Your job(s); and customers

I don't know what to write about in this post. But given my context right this minute I think the subject of job or jobs may be suitable.

I am addressing you, reading this post. How many jobs have you had? This encompasses ones you don't consider 'jobs' and ones that you consider jobs. You don't necessarily have to have gotten paid. I leave the definition pretty open to you.

Why did you enjoy them? Why didn't you enjoy them? Why did you resign? If you were forced to leave, whether fired or persuaded, have you learnt from the experience? What hours did you do? What was the work environment like? The communication between you and your boss and upper management?

I have been lucky enough to have hours I enjoy, and I resigned of my own free will. I did as much as I wanted and got given more responsibilities because I could handle it. Many people would not enjoy my job, but I did and do. It is pretty monotonous, but that works for me. The mental gymnastics caused by the customers, however, was what kept me on my toes. There is no one way to handle a customer in any situation, even if it's the same one. There are too many variables when they contact you to have one way that will always work.

One thing I have learnt is I like a consistent flow of customer contact. Or enough to not get bored. Otherwise there is less to do, especially if you don't have daily tasks. There is also a thing of having too much responsibility, even though you get it done on time and enjoy it.

Another concept that seems to always exist in my years on the job is customers who want everything exactly the way they want it. The product must be in this colour at that price for example. It just so happens that out of all the colours, the one you want doesn't exist and you find the product too expensive. We tell you this. You do not accept this and ask why you don't create them in that colour at a cheaper price. Not only do we not have the answer because it is beyond our job description (we have nothing to do with decisions about price for example) , but we.

The only reason I think customers expect products to be to their exact liking and if not, they complain, hoping it will be created is choice, which is more and more of a thing. We get smartphones and can choose apps from the store, we can choose a background and lock screen, we can buy many phone covers. So some people expect they can customize or have many things they want and act like a spoilt brat if they can't. Then they get angry and leave bad feedback/ a bad review/ a bad rating.

Another type of customer is when they don't understand our advice because they don't have the knowledge, but instead of explaining this, they make it harder by not explaining it. For example, I will ask them what device they are using or what internet browser they are using - responses can be 'I don't know', 'why do you need to know?', 'why can't you just fix this for me?'. Then I have to find a polite way to solve the issue without bruising their ego because they are not 'technical'/'good with technology'. What these customers fail to realize is the faster they ask questions because of their lack of knowledge, the faster their issue can be solved.

Also, I am not saying you should know everything, but if you have a smartphone or access to the internet you should be able to say what internet browser you're using, navigate to the app store, know how to get to the phone settings. It's like you have to know the accelerate, clutch, brake and handbrake to drive a manual car.

Spoilt and ego-y customers can be the most difficult to deal with, especially if they're in the mindset and it gets back to your boss, and you have done nothing wrong. On the flip side it is always nice when your boss asks you about a particular contact and then laughs after they realize the customer was being difficult and you don't need to be talked to.

There are the nice customers who not only have a pleasant demeanour, but then thank you profusely for making their day. Sometimes it's just a matter of updating or restarting their device, but they are genuinely so happy.

To end, the really angry customers can be extremely entertaining, especially on the phone because it's more face to face than e-mail or livechat. They are so angry and you can't get a word in so you just have to wait for them to finish talking and let their anger out. Maybe some of the best ones end with 'Can you help?', but they have not given their name or e-mail address or any information we can search to look up their account.

Sometimes they end their anger with 'Are you there?' as I haven't said anything and remain silent because I know there's nothing I can do until they've expressed themselves. I generally answer along the lines of 'Yes, I'm here, I'm just listening to you'. Sometimes I'm just laughing inside my head.

- A.M.

Covid Middle-earth

To the general population of New Zealand: be quiet

I lived in New Zealand for a long time, over 9 years. I still have contacts there. I am not living there now. I have contacts in some of the countries hardest hit by covid-19: France, Italy, Argentina.

You have nothing to complain about when it comes to covid-19. There is nothing specific to NZ that gives you the right to complain. You have had one month of hard lockdown and two weeks of lockdown which could be defined as 'soft'. You have one of the lowest confirmed cases and death tolls in the whole World. You have solid infrastructure when it comes to health. You have a competent government.

Yes, a lot of the economy comes from tourism. Yes, you have poverty. Yes, you have suicide, domestic violence, teenage pregnancy. But you do not have to deal with an incompetent government and/or healthcare system and/or covid at the same time. Take a look at Brazil. Take a look at Italy. Take a look at the US before President Joe Biden. Even the UK. Depending on the country, they not only have covid, but incompetent governments and a healthcare system that is not robust. They have been in lockdown two or three or even more times longer than you.

Out of 52 weeks you have had 4 weeks of really restricted freedom and 2 weeks of slightly restricted freedom.

I am not saying some of you have not lost jobs or not been infected. I am not saying you are not in debt. I am not saying your relationships have not suffered.

What I am saying is appreciate you have not been impacted as badly as many millions of other people. You live in a beautiful country which cares about its environment. You by and large have been able to go tramping, swimming, be physically around each other since covid appeared in January 2020. You also have enough space to have personal space and decent sized houses. Masks weren't ever mandatory, only highly recommended.

You also have Australia as a kind of 'buffer'. Covid has to get to them first before you - another layer of protection that delayed covid. Regardless of how you feel about the government's response to covid, you have Jacinda and she is a lady. This does make a difference, see the links at the bottom of this post from 'Happy Valentine's Day New Zealand', https://holandt.blogspot.com/2021/02/happy-valentines-day-new-zealand-3.html .

Many people want to travel, many people want financial stability. But realize you have been spared a lot because you are New Zealand. You might be one of the first places impacted by covid to recover. You also are not a tiny Pacific Island that is struggling partly because it is so small nor a gigantic country which is struggling because it is so large.

Everyone would like to live life like it was pre-pandemic. You have for the most part been able to do it. Even with your cases in 2021, some countries can only dream their spikes/resurgences could be like that.

I am not being mean. It's pers

I am employed, I have a roof over my head, I can pay my rent, I can put food on the table, I have disposable income, I have no experience of lockdown. I complain, but not about not being able to travel or the financial loss. I complain about the incompetency of the governments and the inequality of wealth causing problems with obtaining and distributing vaccines. A lot of governments have not handled covid well. Yours has, for the most part. Of course, it can do better. Governments always can. Yours, like everyone else's, should be financially supporting those who are struggling.

I try not to complain about the restrictions in place, because I know what I have. I am not the ones hit hardest: I can still live my middle-class lifestyle with the addition of a mask.

Yes, events with a lot of people have been postponed/cancelled/ changed, but at least you can go to each other's houses, make your own fun. Ask people in Italy and the UK how they can see their friends like during pre-pandemic life.

If anything, do you know what people say when I told them I was from NZ? The All Blacks and Lord of the Rings. NZ has no problems that make it stand out whether in a negative or positive light - it is not a big player on the political, economical, and any other platform that makes it a powerful player on the World stage.

Pike River, the Earthquakes, the Christchurch Mosque shooting don't pop into peoples' minds when I said I was from NZ.

You have it good New Zealand. You have for many, many years and likely many to come. Really open your eyes to that. If you still have a hard time understanding, read the news articles of some of the strongest and most vulnerable people fighting to contain covid. I am not in health, but I am pretty sure NZ frontline workers have not had anything of the scale these people have gone through and still have to experience.

Worry about your loved ones not in NZ. You can even worry about and miss the ones trying to get back, but don't let it take you over because ultimately, you cannot do anything. You have to wait for all the other places to contain covid. The best you can do is stay safe and healthy. When covid-19 is under control,

- A.M.

Sources:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/avivahwittenbergcox/2020/04/13/what-do-countries-with-the-best-coronavirus-reponses-have-in-common-women-leaders/?sh=224364b3dec4

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/18/female-led-countries-handled-coronavirus-better-study-jacinda-ardern-angela-merkel

https://ideas.ted.com/6-things-we-can-learn-from-how-women-leaders-have-handled-the-pandemic/

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2020/dec/16/female-leaders-make-a-real-difference-covid-may-be-the-proof

Hong Kong's latest covid-19 cluster

I'm calling it: Hong Kong is in its 5th wave of covid.

It hasn't been officially announced as far as I know, but come on.

If my memory serves me right, 16 schools closed, a floor of HSBC's main building hit, a law firm. All from a gym on Hong Kong Island where many expats go. Well done. This is, or has the potential rather, to be bigger than the 'dance' cluster.

The restrictions had just eased, some schools (maybe all of them) had just re-opened and now the 4th wave, which was easing , has 'gone into' the 5th wave. This one seems harder to contain, just based on how far it has spread already.

- A.M.

大震災, Great Earthquake

Friday 11 March 2011 at 14.46. Japan was struck by an earthquake and tsunami. 17 days after the 22 February Earthquake in Christchurch. I mentioned it in the post, 'Christchurch, 10 years on', https://holandt.blogspot.com/2021/02/christchurch-10-years-on-i-was-there.html, and will repeat a bit in this one.

In the aftermath of the Christchurch Earthquake, Japan sent help to us. They were shocked and surprised by the damage of the quake.

When we saw the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami on the news, we were overwhelmed. And we had a idea of what they were going through. It was too difficult to process so the TV was turned off.

The Japan Rescue Crew left Christchurch to help their people back home. New Zealand sent people over there too. I can't imagine the mental toll the crews must have been through and may still be living with now. It is not often you'll have to go through two disasters so close together. Both were also on a large scale of damage.

Some of the hardest hit people are the frontline workers. It's not only them, it's loved ones too. Their families are impacted because it's hard not to have your professional life spill into your personal one in those circumstances.

They also had a double hit - earthquake and tsunami. The station was equipped to handle one event, not two. You can't really criticize the Japanese, they are experts in earthquakes, they live with that as a consideration. So if they're struggling, you know it's bad.

I hope they have recovered better than Christchurch. There should be some progress in 10 years and they are a 1st World Country, they have or can get the resources to move forward. New Zealand is and although I haven't been back to Christchurch since I left for non-Earthquake-related reasons, I am sure there are still untouched buildings since 2011 and New Brighton still needs rebuilding and repairing.

It must be weirdly positive for the Japanese and Kiwi Crews because they went through two disasters together and it's a particular set of circumstances. Although Christchurch had earthquakes following February 22, they didn't cause the same level of damage, at least physically, than on the 22. I don't think Japan has had an earthquake and/or tsunami of that level since.

The Prime Minister of Japan in 2011 only recently stepped down. I remember the first press conference, he was so calm and just said words like 'please stay calm' and his whole demeanour just earned my respect (and admiration). When the country you're leading has been hit by two natural disasters and you can be composed, that shows some level of leadership.

The unique bond between Christchurch and Japan, New Zealand and Japan, is exactly that.

- A.M.

Eating

Today there are many different aspects to a person: their sexuality, their diet and son on and so forth.

For some reason, the 'standard ' diet still seems to be one that includes meat, that is to say chicken, beef, pork, lamb etc. Not seafood.

I will also define 'diet' as what you eat, not management of your food intake to achieve a particular goal. These days, diet can be vegan, halal, vegetarian, pescatarian, gluten free and more, but it still seems to be 'abnormal' if you do not eat meat. I am fed up of this 'standard' because it also suggests sometimes you are less healthy, slimmer because you don't eat meat. This is not necessarily true. What if you eat masses of chocolate and soft drinks? In fact, some people overeat meat.

As I'm so over the illogical reasoning, I am going to use the cheap strategy of making a list of well-known people. This is called 'star power'.

The below do not consume meat, for whatever reason. Sometimes their diet is not just meat-free, for example, Zooey Deschanel.

Ma'a Nonu

Zooey Deschanel

Pamela Anderson

Tobey Maguire

Narendra Modi

Woody Harrelson

Maggie Q

It is also considered 'weird' if you do not consume alcohol. Once again:

Tyra Banks

Gary Oldman

Noel Fielding

David E. Grant

Daniel Radcliffe

Zac Efron

Tobey Maguire

Narendra Modi

Kate Beckinsale

There are 'alternative' lifestyles that are being advertised, but they're harder to market. 'Teetotaler' is kind of cool, but not exactly widely accepted.

Smoking isn't seen as such an issue, probably because it's a well-known fact it's not good for your health. However, if you eat too much meat or consume too much alcohol, this is bad for your health too. I personally think alcohol is more dangerous than smoking because the effects can extend beyond your personal sphere into society. Also, it seems some people just can't be in social situations without alcohol, which is illogical.

Along with diets, it appears there is an increase in allergies/intolerances, but I am not sure if these days children are wrapped in cotton wool or society is more focused on and these have been issues we've been made aware of.

I would also like to point out India, which has a huge population with many people that are vegetarian. Are you really going to say 'vegetarians are weird' when one country has so many?! And Indian food is so so good, curries, naan bread, poppadoms, samosas, pakoras, etc.

Also, in some religions, there's at least one day where you don't eat meat. It does not matter why, the point is, you don't eat meat.

So do not judge people who do not eat meat.

You might already know this, if the Human population ate less meat, and seafood too, then it would be better for the environment and most likely, as a consequence, Humans. Meat also costs more than if you ate less of it or not at all. Just putting that out there. Like cigarettes and alcohol, you don't actually need them to survive and if you couldn't afford them then likely you wouldn't buy them.

Some people don't fully realize from the living animal to the plate on the table that that steak was a living animal. Others also do not understand the concept that some people have never liked the taste of meat from when they were young - it just seems physically and psychologically impossible for them to believe.

Like many things, whilst many people do eat meat and it's considered normal as a food choice on menus, fear seems to be one reason. Fear this person eats differently than me. Why is that scary?

Another point is if you're in a romantic relationship with someone who doesn't eat meat or seafood, often the person who does just eats less of it or stops eating it. One, the person who doesn't eat meat may not know how to cook it and even though there's two of you, if you cook it, only one of you will eat it - so maybe it's not worth it. So in certain contexts, you (blindly) accept it otherwise you don't. So stupid and illogical. Still to who you are.

- A.M.

‘Premature,’ ‘unrealistic’ COVID-19 will end soon: WHO

Thank you WHO and Dr Mike Ryan. Thank you for setting a more firm deadline.

I don't believe in hope. I definitely do not believe in blind hope, or maybe blind hope is hope for me.

You can hope to travel. You can hope to move house. This does no good. You must plan. You must save the money, search for and book the flights, the accommodation, ask your employer for time off and all this must be done in advance. You do not tell your boss and pay at the last minute. This does no one any favours.

As I said in 'Life in 2021', https://holandt.blogspot.com/2021/03/life-in-2021.html, I do not understand the thinking of "2021 will be better". Covid-19 is 1. A reality so pull your head out of the sand if you still have it there 2. It is going to be around for a long time so stop hoping you'll be able to see your family in whatever country they are or be able to go the that music concert or that theatrical performance. Accept there is a likelihood it will not happen.

Maybe in the first 6 months of 2020, still hope whatever it is will go ahead, but not anymore. It is not a negative thing, it is a relief psychologically. Just accept that you can't do many things you want to do because covid has effectively stopped that. It is not only physical freedom, it is also psychological, but accept it and life will get easier for you. You can by all means not accept it and resist, but it will get you nowhere. Are you going to go outside and risk a fine and/or getting infected or stared at for not wearing a mask? It is similar to the "don't think of pink elephants" and you do. But here, override yourself, for the interests of yourself, your loved ones, your financial status, just abide by the health experts' and the government's advice.

Believe me, I had plans that I had to cancel. It took me a long time to realize one of them really might not happen because it was so important for me. I had been planning it for a year if not longer. I cancelled and got a full refund.

Also interesting to note, now the support and encouragement from the government/health experts has gone from "we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel"/ "we'll be alright"/"we're in this together", to Dr Mike Ryan stating: “If we’re smart, we can finish with the hospitalizations and the deaths and the tragedy associated with this pandemic” by the end of the year" - whether because they sensed the whole of Earth's population needs a change in tone or they were in fact blind and are just reacting to the people, for example the anti-lockdown protests, we many never know.

For those of you who are still hoping and/or cannot face reality: wake up, this is going to be around for another year or two, by that I mean covid will not be declared contained. Of course, no one can predict if there will be more lockdowns or if as an indicator of how not in control Humans are the Big Airlines will be dead in the water, but this is not going to be a fast process. Not only are we dealing with a virus, we are dealing with governments of varying competencies, populations, money, politics (which is not the same as a governments trying to deal with a virus and its population simultaneously), power.

Also, do remember what you have. Just the fact you are able to read this means you have access to electricity, a laptop or mobile phone, the internet. If you are at home, that's something else. You also have time to read this. Some people may not have electricity, a laptop or mobile, access to the internet.

Most of the Human population have been impacted, but if not for anyone else, obey your government/the experts, wear your mask properly, acknowledge what you have, for yourself.

- A.M.

Source:

https://apnews.com/article/pandemics-coronavirus-pandemic-united-nations-c277943cdc46880297c960864027497a

Turn it off and on again

A few simple words which took a long time to sink in.

This is sort of a follow-up to 'Netflix Crashed!', https://holandt.blogspot.com/2021/03/netflix-crashed.html, Netflix continued to be affected and then the new development, so did the websites I was visiting. But because Netflix was affected first, I put it all down to Netflix. And then I took out the small receiver for my WiFi and put it back in the USB port. The change was almost immediate, the pages loaded. After a while, the pages struggled to load, all of them. I started thinking it was the internet. However, there was no reason why that should be, nothing about the environment had changed.

After this being the second day with loading issues, I was frustrated. I had restarted my computer, played around with the turning the WiFi on and off, and basically it would work for a while and then it would struggle. I still thought it was Netflix because that is what started it all and it seemed the most logical conclusion. Sometimes, when you're at the end of you tether, you have a epiphany and it's simple. I unplugged the receiver from the USB port and I plugged it into another one. The cable in the other USB port I switched to where the receiver had been. Everything worked!

Don't overcomplicate things. Turn it off and on again so to speak.

- A.M.

"US Capitol police warn of possible militia plot to breach Congress", BBC

My God. Really?

My first thought upon reading the title was "I wonder if covid-19 is causing people in general to behave "badly"? As in, if there wasn't covid, would there still be unacceptable and more 'aggressive' behaviour? Would the riot at the Capitol have happened, or if it did, would it have been so violent? Would the protests in Hong Kong have got more violent? Would the aftermath of the political climate in Hong Kong be so strong, with the length of Agnes Chow's prison sentence as long as it is, or the mass resignation of legislators be so many? Would Nathan Law have gone to England? How about the housing prices in Hong Kong, the wealth of Jeff Bezos, the viewers of Netflix, would their wealth and viewing have increased significantly if covid wasn't around?

Yes, I understand the circumstances we are living in now are not ones many have ever lived through. War time is difficult, but it is not a health issue. It affects the countries involved, but even WWI and WWII didn't affect as many countries as covid I don't think. Covid also has the added layer of confining people at home, whereas during war time, I don't believe the people not at war had to stay inside their homes for such long durations. There was food rationing and basic necessity rationing, but I think I will stop there because a comparison between life during conflict and a health issue cannot and should not be drawn.

What one can say is this covid-19 pandemic is definitely a historical event and there has been and will be many 'firsts' as a result of it.

Definitely, in the reality of the pandemic, the protests are violent, the penalty for disobeying covid restrictions is not negligible and it seems in general when you hear about drug hauls and other less than palatable events, they are more aggressive than pre-pandemic. It seems there are more murders, more crimes, more sexual assault and harassment; dilemmas as a result of Brexit. Maybe it's just because all the majority of news these days is about covid and we're in a more negative state of mind so the news published is about bad happenings.

New Zealand is always pretty neutral in terms of news, or inane news, like 'a cat got stuck up a tree', but although it's not violent, it seems the house prices are rising there, immigration issues are present regularly, tenancy laws, contraception distribution, so it's going up or are more complicated.

It seems crystal clear there are some people who are not only adamant Trump supporters (I never thought I'd be writing that on my blog), but they also refuse to believe he is not President anymore. This is not only blind, but it is dangerous. It also seems hard to believe that such people exist, especially after the Capitol riot, where they came face to face with the most realistic situation that might ever be possible. Human lives were lost yet some are still fighting to have Trump as President.

As an extension of the above paragraph, I would also like to say that one of the worst affected politically, and maybe even personally, must be Obama: He must wonder on a regular basis what His eight years as President were for, when it has been undone a lot and was it even worth it. It must be hard waking up some days. A President is not only the present, it is after the previous President and before the next one. Yes, if the President is from a different political party, then the 'direction' of the country may not be continuous, but in this case, Trump seems to be in a league of his own, regardless of his political stance. It is said President George Bush Jr said words similar to this during the inauguration of the now-predecessor of the current President, Joe Biden: "What the Hell was that shit?"

I admit with no shame, I did not keep up with Trump throughout his four years. The little I heard was enough to disengage completely from Him. I have only ever seen Him on a screen and heard Him once. Maybe more, but I was not engaged. I was shocked and surprised that one time, by the sound of his voice and he was actually orange. However, when I found out He was no longer President, my concern wasn't "Thank God", my concern is He can still be re-elected for a second term. That is my concern. The whole World is not safe yet, He can still be re-elected. Which also made me think: is it better to have Trump twice in a row, or once and then another President and then Trump again? 8 years of Trump Presidency and having to work hard to undo a lot of the shit he causes or 4 years of shit, then 4 years of undoing his shit and maybe doing positive progress, then another 4 years of shit? I don't know the answer. I still am not at peace knowing he can technically be re-elected and 'technically' is enough for this subject at hand. Not for everything, but this it is.

I think many people are hoping there will not be more harm done because of the existence of Donald Trump.

And may I never need to type His name again or even allude to Him.

- A.M.

Source:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56275335

Triple earthquake

7.1 Magnitude off New Zealand's East Coast, 90 Km down, Friday 5th March at 2.27.38 am

7.4 Magnitude near Kermadec Islands, about 45 Km in depth (or 55 Km according to the US), Friday 5th March at 6.41 am

8.1 Magnitude near Kermadec Islands, 10 Km in depth, Friday 5 March at 8.28 am

Pretty much the whole of New Zealand felt the 7.1 earthquake.

It took me straight back to Christchurch and you can't really help it. You can't really help comparing them either.

7.1 on Saturday 4th September 2010 at 4.35 am/7.1 Magnitude off New Zealand's East Coast, 90 Km down, Friday 5th March at 2.27.38 am - lucky most people were sleeping.

Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12.51 pm. 6.3 magnitude earthquake. 5 Km in depth/Saturday 4 September 2010 for the 7.1 magnitude earthquake. 11 Km in depth/8.1 Magnitude near Kermadec Islands, 10 Km in depth, Friday 5 March at 8.28 am - all shallow, shallow doesn't mean it will be deadlier, but depth can be relevant.

And of course, 11 days after the 10 years since the 22nd February 2011 Earthquake.

It must have brought the past violently and shockingly into the present and future of 2011 for Christchurch and the Earthquake People of Christchurch.

As I said in "Life in 2021", Mother Nature is stronger and more powerful than Humans. Hopefully there will be no deaths from any of the earthquakes in New Zealand. Or future earthquakes and tsunamis following these.

Potential earthquakes was also a reason I never lived and worked in Wellington. After Christchurch, I didn't need any more. In Christchurch we had no choice, it just happened. Whereas Wellington is known for them and there is a 'Big One' that is long overdue so you're constantly living with that in your mind. No thank you.

The other thing these earthquakes/tsunamis will demonstrate is Jacinda Ardern's/the Government's response. She's already lost it, Her trust and Her reputation has been dented, She better respond now. Another mess won't do any good. This is not just on a national scale, but internationally too: She and Her Government have been praised, the World has an eye on New Zealand. Good luck Darling.

When you look back at what Jacinda has had to handle, not only could it not be expected, predicted, but it's a lot: the Christchurch Mosque shooting, covid-19, the Earthquakes, and to a lesser extent, Grace Millane. Jacinda is also a woman, and yes, that does count. Whether She has to be a good leader or She is representing a minority of women leaders in the World, or both, depending on your personality, She has a lot on Her shoulders. It hasn't been brought up much, but She is also young, likely one of the youngest World leaders in the history of World politics.

So not only do I feel for the people in the aftermath of the earthquakes, but NZ's response is critical for covid-19, for the earthquakes and for Jacinda's reputation and Her government's.

As a brief side note, Auckland and the rest of New Zealand should stay at level 3 and 2 respectively. It's careful. Also, coming out of lockdown and going back into it takes a toll and I personally prefer either being in lockdown for a while or not.

Kia kaha New Zealand.

- A.M.

Sources:

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/437677/live-multiple-tsunami-warnings-issued-after-third-quake

https://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake

https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000dfk3/executive

https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000dffl/shakemap/intensity

https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000dfk3/shakemap/intensity

https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us7000dflf/shakemap/intensity

https://www.geonet.org.nz/earthquake/story/3366146

Netflix crashed!

I thought it was just me who was experiencing problems when my Netflix had two or three playing issues.

No it wasn't: https://www.news.com.au/technology/home-entertainment/tv/netflix-crashes-for-thousands-of-viewers/news-story/01bc8ea67af3f3f228c30cac2b109f09

Ha ha ha. Not only does Netflix go down, but it goes down during covid-19, and they know the viewing has gone up. Please don't tell me Netflix don't have enough resources to handle the highly increased traffic as a result of the pandemic. That is hilarious.

Of course, I understand people are human, which actually is important because the systems are built by Humans, but you would hope that they have at least protocols in place should plan A stop functioning as it should. Planning, planning, planning, back up, back up, back up. The larger you are, the more customers you have, the more expectations and reputation you have, the better you should be performing. By extension, you better have a really good uptime and enough resources. Why? If shit hits the fan, you can get it back up and running as soon as possible.

Oh wait, a lot of governments are containing covid well aren't they? They plan and back up.

Google, as an example, has not only their own infrastructure, but their own experts. It does go down sometimes, but then it works fucking hard to be back online. They know if they fail, then the only way forward is to be back up and running as soon as possible. They are too big to not be noticed, if everything for customers becomes non-functional, it will be in the news.

Yahoo! Mail was in the news about its data breach, it's still big enough to attract that type of attention; a while ago Google was also in the news for going down and because of all its services, that includes the drive and docs etc., not just the e-mails. WhatsApp also suffered a technical problem when no messages were sending, but that's Facebook, which has a less than stellar reputation anyway, as they've been in the news about data. Their reputation for privacy and data collection is shady and it's your decision if you trust them.

I am of the stance that Zuckerberg doesn't really care about privacy and data. I don't know if he ever did, but it definitely isn't high on his priority list now. Neither is taking down content which is inappropriate: the live-streamed video of the suicide and the videos of the Christchurch Mosque attacks uploaded to it. I won't say more as I have a post in which I talk about Facebook.

Most likely my reaction was not one many other people had. I thought it was because other people linked to the profile might be watching too, then I thought it was my internet. I just got irritated, but I didn't throw a fit, undoubtedly like most people, who were probably angry and irritated. It's not the end of the World, in this day and age you find something else for a while, YouTube, a podcast, the music software you have on your computer, or if you have a smartphone, you can play Spotify, Shazam or games.

In lockdown, and in a space you may be sharing with others, sitting there all upset will do no one any favours. So just chill.

- A.M.

Covid and lockdowns

I cannot define 'lockdown' specifically as it is blatantly clear it varies depending on where you live. However, for the purposes of this post, 'lockdown' will be measures imposed by authorities that significantly impact the general population's movement or an important part of that country/SAR/Overseas Territory etc.

The context of 'lockdown' will be for places that have covid-19 in the population and are trying to contain it, but have never been in total lockdown. Covid-19 has caused a pandemic, however not everywhere has been in lockdown. Also, not everywhere has had covid-19. It was only this year there was a positive case in Sāmoa for example. As of 30 January 2021, https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/01/1083232, Tonga has never had covid-19.

I cannot confirm if the below list is complete. Do a Google search that includes the word 'lockdown' and it's hard to find a list where lockdowns were not implemented in places that have covid.

Places with covid that have never been in lockdown:

Taiwan

Hong Kong

Sweden

Iceland

The issue is there seems to be no one recipe that works to handle the outbreak. But one thing is for sure, you don't have to be in lockdown to contain it. Taiwan has done extremely well, Hong Kong has over 10 000 infected cases and 200 deaths, which isn't good, but compared to the US, Italy, UK, Argentina, is great.

I imagine the feelings are the same. People who have never experienced lockdown can't imagine how difficult it is to be in lockdown and people who have been in lockdown, some in and out of lockdown, might find it hard to imagine never being in lockdown. However, as there was a life pre-lockdown, they can have a vague idea and daydream about it. It must be easier to contemplate not being in lockdown rather than lockdown as before covid - lockdown had never really been put into practice on a global scale.

I suppose many people have also been in lockdown, then managed to move to a place where there is no lockdown or a lot less restrictions. That must be such a positive feeling, having more freedom to move. For the people who have gone from no lockdown or less restrictions to lockdown or more restrictions, it must be harder - I think people who have experienced this exist, but in lesser numbers. Most likely at the beginning of the pandemic, when the first wave from Asia was spreading to Europe, the US, Mexico, Canada and Latin America.

One of the main issues of lockdown is the psychological aspect. People would like the option of being able to leave their home, even if they don't want to go out. But in lockdown, they don't even have this option. Many people it seems, have a hard time accepting this for whatever reason. If these people can adjust their thinking that the most important reason for the lockdown is to prevent getting sick and spreading the virus, then maybe, just maybe, they will find life easier.

Lockdown is to speed up the containment of the virus and allow us all to be able to have the freedom to move and touch and gather like we did in pre-pandemic life.

When there is no lockdown, you have to wear a mask and be careful of becoming and spreading the infection. Put a mask on, clean surfaces, stay away from people if space allows. If you are lucky, you may have access to the internet and thus a whole range of games, videos, audio, reading material. You can bake, type down your thoughts (if you don't have a pen and paper), improve your cooking skills, learn a language, re-organize your house, exercise indoors, meditate, yoga.

I would recommend not constantly reading the news or looking/reading aimlessly because that will not be good for your mental health.

- A.M.

Sources:

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanwpc/article/PIIS2666-6065(20)30044-4/fulltext

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2020-12-23/taiwan-enjoys-an-i-told-you-so-moment-after-tangling-with-china-and-the-who

https://apnews.com/article/europe-health-coronavirus-pandemic-france-cyprus-6a7468e2f31f21e5e12956e7e5027b76

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/06/08/how-iceland-beat-the-coronavirus