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Would you knock on your neighbours door to borrow a thermometer if you had suspected swine flu?

9 replies

IlanaK · 21/07/2009 20:04

No? Well me neither. But this is what my neighbour did today to us. I live in a block of flats and her door is right next to our door. I don't know her at all. She does know I have three young children as she has seen us go in and out.

She knocked on my door in her pyjamas looking aweful and asked if we had a thermometer. She said all the shops have run out of them. I went and got ours and then asked her if she suspected swine flu. She said yes. I told her not to breathe on me and handed her the thermometer and told her how to use it (its an in ear one). She did not have a temperature in the end and I disinfected it.

I am a bit pissed off though that she thought this was ok to do. She does have a partner who presumably was at work, but she could have waited for him to come home.

OP posts:
AnarchyAunt · 21/07/2009 20:07

No, I wouldn't.

Silly woman.

I can tell when I have a temperature anyway, can't most people? And its not always present with swine flu according to various places.

littleducks · 21/07/2009 20:07

No, i bet nhs direct or someone told her to do it

OnlyWantsOne · 21/07/2009 20:09

No, silly muppet.

I'd ask her to keep her infections to herself in the future

IlanaK · 21/07/2009 20:11

I am glad its not just me then. If I end up with swine flu, I will be seriously pissed off at her.

OP posts:
alimac87 · 21/07/2009 21:43

Well, to be honest, I might have done. I went to get a thermometer on Sunday and Boots - a big, big branch - had pretty much sold out. I bought the last one in the shop.

If I hadn't found a thermometer, and was worried and confused about the temperature thing, then I might indeed have asked my neighbour if I could borrow theirs. (If I knew they had a fancy in-ear one I'd be even keener to knock on the door...)

I can understand the eww a little bit, but they're pretty easy to disinfect.

cornsillk · 21/07/2009 21:45

She was probably desperate to have done that. I don't think it's that bad.

DebiNewberry · 21/07/2009 21:47

yeah, prob. and i wouldn't mind if somebody did it to me

huge boots near me had sold out of all thermometers on Friday. We had run out of the plastic covers and had to search high and wide.

Fennel · 21/07/2009 21:55

Maybe she wanted support and this was just a way of trying to get it. Maybe she's freaking out in a flat on her own.

People with swine flu are coming and going all over the place round here, there are so many households with it that it would be hard to avoid.

VulpusinaWilfsuit · 21/07/2009 22:01

Crikey. If you have your own underlying health problems then I'd worry. If you don't, it shows a bit of a lack of compassion.

Perhaps she has a sick baby too and needed to give an instant reading. You will be exposed to the virus whatever happens, unless you are self-quarantining.

Over-reaction.

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