. Well how did that work out ? Their numbers are increasing because it’s the British themselves who are spreading within.

My fear is Covid will continue to drive nationalism where in fighting a global pandemic solidarity, which includes the free movement of people is vital is fighting it. Even the WHO commented in a global pandemic closing borders will not fight the virus. Others measures will But politically speaking closing borders and putting blame in the scary foreigner potentially carrying a virus is easy to covince many as THE solution where it is not. Again back to the UK. They implemented a quarantine weeks ago as that is an easy “we are doing something” PR move. Had they really wanted to stop the virus they should have closed pubs.

 

[MommyinHonduras]

You mentioned return to work and pardon my ignorance but I would assume tourism is the main industry there as in many Caribbean countries. Have your borders opened back up for leisure travel and if so are vacationers returning in droves? I would imagine the shut-down of cruising has had a harsh impact on Roatan.

How does that work with the churches? Do they hold services every day so everybody gets a shot at it?

It can, but work just means retail and service of most kinds, clothing stores, food stores, restaurants for take out or eating outside, beauty salons, medical services, banks, gas stations. Quite a few stores are now empty as they could not make it through 6 months of lockdown, several chains have closed up shop as well as smaller family places if they had to pay rent. Those who live where their shops are seem to have been able to reopen but stock is very limited as no one is restocking or reordering anything. Even our main grocery store who has a big % of the market is only stocking mostly local brands and no longer those that catered to the expats and vacationers.

Our air borders are open to anyone that has a negative covid test within 72 hours of take off of the leg of their flight that lands in Honduras. They can then use their travel air documents as a free pass to move about while here on vacation. Those with one way tickets who live here, or own here, do not have that same freedom, it is a specific allowance to try to jump start the tourism industry. There is currently only one AA flight a week from Miami to Roatan that can carry 70 passengers. One can take a flight to the mainland and a local flight over but those just looking for a vacation will not mess with all that but for those who live or own here are. More flights are to start up in October and November which starts are high season. So we shall see. Big issue is Canada is a big portion of our tourists and with their two week mandatory quarantine upon return, the Canadian airlines can not justify flights here yet. And yes no cruise ships is a huge hit here but many locals are ok with less of them and more one week+ tourists who take the time to really appreciate and enjoy our islands.

 

[Karin1984]

We heard today that tourism is 75% down in NL, including Dutch tourists.

Tonight we'll have another press conference with more restrictions. No more than 4 guests, and group size back to 30, etc.

It is apparently on animal welfare grounds. The groomers were actually really vocal about it and then were backed up by vets.

I was more curious why they had to close their business in the first place. I do not own a dog, so I might be fully wrong here. But I always thought that the owner brings the dog to the groomer, one groomer needed per dog (?), and the owner leaves while the dog is being groomed and pick them up later. Is there a lot of contact between owner and groomer?

 

[lisaviolet]

Oh good gravy Lisa, you are so right and you are wrecking me. I just tried to watch a brief JT address regarding vaccines and all I could picture was:
View attachment 528474

I actually started the missed speech on YouTube, shared my respect with Shakespeare and switched over to NBA highlights.