More On Modernized Masks

 

Flag of Singapore.

I have two friends who teach music in Singapore. One of them told me in detail how the teachers of music must proceed in schools. The children are not allowed to sing, but can use musical instruments. 

Cleaning Shared Musical Instruments

The children use only instruments which can be cleaned quickly and thoroughly. For example, plastic or wooden xylophones. The children are not allowed to touch the instruments, but must play them with two sticks. At the end of the lesson all the sticks are dropped into a container. The teacher disinfects the whole lot with a spray which is issued to the teachers.

The pupils also have a disinfectant wipe for their hands, and items they touch, before they start to play and after they finish.

Improved Masks

The latest masks issued free by the government to everybody are a new design and heavier. They can be washed off, like plastic, unlike washable cloth, so they last longer. They also fit better around the top of the nose and the chin. But that means they are harder to breathe through. The teachers have to wear them all day. Much less waste of resources and landfill. Especially when you compare the new type to the first disposable masks, still available, the concertina type with the plastic ear loops which quickly pull out. 

"They are more effective, but harder to wear. And they make it harder to communicate."

Transparent Masks

 I asked, "What about transparent masks?"

"In the early days at school the teachers could wear those masks which look like a suspended sheet of plastic. But they Don't block out the underneath. At one school for little children (in Singapore) a male teacher wore that kind of mask and a whole cluster of the kids were affected. So they had to close the school temporarily to clean it. Then they banned those masks."

Useful to know. Because I bought one before our son's wedding. I thought they seemed a great idea. They allow a greater area of air to breathe, less pressing against your mouth and nose. I would have thought you could re-design them to make them enclose all around, possibly with a drawstring.

Alas, I missed out. The new masks are no longer available.

Useful Websites

https://www.todayonline.com/world/explainer-n95-kf94-which-mask-best-protecting-against-covid-19-1793866?cid=instagram_ig-profile_social-free_06092018_today

https://www.temasekfoundation.org.sg/news/media-releases/free-for-each-singapore-resident-one-maskpure-air-reusable-antimicrobial-mask-with-n95-grade-filtr

Author

About the author of this blog post

Angela Lansbury

About the Author Angela Lansbury

BIOGRAPHY

Angela Lansbury B A Hons ACG ALB PM5 EH5 DL5 VC5 
The Author of several books including  Etiquette For Every Occasion. Wedding Speeches & Toasts. How to be the Best Man. Quick Quotations. Who Said What When.

Blogs travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

translateforfun.blogspot.com

Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters Speakers Club Vice President Public Relations (VPPR), Previous President

Join BHA 1st Wednesday 7pm and 3rd Saturday 2 pm Singapore time 

Vice President Public Relations (VP PR) of Tampines Changkat Advanced;

Secretary of weekly online Singapore International Dynamic Toastmasters Speakers’ Club;

Member and past president of Harrovians toastmasters club, UK; Past member of HOD Toastmasters, London. Past member in Singapore of: Toastmasters Club of Singapore (TCS); Tiarel; and Senja Cashew.

More details from Toastmasters International find a club.

Regular attendee at annual Swanwick Writers’ School, England.

Regular attendee at annual Writers’ Holiday, Wales.

Contributor to poetry readings, and after tea courses on: Speaking On Radio To Promote Books; and Plots And Character.

Winner of many club and area speaking contests in the UK and Singapore.

Language advisor to Empire Toastmasters club in Indonesia.

Language and speech workshops in Singapore.

Speaker on radio and TV in England, Scotland, the USA, and Australia.

Compiler of a school course on public speaking for teachers to prepare pupils for school open days with attending ceremonies before government ministers, Singapore.

Former member of Harrow Writers’ Circle, London, and two writing groups in Singapore.

Angela is on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Twitter. She would be delighted to link up with new friends.

 Please share links to your favourite posts.

Books by Angela Lansbury
How to be the best man. (Ward Lock / Cassell.)
Wedding Speeches and Toasts.(Ward Lock / Cassell.)
Unforgettable British Weekends.
Poetry Workshop Workbook.
The Tailor and the Spy. (Lulu.)
Larry The Talking Labrador. (Lulu.)
Writing Poetry for fun.

Quick Quotations

Who Said What When

 

The Latest On Lockdowns In Singapore July 2021

 In Singapore more restrictions have been imposed. By the swimming pool in the Condo the security staff were removing the white plastic chairs and loungers. No longer do the swimmers have four chairs around a table. Now only two. This is to stop people gathering to chat.  

What will you miss if you are not in Singapore for National Day?

You won't miss out on the goody bags which used to go to every household of citizens and the expats who had earned the status of Permanent Residents. The goody bags last year, 2020, included a patriotic white mask as well as the expected little flag to wave.

This year, 2021, the goody bag go only to the people watching at Marina Bay, who have been allocated tickets. The places go to the heroes and heroines, the support staff, teachers and servers at hawker centres (food courts). The bags will contain essentials such as a bottle of water in a reusable container instead of the throw away one use container bottle, at the request of environmentalists.

Expect these events to be televised for the benefit of everybody else in Singapore - and worldwide. Watch out for alerts in the local Asian newspapers and TV stations, as well as YouTube, Facebook and whatsapp.

What of the rest of the population? As in the previous year, those who cannot see the celebrations in the centre of the city, those in the so-called heartlands, in the UK we would say suburbs, can see local fireworks displays. However, even these can attract crowds. So to prevent or postpone mingling, the other events are postponed until we are beyond the current heightened alert. 

What might you want to investigate? 

The Singapore flag.

Singapore Landmarks

The Singapore Song 

https://mothership.sg/2021/07/ndp-packs-2021/

Useful Websites

About the Author  

Masks and more

 

This is from Etsy.

You can buy tie-dye tee-shirts with matching masks.

Several video show you how to make masks from fabric or cutting pieces our of garments. 

Useful Websites

https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/910393660/happy-hanukkah-face-mask

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html

About the Author

Angela Lansbury is a travel writer and photographer, author and speaker, fashionista. Please share links to your favourite posts or one or more of the blogs

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayangela.blogspot.com

Dentists In The UK In Covid-19, vitamin D, and finding help

Chewable vitamin D. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

VITAMIN D

In the UK I discovered that my local chemist (Americans say pharmacy) stocked chewable vitamin D tablets, which are made in England.

To my disappointment, despite this precaution, I lost a bit of a tooth after pulling dental floss sharply, yanking it upwards. I kept the part of the tooth in a small marmalade jar in my bag. However, the dentist said he could not re-attach it because it would not bond.

DENTAL KIT

This puzzled me, since I have a dental kit which appears to do that temporarily. The trouble was, I could not see or reach the tooth easily. I was afraid of gluing together the filling upside down or my fingers to the tooth.

THE DENTIST

I am keeping a record of what I thought I heard and what happened to me regarding the dentist. This will be useful to me weeks later when i have half forgotten and want to check. You might find hearing my experience useful, for framing questions when you ask your own dentist about possible treatment, or understanding what might be going on, when you are told what can and can't be done.

Before Covid-19, if I remember rightly, I was told:

Presumably to cut down on the risk of deaths in the surgery:

REGULATIONS

1 New regulations require a surgery administering an anesthetic to have a second trained person just doing the anaesthetic, so whilst the dentist is looking at the teeth, another person can be watching the machine giving feedback on the breathing.

Some dentists cannot provide anther person because they do not have one trained. They do not have a large enough premises for a recovery room for the person to stay laying down after the anesthetic. Or it is not economic because their patients having reduced price treatment on the NHS will not pay the higher cost of the new service. 

The hygienist had observed that more patients lost teeth due to them becoming loose in the gums than because of teeth having fillings and decay.

(I am not sure this is the case in my family. My teeth keep crumbling away and losing fillings and bits of tooth to toffees, rock hard spun sugar, or dental floss pulling hard through a narrow gap.

FLOSSING

My dentist showed me you could pull the dental floss downwards. Instead of pulling it up and risking dislodging the filling, you could pull it out sideways. This only works if the gap has not got smaller, and the dental floss is not the type which shreds into strands.. 

2  INFO

The situation regarding dental work is very complicated. It varies from surgery to surgery, from country to country and from time to time due to changing health and hygiene and cost and NHS (UK National Health Service) and changing rules about Covid-19.

My understanding is this - but do check with the latest rules in your dentist and country.

Earlier this year, 2020, I had to cancel a dental appointment in the UK when Covid-19 caused us to change our plans to travel to the UK. I got through to a living dental receptionist, not an answering machine. I was very glas to hear that I would not be charged a cancellation fee, because at that point the dental surgery was closed anyway. A senior dentist (B) had died (not of Covid-19) in addition, and the dental surgery was closed for all work, including hygienists, because of Covid-19.

Teledentistry Consultation

Later this year I was first given a talk to the dentist (the son, G) on the phone. As far as I understood, the dentists were not allowed to do drilling without a clean of the entire surgery room, which would take half a hour of their working day and cost a person's time and money. 

Therefore they were only doing temporary fillings, which are created by adding layer after layer of a kind of white cement which is not smoothed to the finest finish, and is not so long-lasting.

I was told that because they could not drill my tooth to make a smooth bowl, the filling would not adhere so well. No guarantee how long it would last.

In the UK Molars requiring extraction have to be done in hospital nowadays due to Covid-19.

SINGAPORE

I had had a teleconsultation with my doctor who asked me a series of questions about possible symptoms before prescribing medication which was picked up by a younger member of my family.

I had another member of my family buying vitamin D tablets which I pounded with a mortar and pestle and took with a spoon of honey, in the hope that this would strengthen my teeth.

A friend in Singapore was told by a dental practice that a dentist did not do 'big teeth', which is a translation of the Chinese meaning molars.

Tips

Check what the dentist is allowed to do before going in for a check-up.

If an x-ray is taken, take a photo of it with your mobile phone, so you don't have to have another x-ray at another dentist in the same country or overseas.

Make an appointment.

You may be asked to fill in a form about your travel history and covid-19 tests and any potential symptoms.

You may be asked to pay in advance over the phone so the staff do not need to touch cash nor credit cards.

I felt that 'a consultation' consisted largely of a dentist trying to persuade me to have a very expensive crown.

My family were happy to spend money to fix my teeth. They were unhappy to hear that all the money which had spent was on temporary filling which might last only as little as a day or week, or month.

Allow extra time to wait for the receptionist to come out and take your temperature. you may be asked to wait until a previous patient has left before you are allowed to enter.

Once inside you may be asked to use sanitising hand gel from a dispenser.

the staff may come out and ask you questions again, and take your temperature from your forehead. You may have to move your hat or hair such as a fringe.

Useful Websites And Information

SINGAPORE

Resumption of services

https://www.chas.sg/news_events_article.aspx?id=1613

Beware of scams

https://www.moh.gov.sg/covid-19

UK

Call 111 for advice on what to do. They can ring 999 for you and put you through if they think it is necessary.

teledentistry survey

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41415-020-1919-6

NHS Dentistry and Covid19

https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/primary-care/dental-practice/

Emergency dental treatment

https://www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/dental-health/how-can-i-access-an-nhs-dentist-in-an-emergency-or-out-of-hours/

Worldwide

Read how one practice in the USA clsed down except for emergencies, got protective equipment, then reopened used disinfectant foggers, and other dentists reporting from around the world.

https://www.dentistry.co.uk/2020/08/25/covid-19-affected-dentistry-around-world/

About the Author Of This Post, Angela

Angela Lansbury, travel researcher/writer and photographer, author and speaker. 

Author of Wedding Speeches & Posts, Etiquette for Every Occasion, Quick Quotations, Who Said What When?

You can contact Angela through Facebook, LinkedIn, and Braddell Heights Advanced Toastmasters on Facebook or Toastmasters Interntional.com find a club . Angela is a member of four Toastmasters Clubs and BHA IPP, Immediate Past President, and VP PR (Vice President Public Relations) for 20202-2021

Please share links to your favourite posts in

travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com

dressofthedayAngela.blogspot.com

How To Take Photos With Masks - And Protect Your Phone or Camera

I haven't seen any instructions on taking photos with masks.
A week ago, a month ago, things were worse. You could not sit outdoors.

Now, in Singapore and many places, we can go out. Are masked people spoiling photos? How can we photograph ourselves and take good photos?

1 Take Masked Photos To Make A Dated Topical Point
First, let us look at the benefits of masks. Masks are useful in showing the date of photos. Like wartime gas masks. We will look back with interest. We will say, 'Hey - that was a photo taken in 2020!'

2 On screen no masks.
My first attempt with a green screeen.

You can take a holiday photo or locality photo to show your location using the photo as a background on Zoom.

Talk to people at the place you will visit, showing both groups without masks.

3 Start a holiday or trip slide show with photos of yourself and family at home beside your suitcase, maybe in your holiday clothes.

Wear a tee-shirt showing your location. So the emphasis is on the tee-shirt rather than the face.

My tee-shirt says Los Angeles. I have others saying San Diego and Singapore.

4 Show two photos alongside.
Superimpose your silhouette (unmasked at home) on the edge of the photo of holiday scenery or the beach or seaside.

5 Or put the holiday photos in an album frame, with yourself alongisde or behind as the person reading the book.

6 Take Photos Where Being Unmasked Is Allowed
What about eating and exercising?

In Singapore, currently, July 2020, you can remove your mask whilst eating or exercising. You could have a photo taken of yourself eating or exercising.

If you don't want to hand your camera or phone to anybody else, to avoid contamination, use a wet wipe or take a selfie.

a) Eating
Some places are extra strict. You cannot have your mask off for the whole meal, only whilst eating. So take a photo of yourself with the spoon lifting the strawberry towards your lips.

Or just take the food.

b) Exercising
In Singapore July 2020 the swimming pool and gym are open. You wear your government supplied mask walking to and from the pool or gym. But you can take a photo of yourself afterwards or show one from last year.

Take a selfie photo of yourself alone on your hotel or home balcony. As soon as the sun is out, you go out.

Keep your mobile phone handy to take photos. You can still take photos of people back view, of animals such as cats and dogs, or wild animals, insects and birds. 

You can take photos of your family in the swimming pool. Your whole family. Your spouse. Your children.

7 Indoors you can still photograph food.

8 Back view photos of workers in masks can be quite effective. No need to ask permission.

Finally, how do you protect your camera or mobile phone? I have read that mobile phones because you constantly touch them are often covered with bacteria, or viruses, let's just say germs.

When I pass a sanitiser I make sure I disinfect both hands, and then run my sanitised hands over the mobile phone. Hm? Doesn't that undo all the work of santising the hands, rather than helping the phone? If in doubt, do it a second time.  

Whatever you decide to do, remember that your phone also needs your care.

Stay Safe. Happy Photos.

About the Author

Why should you wear a mask during covid-19?

Masks are a must - don't you agree? Not everybody does. An anti-mask writer on Facebook wrote that masks could no more catch a minuscule virus than a tennis net.

Naturally the pro-mask brigade responded.

Firstly, the virus may be tiny, but it is carried from place to place in water or mist when you breathe out.

Secondly, as the advertisements in Singapore say, my mask protects you, your mask protects me.

How? A great diagram shows the effect of two people wearing masks, one person wearing a mask, and nobody wearing a mask.



Finally, the facts speak for themselves. Look at the figures for a country such as Singapore. The government early on provided at last a free disposable paper mask for every household (so one person can go out in a mask).

More recently they provided a new improved fabric washable and reusable mask for every citizen. This has reduced the death rate significantly.

I signed up for their app and I am sent the latest figures on my phone. 27 deaths. Not in a day. Altogether.



Here is a free mask supplied by the government in Singapore. It is re-usable and washable.

In Singapore signs by the lifts (elevators) tell you to wear a mask. 

Now i set off for the swimming pool. But first I have to stand behind the yellow line on the floor. When beckoned forward, I go to have my temperature taken. I write down my temperature in the log book with my phone number in case I need to be contacted.

Useful Websites on Covid-19

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/07/masks-to-be-compulsory-in-shops-in-uk.html

Go.gov.sg/moh

(gov for government, sg for singapore, and moh stands for ministry of health)

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-06/aerosol-transmission-of-covid-19/12425852

https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2020/06/417906/still-confused-about-masks-heres-science-behind-how-face-masks-prevent

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31142-9/fulltext#%20

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2020/jun/15/facebook-posts/claim-n95-masks-cant-stop-covid-19-particles-due-s/

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/06/21/880832213/yes-wearing-masks-helps-heres-why

Please share the link to this post:

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/07/why-should-you-wear-mask-during-covid-19.html

About the author, Angela Lansbury

I and my family have lived in the UK, Spain, the USA and Singapore. I am a travel writer and photographer and teacher of English A level and English as a foreign language.Please come to a Toastmasters International Club where the English clubs have a language evaluator or grammarian.  We also have French, German, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil and other language clubs based in Singapore and many more online around the world which because of Covid-19 are now meeting online.

I am Immediate Past President and current PR of Braddell Heights Advanced, meeting the first Wednesday of the month, Usually on Zoom, sometimes on Learncool. But the other Wednesdays have workshops on app learncool.sg

Our other regular meeting date is the third Saturday of the month in the afternoon 2 pm to 5 pm.

The president  is Faith.

For meetings learncool it is quicker to type and easier to remember: 

 tinyurl.com/BHACOOL

Useful Websites On Speaking and Languages

https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
translate.google.com
duolingo.com

https://www.duolingo.com/enroll/vi/en/Learn-Vietnamese

https://www.facebook.com/groups/polygotcommunity/

Other Useful Posts By Angela Lansbury Author

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogs

https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/04/how-to-say-thank-you-in-several.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2019/05/introducing-yourself-in-english-spanish.html
https://travelwithangelalansbury.blogspot.com/2020/01/second-set-of-portuguese-words.html 

Please share links to your favourite posts

Interestesting and useful posts on travel and tips on learning languages and recognizing accents

Swimming in Singapore Resumes - with human body temperature checks

Swimming has resumed in Singapore. From Saturday 27th June 2019.

Silence and Noise
On Saturday nobody was around the swimming pool nor checking it. Silence.

Sunday, you can see and hear that the pool is open.

Off To Swim
As I approach the pool, trying to skirt around an official in a mask who steps foward into my path, he addresses me.

"Good morning, Ma-am. Would you sign in please?"

"Yes, of course."

At the desk, I have to write down on a sheet of columned paper, my name, unit (flat) number, time in, phone numbr, signature.

The official then takes my temperature with a thermometer alarmingly near my forehead and eyes. I try to dodge backwards.

He tells me, "Keep still". I keep still. The thermomenter touches my forehead.

Just what I was trying to avoid. Never mind. I shall have my forehead washed in the chlorinated swimming pool water.

I walk past the outdoor foot shower. Then the full height shower.  I don't want to touch anything which anybody else has touched.

I have just had a shower in my bathroom. In the olden days I would have had a shower anyway. Why? To get in the habit, reassure others, protect my reputation, and set a good example.

But today I don't want to touch anything.

I can hear an American mother talking to a swimming instructor. She is saying how much her daughter loves water, even in the bath. The mother pronounces bath as bath to rhyme with bat. American accent. New York accent?

American Accent
I listen again. The second time she pronounces it nearer to the British, London, pronounciation. I say bath to rhyme with laugh.

Time for my swim. I forgot to remove my mask.

Masks
You still have to wear a mask on your way to and from the pool. The lift lobby has signs about wearing masks.

I was half way across the pool before I realised that I was still wearing my mask.

Back to the lift lobby.

Hand Sanitiser
A hand sanitiser. Put your hand under it and nothing happens. You have to move. Swipe right and left and a drop of liquid descends.

I get into the lift and swipe the button with the back of my finger. But that was not sanitised. OK for others as I just came out of the swimming pool. But I must remember to put the back of my hand under the snatiser dispenser, or rub the liquid over both sides of my hand.

On Sunday.

Useful Websites On Swimming
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swimming_stroke
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distress_signal
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiopulmonary_resuscitation
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_emergency_telephone_numbers

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Unexpected blows and benefits of Covid-19

Let's start with the bad news and end with the good news.



May 2020 Cases. Shown in wikipedia. The grey areas have no cases or no data.


These are stories you might have read on the internet. Before passing on information, or acting on information, check reliable sources.

This is the statue of Wee Anie or Girl On A Suitcase, Gourock, west coast of Scotland.
From Wikipedia.

dave souza - Own work

"Wee Annie", a sculpture at the north end of Gourock's Kempock Street, commemorates the town's past as a seaside resort, and its pier as a setting-off point for Clyde Steamers taking holidaymakers down the Firth of Clyde. The statue, also known as "Girl on a Suitcase", was created by Angela Hunter as part of a public art project commissioned by Riverside Inverclyde in 2011. It has become a local tradition to keep Wee Annie warm with a scarf and woollen hat, during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic in the United Kingdom she was duly given a face mask. Behind her, Kempock Street is unusually quiet as cafes, pubs and many shops have been closed to minimise spread of the virus. Lochrie, Susan (2015). Gourock's 'Wee Annie' back from her holidays. Greenock Telegraph. Readers' Pictures - Wee Annie Taking No Chances With Coronavirus. Inverclyde Now (2020-03-22).

Here's how she was before.

Here's Gourock's location.



The first bad news is that you cannot travel or book holidays. The good news is that if you booked with Singapore Airlines you got your money back. You can also travel all over the internet to see pictures of places such as Scotland with the amusing statue of Wee Annie, whilst picking up new vocabulary or reminders of other langagues. Wee - small in Scotland.

More good news. If you are lazy and retired, you can sit at home at your comuter all day long and not feel guilty. The bad news is that it is not good for your health. The good news is that you can do some exercises by standing up every hour.

The Bad News
1 People with other illnesses cannot get treated.
2 You cannot even see a private doctor.
3 Weddings cancelled.
4 Mourners at funerals, numbers restricted.
5 You cannot visit dying relatives
6 Exams are cancelled.
7 Schools are closed.
8 Gyms and swimming pools are closed.
9 Airlines are bankrupt.
10 Holiday money is lost.
11 Insurance doesn't cover you if taken out after the pandemic was cdeclared by WHO.
12 Protective equipment is defective.
13 Money donated has disappeared.
14 Vaccines won't be available for months.
15 If you caught it and recovered you might still get it.
16 Hoax stories are muddying the picture.
17 You cannot get true figures because some countries don't count Covid-19 deaths in hospitals, some places don't test after you died outside hospital, shortage of test kits.
18 Those who are infected can pass it on before they know it.
19 You could pass the temperature check at airports and buildings but still be incubating and infectious.
20 Doctors, nurses and health care workers are catching it so the numbers of sick people is rising whilst the number of carers is falling.
21 Doctors and nurses supposedly taking care and wearing protective clothing are still getting ill - if they get sick, what hope is there for us.
22 Online meeting are unnatural and do not train uf for public speaking social meetings and work.
23 You cannot get masks.
24 Scam callers pretend to be the Singapore health service.
25 Children cannot play in parks.
26 No birthday meals out in restaurants.
27 You cannot have affairs.

The Good News
1 Doctors are giving consultations on the phone and this benefits us by saving time, travel and stress. We cannot catch illness from the doctor's waiting room. This benefit is likely to continue after covid-19 ends.
3 Cut down the expense of large numbers at weddings. Increase the numbers of weddings online watched by families all over the world who previously would not have been able to witness the event.
4 Increase in online memorials. People can attend a funeral or memorial service online, adding their own condolences and memories.
5 Things are better now. In the old days you went off to the hospital canteen to eat and yur relative died whilst you were away. (My maternal grandfather.) Now you can set up ipads or screens and watch and talk 24 hours or daily, or in the final minutes.
8 We are all getting used to exercising at home. Fewer deaths from drowning in ublic and private swimming pools.
12 People are making their own masks and protective equipment.
16 Log onto government websites and apps.Useful Websites.
23 You can get a mask in Singapore. The government has issued one reusable mask to everybody.
24 The MOH has a line where you can call to check you are not being scammed.
25 The peace is lovely. You can work without screaming from the school break time or the swimming pool or the kids on the swings and slides. You can nap in the afternoon with shouting from the swimming instructors. The traffic noise is down. the trains noise is down. The planes and helicopters are not disturbing the peace.
26 You can eat healthily at home.
27 Your spouse cannot have affairs.

Useful Wbsites
Ministry of Health Government Singapore
https://www.moh.gov.sg/covid-19
Australian Rules About Fencing Swimming Pools
https://www.spasa.com.au/consumer-info/fencing-laws/https://www.spasa.com.au/consumer-info/fencing-laws/

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
The Author
Author, Author! About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker. (Not related to the actress.)
Author of twenty books including: Quick Quotations; Who Said What When.
See books and profiles on Lulu.com and Amazon, such as Wedding Speeches & Toasts. Also watch videos on YouTube.
See other posts on singers and statues and languages and destinations.

If you want to learn to speak the Queen's English, or Received Pronunciation. join me at my online toastmasters club,
Braddell Heights Advanced. Wednesdays, 7-9 Singapore time which is seven hours ahead of London, England.
I am also a member of
Singapore Online.9-12 pm, Singapore time, Fridays. I am also a member of
Tampines Changkat Advanced.
Harrovians, London.
Tiarel, Singapore.
Toastmasters International Find a Club
https://www.toastmasters.org/find-a-club
https://books.google.com.sg/books?id=upSEBwAAQBAJ&pg=PA21&lpg=PA21&dq=quick+quotations
lulu.com/shop/angela-lansbury/who-said-what-when/paperback/product-21713991
learncool.sg
Please share links to your favourite posts.

22 You can speak online standing up. You see newsreaders reading online. you see talk shows online. Now you can practise doing the same.

In Asia, with coronavirus, you are expected to wear a mask if you cough to prevent your coughs and sneezes infecting others.


In Singapore every household has been given four masks by the government.



Singapore flag.


The army was deployed to pack and deliver masks to Community Clubs.

The government advice is, wear the mask only if you are unwell. Save it for when you need it.

If you have a cough or sneezing illness, stay home. Some businesses are eligible for the government compensation scheme if they lose money by letting staff work from home.

If you have a fever and other symptoms, call your doctor who will send you to a hospital with an isolation department. This means you don't infect the rest of your family, who might be wage earners or elderly and sick and therefore vulnerable.

In hospital you might have nursing staff to given you food and drink. At home you could be too sick to feed yourself, have no visitors, or not want to infect others, or they could also be sick.

A hospital cannot cure the cause, but can alleviate symptoms such as difficulty in breathing if you need oxygen.

Useful Websites
singaporeair.com

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
Author of
Quick Quotations.
How To Get Out of the mess you're in.

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Coronavirus update Sunday 26 2020.

Flag of China.

Sunday. Death toll in China is 55.

China has banned travel into and out of Wuhan province (a large area like a US state) and most travel around the area.

The Coronavirus is a family of viruses including the common cold, SARS and MERS.
Sars in 2002-3 killed 800.
MERS (Middle Eastern virus) killed 700.

Elderly and Young
So far, in 2020, the latest version has killed mainly those over the age of 50, except one case.

Some commentators shrug. It's only the elderly. And the young.

I read about one family. An extended family who had travelled back to China. When they left they were ok. Now the grandparents and grandchildren are all sick. Imagine being a grandparent, wondering if you will die and if you have infected your grandchildren.

Imagine being in the middle, having your parents and children all ill. Imagine being a child. You don't know whether you will live You don't know if your grandparents will live. Your parents are dividing their time between you and the others of you, two siblings and two grandparents.

You cannot travel. You cannot work. Everybody is quarantined.

Spanish Flu 1918
The 1918 Spanish flu killed more people than WWI. 500 million were affected and more than 50 million died.

It killed the young, who had no immunity.

One of my ancestors died of it. He was in South Africa. He was a young married man who jumped up from his sick bed and ran downstairs to answer the phone call from his sister (my granny Hetty) who was in London. He dropped dead.

His wife never remarried. After her sister-in-law, my granny, had died, my mother kept up correspondence. Eventually my mother went to South Africa to visit the now elderly widow.

I look online and read that somebody I know has a cold.

I wonder. Is it just a cold?

I hope they keep following instructions. Wash your hands. Do not touch your eyes and face with your hands.

Keep away from crowds and people who are coughing.

Carry tissues and/or wear a mask.

Useful Wbsites
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_flu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coronavirus
https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Singapore

About the Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

How The Haze Affects Your Health, Finances and Travels

Where is the haze and when and why?
My family has been experiencing haze in Singapore. I have cancelled my daily swim and I will tell you my other expeiences in a moment. But you will be wondering which countries are affected and how this affects your business and holiday plans.


Haze in KL, Malaysia.



Haze over the Merlion, symbol of Singapore. Picture from Wikipedia article on haze.

This is a neat summary by Wikipedia.

The 2019 Southeast Asian haze is an ongoing trans-national air pollution crisis which affects several countries in Southeast Asia, including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.

Thailand began to experience haze in February 2019 until mid May 2019, peaking in March and April. Later in the year, starting from June-July 2019, Indonesia began to experience haze. Malaysia was affected from August 2019, while Singapore and Brunei experienced haze in September 2019.

It is the latest occurrence of the Southeast Asian haze, a long-term issue that occurs in varying intensity during every dry season in the region. It has mainly been caused by forest fires resulting from illegal slash-and-burn practices, principally on the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan,

Flag of China

Yellow Dust, China and Korea
Yellow dust has also affected Beijing in China, and Korea, but that's another problem, an extra problem. Meanwhile, in Asia we have haze.Who cares if you are not in Asia? Well, there are lessons to learn for the USA and Europe, your overseas colleagues could be affected, and your investments may be affected.

Haze All Over Asia
The haze is bad for business. It doesn't just affect the children, the elderly, the pregnant, the nervous.

Flag of Singapore

Flights
First, the haze can affect flights. You can't land a plane if you cannot see. You cannot fly across the city.

Flag of  the USA

As I discovered on the day of 9/11, if the flights in one part of the world are affected, there's a knock on effect in other parts of the world. Planes are turned back or don't set off. People miss their connections and half empty flight are cancelled. The plane from one continent does not arrive so the ongoing section is also affected. A delay in take off means the pilots and crew are over their permitted time and the plane has to wait for another crew to bbe assembled.

Road Transport
Increase in road accidents. Cars run into each other. Poeple try to tailgate and hit the car in front which slows or stops when visibility ceases, causing accidents.

Your air crew may be in airport hotels, and so may the passengers. But if some of them are in the city and cannot get to the plane that causes problems.

Different countries have different solutions. Take India, for example.

Flag of India

Indian Car Pollution Solution
Cars in cause pollution. So oen measure has been to allow cars to operate on alternating days according to the numberplate, odd numbers one day, even numbers the next.

Car Sharing
So if you and your enighbour have cars which fall into different categories, on odd number days you share one car, on even number days, you share the other.This works if you don't have more than half the seats filled by one family.

Pedestrians and Cyclists
I am planning a trip to a company in Singapore. That involves a walk from the station. But we are told not to go outdoors. Sports are cancelled. Construction workers are recalled. The security on the gate.

Zoos
The staff in the Safari park. The animals in the zoo are inside.

Symptoms
What are the symptoms of the haze? I keep clearing my throat, as if I have a sore throat or bad cold starting. My eyes look bloodshot.  I keep coughing.
My eyes feel prickly.

Business Meetings
So, I don't want to walk to my business meeting. What are the alternatives? I could take a bus. But that involves sitting out in the open air waiting for the bus if the bus is not frequent.

Offering Lifts
I might get a lift back to the station. I might not.

Taxis And Costs
What about the cost of the taxi? There and back. Twice a day for a week, or more. 28 trips averaging 10 dollars. What if the other person cancels? Waiting for the taxi at the pick-up point exposes me to the air.

Schools Closed
Schools are closed. That means parents have to stay home to look after their children. Shops and services and businesses are closed.

Sports
The swimming pool lessons are cancelled. The golf tournaments.

Swimming pool in Singapore.

Restaurants
Restaurants with outdoor seating are losing half their business.

Waiting For Your Driver
I could call a grab or taxi. Both ways if I do not get a lift home. The person kindly offering me a lift wants me to wait at the pick up point outside the station. But that involved standing by traffic fumes and breathing in the haze. I have to arrive early to be sure not to miss the driver.

Motorcycling
Motorcyclists are affected. You could cancel your outing and your trip to the outdoor restaurant. Order food delivered. But the Domonis pizzza and McDonalds delveries and Deliveroo might cancel delivered to protect the health of their drivers.

Social Engagements Cancelled
My Singaporean friend Shan (ethnic Chinese, speaking Mandarin friend who married a men from Australasia, has a second home in Australia. She decided to fly back to Australia last time there was a haze. So her lunch with me was cancelled. I started to feel like the last rat on a sinking ship.

Buying Property
Singaporeans keep telling me to sell my home in the UK and buy in Singapore. If I sell up in the UK I have nowhere to go back to. I am having second thoughts. Will I really want to reture to Asia and the haze when the haze is bad for the elderly?

Wind Direction
The wind blows away the haze. Relief. Then the wind changes.

Where Is the Fire?
Fires are in Malaysia and Indonesia.

Flag of Malaysia

Talks are taking place about fines or punishments for those who are residents of one country, running businesses in another. Instead of waiting for Indonesia to fine the subsidiary company in in Indonesia, fining the main company in Malaysia or Singapore, and vice versa. If it costs only 40 dollars (per foot, per acre or whatever.  to clear land by fire, but to clear by other conventional means costs 400, a business is tempted to take the cost effective route. If the government fines so that the balance is changed, or puts poeple in prison, or takes other measures, that might affect the matter.

Who is paying for the preventive measures? It costs money to send out planes, drop water, deploy the army. Add the cost to the emergency services, sending the firefighters, compensating firefighters who lost their lives, ambulances, hospital staff.

Farmers have lost lives trying to protect their crops and cattle.

Shutting Windows
In Singapore we are looking at windows. The open air scullery areas. The maids walking the dog and cleaning the car in the open sided car parks.

Wearing Masks
The number of people wearing masks is increasing. The people across from you on the train are wearing masks.


Masks

Buying Masks
You can buy masks from pharmacies but when there's a spike in the haze the masks run out. Some masks are only effective a few hours.

Masks are unfomfortable to wear.

Before buying a mask check the different kinds. Dust marks are not the same as haze masks.


Tourism Affected
Do you enjoy tourism when there's a haze. Even if you were not worried about your health, the safari park is shut. The walk to the Gardens By The Bay from the MRT means you might take a taxi instead. The cheaper hawker centre, the outdoor food court, will be deserted and closed.

Coffee Shops and Fast Food
The outdoor areas of McDonalds and Starbucks are empty.

Photographs
The picture of the Taj Mahal or another pretty building, the mosque in Malaysia, all shrouded in mist, or against a white sky instead of blue. The 'ordinary' buildings, the skyscrapers, are against a white sky.

Windows and Fans
I wake to feel groggy. The air is stifling. What is wrong. The patio doors to the balcony have only a little gap for air. I close them. The bathroom air is bad. The high window by the shower is adjar, always. I must clea a path to all doors and windows to clear them in a hurry. We used to leave open the doors and windows to create a through breeze and save the cost of air conditioning.

What I Cancel
If a meeting is held in the outdoor void deck of a Community Center, I won't stay. If the get together after the meeting is at an outdoor hawker center (food court) I won't go.

Tip
Look for free masks given away free at hospitals and clinics.

Useful Websites
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asian_Dust
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeast_Asian_haze

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.