Prepping for a Pandemic - Thread 16

[Sprayitall]

I don’t know why another thread hasn’t been created yet , so here you go. Now as we prep ourselves to the peak of this pandemic, let’s all face it together and appreciate how fragile our lives are and how we need each other to survive and flourish.

I've reported the shopbot as being inappropriate atm - hope everyone agrees

unless it's only me that can see it!!

“But keeping them busy without much of social contact is going to be a big challenge.”

Mnhq have started a thread for this

https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/coronavirus/3852521-Pooling-ideas-for-keeping-kids-entertained-at-home

Got a delivery earlier I’d ordered over £90 worth expecting some unavailability and subs...got £35 worth! Driver stressed bless him.

I’ve had to start ordering things I’ve not used for years...got them and then realised I’d forgotten how to bloody use them!

Started a thread in recipes but not many replied. So ideas for using courgettes and shallots for a veggie most welcome.

The daft thing is they used to be staples of mine! But dd doesn’t like them so I’ve not used them for maybe 15 years now?

I’m definitely in a cooking/meal rut which this current situation may force me out of.

It’s also because I now live alone I can’t be arsed doing long complicated recipes.

I mostly eat: stir fry, fresh pasta with pesto, crackers & cheese, ready to eat pasties/quiche/slices/veggie equivalents to sausage rolls, sandwiches.

I also posted a thread recently about defrosting freezer (first time I’ve had a fridge/freezer so wasn’t sure how to) and I’ve been putting that off but thinking I need to get on that if only for freezing bread and grapes!

Op don’t worry about slang and phrases we’re happy to explain them. (If we can - half the time we’re clueless too)

I have quite a number of friends and family who’ve “foreigners” and the colloquialisms can cause so much hilarity. I’ve family in USA and our Facebook conversations can end up very weird with each “side” posting slang phrases the other “side” doesn’t understand and then the 1st “side” tries to explain - and usually fails! 😂

I’ve also family & friends in Europe married to Europeans so completely different languages and sometimes caused their spouses to 😱 when they’ve directly translated (or thought they did) a common innocent British phrase because what they’ve said in the European language is very rude

But the reverse has happened too.

I find it fascinating. Love hearing all the different countries euphemisms and slang and phrases and wondering how they came about.

Even in Uk, my dad was army so we moved around but we’re Scots by birth so I’m quite used to and frequently use Scots phrases with English friends only to be met with faces

One place they were SO English there if we had friends for a sleepover myself and siblings would have to constantly translate what my broad weegie (Glaswegian) parents were saying. My dads accent is especially strong and he speaks very fast.

“God I wish I was that thick right now. To be so blissfully batshit crazy” while I realise off the cuff/lighthearted please don’t equate mental illness with stupidity. I have severe ocd & agoraphobia and much of what I do as a result of compulsions IS nonsensical but I’m far from stupid.

Delusions like that one discussed are bizarre but they’re the result of illness not lack of intelligence. When I had my breakdown I had hallucinations which included houses “coming to life” this happened when I had just finished my 2nd degree.

“If you need extra food, but there's also places like Holland & Barrett. Free delivery over £25.” Didn’t know they delivered! Thanks for that. As well as food their aloe gel is fabulous for many uses especially burns and scrapes so could bump up to delivery limit with things like that.

Dh is trying not to worry and is worrying about his failure to avoid worrying this is me normally! My mums always saying if is nothing to worry about I’d worry why that was 😂 so I’m worse than ever right now.

Thank you all for these threads. They have been a place of calm and reassurance over the past weeks and months. The knowledge I’ve gained here has also been invaluable. I did a big shop for my Dad (in his 70s) a few weeks ago, before it all started kicking off in the UK, to make sure he had a stash. We spoke yesterday and he was so grateful for it, that he’d be panicking without it now, and that he was amazed at how I’d anticipated everything he’d need and everything that would go on short supply in the shops. I didn’t say, but I knew it was these threads that had made sure I knew what to buy!

The end of the previous thread filled up so fast it caught me by surprise! Thanks for starting this one.

One thing in particular I’m interested in is whether the virus can reinfect or if you have some immunity after you’ve had it once.

I believe that a few people have had it twice but I would have thought that mainly people become immune, otherwise the “herd immunity” theory which is supposed to be how we’re going to get over this outbreak wouldn’t work.

Thank you for the new thread! Checking in.

Thank you also to Veneto for the updates, which are really interesting as well as scary as well as helpful. No, seriously -- it's always better to know.

I am really wondering what next to think about in terms of prepping. I had no real idea that this could go on for so long, so it's hard to guess what might happen next with supply chains etc.

I am guessing possibly issues with fresh veg? As it's the season when the UK's own crops are sparse?

Placemarking

It’s all over the news about the new test which can demonstrate whether you’ve actually had the disease by determining whether you’ve got the antibody to it (the testing now available has to be done while you’ve actually got the virus).
Obviously this is exciting news but the initial article about it in a professional journal (as opposed to the Sun newspaper) seemed to imply that the new test might be some way off, although I should imagine they’ll be throwing everything they’ve got at it.

Actually I have a question. I’ve fuelled our car (oldish diesel) and drive it around a bit a few days back to protect the battery.

Presumably in lock down all batteries will go flat? Is there any point even trying to keep the car running by driving it every few days?

My sister and partner, plus my best friend and her partner, plus two mums I know from school, plus two/three professional contacts who work locally, now seem to have all the symptoms of coronavirus. I can also now hear our downstairs neighbour coughing and coughing. I think they have no idea yet how widely it may have spread in London.

I am relieved they have closed the schools. I hope there will be pressure on them to provide proper PPE to the poor medics, nurses and healthcare workers who are currently trying to survive without. And I hope that testing is now rolled out to the extent promised by Boris, so we can actually act with knowledge and data of what is going on.

I suppose I would like to be able to drive to elderly parents at some point (3 hours away on the south coast) once we’ve been inside for 14 days then presumably we don’t pose a threat

Have had a few emails from different supermarkets this evening, urging calm & detailing measures they are taking to ensure supply. These include assistance to elderly, no all night openings so they can make better use of staff and also closure of some sections (such as deli counters and cafés) again to concentrate staff in right areas including more click and collect availability.

Also had a few posts pop up on Facebook to say supermarkets are taking on temporary staff to deal with the extra demand. Hope these posts are real as I’m sure some people will be desperate for work.

Can't sleep although I know I should try. I'm worrying about post now. My repeat meds are delivered by Royal Mail. In a lockdown does post continue? Perhaps it will be essential items only so medication, food deliveries, and similar. The government really needs to relax prescription limits temporarily. Limiting prescriptions to one month's worth (or less depending on the situation) is a bad idea right now.

I lost you all for a while, I couldn’t understand why everyone stopped posting on the other thread at 5pm

I went in to work today and am having to limit my exposure to CV based stuff because I felt The Overwhelm.

DP was definitely experiencing the waves of grief a PP mentioned and for him it manifests as anger. Not towards me but he gets snappy and moody and it’s irritating. I keep wanting to shout at him, I TOLD YOU SO!!! About business etc. I told him weeks ago that he should invoice his clients early. He didn’t and now he’s likely to lose his business.

I’m also in the tourism industry and my lovely lovely boss hasn’t said anything about hours yet, but it’s only me, him and his boyfriend so... if no one is coming on holiday/booking holidays, it won’t be long.

I am, however, thinking of reregistering as a teacher to see if I can be of use in the schools that are staying open for children of key workers etc. Does that sound stupid?

I used tissues to touch the petrol pumps today and it just feels so surreal. I initially
Bought five hand sanitizers back at the beginning of feb and DP has another, so six total. I’ve got one, there’s one on the side and one in the cupboard. I posted one out to a friend a week ago and I’ve just dropped one to my neighbour who thought I was mental seven weeks ago. That means I’ve got another somewhere...

Still rumours of a lockdown from Friday? I’ve got food and medicine prep but I still feel so uneasy.

@Tropicalsquirrel that's lovely hope you and yours stay healthy and safe.

@Onceuponatimethen I'm no car expert! (I'll try and ask my dad for you if I can) but certainly when I was a student and skint I had to save money during summer holidays so as I had a driveway then I'd SORN it but I'd turn the engine over for an hour once a week under dads advice to keep the battery going. That was an old petrol car though and a pure solid tank of one. I'm not sure about diesel or modern cars/batteries. As I say I'll try and find out for you.

@MrsFezziwig I think the supermarkets are having to close for a few hours at night to allow for proper cleaning as well as all the other reasons

@tryingtoprep I get my prescriptions delivered by boots (and pay for the privilege now) I've one due Friday which I was lucky to get the delivery slot. I've another due next week I need to organise too.

I think post will continue as it's relatively "contactless" but will be watching news on this.

Nuts! Just ordered mums Mother's Day card, but I would normally arrange a delivery of flowers and a gift too but as they're self isolating do I arrange such deliveries now?

Normally the flowers are from her favourite local florist I'm not even sure if they are still open.

Hi all, First post but have been here since the beginning. So glad I got all my preps done early although I find it difficult not to twitch. I'm self employed and my work has nose dived so who knows what will happen there. My sister is a midwife at a very big london hospital and has said the midwives are dropping like flies and there are talks to make the 3rd year midwives qualify early to help the situation. My 94 year old grandmother had to go into a&e yesterday at another london hospital via ambulance. The doctor in charge said that if they admitted her it would be like a death sentence as so many were getting diagnosed. Half the ward she was on was setup as an icu. I don't want to be too outing here but someone I'm close to someone working on a tv program currently about corona virus and the food chain. The big takeaway message seems to be that variety of the food we can buy is going to go right down.

Hi all, so glad my son is home again, I am still very worried as he works in London and uses public transport but at least I get to see him now at the end of every day. My daughter and her family are close as are my elderly parents so we can all help support each other. Good luck everyone.

morning all. checking in.

Morning all, first day of all the children being home ( I homeschool all but the eldest and her school shut yesterday) how to stop them raising the prep stores? Teenage gannets know no bounds.

I'm going to teach DD to bake bread today- seems a useful skill for someone else in the household to know how to do.

Wish DH office would shut but at least the are on skeleton staff so limited mixing with others

@preponderings

So here we are not meant to leave the house unless it is for:

Work
Health reasons
Necessity (shopping, carer role....)

Going out for a walk comes under necessity so you can. But close to home. Only in a group with your household.

You couldn't drive to a NT property.

The advice re cycling is conflicting. Some say no - increased risk of injury, but the NHS said it's OK.

Communal gardens - no one is policing them. They're barely policing anything. But I would avoid the DC coming into contact with other DC.

Thankfully we have a private garden.

@Katymac - if they're SD but you're SI, and in the same house, then you're not SI either. Are you happy with that?

AlohaMolly definitely re-register as a teacher.

Graphista Lightly fry a few sliced shallots till just going browny/translucent, add a sliced courgette and cook for a further few minutes. Add a can of chilli beans in sauce (Coop do a nice one), add a bit of water (I usually half fill the empty chilli bean can and swish it round to get the rest of the sauce) and then simmer for 35-40 minutes. It is delicious.

@MotherofDragonite - I listened to something, prob R4, that said meat supply chains were quite vulnerable - if the farmer gets ill in lambing season, if the local slaughterhouse has to close down, if the local butcher closes. Makes you realise how linked it all is.

Checking in. That’s very concerning about the food chain - not that the range will decrease but that it can be transmitted through it.