Food and Drink #20

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 4, 2021

Watching Succession but Now is being glitchy so I think I may change to something else.

I made the sprout pasta thing…. Life/the MT got in the way earlier in the week so we have an altered version tonight.

We had a loudhailer wake us up at 3am this morning. Student fun and laughs as usual.

emm · Dec 4, 2021

Nottonightbabe said:
My cat is definitely eating more at the mo. She's munched her way through her months supply of biscuits early this month so I had to move her subscription forward. Am upping her wet food this month though, so I'm hoping that'll keep her satisfied and she'll stop bleating at me!

I have had to put all of their food in the fridge as they have learned to open any drawers/cupboards

My vet advised me not to give dry food (unless it is for a specific health condition they have to have it) as it is actually less satiating and more fattening than wet food

Captainmouse · Dec 4, 2021

Universal said:
@Falkor so sorry about 34. I am over invested in the the ladies and feel quite sad.

Thanks for all of the good wishes about the job. I have not told anyone else as I still cant believe it. I have worked hard to get where I am but come from a humble background and its a privilege to be able to make a difference. I have a sister with a disability who through her own determination and family support lives a wonderful life. I am now in a situation where I can influence government strategy so other people who dont have the support she has can do the same .

What's everyone's plans for tonight? The weather is rubbish here and its dark already. I am watching box sets under a blankie.

Well done you.
I shall be having a strictly tattle along tonight

traumatised sideboard · Dec 4, 2021

My cat is also being a head and constantly screaming at me. The food she's been eating was discontinued so I've been frantically scouring the internet for hypoallergenic food and there are some interesting options out there, including delights such as venison and rabbit with blueberries and reindeer chunks in unspecified sauce. She's starting to look a bit spherical and I can't tell if she's actually getting chonky or if she's just fluffed up for winter.

This morning I got an email from my physio (who I saw yesterday) to tell me he's COVID positive so now I've got to go for a PCR test tomorrow. Trying not to worry about it or catastrophise but with the new variant and the possibility of re-infection I am terrified about the prospect of potentially having to spend ten days in complete isolation again. If I start posting lists of every one of my favourite foods at all hours, you'll know I've caught it.

AlphaBetaDeux · Dec 4, 2021

Congratulations on the new role Universal, I know that Jack wouldn’t ever like to acknowledge this but we are a pretty diverse and intelligent cable.

Sorry for the loss of #34 falkor, and I now know never to take a soggy sheep into the house if I find one hanging around (niche knowledge!).

Absolutely freezing here tonight, so it’s haggis and baked potato in front of the F1 qualifying on TV!

traumatised sideboard said:
My cat is also being a head and constantly screaming at me. The food she's been eating was discontinued so I've been frantically scouring the internet for hypoallergenic food and there are some interesting options out there, including delights such as venison and rabbit with blueberries and reindeer chunks in unspecified sauce. She's starting to look a bit spherical and I can't tell if she's actually getting chonky or if she's just fluffed up for winter.

This morning I got an email from my physio (who I saw yesterday) to tell me he's COVID positive so now I've got to go for a PCR test tomorrow. Trying not to worry about it or catastrophise but with the new variant and the possibility of re-infection I am terrified about the prospect of potentially having to spend ten days in complete isolation again. If I start posting lists of every one of my favourite foods at all hours, you'll know I've caught it.

Fingers crossed for a negative PCR Sidey T!

HotesTilaire · Dec 4, 2021

@Into_the_tunnel is Now your internet supplier? I have them and they’ve been a right PITA the last few weeks, I started to wonder if they want me off broadband and on fibre or something. It’s so annoying.
Sidey T hope all is well, hopefully you won’t have to isolate with a head of a cat for 10 days. Sideboard cat could facilitate this by not being a head....yeah let’s hope you don’t need to isolate

Readingismyhobby · Dec 4, 2021

I have been refilling my bird feeder every day this week. The starlings have discovered it, it’s supposed to be for the sparrows

. Ps, don’t have a problem with starlings, but prefer sparrows.

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 4, 2021

HotesTilaire said:
@Into_the_tunnel is Now your internet supplier? I have them and they’ve been a right PITA the last few weeks, I started to wonder if they want me off broadband and on fibre or something. It’s so annoying.
Sidey T hope all is well, hopefully you won’t have to isolate with a head of a cat for 10 days. Sideboard cat could facilitate this by not being a head....yeah let’s hope you don’t need to isolate

BT for my sins… it is the NOW app that is being odd. Given up for now. I don’t want it to end so are not watching them all! BT is no better TBH, Virgin dug up my street in the last house. I hate them all!!!!

Fingers crossed for a negative test too xxx. Going back to isolation must be awful. However, having a spherical cat surely will cheer you up. We have a pyramidal one near us (sister to the fighting one) I love her. She doesn’t move much.

heretoreaditall2019 · Dec 4, 2021

Congratulations @Universal ! And thank you for sharing your experiences of being a working mum, it’s still something that’s not really spoken about because we all feel compelled to squash our family life down in the work place so this is a thing too! Pregnant then screwed posted some fabulous news about a woman who won £300k cos she’d recorded her discrimination, I really wish I had so strongly advise any women to record these sorts of convos cos sadly employers are still bellends!

Condolences @Falkor

Hoping you’re well @traumatised sideboard

I know it’s much easier said than done but one day at a time - the next big thing is the PCR then you can review what the situation is.

Is anyone else scared of another proper lockdown happening now? The Arthur case has broken my heart I really wish I had never heard the audio the midlands police released of his last morning it’s really affected me and now I’m pro actively against lockdowns. There’s not adequate support for anyone isolated or vulnerable, women and children in this country that they can assure us of everyone’s safety so they just can’t do it again? Look at all that’s happened, how can they justify it? Is this an alt right YouTube algorithm opinion to have?

Not me-railing or being a grief thief but it’s really affected me I’ve been crying 3+ times a day thinking of poor little Arthur feeling the things he said & no one responding to his needs. This country is truly the pits that we can’t help kids in these situations? Like it’s not even as if we can do anything to help? Sorry for the hysteria just not looking forward to the next few weeks as apparently the times are reporting some stuff on a return to the wfh mandate which feels like a precursor to a lockdown.

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 4, 2021

heretoreaditall2019 said:
Congratulations @Universal ! And thank you for sharing your experiences of being a working mum, it’s still something that’s not really spoken about because we all feel compelled to squash our family life down in the work place so this is a thing too! Pregnant then screwed posted some fabulous news about a woman who won £300k cos she’d recorded her discrimination, I really wish I had so strongly advise any women to record these sorts of convos cos sadly employers are still bellends!

Condolences @Falkor

Hoping you’re well @traumatised sideboard I know it’s much easier said than done but one day at a time - the next big thing is the PCR then you can review what the situation is.

Is anyone else scared of another proper lockdown happening now? The Arthur case has broken my heart I really wish I had never heard the audio the midlands police released of his last morning it’s really affected me and now I’m pro actively against lockdowns. There’s not adequate support for anyone isolated or vulnerable, women and children in this country that they can assure us of everyone’s safety so they just can’t do it again? Look at all that’s happened, how can they justify it? Is this an alt right YouTube algorithm opinion to have?

Not me-railing or being a grief thief but it’s really affected me I’ve been crying 3+ times a day thinking of poor little Arthur feeling the things he said & no one responding to his needs. This country is truly the pits that we can’t help kids in these situations? Like it’s not even as if we can do anything to help? Sorry for the hysteria just not looking forward to the next few weeks as apparently the times are reporting some stuff on a return to the wfh mandate which feels like a precursor to a lockdown.

I am so sorry you are feeling like this. The case is so upsetting. I agree that lockdown exacerbated situations like this but unfortunately not a unique incident.

Mrs T and I have witnessed first hand the fallouts (which have gone to court and very nearly ended like this) from families not coping and agencies not working together to help, support and ring the sirens when things are not going the way they should. The utter deprivation I witnessed was so hard to bear at times contrasted with the wasteful nature of society. When I read on forums that the teachers and SS were to blame for not picking up on things, it breaks my heart. SS is at breaking point. The teachers were stretched beyond their limit last year, yet I was regularly bringing breakfast for my FSM students for most of my teaching career so I knew they would have two meals a day. This has been going on for years.

So who is to blame, directly and indirectly?

Sorry for the slight derail and rant. I can’t cope with the story either, and knowing it is going on up and down the country is just heartbreaking.

heretoreaditall2019 · Dec 4, 2021

Into_the_tunnel said:
I am so sorry you are feeling like this. The case is so upsetting. I agree that lockdown exacerbated situations like this but unfortunately not a unique incident.

Mrs T and I have witnessed first hand the fallouts (which have gone to court and very nearly ended like this) from families not coping and agencies not working together to help, support and ring the sirens when things are not going the way they should. The utter deprivation I witnessed was so hard to bear at times contrasted with the wasteful nature of society. When I read on forums that the teachers and SS were to blame for not picking up on things, it breaks my heart. SS is at breaking point. The teachers were stretched beyond their limit last year, yet I was regularly bringing breakfast for my FSM students for most of my teaching career so I knew they would have two meals a day. This has been going on for years.

So who is to blame, directly and indirectly?

Sorry for the slight derail and rant. I can’t cope with the story either, and knowing it is going on up and down the country is just heartbreaking.

Omg no don’t apologise, I’m sorry didn’t mean to sound vile and self centred at all, just it’s really shocked me tbh. But it sounds as if anyone who works with/adjacent to kids & families have seen something along these lines? Even that really shocks me, and I grew up in an abusive home but you just assume that as society progresses these things get better? Maybe it’s being willfully ignorant tbh.

Agree I think there’s always a witch hunt to blame anyone / any system, the head of that social services department has already been featured in the DM. Everything is so stretched and it’s like the health visitors that didn’t do anything during the pandemic - the kids that need third party help/oversight/intervention won’t have the parents pestering their local trust to get an appointment. There will always be people that fall through the gaps even in a well funded system. I mean surely we could roll this back to the disintegration of society and focus on centring self/your family (most people vote for what betters their family directly rather than the society their family exist in - don’t they? Like statistically I swear that’s a thing?) hence repeated Tory governments.

The one thing we can do I suppose is make reports if that ever becomes a situation we are exposed to & teach our children to know what’s right and wrong and speak up in all situations. It’s just so worrying, it feels like we’re in some form of Victorian throwback the way children and their care givers (teachers, SS, etc?) are being treated by this gov?

Sending love though, can’t imagine how heart breaking this would be to witness IRL. How tit working in these circumstances must be too. Just so sad, there needn’t be all this suffering idk why the government is hell bent on this?

HotesTilaire · Dec 4, 2021

I agree SW etc have had funding cut and services are stretched, this impacts on how effective they are. The lockdown created a perfect storm because we’d never had a lockdown before, the contingencies weren’t in place. I think if it happened again there would be different approaches.
Unfortunately that woman was determined to kill Arthur and that man wasn’t any better, and I’m sure even without lockdown she would have achieved this.

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 4, 2021

heretoreaditall2019 said:
Omg no don’t apologise, I’m sorry didn’t mean to sound vile and self centred at all, just it’s really shocked me tbh. But it sounds as if anyone who works with/adjacent to kids & families have seen something along these lines? Even that really shocks me, and I grew up in an abusive home but you just assume that as society progresses these things get better? Maybe it’s being willfully ignorant tbh.

Agree I think there’s always a witch hunt to blame anyone / any system, the head of that social services department has already been featured in the DM. Everything is so stretched and it’s like the health visitors that didn’t do anything during the pandemic - the kids that need third party help/oversight/intervention won’t have the parents pestering their local trust to get an appointment. There will always be people that fall through the gaps even in a well funded system. I mean surely we could roll this back to the disintegration of society and focus on centring self/your family (most people vote for what betters their family directly rather than the society their family exist in - don’t they? Like statistically I swear that’s a thing?) hence repeated Tory governments.

The one thing we can do I suppose is make reports if that ever becomes a situation we are exposed to & teach our children to know what’s right and wrong and speak up in all situations. It’s just so worrying, it feels like we’re in some form of Victorian throwback the way children and their care givers (teachers, SS, etc?) are being treated by this gov?

Sending love though, can’t imagine how heart breaking this would be to witness IRL. How tit working in these circumstances must be too. Just so sad, there needn’t be all this suffering idk why the government is hell bent on this?

the system is broken. I obviously cannot speak for all those who work in education and in some of the schools I worked in, it definitely wasn’t that bad. But the last one, yes, given the area and the fact that Mrs T and I had pastoral links.

I remember reading an article in the Guardian (I know!) when I was at university so a long time ago about a similar case. The details will never leave me. Labour were in power. We had sure start. Education was supposedly being well-funded. So who was to blame then?

All we did at school is feed, give clothes to and help the kids, little steps, not tackle the big things, the big things are just too scary.

Could Arthur have been saved? I saw they were discussing nature vs nurture with regards to ET’s behaviour. Slightly reductionist and deterministic but that is a whole other spoilered thread.

MaineCoonMama · Dec 5, 2021

I'm loving all the cold and dreary weather talk! It's finally started to warm up here, we are having a La Niña effect which is keeping the days a bit cooler but you can't hold off an Aussie summer forever. My cats are moulting fur like crazy and the mini-Schnauzers next door have had their little buzz-cuts done.

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 5, 2021

MaineCoonMama said:
I'm loving all the cold and dreary weather talk! It's finally started to warm up here, we are having a La Niña effect which is keeping the days a bit cooler but you can't hold off an Aussie summer forever. My cats are moulting fur like crazy and the mini-Schnauzers next door have had their little buzz-cuts done.

It is horrid here. Last weekend winds, middle of the week snow, this weekend wall to wall rain. Not sure I could cope with the heat you have to endure though (and the

).

Fluff ball cats nearby are extra fluffy.

Universal · Dec 5, 2021

I watched Succession and had a M&S ready meal last night. Its great TV but just soooo intense at times.

Sidey I hope the the PCR is negative for you. I am hearing more and more cases now. We can all work from home in December so that if there is a case in the office then no ones Christmas is ruined through isolation etc. I am having my sister over for Christmas so this is great news for me as she has other health issues. However the new variant has had two cases in the local schools which is worrying and I have a date with the man just before Christmas, right after he gets back from working abroad and I know I will worry about contamination on the plane.

How are you @MaineCoonMama? Hope you have moved on with your plans and are now in a good place and feel emotionally stronger.

I too have cried for the poor boy. In my early career I did some support work with families and the social workers were great but could only help the most desperate of cases as there were so few of them with huge case loads. I was emotionally ill equipped to deal with the fall out and 20+ years on I STILL think about those children. It never leaves you. Its an area where we really to invest in as a country. I think that people studying to go into this profession should not have to pay tuition fees. I admire anyone who can do the job of a social worker or works in this field. Love to everyone who needs it today

Into_the_tunnel · Dec 5, 2021

Universal said:
I watched Succession and had a M&S ready meal last night. Its great TV but just soooo intense at times.

Sidey I hope the the PCR is negative for you. I am hearing more and more cases now. We can all work from home in December so that if there is a case in the office then no ones Christmas is ruined through isolation etc. I am having my sister over for Christmas so this is great news for me as she has other health issues. However the new variant has had two cases in the local schools which is worrying and I have a date with the man just before Christmas, right after he gets back from working abroad and I know I will worry about contamination on the plane.

How are you @MaineCoonMama? Hope you have moved on with your plans and are now in a good place and feel emotionally stronger.

I too have cried for the poor boy. In my early career I did some support work with families and the social workers were great but could only help the most desperate of cases as there were so few of them with huge case loads. I was emotionally ill equipped to deal with the fall out and 20+ years on I STILL think about those children. It never leaves you. Its an area where we really to invest in as a country. I think that people studying to go into this profession should not have to pay tuition fees. I admire anyone who can do the job of a social worker or works in this field. Love to everyone who needs it today

I caved and watched another episode on my own last night when I couldn’t sleep. Needless to say, that hasn’t gone down well this morning. Jeremy Strong is just outstanding. The Big Short is one of my favourite films.

Your Christmas plans sound lovely and I hope the big C stays away for the date.

MaineCoonMama · Dec 5, 2021

@Universal Im doing ok. I can't move until next year, I've had a few health setbacks and the way our system is set up I have to stay in my state to access the proper healthcare without having to pay an arm and a leg! My husband's been a bit more reasonable lately so that's been a relief.

Universal · Dec 5, 2021

@Into_the_tunnel I have promised myself one more episode if I do the ironing!

I am sure we will be ok over Christmas. I try not to worry, as I have other stuff to worry about! I am the baby of the family but the emotionally responsible one so a lot falls to me. I have become the default 'mum' of the family and so I have christmas here with all my siblings and their partners and then I have to pick up/drop off the aunties (who say they dont want to come, or dont want to be a burden so I spend ages persuading them as I know they want to come really!).

Whats everyone elses plans for the festive season?

MaineCoonMama said:
@Universal Im doing ok. I can't move until next year, I've had a few health setbacks and the way our system is set up I have to stay in my state to access the proper healthcare without having to pay an arm and a leg! My husband's been a bit more reasonable lately so that's been a relief.

I posted above before I seen your reply. That's good that you are in a better situation with the husband. Sorry to hear about the health issues. Is there a way you can get a place of your own in the state you live in in the new year? I promise you it gets easier - just hang in there. I had to take one day at a time when still lived with my ex. I would count it a victory to get through each 24 hour period. Once you live apart then you can start healing properly.

heretoreaditall2019 · Dec 5, 2021

Into_the_tunnel said:
the system is broken. I obviously cannot speak for all those who work in education and in some of the schools I worked in, it definitely wasn’t that bad. But the last one, yes, given the area and the fact that Mrs T and I had pastoral links.

I remember reading an article in the Guardian (I know!) when I was at university so a long time ago about a similar case. The details will never leave me. Labour were in power. We had sure start. Education was supposedly being well-funded. So who was to blame then?

All we did at school is feed, give clothes to and help the kids, little steps, not tackle the big things, the big things are just too scary.

Could Arthur have been saved? I saw they were discussing nature vs nurture with regards to ET’s behaviour. Slightly reductionist and deterministic but that is a whole other spoilered thread.

Not trigger warning as it’s just about schools - it’s something we’ve had to start thinking about just to explore all our options and we’ve encountered so many horror stories both from teachers and parents. Just as a parent it feels challenging enough to consider all the variables that make a child, for teachers having to consider even more variables across a spectrum of kids like it’s no wonder so many people come out of the system dissatisfied or arguably neglected?

Agree though re in the labour glory days this stuff still happened so money can’t be the only thing causing it. It’s just so sad to think you’re always going to have some degree of violence against children. Just horrific.