The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

-taff

maryb said:

Si, when you did your marathon canning sessions did you have any trouble getting hold of canning lids? 

Quattro Stagioni jars are the same size as kilner or mason jars and the lids can be gotten hold of on the internet too.

Si_Clist

maryb said:

Thanks Si, I'll have a look for the Leiheit lids

Here you go, Mary.  A pound cheaper than Amazon, delivered ...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/12-SEAL-LIDS-Fit-KILNER-Dual-Purpose-Jars-LEIFHEIT-for-Screw-Top-Preserve-Jars-/200971137016

There's several other sources too.

maryb

Thanks both

rachsecret

75% of schools in the local authority where I work currently have at least one case. Many of these in staff. It is terribly worrying that staff are expected to work with no masks etc (Primary schools). Many of these staff are classed as vulnerable and are really putting their lives on the line. At least in the NHS they can wear PPE. 

@elaine373 although schools should be giving advice based on the Public Health flow chart, and certainly in your case it shouldn't have been too hard,  it is really difficult as some parents are holding staff to account for incorrect advice eg symptoms. Many symptoms in young children are not typical covid symptoms eg upset stomach in children under 5 yrs old, headaches. One school I know of only had pupils with symptoms of headaches and all tested positive. 

The pressure on school leaders in particular is immense, constant phone calls from understandably anxious parents, risk assessments, new Ofsted inspections on how well we are coping with Covid, additional costs which the gov won't cover additional workload of having to come up with remote e-learning plans and guidance from the DfE changing daily. In the week before we broke up for summer there were 52 documents released in one week. Hope your son feels better soon!

Thriftygifty

This whole school thing is a nightmare.  I feel as though we are sitting ducks, I am watching lots of local schools popping up on local news saying how many children they have isolating etc, I feel as though our county was smug at the start of this with really low numbers and now we are rapidly catching up with the rest of the country, numbers are rising steadily thanks to uni and complacent people.  There is hardly any distancing going on from the parents at DS school, none of the children I see walking home in groups are distancing either.  It is not being enforced by the school other than a brief mention in the news letter.  I feel so disheartened by the whole thing.  One local school is isolating after a child tested positive who showed no symptoms but had a test as part of a trial and this is where the issue is, who knows who has it.  

So I guess my prepping will be what to do if and when we do get it or if we have to isolate, other than to pray of course.  I will be stocking up on easy food this week and some colouring bits for the kids. 

I rang the pharmacy earlier to check what time my flu vaccine appointment that I had made was and she said that she will call me next week as there is a shortage and they aren't sure if they will have any but she thinks it should be ok, with this in mind I rearranged DH from early Nov to middle of Oct. DS2 is having his at the surgery on Sat. 

euronorris

@Thriftygifty was it yourself that struggled to get paint for the kids crafts during lockdown? Or another poster? Either way, if you don't have any yet, best to get some in so you have some for kids entertainment if isolating or locked down again during the colder months.

MingVase

I think we all need to make sure we've got enough cold/flu/cough meds in the house - don't want to have to go out and stand in queues outside chemists in winter weather. Also maybe things like plasters and tummy meds. Get that sorted now

maryb

Back at the start of lockdown there was a shortage of paracetamol because most supplies come from India and I think there was an export ban.  Even now I have noticed gaps on the shelves and, of course, there are limits on how many packets you can buy.  Most places only let you buy two packs at a time although the land of pound will let you buy three for £1 - if they have them

I think it was Si Clist's  really useful post which set out how much paracetamol you actually need to see you through a week of flu or COVID and it's more than you think

[Deleted User]

I lurk on here and stay on Flylady mainly, just popping in with my two penneth worth. I teach in a large inner city comprehensive school with >2,000 students. My smallest class has 28 students in. 

Despite our absolute best efforts of putting a one way system in place around school, giving each year group a 'bubble' (laughable really when there's around 350 in each bubble) it's own entrance and exit point to school, constant hand sanitisation, cleaning desks at start and end of lessons (which it is my responsibility to do) and students wearing masks, things are not perfect and the compromise to get all these kids back into full time education is that social distancing is not possible. Schools simply don't have the space. 

Every day I am dealing with children who are anxious, parents who are anxious, parents who are angry, staff who are anxious and feel isolated (we cannot leave our classroom other than for a comfort break, lunch is to be eaten in our room and any interaction with other staff has to be via Teams. The staff room is shut). Kids feel antagonised by our constant reminders to wear masks properly, sanitise hands on entry/exit of classroom, follow one way system etc etc. 

I know some schools are handling this well, others not so well, and we all have so much anxiety around COVID anyway. I suppose the point of this is to say however it might seem outwardly with big gaggles of kids walking to school together, we are absolutely doing our best as staff from the minute they arrive in school to the minute they leave. I am surrounded by teens all day, and fear I will bring it home to my primary age children. I cannot see anybody else in the family as I am in the thick of it all day every day, and I cannot risk passing that on. But I do it because I love the young people I teach, and I love my job albeit I am finding it very very hard at the moment. Teaching for 6 hours with a 15 minute break for lunch, whilst wearing a visor, in a well ventilated (AKA freezing) room with no heating on is as much fun for me as it is for my students. Keeping my handful of SEN students calm when the world seems to be changing constantly is an exhausting mountain to climb each day, but we do. 

I hope someone can take some comfort from this behind the scenes insight into life in a secondary school that we really are doing the best we can, and for many staff that's at great personal cost. 

Take care all xx

maryb

If you've bought anything recently that you are thinking of taking back, don't leave it too long.  Not only are trips to town getting a bit more hazardous with rising case numbers, it could soon be a lot more hassle if,like Scotland, shops are ordered to reintroduce 2m distancing - that's if they don't get shut down again.  If you have to return things by post that will be an extra cost (as well as the hassle of queuing at the post office) - shops don't have to refund return postage unless the item is faulty.  I've just returned something and that is it for me for the foreseeable, quick dashes to the supermarket and nothing unneccesary