Anti Dementors Picnic on the Beach

[Mascotte]

New thread

Can we have a ban on emails that start with "I hope you are well and keeping safe"?

Most of the ones I get are 'hope you're keeping sane'

I suspect people have a low bar where I'm concerned.

Daffodil “ I’m on another thread where somebody is questioning why my DD11 has walked a dog with a friend in the last week.”

But even that is legal now!

I have started ignoring the BBC articles with that doc, he's getting a bit ridiculous. Am having to ignore a lot of the BBC actually, the dementoring there is doing my head in.

This is why I don't clap. You can't be too careful.

I do go for runs, climb hills and pee in bushes, but that clapping on your doorstep malarky feels a bit too treacherous.

Talking about boredom, especially the children
I can quite believe it
I’ve made no secret of the fact that dh and I have lived our lives as close to normal as possible
Going to the supermarket, but driving home the Long pretty way past the beach in the early days.
Then driving about 50 mile round trip to farm shop, 30 miles to country park , swinging past my children’s houses for a chat,, them popping in, my grandsons helping me in the garden, making sure we eat lunch in the garden on warm days and so forth...
I’ve probably done more than most of you put together in some cases and like the lady with the big house, big garden and beach and country nearby...once you move onto the next step, you do start to stagnate because you start to feel you have exhausted it.
Yes, we can go somewhere new today. Have car, will travel and all of that but I’m just starting to feel like I’m exchanging one lot of scenery for a slightly different lot of scenery.

Now for anyone who hasn’t made that transition yet, no doubt you’re muttering, what she moaning about I’d love to be able to do that.
I get it, I really do. It’s been great but it’s still not the life I had/ we had.
We weren’t big pub wallahs but we miss the opportunity to call into one for a quick drink/ a quick warm if it’s been chilly while out/ a meal etc.
Cinema..we are big cinema fans , normally we go about once a week.
Shopping, yes a few shops are open but I’m sick of buying food and cleaning stuff, I want variety, As do we all.
I want to listen to live music again..it was supposed to be the northern kin festival this weekend, I was so looking forward to that.
I want a big family get together in my lounge ( theres 12 of us) just all interacting together over a supper cooked by my husband.
Seeing what’s happening to children is breaking my heart, what it’s doing to their souls I dread to think.

My already school phobic grandson, whom we’d just got back into school is over the moon he doesn’t have to go now. He’s 10 and a bright lad , he could have a good career ..now what. I feel like crying for the children expected to sit apart from their friends.
Watching something on tv, that was filmed before all of this, I feel like I’m an alien watching something happening on another planet.
.my mental health is suffering. Everyday I wake up and look around my room, see outside and everything looks normal and then I have that sinking feeling, that actually it isn’t.

I’m normally quite stable but I feel quite paranoid right now..how are people coping that really struggle with mental health , I dread to think.
We didn’t go out yesterday. Our weather isn’t very nice at the moment.
Not the heatwave we’ve been lead to believe.

Must make an effort to go out today.
See if that helps.

Omg..sorry for such a long self indulgent post 😱

This is why I don't clap. You can't be too careful.

This is why I don't clap. You can't be too careful

Indeed. If you have the death particles on your hands, the force of clapping will dislodge them and then the movement of your hands is dispersing them in the air.

Clappers are literally creating clouds of doom and deliberately wafting them around to murder peoples grannies

Dowser “ how are people coping that really struggle with mental health , I dread to think.”

Long time sufferer here, medicated for years

I’ve had to talk myself down from the ledge once and a neighbour talked me down the second time.

I’m normally quite stable but I feel quite paranoid right now..how are people coping that really struggle with mental health , I dread to think.

I don't think they are - I think they're just being silent for the groupthink situation we're in to be honest. I know I'm not coping but thankfully schools have now picked up on the whole family situation and are having my kids back in so I can get myself a bit saner... and if the kids hadn't gone to mum's when they did I think I would have broken completely - but there's no support out there and definitely no empathy online which is where people are living their lives at the moment.

I've taken to driving across the city to pick up a Costa - only place open really - but it means I can see some normality and my city is really quite pretty over my side of it in terms of trees and scenery. Normally the school runs would break up my day if I wasn't at uni - but that had gone, and I'd nip into the shop for a few bits for tea - but the queueing makes that a task you have to plan for really now.

I'm not clapping - I'm not standing out there like some performing seal feeling united and denying that the Government fucked up and hiding that fact.

Our neighbours out back got absolutely shitfaced last night - their new entertainment involves sitting on their decking and making poo noises everytime someone's bathroom light goes on. I fucking hate my neighbours. Oh they like to screech everytime someone elsewhere in the back-to-backed street makes a noise and sets their horrid yappy dog off barking (their horrid yappy dog barks constantly) and start swearing at the person in question.

Must be nice to be locked down with a big garden not surrounded by knobs. (One neighbour is lovely - but we have the pooing noise crowd out the back and Captain Gammon with his honking horn on the other side)

I have suffered anxiety before for quite a few years and tbh have been fine for the last couple of years. I had a bit of a relapse when I learnt to drive (lack of control of others) so when this pandemic started and there was like whole will schools shut won't they can't I work can't I... I took a swift decline. I didn't eat properly for about two weeks because I felt sick with anxiety.

When we locked down it surprisingly made me feel better because although I still lack control there was no "what if" anymore.

However now I feel it would be extremely easy for me to decline into a deep depression because this isn't living. It's existing.

I have a lovely fiance and a lovely son. But the days are the same. Exactly the same. Weekends are pointless. We have no routine (well dp does he's worked throughout) it all feels a bit pointless.

And we are the lucky ones. We have enough space. We have a garden. For the moment we have enough money to pay the bills but it's STILL relentless.

Domina “but there's no support out there and definitely no empathy online which is where people are living their lives at the moment.”

This. This thread has been a lifesaver.

Your neighbours sound horrendous, are they normally like this?

I've just come back from the market (not in UK)
First time in over 8 weeks.

It was all very calm, everyone was happy and jolly.
Real, actual money changed hands for local, fresh produce.
About 75% of people wearing masks.

I bought some lovely, juicy clementines and will be making Rick Stein's cake this afternoon. Join me for a virtual cuppa and a slice later this afternoon.

thehappyfoodie.co.uk/recipes/clementine-almond-and-olive-oil-cake

Your neighbours sound horrendous, are they normally like this?

The poo crowd are a bit of an improvement over the previous one out back who liked to remove garden fences and wander around our garden to repaint the back of his shed 10 times a summer. This bunch are a pair of houses that have now both being bought by lesbian couples and having discovered the joy of being next door to each other via coincidence have bonded and decided to try to establish some kind of lesbian colony with loud drinking and poo noises (they're the ones who yell about the colony plans).

Gammon Boy is always a pain - has loud garden parties every bloody weekend from March to October - this year he's got a honking clown car horn that he has for the Thursday Clap and just randomly honks all night every night as he gets shitfaced drinking in the garden. Poo crowd then respond with whistles and yells about "ooh it's horny" which eggs it on. They've obviously not ever looked out of their window as he's bald, fat, sunburnt and usually topless with moobs so big you could tuck them into his trainers.

Guy on the other side is lovely - and normally you grit teeth, tolerate it and go out to avoid the worst - which obviously isn't an option this year.

Domina I used to dream of living in a house and garden but when I walk round my local area, the noise I hear from gardens makes me realise, I may not want it after all.

I don’t know if peace and quiet still exist.

I don’t even know how anyone makes a poo noise but I don’t want to know.

I took my daughter to the park yesterday at the same time as 2 other parents with their daughters in her nursery class.

I was very anxious as I wasn't sure how they would feel about the kids playing together without staying 2m apart. My little girl is nearly 4 and when I asked her is she wanted to see these girls she said no mummy because I won't be able to go near them and play. I said she can play with them just like normal, just no cuddles or holding hands, that's all. Then I hoped the other mums were vaguely sane.

They were. It was amazing. 3 little girls running around playing together, it was an absolute joy to see. Us 3 adults stood 2m apart. Towards the end one mum gave her girl some crisps and before she opened them, gave all 3 kids hand sanitizer. Sensible, logical, sane.

Both me and my daughter are like different people today. It was exactly what we needed.

I just hope this is what is happening all over. Kids need to play with other kids - of course we need to be cautious but we can be and still let them be free.

Tonii I saw that when I ventured out

I’m really pleased to see it and I stopped and said it because there were a couple of mums looking around, clearly scared.

Thank you for “getting” me @Dowser

I feel like a total madam who’s ruby slippers are too tight, but seeing my bright, funny and happy 4 year old daughter descend into anger and malaise is what’s broken me today.

I know all parents think their little darlings are “speshul” and “so clever” but she’s going the way of the collies you used to see on Pet Rescue who’d tear houses up as they were bored and under exercised.

And we go out! All the time. But it’s the same same same.

I long to take my children to the playpark. The only thing stopping me is the genuine fear of getting so angry at any passing dementor I’d get arrested or psychologically scar the kids. I’m deadly serious.

I feel like a weight's been lifted just in terms of knowing mine have some social interaction incoming - some routine and purpose that's more than fucking PE with Joe. I know the schools now have us flagged as a family that are struggling - and I'm normally paranoid about such things (I had severe PND and fixated upon social services as a source of massive paranoia) but right now I am so desperate - bring on the social workers (school won't)... unless they're my brother cos he's a moron one - but he's my brother so I'm allowed to tell him he's talking shite as I'm the elder sibling.

Garden noise is horrendous here - our houses are really tightly packed together - works well if you have good neighbours - but we have one ruling clique who hate everyone else, a few nice but quiet neighbours we get on with, and the guy everyone in the street keeps on the right side of as he can fix things or knows a guy who can (we get on very well with him - he built half the improvements on this place!)

I'm not coping. I cry every morning when I open my eyes. But I drag myself out if bed and paint on a smile for my children. It is exhausting.

I can’t wait for my neighbours to get a life and go back to work. It will be a long summer fuming while they blatantly have visitors. They’ve actually added fence panel bases to raise their fences so that nobody can see.

@PaulHollywoodsSexGut (which is a vision I need about as much as the Chris Witty sex dreams) my youngest was falling apart completely, insomnia (her brain was 'too full of sad' to let her sleep) and just utterly subdued and depressed - it's taken me weeks but school now finally have seen sense and got her in (think the class teacher hearing how badly her speech has been affected was the crux of it). The eldest doesn't get sad she just gets PISSED OFF - and has been kicking and punching the shite out of me - I was about to ask her school if they could accommodate her (she behaves beautifully at school) but they emailed and offered today.

It's only because I'm focused, used to fighting (with a child with SN you master that well) and I can navigate guidance and processes and policies. What about the less confident and literate families slipping through the net? When do they get help? Are they just fodder for the next Channel 5 "aggressive child" documentary?

We had made huge improvements with DD1's anger - she had begun to remove herself from the situation when she was going to explode and hadn't lashed out in months before the damned apocalypse started. She's a lovely kid - just hurting and she's like me - she gets angry before she gets tearful... I've just taken to punching the surface of the trampoline in the garden as my way of venting frustration without breaking my knuckles.

Paul are you in Scotland?

Daffodil “ It will be a long summer fuming while they blatantly have visitors”

You’re angry at them for this?

I’m angry at their noise!