Hoping everything was ok - I guess you've just got to watch for symptoms at this point?

I would be really concerned that your daughter's friend "P" might make up something crazy and dramatic and cause major trouble. For example, someone bumps into her . . . and she accuses them of assault. Or she leaves behind something . . . and it's a theft. "P" might be lovely, but it might end up blowing up if she tells a parent "X bumped into me" and the parent turns it into something huge and I don't know, calls the police or something?

You know, if I was a health worker at risk, say working with affected populations, I'd be tempted to lie and say I was a sex worker or similar in order to get the monkeypox vax. I can see why rolling it out to every health worker in Australia would be overkill, but those working in specific sexual health clinics and so forth will certainly be at risk, you'd think. Just read that a daycare worker tested positive for monkeypox:

Australian numbers still seem to be around 58 (can't find it now, but was reading a NSW Dept of Health report from Aug 3rd). Apparently there hasn't been local transmission in our state, it's been picked up almost entirely overseas with a couple of cases coming from Melbourne. Vaccination starts up next week for 'high risk' groups which doesn't seem to be health workers from what I can read.

Yes, I have to say it seems like an easier one to quarantine and contain and yet? There was an interview with an Australian who flew to a certain area to take part in some kind of big festival, knowing there was monkeypox there, and has come back with monkeypox. I mean - really? I keep thinking though how it reminds me of early covid days, when the news would tell you about this positive person who went to a restaurant, and then a bar, and a movie, and then a party . . . and you were like, wow, what a life! Now I'm reading "I caught monkeypox at a clothes-optional dancing get-together at a camping festival over the weekend" and all I can think is "I spent the whole weekend catching up on the washing".

Excess deaths this year. It's important to note that in 2020, Australia had lower than expected deaths, likely due to closed borders meaning no influenza. There was discussion at the time about whether we should 'accept' the usual thousand or so influenza deaths if they obviously weren't inevitable. Funny now . . . a thousand deaths seems so few compared with this year. excess deaths

Dragging my way through A Discovery of Witches which looked good in preview (bunch of academics fighting over a manuscript at a university library, lol), but quickly descended into a vampire/witch romance where he's dominant and she needs to learn to deal with it - ugh, not my thing at all. Reminds me a lot of Outlander, actually, which I also didn't like. Re-reading David Copperfield after watching it on Netflix. Such a good book. The way Dickens writes so tenderly about people with mental health issues is just beautiful. And he's such a funny writer. The whole thing with the donkeys is just hysterical. I do remember I preferred Nicholas Nickleby so I might reread that next.

Monkeypox vax available in Australia for selected groups from next week, although they haven't stated which groups - assume MSM but hopefully also medical workers etc.

So apparently the risk of Covid for under 5s is far higher than for 5-10 year olds, and the risk of dying from Covid far higher than say measles. There's no good scientific reason not to roll out the vaccine for all. It is 100% political and I know some parents are absolutely devastated at this decision. NSW Covid numbers still really high today. I took a look at our local area numbers and they are also very high. The peak, maybe - hoping not a plateau.

They're only approving the Covid vaccine in Australia for 'vulnerable' children under 5 - ie already diagnosed with a condition. Considering we've had a number of deaths from Covid in the 0-2 age range in children with no risk factors, and that it takes years to get a diagnosis for many conditions, I think that is short-sighted.

Well, it's hard to know. It's still best to be cautious about mask wearing and handwashing. I believe there's been at least one case where contact tracers could not find a link to any known case. All I know is that it's spreading very quickly.

So I was trying to find out the Monkeypox situation in Australia, last thing I have seen was from a week ago I think. Looks like numbers had doubled in 2 weeks just as the numbers in the US had doubled. Still under 50 (then); so perhaps in another week it will be nearing 100, depending on whether people have been able to isolate. I ended up sending an email out to my employees, just reminding them about hand-washing and mask-wearing for Monkeypox as well as covid, flu, all the other nasties out there this winter. It's crazy.

So true. Someone saying it's just another virus . . . well it's just another virus on top of all the other viruses etc, they didn't stop while Covid took a turn.

Well, just got alerts from child's old school - they went on a camp last week - the alerts were for 'several' students with covid and conjunctivitis. Friend's husband has been told by Drs to sell business and retire (they're in mid 40s) as he has Long Covid and the stress is damaging his heart. They caught it off daughter who went to school camp 5mths ago. Covid numbers may have peaked in Vic and NSW. Someone (smarter than me) pointed out very high death/ICU rates and wondered whether it's the more serious variant or undercounting causing that. Maybe both. This is an aside, but I've noticed lots of reports in the last month or so of children murdered by a family member or a foster carer. I have no idea where to find stats on this, whether this is normal or not, but seems like an increase . . . due to stress from the world we live in, crumbling supports due to staff off sick constantly? It seems to be mostly in families who are 'known' to the authorities.

Saw New York declared a state of emergency due to Monkeypox, and also that it's found Polio in the wastewater. Also saw a list of young men from different countries - Ghana, Brazil, Spain, India - who had died recently due to Monkeypox. So terribly sad and frightening.

Our little local Australian online group had a memorial post for those lost in Kentucky - as so many had so recently experienced devastating floods, it was something very close to our hearts. Hearing about the loss of those siblings was just heartbreaking.

Oh, how interesting! It's such a bizarre story - I read it years ago too. Finished The Thinking Woman's Guide to Real Magic which I liked (the title is not really reflective I don't think). It reminded me a bit of Naomi Novik's Uprooted, (young woman learning magic off old grumpy magician) except the young woman is a modern American woman who accidentally went into another world and got enchanted by fairies. I will prob read the sequel. What I liked was that sense that when you go into another culture, you feel 'deskilled' and you start from scratch - language, everyday customs, even being able to cook (because the food's so different). You often feel like you've got nothing to offer. What I didn't like so much was the American parts, I couldn't relate to that so much.

We got a good version of The Silver Sword by Ian Serraillier which had different voice actors - it was slightly abridged though (it may have been the radio play version). In Australia and UK it's a book a lot of us did at school, very exciting war story. Fortunately the Milk is a great book - didn't know it was an audiobook but would be great as one. We've listened to Animal Farm with a full cast - my 9 yr old really enjoyed it.

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, hope they both recover soon. Agree that RATs just aren't accurate enough. Can just imagine how that cute little baby cheered everyone up!

Anyone could have Covid or other illness, in the group, though. So a friend of mine just returned from overseas after a year away, ironically didn't bring back any illness but caught Covid here!

It changes. During the floods, I wanted to buy a big piece of land and build tiny houses on it for all those who have lost houses (or will lose houses for the next flood coming along - they say September). Especially as people are really struggling to find rental homes now, the local area group has constant pleas for some place to rent. And then sometimes I think it'd be better spent decreasing the problem (climate catastrophe) by planting heaps of trees, buying up land so it can't be logged, developing efficient carbon capture (if it works?) or shielding the sun (just read an article saying not a good idea either . . .) Actually I have no idea what a billion dollar buys nowadays anyway, probably less than I think. Maybe found an awesome covid-safe inclusive school which could be a model for other schools? Or a foundation providing air purification for schools and hospitals? Pretty sure they don't have billion dollar lotteries in Australia, though!

Already over a hundred deaths reported between NSW/VIC today, other states haven't reported yet. Deaths and hospitalisations higher than the January peak, only reason cases aren't so high is because people aren't testing and reporting.

Can I give you a suggestion for Latin that we're doing, @crazyforlatin ? Telling Tales in Latin by Lorna Robinson. I do it with my 9 & 11 year old and it's super gentle. Mostly me reading aloud bits and doing a bit of translation together. If you do get it, download the free teacher's guide, as there are a few typos/mistakes, a couple significant. The teacher's guide has some good ideas generally and a few activities (but I don't bother with them). I would do maybe 10m max on a Latin 'lesson' and yet my kids can translate each section pretty well.

107 deaths in Victoria today. Apparently 'catch up deaths'. Oh my goodness. This is just insane.

Read The Housekeeper and the Professor which was a nice gentle read - a Japanese book about a housekeeper caring for an elderly mathematician. No horrible twists of tragedy or anything. Started The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde but remembered I'd already read it and hadn't enjoyed it particularly. Love his Thursday Next series, but not as keen on some of his other books.