Day 254 overall & 29th day of the second confinement phase

Content

Dashboards▫️ Pic of the day▫️ Info & News

Food & Drink▫️ Fun bits ▫️ Statistics

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🔹 Last weekend in November already. Tomorrow marks the 1st Advent which is the first Sunday in the four-week Advent period before Christmas.

🔹The new exemption certificate, valid as of today, for going out is available here. An English (paper) version is available on the download site.

🔹Overview France: Below is a new board showing a summary of the current status in the country.

How does it compare with the targets set for a possible de-confinement on Dec 15th?

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🔹 Vaccines

Too early to report anuthing concrete. I am less and less convinced that something will be available within a couple of months as suggested.

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🔹 Yellow / Orange alert

A lot of rain is forecasted in the Region this weekend. The departement of Pyrenées Orientale has been placed under Orange alert and the departement of Aude under Yellow alert.

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Dashboards

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This week

Last week

A fortnight ago

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World

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France

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Occitanie

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Aude

Number of PCR Tests (new)

I reported this data yesterday already but there is no update available currently in the official pages. If something turns up, I shall update during the day.

https://www.cascoronavirus.fr/test-depistage/france

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Lighthouse in Michigan

Not a photo I took, but I saw this particular lighthouse during one of my many trips over the years to Michigan. The lake effect everyone there is talking about.

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🔹 The Colisée cinema rehabilitated

The Colisée cinema in Carcassonne has been given a new look and will be ready for the national reopening of the Cinemas in Decembre. The City of Carcassonne, owner of the premises has worked closely with CGR and the participation of the Region, the Department and the Agglomeration to offer you 3 rooms at the cutting edge of technology and unparalleled comfort.

On the programme: Dolby 7.1 sound, digital projection, “duo” armchairs for families or lovers and the return of the mythical Colosseum’s great hall, its dome and gilding.

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🔹 Vendée Globe

It is turning out to be a very exciting race, all boats but one have passed the equator and the first group is on the way to the Good Hope cape where they will encounter wild seas with sustained winds of 30 to 40 knots. Remarkable is the last boat “Charal” which had to return to the start for 3 days for repairs and is now chasing the pack again.

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🔹 Blood Oxygen Saturation Monitor (SpO2)

Unfortunately a very good friend of mine has ended up in hospital and is currently in intensive care, in an induced coma and intubated and suffering the full effects of COVID-19. Apparently the hospital team told him he waited too long before contacting them and apparently his family doctor did not give him the correct advice and was trying to treat him against the flu like symptoms he was experiencing.

I have heard and this was confirmed to me on a few occasions over the past few days that your blood oxygen saturation level should be above 95. If 95 or under, you should go straight to emergencies in hospital where a dose of oxygenation would be a must for a few days. A level of 92 is critical and would certainly mean intensive care, coma and intubation.

I purchased, more than a year ago, one of those oximeters to measure and monitor my level of oxygen saturation. It takes a few seconds to get a reading on a daily basis. I strongly recommend it. It is not all about COVID-19, when I was admitted to hospital back then, one of the side effect of the internal bleeding I experienced was a lower oxygen level.

An idea for the Xmas stocking maybe?

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🔹Ethiopia

Here is a 10 years old article I found in the Guardian

Bob Geldorf is a humanitarian activist. He is also an egotist, a celebrity economist, and quite wrong on Africa.

Geldof, the lead singer of the Boomtown Rats, sprung to global prominence with his role in Band Aid to raise money for the Ethiopian famine. The single sold nearly 12 million copies; the Live Aid concerts raised £150m. For these efforts Geldof received an honorary knighthood and was elevated to a spokesman for African development.

But the reason for the famine that catapulted him to prominence had less to do with the weather than the Ethiopian government’s policy to withhold food shipments to rebel areas and to spend nearly half of its gross domestic product on the military. Aid became a tool of the counter-insurgency strategy, being left to rot or distributed according to political objectives. The same political issues shape African development choices today and these, not external activism on aid, are key to the continent’s future.

and here is yesterday’s news (courtesy of Aljazeera)

Ethiopia to begin ‘final phase’ of Tigray offensive: PM Abiy

The Ethiopian military will begin the “final phase” of an offensive in the northern Tigray region, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has said in a statement, hours after an ultimatum for the Tigrayan forces to surrender expired.

“The 72-hour period granted to the criminal TPLF clique to surrender peacefully is now over and our law enforcement campaign has reached its final stage,” he tweeted on Thursday, referring to the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF).

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Food and drinks

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🔹Iberico

Most people in Carcassonne know Alfonse for his involvement with the Prosper Montagné club. Not everyone knows that he is also managing an on line shop for products from his native country.

Below is the link to the latest offers for the year-end festivities

La Boutique AC Gourmet Ibéricos

🔹 Emma Kershaw (Courtesy of Vibeke)

Many of you may be familiar with Emma Kershaw and her wine and gastronomy tastings/pairings/school in Coustouge. Emma’s two recipe/wine pairing books are available on her website lamaisondurire.com and make perfect Christmas presents. Both books are written in English and French. (Shipping to the U.S. and other countries IS available.)

– A Taste of the Sud –An 80 page, beautifully photographed collection of recipes and wine pairings – an homage to Languedoc-Roussillon, its cuisine and its wines. 25 euros

– The Day that Louis was Eating – Also beautifully photographed, a brand new book of easy-to-prepare recipes from around the globe. 30 Euros.