Good News part 11 - Picnics galore as we head into spring

[OrangeBananaFish]

Hope no-one minds me starting this. Apologies if another has started too. Please can someone add the pretty pictures.

Useful links:

coronavirus.data.gov.uk

www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/

www.covidmessenger.com Thanks to LittleOwl for all her hard work!

ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations

www.omnicalculator.com/health/vaccine-queue-uk

NB Please don’t take this too seriously- it depends what vaccine delivery speed and uptake you estimate so it’s not written in stone.

Please note, this is a thread to share good news and for wobblers to be reassured. Doomploppers will be met with scorn and derision!

Glad to hear you're feeling a bit better @FuzzyPuffling .

Does anyone have any feel for how the uptake will go for the younger age groups? I'm sure it'll be much higher than was originally anticipated!

"Let's let the old people be guinea pigs and we'll see!"

@Gemma77 I know what you mean- it’s hard to believe isn’t it?
The thought of being able to meet freely with family and friends and not worry a life covid is just amazing.
And maybe even getting a holiday abroad in the summer.... I for one will appreciate these things so much more when we get them back!

As somebody who only ever holidayed abroad, it's recently hit me how little of my own county I have seen and I'm actually really looking forward to exploring the UK over the next few years even when foreign travel is allowed again.

Of course I can't wait to be led on a beach reading a book whilst the kids play either 😃☀️

The possibilities are endless (or will be again soon) and it's never felt so good! 😁

That should have said "country"
I am definitely not restricting my holidays to my county 🤦🏼‍♀️😂

@Truelymadlydeeplysomeonesmum

I have been worrying about babies like mine that have had very little exposure to the normal germs, bacteria, cold and stuff they normally would in their first year.

Of course she has had all her vaccinations. However it can't be good for the immune system to never encounter stuff to fight off. I am no doctor or scientist and have done no research I might add. Just have that anxiously in the back of my head. Probably a load of rubbish

I did wonder this too. My daughter is 11 months and won't be going to nursery. However I then thought about the fact that not all germs/bacteria come from other people. Their immune systems will have plenty of practise fighting off bacteria in food and in things they put in their mouths. My daughter is always trying to lick shoes, eat leaves and recently she keeps trying to put her hands in the toilet all of that will expose her to germs, just not the ones which we think of like flu or colds.

This is why I don't necessarily think masks and sanitiser is a good idea to adopt forever.

I mean if Scientists said I should then I'd do it - however surely we all need to be exposed to mild germs and viruses in order to keep building up a good immune system 🤷🏼‍♀️

@TJ17 I agree. There are a lot of illnesses which are milder in childhood- chicken pox and coronaviruses to name a few. Catching them in childhood makes you less likely to be badly affected as an adult. It is definitely important for children to be exposed to illnesses

I'm feeling very positive today. I haven't seen my grandparents and great nan since September and I've booked in to visit their garden on 29th March. They have all been vaccinated of course.

Its my 30th Birthday at the very beginning of April, so I've arranged to have 5 friends over for drinks in my garden on Good Friday.

And I've booked two camping holidays for our new tent.

Its so lovely to have things in the diary to look forward to, and its making me feel so positive!

One other piece of good news - children under 5 are not included in the rule of 6. So we are planning an Easter egg hunt for my daughter and her little friends in the neighbourhood 🥳🥳

Choc Oh lucky you booking in to see your GPs.

I haven't seen my parents since August, they are currently reluctant to book anything until they have had their second jabs in March, & we have had our first, so it is likely to be more like May as I am only early 50s.

Looks like it's shaping up to be a beautiful sunny day here again.

@ChocOrange1

I'm feeling very positive today. I haven't seen my grandparents and great nan since September and I've booked in to visit their garden on 29th March. They have all been vaccinated of course.

Its my 30th Birthday at the very beginning of April, so I've arranged to have 5 friends over for drinks in my garden on Good Friday.

And I've booked two camping holidays for our new tent.

Its so lovely to have things in the diary to look forward to, and its making me feel so positive!

One other piece of good news - children under 5 are not included in the rule of 6. So we are planning an Easter egg hunt for my daughter and her little friends in the neighbourhood 🥳🥳

Good to know about children under 5. We can discount both of ours!

The Pfzier transmission info is brilliant! Does anyone have any links to the AZ transmission info? I can find stuff but it's nearly a month old, and info changes so much!

Another glorious sunny day here. Its a shame that I've done my exercise for today. Perfect day for a nice long walk in the sun. Still the morning 5K run was good. The daffodils in our little village are starting to show now too.

It doesn't affect me as my youngest is 9, but great news about under 5s being exempt from the rule of 6.

I’ve spotted a few scientists/doctors on Twitter reporting anecdotally that the vaccines appear to be improving symptoms for those suffering with long Covid, which has to be good news if it turns out to be correct.

@OrangeBananaFish

Another glorious sunny day here. Its a shame that I've done my exercise for today. Perfect day for a nice long walk in the sun. Still the morning 5K run was good. The daffodils in our little village are starting to show now too.

It doesn't affect me as my youngest is 9, but great news about under 5s being exempt from the rule of 6.

Honestly, no one is going to fine you or even say anything if you go out for a walk twice in a day! More to the point, the risk of doing this, assuming you keep a distance from others, is pretty negligible s

We've just had a picnic in the garden. I've even just taken my coat off! Feeling very summery 😁

We are a pottering in the garden today - can't believe how lovely the weather is. I have a couple of Frankenstein pizzas in the oven with all the stuff remaining in the fridge (waiting for a food delivery) and the vaccines are looking good today:

469,003 England (452,777 1st doses, 16,226 2nd doses)

34,062 Scotland
22,993 Wales

So another 500k+ day. As predicted on an earlier thread when we were at 10m, we will have 20 million first doses administered before I get to tidying the shed.

Had a massive case of the fuckits yesterday and ended up booking not 1, not 2 but 3 holidays this morning 1 UK at the end of May, Greece in August and then Italy at Christmas.

@TJ17

We've just had a picnic in the garden. I've even just taken my coat off! Feeling very summery 😁

Well, you know the saying "Sun's out, guns out" 🤣

@InterfectoremVulpes

Had a massive case of the fuckits yesterday and ended up booking not 1, not 2 but 3 holidays this morning 1 UK at the end of May, Greece in August and then Italy at Christmas.

Impressed you managed to get accommodation at end of May. We looked for May half term and it looked like everything was fully booked!

We do still technically have a holiday booked to France but it’s looking unlikely to happen

We have provisional self catering air b and b booked for May half term - and also for a few days from 13th April. We can however cancel easily if restrictions don't allow it.

We have been shielding and I booked the day after I got my vaccine .

I am wondering whether to buy a motor home for the summer and pootle around the UK. The rate limiting factor is my husband's desire not to have to maintain such a thing and the potential for the kids fighting if cooped up at close quarters. Hmm.

We have booked a campsite in May to get our lonely caravan out of storage.

I might need to cast my net wider!

@InterfectoremVulpes that sounds very exciting.
We’ve Florida booked for August. Will try to book somewhere in Cornwall for May.
Definitely need a trip to Italy as well. Maybe if Florida doesn’t happen, if not we’ll squeeze in a long weekend.

@Frazzled2207 Honestly, no one is going to fine you or even say anything if you go out for a walk twice in a day! More to the point, the risk of doing this, assuming you keep a distance from others, is pretty negligible

I agree especially as I live rural so never see anyone and if I do keeping a distance is very very easy. However, I decided to watch the 25th Anniversary of Phantom of the Opera instead.