The Coronavirus Diaries #6

This series of posts will be about the coronavirus situation, how it is impacting me here in Scotland and interesting gossip and opinions I'm hearing through our media. I'll be posting as and when I have something to share but I take no responsibility for the accuracy of the news I share or the medical advice and opinion that I mention.

Chuckles Stress Level Thursday 10am:

I didn't sleep great last night and I felt horrible this morning. Not sick, just depressed. My uncle has taken up my offer of another box of supplies from our spares so I'm much happier about him having enough for a couple of months. My dad is out getting him his beer and spirits as I write. I just want both of them indoors and safe away from this bloody virus and it got me quite upset this morning at the thought of them getting sick. I'm going to have good days and bad days through this and this has been a bad day. I accept that and hopefully I'll perk up tomorrow.

It got worse when the phone calls came this morning. I hadn't even considered the prospect of hoax and con artists phoning more now that self isolation is starting for a lot of us. This morning I got a rude awakening on that front. At 9.25 came the call about my computer having a virus and I hung up. No doubt they are hoping to get into online banking files with so many of us ordering online. Two minutes later came the call that my phone services are about to be cut off unless I call this number. I was so angry at this one because older people rely on their phone and may be isolated from their families during this crisis. The thought of these poor people panicking over this call and then maybe getting conned out of their money really upset me. Three minutes later came the call pretending to be Amazon confirming me as a new Prime customer but to call this number if it is a mistake. Again Amazon deliveries could be a lifeline for the vulnerable  and these bastards are trying to con them. I just broke down and cried in anger and frustration at it all.

It's now 1pm and I'm preparing the stuff I plan to take over to my uncle and I rearranged the whole cupboard just for something productive to do. But seeing the developments on the news aren't helping my mood. The number of cases and deaths in each country continue to climb. Belgium-1795 and 21 deaths,  Germany-13632 and 33 deaths,  France-9134 and 264 deaths,  Italy-35713 and 2978 deaths,  Spain-17147 and 767 deaths, USA 9477 and 155 deaths. The new update for the UK comes later in the day so I'll watch for that. If you want to keep an eye on the statistics as they are updated, here is the link I use:
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries 

I notice with interest that South Africa are leading with a good idea. They are putting hand sanitiser behind the counter so people need to ask for it and it is being rationed, so nobody can mass buy it. That's a great idea. If the pharmacy desks could sell that, toilet roll, and the odd other thing, then everyone could get it and nobody would lose out. Delivery companies are now knocking the door and retreating back up the path while they wait for you to answer and some are asking for details on where they can leave a package even when you are in.  

Update. Deaths in Scotland up from 3 to 6, with 266 overall cases. That's up 39 from yesterday. In the UK total which contains Scotland's totals, we are at 2692 cases and 137 deaths.

I'm also noting that the people who decided to travel overseas in the last week or two despite the raging pandemic and warnings about non essential travel, are now moaning about being stranded abroad and not having rescue flights come to get them. You really do wonder at the common sense of some people. There is no way I'd be off travelling right now for any bloody reason! Some are off on climbing expeditions, 'projects', holidays-none of it essential. Have these people considered the costs and inconvenience involved in getting them home for governments who are already under the pump? Did they consider what it might be like to get stuck in some of these exotic places? The medical facilities? The cost of treatment? Language barriers? 

articles on the subject
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadian-travellers-stranded-abroad-1.5502100 
https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-thousands-of-britons-stranded-abroad-as-travel-bans-kick-in-11959790 
https://eu.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2020/03/17/coronavirus-travel-ban-stuck-morocco-how-can-americans-get-home/5073156002/ 
http://www.startribune.com/stuck-abroad-in-a-pandemic-minnesotans-desperately-try-to-get-home/568906402/ 
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/17/from-the-uk-to-sri-lanka-the-australians-stranded-around-the-world