Now that we are through Thanksgiving........

[Dan Murphy]

So will everyone open all their presents via zoom.........not sure if my grandkids will understand that especially if they won't be able to actually play with their gifts for months on end.

Just saying.....Christmas with presents and Santa..... is a hair different then eating some turkey and watching the Lions lose AGAIN!

It's better to forgo togetherness for one Christmas than all of them in the future. JMO

 

[neverlandsky]

Just us 4 for the holidays due to DH being exposed by thousands on a daily basis working. Buying e-gift cards for extended family so I don’t have to wait in line at UPS. Majority of Christmas shopping was wrapped up two weeks ago. Buying everything else online. Now switching to curbside pickup for groceries.

Wish blue laws would return where grocery stores can close on Sundays just for cleaning, restocking, and a much needed break from the public. Customers have been very abusive to staff members.

 

[fortwildernessishome]

What about Christmas? I was just reading an article where Fauci was saying he is concerned that we are heading into a "dark holiday season" as the surge in cases is likely to persist through Christmas and New Years. Sigh. I am so looking forward to this pandemic getting under control. What do you all think will happen in the coming months? Things will get better or worse? Vaccine out next month? Will people gather/travel for Christmas? I just don't know what to think.

We knew back in June/July that we wouldnt be gathering for Christmas. Even back then, it was obvious that no major changes as far as beating the virus was going to happen this year! If we could gather outside and physically distance, that would be one thing, but all being together inside, even with masks on, just isnt going to happen for us.

I agree with other posters, even though the vaccine should be out next month, its going to take many, many months for enough people to vaccinated to make a real difference.

 

[penn19]

This post doesn't make any sense. Some businesses are essential for society to run. Utilities, hospitals, grocery stores, some financial institutions. It is just reality. That doesn't make them "safe", it just means we couldn't run without them. That doesn't mean anyone is living a dream high on a pedestal in a pandemic, it is just reality.

On the other hand other things are not necessary. You can go a year or longer without a haircut, or going to a movie, or eating inside a restaurant, or seeing extended family, or getting a tattoo, or going to a bar. You don't ignore the unessessary added risks of the non-essential things because of the essential things. If that means you just go to work, the grocery store, the bank, and nowhere else that is what it means. It is what I'm doing and many other people that aren't just thinking about themselves.

I don’t get this. If it’s a pandemic it’s a pandemic. A liquor store is essential? We are picking winners and losers. And. (Not mentioning names or locations) but if you tell people don’t travel but you in fact travel yourself you have to ask why people question all the “rules”.

 

[fortwildernessishome]

I am honestly hoping that things get canceled with DH's side for Christmas.

Don't "hope" for things to get canceled, either you and your husband cancel it, or just let that side of the family know now, that you won't be attending.

My family all decided last summer that we wouldnt be getting together. However, my husband just recently let his brother know that we wouldnt be part of their Christmas party this year. I imagine that all of my husbands siblings/families will get together, but we won't be a part of it, and they all know that.

 

[fortwildernessishome]

So will everyone open all their presents via zoom.........not sure if my grandkids will understand that especially if they won't be able to actually play with their gifts for months on end.

Just saying.....Christmas with presents and Santa..... is a hair different then eating some turkey and watching the Lions lose AGAIN!

Why can't they play with their gifts for months on end??

Send them their gifts, watch them open their gifts on zoom or facetime, then they play with their gifts.

What am I missing here?

 

[Dan Murphy]

Just talked to my son this evening. He was working yesterday, firefighter/paramedic. He said he is going on 2 or 3 COVID calls per 24 hour shifts now. Yesterday he went on one, 18 year old girl, COVID, stroke, dead.

 

[mom2rtk]

This post doesn't make any sense. Some businesses are essential for society to run. Utilities, hospitals, grocery stores, some financial institutions. It is just reality. That doesn't make them "safe", it just means we couldn't run without them. That doesn't mean anyone is living a dream high on a pedestal in a pandemic, it is just reality.

On the other hand other things are not necessary. You can go a year or longer without a haircut, or going to a movie, or eating inside a restaurant, or seeing extended family, or getting a tattoo, or going to a bar. You don't ignore the unessessary added risks of the non-essential things because of the essential things. If that means you just go to work, the grocery store, the bank, and nowhere else that is what it means. It is what I'm doing and many other people that aren't just thinking about themselves.

Hair cuts might not be necessary. But hair stylists feeding their families IS necessary. That's the link people are missing.

This is all a much bigger issue than it was back in the spring since our elected officials decided to play politics instead of passing any sort of additional help for the businesses they were closing (and the people working there).

 

[wenrob]

So will everyone open all their presents via zoom.........not sure if my grandkids will understand that especially if they won't be able to actually play with their gifts for months on end.

Just saying.....Christmas with presents and Santa..... is a hair different then eating some turkey and watching the Lions lose AGAIN!

Yes we’ll be opening presents together via FaceTime. Already have our spots picked out for the iPads to be set up.

I'm a bit confused then.....is your son opening the actual gifts or not??? How old is your son? I'm talking about gifts from far away that will not be opened because the recipient is not there because of all this and that recipient is a 3 and a half yr old boy.

Can’t you mail the gifts to him? You don’t even have to go anywhere to mail them. You can print the labels from home and USPS will pick them up on a regular mail day for no extra charge.

 

[SaintsManiac]

Yes we’ll be opening presents together via FaceTime. Already have our spots picked out for the iPads to be set up.

Can’t you mail the gifts to him?

We did this a couple of years ago with my in-laws since we couldn’t be in person then, either. It’s fun because everyone can stay in their PJs and relax.

 

[wenrob]

We did this a couple of years ago with my in-laws since we could be in person then, either. It’s fun because everyone can stay in their PJs and relax.

I still bought my kids matching PJs for Christmas Eve. DH has the ginormous iPad Pro so I plan to have my teens hold it up between them with their sister on FaceTime so I can get my traditional photo. I’d much rather have her here but you do what you have to do. We’ll make the best of it.

 

[Farro]

You might find the cases in Denmark and the dramatic culling of farmed mink to be interesting. It speaks directly to your concern. As far as I can tell, this is a reality- although not said much on national news outlets. I'm not mentioning it to be a fear-monger, it's really just biology. Organisms will evolve over time, viruses will mutate. The mutation in Denmark is one I'll keep an eye on, while still adhering to public health precautions, etc. etc.

On other thread topics:
There's no doubt there's a significant economic predicament caused by the way this virus transmits. Whether pre-symptomatic or completely asymptomatic, the virulence is problematic. I expect post-Thanksgiving figures to scale up the percentages we've already seen. A certain amount will be asymptomatic, a certain amount hospitalized, and very sadly a certain amount will die. (Ugh, I think I need a soothing cuppa tea.)

I have no idea what your post is trying to imply, but most virus mutations result in virus spreading easier but virus becomes less virulent. Thats how a virus survives. Very rarely do they become more deadly. The deadlier a virus, the easier to contain. Viruses want to thrive.

 

[sweetpeama]

Don't "hope" for things to get canceled, either you and your husband cancel it, or just let that side of the family know now, that you won't be attending.

My family all decided last summer that we wouldnt be getting together. However, my husband just recently let his brother know that we wouldnt be part of their Christmas party this year. I imagine that all of my husbands siblings/families will get together, but we won't be a part of it, and they all know that.

I would love to do that but I need to toe the line of marital harmony and not making his family especially is sister any more upset because we don't spend every single holiday with them in a normal year. Both his brother's either are or were married to partners who didn't have much if any of a relationship with their families or they hosted on years that the spouses family could make the trip from out of state (parents only no siblings and their families). For the most part I have a good relationship with my family so even though we no longer get together for holidays with the extended family on my mom's side-aunts, uncles, and cousins on my dad's side all live out of state mostly in the Southwest-due to the family being too large to host everyone indoors for holidays with some of my cousins even having grandkids now. Mom has 6 siblings and I am one of 24 cousins though only 23 of us are surviving so you can imagine the numbers when you add in spouses, kids, spouses or significant others of the kids, and the grandkids of my cousins who have them it is just too many of us to have everyone together when we can't have most of us outside. Christmas here on a warm year is in the mid to high 40s so not exactly spend a lot of time outdoors weather of course we could also have sub zero tempatures along with snow and ice. We do have get togethers in a normal year in the late spring to early fall when the weather is nice enough that we can be outside. We had our last one in September of 2019 and had plans to have one in late May to early June of 2020 which naturally ended up canceled.
Originally until a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving they had planned on having everyone except us since we would be celebrating with my family this year get together but one of sister's daughters is expecting and is in a high risk pregnancy due to some muscle and ligament disorder so the decision was made that sister's daughters would celebrate together in the town they live in a few hours away, and the rest would celebrate in a couple of smaller gatherings. To be honest I don't see the expectant mother's provider having a different stance on things unless numbers go way down for Christmas so I am thinking it is going to be smaller gatherings and there will just be an exchange of gifts for the kids under 18 . If it starts looking that way I have the gifts for the little ones who are out of town and by the end of next week will have the gifts for everyone else here from the orders I completed on Friday along with a couple of items I need to either send DH to go and get or place an order if he can't find it in the store which he had better be able to as I used the store location I use the most to search and see if it was in the store. The only shopping for Christmas we have left to do is a small item for my 13 year old special needs child to go in the stocking maybe two items if we can not find the hair scruncies I ordered and received already for her, a couple of items for DH if I can't have it placed on my walmart grocery order for Monday and have to order it shipped to me from the online shopping, and of course DH and our oldest need to shop for me. We are not letting our youngest go into stores other than when numbers were low here the auto parts store that one of my cousins is the manager of because if it is too many people the kids can go hang in the office away from everyone while DH gets the shopping done. She is getting better about using a mask but tends to freak out with the mask and freaks out with crowds of people so it is better that we avoid the combination of the two when it is not necessary to take her into places. If we pick up items from the store on Fridays when we are in town DH goes into the store and I remain in our truck with both kids otherwise if it is a pick up from curbside order at least DH or our almost 16 year old stay home with her if not both of them and I go and do the curbside pickup or DH is currently having to get items on his way into work and if it is not going to be cold enough his entire shift to keep any refidgerated items as he is normally getting things like milk and bread he can place the milk in the fridge at work with his name on it. Hopefully after the new year we can go back to at least on grocery store being open past 10 PM and before 4 AM so DH can stop and pick up the milk and bread on his way home from work. (I really don't get why the one grocery store that was open could not have stayed open because having had to drop DH off at work a few times when I needed the truck which is currently our only running vehicle and having had to pick him up from work sometime in the 1:30-3 am range when he got off work there are a heclk of a lot less vehicles in the parking lot at that time of the morning than at even between 6 and 7 am much less after 7 am even in the middle of the week. Instead we either have to do a very lmited pickup of items that if they would be damaged if frozen DH can place in his work locker or instead of a mile round trip out of his way to get those items which are less than 10 dollars for the total order we either have to place a minimium of a 35 dollar order to do a curbside pickup or make a special trip into town which is a 9 mile round trip. But what does the county health inspectors office care they work Mon-Fri 8-5 and can go shopping for items easily after work on their way home for their groceries who gives a rats behind about the people working in warehouses to make sure the trucks that not only are bringing food to resturants but to the hospitals, prisons, and schools are loaded and delivered or the truckers who end up with their hours they can drive being done after 10 PM being able to get something to eat unless it is from a drivethru window which they can not navigate with even the cap portion of their trucks much less the trailers they are hauling because not even a grocery store is open or a gas station other than the pumps. Even though the grocery stores tend to close the deli areas earlier they could pick up some items if they needed them or even a sandwich and chips kit if there are some left in a grab and go style.

 

[ronandannette]

I'm a bit confused then.....is your son opening the actual gifts or not??? How old is your son? I'm talking about gifts from far away that will not be opened because the recipient is not there because of all this and that recipient is a 3 and a half yr old boy.

Hey Kitty - count me in amongst the people who think we must be misunderstanding something. Send the little guy the gifts and watch him open them over Skype. There's plenty of time to ship things practically anywhere before Christmas.

We are doing a wait and see for Christmas too. Guidelines in our area seem to be changing weekly. We only decided about Thanksgiving a few days before. Our son and girlfriend who "semi-quarantined" (masked, distanced, only out for necessities like we do all the time)for two weeks in order to come for Thanksgiving are waiting to see if they've been able to control what their exposure level has been. Our son and wife who go about their business (masked and distanced but going out for more than necessities) are saying they want to come. It's going to be hard if we have to tell them no because they rarely decide to join us on holidays.

Well, at least our wait is over to see what will happen and I guess it's a relief to have the decisions made. On Tuesday our province declared a number of new restrictions including that we may admit no one to our homes that are not full-time residents (excepting for essential service personnel). This means nobody has Christmas with anybody outside their household - period. This is enforceable with fines beginning at $1,000 per person found to be in violation and already there are news reports of tickets being issued. $1,000 buys a lot of Christmas gifts to drop on doorsteps or send in the mail - nobody I know would even contemplate risking it.

Yes, the term acceptable risk is back. Risk is acceptable because some people need to work so others can live the dream, high on their pedestal from the comfort of their home telling people how many lives they are saving.

Quite frankly, I make no pretense about my work being a huge contribution to the greater good, but it is (currently) permitted and as long as it is, I'm not giving up my income. DH and I are fortunate to be employed in sectors that have been allowed to continue operations uninterrupted and it's a small miracle to have held onto our jobs when so many others have lost theirs.

 

[John VN]

Time for a brief intermission --- (???)

we could sure use Michael Rennie and Klaatu right now

 

[mom2rtk]

I still bought my kids matching PJs for Christmas Eve. DH has the ginormous iPad Pro so I plan to have my teens hold it up between them with their sister on FaceTime so I can get my traditional photo. I’d much rather have her here but you do what you have to do. We’ll make the best of it.

What a great idea. Kudos for keeping her closely included! That will make a very memorable family photo. I'm sure you're looking forward to laughing about it in years to come.

 

[mjkacmom]

I'm a bit confused then.....is your son opening the actual gifts or not??? How old is your son? I'm talking about gifts from far away that will not be opened because the recipient is not there because of all this and that recipient is a 3 and a half yr old boy.

Can’t you mail gifts?

 

[Jim Libasci]

I’m guessing you don’t cut hair or work in a movie theatre or work at a restaurant.

I'm confused you make it sound like if you work in a Movie theater or barber shop that makes it essential. it doesn't. I'm a firm believer in the Cares act and other bills that need to be passed to pay people to stay home.

 

[mom2rtk]

I'm confused you make it sound like if you work in a Movie theater or barber shop that makes it essential. it doesn't. I'm a firm believer in the Cares act and other bills that need to be passed to pay people to stay home.

That money is long gone and nobody seems in a hurry to pass more money. People's ability to just sit around and wait for Congress to get it together is mostly long gone. People can't stay home because someone "should" pass a bill. They needed money weeks or months ago and many are just barely hanging on. Even if something was passed today, it will be weeks or months before help gets in their hands.

 

[barkley]

i'm concerned for our neck of the woods. we are seeing numbers higher than ever. we were doing pretty well but began an uptick when some area colleges saw a big return of students who despite not having in person classes decided that since they were obligated to pay for apartment leases they signed pre pandemic that they were going to live in those apartments (though a good number are NOT paying b/c they are taking advantage of non eviction protection laws in place) and continue to socialize as they had pre pandemic add in folks of all ages who just don't or won't believe this illness is serious business so they don't do simple preventative measures and it's a recipe for disaster. those communities saw huge upticks which spread to adjacent communities...so our numbers (and deaths which are now growing in the younger age categories) go up, up and up.

we are being told the current big uptick is due to halloween gatherings. based on the local news footage last night of all the travelers at the local airport along with the masses in line for black friday sales (we are restricted to 25% capacity INSIDE retail-that doesn't mean shoppers are following social distancing when they are in line outside) and come a couple of weeks from now i suspect numbers will be far worse.

i was supposed to have a doctors appointment last spring-they rescheduled it to next week b/c back then it was thought we would be in an in between point covid and flu wise for the county so it would be safer for those of us high risk to delay. i'm calling monday to cancel. it's not essential so for me it's not worth the risk of exposure. if the doctor wants to do it by phone-fine but i'm not stepping foot into a medical facility if i can help it.