I might miss something that makes my blood boil or make me feel sad that the world is so messed up.
I’m better off giving this little guy a cuddle. π
Thanks Reddit.
I might miss something that makes my blood boil or make me feel sad that the world is so messed up.
I’m better off giving this little guy a cuddle. π
Thanks Reddit.
The Crowdsignal team at Automattic have been quietly working on a new poll block for the last few weeks. We finally made it public today on WordPress.org!
We set out with the task of creating a block that would allow the writer to quickly insert a poll in their posts using the block editor. More than that, it had to be simple to use. It also needed to be themed to match the look and feel of the website it would appear on.
We’ve created a block that does that. It also records the votes collected on the Crowdsignal website where you can analyse the results using reports Crowdsignal users have always used.
Search for “Crowdsignal Forms” on your plugins page to install it in the usual way.
A free Crowdsignal account is required to use the block. We made it really easy to connect your site to your Crowdsignal account. If you don’t have one then creating a new account is simple too.
The first 2,500 responses you collect are included in your free account, and further votes are recorded but free users are encouraged to upgrade if they want to do further analysis of all the data they collect.
Yesterday I was notified that I registered on WordPress.com for the first time fifteen years ago. I wasn’t going to mention it but Matt blogged a screenshot of his notification so it piqued my interest and curiosity.
I decided to look up what WordPress.com looked like back then, and it was a very simple message. There was no way to sign up. Nothing to hint at what it would eventually become. It wasn’t until later in the month when a registration form was added.
I took a quick look at what I was blogging about in July 2005. Wow, I used to post a lot didn’t I? See how easy it is to dive back into history? Try do that with Twitter and Facebook!
On the 26th I did blog about WordPress.com inviting people to sign up. Four reactions only but Matt’s post has more comments on it.
I was concerned about the price of petrol in 2005. I paid β¬1.05/lt on July 27th and Tesco announced they were going to increase prices to β¬1.20/lt. It hasn’t been that price in the last decade but it did hit a low point during the recent lockdown. I’ve been tracking fuel prices since around 2010 so I should make a blog post about that sometime. One thing it does reveal is working from home saves fuel. We refill the car once every 2 weeks usually.
Just last week I installed OpenRCT2 so I’m glad Youtube showed me this fabulous roller coaster synchronised with Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody!
From today people in Ireland (south of the border) can go up to 5km from home to exercise. The over 70s who have been cocooning at home are allowed out but warned to stay well away from anyone else.
How far is 5km? Go visit this site and allow it to use your location to find out!
On Friday it was announced the country would have five phases to go through towards opening up:
Find a PDF of it here.
Meanwhile G O’D and her cronies are back in the High Court protesting the lockdown.
The Phoenix Park, a huge park in Dublin, had to be closed because of a protest against the lockdown.
I guess they’re not as bad as the Right in the USA. At least they don’t have access to weapons in Ireland.
There are plans to pedestrianise streets and make one-way footpaths in Cork.
Pub owners want to open sooner than August. How the hell will drunk people socially distance?
During the Irish Famine in the 1840s the Choctaw tribe in North America sent money to help feed starving people in Ireland.
The Navajo Nation is now looking for help and Irish people are putting their hands in their pockets and reaching out!
Do you remember the ILOVEYOU virus? I do and 20 years ago it infected 45 million computers and it originated somewhere surprising. Geoff White tells all!
Are you distracted? Of course you are. Me too. Go listen to the latest Distributed podcast. Matt interviews neuroscientist Dr. Adam Gazzaley and it is well worth a listen.
I went for a cycle the other night and for some reason Sophie Ellis Bextor’s “Stay At Home” was running through my brain the whole time. Probably the sight of Garda checkpoints. Good to see them.
We’re all locked down. Blarney Photography Club can’t meet any more but tonight we had a great presentation by Zoom. I thought it worked really well!
I’ve been using my phone to read books for the last decade. Ever since the Grand Meetup in Seaside Florida actually. I decided I needed to buy an actual book I wanted to read on a device rather than “trying out” some of the free classic books I found online.
I still buy books in “dead tree format” sometimes and my last time in Vibes & Scribes I bought The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut. That was some times ago and I still haven’t read it but I opened it this morning and ummm, that new book smell is powerful. I miss that.
I have to say, Some Good News with John Krasinski is a breath of fresh air in this time of quarantine and isolation. John picks up on good news stories from around the world and you’ll have to have a heart of stone not to laugh or cry or both watching them.
There’s the first episode but there are currently 2 more and all are worth watching.
Last Friday they held an SGNProm live on Youtube but I missed it. It was scheduled for one o clock in the morning my time! Hopefully the next episode will have clips from it. Coincidentally I started watching The Office (US) last week. I watched a couple of episodes before but it didn’t stick. I think we’ll be making it a regular watch from now on though. π
I’ve worked from home for almost 15 years now. It’s not always easy, and the first week of the Covid-19 lockdown in Ireland made me realise how cut off I am from other people. I’m not an especially outgoing kind of person but this enforced stay-at-home order is even getting to me. Two to three times a year I travel somewhere to meet my team or the rest of the company but all company travel is cancelled now for the foreseeable future.
I and many others have the luxury and privilege to work from home while there are millions of people sitting idle or bored in their homes. I sit here at my screen but there are health workers risking their lives fighting a disease that looks like it will be a part of our world for the next two years at least.
Shows on TV are now watched with from the perspective of Covid-19. People have the luxury of shaking hands or hugging. People are so close to each other! They can walk into a store 2 at a time! They’re meeting for a drink! That’s a very crowded train!
BTW – You should subscribe to Damien Mulley‘s newsletter. Here’s the latest issue.
I’m looking forward to listening to Mike Murphy interview the Irish President, Michael D Higgins in the first episode of Senior Times.
The Sunday Times has an explosive article today on the incompetence of the British Government.
It’s behind their paywall but my wife has bought the paper on and off for the last few years so I went searching for it today. No sign of it in the two local shops and I wasn’t going to risk going to any more just for a newspaper. We did sign up for the 7 day free trial of their app and I have to admit it looks great. The in-app purchase is easier to cancel than a sub on their website which requires a phone call.
Also: The eleven days that may have tragically cost the UK in the fight against coronavirus.
Also: Why is coronavirus killing so many more people in the UK than in Ireland?
The This Won’t Hurt a Bit podcast is back with two more episodes on Covid-19. Their first episode on March 24th reminded me of the fake cures doing the rounds on Facebook back at the start of March. Drinking warm water to flush any virus from your throat into your stomach to kill it was a favourite but it was oh so stupid.
Kevin Cunningham used Python and R to extra raw data from the Google mobility PDFs released recently. It clearly shows Irish people stayed at home!
Simon Harris, Minister for Health, warns us to get complacent.
In the US protestors want the stay-at-home restriction to be lifted. Some obviously are worried for their livelihood but many others believe the whole thing a hoax.
The price of petrol in my local filling station in Blarney now stands at β¬1.259/litre. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it that low here before. The Blarney station isn’t the cheapest in the area but I haven’t visited anywhere else in almost a month. I’ve been told the price went as low as β¬1.199 elsewhere in the city.
The last time I filled up was about three weeks ago when I remember using a latex glove to hold the pump handle. I’d normally use sanitiser anyway but it seemed prudent to be extra careful. The price then was β¬1.299/litre, not far from the price when I started recording my fuel usage in 2010 when it was β¬1.289/litre!
We’re only allowed travel for necessities like shopping, work or caring for others. There are Garda check points. There were reports of Dublin and UK reg cars in West Cork last week prompting the Taoiseach to ask people not to travel. People are sent home again. There’s hardly any air travel. Dublin airport reported only 900 people passed through the airport on Easter Monday when normally there’d be 100,000.
On Monday evening there was only one aircraft flying over Ireland, and that was the coastguard helicopter.
The fall in price wasn’t due to COVID-19, but that contributed to it. Demand for oil was slowing down already but from my experience the price was still at β¬1.399/litre in early March, and that was probably at one of the cheaper places. The Russians and Opec were having a price war. Opec wanted to reduce pumping but the Russians ignored them and continued pumping. It seems now there was a deal two days ago so we might see prices jump again.
Restrictions are going to continue until May 5th and of course we all know they’ll go on for longer. A vaccine for general use won’t be available until next year so we’ll have to learn to live with it.
My son plays Minecraft with a friend in Sweden who is still going to school. We’re wondering why since schools here have been closed since March 12th. They think that children aren’t super spreaders so there’s no need to close them.
While other countries, or rather, their inhabitants, struggle with varying levels of lockdown, Sweden has relied on relatively few recommendations to try and prevent the spread of the virus.
Nursing homes have been closed to visitors, higher education has been moved online and there’s a ban on gatherings of more than 50 people.
Authorities have also encouraged people to work from home and to avoid unnecessary journeys.
But primary and secondary schools up to the age of 16 remain open, as do hairdressers and gyms, and restaurants and bars can stay open once they offer table service to avoid crowding at counters and bars.
A large emphasis has been placed on personal responsibility, and anyone with symptoms is asked, and trusted to self-isolate.
But is the strategy working?
As of today, over 1,000 Swedes have died from Covid-19, an increase of 114 deaths on the previous day’s figure and around 11,440 have been infected, out of a population of 10 million.
I went out for a cycle. The roads are much quieter. It was lovely. It almost felt normal because I was well away from the few people walking around. I heard birds singing.
I started writing about what’s happening with Covid-19 on St. Patrick’s Day this year and I said I was writing for future me. While it’s impossible to capture everything I see and experience this post my cousin shared on Facebook (author unknown) covers most of the major events of the last month.
Sharing this for my future self β€οΈ
From Facebook post, author unknown.
Schools and Creches close 12th March 2020
All pubs and clubs close 15th March.
No St Patricks Day Parade
Lockdown begins in Ireland midnight 27th March 2020
Fuel prices dropped a record amount (now β¬1.12/litre)
Self-distancing measures on a rise.
Tape on the floors at food stores and others to help distance shoppers 2m (6ft) from each other.
Limited number of people inside stores, therefore lineups outside the store doors.
Non-essential stores and businesses mandated closed.
Parks, trails, entire cities locked up.
Entire sports seasons cancelled.
Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events – cancelled.
Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings – cancelled.
Funerals limited to children/parents/spouses of deceased. No other family or friends.
No masses, churches are closed.
No gatherings permitted.
Don’t socialize with anyone outside of your home.
We are to distance from each other.
Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers.
Shortage of respirators for the critically ill.
Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer.
Shelves are bare.
Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE.
Government closes the border to all non essential travel and makes it mandatory to self isolate for 14 days when returning.
Fines are established for breaking the rules.
Fines for those price-gauging others.
Stadiums and recreation facilities open up for the overflow of Covid-19 patients.
Press conferences daily from the Government.
Barely anyone in the street or on the roads.
People wearing masks and gloves outside.
Essential service workers are terrified to go to work.
Medical workers are afraid to go home to their families.
Many people placed on leave and unable to work with the government paying 80% of their wage.
They say it started in Wuhan, China at a seafood market. Hundreds of thousands affected, dead, dying, critically ill. Many recovered.
This is the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic, declared March 11th, 2020.
Why, you ask, do I write this status?
One day it will show up in my memory feed, and it will be a yearly reminder that life is precious. To not take the things we dearly love for granted.
We have so much!
Be thankful. Be grateful.
Be kind to each other – love one another – support everyone. β€οΈ
Not everything there is accurate and obviously what is, only applies to Ireland. There isn’t a strict 14 day quarantine on people arriving in the country. People are asked to self isolate for that time but there’s no follow-up AFAIK. We’re all self-isolating now anyway.
The PPE that arrived from China turned out to be ill fitting, too small and of poor quality. I hope subsequent shipments were better.
A Facebook post by a nurse described all that was wrong and upsetting about it.
A SHOCKING MESSAGE FROM A VERY CONCERNED NURSE:
Hello
I’m wondering if you’ll post this message. I’m a nurse in one of the largest teaching hospitals in the country.
Today I and my colleagues came to work and were supplied with the three quarter sleeve gowns shown on tv to look after Covid patients.
We put up a huge battle with our manager who insisted that the gowns offered adequate protection and were standard now countrywide.
Infection control just told us to practice our hand hygiene even more thoroughly and wash our arms.
We were put in the most awful of dilemmas. Some of us resorted to taping our arms up to the sleeves of the gowns. ( it doesnt work, the tape split and was difficult to remove safely)
The rest of us continued to protest until a small supply of proper long sleeve gowns were found. Those who protested more loudly were given the gowns. Those who were afraid of overpowering management relented and had to wear the short sleeve gowns.
Today was a fucking nightmare.
The very managers marching us into covid positive rooms will never have direct patient care.
We know they wouldn’t dare put themselves at risk but it’s ok to put our lives and our families lives at risk.
Senior consultants are protesting over poor quality PPEs and the use of surical masks with Covid patients but even their voices go unheard over the suits in management who have business degrees but who have absolutley no qualifications in looking after patients or in infectious diseases.
I’m telling you this because the truth needs to be told. Jesus I thought we were at rock bottom before but never more so than we are now.
We are forced to wash goggles after each use. (Not enough to go around.) We are told that surgical masks are fine even when pts are coughing terribly and are on nebulisers. (Not enough FFP3s in supply)
And now we are given gowns that either have no sleeves in them or we have the option of plastic gowns that only cover the front of our bodies. Our upper chest area and backs are completely open.
Every nurse, doctor and healthcare worker who provide direct care to covid pts in Ireland is terrified right now. The stress alone is killing us.
We all have families to go home to.
We are all aware of the now high level of covid positive staff in our hospital and yet they continue to force us into wards and rooms without adequate protection therefore risking our lives and the lives of our loved ones.
What infuriated all of us even more this evening was the director general of the HSE, Paul Reid stating that the PPE’s “just look different”.
The fucking neck of the man. Who does he think he’s fooling?
Would you send a riot policeman into a riot wearing a straw hat and tell them it just looks different?
It’s an insult to all our intelligence and it’s placing a huge amount of lack of trust in management at a time when we should feel confident that they’ll keep us safe.
Some of us are now in tears in work. All of us are petrified. None of us are sleeping well. We are all willing to care for Covid patients, that’s our job but for the love of God provide us with the equipment to do so. Don’t let any of us risk lose our lives doing so.
We may be considered angels but we are all highly qualified medical staff with families who we love dearly and we are being forced to do the unthinkable.
The rest of the worlds healthcare workers wear hazmat suits with covid patients . We don’t have that luxury but for Christs sake please please don’t let them take chances with our lives by forcing us to wear shoddy PPE’s.
We are all worth so much more than that even if they don’t think so.
Thank yo for letting us tell the real truth.An incredibly stressed nurse on behalf of all my incredibly stressed colleagues on the frontline.
(Ps I aplogise for my use of bad language.)
My friend David works as a nurse in Wales. He and his colleagues face the same issues with PPE.
The Falkland Islands reported their first case. They were one of the few regions on the planet without one.
Many countries now want people to wear a mask when they go outside. The American CDC recommends their use. There’s a “no sew” mask you can make yourself but it might not be that effective.
Using masks is unlikely to be of any benefit if you are not sick.
Sick people will be advised by their doctor when to use a mask. Healthcare workers need masks and other personal protective equipment to protect them from infection during their work.
On the other hand you can be infectious for several days without symptoms so wearing some sort of mask that stops you breathing or coughing particles in an enclosed space like a grocery store might be worth it.
Meanwhile the 5G conspiracy nuts are burning down 5G towers in the UK thinking it’s causing Covid-19. Here’s a video. Check out the replies.
Also, Kirstie Alley questions who is behind releasing the virus. Argh!
This Covid-19 vs average cause of death graph is frightening because Covid-19 accelerates so fast.
Mama, I just killed a man
I didn’t stay inside in bed
I walked past him, now he’s dead.
I don’t wanna die
I sometimes wish
I never went out at all.
Thanks Paolo.
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