Coronavirus in ROI/NI part 2

[Zantedeschia]

Following on from the other thread

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/craicnet/3834552-Coronavirus-in-Ireland-N-Ireland?pg=40&order=

Where is it hot? Its not hot in Munster. I'm in my fleece. I went to the post office, I know how to live.

Connacht, bare in mind I am not built for heat so anything above 12 degrees is hot. It's gone windy now. There was nothing earlier. Then again I was running too.

I'm in Munster too and the sky is starting to clear up - I see blue skies! It is cold though, we will wrap up when we get out for a walk in a bit.

I like nice and warm with a breeze, not too hot, and rain overnight so I don't have to water stuff.
Over seventies seem to be everywhere today; Friday is when the mountainy men arrive to shop, I assume they'l be out in force this week. I'm happy to see them, and leap out of the way.

I found it very warm running this morning too. In Dublin.
The paths were full of people out walking with people they were trying to socially distance from, that’s going to get worse after the 18th when it is actually allowed.

Anyone else hear of "blackmarket" hairdressing ?
I know of one incident. Hairdresser coming and doing colour.
2 or 3 clients all family members will be there.

Yes, LadyEloise. I saw that story on the RTE site this morning over my coffee.
I am desperate to do something about my roots, just not €200 worth of desperate!
I can get away with using one of the sprays to cover my root colour for Zoom and Teams meetings, but won't get away with it in real life. I am making great use of hats when I am in public!

Anyone else hear of "blackmarket" hairdressing ?

Now I'm wondering if The Guards would do a sting operation on them.

Check out Bernard O'Shea's song about a black market haircut

Are people that vain? Sure we're all in the same boat.
(Pays 200 euro to woman for doing hair and eyebrows and sneaks her out the back door under a cloak)
I mean we're all in this together after all.

My hair grows madly, and is like a tabby cat under the colour. I'm carefully wearing a hat in public.

Co Galway here: swimming off the beach today! ☀️☀️☀️ (the beach and the breeze were warm, the sea was icy)

I saw someone with lovely hair today. Turns out she is a hairdresser! They will be the best ads for their own services soon. I look like a dandelion clock.

Does anyone have a junior cert child? DS’s school sent an email this afternoon to tell us that exams are starting on Monday via Zoom. Which has caught us on the hop a bit. It’s only going to be 25% of the marks with the rest coming from assignments and coursework.

I bought two boxes of DIY colour as soon as the virus hit. I made it to today before using the first one. Result ...

Dd is doing her 'junior cert' next week, we got an email last week. It seems pretty low key and to be honest I think most of her friends, who would usually be pretty conscientious, have a bit of a 'who cares' attitude and I can't say I blame them.

Her school is doing the new junior cycle so she has been doing Classroom Based Assesments which carried percentages towards the overall mark since 2nd year.

I thank my lucky stars none of mine are doing the LC this year, we'd have had a collective nervous breakdown at this point.

Junior Cert here too. Online exam starting May 18. Counts for 20% of mark. Zero motivation and zero work being done

Now that it appears Boris is going to allow the UK to go back to normal, can I ask those of you from the North whether you think Arlene will blindly follow him, or will she go with Nicola Sturgeon (who seems to be a little more cautious) or - and wouldn't this be a first - follow Leo's route out?

If Northern Ireland follows the rest of the UK will we be in the ridiculous position that someone from Belfast can go on holidays to Cork when someone from Ballymun can't visit their granny in Dun Laoghaire, for example? I'm wondering if they'll give the Gardai powers to stop and send home people in Northern registered cars, just as they have been stopping Dublin registered cars heading off down the Naas Road.

It’s probably just as well I suppose. DS has put in zero effort since school closed so it’s better to have exams early before he has forgotten everything.

Best of luck to the JC group - great to have them over and done with and just be on holidays. There's no point in dragging it out.

They can all get back to normal in September, kids that age are resilient and they are better being happy on playstations than getting more and more anxious about exams.

I feel really sorry for the LC group; they will have no summer holiday, and there is no way that the exams will be fair to all. One of mine would have done well having been left to study alone for four months, the other two would have given up by now and life would have been a daily battle with all of us miserable.

can I ask those of you from the North whether you think Arlene will blindly follow him, or will she go with Nicola Sturgeon (who seems to be a little more cautious) or - and wouldn't this be a first - follow Leo's route out?

The ‘British’ in her will want to go with the U.K., but I think and hope she will be a little more cautious, as we closed our schools before the U.K., thank fuck! I think she’ll keep her ear to the ground and try to fall between the two.

I'd love to know what other countries are doing re final year secondary school exams.
A-levels are cancelled- is that correct ? Teacher assessment is being used instead along with other factors.
It's so up in the air still for Leaving Cert students.

I think in the UK they will go with predicted grades and offer university etc places based on that.

I worry about the LC exams - I know they wanted them to go ahead so that the students would be ready to start college in October, but I have seen a suggestion that in order to keep numbers lower (and social distancing easier), 1st year undergrads might not start until January.

NI schools finish up end June, don't they? Hardly worth taking them back for 3 or 4 weeks, I wouldn't have thought. Scotland have said no school til September.

There is uproar on the Early Years Facebook group I am on and I dont agree with their anger. On May 18th Earky Years Educators who are out of work asked to Volunteer to go into the homes of Front Line staff and mind their Children.
Lots of posts saying "We're no baby sitters" "we need respect" etc.
I really dont agree, we are qualified to teach young children and we are Garda Vetted. This is such a unique situation, everyone needs to help if they can. Obviously they have to access the risks themselves.
I feel very guilty that I dont want to do it but the risks are too high for me.
I'm at the rolling my eyes stage.

I have one doing LC next year. She would be fine if she was doing LC this year as she is very self motivated and studies away, this summer because her language college, festival etc are cancelled she is signing up for various online courses.
One of my others would be a disaster is she was doing LC this year so I am very grateful she is not.

I do worry about NI I think the fact the highest level of Covid in Ireland is in Cavan and Monaghan shows that the different policies North and South are having a negative impact.

I lead a very exciting life now, sitting here looking out the window wondering if I should chance a walk now or wait till later. It's very dark and looks like rain. I think.