Westminstenders: What the winds bring

[RedToothBrush]

The next few weeks are crucial. Eu talks, covid handling, the US election and any other unexpected events (its nearly November, lets face it will probably be the weather).

It feels a little like the car crash in slow motion is about to hit the wall of reality. I guess that just means all there is left to do is to brace for impact.

This obsession with protecting Christmas is fucking laughable. They gave Greater Manchester two hours notice the night before Eid about heavier restrictions back in August. I said at the time on here could you imagine doing that at 10 pm on Christmas Eve. Well, could you? Probably not because Southern England counts more to this government.

Like you red everything is bought for xmas. Food ordered. Some treats bought.
I've just ordered a new laptop because if I have to have one more meeting when my laptop decides to have a hissy fit I may explode 😡😡😡
It'll be different this time - no one is being advised to shield (although my fit and healthy pulse haven't been to a shop since March...), schools sns unis open (for now)
I knew this was coming so have planned accordingly...
Mum is now ensconced in her new flat, house sold. The only thing on my list not dine is the bloody boiler service but my boiler engineer was contacted by T&T and is self isolating for 2 weeks (why not try and get a test???)
I'm working with the local secondary school to send Xmas food hampers to fsm families.
I'm trying to source 50 laptops for vulnerable kids.
I'm having a brain scan tomorrow- good vibes appreciated!
LQ sending love x

Agree bellini but we onnthis thread said the Govt would never do that re: Xmas.

Best wishes for tomorrow @Shrillharridan . Good vibes (yes, I still have them ) heading your way.

@bellinisurge

This obsession with protecting Christmas is fucking laughable. They gave Greater Manchester two hours notice the night before Eid about heavier restrictions back in August. I said at the time on here could you imagine doing that at 10 pm on Christmas Eve. Well, could you? Probably not because Southern England counts more to this government.

Its not about any of that.

Its about what is important to those in government.

How many northern tories are ministers? How many tories celebrate Eid?

Well after Gove admitting on Sky this morning that lockdown may extend to the end of Transition
civil liberties, what are they
I and many other parents up and down the land will be collecting children from University this week.

If the government do know where the cases are being transmitted
they should deal with those locations hint, its not gyms and swimming pools
If they do not, then this 4 weeks will achieve nothing.

I shall spend the days tidying my Brexit stash.

No plans for Christmas in this house as no money coming in to pay for it.

I wonder how it came to be Gove that became point man today ? Short straw ?

Last night, I had a weirdly warm feeling as I realised that in the same way the country is stuck with the Tories, the Tories are stuck with Boris. And if there's a trend afoot to needle whinging Tory voters about lying in the bed they made, it applies even more so to any whinging Tory MPs who signed up to Project Boris last year. Because this, my blue faced friends is what you voted for.

Ever get the feeling you've been had.

I am imagining that this news is going to really fuck with ig retailers logistics and marketing. They've only just rearranged the shelves to start pushing their "Xmas range" and now they're going to be inundated with shoppers stocking up on the everyday over the seasonal. Or so I extrapolate from the layout in Sainsburys yesterday.

Surely there's scope for an ironic re-release of "Do They Know It's Christmas" ? Raise some money from unexpected sources (the original, of course. I'm not an animal).

Conversely Roy Wood is sitting on a goldmine if he chose to re-record his ditty.

I wonder what other Xmas hits might seem different this year ?

SwedishEdith
Tomorrow's Sunday Times - big story

From the link-
"Kate Bingham, a Boris Johnson appointee" ...
"Like Dido Harding, she is married to a Conservative MP: Treasury Minister Jesse Norman." "She also went to school with Rachel Johnson."

Is Kate Bingham the same age as Rachel Johnson? She looks a few years older than 55. In a previous interview we are told that Kate Bingham has known Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government's chief scientific adviser "for years" and the Lancet tells us that the Government's Vaccine Taskforce was set up by Sir Patrick Vallance. In 2017, Kate Bingham won the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the BioIndustry Association UK - and she currently serves on the Board of the Francis Crick Institute.

Regardless of whether Kate Bingham's webinar was suitable or not - she clearly has more obvious connections than attending the same school as Rachel Johnson - possibly not even in the same year group.

Fucking hell, that's an enormous squirrel

Our new heating system should be installed and working by the end of today, so at least we'll have a warm house

Good time to do it not including the fact that Winter is coming as we've not been able to have visitors since August (with the exception of my dad, who's in our extended household), so the fact that every room in the house has been in upheaval with the carpets up and floorboards lifted hasn't been an issue. We're planning on doing a radical redecoration of the living room from orangey-red to teal. Ds will hate it when he eventually gets to come back down home, as he doesn't like change

that's an enormous squirrel

Don't feed it any nuts then ;)

In all of the messaging over the last 24 hours I have not heard any clear message about what you should do if you get Covid. Absolutely no attempt to establish some norms / incentives around making sure people quarantine or to up the quality of testing and tracing. It’s basically all go home and don’t bother us with your pesky susceptibility to catching Covid. Meanwhile we will fiddle whilst Rome burns.

I and many other parents up and down the land will be collecting children from University this week.

We are in the somewhat ridiculous situation of sending ours back for an exam on Monday.

So my youngest has just left for Toulouse with a car boot full of food, as his university restaurant is closed and his campus isn't well situated for shopping.

My oldest left Paris on Thursday and is staying with a family friend near Lille - she didn't come home because she wants to be close enough to get back to her university if necessary.

There doesn't really seem to be any limitation on students travelling at the moment.

In all of the messaging over the last 24 hours I have not heard any clear message about what you should do if you get Covid.

Tests here in France seem to have fallen since the beginning of the new lockdown.

Big risk that people who should test don't get one because they are not sure whether they are supposed to/allowed to.

I have nothing ready for Christmas. It's a significant birthday for dd in November and her v modest plans are no more. Ds is not well. My back is f**ked. I'd just recovered my mental health from the last lockdown. Don't actually know how I'm going to do the next two months.

that's an enormous squirrel

The squirrel(s) living in our back garden haven't been seen in a while so are presumably hibernating.

I think Gove didn't get the email.
Pontification on a possible extension to a lockdown that we haven't even started yet is a sure fire way of demoralising the troops.
I can just imagine Boris, Witty et al groaning when they heard that pearl of wisdom on the radio this morning.

@Shrillharridan your question about your boiler man isolating and not getting a test. - you don't qualify for a test because you have been contacted - you are just asked to isolate. No financial support I believe, one of the main reasons there has been very little compliance

Judging by the levels of near-apoplexy on the radio now from Desmond Swayne and (less spluttery) Stuart Rose, BJ has a real problem on his hands in the Tory party.

Ah. I see.
My brother got contacted on Thursday, took a test Friday and got a negative result yesterday...so he's back to work tomorrow.

We had angry squirrels attacking our Halloween decorations yesterday. Was very funny to see.

Desmond Swayne is a swivel eyed loon who has been kicked out of several shops for refusing to wear a mask.

Sabrina
should have got a picture - demented squirrel images might be useful over the next 61 days

Shrill
Nobody self employed is going to go for tests at the moment ....

"Grey squirrels do not hibernate, so may be seen at all times of the year. However, in winter they are far less active, sleeping for long periods, sometimes several days at a time, and they are less frequently spotted during this season."

Just saying.

shrill if it's a modern boiler missing one service won't kill it. Ours is 20 and still chugging along, my parents got a glow-worm to 37 before it died.
Like LQ I've been through the Brexit Stash in the garage well, half of it and I've done some tetris in the freezers so will top-up at Sains tomorrow morning (unless the vultures have picked it clean today).
DGR Christmas CD going on this afternoon - I prefer Slade

@ICouldHaveCheckedFirst - "Grey squirrels do not hibernate, so may be seen at all times of the year. However, in winter they are far less active, sleeping for long periods, sometimes several days at a time, and they are less frequently spotted during this season."

My lads are red so presumably hibernating. Clav obviously goes with grey ones.