95 days in isolation/lockdown.

The news over the last few days has been dominated by the riots in the UK and the USA. A great excuse for the anarchists and far right to infiltrate and create problems for the causes thay are saying the support. They have done the same with Brexit and other major peaceful protests over the years. But we all know who they are and they will not divide the good people of this world who observe the rules, help their neighbours without expecting a reward or even thanks. The NHS is the prime example.

There is a sort of middle ground of people who do what they like despite the dangers to themselves and others. I cite as examples those who queue from 7am for knickers from Primark and who may go on road trips to Barnard Castle. This proves to me that intellegence does not translate as common sense. Although the Covid 19 deaths continue to fall, I shall look closely at the figures in 2/3 weeks time to see if the current “freedoms” will result in a second wave in the number of infections and deaths. I don’t want to say that I told you so or that it serves them right because it would not necessarily be those who spread rhe virus who will succumb to it.

My 1000 piece jigsaw of New York is two thirds complete. I had a bit of a scare when the last piece of the Hudson River was not to be found. This morning however, I found it in the leg mechanism of the kitchen table. Just the sky left to do. This is what counts as excitement nowadays.

David and the kids came on Sunday which was a lovely day and we all sat in the back garden, observing social distancing, of course. I wish we had a bigger garden to have a kick around but David is always taking them to the local parks and are getting lots of excercise and are also doing all their homework. They are great kids. We have had good long WhatsApp calls with Sally and Jim who are keeping themselves busy and of course are occupied with the kittens who are coming on a treat.

Our hanging baskets are looking great now and the weekly feeding with “Miracle Grow” seems to be working. So much so that our neighbours have commented on them. S & S next door, are expecting their first child in 3 months time. They are a really nice couple and we have found that all those who live around us are the same and we have had three offers of help to do shopping etc. We didn’t need it but it is nice to know that good people are around if we need them.

The tv and radio is full of warnings of how to deal with scammers who are “riding the wave” of vulnerability caused by the Corona Virus. For some reason, thankfully, we have not been caught out by any scammers despite a couple of attempts, including the usual emails from Nigerian princes or senior poititians or ambassadors. We should be even more on our guard though, for that very reason.

Went to see mum this morning and took bread and kitchen roll which are running out. Took a photo album of black and white photos and it kept her very amused for 45 minutes. She still remembers everyone, even the most recent pictures of them.

Had Jenny’s cornish pasties for lunch. Really delicious.

Watching alot of Test Cricket and International football at the moment. It’s amazing how the excitement comes back. I remember every minute of the 1966 World Cup Final, watching it with Tez Tindle, Wally Walford and Nelly Norton. We got drunk on cider and staggered through Anlaby singing. A bobby on a bike stopped us and said we should go back home, have coffee and toast and maybe have a sleep. We did just that at our house without the coffee and then settled down to watch the whole game again. With more cider Parents and sisters were in Germany and I had just started going out with Jenny. What a day. I still have contact with my old school chum Maurice (Nellie) Norton.

UK deaths Saturday 13th June  181

UK deaths Sunday 14th June       36

UK deaths Monday 15th June      38

UK deaths Tuesday 16th June    233

92 days in isolation/lockdown.

It’s been a while but so much is changeing. The world is going mad. Riots in the USA now spreading to the UK and elsewhere. People are totally ignoring lockdown rules. They can’t wait to get into the shops for a new pair of socks. We are going to keep washing the old ones. Trump is getting madder by the day and Boris and his cabinet continue to be indecisive. The rules about who you can or cannot be with are so complex and contradictory that we are just sticking to virtual isolation. And I don’t understand “bubbles”. Does anyone?

I’ve started a jigsaw. A 1000 piece picture of New York. Rather ironic given the situation there. The puzzle is very relaxing and my aim is to engage with it in short sessions, for my back’s sake. There is alot of sky in the top third and water (Hudson River?) in the bottom third. in between is Manhatten which is now one third done. All shades of orange for the skycrapers makes it very difficult. It’s a brand new puzzle so I am hoping there will not be a piece missing at the end, I remember my last ever jigsaw which I did over 50 years ago and was a British aircraft carrier with jets taking off. I seem to remember they were Hawker Hunters.

The weather has been awful so no plant watering required. We did a very big shop at Aldi. We thought we would just nip in for a few things but the shop was empty so ended up spending over £70 which is probably  equivalent to over £100 at Sainsbury’s. Mind you, there was wine and gin in the basket. We have arranged for our laminate floor to be laid at the end of the month and my niece’s husband, Richard, is fitting a new door into the side of the garage.

Since the 15th March, only two people other than us have been in our house. A plumber and an electrician for a total of an hour. We are definately doing our bit to stop the spread of coved 19. We are awaiting delivery of another 30 face masks. There was a facebook photo on my site of a mask for the ears so you don’t have to listen to all the bull#### spoken by some people. Excellent.

Petra and Manfred have now cancelled their trip to the UK for our golden wedding celebrations. Very wise given they would need to quarantine for 14 days. I think that is the last nail in the coffin for the party and we expect there will be more cancellations from abroad and Scotland. We have heard nothing from the venue or the band so we will have to contact them with the bad news but we will give it another week.

UK deaths Tuesday 9th June             286

UK deaths Wednesday 10th June     245

UK deaths Thursday 11th June         151

UK deaths Friday 12th June               202

83 days in isolation/lockdown.

Is my pessimism about to shown to be misplaced? Not only is the number of deaths the lowest since before the lockdown but it was announced that the “R” number has fallen below the magic #1 in all regions which are showing 0.7 to 0.9. This is good news and I will monitor this with interest.

Had a good walk today calling at the chemist and then the garden centre for my pills and a new plant pot. The garden centre had marzipan so I treated myself to a couple of bars.  How naughty. Had a trip out in the car this morning to the Laminate Flooring shop to arrange for an estimate to floor our lounge. They are coming tomorrow and will be wearing full PPE.

I’m having trouble with my left hip which is in constant pain. I struggle to get my leg over the sill of the car and have to grab my pants and lift it in. Very awkward. The hip replacement is 20½ years old and I am waiting for the consultant to call me in, having had x-rays in February. Clearly it may take some time but it cannot come soon enough. The pain in the replacement right knee is to be reviwed at the same time. What a mess. Thank goodness Ibuprufen and Paracetamol are cheap in the supermarkets. And they work.

UK deaths Monday 8th June       55

82 days in isolation/lockdown. Nearly 12 weeks.

Looking back there have only been two visitors to our house in that time. These were in the first couple of weeks so we have done our bit in the lockdown. We have been shopping half a dozen times and have done several excercise walks but observed all the rules when, quite clearly, many have not. Watching the news in the last few days has become ever more frightening. Especially with all those thousands of protestors around the world totally ignoring the fact that there is a pandemic at all. Don’t get me wrong, they are right to protest but if “all lives matter”, then what about mine, my familiies and everybody else who is observing the rules? Don’t we matter? Of course we do and if those people on the streets are angry then so am I because of their stupidity. Stay at home and sign a petition or something but don’t give this virus the opportunity to spread any more.

I am now reading alot more and have started a 1000 piece jigsaw of New York. Not an easy task with varifocals. There is a lot of sky and water so I need to identify dozens of shades of blue in the picture. It is a great picture and identival to some I took on our visit there in 2016. It’s a shame that we will never go back. In fact we will almost certainly do no more long haul flights. Europe is accessable by car and there is so much of the UK that we have only seen on the tv.

Petra has written to tell us that it is unlikely they will come in August and I don’t blame them. She rightly points out that Germany is dealing with the pandemic much better than us but the main thing is the quarantine they would be subject to and there is no point in even getting on the plane in Hamburg. With the restrictions I don’t think we would be allowed to pick them up in our car. It’s a crazy world.

Another hour of bluster from Boris the other day does little for my moral and the stuff coming out of the USA actually makes me feel sick. Nobody seems to know what they are doing and the daily briefings are a waste of time. None of the government men and women tell us the whole story/truth and they have even stopped the event/farce at weekends. Watch out for the “second spike” in new cases soon!!!

My nephew and his wife have adopted their second child, an 18 month old boy. Some nice news in amongst all this madness.

UK deaths Thursday 4th June    176

UK deaths Friday 5th June          357

UK deaths Saturday 6th June     204

UK deaths Sunday 7th June          77

 

 

 

78 days in isolation/lockdown.

Despite finding odds and sods to do, I am getting fed up. Perhaps the weather has been unseasonably warm and I am genuinely  pleased to see the rain today and the reduction in temperature. The rain has been persistant but fairly light. No need to water the plants today.

One ray of sunshine which is always welcome is the £50 win on the Premium Bonds. Not much admittedly but a win is a win and it is still paying out more than we would get on our bank account. We still hope for the big one some day.

I went to Hull City Centre today as I needed to bank three cheques that I have been unable to deposit for 8/9 weeks. I took the bus which actually had half a dozen passengers on it. They all kept a social distance but I was the only one who wore a face mask. It was the same at the bank which had also run out of money in it’s own ATM. Hull Centre was almost a dead zone. Shops were mostly shut and the only people around seemed to be office workers going for a sandwich. The bus/train interchange was virtually deserted and reminded me of scenes from the films “28 Days After” and “The Day of the Triffids”. There were a few people in the interchange but the majority were not wearing masks. The floor of the interchange was marked with arrows two meters apart and going in opposite directions for the publc to follow and maintain social distancing.

Boris led the Government Briefing today. Mostly it was bluster and I tend to concentrate on the statistics but I have no confidence in them either. Some time was given to what happens when UK residents come back from a holiday abroad. Nothing was said about foreign tourists. So we are still in limbo about Petra and Manfred coming from Germany  at the end of August. I think it is likely thay they will not come and that our Golden Wedding celebrations will not take place. If that is the case then hopefully their flights will be cancelled in advance so that they get their ticket money back.

Jenny did more baking today. Cookies and a victoria sponge. Bye bye diet!

UK deaths Wednesday 3rd June     359

77 days in /isolation/lockdown.

Despite all the rhetoric and lies, I am not convinced that all is well, not happy with all the figures that are being passed on and am nervous about the spread of the contra virous and what appears to be a relaxation to the lockdown that is politacal, far too early and not based on the science. We shall certainly not take much advantage of the extra freedoms that are being bestowed upon us. The “R” number is still far too close to the magic “1” figure, the latest being 0.7 to 0.9.

Our esteemed Health Secretary seems to be a bit economical with the truth and like his boss, is reluctant to answer  questions fully, if at all. At first, 70 odd days ago, I thought heg was OK but I have changed my mind. His performances at the briefings are poor and very similar to those of his leader. His handling of the phasing out of the lockdown is wishy washy with no clear explanation of what is allowed and what is not. The briefings have now become so uninteresting that it is hardly worth watching them or taking any notice of the graphs and figures presented to us each day.

Our grandchildren are more interested in the date that swimming pools will be re-opened. They say that swimmers will have to arrive in their costumes, numbers in lanes will be restricted and social distancing will need to be observed. None of this is any use to swimming clubs who could have up to 8 lanes with 10 swimmers or more in each. It is unworkable. Even though it is thought that chlorine would kill the corona virus, there is a warning that a “stricter regime” will still have to be enforced when pools do reopen. Swim England has warned that up to 500 pools could be closed permanently.

As for football (and cricket), social distancing will still be required so no change there. A kick about with dad may still be OK but any competitive marches would be out of the question.

Indoor sports like snooker are now playable but in front of empty auditoriums. Horse racing started under similar rules yesterday but it was not the first sport to be re-instated. Pigeon Racing beat it, by a nose.

My niece’s husband came to price a new side door for the garage today. We definitely need it so there is no need to hang around.

Went this morning to see mum. She was absolutely in form and I stayed for quite a while having a chat. I just missed her lunchtime carer, Jenna, who was just cycling into Anlaby. Her gardener has started doing the garden again and has begun by tidying up the borders. The lawn will be OK for another week. It is already looking better.

UK deaths Monday 1st June        112

UK deaths Tuesday 2nd June      324