Covid-19 - Labour Day Monday 26 Oct 2020

And still this disease is with us, though we in New Zealand have it very easy stuck on our waka in the middle of the Pacific. Life fairly much goes on as normal - unless you want to go on an overseas trip or have family who can't get home. 

We've had a few glitches along the way though. An Auckland outbreak in August saw us return to Level 2. Auckland was on Level 3 for some weeks, and sadly three more lives were lost: two brothers and a well-respected Cook Island doctor. So what did that mean for us in Motueka? Not a lot really. There was supposed to be only one person from each family in the supermarket, we had to sit at an assigned table in a hospitality establishment and have table service, we continued to use our Covid Tracker app. The bubble buddy asked yesterday where it kept our visits recorded and I showed him. Back at level 1 now, the biggest concern is a group of several hundred Russian seamen who have been imported to work on fishing vessels. Despite a number of precautions, the virus sneaked in with them. About 35 seamen now have the disease. And there's been another case of community transmission - this time a technician in full PPE picked up the bug from a boat. Currently that has created four community cases and it looks hopeful that once again the systems in place have protected us all from a larger outbreak.

As it's Labour Weekend, Kiwis are out and about in force. As no one can travel overseas, people are travelling at home. As usual, some are moaning about the price of things; tourism operators especially in Queenstown are still spouting doom and gloom. Unsurprisingly, there are 6 road deaths at this point in the long weekend. It will be interesting to see what the summer will bring. If we can continue to let New Zealanders come home, and allow those on work visas trapped overseas get back, then slowly increase the number of workers in other industries, things will keep improving. Roll on Christmas holidays!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

52 Ancestors Week 1 - Start: Mary Ann (Grey) Edwards, my great great grandmother

Image
It's summer in New Zealand; Christmas and New Year have flown by. As summer holidays are the start of our year, I thought about how I spent it as a child. Summer holidays always meant a day-long journey from Wellington to Tauranga in a stifling hot car along windy, dusty roads; trips to the Mount (Mount Maunganui, a popular surf beach) and Nana. Nana-in-Tauranga was the only grandparent I ever knew as she had been widowed just before my younger brother was born. My other grandparents were shadowy figures: Granny-in-Scotland and Grandpa. In the 1960s, communication was by aerogramme and my only contact was writing two letters a year to thank them for the postal note they sent at Christmas and for my birthday in June. Arriving at Nana's was tinged with both excitement and relief. Heading inside the back door on the left hand side, the first thing I always saw was a large portrait of a white haired lady. And to me, she was a lady! She was dressed in black with a high-necked wh
Read more

52 Ancestors - Week 14 - Maiden Aunt - Lydia Woolcock

The term "maiden aunt" is negative, but my grandfather's maiden aunt, Lydia Woolcock, was destined to make a difference regardless of marital status. Sadly, until I started my family history research, I had never heard of her. Did any of her fifteen New Zealand half-nieces and nephews know about her either? Lydia, an only child, was born in 1854 into a middle class Cornwall farming family with incredibly strong Wesleyan roots. Her mother, Betsy Lawry, was the cousin of the Rev. Walter Lawry, who was the second Wesleyan minister to New South Wales, the first missionary to Tonga and later superintendent of the Wesleyan missions in New Zealand and Fiji. Betsy had married at 43 and must have been surprised to have Lydia, the honeymoon baby, the following year. Betsy's husband, Charles Woolcock, a mere lad of 25, was a successful farmer who had aspirations. Why he married a woman so much older than himself is anyone's guess. Was there pressure from his widowed mother
Read more

52 Ancestors - Week 7 - Valentine's Day - Mary and John McMichael

Image
Valentine's Day is a relatively new phenomenon for New Zealanders. I have no recollection of it growing up as a teenager  in the 1970s. As most of research is based on my local ancestors, that causes a problem. There is no-one who was born, was married or even passed away on 14 February. However, I did inherit my Scottish grandmother's engagement ring in its heart-shaped box and after a few sums, I realise my father's parents, John McMichael and Mary King, probably hold the record for the longest family marriage. Their marriage would be perfect for a Valentine's Day tribute. Firstly, the engagement ring. It is still in its original, tiny leather box lined with cream velvet and satin. Over 100 years later is starting to show its age. The box was originally navy blue, though the colour has faded and the gold tooling has worn off. The little hook on the side is quite bent, yet opens easily. The ring is gold with quite a complicated high chased bridge. Along the
Read more