Post lockdown beer & curry

Last night I met up with 3 friends who I have not seen since pre lockdown March 2020. We were celebrating David Boyles birthday with Trevor Dean and Montrose Matty. We were all UNISON reps in Tower Hamlets Housing department back in the day. 

It was great to meet up with comrades in person and have a few beers in a local pub, then to go to Aromas Restaurant in Forest Gate for a slap up meal. During the course of the evening we obviously put the world to rights. 

We could have legally met up earlier but we had decided to be cautious and wait until all of us had been fully vaccinated and that things seem somewhat settled. 

Ironically both Trevor and I received the 1st AZ vaccine in March that was made in India, that the EU has not yet declared to be an accepted vaccine in order to travel to Europe and avoid self isolation. 

Hopefully this will be sorted out soon.

This was to me a very welcome sign that things are getting back to "normal" but no one really knows exactly what will happen next with Covid and we do need to be prepared for the unexpected. 

(Photo of Aromas mixed grill which is a main course but also an excellent starter when shared between 2 very greedy people. Our table had 2 mixed grills as starters between the 4 of us)

Kebba Manneh, Chair of UNISON National Black members & NHS worker -Why he is having the Covid Vaccine...

Just had my 1st Covid vaccine: AstraZeneca

 This evening I had my first jab in Westfields Stratford. It went very smoothly. There was no queue outside and despite being a little early I was allowed straight in. The security at the door gave me a new face mask and showed me how to access the hand cleansing dispenser. He asked me whether I felt at all unwell and tested my temperature with a hand held scanner to my forehead. 

I then went to a receptionist who took my reference number and again asked questions about whether I felt unwell or not. Then I was led into a waiting area for 5-10 minutes. The vaccine centre itself was very large with high ceilings and I felt safe because there was plenty of room for social distancing. 

Next I was escorted to a bay with 3 staff who, again, asked me questions about my health and am I on any medication to thin my blood or any known allergies to injections. They had to check that my taking part in a monthly national survey for the ONS (monthly blood and swab tests to see if I have or ever had Covid) was a problem. The doctor in charge came to speak to me and agreed it was not. 

I then had the injection (AstraZeneca) which was completely painless and I didn't need a plaster. The whole process took about 20 minutes and so far (3 hours since) there has been no side effects. 

Many thanks to all the staff for treating me in such a professional and respectful manner. 

How the Vaccine Process Works in Newham

 Hat tip Newham health champions.