To think this lockdown is very revealing

[prince55bananahammock]

We're in a pandemic and the outside stimulus of normal day to day life is removed and our usual rhythms have been interrupted.
At first it's about survival, getting food, dealing with finances, putting new habits in place (hand washing, social distancing etc) so we have plenty to keep us and our brains busy.
Plus we're all glued to the breaking news watching as the cases develop, death rates climb, the lives lost get younger and everything gets more scary - lots of things to process here.
Now we're a few weeks into UK lockdown and in a phase of 'the new normal'. We've accepted our fate to an extent and are finding ways to get through each day- in our own ways.
What I've observed is that there are some people being productive ( gardening, cleaning, using the time for homemaking, baking, sewing etc). Some are developing skills (learning, creating etc), some are making daft videos for laughs and others are curtain twitching and making their disapproval known, some are doing none of this and simply trying to get through the day.
But what I find revealing is the people who are drama queens and kings in their lives. They are missing their fix of attention/ chaos and are so desperate to be 'seen' and acknowledged. Because the rest of us are busy with our own situations, and not sending attention their ways, I find it very outing to observe what they text or upload next to provoke a reaction.
Does anyone else find this? It's easy to spot the drama llamas at the moment?

Twat on local FB doing a ‘fundraiser’ to buy NHS staff handcream; pay £2 per number; £25 used to buy cream and a winner gets £25 to spend in her Body Shop business! Seen 2 now

So £50 getting spent for her to get commission, wonder if Body Shop are encouraging it?

My mum constantly posting on Facebook how much she misses seeing her grandchildren. She only sees them birthday and Christmas - her choice. And how hard lockdown is. She's housebound and has been for about5 years.

I read a thing on FB last night, where a drama llama was waging war on a lidl manager because she wouldn't lend her £1 for a trolley and the manager said if she didn't calm down, she wasn't getting in. All the comments were posters baying for blood. WTF. If I forgot my £1, I'd go back and get it, not cause a scene and post death threats on FB 🙄

I think people are definitely show us who they are at the moment...

for instance something like this really gets on my last nerve
www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-8205055/Duncan-Bannatynes-glamorous-wife-Nigora-takes-quarantine-pillow-challenge.html

But what I find revealing is the people who are drama queens and kings in their lives. They are missing their fix of attention/ chaos and are so desperate to be 'seen' and acknowledged

Those people must have something missing in their lives. Maybe their relationships are not enriching, or maybe they have MH problems and they are crying out for help or love they haven't found yet. Who knows? Does it even matter?

As this lockdown has set in, DH and I have found ourselves feeling gratitude for the simple pleasures of eating al fresco, I was over the moon today because after 9 days I finally got a slot for DMs shopping. That sort of simple stuff is all we care about, and keeping us, our family and our fellow humans safe from this pesky damn virus. Attention is actually not what's needed, just safety and peace of mind.

Other people's idiosyncrasies are off the radar for the foreseeable.

You are my people. I wholly agree.

Daisy “ As this lockdown has set in, DH and I have found ourselves feeling gratitude for the simple pleasures of eating al fresco,”

A simple pleasure denied to many.

I'd noticed something about my DC that really impressed me - left to their own devices, they naturally start learning stuff. They read non-fiction books, watch documentaries, play instruments, build things, write stories, play educational games. This has amazed and delighted me - and yes, I realise it makes me very lucky!

But what I only realised yesterday is that I'm exactly the same! Since lockdown started, I've started learning to knit, I'm improving my Spanish, I've listened to dozens of history podcasts, and all the books I'm reading are factual - a history of the human race, a book about Norse mythology, a book about how the body works.

Makes me wonder how many people, given the time and space to do so, just start educating themselves.

Fair enough @LilacTree1 and I'm sorry that isn't in my gift to change. If only I or any of us could change these dreadful circumstances.

My point is that picking any small thing can become a positive at a time like this. And the other thing to remember is that this current situation will not last forever. It may feel like it will, but things will improve.

I don't get people's need to attention seek but I'm not them. I actually think it's a healthy thing if people find others' incessant need for attention-seeking draining and damaging to their own MH to remove such people from their feeds or unplug from social media at the mo.

The only thing on SM that has annoyed me is the “if you are in lockdown with an abuser, message me about make-up” virtue signalling bollocks. I’ve seen this so many times that I am now muting/deleting anyone who shares it.

YY to “celebrities “ trying to get in on the act. I don’t normally see any daytime tv but am WFH so sat down with a coffee for 5 mins yesterday morning. Was going to watch the news but “Lorraine” came on as tv was on ITV. There was Jake “x factor” Quickendin (?) doing his quarantine song which was a tune free shite fest accompanied by a cringey vomit inducing video of himself in various wacky outfits doing wacky things. He proudly states “ it took me literally 5 minutes to write” as if he was some modern day mix of Beethoven and Shakespeare then proceeded to reassure us that “all profits” would be going to the NHS. He ought to give up singing and be a comedian - at least it gave me a good laugh!

@notawittyname1954 - I take your Duncan Bannatyne’s glamorous wife and raise you an Amanda Holden taking her bins out!!
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.ok.co.uk/celebrity-news/amanda-holden-dress-bins-lockdown-21829100.amp

Broadly agree but slight quibble with an earlier pp who said it’s shown up who’s motivated at work. My life is basically fine but I’m terribly anxious for all the people who are, and are going, to suffer from this and it’s really effecting my concentration. I don’t think that’s melodramatic-I’m not doing pity posts all over social media-but I am very very worried about our situation I’m general.

Mute, ignore, delete the ones that make you cringe. Celebrate the cringes that make you laugh or smile as well. Cut a bit of slack too as some people are shallow and / or low in resilience and don't know any better.

Once allowed out there are going to be weird juxtapositions of 'how I survived the pandemic by instabaking' with 'I lost my parent, child, partner' stories on the couch.

This thread makes me glad I don't do Facebook. It sounded like a PITA before, now it sounds unbearable. I just don't care what anyone is doing, if I want to know I'll phone you.
It depends on who you allow on your fb ssd
I'm not seen any of these dramas because I don't have drama type friends. If I did I would just have them on the restricted list.
My face book is filled with funny memes which have made me laugh and general chat from friends.
Apart from friends I just tend to have the pages of record labels, clubs, bands theatres and clothing brands that I like.
You are in control to a large degree on fb.
I think it is an amazing resource to stay in touch with people and friends.

Is Amanda Holden trying to be the worlds biggest twat? She never disappoints.

Is Amanda Holden trying to be the worlds biggest twat? She never disappoints
I just assumed it was.a bit if fun and not harming anyone.
After all taking the bins out has become a bit of a joke and there's plenty of memes and tik tik videos making fun that taking the bins out has become something to look forward to!

Very revealing in a ‘who would have grassed your Anne Frank’ kind of way I am finding.

I hate all this hating social media. So what if people are posting about things they are doing. Maybe some people like to read it? I like to read what all my friends are up to. I like posting about what I'm doing. So what? I like hearing my friends opinions. Some of them like hearing mine, judging by the comments. There's bound to be more of it now because we're all stuck in.

You don't have to look at it/read it. Social media is just an extension of all going to the pub together or a party - sometimes you might chat quietly to one of your friends, sometimes you might join in a big discussion/joke with a group. It's just an online version of that - scroll past the stuff you don't like.

What I find annoying are people posting about staying positive. People posting about how great Boris Johnson is. People posting its just flu. And celebrities posting they have coronavirus. Oh and the neighbours who had visitors today.

notacooldad She's always popping up doing things like this my point was is it deliberately done to get a reaction iyswim

She also claims 5g technology was responsible for covid 19....

Looking at FB, I've noticed the deteriorating mental health of normally average to upbeat people.

Its very noticeable that, despite it being frightening in and of itself, those who can go out for key work have much better mental health than those stuck indoors.

Also noticed that a number of climate change protestors changed tack and got stuck right into those working outside the home. Their version of "Stay Home" is puritanical and quite nasty, some of it.

Home schooling had been bad for mental health across the board. Different countries, ethnic background, class backgrounds, parents and children, alike. All going slowly mad.