ADs may have buggered boilers but we haven't got the clap

[BogRollBOGOF]

The saga continues to continue with more sequels than a trilogy of trilogies...

@ISaySteadyOn yes, I am also in London. Very wet and grim. No snow though, so I am grateful for that.

Had anyone else seen the headline in the Daily Wail about coronavirus being found in ice cream in China? 😳😳😳

I saw that @Blobby10 Sorry, I’ve given up enough. Boris is not taking my Ben & Jerry’s from me!

@Buzzinwithbez I know just what you mean about the constant safety announcements. Yesterday I was in Sainsbury's and I think I was there for about an hour and I heard 4 messages over the tannoy. How staff are supposed to stay calm when they hear that at least 16 times a day I don't know! I spent longer there than normal as well because I forgot my list but it certainly wasn't fun.
My opticians sent an email the other day advising that they are open but really for emergencies only and are offering phone triage first. They said that they are 5 months behind in routine appointments! I am not faulting them at all, I broke my glasses in June and got them fixed pretty quickly. Also today got an invite to my diabetic eye test at a specialist so some things are still running. Just seems to be the luck of the draw and I have been very lucky.

Tabbystar how far does DD have to travel to see her bf? Tbh I think her mental health is more important so just do your own risk assessment. I feel so sorry for the young people caught up in all of this ☹️

Oh the 200,000 figure I think is people waiting over a year, I thought it was quite low. There are 4.6m people on waiting lists.

Aztec it's a bit of a trip (he's gone back to uni), I said I didn't think she should, but I can't stop her, I can see why she wants to, she has absolutely nothing else to do as her job has gone (for the moment), we've tried to get mental health support for her but it's too difficult (we've been trying for years on the NHS but nothing), normally I would have paid but as I'm not able to earn much either it's just not feasible at the moment. She has had covid though in the past few months so massively unlikely to be a risk to anyone.

The sun has just come out here, which is good!

@tabbyStar I would be inclined to let DD go and see her boyfriend if the journey isn't too bad, under the circs.

Yes Tabbystar and as you say you can’t stop her anyway. Her mental health is more important and it might just give her the boost she needs. This shite has gone on so long I just don’t care any more. My dd thinks that all the old people should just be locked up and the rest of us should just take the risk. I’m not sure her granny would agree lol.

I think all of us should be free to take the risk. Treat the grannies like adults and let them decide what's most important to them. I won't stop anyone from staying home.

Also, charity shops are all closed right?

@Aztectrousers

Yes Tabbystar and as you say you can’t stop her anyway. Her mental health is more important and it might just give her the boost she needs. This shite has gone on so long I just don’t care any more. My dd thinks that all the old people should just be locked up and the rest of us should just take the risk. I’m not sure her granny would agree lol.

The problem with locking the elderly up is that the majority of VERY vulnerable that it are getting it from their carers.

And, elderly is not just about number of years. Apparently, in my area, according to some research, many people still consider 60 a good age to get to (Old mining village and men in their 60s are still of an age to have worked down t'mine).

I also know many in their 70s who are still very fit and healthy. So where do you draw the line.

I ended up swearing very loudly in Tesco's yesterday. A poor girl doing the online shopping orders nearly jumped out of her skin, and I had to explain I wasn't talking to her, but just moaning about the constant recorded message played on a loop about effing face masks and distancing. On and on it went, this faux jolly voice, interspersed with awful music. I shall be taking my headphones next time I go. Still, I suppose it stops me lingering.
On a good note, it is now sunny and there is actually a bit of warmth in the sun, and this morning I heard a woodpecker. It feels almost spring like.

I've taken to wearing my airpods when I'm out - with no music playing but just them on noise cancellation mode - that helps a bit.

I also know many in their 70s who are still very fit and healthy. So where do you draw the line.

Studies seem to demonstrate that so much of what happens to you with covid is connected with your existing health, exercise, weight, diet (vitamin D) as well as economic inequalities - there seems to have been so little emphasis on these things and probably many - if not most of us - feel that we've been worse in terms of eating and exercise - I'm certainly heavier than I was last year and have had phases of bad eating - and not going out doesn't help with vitamin D. It would be nice if this would prompt a sea change in how we think about health prevention and inequalities, but I don't expect it will.

Oh, sorry, then I meant to say that should go with people being better people informed and left to make their own decisions. That doesn't mean that I think there should be no regulation of what we do - social distancing maybe useful, masks I'm fairly cynical about the overall cost-benefit, but definitely stay at home if you have symptoms (and with targeted financial support to individuals and organisations to do so).

I have a bunch of daffodils on my kitchen windowsill, gave bunches to both DILs, do this every year, promise of spring and all that.

OH booked in March privately for urgent op for rotor cuff injury coz nhs had cancelled. He is still waiting our private hospital is still doing urgent ops and treatments for cancer because our hospitals never really got going again. Now this is Wales I wonder is England the same with private health? 10 months privately and he is still on NHS list who did a pre op assessment in October, not heard a word since.

@TabbyStar

Oh, sorry, then I meant to say that should go with people being better people informed and left to make their own decisions. That doesn't mean that I think there should be no regulation of what we do - social distancing maybe useful, masks I'm fairly cynical about the overall cost-benefit, but definitely stay at home if you have symptoms (and with targeted financial support to individuals and organisations to do so).

100% agree

So little emphasis small changes we can make as individuals to improve our immunity and stay healthy - other than unsustainable exercise routines and total dietary change. TV programmes concentrate on biggest change in shortest time; understandable but counterproductive for many.

Some emphasis on the difference minor changes can make would help enormously.

I got a bunch of tulips today.

Lifted my soul.

I think that's true. Right now the emphasis seems to be on stopping Homo sapiens acting like Homo sapiens which is impossible.

I’m probably doing okay in terms of exercise, get around 10,000 steps a day walking the dog. But any benefit from that is promptly negated by the fact that I really can’t be arsed to eat properly. After spending all day in front of a screen and knowing that the only options in the evening are either a TV screen or my kindle screen, the motivation for anything other than junk food is sadly lacking. Oh and the wine doesn’t help either. Slow death from complete and utter boredom but hey at least it’s not Covid.

I've put on weight, lost half of it then put some more on since Christmas. I still walk a lot but it's not like before where I would pootle down town, wander in and out of charity shops etc. I used to walk to the swimming pool and back, which was 4 1/2 miles but obviously can't do that now. I go out for a walk once a week with my friend and we do a couple of miles but it's not the same. It doesn't help that I've upped my consumption of Gold Top milk over cinnamon crunch breakfast cereal, previously I'd have one bottle a week, consumption has increased! (Quite a lot, on fact)
Oh and the Christmas biscuits and chocolate, still working through that. What the hell, you only live once.

I barely exercise. I eat crap. I'm on antidepressants. I'm much less healthy than I was a year ago.

Not exactly a fucking surprise.

@justasking111 I've been waiting for a pelvic scan (on NHS) since being referred mid-December. I asked on the phone last week what the current waiting time is, as like a twerp I didn't think to ask in December. It's 12 - 20 weeks apparently. Given that all non-urgent services are currently suspended at our local hospital, it could realistically be longer than that.

I called a private hospital, perhaps naively expecting them to say "Oh yes madam, we could fit you in next week". Turns out even they have a 4-6 week wait, and that's for a minor everyday kind of service.

I had a YouGov survey through this morning which focused on attitudes to health and well-being. Lots of questions but none of them seemed to focus on the effects lockdowns are having on people. Yes I know I should do more exercise but Boris has closed the gyms and leisure centres and in case you hadn’t noticed it’s January in the U.K. It seemed a bit ironic asking for views on NHS adverts about looking after yourself when we’re all locked up pretty much 24/7 to protect the NHS.

Exactly.

And not everyone has an inside space in their house to exercise.