Early Risers.

[Tony_S]

We had a short walk. I posted a couple of cards, Aditi cancelled the newspapers now we have got to the end of the subscription vouchers. This was prompted by the newsagent saying they were ceasing deliveries at the end of this year. They had omitted to tell us that they had subcontracted the newspaper delivery to an agency and home delivery would continue. Aditi said we had cancelled our voucher subscription anyway. When I cancelled the subscription vouchers  I said I had been happy to read a paper with a political stance different to mine but recently I thought some of their columnists were deranged. Aditi had just taken out an online reduced price subscription to an American newspaper. She also regularly reads French newspapers courtesy of Essex library online services. 
Tony

Edited November 26, 2020 by Tony_S

[rockershovel]

On 25/11/2020 at 14:22, Gwiwer said:

Officially no-one knows what Tier they will be in come Christmas.  Many of us have an idea and some detail might slip out a little on the early side of tomorrow's expected announcements.  It isn't going to be easy.

 

Let's just look at two "areas".  Kent is one administrative area for most purposes.  Most of rural Kent has seen the virus retreating to very low - even negligible - levels hen the gov.uk "dashboard" is used.  The map shows a lot of green and plenty of white, the latter representing fewer than three cases in the past seven days.  Most of urban / suburban Kent is suffering from very high infection rates with Swale being one of (if not the) highest in the nation right now.  Allegedly this is a factor of several things - prison populations which then spread infection through staff and families into the communities, industry especially meat-processing plants and heavier industry of which pockets remain and which cannot be done from home.

 

There is a near-straight line dividing these two extremely different situations along the course of the M2 Motorway.  If one extends that line by the same roughly SE - NW vector it then divides much of London from its outer eastern suburbs and neighbouring Essex where once again infection rates are high and the areas show as purple on the gov.uk map.  Almost all of the rest of London is green or pale blue - with a few white or dark blue patches - meaning infection is at quite low levels and generally falling sharply.  

 

As such how would one put all of Greater London fairly and equitably into one Tier?   How would one deal with Kent?  To place Kent into Tier 3 would be to dis-service the large rural areas (many of which are Tory strongholds if we count votes) where Covid is clearly in retreat.  To leave the northern coastal areas in Tier 2 would be inviting dissent from northern cities likely to revert to Tier 3 but with lesser levels of infection.  

 

Moving on to travel.  We are advised to not use public transport if possible for Christmas travel yet we are being reminded it is safe and ready for all to use - and we are sometimes reminded that the industry badly needs passengers to return for its longer term survival.  A contradiction, surely?  The "Five Days of Christmas" allows the travelling public only two to get from A to B which will produce a sharp seasonal 48-hour peak in traffic and, no doubt, crowded trains with social distancing impossible.  There is only one day, 27th December, with a fairly complete train service (though engineering works will affect many journeys) for everyone to get back.  The 48-hour peak will become a 24-hour super-peak of people who have been in close quarters with others for the past several days.  Infection is likely to spread simply because numbers travelling will exceed capacity to supply reasonable space.  

 

To my mind this has not been thought out thoroughly.  Tiers were working.  They never really had a chance to show how well before they were replaced with Lockdownout 2 which skewed the statistics.  They will work again.  So instead of forcing everyone to crowd into the limited amount of space available why not allow people to make arrangements which suited themselves?  You may still only have a maximum of five nights away and with the three-household bubble but if you preferred to stay home for Christmas and have New Year / Hogmanay away then so be it .  Load shared.  Peak distributed.  Scots, for whom Hogmanay especially can be the bigger celebration, appeased.  Welsh, who are still asking for greater limits, placated.  Irish - who have an extra day at both ends for "travel" - brought onto an equal footing with five not seven days break.  It takes longer to travel from Plymouth to Glasgow than London or Dublin to Belfast.  I don't get why Ireland needs a concession.  

 

30-minute tests offered at a handful of key railway stations through which the largest number of people is likely to pass on foot at some point (as opposed to passing through on a train) and motorway service areas on a voluntary basis.  Removal of all artificial capacity "limits" on buses.  They don't exist on trains, trams and tubes so why buses?  Only the main-line TOCs which offer seat reservations have any way to manage numbers and they still have to, and do, accept walk-up business though try to keep quiet about it.  

 

When the wash-up starts and people in power are called to account for their decision-making there will be some significant errors of judgement to address in my opinion.  Some might not be foreseeable.  Some, such as trying to squeeze the entire UKs Christmas travel into 48 and then 24 hours (and factoring in that there ideally would be no New Year's travel) could be better managed.

 

I suspect what will happen is that a significant number of people will do their own thing regardless.  The government may well have taken that into account already.  "Give them five days because some will take ten" rather than officially giving out more.  Advice to not travel into nor out of Tier 3 areas is likely, in my opinion, to be widely ignored.  And going forward I suspect that any attempt to place the nation into Lockdown 3 may also be vehemently resisted in some quarters.  Not least by the licensed and hospitality trade who currently stand to lose an entire Christmas and New Year's worth of business.  Some may have been relying on that for survival.  

 

Rant over.  

 

Oh, I don’t know. To no local surprise whatsoever, Peterborough is up one to Tier 2 due to a sharp increase in cases in the Millfield and Bourges Boulevard areas - a densely populated area of Victorian and Edwardian terraces, once Home to the sizeable railway workforce and now a dormitory of HMO for the mostly East European contract labour employed at Amazon, Freeman’s, Perkins Engines etc. and surrounding agriculture.  Perkins want a month’s production by Xmas Eve, the traffic at Amazon etc is already exceeding previous Xmas numbers, and there’s still the campaigns to come for spuds and Brussels Sprouts in Dec... 

[polybear]

Bear had a bit of a rest day today (the paws are protesting after yesterday's paint scraping escapades) so it was a little bit of the dreaded G word (today is Bin day so it made sense to load it up a bit first).  Then a tiny bit of kitchen work followed by taking the car for a run, prompted by earlier discussions on ER. 

Just had a call from a buddy of mine so we put the world to rights for the best part of an hour; one subject was when (or indeed if) our Model Engineering evening class will resume at a local college.  Such classes are very few and far between, sadly, so if it folds then we'll be shafted good and proper.  Not only does it allow access to some nice lathes, mills and tooling it's also a good social meet-up.  Here's hoping...

[Two_sugars]

Tier 3 . . . . QUell Sooprezz . . . Being in the North east, there hasn't been enough  spenton hedyou kayshun in the North East for yonks. . . . 

 

 

We' ll manage  . . . .. 

[Barry O]

9 minutes ago, Two_sugars said:

Tier 3 . . . . QUell Sooprezz . . . Being in the North east, there hasn't been enough  spenton hedyou kayshun in the North East for yonks. . . . 

 

 

We' ll manage  . . . .. 

well its miles from London.... 

 

and the monkey hangers shut my old school as it was a Grammar School and didn't fit in with their ideas....

 

Baz

[TheQ]

Potato's no, sugar beet yes, tons of it being taken to the pan next door. The road is invisible under mud.

Fog is lifting off the fields and flowing over the earth banks and hedgerows.

 

Tes and co were busy, but the car park half empty, most odd.

Picked up our prescriptions after, mine accompanied by a note for online medical review, which I've done..

Name address, any side effects, do you know how to take the pills, are you happy with the review, and that was it.

 

[Dunsignalling]

Without enforceable travel restrictions between differently tiered areas, all this is pretty meaningless. People are widely flouting lockdown even before it gets lifted.

 

I walked the seafront nearest (10 miles) to where I live this morning and noted getting on for twenty parked vehicles that appeared to have come from Bristol and Bath  (60 miles or so) unless of  course our locals have been habitually buying their cars in those places.

 

Having Plymouth, Torbay, Exeter and Bristol (to mention the obvious examples) in  the same tier as the rural and coastal areas of the west country is just moronic.

 

I reckon we'll all be in tier 3 or another lockdown by mid-January.

 

John

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 26, 2020 by Dunsignalling

[New Haven Neil]

I had a good walk around the village this afternoon, to make up for missing this morning.  Went to see Debs friend's grave, realised that she had been put in the same grave as her sister who died of natural causes last year - so sad.  It then began to rain as I was a goodly way from the house, but didn't get too heavy thankfully.

 

Her ladyship is having a 'deep tissue massage' after work and I have to collect her from there, the masseuse is a good friend's girlfriend, she's quite a character and a mix of cultures, born a Kiwi,  Jewish by choice not birth (including learning Hebrew which I think you have to do to be accepted into the faith, quite a feat) and mad as a hatter, we love her to bits.  Rather easy on the eye too. 

[jonny777]

North Somerset is in Tier 3.  

 

So, basically, our 4 week lockdown had moved us from Tier 1 to Tier 3? How did that happen?

 

 

[Barry O]

5 minutes ago, jonny777 said:

North Somerset is in Tier 3.  

 

So, basically, our 4 week lockdown had moved us from Tier 1 to Tier 3? How did that happen?

 

 

because some of the people haven't followed the guidelines??

 

Simples really!

 

Baz

[Tony_S]

6 minutes ago, jonny777 said:

North Somerset is in Tier 3.  

 

So, basically, our 4 week lockdown had moved us from Tier 1 to Tier 3? How did that happen?

 

 

You won’t be seeing any benefits of the lockdown for a couple of weeks. In Essex we were in Tier 2 but the unitary authorities in Thurrock and Southend stayed in Tier 1 despite having similar infection rates. All together in Tier 2 now . 

[Barry O]

Had a phone call from the Cardiologist lead of the Clinical Trials I am involved in. She reckons everyone who she has called so far has said the alternative to Metformin is working far better.. I believe the alternative is slightly more expensive though.. (empagliflozin (Jardiance) by name)  Yes it gives you some of the less nice side affects of metal formin but it doesn't strip the B12 out of your body)

 

Next MRI booked in for 21st December.  when the students have gone home and the local residents start to follow the Tier 3 things to do/not do we may be in Tier 2 by then.. our number are still too high but they are going down (at last).. we are now down to 404.. we were at 575 last week..

 

I fear that we will see very large increases post Christmas.. mind you it may reduce the number of people who need vaccinating....

 

Baz

Edited November 26, 2020 by Barry O

[simontaylor484]

Afternoon all 

 

Yet another day spent on hold to  the Bank and other various financial institutions. I think i must have irradiated my brain. Had Minder on rhe tv muted Suzi Quattro had a guest appearance as Terrys bit of stuff. Wearing tight Levis what an ars€ she had back inthe day.

Unleaded petrol degrades over time i know i have struggled to start the parents lawnmower in springtime 

[polybear]

7 minutes ago, simontaylor484 said:

Afternoon all 

 

Yet another day spent on hold to  the Bank and other various financial institutions. I think i must have irradiated my brain. Had Minder on the tv muted Suzi Quattro had a guest appearance as Terrys bit of stuff. Wearing tight Levis what an ars€ she had back in the day.

 

 

A worthy winner of "Rear of the Year 1982".  Get yer mucky paws off...Bear saw her first.....

[Chris116]

55 minutes ago, polybear said:

 

A worthy winner of "Rear of the Year 1982".  Get yer mucky paws off...Bear saw her first.....

You can join the queue at the back Mr Bear!

Edited November 26, 2020 by Chris116

[Gwiwer]

To the surprise of some London (all of it, although it could have been split by boroughs) has been awarded Tier 2. Where we were before but slightly tweaked. 
 

My other example of the other day was Kent. All lumped into Tier 3 to the disgust of some in the likes of Tunbridge Wells and the rural mid-Kent region where infection rates are relatively low.  
 

Already I see, because posts have appeared on social media groups I have sight of, semi-organised plans by certain residents of Bristol (T3) to nip over to Keynsham or Bath (T2) for drinkies over dinner. There is nothing to prevent this.  It will happen all over the UK. 
 

The Cornish Nationalists are sabre-rattling about the controlled border some have been pressing for for many years. As the sole onshore T1 area holiday homes may be used along with other accommodation. They are expecting a Christmas incursion from the Great Unwashed of Up-country. 
 

There is no ideal way to handle this whole thing. By far the biggest problems may yet be the crush to get away and then back on trains. And I seem to be very far from alone in believing a large proportion of the population will do their own thing as and when it suits them. Boris and Virus be blowed. 
 

In other news Santa Claus has been declared an Essential Worker in Ireland. But not yet elsewhere. 

[PhilJ W]

Afternoon all from Estuary-Land. A lazy day today, done sod all. The reason is that the latest Railway Bylines and Back Track dropped on to the mat today so I've been doing a bit of reading with my feet up. Tomorrow will be C*******s shopping. Tess Coes have some fresh venison in, use by date 26th Dec. a few other things though will have to wait until nearer the day. I'll be getting a few none festive things in as well as they tend to disappear quickly. The sore foot has been giving me the odd ache but I've discovered that the pain from the ankle may have been caused by a nail clipping. I found it in my slipper caught in the lining under the heel, a lot more comfortable now.

[polybear]

54 minutes ago, Chris116 said:

You can join the queue at the back Mr Bear!

 

If you think you can compete with this, dear boy.....

 

 

+

 

+

 

Thought not.....

[jonny777]

31 minutes ago, Gwiwer said:

 

Already I see, because posts have appeared on social media groups I have sight of, semi-organised plans by certain residents of Bristol (T3) to nip over to Keynsham or Bath (T2) for drinkies over dinner. There is nothing to prevent this.  It will happen all over the UK. 
 

 

 

Well, you say that; but on our local ITV Westcountry news this evening they made the point that anyone living in a Tier 3 area going to a Tier 2 destination must take the Tier 3 restrictions with them. This means that the chances of spreading infections from 3 to 2 are minimised. 

 

What they never mentioned is how the authorities intend to enforce these rules. 

[polybear]

Duplicate Post deleted....

Edited November 26, 2020 by polybear

[grandadbob]

My Shiraz is stronger than I thought 'cos I'm seeing double triple!

[grandadbob]

My Shiraz is stronger than I thought 'cos I'm seeing double triple!  quadru

[Chris116]

Just now, grandadbob said:

My Shiraz is stronger than I thought 'cos I'm seeing double triple!

Forum seems to be on a roll! I am sure @polybear or @Happy Hippo will be happy to eat the roll.

[grandadbob]

My Shiraz is stronger than I thought 'cos I'm seeing double triple!  quadru quintuple  oh sod it, I give up!!!"!

[Barry O]

I thought it was my glasses.....

 

Baz