Just read the thread.....what's this virus thingy???
Why do we all have to self harm???
Why do we all have to self harm???
Well said @Tourershine
Some people though selfishly still aren't getting it are they...
They must think they're special or it doesn't apply to them.
Lets hope they're not burying someone close to them who has died because of others selfish ignorance. Maybe then and only then it'll hit home.
I’ve just heard that sports direct is staying open as they consider themselves an essential service!
Ring 999, and ask for police, fire, ambulance or sports direct for emergency trainers!
trending on Twitter, some classic tweetsYes just read it on sky news.
'All non-essential shops should close' surely they are in direct contravention of this?
trending on Twitter, some classic tweets
I run a property maintenance company with 3000 tenants, instead of 75 staff I'm currently running with 6 guys on emergencies.
I define my role as a key worker/essential, people can't be expected to have gas/water leaks, no hot water, no heating, no electric, insecure properties etc
On my drive to work this morning it was like any normal school holiday commute, yes less traffic than usual, but far from quiet.
There were a hell of a lot of people classing themselves as key workers, I don't think BoJo's plan of voluntary locking down is going to quite work out, I think he's going to have to clamp down further.
My personal take on the day after the evening before and i'm going to take advantage of this thread for what it was intended.
There was the normal flutter of WhatsApp messages yesterday about potential messures and total lockdowns, that intensified the closer we got to 8.30pm.
This led myself to be scanning the internet for any news of what was to come, because things could take a total U-turn for myself and my business, and I needed to get ahead of what was to come. To see the Prime Minister sat alone facing the camera was a gut sinking feeling, and it was obvious that this was way more than the usual daily briefings. I sat in total silence listening to every word, waiting for certain phrases, only to be relieved when these phrases didn't come from his lips.
Right... from the PM's words, I can take the go ahead that I can still get up at 4am this morning, meet my brother at Jn22 of the M1 in the Travelodge carpark, and off we can trundle down to my jobs in Southampton. Lovely, 2 nice big Motorhomes next door to each other, both straight forward jobs, and between them enough money to cover all my outgoings next month, sorted right? Wrong.
Within several minutes of the PM's address, my phone lit up. It was a mobile number calling me. Hello? Hi Paul, you are coming to do my Motorhome and my neighbours Motorhome tomorrow morning. I instantly knew what was coming, and the conversation quickly got serious. This is a chap who's wife is a retired Midwife, my wife is a Midwife, so we hit things off at the early stages of the bookings several weeks ago anyway. A customer that used the phrase 'kindred spirits' within the thread of communication back and forth, a phrase I had to Google. It's not unusual for me to get on with my customers, I often spend way more time chatting with them than I should as a business, after all, we share the same passions for travelling in our Motorhomes or Caravans, so clicking with a customer isn't rare. I don't see them as the cash cows that some business owners do, and that's why I will never be a millionaire.
There was an initial unsaid slight discomfort within the conversation. He didn't want to directly postpone tomorrow. He'd already had a conversation explaining how his daughter is a self employed Chiropractor and she'd lost all of her income overnight, so he understood my own position, hoping in a small way he was helping another small business to survive, which I think he liked the thought of, specially as he'd personally doubled our earnings by getting his neighbour to have their Motorhome done at the same time. So why did he call me.
Then the penny dropped. This had become a matter of morals. Within a split second I realised my mistake and so did he.
I was condemning those that spent the weekends thinking this was all a big holiday, then driving in my van with my brother yesterday to a job in Newcastle. Coming home, popping to the fuel station and refilling my tank, buying milk and bread for my neighbours, then cruising home with my arm hanging out of my window as if nothing was wrong. Only to get home and put the world to right with my neighbour, safe in the thought that i'd done the right things that day. I'd kept my distance with my customer, even though he was one of the types to make it clear straight away that this whole situation was blown out of proportion and we were being daft by not excepting a cup of tea or the bacon sandwich he'd got for us. I'd stood on the big yellow taped crosses in BP fuel station, urging customers to respect the social distancing, even though the bloke behind me ignored it. I'd chuckled at the woman in the Shell station wearing rubber gloves, yet touching everything, every customer in front of me had touched, meaning the gloves may be protecting her, but her actions were putting all of us at risk. Not her fault, she is possibly only doing what she thought was right. Not the peoples fault in the parks or beaches, they are only doing things the way they interpreted the governments advice. None of us really understood what to do, because none of us had real guidance. Why? because our Prime minister trusted the British public to 'do the right thing' to which we proved we weren't able to do. Not on purpose. Panic buying isn't on purpose, read the psychology. I think that 99% of the British citizens had the right intentions, just the wrong guidance due to how we are as a county. The freedoms we take for granted when watching the atrocities that happen around the world. We just sometimes need to be told firmly and decisively. Something I took from last nights address from the Prime minister.
Anyone that still doesn't understand the situation, still insists on standing stupidly close to others whilst panic buying, still goes to parks to socialise, off to work when it's not essential, and all the other daft things we've seen over the last few days. Well they deserve the full force of the Police, the full force of the media who have begged for this latest measure, just so they can hunt down those flouting it. This is what sells and it's what the public will want to see, just to make themselves feel better for the mistakes of the previous days. The full force of social media and people taking your photos to ridicule you publicly. All harsh, but some are now necessary.
Those that choose to go forward and continue as if life was currently normal, I will take as a personal attack on my wife and those that are risking their lives in the NHS, Police, Ambulance, Fire service, and any other ESSENTIAL services we are all now relying on at our time of need.
These people will loose my respect and any future help or advice I can give to them on this forum. Take that as you wish, but enough is enough. We've been told and we must listen.
View attachment 63862
Just taken directly off .gov site
Seems to be a lot of confusion with key worker/essential worker being quoted but this wasn't mentioned by the pm last night?
Needs clarifying and companies need to close as they obviously can't keep to the 2m social distancing rule. Companies have a duty of care to both their workers and now the rest of the country at this time.
Oh, excellent and well written post too Paul.
Now is the time for everyone to do their bit and help protect our frontline for what is coming.
A waste of breath if my wife calling me this morning in tears is anything to go by. The roads as busy as ever, the Tesco she drove past was rammed, and people just carrying on as they were yesterday and the day before.
Plus judging by the packed tubes in London this morning on the BBC, it's like that everywhere.
Such a shame it's like this, but I will do my part and that's all I give a toss about now.
Heritage Bristol are also shutting their doors, servicing closed as of tonight (I had to reschedule my warranty work for May) and parts closing Thursday night. Luckily I managed to collect all the bits I was waiting on today. I think they are just going to be running a skeleton staff to keep emergency service vehicles on the road but closed to the public.