School fair fiasco
Posted on 23. Jun, 2009 by PR Mum in Health, News, People
The number of UK cases of swine flu has topped 2,500 and primary care trusts are to set up antiviral drug distribution centres and swine flu testing clinics amid fears that the infection could spread out of control. The headlines recapture my attention as swine flu has arrived in Crouch End. One of the local schools has closed down for seven days as one case of swine flu is confirmed by Haringey Council and others are currently being investigated. Perfect timing then for the other schools to hold their annual summer fair as food and toys are swapped from the grubby hands of one child to another, then onto their parents and siblings.
Oh well, I throw caution to the wind and offer my services at the school fair and find myself allocated to the Father’s Day craft stall, where kids can make personalised key rings, badges and magnets for their Dads. While the younger children spend ages creating loving masterpieces, the older kids came up with brilliant messages, like ‘Dad, you’re stuck with me’. The best bit about manning the stall is listening to their conversations and I was surprised to hear talk of swine flu. One kid proudly told me the name of the boy who had been confirmed as having swine flu in Crouch End and that it is ‘best to catch it now as you can only get it once’. He was hoping to get it soon and have extra time off school before the summer holidays started!
While I was the manning the stall, the big rotter and her cousin were allowed to go off on their own to explore the school fair. I gave them five pounds each, strict instructions not to leave the school grounds and off they went. I spent the next hour feeling anxious that they might be lost and scared. Quite the opposite. They arrived back at the agreed time grinning from ear-to-ear. One had yellow hair, one had pink hair and both had multicolour nails and colourful temporary tattoos. The big rotter also won three rancid-looking cuddly toys from the tombola, which are probably infected with swine flu…
