What's on your mind?

[FatherAlabaster]

About 5" up here from what I can see. Not hugely windy so I don't know how deep the drifts will be, if I do manage to get out to the woods. Last winter some spots were up to my knees, and I managed to completely lose the trails and get disoriented for a while, which was actually great, I've been to those woods so many times that it's rare to feel like I'm actually exploring something. The AT sounds epic. Hope you can get up to it at some point.

[AlSymerz]

I used to invite the kids to explore the forests behind us on a regular basis. When they were young I'd get excuses like "but we'll get lost", or "we don't know our way through there". By the time they got older they did realise getting lost was the idea!!

 

[Parker]

On 1/3/2022 at 6:18 AM, Sheol said:

Hahaha this is awesome! I'd rather listen to Rocky Horror any day than Grand declaration tbh. That album has not aged well. Though the production did improve with the recent remaster.

I love both GDOW and Rocky Horror, but they are so different I can't say which is better. I totally disagree with your assessment of Grand Declaration. I love that album the way it is originally, and from what I have heard of the remaster, they have taken out everything that makes it unique and provocative. I haven't heard this remix, and I am afraid to.

[FatherAlabaster]

Sledding with the kiddo, we get one good day for it. 

[AlSymerz]

35ks on the bike this morning and the drizzling rain still wont leave me alone.

[Sheol]

14 hours ago, KillaKukumba said:

35ks on the bike this morning and the drizzling rain still wont leave me alone.

You biked 35 km in a morning? That's pretty impressive!

I recently started going to the gym again after almost 2 years of wokring out at home. Words can't desribe how much more fun it is to be in a place with a wide assortment of tools and weights, and not having to worry about knocking over the TV. I've been 4 times since sunday and started a new program called The Minimalist. Two days in and it's kicking my ass!

neverSATE - The Minimalist

 

[Dead1]

So last year I was voicing my concerns about government opening up borders for economic reasons (support tourism business) despite COVID.

Well hilariously the plan backfired and the economy is fucked and especially the tourism sector is totally fucked with COVID in Australia going completely out of control.

Tourism businesses that were clamouring to have  borders open are now closing (some permanently) due to mass cancellations and staff infected with COVID.

 

Thus I have a serious case of schadenfreud right now. 

We now have food shortages with shop shelves looking like Moscow circa 1989 ie  empty.

We also now have at least 100,000 cases a day which is one of highest in the world given our population of 25 million.

 

Well done Australia - truly the lucky country.

 

[AlSymerz]

8 hours ago, Sheol said:

You biked 35 km in a morning? That's pretty impressive!

 

Since just after Christmas, when I got the new bike, I've averaged 29.4ks every morning except New Years Day. I've been spending too much time using the tractor or the four wheeled motorbike to get around the farm instead of walking, so I decided to make exercise a specific thing and bought a new bike. It means the cows don't get checked until after breakfast but so far I'm not hearing any complaints.

[markm]

9 hours ago, Sheol said:

You biked 35 km in a morning? That's pretty impressive!

I recently started going to the gym again after almost 2 years of wokring out at home. Words can't desribe how much more fun it is to be in a place with a wide assortment of tools and weights, and not having to worry about knocking over the TV. I've been 4 times since sunday and started a new program called The Minimalist. Two days in and it's kicking my ass!

neverSATE - The Minimalist

 

Hey man, I miss those work out posts we used to have. Looks pretty cool! I have yet to get back in the gym. I've bought a bench and a growing range of dumbbells up to about 50 lbs. and a short barbell that I can put on maybe 90 pounds. But, I'd need to get bench/squat racks, more free weights and a proper Olympic  length bar to really get back into it or join a gym. With Omicron raging here in the U.S., I'm not chomping at the bit to say the least.

Plus age is catching up and I've been plagued by bicep issues and some recent rotator cuff problems. But I'm post PT  for all those ortho issues and can do pain free pushups using those "perfect pushup" rotating handle things. I've been using a bunch of bands as well working on rotator cuff strength and stability.  One of these days I'll get back to the gym, but I've been kayaking so much during the pandemic that I'm not really focused on lifting heavy. Rip it up!

[MacabreEternal]

18 minutes ago, markm said:

Hey man, I miss those work out posts we used to have. Looks pretty cool! I have yet to get back in the gym. I've bought a bench and a growing range of dumbbells up to about 50 lbs. and a short barbell that I can put on maybe 90 pounds. But, I'd need to get bench/squat racks, more free weights and a proper Olympic  length bar to really get back into it or join a gym. With Omicron raging here in the U.S., I'm not chomping at the bit to say the least.

Plus age is catching up and I've been plagued by bicep issues and some recent rotator cuff problems. But I'm post PT  for all those ortho issues and can do pain free pushups using those "perfect pushup" rotating handle things. I've been using a bunch of bands as well working on rotator cuff strength and stability.  One of these days I'll get back to the gym, but I've been kayaking so much during the pandemic that I'm not really focused on lifting heavy. Rip it up!

I made an impulse purchase of a weights bench earlier today.  It is a fold away one that should fit nicely down the side of a unit somewhere in the house and at a max load of 227kg should more than cover my ambitions.  Had bands for a couple of years at home but they are a bit limited for whole body stuff.

[AlSymerz]

I've never been into gyms, not sure why, I did it for about 12 months when I was in my 20's and just never got into it. Of course back then I played indoor cricket, I coached kids indoor cricket, I played badminton, and basically wasn't the sloth I have been in more recent years. I tried getting up at 4:30am (because I'm usually awake anyway) and walking for about an hour, but I had a problem with one of my feet that made it painful and because of my gait I was wearing shoes out too quickly. Then I decided an hour on a bike must beat an hour walking because I can get so much further so with that kind of logic I decided to get back on a bike.

[FatherAlabaster]

I love riding my bike but I don't like being on the streets in Lowell. Rode for transport nearly daily for years in NYC but I can't seem to get used to the flow of traffic around here. I stopped using the one good road bike trail in town when Covid hit and just got out of the habit, I should get back on when it warms up. We have an elliptical in the apartment, which is great, but I miss actually moving and having the wind in my face. Can't stand gyms, I don't like exercising around other people.

[AlSymerz]

I live in the country and I'm not keen on road cycling, especially not since we've had 4 hit and run fatalities in as many weeks in this state. I do ride at day break because I know there will be less cars on the road and some days I can travel 5ks or more without a car passing me. I always wear reflective clothing and have lights and a mirror, something that only girls had when I was a kid! I suppose if the risk was too much for me I wouldn't do it but at this stage I'm okay with cars whizzing past at more than 80kph on some roads because it doesn't happen all the time.

 

[Sheol]

Well fuck, infection rates are rising to record numbers right now, so I might have to take a break from the gym after the only a week!🙃 But I'm getting my third shot on wednesday so we'll see now things look next week.

[navybsn]

2 hours ago, Sheol said:

Well fuck, infection rates are rising to record numbers right now, so I might have to take a break from the gym after the only a week!🙃 But I'm getting my third shot on wednesday so we'll see now things look next week.

The booster, either of the mRNA type, have shown to be very effective against Omicrom. The Pfizer has shown a 35x increase in antibodies and the Moderna a 75x increase. Still seeing plenty of infections after the booster, but they are short lived and very mild. I wouldn't bother with any of the traditional vaccine products (Janssen, Astra-Zeneca, etc). These products aren't really showing any benefit against Omicrom specifically.

Also, choose a 3-ply paper (surgical) mask over a cloth mask. Cloth has shown to do nothing to prevent the spread while paper has shown reduced transmission.

[FatherAlabaster]

Cases are bonkers here as well. We wear KN95s indoors when we go anywhere now. We also don't see anyone or do anything aside from grocery shopping and prenatal appointments - no older relatives up here or anything like that. My wife and I have both had mRNA boosters.

Annoyingly my son's vaccine appointments keep getting put off at the last minute. He was scheduled for one today through his school, but they canceled classes because of the cold this morning, worried about students walking or waiting for the bus. At least we got to sleep in, which is a real gift.

[Hungarino]

I am seeing articles from reputable sources saying we will all get Omicron, but the severity is clearly much lower than other strains.

It would be really helpful to categorize Omicron as a totally different disease at this point, if that is possible. I don't think we can use the same level of protocols to prevent a disease that is so contagious. China looks like they are going to try to keep with the '0 case' strategy we will see how that works. I am going to Japan on Friday and will be pretty much locked down there as well.

[navybsn]

1 minute ago, Hungarino said:

I am seeing articles from reputable sources saying we will all get Omicron, but the severity is clearly much lower than other strains.

It would be really helpful to categorize Omicron as a totally different disease at this point, if that is possible. I don't think we can use the same level of protocols to prevent a disease that is so contagious. China looks like they are going to try to keep with the '0 case' strategy we will see how that works. I am going to Japan on Friday and will be pretty much locked down there as well.

Zero case strategy works quite well when you cook the books.

I tend to agree that Omicrom is significantly less of a threat than Delta for hospitalization and death, but it's significantly more transmissible. We're experiencing worse staffing levels than with the first wave (no vax) or the Delta wave (majority vaxxed) despite strict quarantine measures. I think we will flip to crisis staffing at all our sites this week which means asymptomatic staff will come to work despite active infection. Should really help it propagate faster, but healthcare requires staffing so you do what you have to. 

You're right though, we're all going to get COVID at some point regardless of vax status. It's here to stay just like the common cold and the flu. We just have to hope that the vax holds it off for most of us until it mutates to a less virulent form.

[MacabreEternal]

Mandatory vaccinations got introduced here in the UK into law this past week or so.  All frontline NHS workers have to be vaccinated and those that refuse (without valid medical exemption) are to be redeployed or dismissed.  April deadline.  In an organisation that is massively understaffed already (as a global industry, health care is in a mess recruitment and retention wise) this seems very draconian even though I get the message behind it.

[AlSymerz]

Mandatory third vaxes have been introduced here for some industries, it's only a matter of time before it's pretty much all industries like they did with the second vax.

People here have once again proven they are the dumbest species on the planet by bulk buying and hoarding shit they don't need ensuring that shop shelves are empty in various places. Strangely enough this time people aren't bulk buying dunny paper, not sure if people have realised they wont shit themselves if they get covid, or if they have just given up completely, either way I'm glad I don't need to visit other people.

Like other countries there has been problems in the supply chains but our problems are not because of infections instead it's because of isolation of close contacts. A mate of mine still in the trucking industry (runs a fleet of 180 trucks shipping to supermarkets etc) reckons he's got 65% of his staff off work but only 15% are have returned positive tests, the rest are off because they are close contact and have tested negative but are still required to isolate for 7 days. That apparently is going to change soon, currently the media are making a big deal about how any such changes will make Omicron blow out even further wipe out the entire economic sector, but like everything in the last 2 years nothing is known, it's pretty much all guess work.

 

[navybsn]

We're seeing significant staff shortages as well due to mandatory quarantine guidelines. Not sick, but exposed. Only a matter of time before we see more businesses/services close because there's no one to staff them.

Oh, and btw, one of the major symptoms we're seeing from Omicrom is gastrointestinal distress (i.e. diarrhea). So maybe stocking up on 3-ply isn't a bad idea. Get it while you can.

[AlSymerz]

Haha, that would be ironic, for 18 months every lockdown we had shops sold out of dunny paper minutes after lockdowns were announced despite experts saying it was mostly unwarranted. Now the bug decides to give people the shits and they are busy buying chicken mince and butter!

Our government and 'peak industry bodies' have been in discussions for the last 24 hours about how better to handle the close contact thing and get people back to work safely before too much more shuts down. They are now talking about allowing close contacts back if they are asymptomatic and get tested daily (there is more to the ruling but that's the main part).  Again in a stupid twist from last year where the union bosses all screamed that lockdowns were harmful and people needed to work, they are now saying getting people back to work if they were a close contact is too risky under all circumstances.

[ratpfink]

Oh man, I caught the covid a few days before Christmas and, no diarrhea but I was as gassy as I've ever been for a couple of days. Symptoms changed every couple of days. First two-ish days were fever, chills, aches and gas. Then the worst sore throat I've ever had in my life. Then random headaches and finally a bit of a cough. I still have a slight lingering cough but otherwise feel fine now. Those sore throat days were total hell though, couldn't even sleep as every time I'd swallow the pain would jolt me awake.

 

So yeah, stock up on toilet paper!?!

[AlSymerz]

Farts are a symptom? Shit! I've had covid for years

 

[FatherAlabaster]

Seems like it's a little different for everyone. I had some diarrhea and stomach distress while I was sick with Covid last year and TBH my digestive system has never completely felt normal since then, sort of like how my sense of smell has good days and bad days but has never fully returned. Thankfully my lungs are fine, breathing is normal, etc.

The toilet paper thing is dumb as bricks. It reminds me of how there would always be a run on bread, eggs, and milk when people would stock up before a hurricane when I was living in NC. I guess when trees are down across the roads, power's out, and low areas are flooded, that's when you really want French toast.