Day 20 Lockdown
Day 20 of 'circuit breaker' shutdown, Singapore.
no social distancing again!
photo by dsnake1
Day 20
This afternoon, around 2 p.m., I had to go out to pack some lunch. I know, today is a Sunday, but do everyone have to go out in the streets? There were so many private cars on the roads, a petrol station was parked full of vehicles. The bus I took for that short distance was quite packed. There were crowds at the supermarket at the mall. There were strollers talking on cell phones on the pavements.
Yesterday, I watched a video of a lockdown in Ireland on a literary website. How very contrasting the scenes over there and here. Not a single person in the empty streets, only a single running car in the entire video. And the words of the narrator :
"you see the empty football fields.., even the empty children's play parks, don't say to yourself, it looks like the end of the world, what you have seen is global action, what you have seen of those empty spaces is how much we do care for each other, how we care for the ground parks, for our brothers and sisters,....we care for people we never meet."
Yes, by staying home we do care for each other. So people, go out only when absolutely necessary. If by any indication, this lockdown here will be extended again. And I think all of us do not want that.
26/04/2020
**********
This is not a poem. Just a rant.
I am doing a day by day account of what I am doing (or not doing) during the lockdown. Dunno how long I will lose the interest. If you want to read from Day 1, please click HERE
© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ), 2020
photo by dsnake1
Day 20
This afternoon, around 2 p.m., I had to go out to pack some lunch. I know, today is a Sunday, but do everyone have to go out in the streets? There were so many private cars on the roads, a petrol station was parked full of vehicles. The bus I took for that short distance was quite packed. There were crowds at the supermarket at the mall. There were strollers talking on cell phones on the pavements.
Yesterday, I watched a video of a lockdown in Ireland on a literary website. How very contrasting the scenes over there and here. Not a single person in the empty streets, only a single running car in the entire video. And the words of the narrator :
"you see the empty football fields.., even the empty children's play parks, don't say to yourself, it looks like the end of the world, what you have seen is global action, what you have seen of those empty spaces is how much we do care for each other, how we care for the ground parks, for our brothers and sisters,....we care for people we never meet."
Yes, by staying home we do care for each other. So people, go out only when absolutely necessary. If by any indication, this lockdown here will be extended again. And I think all of us do not want that.
26/04/2020
**********
This is not a poem. Just a rant.
I am doing a day by day account of what I am doing (or not doing) during the lockdown. Dunno how long I will lose the interest. If you want to read from Day 1, please click HERE
© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ), 2020
Labels: circuit breaker shutdown, lockdown, Prose, rant, Singapore
posted by dsnake1 at 10:50 PM
17 Comments:
Sadly, the streets here (England - and I am unsure whether this is so in Scotland, Wales & N. Ireland)are beginning to see loose crowds of people again and there is more traffic on the roads. I don't think this is everywhere though, certainly not my little town, but probably it will soon come.
I think unless we are personally touched by this virus, we regard ourselves as being invincible and there the problem starts...
Stay safe.
Anna :o]
That's one wise prose piece, Lee San! Hopefully most of us will pay heed to the advice and not go out unnecessarily 💝
Makes me wonder about what restrictions exist where you are. Are they being enforced? I live in a small town. I don't go out much, except to the supermarket. I do see too many people ignoring social distancing and not wearing a mask. I do and wish others did too.
yes I love the solidarity to protect our older and people with compromised immune systems
Here we slowly see more and more cars on the road. Tomorrow we go to level 3 which means more people go back to work but social love will be still non-existent.
I agree! We must stay at home to protect each other and show that we care. I’m self-isolating on the advice of our health service and have been out only once to visit the doctor as I’ve had shingles. Living out in the countryside, I rarely see anyone, and this has increased since lockdown. Saying that, I don’t like crowds. I am used to the sort of scene described in the narrative from the video. Opposite our house is a football pitch, which is turning into a meadow. It’s covered with daisies and dandelions, and I love to walk around it for my daily exercise – and there’s no one else there.
That's OK, it's within the P&SU limit for prose. (Grin.) I think it's great that you're recording the experience.
Yes, we do keep others safe by staying home.. I am also doing a daily lockdown post.. and as it keeps getting extended, it is difficult to keep at it.. but it is a good ritual. Stay safe!
Each country has its own way of dealing with the crisis. Australia imposed some strict rules as soon as the first cases were identified and many shopping facilities were closed down and sport, entertainment, and many other services like hairdressers, cafes other non essential services were shut down as well. In some states already new Corona cases have ceased. This has ruined the economy but the deaths have been much less than many other countries in proportion.
Hopefully within a few months we can get back to normal but the financial cost to businesses has been huge.
Strange times indeed, when scenes of emptiness mean Someone Cares.
Anna,
yes, as it goes, this selfish "if it don't affect me it is not my problem" mentality exists, there will be problems. they don't understand the concept of its spread and containment.
stay safe.
Sanaa,
thank you!
i am one who likes to run around, but now i am staying home to play my part. strange times! :)
Myrna,
over here, most businesses are closed. Only essential services (security, garbage collection, mail, etc), supermarkets, wet markets and hawker centres (no dining-in) are allowed to operate. There are penalties (fines) for ignoring social distancing and not wearing masks when outside. Enforcement is being carried out, but how aggressively, i have no idea. No doubt we are living in densely populated urban areas but the number of people outside is still worrying.
Marja,
I am hearing about the good work your government and the people are doing in your country. Solidarity is the key. :)
Kim,
thank you for the comment.
i live in an urbanised area, still, i think there are people out there who have no business being outside.
Rosemary,
great, a rant is okay!
i am not too sure how long i can record the experience before losing interest. :)
Thotpurge,
thank you!
here, the lockdown has been extended another 4 weeks. probably hard to keep up with the postings but i will try. :)
Robin,
bitter medicine, but necessary. the economy can recover, but a lost life is just that. lost.
Teach,
strange times indeed. very strange.
I know that we all want this virus to stop spreading. But I also understand the communal stir craziness (and the despair that is starting to creep into the lives of those who have lost their livelihood). Like you says, sure, the act of self-isolating might show that we are aware and want to help, but... I think most of us are ready for things to get back to normal.
Total lockdown in India too.
Magaly,
true, many will worry that they are going to lose their jobs, predictions are we are going into a recession right after this. then there are those that do not understand how fast it can spread. and as the number of deaths is so small compared to other countries, a sense of complacency creeps in.
yeah, ready for things to get back to normal here in slightly over a month's time. :)
thank you for your comment.
magiceye,
yes, i heard about it .
I hear you and I dig you. :-)
Greetings from London.
😄
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