It was a terrible feeling of sinking, watching a sad and lifeless Prime Minister give out his unwelcomed Plan B. It is possible to create a different version.
Omicron runs around the country, so it is important to take care. Masks in enclosed spaces again, working from home (not a problem for me as it’s what I do anyway these days), but it’s OK to go to Christmas parties. It would look great in the season of goodwill, also known as Advent, which is when friends and families meet before Christmas.
Now, however, it seems ‘Sadvent’ is taking hold. From yesterday, December 15, it’s ten days until Christmas. Anybody who tests positive starting now will be kept in isolation for ten days until Christmas Day.
With many people determined to ensure they’re fit enough to meet their family for the big event, endless traditional encounters are being set aside in favour of home isolation. The Prime Minister’s advice to go ahead with jollity seems to have fallen on profoundly deaf ears in my circle.
Jenni Murray, who has had the flu and pneumonia jabs as well as the Pfizer booster jab, said she isn’t cancelling the two events she has remaining in her diary (file image)
Friends who had booked a jazz club and a great band we all love sent an email last Friday headed ‘Cancelled’. My disappointment knew no bounds. It worsened when the second planned party for a friend’s ‘59 forever’ birthday — she’s actually now 60 — was also cancelled because her son-in-law had tested positive.
It was a lonely weekend spent at home, my husband being on the south coast and I in London. The most exciting moment came when I screamed at the TV at the beginning of Sex And The City, And Just Like That. ‘Call an ambulance you idiot!’ I shouted as Carrie cuddled her dying husband, Big, at the end of episode one. It’s come to something when talking to the telly is your only conversation.
While I could be foolishly confident, I don’t intend to cancel any of the other events in my calendar. I’m jabbed to my eyeballs. My age enabled me to get my Pfizer booster jab two months ago, before the panic and endless queues began, so I reckon I’m as safe from the new variant as it’s possible to be.
I’ve had the flu and pneumonia jabs so my immune system must be in overdrive. My generation seems to have more faith in vaccines than the rest. Our generation was the ones who first saw preventative measures to stop smallpox and measles that were so deadly for our predecessors.
Of course, I have to confront the moral dilemma whether or not to take lateral flow tests before going out with friends and/or family. Luckily, I ordered a couple of sets of lateral flow tests at the weekend before they began to run out, so I’m well stocked up. I tested yesterday before my dinner tonight and I’ll do it again tomorrow before Saturday’s lunch. I shan’t require my friends to do it too, although I hope they will as a matter of course.
Jenni (pictured), said that if she is experiencing symptoms, and the results are positive, then she will be home on Christmas. She won’t pretend it’s a cold.
As for next week and the run up to Christmas, I’ll test two days before setting off. If I’m positive I shall stay alone. I know Omicron is supposed to be only a mild infection, but if I have symptoms and a positive test I shan’t try to pretend it’s just a cold. It’s not fair on others who, if I pass it on to them, may have to stay away from work and lose money, which is always needed at this time of year.
How can anyone convince their dog to have a cruel and illegal procedure to alter its appearance? When we used to have mini schnauzers the practice of trimming their ears was very popular. The breeders are now doing the trimming on their own. Dogs need intact ears for communication and who wants to fondle the ear of a pet that’s scarred from an unnecessary operation?
I have no elderly relatives to visit, but if I had I would test, even if they’d had their boosters. As they say, it is better to be safe rather than sorry.
As I did last Christmas, I’m determined not to miss another Christmas. I will be careful tonight when I go with my best friend and our neighbours to eat dinner at the local pub.
I’ll wear a mask except when eating or drinking. We’ll be socially distanced, no hugs or handshakes and wash our hands frequently. I need to have faceto- face company and a chat that’s not limited by telephone or any other technology.
My family and I will celebrate the 23rd of December, having done our share in the planning and the grocery shopping. This year we decided to go with beef this holiday. I’m certain it won’t be another lonely Christmas. Ich will go to the ball.
60 years later, West Side Story is still my favorite story.
Jenni, age 71, admits she sobbed her heart out at Tony’s death and the misery of Maria, while watching Steven Spielberg’s version of West Side Story
I couldn’t wait to see Steven Spielberg’s version of West Side Story, an updated version of the original I first saw circa 1961. Aged 11, I sobbed my heart out at Tony’s death. Aged 71, I again sobbed my heart out at Tony’s death and the misery of Maria, but most telling was the all-too-familiar story of gang violence and young men killing each other.
Rita Moreno, who played Anita in the original, has a leading role as Valentina, who runs Doc’s drugstore and tries to end the violence. She’s now 90 years old and phenomenal. I hope young people will see this new adaptation of the Romeo And Juliet story and not be warned — as they were by London’s Globe Theatre before its production of the Shakespeare play — that it will be hurtful, triggering or unsafe. It is vital to convey this message.
What did we accomplish? Don’t ask
There are so many orders online. So many emails asking ‘How did we do?’, ‘Tell us how we did’, ‘How would you rate our performance?’, ‘How successful was your delivery?’ It’s enough to make you want to scream: ‘I ordered. It was paid. You have it. It is not my time to pamper your commercial ego. Just go away!’
Lewis was robbed even though I’m sure of it
Jenni said she can’t help feeling sorry for Lewis Hamilton’s (pictured) failure to fulfil his ambition of becoming world champion for a record-breaking eighth time
Formula 1 is not something I like. For most people, cars are an evil necessity whose sole purpose is to transport us from one place to another. Otherwise, it is better to walk or use the Tube or bus.
What makes a dangerous and harmful sport such a damaging practice? My lifetime has seen 52 deaths in Formula 1 I’ve never understood how my family can sit for hours watching racing drivers putting their lives at risk as they zoom around for 50-odd laps. Nevertheless, I can’t help feeling sorry for Lewis Hamilton’s failure to fulfil his ambition of becoming world champion for a record-breaking eighth time.
I can’t say I understand what went wrong in Abu Dhabi, except there was a crash, a safety car and Max Verstappen pipped Hamilton to the post. Hamilton was gracious and funny, but he was robbed, according to expert opinions.