I've had a ridiculously sociable weekend

[LegendaryReady]

I seem to have well and truly got back to usual, without even considering the risks. That's quite a change for me and now, in the cold light of day seems quite reckless.

Saturday - I shared a car with 4 others to a sports event that I competed in with numerous others (albeit outdoors). Lunch in a cafe. We started outdoors but then it rained.

• Then I went to a museum, which was fairly quiet and people were wearing masks and distancing.

• Then 20 of us went for a curry. Very busy restaurant

Sunday - long bike ride with half a dozen friends. Coffee and cake stop. All outdoors except for toilet and ordering.

Monday - Group of six (different people to previous 2 days) train journey (masks worn) to busy seaside town to see a band play at a pub. It was outdoors but indoors for the bar and toilet. Then on to a restaurant for dinner and home on the train.

It's been a great weekend and was good to see places buzzing again. Writing it all down I also just realised how much I must have spent! It was good to "live" a bit, finally, before going back to work in school tomorrow.

I am a bit nervous about the LFT I will do tonight ahead of the return though. And also horrified at the number of contacts I will have had, if I did test positive.

I've really been very "good" until the last couple of weeks. No wonder the numbers are increasing so much I'm fully vaccinated and so are the vast majority of people I know, but despite that I think I known more currently positive people now than I have at any point in the pandemic. Thankfully though, they don't seem to be getting very ill and people are testing regularly and doing the right thing as soon as they test positive.

Have others suddenly found themselves relaxing? There were certainly lots of others doing similar to me this weekend.

Sounds a wonderful weekend. I’ve found this too. I was very careful in the first lockdown and all last summer, but this summer I’ve gone completely back to normal. I’ve been to weddings, parities, been eating in restaurants and cafes and catching up with all my friends and family. It’s so great to see everyone living again. If I’ve caught covid from anything I haven’t noticed.

We all have a choice: live a diminished life but minimize our chances of catching Covid, or live life as fully as we wish and take the risk that we might catch Covid (or anything else).

If we take the vaccination when offered we are reducing the risk of becoming very unwell with Covid (which we can't say about any other infection).

My weekend was more sociable than yours and it's been on my mind that I'd be reading off a huge list of contacts and venues if I found out I had covid now!

Wherever I went was absolutely packed, queues were so close together everyone was practically touching, you could hardly move in the pub and I think I only saw a handful of people wearing masks all weekend. It feels bit bizarre as case numbers are through the roof and worse than they've ever been where we are. But I figured I'm vaccinated so surely I can get back to normal now.

Good luck OP, you took a few big gambles there. It’s interesting to see how many people are seemingly doing the same at the moment almost like they know these types of weekends won’t be for much longer now kids are heading back to school.

I’ve relaxed since May to be honest. I’ve had a busier social life than I ever have in my life since stuff started opening up again 😂 literally every weekend, I need to cut down, my waistline isn’t thanking me for all the lunches & ice creams!

I got married last week, had a fabulous, wonderful, normal wedding day filled with my beautiful friends & family. We then went on mini moon & spent a delightful few days relaxing & doing stuff we love, like GoApe, lunches, dinners, walks! My kids stayed with family & spent the long weekend at softplay, a theme park & the zoo! They are exhausted today 😄

I’ve had a wonderful summer overall, filled with everything & everyone I love. I head into winter feeling content, refreshed & ready for whatever is thrown at us..

Good for you OP.

Just realised that could be read as sarcastic! Not sarcastic! I love seeing people enjoying themselves.

@Thewiseoneincognito

Good luck OP, you took a few big gambles there. It’s interesting to see how many people are seemingly doing the same at the moment almost like they know these types of weekends won’t be for much longer now kids are heading back to school.

Why not?

I've been loads of places and in contact with loads of people throughout the summer holidays.

@Thewiseoneincognito

Good luck OP, you took a few big gambles there. It’s interesting to see how many people are seemingly doing the same at the moment almost like they know these types of weekends won’t be for much longer now kids are heading back to school.

I think we're all aware summer is coming to an end and it's now or never, after a long period of "never", regardless of what happens next re Covid

Yeah, I felt like we were getting back to normal and now ds has covid. He's be so careful, more so than me.

"a few big gambles". Classic.

I hate this ‘life was normal & now we have covid’ outcry, like it’s some kind of injustice and you’ve been tricked into getting back to normal. We all know cases are high, we all know restrictions are gone, we all know it’s an airborne virus & unless you never leave your house, you could catch it, careful or not. You make a choice knowing the facts. I know I’m unlikely to be very ill, I know the vaccines are working against serious illness & death. I’m personally therefore happy to take my chances. I’m happily resigned to the fact I will get it again at some point, it’s here to stay. Hopefully my vaccine will do the job!

I do worry for my ECV mum but ultimately, how she lives her life during this period of life is her decision. She also knows the facts. As do we all.

Sounds wonderful OP. I knew I’d gone back to normal when the flight counter on my phone read 15 flights in 9 weeks for this summer (work!). It’s crazy to think how many people I’ve come into contact with over these months, at the same time I’m not even slightly worried about it.

I’m finally living again, after 18 months of ‘half-living’. I’ve been to 7 countries since July, currently in Italy and this morning I hugged a friend I hadn’t seen since 2017. It just felt so good.

I’m still testing regularly so I feel a bit safer about not spreading anything around, but it’s good to live again. Everywhere I’ve been apart from UK still has compulsory mask wearing and you only enter restaurants or concerts with a vaccination pass or a negative test, so it does feel safe.

If I catch Covid at least I know I’ve enjoyed life whilst I could, I’ll then do the 10 days and go back to enjoying life, and being able to earn a wage again.

Been out and about, live football, beaches, camping, capital city, fair grounds, friends, family, pubs, cafes, galleries, shopping centres, all summer.

Only thing we couldn't do was an overseas holiday it was just too complicated but we still look just in case.

Partly masks, partly not.

I know I’m unlikely to be very ill, I know the vaccines are working against serious illness & death. I’m personally therefore happy to take my chances. I’m happily resigned to the fact I will get it again at some point, it’s here to stay. Hopefully my vaccine will do the job!

I feel exactly the same

We’ve been to a festival, and it was absolutely brilliant. Tens of thousands of people in big groups with their families and friends; it was wonderful to see people dancing, chatting and roaring with laughter with the people they love. We were outdoors all the time but in close proximity to each other on the dance floor and in the queues, and hardly anyone had a mask on (I think I saw half a dozen, if that). Wonderful, life-affirming stuff; I didn’t think about Covid at all.

@LegendaryReady I hope you had a bloody good weekend!! It sounded great! I had a similar weekend and I LOVED it.

I've felt the same.

Replaced more and more without realising it but I think it's a good thing.

Walked to Tesco Sunday with ds to get some bits for a roast (1.5 hrs in total) and forgot a mask. At first entering without it seemed weird but by the time I left I forgot I wasn't wearing one and tried to take it off 🤦‍♀️

Also worrying about LFT before returning to school Thursday.

This thread does a good job of explaining why cases are sky high.

Should add I do still wear masks but after walking for 40 minutes to the shop and seeing it was empty and needing 3 things I wasn't not going in!

Frankly, I’m just jealous of what sounds like a lovely weekend! You’re entitled to feel anxious but you haven’t done anything ‘wrong’ or reckless.

Thank god you’re not my DS’s teacher. He’s got more common sense than you clearly have.

@NannyAndJohn

This thread does a good job of explaining why cases are sky high.

It does, which is what I said in the OP.

It also makes me wonder how many messages I'll get later from staff unable to return because of positive test some of which might even be genuine

@NannyAndJohn

This thread does a good job of explaining why cases are sky high.

They're not sky high, they're no where near the number of cases that were predicted, and way off your pessimistic numbers. We didn't hit 150k/day in July or August.