On Tuesday we were all masked up and socially-distanced for the standing-up of the ATC squadron. In this photo it doesn't look as though there are many cadets present, because most of them are in fact in the classrooms at the side of the main hall, watching o/c Brian's presentation via linked computer screens. It's all very well thought-out including a strict one-way system operating through the building, which makes you think very carefully about whether you really need to move at all and necessitate a journey outside to get back to where you have to be. The staff and NCOs have all worked tirelessly (once they've been allowed to) to make it all function, though Brian has not implemented the recommendation that the HQ have a 'sterile room' where the cadets can leave stuff. Not only would it cease to be sterile as soon as the door was opened, it makes you wonder whether the authorities have any idea what a sterile room is and the challenges that any squadron HQ in the country might pose to providing one without complete rebuilding.
I have a pretty robust attitude to COVID risks, mainly because, thankfully, I am pretty robust, but of course there is the matter of the other people I am in regular contact with and the sheer inconvenience of either being ill, or having to shut yourself away because you might be, which in the context of Swanvale Halt church would be extremely inconvenient. Tuesday was the first time since March I've been in an enclosed environment with people moving around other than shops and the church, both of which are far easier to cope with and believe are safe. The HQ building is actually quite constrained and I couldn't help a little tremor of concern at the thought of all that breath swirling around, even with the windows open. It's most unlikely, I think, that we will make it through to vaccine-land without being shut down again at least once.
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