Preparedness for when

Frugalsod

GreyQueen wrote: »

It really is astonishing in my hometown, for instance; you can walk along the main drag and not hear anyone at all speaking english.

People have always moved to maximise their advantages, often highly reluctantly and with much trepidation, but it is destabilising for the countries which lose their populations as well as those which gain. And the stress caused can lead to the rise of far-right parties, which isn't something to be welcomed.

I think that the Brits have been no different. Look how many of us live elsewhere in Europe. If the right wing parties get their way and we leave the EU what will happen to all the Brits living abroad? Will they all get deported or so we exchange all the Spaniards, Romanians, Poles, Latvians and Greeks for returning Brits?

I wonder how many people will be upset when their Polish plumber or builder leaves? As for the rise of the far right that is already happening and there are a rise in anti Semitic attacks across Europe. So clearly few have remembered our collective history.

1Tonsil

I lived in Greece long before they joined the EU. Why would Brits living here in Greece be deported when we are paying taxes here and supporting the local economy?

Frugalsod

1Tonsil wrote: »

I lived in Greece long before they joined the EU. Why would Brits living here in Greece be deported when we are paying taxes here and supporting the local economy?

You never know what each country will do. I think that many of them will grandfather them with rights to stay. They might not be willing to take the flak from businesses who may lose top staff. That will also apply to overseas staff working here. Even the self employed will possibly employ locals or require services from local firms. I have friends all over Europe who might be impacted but I suspect that they my simply stop new applicants.

moneyistooshorttomention

Personally, I do wonder whether we're currently in a game of musical chairs in effect, with people shunting to and fro between their own country and other countries right now.

....and then the music stops...and where you are is where you stay (even if its not your own country).....

maryb

very quiet today!

I have just been watching the news about the crash of the rouble. One commentator made the point that if it gets much worse there could be a nuclear option for Rosneft and Gazprom which are struggling to refinance themselves anyway because of Western ( ie US imposed) sanctions. He named Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan as being in the firing line if they default. I have seen comments for years on how DB is effectively hollowed out so no great surprise there.

I vaguely remember the Russian default in the 1990s but I don't remember it having systemic effects. But since then, of course, we have seen banks totter and not really recover in any sustainable way. I just don't know enough to decide whether it could be a SHTF fuse burning or yet another emerging markets crisis that will get a few players burned but life goes on. Probably the latter but I will keep a careful eye on the news.

GreyQueen

There's talk that the US and also UK and Poland would like to kick Russia out of the SWIFT banking system, which would effectively cut off Russian businesses from the rest of the world. It's been done before - to Iran. Russia is apparently working to implement a national replacement for SWIFT which goes live in May 2015 but they are presently very vulnerable.

There's some serious sabre-rattling coming from Putin's henchmen, such as advising the if they're locked out of SWIFT, the US ambassador in Moscow should leave the same day as they would consider it war.

Frightening stuff, that there are a small minority of lunkheaded politicians who can mess up so many people's lives with their idiocies.:mad:

On a happier note, I have been at archery and have made an improvement in my 'release' - the technique of dropping the bowstring to release the arrow. Archery requires about 14 small things to be done exactly right for it to work properly; it's a very subtle and absorbing pastime.

Bygorry, those zombies won't know what hit them, come the Apocalypse. I have plans to get a gang of henchpeople (I shall be an equal ops warlady) and take over the castle. Some numptie has drained the moat and removed the drawbridge, but it's still pretty defensible and has working battlements and dungeons so I'm sure we shall have everything we need in order to rule the roost.

If it worked for the Normans, I can't really see that it wouldn't work for us, where there's a will there's [STRIKE]an idiot[/STRIKE] errm a way, I meant, a way.

jk0

jk0 wrote: »

Last Saturday in the early hours I had the belly ache again, and had to contact the out of hours GP. They asked me to come along that morning, and the guy diagnosed Irritable Bowel Syndrome, and suggested I buy some Buscopan.

I did buy some, but by about 10am I was feeling better, so did not bother taking any.

I've been fine until this morning at 6am when I was again in pain. Once again, multiple needs to visit the WC, (even after everything was gone.) Buscopan, Gaviscon & Paracetamol were all ineffective.

I contacted my GP first thing, and after a telephone diagnosis they invited me in for an examination. We went through all my symptoms, she took blood and urine samples, and still seems to think it's IBS. I have a different medicine for it. Again, I felt better by lunchtime, so have not had any as yet.

Googling my symptoms, I wonder if I have a duodenal ulcer. I'm thinking that I only get the pain when I'm lying down, so maybe when I'm upright, the stomach acid doesn't hit it.

Any thoughts?

2nd update:

I ate normally & felt fine until Sunday evening. Even did a little work at the flat on Saturday.

Sunday night around midnight I had the pain again. I got about 15 minutes sleep the whole night, and was pacing the floor until the GP opened.

This one diagnosed that my stomach was blown up with air, and gave me Proton Pump Inhibitor tablets* and Tramadol/Paracetamol tablets. These at least relieved the pain, but I woke up and was sick at 3am & 6am. Hardly anything though, as I only had a few spoons of Lentil soup on Monday.

Today, I've not had any solids. Just flat coke and herbal tea. The pain is only when I move, so a big improvement on yesterday.

I think I'll be ringing the GP I saw on Friday for those blood test results tomorrow.

*Strangely these say they are also used for stomach ulcers. I haven't taken any more tablets since I threw up, as I think something wasn't suiting me.

DawnW

jk0 wrote: »

2nd update:

This one diagnosed that my stomach was blown up with air, and gave me Proton Pump Inhibitor tablets* and Tramadol/Paracetamol tablets. These at least relieved the pain, but I woke up and was sick at 3am & 6am. Hardly anything though, as I only had a few spoons of Lentil soup on Monday.

Today, I've not had any solids. Just flat coke and herbal tea. The pain is only when I move, so a big improvement on yesterday.

I think I'll be ringing the GP I saw on Friday for those blood test results tomorrow.

*Strangely these say they are also used for stomach ulcers. I haven't taken any more tablets since I threw up, as I think something wasn't suiting me.

I have been prescribed these tablets jk0, for a condition called gastritis, where the stomach produces too much acid and causes heartburn, excess air etc, and a lot of pain. This condition can lead to stomach ulcers (according to my GP). I had to take them for 2 months and then go back, unless there were further problems during that time, in which case I was to go back sooner. The tablets did relieve the condition, but I was warned it could come back, so was given additional tablets in case this should happen, to relieve the symptoms for the time it might take to get a follow up appointment. I had the option to be prescribed them on a permanent basis but declined this. The Dr did say that they are very commonly prescribed.

I had never heard of 'gastritis' prior to this (it is not the same as gastro-enteritis), but am assured it is quite common.

Karmacat

The news all seems to be a bit serious, doesn't it seems to me there's definite signs of economic warfare already going on, with OPEC as well as the rouble/dollar horrors.

GreyQueen

Karmacat wrote: »

The news all seems to be a bit serious, doesn't it seems to me there's definite signs of economic warfare already going on, with OPEC as well as the rouble/dollar horrors.

OPEC nearly broke the rest of the world in the seventies. They've got form. I know people who were adults at the time who still snarl when they hear OPEC mentioned, they're that angry about it.