Practical generosity

Do feel for the folk who cannot afford to buy even an extra tin of beans in their shopping. All this hoarding is just awful. My young neighbour saw me with a shopping bag yesterday and asked if I was going shopping. Said yes, just for a bread and veg. In the conversation she told me she had been buying in bulk for 3 weeks. There are 2 adults and one school child in the house. Obviously can afford to a great many can't and they are the ones who will miss out on essentials. Selfishness as never seen before. There are the others who will try to help others and they are to be commended. Unfortunately the selfish ones seem to outnumber the generous ones.

We have a group in our town of volunteers who will shop, clean or even just call you up for a chat. Posted on Nextdoor.

Horrified to read today that residents in sheltered housing have been approached with offers to fetch shopping. The 'volunteers' have then disappeared with the cash - or worse - with card and pin!
Agree that handing cash toBranson and his ilk is not high on the list of priorities!

Have heard from washing machine delivery men that they are very busy as many people are buying extra fridge freezers so they can stockpile whatever they can get their hands on. Selfishness beyond comprehension. ???

Our village is also doing a community scheme

Heard on the radio that this is a test of the present generation.
Felt very pessimistic that people would step up to the mark. Reading this thread, I feel more optimistic, but haven’t heard of any particular altruism in my area yet, but I’m sure it must be quietly happening. It’s quite an urban area though. Should that make any difference?

Apparently a hoax

Mcem I heard yesterday in the news that Ronaldos advisers had said that is was fake news started on social media for a joke.

I'm in Dundee, there's a Fc'bk group started up here too, so it's not just happening in small villages.

A Facebook page has been set up in our area advising where to get help if needed.

DS has posted on Facebook that China has been sending some medical supplies to Spain where they are badly need. Not fake news (unlike the disappointing Ronaldo story). He is there and posted pictures. So some international neighbourliness.

This morning I received a leaflet, name, telephone number,
offering collecting shopping, friendly telephone chat, posting mail, urgent supplies.

Also telephone numbers of privately owned shops who will
deliver goods.

It has been set up by a large group of volunteers.

I too am in Dundee and sadly it's here that there are reports of the rogue 'volunteers'.
(Seems that all gp surgeries here are now in lockdown.)

We also have had a leaflet posted by our neighbour opposite offering the same things. I felt this was very kind, we are an estate of bungalows with most of us over 60.
By the by, the kind neighbours came from Iran 5 years ago.

My daughter is a GP and has sent me some of the current advice doctors are receiving. She has told us in no uncertain terms that we need to stay at home and not socialise as far as possible. We are not being locked away, we are being given good advice. My daughter made it absolutely clear to us that we may well not be treated with a ventilator if we fall ill because there’ll be younger people who’ll need them. I have asthma, she tells me I’m unlikely to get better if I get this disease. We need to take this seriously. None of us will need money if we’re dead.

I have ordered a bit more on my Tesco order - which should be arriving this morning - so that I will not need to order again for several weeks, thus freeing up slots for others. Several supermarket online shopping sites crashed last night, and delivery slots are now weeks and weeks ahead.

I rang my elderly neighbour (83, ill, and very very thin) and offered to put her shopping on my order, since I have a slot (which I booked weeks ago). I am getting her some bread, as she said she needed nothing else because her son has booked a carer to take her out shopping tomorrow (!!) and when she tried to cancel this he got very angry with her, so it has been reinstated. Let us hope the carer will have the common sense to take a list from her and go and get the stuff. She was very upset yesterday.

Well done to those who generously have offered to help those who are unable to shop for themselves, and offer to deliver goods or run erands for people who are isolating themselves to try and avoid this dredful virus. With supermarket delivery availabilty slots becoming very scarce, and the usual regular weekly orders arriving with about half the items missing, its one very big task for any helper to take on. Im just hope that the recipients are not as fussy regarding needing certain brands of goods, or obscure items as my late step mother was.
Even the same product in a new dezign of packaging would result in tutts and rejection!
Im actually feeling quite useless at the moment, the street that l grew up in l was well known as 'Old Jacks Grandaughter' the one who was training to be a nurse, and someone who could be called upon as a ' Port within a storm' no matter what!
Now l live in an area where not many neighbours even know each others names, never mind offer to help eachother out, and my own mobility problems render me unable to help where it would have once been me trying my best to support others.

Pensioners will not be the losers in this crisis. Their monies will still be paid so to expect or accept more, is selfish.

I agree GabriellaG54, whatever happens we're guaranteed that our pension/s are paid into the bank weekly/monthly. So many others must be mortified at the moment and that sort of a worry is going to create more of a lasting illness than the virus itself.

I agree GabriellaG it’s some of the young workers who feel financially exposed - Uber drivers for example as people are going out less so not ringing for a taxi. Pensions get paid regardless of the economic climate!

X posts EV!
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Great minds think alike Urmstongran

It's very good of people to volunteer to shop for vulnerable people. I just hope that they can fulfil their promises. I popped into Sainsbury's yesterday, for a few items. A lot of the shelves were completely empty. I refuse to stockpile things that I don't normally use. I exited the shop with a packet of dates - the only thing I could find from my list. Luckily I always keep my cupboards and freezer well stocked, so I won't starve.
The lady on the checkout said that there was a long queue at 7am, waiting to rush in. One man turned up at the checkout with a full carton of pasta! They refused to let him have them, thank heavens, but there was none on the shelves when I went in.
I see that, today, Sainsburys are going to allow pensioners to shop first, but not all are fit enough to get to the shop early in the morning. They are also going to start rationing, but people will just go around several times, I expect. Maybe they should stamp their hands at the checkout!

Taxi firms in the north of Glasgow offering free taxi's for the elderly to and from shops when they have their elderly only hours .So many people offering things its hard to keep up ,I particulary like the company boss who told ALL his staff to spend £50 each on essential supplies for a an elderly or vulnerable person and put it on their expenses .Some said they were happy to double the amount and buy for two folk.

That’s lovely paddyanne but I still agree that pensioners will all have their pension paid, many others, much younger, will lose their jobs or have their income slashed. These are the people we need to worry about.