Quick poll: who intends to continue with Xmas plans in tier 4?

[Missmidden]

To help with my discussions with family who were due to come entirely within the rules as they were pre 4pm!

Genuinely in a total quandary as to what to say- all low risk people but it’s our decision as our house. If I thought that a big chunk of the affected population would “rebel” or that everyone else was towing the line that might help, so thanks in advance.

Tier 4. We WERE going to be 7 adults 2 kids on Christmas Day 1-11pm. We’re now going to my mums where she lives with 2 relatives who we’ve been seeing throughout- so will be 5 adults 2 kids. For Christmas dinner 5-8pm. Very large, Well ventilated room with windows open. Sat spaced apart. We are doing it.

The Met have also confirmed despite all those looking forwards to reporting people & watching from behind net curtains as they knock in doors- they will NOT be doing this and they have no powers of entry anyway.
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9070749/People-vow-enjoy-five-days-Christmas-festive-bubble-cancelled-millions.html

I feel very sad when I read some comments about older people or people with terminal illnesses. They may have less time to live but believe me they want to live and their lives ending before their natural time because of covid is tragic.

Yes @JuliaDomna - I’m in my early 60s and I was quite shocked early on in this pandemic to read so many posts in here on MN which argued that it was easier for older people to die as they’d lived their lives. Some posters who argued that we shouldn’t be sacrificing young people for the elderly, as the elderly had had their lives. I started to wonder what was the exact cut off date for ones life becoming of less value ....

Like you, I cope simply by staying in the moment and having something nice to do each day. Work has been manic so weekdays don’t leave much time for anything else, but it’s still possible to find daily pleasures.

Reading this thread, I’m pleased to see how many people are thinking things through and behaving responsibly. Although I find myself getting inordinately frustrated at some people’s selfishness - It’s a lack of properly thinking things through.

We all should behave as if we have the virus, and act as though we are a risk to others. The current problem is that even when someone says they’re prepared to take risks with their own health, it can also mean that they cause risks to others, who would not choose to take such risks.

It means that those of us who think things through end up having even more circumscribed lives. I was happy to lockdown so schools could stay open; but I’m less happy about a lockdown so everyone else can have their choice of family Christmas and damn the consequences!

CovidCunt

I will, it just irks me massively when people just yell "selfish twats" and "what makes you special" without considering any individual circumstances.

I feel sad when I read the dismissive comments about children because their lives / feelings / wellbeing clearly don't matter to some.

It’s not gaslighting @TrustTheGeneGenie, every single one of those statements has been accompanied by a lot of ‘if’s’. Same as with the travel corridors.

I hate the useless furball and have cringed every time he’s made a clumsy attempt to keep peoples spirits up because this is exactly what happens. People think he’s standing there making iron clad guarantees when he’s doing nothing of the sort and is contradicted/reigned in by pretty much every advisory expert immediately. He can’t make those kinds of promises because, biologically, viruses just don’t work like that.

We're tier 4 and so are our extended familes. We cancelled when we heard the news. Part of me is slightly relieved because I was starting to get a bit worried about potentially exposing our parents (even though we've been pretty much isolating). It's sunk in a bit now that there's really nothing on the horizon to break things up a bit. We can't even take a walk together with friends and family living minutes away.

No, they haven't. Boris has said many things that have turned out to be complete and utter bullshit.

You're right he can't make these kind of promises and therefore he needs to shut his fucking mouth. He's the prime minister. People listen to him. It's entirely normal that people believe what their leader says, isn't it?

He said book your weddings for 2021 the other day, and the funny thing is after that comment I thought yeah I best hold off until 2021 because he's a fucking lying twat.

i feel very sad when I read some comments about older people or people with terminal illnesses. They may have less time to live but believe me they want to live and their lives ending before their natural time because of covid is tragic.

I don’t really follow this, why is dying of one illness (the terminal one) their “natural time” but dying of covid isn’t?

Tier 4 London. Christmas was going to be our family of 4 and my mum in our support bubble but she lives in tier 3, 45 minutes away. She called to say she's not coming. Kids are sad but it makes sense. She must be only a few weeks from being offered the vaccine as she's late 70s. We will see her then.

We have cancelled. Our plans were to stay with my MIL who is in a tier 2 area and part of our support bubble - but now we have been put in tier 4 it puts things in a different light. Although we would technically be within the rules we feel we would not be within the spirit of them and none of us want this on our conscience.
It is still shit though and very disappointing for us all.

I'm trying to get a refund of an advance train ticket. If I can't, I'll be going ahead. I can't afford to buy food if I don't get that money back.

You're right he can't make these kind of promises and therefore he needs to shut his fucking mouth

Can’t argue with that!

I’m pretty confident in saying that the general consensus in a lot of circles now (and for a long time actually) is that there is no appetite in the current cabinet to make unpopular decisions. They’d rather allow things to unfold naturally and exploit the them and us (rule breakers vs the compliant) then focus the blame back onto us then actually make difficult decisions and ride out the criticism.

Ultimately, and it’s shit circumstances to realise this, no, you absolutely can’t trust a word out of any member of this governments mouth. They are constantly keep an eye on their personal popularity ratings.

@loulouljh you need to think WHY the beds are less full!

1. Lots of hospitals are postponing surgeries that require overnight stays.
2. Fewer people attending A&E with injuries from sports that may require a hospital stay.
3. Fewer people in hospital with other illnesses due to social distancing & high uptake of the flu vaccination.
4. A proportion of people simply not going to hospital because they're scared of getting covid or overwhelming the NHS.
5. An even more concerted effort to keep people at home/in their care home so they're at less risk of catching covid in hospital.

Was supposed to be seeing my parents boxing day but they have cancelled which I'm relieved about because I could imagine my dm having a strop.
They only live 10 minutes away though so we can meet up for walks if were allowed.

This ain't going to make him very popular though, is it? As if everyone didn't hate him enough... He cancelled Christmas last minute. I mean, if I had a shred of respect left for him it's certainly gone now.

I really am surprised that people aren't rioting. They've rioted for less. Or perhaps they are and the news aren't allowed to cover it.

Anyhow I think we are all so worn down that things we would have kicked off massively about in march, seem normal now. It's like being in an abusive relationship.

We're in tier 4 and we've cancelled our plans.

@JacobReesMogadishu are you really going to risk being the ones to take it back to your Tier 2 area, having potentially caught it from the Tier 4 relatives?

Some peoples disregard for the bigger picture is just astonishing

I'm in tier 2 and was already spending Christmas with just my household

DO NOT GO!

@Hope4theBestPlan4theWorst

My neighbours have got in their car to pick their daughter up from London (tier 4) - we are in tier 3 here (Lincolnshire) She text to tell me that was what they were doing she said her daughter would be in her flat on her own for 2 weeks but the question is - are people going to be allowed to drive into London??

I’d have thought so. Especially tonight because it doesn’t take effect until midnight.

Anyhow I think we are all so worn down that things we would have kicked off massively about in march, seem normal now. It's like being in an abusive relationship.

Yep

[quote ForeverInADay]@JacobReesMogadishu are you really going to risk being the ones to take it back to your Tier 2 area, having potentially caught it from the Tier 4 relatives?

Some peoples disregard for the bigger picture is just astonishing

I'm in tier 2 and was already spending Christmas with just my household

DO NOT GO![/quote]
@ForeverInADay

What are you talking about? I’m not going anywhere or seeing anyone?

I'm not changing my plans.

My one and only plan for Christmas was to take a socially distanced walk and exchange presents with two people, who are a married couple. We're all in our thirties, all work from home/furloughed, and none of us ever come into contact with elderly people or children so very little chance of spreading the virus.

I live alone in a tiny one-bedroom flat with no garden and have literally not spoken to another person face-to-face in months. The extreme isolation and essentially living like a zoo animal has completely destroyed my mental health.

I'm not changing my plans because I think it's ridiculous that the law says it's perfectly fine for me to go for a walk with my best friend (who then goes straight home to their spouse) but if the spouse joins us, that magically becomes a huge risk.

I agree that some people are massively taking the piss (the ones planning on travelling out of the area, or hosting huge get-togethers) but until last week we were in Tier 2 and until today we were told that restrictions over Christmas week would be loosened to a ludicrous degree. Plus the fact I as a very low-risk person who almost never comes into contact with anyone else is not allowed to go for a bloody walk with two other people, and not allowed to even see my partner at all (he also lives alone, works from home, and hasn't left his home in months) just because he's disabled and not able to meet outdoors is complete bullshit. People who live alone have been treated like shit this entire pandemic.

I’m not even in a bloody tier 2 area. Nor am I going to a tier 4 area.

The only post where I’ve said what I’m doing I literally say I’m not going anywhere even though I’m allowed to on Xmas day because I think mixing households is bonkers.

@loulouljh

The beds are less occupied than this time last year. Look at the stats. Do your own research. be critical. Follow the rules if you wish but do it knowingly......The Government does not always know best. Its not about staying safe or protecting the NHS at all. There are so many people truly on the edge tonight.

Not where we are. Patients are being moved to other hospitals due to not coping. Numbers hospitalised is far above anything seen in the last year. I've never known all of the hospitals to be diverting patients. That's the scenario here.

@treening

To explain my own family situation

I live with dh and ds (4) in a tiny flat, 500sqft, with no garden. I pulled ds out of school 3 weeks ago to isolate before Christmas. Dh and I both WFH. We don't even go to the supermarket, only for walks outside.

My family all live in tier 4. They are:

My mum, with a chronic illness (not one making her vulnerable to covid), lives with my sister who cares for her. My sister suffers badly with her mental health.
My mother has a partner who lives in a T2 area. He can't live with her because he is carer for his elderly mother with dementia. There is no other family there.
My brother, who lives alone, has high functioning autism and a history of suicide attempts.
My other sister, who also lives alone, has a history of self harm and has already been hospitalised once this pandemic.

Who shall I leave alone? Why does it make me a selfish arsehole to ignore the needs of my family and "stay the fuck at home". What would you do in the above situation?

I would simply say, because I love you, I won't be with you in person this year.

We are cancelling. MIL had already decided to cancel as she's 80+ and hoping to get vaccinated in Jan, but we'll cancel the other family we were due to meet up with.