Part 1: to sort

Major incident of the day was the email to Ottawacker Jr.'s school that there was no way we were sending him back until the provincial government got its head out of its arse and started looking after its students.

This went down well. Around 4pm, we received a phone call from the principal of the school who said: "So, you don't trust our provincial government and think their policies are 'bullshit'?"

He then told us we must do whatever we see fit for our child and that the school, insofar as it could, would support us and help us every step of the way. So Ottawacker Jr. isn't going back to school until he has had his second dose and waited two weeks for it to kick in. 

You'd think Ottawacker Jr. would be "over the moon" with this development. Instead, I got an eye-roll and and, although I couldn't be 100% sure, a "for feck's sake". 

What I did get from the principal was a confirmation that my concerns are valid and that not reporting Covid infections is a sure recipe for disaster. He also told me the school is struggling to staff all positions at the moment, and that any shortfall in teachers means the kids are sent home and no lessons are given.

But the province is providing 2 masks and the rapid testing kit that works in 50% of the cases 50% of the time, so that is alright.

Then I came downstairs to the basement and saw the first pile of things I had placed on the sofa to sort. Thinking of possible ways out of going through the pile, I half-toyed with the idea of offering myself to the school as a replacement teacher... but decided against it.

Evening, we came towards the conclusion of the second series of Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, and started to feel a weird mixture of nostalgia for Spain and youth - and sadness that Gary Holton had died while filming the last episodes of the series. Strange that a presence so vital and vibrant can disappear in a trice...