In which socialised healthcare strikes again

The woe, the calamity: I found a pharmacist (nearer than I'd hoped) and said, "Hi, can I have some asthma medicine?" and he said, "Yes, here you are, it is free!" (Both my preventative and my rescue inhaler. The labels have "E Earthquake Supply" printed on them.) He didn't have a spacer but suggested a GP, so I found one of them and said, "Hi, can I have a spacer?" and they said, "Just have a seat, for we are tremendously busy," and I had a seat among the crowd and prepared to wait for a long time, but within two minutes a doctor (I think? maybe a nurse actually) came and said, "Here is your spacer, it is free, and you're doing the right thing."

Doing the right thing by asking for free stuff. But of course it is: because if the government pays a little in handing out this free stuff now to keep people healthy, it saves a hell of a lot of money very quickly that would have to be spent rescuing the sick. (Eg 65 calls last night to the ambulance service with respiratory problems due to the dust.) This is very starkly true in an emergency situation, but it's no less true in civilised life. It's far cheaper to keep people healthy than to heal the ill.

I did pay for the panadol.

In other news, out the back of Countdown Eastgate they're throwing trolley-loads of groceries into skips. I was too far across the street to see whether it was ruined produce destined for landfill or good stock to be moved to a safer distribution point (okay so I'm an optimist). The latter would certainly be nice. "Don't worry about food, there's plenty in the surviving supermarkets, which just all happen to be on the northwest side of town, and by the way stay off the roads," is getting to be an irritating message, even though I personally have sufficient food and means of getting more.

In which we continue

The aftershocks were frequent and nerve-jolting today, and I've been getting that feeling where the ground is constantly swaying under me.

Random quotes:
"Due to increased demand and the impact on water supplies, the availability of bread is limited across the South Island." (Countdown)

"Planning is underway for the resumption of passenger transport services in Christchurch. No date is set yet." (Canterbury Earthquake)

"That bridge was not open to traffic, and I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to drive on it anyway, because it was being propped up by bricks." (keieeeye)

Image from just after the quake (viewed from the hills)

From Twitter:
Lego character explores #eqnz damage near home http://stfn.co/ejm14j
Someone else builds things with sand http://yfrog.com/gy266isj
Someone points out the weirdness that we have "Internet but no drinkable tap water".

The rescue folk are going to get up to 3 seconds warning of more distant aftershocks. Unlike Ken Ring's snakeoil (see a debunking of his weather predictions; his earthquake predictions are just as much rubbish and a thousand times more vile) this actually works -- I've heard of a similar system just starting to be used in Japan, and an old xkcd cartoon illustrates the general method.


Work is slowly tentatively starting again sort of - got an email asking for people who can work to let their managers know. The libraries themselves aren't open yet, would be working from another building. I've emailed that I haven't got transport to get there but could (and would like to) work from home (which they've said is an option too) -- at least in short bursts, because the idea of being trapped at the laptop for a full workday is a bit terrifying, since I find myself needing to get up and wander, or doze off for a while, or whatever, at entirely unpredictable intervals. (I've been "steadily" reading Pride and Prejudice since Wednesday and haven't even reached Darcy's proposal yet, if that gives any idea of my current powers of concentration.) I suspect the full-workday model isn't what they need at the moment anyway though.

Oh, got sufficient cope to get hold of 'my' builder who at first sounded like he wouldn't be able to come for a week (going out of town mid-tomorrow) but when I described the chimney a bit more he said he and (son/son-in-law?) will come in the morning to have a look.
Putting in a new EQC claim is still on the to-do list. I've got three months so there's really no rush.

My most major achievement is continuing to eat a balanced and, I think today a sufficient, diet.

Ironically my asthma is almost completely improved since I got all my medicine. (Almost.) Note that I'm not complaining.

Bedtime; and if I'm fated to wake early tomorrow I'll try making biscuits for the builder.