Are you in Australia? Have you changed your behaviour as we have so few cases?

[Ozgirl75]

I’m in Sydney and I think we had a total of 4 new cases countrywide yesterday.

We are still at home etc but I must say I’m feeling a lot more relaxed now and I’m seeing loads more people out and about. I had my hair cut yesterday and the shopping centre was fairly normal. Roads were pleasingly quiet at 5pm though - almost the best of both worlds!

[pollyglot]

I'm in NZ, in a region where there have been no cases at all. I have been to the little local store 3 times in the last 4 weeks. Initially, people wore gloves and masks...this morning I was one of the very few who was doing so. There seems to be a more relaxed atmosphere, with lockdown moving to Level 3 next week. I have noticed someone floundering in the harbour at 3 am several times in the last week - seems a fairly risky occupation and also not allowed under Level 4. The harbour is full of fish with no recreational fishing allowed for over a month - the flopping and plopping of fish jumping keeps me awake!

[Theoldwoman]

I'm in Perth,we are travelling very very well here. Everyone is still distancing, the shopping centres are dead. I desperately need a haircut though.

[Downunderduchess]

I’m in Sydney also, I am not changing anything just yet. I am worried that people will feel like they can revert to normal behaviour and this could be disastrous, much like Singapore. I think we need to keep on doing what we have been & see where we are in a couple/few weeks. I am staying home full time apart from once a week shopping for groceries.!

[Downunderduchess]

Did not mean that exclamation point, nothing exciting about grocery shopping.

[grumpyfuckerr]

I’m in Perth too. With the announcement of schools going back next week I’m wondering WTF the point of still social distancing is tbh. My kids can hang out with their friends all day but I can’t visit one friend for coffee or dinner? We have no one vulnerable in our family so I’m considering going back to semi-normal.

[timeisnotaline]

I’m in Melb. My children are in childcare and I am noticing I’m being a bit less paranoid about keeping a distance from staff etc according to our protocols (I don’t mean leaning over them but realised I was standing just inside a metre away this morning) and thats not really ok, for their benefit. Husband is working out of home and hope they stay distancing. The reality though Is that it’s very unlikely joe in the supermarket is going to infect me, while in the uk it’s quite likely. So it’s hard to be too paranoid.

[Zippetydoodahzippetyay]

I'm in Melbourne. I am 39 weeks pregnant and have asthma which I only just got under control in February. I had a very difficult time leading up to my asthma diagnosis, it was really frightening not being able to breathe properly. I also had pneumonia years ago. So considering all that, I have been a bit anxious about catching the virus.

We pulled our eldest daughter from kindergarten temporarily and my husband is working from home. But we still go for a daily walk/scooter ride. All of our usual activities (eg swimming lessons for kids) have closed down and my hairdresser closed temporarily as well. All my family live in Perth so I can't see them anyway. So we have effectively been in isolation (apart from medical appointments and grocery shopping) for almost 5 weeks now. I've been much better at washing hands properly and regularly as well.

I don't believe a vaccine is coming any time soon and I don't intend to live like this forever. But while not much is known about the virus and while I'm not at my strongest and have a newborn baby, I will continue to practice social distancing.

[Sydneysider76]

I have noticed a few more people out and about and there were a few personal trainers training more than one person in the park yesterday

Super happy schools are starting one day a week 11th May
Hope retail shops can open the same date to get people back to work

I think we need to not open restaurants or bars or gyms yet
Go slowly and see how it goes

We have such low cases we are lucky
I don't understand how the USA and uk can talk about opening yet with their numbers
My parents are in the uk and am so worried for them

[eaglejulesk]

I'm in NZ and sticking to Level 4 lockdown procedures, and won't be changing my behaviour when we enter Level 3. There have been few cases in my region, I still don't like getting too close to anyone else, but the fear of getting ill is lessening. I would love a haircut, but it isn't possible anyway. Still seeing people wearing masks at the supermarkets here, but in the minority.

[expat101]

We live rurally (not in the UK) and mostly isolated anyhow. However I went shopping this morning and it was sooo nice to walk into the supermarket straight away and not have to queue outside.

[Ozgirl75]

Interesting - seems like everyone is starting to feel relatively similar. I’m definitely feeling less like virus is lurking on every surface, whether this is due to the lack of cases or the normalisation of everything I’m not sure.

I think that also because obviously people have still been going to the food shops and yet there hasn’t been an explosion of cases, I’m taking from that that the risk of spreading the virus through shopping is pretty low.

Surely social distancing rules have to be loosened once the children start back at school - as you say, it’s madness that children from many families can socialise all day and yet their parents can’t go to a small PT session in the park.

[grumpyfuckerr]

It did make me laugh in the statements made that year 11 and 12 students are being encouraged to go to school. That’s what, 16/17/18yos? An 18yo in school is low risk but an 18yo in the workforce shouldn’t be out. Made me lol.

[Ozgirl75]

Slow and steady though - if we loosen things slowly we can see which ones will lead to more cases and then pull back there, but equally I’ve always assumed that sitting on a beach a couple of metres away from another person is pretty low risk (although I have stuck to the rules).

[Proppedupinbed]

Not really. Still hanging around at home. I go out once every day or couple of days to the shops - supermarket or corner shop. I will still wait until about 7 to go to the supermarket though. I was toying with the idea of going to the beach for a little trip. But a friend who lives in Clovelly says that there and Coogee have been packed already.

So, no. Maybe once the kids are back at school - May 11th - and the number of new cases are still really low, then we'll start to do family trips outside of our suburb.

[Ladida01]

Yes we are in Adelaide and have had very few cases. But we are still social distancing, only so many people allowed in the store, still working from home and not going out much except for the essentials. It so strange with the roads being so quiet. But we are sticking to all the rules and it looks like it is working.

[JoeBidensDisintegratingBrain]

I live in Perth. My mum has been advised to isolate due to her age. I do all her shopping for her now. That has been biggest change.

The biggest blow has been not visiting my nieces whom I love very much.

[Imtootired]

I’m in perth and definitely feeling less stressed. Can’t wait for school to start for my oldest son. We’ve had a nice time at home and it’s given me a chance to get organised at home and make the house nice, but children really need to be at school if it’s safe. Also going to book my baby into daycare soon. We’re very very lucky here. It’s made me think about the way we live a lot for example planning ahead and being happy with quiet day with just housework and reading and a walk. It will be a big shock to the system to be back to being busy with school and sports for my son and I.

[SnowsInWater]

I'm in Sydney. I'm a bit less stressed if I have to do an extra trip to the supermarket but tbh I am getting more and more things delivered (including loo roll from Who Gives a Crap and coffee pods) so we are still very home based. DD's school has re-jigged this year to a three term system so she is still on holidays until the whole school goes back on 11May (funnily enough a date set weeks ago before 11 May became the general school re-entry date) so she is happy. She is Y11 so we hoped at least the Seniors would go back anyway. DH usually travels a lot but has transitioned easily to working from home. The only annoying for me is that, having not worked for a year due to cancer, I was just about to start doing some work which is on hold now. Glad everyone seems to be doing ok.

[Antipodeancousin]

I’m in Queensland and I’m definitely not as concerned any more because the number of new cases seems to be 0-6 per day. I went shopping for bathroom taps this morning!

[TheyDressedMeUpLikeThis]

I am in Sydney.

No, but I am a homebody who can happily work from home anyway (as can DH) and the kids are still on holidays and loving unlimited screen time. We are all a mess, it is great.

I am actually wondering whether we should try and support as many people as possible to stay 'locked down lite' to actually eradicate this bastard from here altogether and just keep our borders closed until there is a solid treatment/vaccine.

Having said that, I approve of the one day a week plan to get started for the kids. I was kind of half planning that anyway for my youngest. He is pretty happy at home but I do think the risk/reward ratio was leaning towards sending him in once a week to ensure he has interaction with his friends/a good run around the playground.

I am not a Liberal Voter but Gladys Berejiklian has impressed me immensely throughout this and the bushfires. I actually get the impression that she is giving it all she has got. I might not necessarily agree with every decision, but she is doing a fucking bang up job over all. Dr Kerry Chant as well. You probably don't want to hear my thoughts on Morrison.

Our Woolies has implemented a maximum 200 people in the store at any given time (is a biggish one) but one of the girls told me on the way in that there hasn't actually BEEN any more than about 90 in any case. With all of the cafes closed it is also heaps easier to get a park.

I quite like social distancing in the shops and think we should maintain it after this is done.

I find the idea of wearing a mask deeply challenging and really hope it doesn't come to that. I don't that others are doing so and appreciate their care. But, I just can't.

Don't Stand So Close To Me!

[TheyDressedMeUpLikeThis]

I think I am going to sign up to a Who Gives A Crap subscription when they re-open.

I have thought about toilet paper TOO MUCH over the last couple of months!

[TheyDressedMeUpLikeThis]

I also want Dutton's head on a plate for that Fucking Boat. And Morrison can shove his surveillance app up his arse.

[DroppedBoxxedRuth]

I'm in Melbourne and as dh is asthmatic we have been pretty strict about it all.

Dh is WFH and I lost my job 2 weeks ago so DC and I potter around the house and garden in between dd1 homeschooling and we go out most days for a walk.

I think I'll wait to see how NSW do re school before sending dd1 back.

I spoke to my dm yesterday and said it's just like when we lived in London, we Skyped every week and I spoke to DP every couple of days.

Difference being we're now in the same time zone and live 40 minutes away!

[Savidog]

Gold coast/northern rivers here. I work on the gold coast but live over the nsw border in the Tweed. Crossing the border to work had been fine...inconvenient but I do think it helped with controlling unnessecary travel. I was really missing seeing my boyfriend(he lived in qld)but he has moved closer to where I work now and lives alone so we have been able to see each other again on days I'm working.

Its slowly beginning to get busier out and about but on my days off but I've been staying at home and enjoying the quiet life. I was very sick with a resp issue around 4 weeks ago but didn't meet the criteria for testing for covid in Oz at the time..despite having most of the signs. It made me very aware of how many of my clients I could have unknowly infected if I had been a positive case given our small consult rooms etc. Many if them were elderly and wonderful people.When I went back to work we went full lockdown and drop off from that point. Illness and time to research the virus beat the message home very effectively. My staff thought I'd lost my mind.....our company enforced the same rules nationwide a weeks later.

Work has been insanely busy(veterinary) and we are booked out for all for weeks in advance for all non emergencys and doing drop off only and phone consults. I'm glad to only be working part time myself and the skeleton team I work with are getting very burnt out.

I'm also beginning to wonder how they plan to keep covid under control once they slowly release the lockdown.
I can't see international travel being a open gates option until we have a treatment or a vaccine if Australia manages to contain it now. I'm worried we have delayed the round one surge but that we will get it in round two once we start to have more travel and mingling again.
Fingers crossed there will be better treatment options at that point!

For now though. I'm glad I decided to stay in Australia rather then return home. Its not a bad place to be lockdown and I'm introverted so in some ways this is close to my perfect life.

[Ozgirl75]

@SnowsInWater your daughter isn’t at a school on the upper north shore is she? One that has recently admitted girls to year 7?