Somehow I got a day behind with the blog, so I’m going to try and catch up by covering two days in one post…
Wednesday
The Level 5 COVID restrictions go into effect tonight at midnight. The Ireland government has asked people to stay home, with a 5 km (3 mile) radius restriction for exercise, etc. Thankfully, the 5 km radius from my apartment covers almost all of central Dublin, so this doesn’t really mean much for me, unless they get very strict about asking people why they aren’t at home.
Only “essential retail” shops will be allowed to remain open, although it seems like there are ways of skirting these rules. During my shopping yesterday, I stopped into my favorite “All Rooms” housewares store and said hello to one of the shop-keeps who recognized me from the week before. I asked how they’d be affected by the lockdown, but she said that since they sell cleaning and household supplies they’ll be able to stay open. I think this also applies to hardware stores. Other essential businesses include what you’d expect: grocery stores, banks, pharmacies (aka “chemists”), laundromats, doctors’ offices, veterinarians, etc.
Over the last day, there’s also been a news story criticizing the Ireland government’s contact tracing program. Apparently, the Health Services Executive (HSE) in charge of contact tracing has been overwhelmed and texted 2,000 people who tested positive for COVID-19 last week (after considerable delay), asking them to notify people they’ve been in contact with on their own. The Taoiseach (Prime Minister) only learned of this when someone texted him a news article about it.
Another story I read reported that one person who ignored the self-quarantine rules after returning to Ireland from abroad had been responsible for infecting 59 people in 10 different households. I’m sure this and other “spreader events” have led the government to take a much harder line on the restrictions, which clearly some people aren’t following.
Meanwhile, there is legislation being proposed to give the police, the Gardaí (pronounced “gard-ee”), the power to fine people who don’t comply with the house-party or other social distancing rules.
This would include fines for:
• Not wearing face masks: €500 refusing to wear one in shops and on public transport (there’s no requirement to wear face masks outside).
• Violating 5km travel limit: €60 fine on a first offence; spot fines for non-compliance of rules up to €500 may also be imposed.
• House parties: police can ask the owner to break up the party but can’t enter the home; if they refuse, they can face a €1,000 on their first offence or jailed for 1 month; second offence fines go up to €1,500 and 3 months in jail; third offence fines go up to €2,500. Gardai will also be given the powers to fine anyone who refuses to leave an area where they believe a person is on their way to a party.
However, as part of the Level 5 restrictions, the government is officially sanctioning “support bubbles” that allow people who would otherwise be isolated to be treated as an extension of another household. This is intended for people who:
• live alone
• are living alone with children under the age of 18
• share parenting or custody arrangements
• live with an adult they provide care for (for example a dependent adult relation or a partner with dementia)
• live by themselves and have a care-taker
There doesn’t appear to be any formal designation process (i.e., people don’t have to notify the government of who their “support bubble” is), and in practise probably no one will question an arrangement unless someone is blatantly abusing the rules.
For my last day before lockdown, I have one more lunch date, this time with a 38 yo guy named K who lives out in the suburbs. We meet at Bobos (the same place where I met C on the previous evening) since it’s got a nice outdoor setup. K is handsome and charming, a smaller framed fellow with a beard, greenish blue eyes, and large ears. He’s a bit of a nerd who plays in a couple of D&D (Dungeons & Dragons) groups. Although he’s originally from Dublin, he currently lives in Celbridge, a small town due west of Dublin in County Kildare that’s also on the Liffey, where he works at a garden center. We have an engaging and playful conversation over lunch, then afterwards go for a walk to St. Stephens Green and back. His days off are Tuesday and Wednesday, and he expresses interest in meeting up again next week, in spite of the lockdown rules. K says all his IDs are still registered in Dublin, so no one would question him being outside of a 5 km radius from his town. It seems like a lot of people aren’t taking the travel limitations seriously, but we’ll see how strict the police will be on enforcement. In particular, I wonder how public transportation will be monitored, especially for buses that go in between Dublin and its outlying suburbs.
It’s also the day for my late night / early morning DBT session, so I need to get some early sleep in during the evening so that I can stay awake later. One project that I’ve been putting off is setting up my regular CPAP (I’ve been using my smaller travel-sized one all this time). I finally boiled some of the de-ionized water I purchased from the automotive parts store for filling the CPAP humidifier chamber, and I put away the various supplies that were still in the last of the six boxes I had shipped over but hadn’t unpacked yet. There are some other projects to get done around the apartment, but I should have more than enough time for those over the next six weeks.
Thursday
My third DBT session went well. We are moving on to the module for interpersonal relationship skills, which I feel is one of the more practical and impactful topics (although all of the material so far has been helpful and relevant). After the session ends at 3:00am, I’m still wide awake and end up watching some TV. The sun is rising by the time I finally go to bed, but I don’t have anything planned so I figure I can sleep in. I wake up to the construction noise from the Central Plaza redevelopment a block away. I have some breakfast, then decide to go to a SuperValu location not far away to pick up a shopping rewards card — it’s really just an excuse to get out. The streets are noticeably more quiet, and the few cafes that before had outdoor seating now only offer take-away, as expected. Other retail shops are shuttered. There are few people walking out on the main Temple Bar street that becomes Fleet Street. A couple of Gardaí on bikes with their neon vests are conspicuously present at Meeting House Square, but they don’t seem to be bothering anyone.
I cut over to the Aston Quay alongside the river and walk down the few blocks to the SuperValu. There’s no queue to enter, and I’d say there are only a handful of other shoppers in the store. I’ve scheduled another big grocery delivery for tomorrow morning, so I’m really only here to get the rewards card, but since I’m here anyway I decide to browse for items that might not be available online. What I’m most excited about finding is corn meal — now I can make some cornbread muffins! I put a few other baking essentials in my basket such as flour, sugar, baking powder… strangely, I don’t see any baking soda, and not even a place for it on the shelves. Isn’t that an essential ingredient for making Irish soda bread??? There are plenty of pre-made mixes for that, though. There’s no wait at the check-out, so I step up right away. There is a woman in a motorized wheelchair also checking out at another cashier ahead of me; I haven’t noticed any other physically handicapped people out and about in the city, although there do seem to be ramps and other accessibility considerations on the streets and in public transportation.
After paying for my items and exiting the shop, I hear some commotion behind me and notice there’s a gathering at the O’Connell Bridge not far away. It must be some anti-lockdown protestors. I decide to get closer so I can take a couple of photos:
I walk back through Temple Bar instead of along the river, and it’s a ghost town:
There’s a McDonald’s a block and a half away from the apartment on the way home, and I succumb to the temptation of some familiar junk food. I’ve heard that their burgers taste better here because they use real Irish beef, and I’d say there’s some truth in that.
The only other excitement for the day is taking out the rubbish and recycling bags (I finally know where they are supposed to go thanks to my neighbor “Hodor”), and perhaps I’ll stay up late again to watch the final U.S. Presidential debate. That should be
entertaining, at least in a dark absurdly comedic way.
Sunset from Dame Street:
