Covid-19 situation

[Giseledta]

my husband and I are booked at my oldest childs sdm that she works at. and very aware how lucky we are to have the appointements. She was walking by the pharmacy when she over heard them booking people.. we got in by shear luck .

So far booking a booster in Ontario is next to impossible. I cannot get my Mom appointment and I do not have high hopes when I become eligible on Monday. They need to bring back the mass clinic doing it the way they are right now boosters are going to take forever.

As of right now we have no plans to alternate Christmas plans but it is a day to day situation. If need be I am prepare to pivot to drop off bags for family for Christmas.

[Giseledta]

ok, i am currently doing .. work arounds for anything i need. youngest wanted slippers as a last min addition to her christmas... thank you amazon for delivering on sunday.

i figured out most stuff. hubby and i are ... being safe..


i fully expect the schools to shut down or january. ... equally.. alot of wait and see is happening.. i hear such conficting infor about how bad this strain is..
i am in wait and see mode

[HermanH]

Alberta started distributing take-home test kits, today. I walked into a Shoppers Drug Mart for mine and my mother's. The casher passed me a clipboard with a sheet of paper and asked me to fill out the details: Name, HealthCare#, DoB, gender. I nearly choked. I could see the information for everyone who came before me. Anyone could just copy / photograph the info and have access to your personal medical files.

I am not certain whether I am more disturbed that SDM would make such a blunder or that people would so willingly and mindlessly disclose such personal information.

I hope everyone who sees this guards their information like cash. Once it's out, it's gone.

[walkonby]

so upset. We have known NO ONE who has caught this awful covid virus.
Then yesterday DH in our driveway waves hello to our neighbour sitting in the back of his garage.
He was JUST diagnosed +, now he must self quarantine??? ( I dunno for like 10 days )
How on earth does a new papa do that without putting anyone he knows at risk?
Where is he supposed to go to do that just days before Christmas and possibly miss out being close to his kid on the first Christmas?
I am so sad for the family.

[HermanH]

He was JUST diagnosed +, now he must self quarantine??? ( I dunno for like 10 days )
How on earth does a new papa do that without putting anyone he knows at risk?
Where is he supposed to go to do that just days before Christmas and possibly miss out being close to his kid on the first Christmas?

Tough situation, but there are ways (imperfect, perhaps) to self-isolate. Can he find a room / basement where he can seclude himself? It is imperfect, but at least he can try to stay apart from his family. Can he rent a room at a hotel or motel? Some have even rented trailers or RVs to self-isolate. Given that there have been cases where the ventilation in a house allowed for cross-infection, the same domicile may be out of the question.

He is in a first-world country, so he likely has some options. I think of those third-world large families living in a single room and how they must cope with an infected member. Those are truly hopeless situations.

[SnowFlakey]

And so this is Christmas! Here in QC, as of the 20th, test kits will be available to anyone who wants one. But you have to register on the pharmacies website to make an appointment to get a kit.

And as of the 20th, loads of restrictions will be in place here. they include limiting to half capacity in restaurants, bars, etc; no karaoki or dancing; family gatherings indoors to 10 people, 20 peeps outdoors (in this weather); highschools closed last friday and wiont reopen until Jan 10 (or maybe not); working from home is again highly encouraged. Tournaments and competitions are being cancelled (another lost season for minor hockey). All Christmas office parties have been cancelled.

We got ouf Booster on Thursday and man was i sick. For 2 days i had the i guess classic covid symptoms but yesterday i was i woke up feeling fine. Hubby as usual had nothing. DD got a bad cold while at a hockey tournament the week before, went to work, was sent home and told to get tested. Which she did and was negative. So just goes to show you that you can have a cold and be negative.

DD is going ahead with hosting Christmas, but has scaled down on her invitations unfortunately. And she requires all to be masked unless eating.

Another bummer of a Christmas season!

[SassyAshley]

It does seem like lately it is hitting a lot closer to home. Multiple times this week I was notified someone we knew was in close contact, so far thankfully everyone except the original positive has come back negative but more than ever it feel like it is everywhere. Granted I realize part of this is my anxiety but it feels like things are closing in.

Now, do not get me wrong we have always taken Covid seriously, done everything we can to keep ourselves safe but right now like I said it just feels like it is closing.

I know indoor gatherings are allowed for 10 and under and I know everyone was looking forward to a "normal" Christmas but it does not feel like, that is possible.

As for getting rapid test where I am, it is next to impossible. My bro has some but they expire on the 21st.

Booster shots are hard to come by, I lucked out and got my Mom an appointment but being very nice but insisting they check as online was telling me there were appointments but would not let me book one. Originally I was told our region was only vaccinating 5 to 11 year olds right now that was their focus, but booster appointments should be released some time the week of Dec 20th. I asked her to check again as I logged in as needed a booster and it told me there were appointments and she found one.

Also, they are supposed to be opening mass clinics for boosters but have not mentioned when or where yet. They say 2 are ready to open (no date or location provided) and they are working on a 3rd. But they did mention they would like to see the mass clinics focus on those 70+, so not sure there that leaves 18 - 70 year olds. Update: Just found an article on our local news site saying our region will not be expanding eligibility for Boosters, they are sticking with those 50+ and must be 6+ month since last dose, they say they do not have the capacity to expand at this time.

I have to admit most of my optimism is gone right now. It felt like the light was at the end of the tunnel there was some normalcy and now the light is gone.

[SnowFlakey]

Well, in QC we are told that the Rapid Test Kits will be available starting Dec 20th at all pharmacies. Yah Right! I called my pharmacy and was told to register on their site and once they get to my and hubby's name, they would call me. Easy peasy you think! I went on their website and tried to register and was told no availability and they werent taking registrations and to keep checking when it would be on line. Why give out false information. Whoever is responsible for distribution should have made sure all the pharmacies were prepared for this.

DD on the other hand called her pharmacy and had no problems. They put her and one child on the list and was told that she would receive a call when her name came up. Thats the advantages of living in a very small town .

[SassyAshley]

@SnowFlakey , living in a small town can be hit or miss. In Ontario they are handing out Rapid Tests at the LCBO. I live in small town and everyone thought this was great until they went online to learn the closest LCBO getting tests is an hour away.

LCBO was received the test on Friday and all test were given out on Friday some stores reporting they were out by 11:15 am. The stores closest to us never received their shipment. According to what I saw online the closest one to us that got them was about an 1 1/2 hours away.

Some malls are also handing out test through Pop-Ups, so far all Malls who have held a Pop-Up have reported they were out of test within 20 minutes of opening the pop-up.

Right now even if you want to buy a test locally we cannot get any, all of our Pharmacies are out and do expect more until the week of December 27th.

Normally I stay away from Politics, not my thing but in this case I feel the government has failed. Ontario made it sound like if you wanted to test before Christmas we will provide free tests, do whatever needs to be done to keep safe but fell very short.

[princessjen]

I go for my booster on Thursday. I'm kinda nervous about it though, as I got really sick with my second shot. My coworker got her booster last week then developed a large lump under her armpit. She spent the morning crying thinking she has breast cancer. We told her to give it a few days and it should go away, as its likely just from the shot.

[dq14]

Not all the high schools in Quebec are closing early. The high school I work at is still expecting the kids to be in until the 23rd.

[crafter]

I go for my booster on Thursday. I'm kinda nervous about it though, as I got really sick with my second shot. My coworker got her booster last week then developed a large lump under her armpit. She spent the morning crying thinking she has breast cancer. We told her to give it a few days and it should go away, as its likely just from the shot.

Best of luck princessjen. I had mine on Thursday and just noticed achy type legs on Sat but I was baking all day Friday so who knows. Re your friend's lump, interesting, my friends daughter in the UK had a lump grow under her arm (had astra zeneca), it was biopsied and was negative. Scary though.

[francine1985]

My kids school was/is supposed to be sending test kits home on the last day of school. On Friday (the last day for ds2) they hadn’t received the tests from the government. They apparently had enough kits to give to 3 classes but of course it wasn’t his class. Ds1 is supposed to be getting his test kit on Tuesday but I don’t trust that since they expect parents of younger kids (k-6) to make a special trip at an unknown date or time for the kits they never got to begin with. I guess they don’t really want students testing during the Christmas break after all.

[SassyAshley]

Same thing happened to my Bro's Fiancee, she was told it was a lymph node and it was a good sign. If I remember correctly it took about two weeks for the swelling to go away.

I go for my booster on Thursday. I'm kinda nervous about it though, as I got really sick with my second shot. My coworker got her booster last week then developed a large lump under her armpit. She spent the morning crying thinking she has breast cancer. We told her to give it a few days and it should go away, as its likely just from the shot.

[HermanH]

I go for my booster on Thursday. I'm kinda nervous about it though, as I got really sick with my second shot. My coworker got her booster last week then developed a large lump under her armpit. She spent the morning crying thinking she has breast cancer. We told her to give it a few days and it should go away, as its likely just from the shot.

Try to look at the bright side. Commend her for paying attention to her health by conducting self-examinations.
Had it actually been the Dreaded C, she would still be in better way to catch it early.
(Find your silver linings where you can. )