Observation Note 84: Lockdown 2021. And just like that, I find myself in lockdown again. Sydney has gone from zero community spread of Covid and a close-to-six-month-have-a-party-city (albeit with a few scares here and there) to more than eighty cases of Covid (the delta variant) in the space of two weeks. Watching the cases slowly rise has also resulted in curtailing my movements, cancelling trips out of the house, and though I have had three friends visit on three separate days, we were all cautiously distant. As of 6pm today, we have stay at home restrictions.
I’m feeling quite calm at the moment. It was quite the pleasant day. I slept in, I did some laundry, I picked up a prescription from the pharmacy, and I was stuck to the TV watching the NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian conduct two pressers to give information to Sydneysiders. This is in stark contrast to lockdown last year.
Observation Note 85: Lockdown 2020. For the first few months of last year’s lockdowns, I kept short notes as each day passed. I will share the first 10 days here:
sunday 15/3 – went nowhere
monday 16 /3- nowhere. realise my great-grandmother died of the Spanish Flu
tuesday 17/3 – uni and supervision – drove there – did not touch anything
wednesday 18/3 – nowhere. I just realised that my grandmother also died due to an environmental crisis – she became ill when Chernobyl occurred
Thursday 19/3 – nightmare – pharmacy, supreme souvlakia, mum. The only outdoor thing that didn’t freak me out was going for a walk along the Annandale/Glebe foreshore with John
Friday 20/3 – I am being strict with myself. I am having such acute anxiety attacks on the days that I go into any place. I just can’t do it.
Saturday 21/3 – I am still strict. I was mostly distanced. I stayed at home.
Sunday 22/3 – I stayed home until 6pm. Trying to not be overwhelmed. People are being racist dickheads.
A note here: it was exactly a month ago that John and I had our big 50/50 birthday party. What a fabulous night of dancing and partying. I remember on the night just feeling happy surrounded by so many friends and family and dancing. Dancing makes me happy. But even though we were doing all that, I knew what was looming
Observation Note 86: Later thoughts from 2020. I realise as I read through last year’s thoughts that I was not coping with the uncertainty of the virus. An excerpt here:
The pandemic brought a screeching halt to the chaotic speed that every day had become, instead bringing a snail-paced Blursday anxiety where every day is lived in my home, every movement beyond its walls needing to be considered and strategised, every sniffle and cough bringing worry and concern – have I caught a cold? have I caught covid19? am I a hypochondriac? is this just my asthma? is this just my hay fever? what if I am not a hypochondriac, this isn’t asthma or hayfever and I have actually just infected my whole family? But wait. It is more likely they infected me as they go out more than I do. Sigh of relief.
Observation Note 87: Last month. I had my first vaccination shot a month ago. I know this does not mean I am safe or immune. I’m annoyed and angry and beside myself that our federal government has dragged their feet over the vaccination rollout. To quote our odious Prime Minister and many of his party’s ministers “It isn’t a race“. The fact is, it is a race. And this smirking dickhead has failed all Australians. Here is hoping that a lockdown controls the spread. Once again, our states protect their citizens.
Observation Note 88. Today. I hope my sons, who unfortunately are not yet eligible for the vaccine (yet both are desperately wanting to have their jabs) are OK and they get through the coming months without grief. I am hoping that I don’t get anxious again. I am hoping to keep panic at bay. My mind keeps going to my mum who was born into and brought up through two wars – World War II and the Greek Civil War. I hope she stays safe through this current wave of the pandemic too. I can’t help but think of her mother and grandmother.
Shallowreader 
I’m sorry to hear about your lockdown, Vassiliki. My mum and I saw the news headline on CBC Newsnet only minutes ago. I believe it’s a two-week one, right? Bearable, doable, to keep you and Sydneyites safe. We are doing well, but the “opening-up” makes me nervous, too much, too soon, too fast. But that’s me. I tend to be an “in” person rather than “out,” except for work, groceries, pharmacy, and church, but people need to be out and about, so I understand. Lighting a candle for you tomorrow and especially for your boys to get their jabs. Mama and I got our second doses last week, but we’re still careful. My mum had the 1950s Asian flu and survived. It won’t be the first, or the last, and I hope we’ve learned something from it … obviously, not your shit-for-brains PM.
Two weeks is fine. Months and months is fine. Whatever it takes. It’s when morons are in charge of facilitating vaccinations and quarantine (and they don’t) that is not fine. Thanks for the candle. I filled the house with livani.
I’m sorry about your lockdown. Your PM got smug that Australia had handled the pandemic well, and that is very very true, so he dragged his feet with the vaccination rollout. And now, you are paying the price. Still, the quick lockdown and smart Sydneysiders who obey, means that this outbreak will be brought under control quickly. I hope the PM has seen the light and will hustle to get the vaccination program going in a big way.
He is smug and awful. And smug without even having done anything. If it was up to him, we would have followed the US and UK leaders (the horror!). However, our states took charge. It was their hard work. And the whole time, it is the states that are trying to push along the vaccines. But the federal government really doesn’t care. The deputy prime minister today was quoted in the Herald Sun (behind a paywall) as saying ““…in country areas we couldn’t really give a shit. We’ve got record exports of coal. Record exports of beef. But we look at Melbourne, and go, you can almost smell the burning flesh from here.” They are reprehensible people. 😦
Truly the gift that keeps on giving. 😦 I think things are getting more dangerous here as well, but it doesn’t seem like the genie is going to go back in the bottle.
No. I think getting back in the bottle is not going to happen. The danger especially to unvaccinated people is horrifying. Just under 5% of our population has been fully vaccinated which is atrocious. If this variant gets completely out of control, we have very little protection, beyond the hard work of our state governments who are coordinating their efforts.