The Thirty-Fifth Republic - Covid - the gift that keeps on giving even during the Christmas Break

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You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff only – a sort of room of requirement. Baiters, haters, goaders, and bashers can jog on somewhere else.

If you are NOT staff and just have a general education query please start your own thread.

You can play here if you are a member of one the following groups-

-ABBA - anti bashers and baiting association
-SWAB - school workers against bashers
-SWOT - school workers opposing teacherbashers
-STARS - schoolworkers together against ranting + slurs

Do not give the staffroom password just in case it attracts the wrong sort

Other requirements for staff room entry include the ability to find the staff room, the ability to find a clean mug in the staff room, knowledge of the photocopier codes, and the ability to sniff out where the booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation.

If you come with a stick to goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom and you will receive a detention

Nice to hear that most people had enjoyable days yesterday.

We had a nice day - also included nice food and building Lego (I have so much Lego to build). As we are both still recovering from covid it was good that we didn't have to travel and could just take things at our own pace. I chatted to my family on the phone in the morning and then we video called my DH's family in the afternoon. The only thing I noticed was it didn't really feel like Christmas, more just like a nice holiday day, albeit one with presents

More nice food planned for today, maybe build some Lego, play some games (both boardgames and videogames), go for a short walk - although it sounds a bit wet and windy outside.

Glad to hear lots of us had a nice day! We had a nice, chilled day. Played with DS and had MiL for dinner. Loved my dinner but was too full for pudding

Today will be a relaxing one and include helping DS to build his lego!

My poor friend is in hospital . She was pregnant but went for a scan which showed no heartbeat. Was supposed to be having to wait until 30th for an appointment but has just messaged me to say she is in hospital. Poor thing. she has had such a shit time. Her house is in flood zone too. As is the hospital.

I told her to get herself on to the appropriate MN board, skipping past the 'teachers are all a bunch of lazy fuckers' for her own sanity.

Oh your poor friend piggy. That's really, really shit. You're right to direct her towards MN. I found the miscarriage board really helpful when I had mine. That's why I'm here, I came for the support and stayed.

Oh your poor friend, piggy! Agree the supportive boards for her circumstances on here are brilliant, worlds apart from anti-teacher froth and AIBU.

Lovely day yesterday. Changed a few ‘traditions’ round,which helped a lot with the overarching feeling that things just aren’t the same this year. Things are different, there is no getting round that, but there was hope and laughter in changing some stuff. It was actually a much nicer Christmas than last year (we’d just lost our beloved dog suddenly and her memory was there in every corner of the house we spend Christmas week in).
Family Zoom party later this afternoon, not a huge fan of Zoom for socialising tbh but I’ll show my little cheese-filled face for a while.

@Piggyinblankets so sorry to read about your friend. That's so sad xx

So sorry to hear about your friend, Piggy

That’s rubbish @Piggyinblankets, I hope she’s getting the help she needs there.

It was all totally normal here yesterday. My DM came Christmas Eve to stay (as usual with no indication when she will leave) as part of support bubble although she lives 150 miles away (I tried to tell her to bubble with someone nearer as she really doesn’t like me much but she couldn’t glory grandparent if she did that 🙄) then DMIL and DFIL came yesterday for lunch.

I feel so worried about them all being here with us (4 different schools, one household) but we told them how it was with infection chances and let them make their own decisions - none of them really believe us I don’t think about how unsafe schools are but we’ve been nowhere bar DH to supermarket since last Friday so it is what it is. We’re all tier 2 and staying the same so could be worse. Then the boiler broke so no heating or hot water for the time being, thankfully open fire and electric shower but it might persuade DM to go home sooner rather than later. They should all be vaccinated by the end of January/start of February as all well into their 70’s so hoping that happens because I’ll be much less worried about seeing them in any capacity.

Off on my new bike today to keep warm! Merry Christmas!

Hope everyone had a good Christmas (sounds like you’ve had a great Xmas knowing)

Your poor friend piggy that’s just awful.

none of them really believe us I don’t think about how unsafe schools are

I think we all get your frustration there!!

@Piggyinblankets How awful for your friend.

We had a nice day yesterday despite sending H out for a test. We’ve had a late Christmas present this morning of a positive result so we’re now stuck isolating until the 4th. I’m pretty resigned to getting it now - we don’t have a spare room and sleep in a double bed so if I escape it that will be a miracle. I’m so sad we can’t get out and have any family walks.

Oh no @Medra, that's pants.

Oh @Medra how rubbish! Wishing you all luck and minimal symptoms.

And @Piggyinblankets how sad.

I am still in bed being really lazy. Ds happily building lego on my bedroom floor and the cat is asleep on my lap. I got up earlier to fetch breakfast and did half the tidying that was left from yesterday and now DH has got up to do the other half.

@Medra that's rubbish so sorry x hope it passes swiftly and that you escape it x

Medra thats rubbish. Hope you avoid it.

Piggy so sad for your friend.

Yesterday was good. Covid gave us an excuse to swerve dinner at my mum's less than immaculate house with 2 happy dogs underfoot (DH was scared of dogs as a child and is still wary of them) and we cooked a splendid Christmas dinner just how we like it.

Plan a when more were able to mix was to spread everything out and see the households we were allowed to see over a couple of days in small groups. Then we were only allowed to mix yesterday and only with one family and only on Christmas day. So my sister put on a Christmas tea, which we take it in turns to host after mum usually does the dinner.

Well, her flat is lovely, but small and she bought a huge sofa that dominates the room. So it was v tricky to try and keep any distance with 9 people (her family, mine and my mum who lives on her own) in there. They had the window open which helped and we were only there for 3 hours but dh and uni age dd are both covid-cautious so showed their faces for a bit, then walked home early. It was nice to see people but not a patch on previous years.

The dc were ace, liked their gifts and enjoyed their dinner, though pudding waited til supper time.

It will be tomorrow that's difficult. We support dh' s aunty and mum delivering shopping etc, as she has lived for 18 years with his mum after his dad died. Mil died early December so when we take supplies tomorrow she will give us all the Christmas presents she and mil bought, and opening gifts from mil is going to be a poignant moment indeed.

Very stormy here this morning and we are now back in a tier 4 lockdown, I don't want to go anywhere so not affecting me just now, but it will! Might not even get dressed today

Sorry to hear about yr friend piggy. Does the extra rain expected tonight threaten Bedford hospital?

This was posted on the London School of Hygiene thread yesterday. Worth a read, although maybe not unless you've finished celebrating:

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/liverpool-mass-testing-results-lateral-flow-tests-b1778679.html

Hope everyone is doing ok.

Christmas Day was nice here-have enough noisy, yet helpful teenagers around to make things still pretty fun. Miss my parents/brothers/sisters loads though.

Am feeling a bit fed up that Christmas is now done-having seen nobody and done nothing-and we’ll be back to normal at school before you know it. The thought of dealing with classes of 30+ as before and endless school related shit whilst the press hail the wonder of staggered starts back (not in primary) and ‘mass testing’ in schools to make teachers out to be whinging about nothing as they’ve got the testing they wanted -ignoring the fact close contacts won’t be isolating any more and lateral flow tests are crap!

Is it too early to resume drinking?!

I'm back and super cheery. Not.

T4 for us now and I can't be fucked with it. Our area has precisely 3 cases. Whole thing has pissed me right off.

Meanwhile, my brother is friends with a rich famous person who has bought a home in Europe, has hired a tutor for their kids, and is escaping. All in it together by arse.

Scream.

Happy Boxing Day rule 🎁.....

Oh my goodness just recalled a dream I had last night:

They'd started mass testing in school but I didn't know - this mirrors my life a bit as I start work at 1215 and sometimes walk into situations! I couldn't work out where I needed to go in school, or even how to get there! But also for some reason I was secretly sleeping in a mobile classroom in school which was being set up for the testing, so had to move out quickly, not helped by some annoying Y7s hanging around who I had to disperse first!

#covidschoolchristmasnightmare !

Hi everyone. We had a nice Christmas Day with family and now we're in tier 3.

Plan was to get together again at my mum's on Sunday which she wants to go ahead with despite rules having changed. I'm unsure.

Ds was very blessed with presents and is happy with everything he got thankfully.

Feeling a bit down about Covid developments and the idea of going back to school without any changes.

I think a lot could happen in the next 9 days @TheHoneyBadger.