Fumbler's Café

I am a bit curious how everyone is doing in this weird, heavy time with COVID19 (or Corona, whatever you want to call it). In any case, I hope everyone here is healthy and well.

I live in the Netherlands. It all started in early March. First with minimal warnings that if you have a cold, you should report to your doctor, no physical contact with others (shaking hands), coughing in elbow, things like that. From March 16 it is really "serious business". Schools closed, public events canceled, public areas closed, working from home as much as possible, no visits with family and friends... In any case, everything is closed or banned until June 2020, but I'm afraid it will take even longer. It doesn't just pass. It is a pity that there are people who do not take this seriously and ignore the advice.

We are going through a difficult, weird time. I can and may still work. Together with my colleagues, we made a schedule of who is in the office and the rest works at home. In this way we unfortunately do not see / speak to each other much and we miss each other very much.
I have a disabled sister (36yo) who normally goes to day care, but it has also been closed since March 16 and she has been at home ever since. It is difficult for us, my mother and I, to keep her busy, but we don't complain. Fortunately, she is not difficult (no troublesome behavior, but she does need a lot of care and help), but it is difficult for her to understand why we have stay at home. Fortunately, we live on a farm just outside the city, so we have the space here and it is not as busy here as in the city. Now the weather is good (today it's sunny and a lil' bit warm) and we can sit outside.
"Fortunately", I don't know people in my immediate vicinity who have become ill or have died from Corona, but through other people (colleagues, friends) you hear heartbreaking stories...

We're all in this together, so stay safe, stay home if possible, take care of yourself and your family...!

I'm in Canada (in Québec) and the government is planning on reopening schools in the next weeks. Each province has its own plan, so it can be different in Ontario or elsewhere. We're not allowed to travel from a region to another, outdoor and indoor gatherings are forbidden (except for people who live under the same roof), etc.
Grocery stores and pharmacies are open, many stores started doing online shipping since their physical stores have been shut down.
I think it's pretty much the same everywhere.

And how are you now in the middle of the pandemic?

It seems that we are getting more and more under control of COVID19; fewer deaths and fewer hospital admissions due to COVID19 in the Netherlands. More and more rules and advices are being relaxed, but we still have to keep a distance of 1.5 meters. Many schools, especially primary schools, are completely open. Secondary schools/high schools can be fully opened again after the summer holidays.

My sister is allowed to go to the daytime activities 5 days a week (see my first message about my sister).
I still have to work from home as much as possible (2 days at the office and 3 days at home). At work they have to make our workplaces corona-proof, before we can and may work with more people in the office.
I also very much hope that we can visit concerts again in September, because I have tickets for two concerts in September (one had already been postponed to September because of COVID19). I already bought the tickets before there was COVID19.
We also have to wait and see whether there may be a public presence at football matches again. I miss visiting football matches very much, nevertheless I extended my season ticket at PSV Eindhoven, no matter what happens.
So these are still exciting times...

It got better here too, but we're staying careful: wearing a mask when we go in public spaces. I visited my family for the first time during the weekend, because indoor gatherings are now allowed. I have to admit that we didn't respect the distance because of our baby needs (having to nurse, change diapers, etc.). Now, we'll stay at home for 14 days: that's the time it takes for any symptoms to show up, so if there's something, we'll already be in self-quarantine for two weeks.

If it goes well, we'll plan a visit to my partner's parents. They're 5 hours away from home, so with the baby, we have to prepare it in advance. Next time we go, we will definitely have to stop more often.

Yeah, I know it's very difficult to keep distance. I hope for you that you can visit your family soon again....

I have a lil' update since my last post in this topic... I told you I have tickets for 2 concerts in September. Well, one of them got postponed for the 2nd time. That concert will be in March 2021. To be honest, I'm happy they postponed the concert, because there are a lot of things still uncertain. Well, gatherings are more allowed, but we still have to keep the 1,5 meter distance, but we are allowed to have gatherings with a maximum of 100 people inside. Outside is the maximum 250.

On the other side, from September 1ste, football match with public in the stadium is allowed, but at this moment the football stadium are required to keep 1,5 meter distance. That's difficult in a stadium So, we still have to wait and see what's happening the next months....

It's very complicated. In some areas of Canada, bars have reopened and once people are a bit drunk, they don't keep the distance (and they don't wear a mask). In Québec, we're back to over 100 cases per day because of that and the government has to implement rules that are even more strict.

It's still complicated, huh?! We're still battling....

Colds and flu are now lurking. People are now increasingly required to test to rule out Corona. At this moment, I'm feeling fine and I hope it stays. I still didn't have to test, but if I have to do, I will.
I'm just trying to stick to the rules. I still work from home as much as possible and at the office for a maximum of 2 days.

Last Saturday I went to the stadium for the first time since March 1 for the PSV football match. 6,500 (of the 35,000) people were admitted. It was a different experience, fewer people, different atmosphere, but I did enjoy the match. PSV did win.
Now PSV has announced that they can admit more people in the stadium, 9,000 people. But I doubt whether I should do that in the next month's with colds and flu lurking around the corner. Well, we'll see in the next few month's.