At bed time last night I took off my Fitbit for re-charging. It only takes about an hour, and I can rely upon waking up every couple of hours, to retrieve it and wear it again. Yes, I wear it at night as it has its motion sensing chip is programmed to monitor sleep patterns, an interesting thing to review from time to time. In fact I slept longer than usual and forgot to put it back on until gone six. So according to the smartwatch app, I only slept an hour. This reading can happen once a week, but the Fitbit and the app doesn't admit the need to re-charge. When it sends me my weekly health review, my sleep time average is reported as seven hours instead of the 'recommended' eight, even though I usually sleep eight hours plus every night. Worse still, it sends a digital reproach telling me I'm not getting enough sleep. Smart monitoring? What a joke!
It's been a cold day, so I switched over to my ancient padded ski jacket for my daily exercise, and in doing so left my keys in the pocket of my rain jacket. Before heading to the park, I took a kilo of used batteries to recycle in Tesco Metro after lunch, then had a much needed haircut, my first for three months. On the way to the park I called in at home, and that was when I realised I didn't have my keys. Clare had already gone out for her walk of the day. Oops! But never mind, she's more than likely to be there when I return as she doesn't walk for as long as I do. Changing coats tends to be a nightmare if you rely heavily on pockets rather than a bag to carry your stuff around, as I do.
Today, the first batch of covid-19 vaccines arrived in Welsh hospitals, as they did all over the rest of the UK thanks to a phenomenally efficient logistic operation which has brought supplies from Belgium over the weekend, flown in I believe by military transport. Initially, medical and care workers will receive their jabs starting from tomorrow, then most susceptible people by virtue of their age or medical condition. Half the population of Wales should receive the vaccine by Easter next year. Meanwhile, cases continue to rise in Wales whose infection rate is now the highest in the UK.
No idea when Clare and I will get vaccinated, and it's clear that no matter when that happens, our present lifestyle and precautions will need to continue well beyond gaining hoped for immunity, and the decimation of the infection rate. I don't think this is understood very widely yet, perhaps because mixed messages conveyed by the government and tabloid press tend to raise false hopes of an early return to normality. This may be the beginning of the end, but as the top medics are saying, "This isn't a sprint, but a marathon" And one could add that it's a marathon over an obstacle course.
Vaccinating half to two thirds of the UK population is not only complex to deliver through a winter with all its weather hazards, there's also brexit from the end of this month promising major disruption to the transport of goods internationally putting the food supply chain as well as industrial productiveness at risk. Unemployment is already rising due to known uncertainities. If the economy collapses, resulting in increased poverty and deprivation, it will exacerbate existing conditions favourable to the spread of virus contagion. Brexit is destined to undermine the resilience and health of the population, just as it needs all possible help to recover. As scripture says "Without a vision the people perish", and even more so when vision is blurred and blinded by lies and false promises.
An hour after sunset, I think I caught a glimpse of Saturn and Jupiter appearing in close proximity to each other above the south eastern horizon, so close that to the unaided eye and a poorly configured camera, they appear as one bright light. It wasn't for long as high level cloud soon moved in obscuring stars and planets alike, I wonder if weather will permit a proper look before the end of the month as this conjunction of planets that hasn't been seen on earth for nearly 800 years? Maybe I'll have time to learn how to optimise the capabilities of my cameras and their telephoto lenses, tripod mounted.
No comments:
Post a Comment