Well, yesterday we successfully had our flu vaccination. Following instructions, we arrived at the doctors’ surgery at the appointed time, masks at the ready and waited to be called inside. It was a lovely sunny morning so we had no objection to standing outside on the pavement for a while. However, it was not long before the doctors’ rottweiler (oops, that should read receptionist - how do they always find fierce women for that role?) barked out the instruction to give our names, sanitise our hands and stand on the next yellow spot in line. And so we waited, and waited, and waited. The rottweiler told us at one point that “one of the ladies” had a problem and that there would be a delay. After a while, one of the yellow spot standers was called through for vaccination. Then another. Then the couple ahead of us asked the rottweiller how it was that they had been waiting so long for an earlier appointment while others who had arrived after them had been called for. The rottweiller snarled that she had already explained about the delay. Not helpful! Eventually we worked out that the “ladies” referred to were the clinic nurses, of whom there were two. So there were two lists of appointments. The couple who had been waiting so long were unfortunately on the list of the nurse who had a problem. Something tells me the receptionist needs some training before mass vaccination sessions to protect us from Coronavirus are set up - eventually - we hope!
I am rather glad our flu-jab appointments were yesterday and not this morning. Standing outside the doctors’ surgery in the rain waiting for the rottweiler to call us in would be a different kettle of fish altogether.
Despite the rain, I got up and ran along the Donkey Line this morning. I decided it was time I stopped being a wimp, donned my waterproof and off I went. Once out in it running in the rain is not really a problem although you do need to watch out for the mud puddles. A certain amount of dampness the feet can stand but total immersion is not a good idea. I think I was fortunate that it was not raining so heavily when I went out as it did later on. At one point my granddaughter, working from home, messaged me to say her path was flooded, so torrential was the rain. And that was when I could hear the splashing outside the back door as the drain struggled to cope with the stuff coming down the downspout. So it goes!
We’re hearing more reports of long Covid, with symptoms going on and on for months. But now it would seem that POTUS has been having a new form of short Covid as he is back in the White House after just a couple of days in hospital, waving to supporters, standing close to his aides and declaring himself better than ever. Maybe the ambition to be elected for a second term is the best medicine for this nasty virus!
Our test and trace service continues to have problems, apparently caused by a faulty spreadsheet. Really? Time to get the technology sorted out!
The bunch of pensioners who make up my Italian conversation class online are coping reasonably well with technology. We managed a second session successfully yesterday afternoon. My connection failed at one point, needed a hasty reconnection. Otherwise, however, apart from our teacher’s need to remind some of us to raise our hands and wait to be called on to speak, rather than all trying to talk at once, all went along without problems.
I see that Pope Francis has put in his two penn’orth in a new encyclical “fratelli tutti”, reminding us that we would do better to help each other out and generally speaking out against capitalism - more of a threat to society than the virus, he says.
As teachers are being “reminded” of the need for impartiality in the teaching materials they use, basically avoiding anything that criticises the system and might encourage any kind of extremism, they won’t be able to talk about “fratelli tutti” with their students! I’m not sure where the teachings of Christianity in general stand for that matter.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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