Week 35 It's only a cold...

Week 35

An interesting (but sad) week

I was tested for Carona

On Monday morning I woke up with "a bit of a cold", which is a bit of a worry these days! I took a load to the tip and then thought that we should take the cold seriously given the contact with our clients. The testing system here is very well organised - and encouraged "for anyone with symptoms". So, on Tuesday Janny rang the Hotline and handed the phone over to me - the chap switched immediatley to English (I think they do that in order to spare themselves from having to listen to my Dutch). He explained that they have to organise the test within 48 hours - the next closest available spot was in Assen at 1324hrs the next day - so that's what we did on Wednesday.

The test was done at the Assen Fire Station - it also houses some other Community Services and they had erected a large steel frame tent - with 3 drive-through lanes.

https://www.google.com/maps/uv?pb=!1s0x47c8252eaa57af49%3A0x54c2a139f997af88!3m1!7e115!4s%2F%2Fgeo0.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3Dx3ov7kdZlbEQQe2RXF8owA%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dsearch.gws-prod.gps%26thumb%3D2%26yaw%3D159.03343%26pitch%3D0%26thumbfov%3D100%26w%3D520%26h%3D175!5sassen%20brandweer%20-%20Google%20Search!15sCgIgAQ&imagekey=!1e2!2sx3ov7kdZlbEQQe2RXF8owA&hl=en

The test was not at all painful or as uncomfortable as we had heard. A swab in the throat and the other end of the same swab up one nostril - less than a minute probably.

On Thursday afternoon, I could log on to the National testing website - using my National DigID number - and got the result. Negative, of course - but at least it felt like the "right thing to do", given our Care Farm situation.

Again, I could only admire how well organised it is. 

This from Dutch News.nl

Amsterdam and Rotterdam are stopping an experiment with face masks in busy places at the end of August. Both said that they were halting the experiment ‘as planned’ and will be waiting for the results of investigations to see how effective the measures have been. In a press release, Amsterdam added that ‘depending on the level of infections in the city’ as well as these results, it would decide whether or not to reintroduce obligatory face masks. 

Last weekend, it announced that enforcement officers had handed out 148 fines of €95 for non-compliance, reported the Parool. However, when reporters including DutchNews.nl visited the Red Light District – one compulsory area – the majority of people on the streets appeared not to be wearing them. Some reports suggested that only 20% were following the rules, increasing to 80% if street wardens intervened. 

Rotterdam and Amsterdam were given the go-ahead to introduce facemasks in busy areas by the national government early in August as their coronavirus infection numbers spiked, to see what effect they had on distancing and public awareness. There has, however, been constant scepticism from the RIVM public health institute about how effective non-medical face masks are in preventing the spread of the coronavirus in real-life situations. The government has instead emphasised the importance of limiting visitors at home and keeping a 1.5m distance. 

The face mask experiment, which started in early August, covered five locations in Amsterdam, including the Plein ’40-45 and Albert Cuypstraat markets during operational times, plus busy shopping streets in Rotterdam, two shopping centres and all large markets there. Court In Amsterdam, a group of protesters tried to overturn the face mask ruling in court but although the judge ruled that it was an infringement of basic rights, the temporary nature of the experiment meant that this did not merit legal action. However, some shops and analysts said that they were getting far less footfall, with more than 35% fewer visitors in areas with compulsory face masks, according to a study for the Parool. 

A spokeswoman for Rotterdam mayor Ahmed Aboutaleb told Dutchnews.nl that compliance had been far greater in her city. ‘We had a different experience with it,’ she said. ‘In the last week when we started to be more repressive in our way of controlling the crowds, we have seen a lot of people committed to wearing a mask. The first day that we were stricter, we saw only four penalties instead of Amsterdam, where there were about 150. We are very happy to see that people are positive about wearing a mask when addressed, but we ended the experiment as planned and are waiting for the investigators to come with their report.’ Femke Halsema, Amsterdam mayor, said in a statement: ‘The experiment will be ended on 31st August as planned. Depending on our independent evaluation, infection level and how busy the city is in September, we will look at how to proceed.’ The NSCR Netherlands Institute for the study of crime and law enforcement will be publishing a study on the extent to which the face mask rules were followed and whether they helped regulate crowds and maintain the 1.5m distancing.

Boat stuff

Monday - did a load to the tip in the morning and in the afternoon shifted the boat from Wijnjewoude to Mildam - in rising winds. Nearly crashed the boat when the bowthruster failed! oops!, indeed...

I think the culprit was a loose battery connection. The thick wire was loose - I can only think that it was loosened when I replaced the batteries, about 3 years ago. They are heavy duty batteries -  and expensive! I've had them tested and they are still OK - luckily.

 We were expecting a storm, so we left the boat for 3 days at Mildam. On Thursday morning we did the last 2 hours to Heerenveen with no wind at all, managing to moor OK without the assistance of the bowthruster - I've been spoilt with that over the years!

The float switch in the toilet decided to play up - just another minor problem, needing to be replaced - it seems I need to add soda - bicarb to the flushing water to stop the "float" turning into a calcified "rock"...

Wifi for the apartments

We're putting in better wifi in the apartments - a combination of me trying to figure out where all the spaghetti goes and paying for some new equipment and expertise to make it all a bit more presentable - all this was on our "to do" list - we were just waiting until the new fibre optics system was up and running.

We have 2 new residents, so that made it time to get the job done!

Normally, I'm just "plug and play" with the cables, but I really had to dig back into the system in order to remember what I had done - luckily, I found some of my old notes!

In fact, this time I will make a diagram!

Thanks to Andre, (also our "drone" man), for sorting this out! We also placed one of the round Access Points in each of the apartments.

The housing shortage

Janny had a phone call from the Local Government during the week. "Do you really have 10 people living there"? We're not really supposed to, but Janny said yes - you know, with the housing shortage and all...they said, er, yes, well - we'll turn a blind eye to it for the time being...(I always tried to convince myself that they are "just small groups" and we still have the permits for Groups Accommodation). ...and besides, the Council used us themselves a few years ago to house some refugee families.

Turning the "blind eye" also has to be semi-official (ie on paper) so that our residents can be properly registered as living in our Local Govt. area - and that they can get rental assistance or other benefits, if they are entitled to them.  Sometimes I just love how the system works over here.

RIP Zoey "The Best Dog Ever"  2006 - 2020

Honestly, I used to say to her that "all you ever had to do in life was to be a good dog, and you did it remarkably well". No doubt wishing that I could claim the same....

Oh, that tongue!

She had such a good nature - perfect for our place with the kids and other clients - she was much loved by everyone...

I'll make another blog with photos, but for this one, I think my lasting memory will be how she enjoyed going for our first morning walk over the last couple of months...the cat (Tassie) had been sterilised and became much friendlier - so all four of us would head off up the back...Zoey had learnt from an early age not to go near the road, so she could go almost anywhere without a lead - she always roamed her own territory - sometimes going further afield at the back but never at the front...Boeke will forever be confined to the lead, I think.

Zoey has her last resting place on a hill out the back - next to Ozzie and Didgy - and overlooking her "territory".

Some of my reading

I read a lot of varied stuff - a couple of my favorites are Umair Haque and John P. Weiss.

Haque is a bit too much doom and gloom over the current state of affairs in America (albeit with frightening reality)...but Weiss is much more uplifting...

What social media is less likely to show you is the true character of people. The retiree who volunteers at a soup kitchen is less likely to virtue signal on social media. Helping others is the reward of the work, not showcasing it on Facebook.

...and of course, I get a few emails from Dutch boating organisations...

this one from Scheepspost  (a digital newsletter about (our) sailing heritage)

The latest edition declares that  the boating event "StrontWeek" has been cancelled for 2020 - due to the Carona concerns...

The Annual Event is a race to bring manure (stront) to a flower growing region - it used to be a "thing", without necessarily being a race.

Unfortunately, Warmond has to plant the flower bulbs in their own gardens without shit from Workum, there will be no passengers in the ports of the Beurtveer, the disappointed Liereliet warblers will not be able to grease their throats, the proud clog sailors will not be able to wish their boats a safe voyage,  the nets of the fishermen will remain dry this year and the fish auctioneer can spare his voice.

and...

Rare wreck of a Dutch 17th century flute ship discovered

http://badewanne.fi/?page_id=1129

 August 24, 2020 Wouter van Dusseldorp

While making documentation dives on some so-called World War I or II wrecks at the mouth of the Gulf of Finland, Badewanne divers descended on a great surprise: a 17th century flute ship wreck.

Since the Middle Ages, the Baltic Sea has been an important trade route because Holland and England required a lot of wood, tar and hemp, all of which were available around the Baltic Sea. From the 13th century onwards, the Hanseatic League controlled trade, but in the 17th century the highly efficient merchant navy of the Dutch Republic gained control of this trade.

One ship type clearly stands out above all others and becomes the mainstay of this trade: the Dutch “Fluit” ship, a three-master with a spacious hull design, without guns and with a very large loading capacity. The Flute ships utilized a new and advanced rigging with cleverly designed hoist systems to hoist and trim the yards and sails. This allowed for a much smaller crew than previous ship types, making the trade more profitable.

Another new feature on board the Flute ships was that the entire crew lived “behind the main mast” - Master, mates, boatswain, cook and all crew members, all sharing the same space between decks, and eating at the same table. This was very unusual in the society of the time, let alone in the highly hierarchical maritime world. The Flute ships were dominant in the Baltic trade between the late 16th and mid 18th century. Very few of these once common ships survived, even as wrecks.

It was therefore a great surprise when divers descended on a wreck at a depth of 85 meters, discovered an almost completely preserved Dutch Flute ship. She rests on her keel on the sea bed, with most of her rigging scattered around her. There is only minor damage caused by a drag net. This has slightly damaged the aft deck and the top part of the typical Flute transom. Apart from these damage, the wreckage is intact, the holds are full and all boards are firmly in place. Even the damaged parts and components of the transom trims, such as the “Hoekmen” or the “Strongmen” can be found on the bottom behind the stern.

Only in rare places in the world, including the Baltic Sea, can wooden wrecks survive for centuries without being destroyed by chemical, biochemical and biological decomposition processes. Due to the low salinity, absolute darkness and very low temperatures all year round, these processes are very slow in the Baltic Sea. Perhaps most importantly, wood-boring organisms such as shipworms cannot live in such an environment. Even in temperate seas, unless buried in sediments, all wooden wrecks disappear in decades.