All of Ontario entered an "Emergency Brake" lockdown this morning at 12:01 a.m. Cases are continuing to rise (over 6000 between yesterday and today), mostly among under 40s. The ICUs are becoming overloaded again, putting a significant strain on our medical system. This lockdown (our third) is for four weeks, minimum, which brings us to the 1st of May.

Our focus: many people around us still need care and practical support, or just a listening ear ... and to an even greater extent in these trying days. There are a myriad of daily opportunities to encourage others; it's just that we have needed to find alternate ways—creative and resourceful—of serving others during the pandemic.

My father has had his first vaccine (March 8) and should be receiving his second dose this coming Tuesday, hurrah! Here in Ontario, vaccinations are now available for age 70+.

It is a shame about Ontario being isolated like that. Unfortunately it is the only way, if the rest of Canada is to be protected, I suppose. At least your vaccinations are being rolled out, which may help after a while. Ours are still not being distributed yet, for some reason, & I don't understand the hold-up.

This morning, Easter Morning, at our church, finally we could not only attend church, but we also were able to sing hymns without wearing masks, for the first time for over a year. We haven't had cases of COVID-19 for quite a while.

But just when we think all is clear, that disease pops up again, with 8 cases in Queensland. Even before that, we became aware of the situation in Papua Niugini, the other side of the Torres Strait, where the Tiwi Islanders live, & where there are quite a few cases, more so than either New Zealand or Australia. There can be no room for complacency, I guess.

@waggawerewolf27, it warms my heart to hear that you were able to be in your church service in person and sing without masks. Wonderful! But too bad about the Queensland area, for sure.

Posted by: @waggawerewolf27

There can be no room for complacency, I guess.

Indeed!

Don't feel too badly for Ontarians. The Covid team has handled the entire pandemic quite well, overall. They have been very on top of things, so this lockdown is not at all a negative thing. In fact, it would have been concerning if this order had not been issued at this time. Some of the other provinces are not doing well, either, but from what I hear/read, Ontario's pandemic plan has been the most strict. Québec's has been close. (Our son and daughter-in-law live there.)

I sure hope your area receives the vaccines soon, wagga!

After a whole lot of research and prayers, I ended up getting the Johnson & Johnson vaccine last week.  I had about 12 hours of feeling slightly crummy, and three days of a sore arm, but I'm glad to have that done and off my plate. Husband is getting his second Pfizer next week.

Good stuff, fantasia!

Here in Ontario, Canada, an Emergency State was announced today, so we are in a Stay at Home order for the next four weeks. The main issue is that our ICUs are overloaded, which is a great concern. I've mentioned this before, but the bulk of the cases now are in younger people, partly because of the vaccinations going on in the older groups, but also because too many in the province's lower adult age groups tend to 'pooh-pooh' the whole situation and therefore tend not to be as careful.

As for me and my family, we are all doing well and know that all this has a purpose, so we continue to keep a weather eye out for those who are really struggling through this prolonged trying time.

It is good to hear that you are all getting your vaccines at any rate. Ours in New South Wales are delayed, but some people have been saying on radio that they have received theirs. In the meantime we have been getting normal flu vaccinations, because it is now Autumn, with the normal flu season coming up. We have been advised to wait at least a fortnight before getting the Astra Zenica vaccine that is currently being distributed.

Any update on your vaccine supply, @waggawerewolf27?

I bring both serious (province-wide) and good (personally) news. The first is that our daily new cases continue to be over 4,000, with variants winning, particularly the UK (B117) therefore our Stay at Home order has been extended for two more weeks, totalling six weeks.

On the personal front, my husband and I were able to book our vaccines this morning for May 3 at 8:55 and 9 a.m. We had issues trying to book online last week, but finally something gave way, and that entire week first week of May opened up, hurrah!

Not much news to tell the truth. Tomorrow we are due to go for the Astra Zeneca vaccine, or at least book in, since the fortnight is nearly up. Last Wednesday I went to our GP to get a referral, among other things, & that medical clinic was being run ragged with the people now queuing up to get vaccinations. So far they are restricting that vaccine to the over 50's due to three vaccinated people under that age having died of blood clots. I intend to go for it, but husband is getting cold feet, which isn't good. There are other vaccines available, it has been said.  

On the other hand, the rate of infections has stayed very low, & the Australia/New Zealand travel bubble has been opened, to cheers on both sides of the Ditch.  

I think you may find that the high rates of infection might slow down next month as Spring turns to Summer. May 3rd isn't far away, just a couple of days to our 50th Wedding anniversary, on May 1st, which will be rather quiet due to the pandemic, which I'd prefer, to tell the truth. 

All the best with the vaccine, @waggawerewolf27 and hubby! Our pharmacies in Ontario are offering AstraZeneca, but we are going to a community centre, which, at this time, has Pfizer.

(How wonderful: your 50th wedding anniversary. That is something to celebrate, indeed! And quieter is lovely, I agree. Our only desire for our 40th was having the kids over for a long weekend and spending lots of time around the campfire together; also playing games and eating scrumptious food. My parents' anniversary is May 3; our son and daughter-in-law's is May 4. )

Today is the first day in a week when our daily new cases are not above 4,000. The lockdown is beginning to kick in!

Hope it all goes well, @waggawerewolf27! I've had the AstraZeneca vaccine, both doses now, and so have most (if not all) of my colleagues. As far as I'm aware, no-one's had any bad reactions other than mild side effects after the first dose.

Glad to hear the Aust/NZ travel bubble is opening up! I may be coming back to Australia later in the year for at least a few months, though at this stage I'll have to go into quarantine if I do. The number of cases in the UK is still falling, anyway, which is good to hear.

How were your vaccines, @waggawerewolf27? We received our first dose this morning (Pfizer). We were very impressed with the flow, efficiency, and the friendliness of the staff. Our second dose is scheduled for August 23, but this might change if supply to Ontario greatly increases. We shall see if any side effects develop over the next day or so.

Good news that you have had both doses already, @Courtenay!

I am seriously thinking of volunteering a day or two a week at the vaccination clinic in town and am in the process of applying now.  

Ontario is in lockdown until at least May 20, but we and our family are all doing well. The only disappointment this week is that we always get together for Mother's Day weekend, since it's right around my birthday, but this year our celebration will have to be virtual. We still have our Christmas decorations up in anticipation of when we can celebrate with our family.   I figure at this point, I might as well leave them up for Christmas, 2021.  

Edit the next day: my husband had no reaction to the vaccine at all, aside from tenderness at the injection site; with me, my arm was quite achy all yesterday, but that is totally gone today.  

With our provincial lockdown in Ontario, daily new case numbers have dropped over the weeks from the 4000s to the low 2000s. However, the leading medical team wants to see them well below 1000 before the lockdown is lifted. This current lockdown (our third) is to be released on May 20, but all expectations are that the Premier will extend it another two weeks, at least. More and more people are being vaccinated, which is encouraging. Schools are not back in-class yet, and we doubt whether they will be before the end of this school year (June 25).

I listened to an interview by Ed Stetzer with Dr. Gregory Poland the other day, all about vaccines. Dr. Poland is a vaccinologist at the Mayo Clinic. Really interesting!

Out of seven of us (my dad, my husband, myself, our three adult children, and our daughter-in-law), only two kiddos have yet to receive their first dose. They will as soon as their respective age groups open up, probably sometime this month.

Edit: I just heard that Ontario is suspending the rollout of the AstraZeneca vaccine, because of the blood clot risk, albeit slight.

Canada has passed 25 thousand deaths. In the world, 3.4 million deaths.

Jesus wept.

It's still surreal that we are living in a time of ongoing plague across the world.  

I'm fortunate to be in a carefully guarded country, but if there was an outbreak many would be at risk, because the bulk of our vaccine rollout is still to come. 

Peoplr over 65 should get the job soon, but in my area there is a supply problem, so it could be two more months here for this older age group. At least they can get flu shots as we move into winter. 

My parents in Australia (both over 70) have now had their first jabs, so that's good. I'm surprised both Australia and NZ are behind most other developed countries in rolling out vaccines, but it helps that they're a long way from the rest of the world (distance-wise) and it's relatively easy to keep the borders closed.