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In covid/political news then... *hands*
Covid: Omicron now dominant in England - health experts
On Friday the UK saw another record number of daily Covid cases for the third day in a row, with more than 93,000 infections announced.
Here's to hoping everyone goes to get their booster! (Thank goodness for the NHS, the vaccine rollout has been good.)
Top civil servant Simon Case quits No 10 party probe amid rule breach claims
The UK's top civil servant has stepped aside from his role leading an inquiry into Downing Street lockdown parties, after it emerged an event was held in his own office.
^I have said it before, but satire is dead.
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Daily Dimash: Shine!Super Brothers: 《We Will Rock You》and 《We Are the Champions》
Long story short, Dimash is currently participating in a Chinese competition/reality/talent TV show type thing. All the contestants are professionals (singers, dancers, rappers, actors) and are in four teams. This is from Episode 4 when each team had to put together a performance. The team Dimash is in is called 'Six Times the Speed of Light' (there are six members) and the leader is called Van Ness Wu. You can't miss him, he's the front man in the absolutely incredible yellow/golden trousers!
The performance is lit (figuratively AND literally) and worthy of Queen. And the harmonies and the lighting... ♥
Dimash Masterpost
Which was not at all what I meant to post.
There is so much covid stuff and politics and... *waves hands* And I am too tired to write about it, but on the plus side tomorrow is my last day at work! (Presuming Darcy's not plagued, in which case I will be working from home, yay. /sarcasm) Generally I like working from home, but it'd be nice to be in tomorrow to tie everything up properly.)
Anyway, thanks to following Dimash I know that today is the 30th anniversary of Kazakhstan’s independence day! 🇰🇿 Here is a photo of Dimash's parents from earlier today, clearly part taking in some kind of celebration - they look like a painting, it's amazing. Kazakh culture & history is fascinating, it's one the real joys of this whole rabbit hole I have fallen into.
Daily Dimash: Ómir Óter
Anyway, for the occasion there is a gorgeous new song, Ómir Óter. You can read about it (explanations of how the song came to be and the imagery used in the music video) here: “Omir Oter”: Ode to Life. It is beautiful and deep and unusual and gorgeous.
Reflections on the transience of life, its meaning, and the eternal question of how to walk your way with dignity and how to leave a trace...
ETA: Information about the historical figures.
( As always, the Dears provide! )
(Instagram post, 3 slides. Unsure if the 2nd is real*, but the THIRD OMG!)
*ETA: Oh it is. He actually, literally SAID: "I mean, this party is not going to be investigated by the police in a year’s time." <- satire is ded, reality is too ridiculous
I have been thrown out of Parliament for saying what we all know:
— Dawn Butler MP✊🏾💙 (@DawnButlerBrent) July 22, 2021
Boris Johnson has lied to the House of Commons and the country over and over again.
But I’ve got news for the Tories, I will never stop speaking truth to power! pic.twitter.com/JtBdhOSXuY
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And onto something completely different, a wonderfully heart-warming story:
My older sister and I grew up in a small, fairly conservative town in one of the "collar counties" near Chicago. I was a pretty average, mostly happy kid, but Sis was always a little different. Off-the-charts smart, beautiful, very quiet and shy. Not many friends. (1/16)
— Brooklyn Bathysiderodromophobic Bitch (@BKLYNBeeyotch) July 19, 2021
(Unrolled here)
And in other good news:
Judge blocks implementation of state gender-treatment ban
Plus heatwave news! :)
Teenage boys wear skirts to school to protest shorts ban in heatwave
( Daily Dimash: Singing with teachers/parents )
Hey. You made it through this year. That’s enough. You are enough.
— Erika Ishii (@erikaishii) December 31, 2020
( Random stuff under cut )
Oh and I can recommend Netflix's 'Death to 2020' - we laughed the whole way through.
Lockdown Update Day 288
30 December 2020 06:24 pmMichael Sheen is one of Britain's most acclaimed living actors, and also someone who has used his platform to shine a light on causes he's passionate about.
After a miserable year, we talk about whether things will change after the pandemic, whether Wales is heading for independence and whether he'd support it, why communities like his town - Port Talbot - went for Brexit, the crisis of the arts, whether Labour has a future, and what he thinks about Keir Starmer.
~~
'We are overwhelmed with Covid patients...We are working with everything we've got.'@doctor_oxford talks candidly about the impact of the second wave.
— Good Morning Britain (@GMB) December 30, 2020
She says the number of Covid patients are 'unimaginable' and more younger people are in ICU as a result of Covid. pic.twitter.com/Up8nnrUmWX
You can get a card with your statistics here!
LJ2020
'Opinion Leader' - LOL. Guess that's what I get for daily updates? ;)
Lockdown Update Day 287
29 December 2020 07:12 pmSix NASA Astronauts Describe the Moment in Space When “Everything Changed”
“This is what heaven must look like.”
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I might have recommended this before, but if you want to play a game online w/family or friends (over zoom or similar) this is excellent and very entertaining:
https://skribbl.io/
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Beautiful wintery photo from the Faroes
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The Guardian: A brief history of Brexit – all 2,000 years of it
The historian and novelist charts the ups and downs of Britain’s relationship with Europe
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FUNDRAISER: Help make our bathrooms safe for our family
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Video: Goodbye Bannerman Road | Elisabeth Sladen Tribute
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Space Invaders
Why you should never, ever use two spaces after a period.
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BBC: Puberty blockers: Parents' warning as ruling challenged
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(ETA: And my LJ stats for 2020 here!)
Lockdown Update Day 286
28 December 2020 11:07 pmToday is the Fourth Day of Christmas, a day for Calling Birds, and peacocks make a lot of noise so here are four of them. Kings College Chapel, Cambridge; East Harling and Dunton, both Norfolk; Gipping, Suffolk.
— Simon Knott (@last_of_england) December 28, 2019
#FourthDayofChristmas #Dec28 #December28 #12DaysofChristmas pic.twitter.com/pa44QaZfXV
Today is Childermas Day, the feast of the Holy Innocents, on the fourth day of Christmas. It's an appropriate day for the Coventry Carol and other medieval lullaby-laments: https://t.co/KYr5ltY2ou pic.twitter.com/yYROD0Fbrw
— Eleanor Parker (@ClerkofOxford) December 28, 2020
Lockdown Update Day 285
27 December 2020 04:34 pm“What’s for lunch?”
— VeryBritishProblems (@SoVeryBritish) December 27, 2020
“A slice of ham, a roast potato, cranberry sauce, a small heap of couscous, coleslaw, a slice of cheese, a slice of a different cheese, some stuffing, half a tomato, and one bowl containing a tiny bit of trifle on top of the last bit of Christmas pudding.”
Post-Xmas means one thing:
— John Bull (@garius) December 27, 2020
WORLD'S STRONGEST MAN TIME!
Shan't talk about Christmas telly, except for recommending the Ghosts Christmas Special: The Ghosts of Christmas.
And finally a Christmassy robin. ♥
First, a thread that winds up explaining why it's called Boxing Day:
In cobwebbed corners of churches across the country are carved alms-boxes. Many, like this one at Watton, Norfolk, are inscribed, urging passers-by to ‘remember the poor’. For centuries, the collections in these oaken boxes were society’s main source of poor relief.#thread pic.twitter.com/SjxKYLDoMx
— Friendless Churches (@friendschurches) December 26, 2020
And then under the cut just a bunch of nice things.
( Read more... )
WHO: Minimizing the COVID-19 risk: advice to individuals, communities and governments for the winter holidays
Gatherings should be held outside if possible, and participants should wear masks and maintain physical distancing.
And the most pandemic-appropriate Christmas song:
I'll be home for Christmas
You can plan on me
Please have snow and mistletoe
And presents by the tree
Christmas eve will find me
Where the love light gleams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams
I'll be home for Christmas
You can plan on me
Please have some snow and mistletoe
And presents by the tree
Christmas eve will find me
Where the love light gleams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams
I'll be home for Christmas
If only in my dreams
Hope you have a happy Christmas, especially if you are unable to be with your loved ones. ♥
And then this made me laugh WAY too much:
Illegal warehouse midnight Mass in Belfast, DM me for location
— MARKREEL (@markreel) December 23, 2020
Finally, plenty Christmas music under the cut!
( Read more... )
Lockdown Update Day 281
23 December 2020 07:59 pmBuffy verse Fanfiction:
Christmas in Hell by
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
beer_good_foamySummary: Five times people spent Christmas in various Hells.
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And...
Guinea Pig Nativity Play 2020 from St Michael's St Albans:
Lockdown Update Day 280
22 December 2020 07:50 pmPremiered Nov 20, 2020
Celebrated comedian, actor, and activist, Eddie Izzard, explains how and why we must all come together to help 'Make Humanity Great Again'.
Part of The Festival of Discovery. For more great content from the Festival visit thefestivalofdiscovery.com
There's a line cut there that I regret. After "everything has to end sometime, or nothing would get started" there was "Snow isn't snow till it falls." Shouldn't have cut that. #HalfWayOutOfTheDark
— StevenWmoff (@SWmoff) December 20, 2020
Random wonderful things under the cut (may make you cry).
( Read more... )
Lockdown Update Day 278
20 December 2020 05:07 pmAnd GOOD THINGS:
"I just want to be based in girl mode from now on". Eddie Izzard has revealed she is now exclusively using 'she' and 'her' pronouns: https://t.co/oATBcwfxAF pic.twitter.com/D5MvHg3JDl
— British Comedy Guide (@BritishComedy) December 20, 2020
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MATT SMITH will be live-tweeting during the Doctor Who Christmas Special Tweetalong of 'A Christmas Carol' from 7pm (GMT) TODAY via THIS ACCOUNT! #HalfwayOutOfTheDark
— Doctor Who Lockdown (@LockdownWho) December 20, 2020
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And a wonderful thread:
Growing up, my Muslim family never celebrated Christmas. This year I am not going home, because pandemic, so my roommates are teaching me how to have my first proper Christmas.
— Mohammad Hussain (@MohammadHussain) December 19, 2020
I am approaching this with anthropological precision.
Here are a few observations. pic.twitter.com/1WARv5nax4
Lockdown Update Day 277
19 December 2020 06:43 pm"Step it up to Tier 4" pic.twitter.com/tbP9sIklQn
— Bec Hill (@bechillcomedian) December 19, 2020
Just when I thought I was all done for Christmas, some neighbours cat goes and sends a Christmas card to our cat.
— ElizaPetch (@ElizaPetch) December 19, 2020
And photos from the official opening of the undersea tunnel in the Faroes:
Myndir: Hátíðarhald í Eysturoyartunlinum
:)
Lockdown Update Day 276
18 December 2020 08:09 pmMy fave xmas related medieval motif is the Dream of the Magi (where they are warned in their sleep not to return to Herod), but here they are three Kings snuggling. pic.twitter.com/hTn3nxrOJq
— Sara (@tinyredbook) December 18, 2020
Petition: Save lives this Christmas: Govt must reverse household mixing advice
— Cod War Steve (@Coldwar_Steve) December 18, 2020