Corona - what does help you? Your fears, thoughts, everything

[brianr]

Oh, I like that theory!!!  Very interesting!   I would be a cat person.  I'm perfectly fine in my apartment, chatting with friends online, and watching TV, doing my daily workouts would be my ball of string.  LOL

Yes, but you are working from home so that keeps you occupied a lot of the time. Until things started opening up last week, I only had my walks around the area, gardening until my back gives way, and the supermarket. I forced myself to watch more TV in the evening and go to bed a bit later than normal. I chatted with my sister by Skype each morning for nearly 30 minutes. Usually it is only about 10 to 15 minutes. I get about 2 phone calls per week and a few emails from friends. I read and slept a lot of the time.
In the last week, I have been able to go out for coffee and I was able to drive to the beach for a walk as I was a bit sick of my local area then bought lunch at a cafe on the way home. I had the Farmers Market this morning. The Library opened on Thursday and museums and art galleries are opening this weekend. Cinemas are remaining closed until mid-June. They are allowed to open now with distances between seats but apparently there are no new movies available so not worth the hassle for them. All my concerts have been cancelled at least until end of July, some for the rest of the year as overseas artists are not allowed in. My subscriptions have either been refunded, held over to next year or donated.
Refunds from my overseas trip are trickling in.

[brianr]

It was wonderful yesterday to have an almost normal visit to the city. I drove and parked, am not ready to catch the bus yet. However, being over 75, parking is free but I have to keep to the time limit. I was able to park in a 4 hour spot just a block away. I would have to pay for the parking stations in the centre.
I went to the Library which opened last Thursday, had to sign in and of course use sanitiser and I think could not stay more than 30 minutes but no one was actually checking. They now have QR codes everywhere. I downloaded the Government official tracing app on Saturday but the Library had a private app system which came out earlier so I still had to sign in. They are suppose to be going to link them. I only stayed 20 minutes at most because I waited for a book to be brought from the stacks.  Then I went to the Mall and bought a cappuccino and date scone, they used the government tracing app and I watched the lady in front of me use it and it worked for me.  Then I wandered around the department stores, looking at specials in menswear and checking some kitchen appliances. I did not buy anything but it was wonderful to be able to do that again. Unfortunately I could not go to the cinema. They are allowed to open but apparently they have no new films so it will be mid June. I could have gone to the art gallery or museum but enough excitement for one day.
From Midday Friday we can meet in groups up to 100 (now only 10) so our walking group ( usually in the 20s, sometime in the 30s) will be meeting next Tuesday. It will have been 11 weeks and we usually meet every week (weather permitting) except for a 4 week break at Christmas so it will be exciting.

[Sason]

Denmark has started to somewhat loosen up its border protection, which means I'll hopefully be able to visit my mum at her nursing home in Copenhagen.

I'll need proof that she is my mum, which I've ordered from the Swedish National registration, plus proof that she lives in Denmark which I hope to get from the nursing home.

I'll also need my passport, which we haven't ever needed between the Nordic countries since the war.

Then I have to book a 30 min time slot at the nursing home, go around the building and be let in directly into the garden, where I'll be able to see my mom in a tent with a pane of plexiglass between us.

So, quite a bit of a hassle, and not exactly the sort of meeting we're used to, but at least I'll be able to visit her again!

[brianr]

Glad you will be able to visit. I am sure she will be happy to see you. These are such strange times.  My sister and BiL in Sydney are in their mid 80's, still live in their own apartment. I always thought that if something happened to one of them, I could be there in 48 hours at the most. Now, because of my dual citizenship, I would be allowed to travel (if I could find a flight, there are a few) but would have to go into quarantine for 14 days on the way over and again on the way back.
They are discussing creating a Trans-Tasman bubble but I think it will be September at the earliest, some of the Australian states are not allowing people to visit from other states yet.
I first visited Scandinavia in 1974. I remember queueing at the German/Danish border. I had a campervan and an Australian guy asked if he could go through the border with me. He was on foot and they would not let him through. I told him I would drive him to Copenhagen AFTER he crossed the border but I was not going to take the risk that he might be carrying drugs. Never saw him again.
I also remember showing my passport at the Sweden/Norway border as the officer said "Ah Australia, capital Wellington" and I had to say No that is New Zealand, our capital is Canberra"   
 However I had to show my passport on the train from Oslo to Gothenburg in 2010 but not from Gothenburg to Copenhagen.
I took the ferry from Helsingor to Helsingborg, cannot remember if I had to show my passport there.
Until now, it has been much easier travelling in Europe this century than in the 1970's.

[Sason]

Brian, I do hope that if and when something happens to your sister or b-i-l, you'll be able to get there quickly. These times are so worrisome when you have close relatives in another country.

Interesting memories from your Scandinavian sojourn back in the day!

When I said we didn't need passports, I meant citizens in the Nordic countries. It's different for tourists.

How they establish who's a citizen and who's a tourist without people showing their passport I don't know! 

[brianr]

How they establish who's a citizen and who's a tourist without people showing their passport I don't know! 

I wondered that when I took the ferry from Wales to Ireland. They had a lane in Dublin for Irish and UK citizens to walk straight through while I had to take the lane for other citizens and show my passport. As my great grandparents come from the North of England, I wondered how they would tell if I did not open my mouth. My accent would give me away.
However, when I took the ferry from Denmark to England, everyone just waved their passports. Leaving Denmark (Esbjerg), the guy noticed mine, smiled and said "Ah Australian, Princess Mary." Now that I have a NZ passport, I always say I will only use my Australian passport for Australia (that is the law) and Denmark.

[Front-Ranger]

My, life is complicated these days! I'm so glad you can visit your Mum, Sonja. Let us know how it goes.

[serious crayons]

Brian, what is the government tracing app? Is that something that shows the government where everyone has been so they can keep track of their movements?


On another topic, I find myself feeling a little worried when I hear people and governments looking forward to things getting better soon so they can start opening places and pretty soon we'll be able to do A, B and C. I fear there's a chance things won't return to normal nearly that fast. I've heard of experts saying anywhere from four years to never. By then, I can't even imagine what will have happened to national economies.

Others say cases might decline over the summer, giving everyone a false sense of security, then resurge in the fall.

[Jeff Wrangler]

Brian, what is the government tracing app? Is that something that shows the government where everyone has been so they can keep track of their movements?

That's the sort of thing that worries me. A lot. About Big Brother being able to trace all of us, using the excuse that they need to trace contacts.

On another topic, I find myself feeling a little worried when I hear people and governments looking forward to things getting better soon so they can start opening places and pretty soon we'll be able to do A, B and C. I fear there's a chance things won't return to normal nearly that fast. I've heard of experts saying anywhere from four years to never. By then, I can't even imagine what will have happened to national economies.

Others say cases might decline over the summer, giving everyone a false sense of security, then resurge in the fall.

You know I'm a pessimist. When I see things like a crowded swimming pool, I'm sure it will come roaring back. I don't think we're ever going back to what things were like in, say, this past December.

[Front-Ranger]

About the tracing, it's done through your cell phone. Smart phones work by contacting the nearest tower or satellite and so movements of the population can easily be tracked. Even if you turn off your location in Settings, it can still be determined how far and how much people are moving about. I'm not sure about flip phones, but they can be roughly tracked also. Since 99% of the population carries a mobile phone, this is an accurate determinator of movement.

As far as "returning to normal", what is normal? After cataclysms like this in the past, some whole industries collapsed, while others surged. My fear is that if we try to return to the normal of the past, we'll just fall into a Depression, because the past ways of doing things don't work anymore. This was evident way before the pandemic but now we have the perfect opportunity to sweep the old ways away. In some cases, technology will help us build whole new industries and networks. In other cases, we'll be wise to return to heirloom approaches.