Month: June 2020

The day has been overcast, but mild. The clouds have scudded across the sky non-stop all day and this evening they have incredibly pretty rainbow hues. Some are white-grey, some blue-grey, others golden-grey or pink-grey, and the stormy-looking ones, iron-grey. But none of them have threatened to pour raindrops on us. Indeed, they have been benevolent today, and were particularly so when we made our second trip over to Sutton, parting their ways and allowing the sunshine to peep through. How blessed we have been.

Our intention was to call over to the new-born’s house sometime later on in the week, to drop in the gifts that Dave and Chris brought yesterday. Our plans for today were to tackle the clearing of the former office area, emptying cupboards, removing the contents of the room, denuding the wall, cleaning and hauling up the carpet to make it ready for fitting the laminate flooring.

It was a job we started and have done reasonably well, having got as far as half-lifting the carpet. However, a chit-chat to Michael and half a hint that we might be welcome to go over to see them and, well, the job can easily be done another day, can’t it?? Any one of the family only has to hint that we’ll be welcome, and we’re there!! Well, within social-distancing and isolation rules, of course.

I had started the day baking, trying to rustle up a bread substitute for John and his wacky diet, which actually turned out really successfully. Sandwich rolls they are called, looking more like very large scones, but they tasted good. Those, and home-made guacamole, made a delicious lunch.

A little work in the garden after Steve, our milkman, had been to mow the lawn, before we set to with the main aim of the day – prep the old office. Gosh, it was grubby. We knew it would be, because it was the main walkway from the garage when John ran the business, and there have been years and years of workmen coming in and out every day.

John was especially anxious about moving the cupboard in the corner, though. He was convinced there might be some damp in that corner as he’d had trouble with it when he built the extension. But no, hurrah!! All dry as a bone. He gave a little skip and patted himself on the back.

Surprisingly, we had loaded the walls with such a lot of pictures (well, it was mostly me attempting to cheer John up at one time or another). There were pictures of the family; of our time in Australia; Andrew in Australia; car memorabilia; old birthday cards with funnies on the front; a couple of large prints – a dreamy scene of mountains and a lake, and a sporty scene of a racing car; plus, a photo of John racing round Silverstone. Not sure where we are going to put them all now – unlikely to go back into that room, I think. But anyone remember this one?

So, after the half-hint that we might like to call over to Sutton, we had our lunch, said goodbye to Mum, who decided for the second time that she didn’t want to come, and set off, bearing Dave and Chris’s gifts, a jar of the home-made lemon curd, Chris’s famous cake, a very large mallet and a piece of wood – don’t ask me what the last two were for……

As we arrived, the sun came out, the air was balmy, and we settled into the chairs on the decking. William was having a nap, Thomas was having a feed and so we sunned ourselves for a few minutes until the family emerged. Thomas was fast asleep and wore a post-feed contented smile on his face. Not long afterwards, William was up and running about, chattering away and telling us what he was doing in great detail. Lots of shrugging of shoulders when he couldn’t find his tools in his shed……. but his kitchenalia seemed to make a good substitute.

It was delightful again and John felt very useful advising Michael on laying paving slabs at bottom of the garden while Danielle and I chewed the cud sat in the warmth of the afternoon up at the top. Time went too quickly, and it was soon the bewitching hour, when Mum turns back into Cinderella wearing ragged clothing, and we had to come home.

Amazingly, for coming home in the rush-hour, there was very little traffic and we were home within twenty-five minutes. Mum was safe and sound when we got back, having alternated her time between watching TV and falling asleep. I had offered her the colouring book before we set off and excitedly encouraged her to show me to fruit of her labour when we got back, but no, she hadn’t been in the mood for that today. So far, we have just a few leaves coloured in……..

Being safe and sound is what we’re all after, and I am still a little (!!) anxious about going out and about, so generally speaking, we’re not. However, as Malcolm said on Saturday during our ‘path chat’ the scale of infection is less and less, so the risks are fewer too – which should give me confidence. And yet, we are not getting the whole picture as I understand it, and the stats remain confusing.

The NHS figures published today don’t fit with those I saw yesterday as they don’t reveal previous data. However, for the record, the NHS numbers stated are 5 deaths in hospitals up until four o’clock yesterday, and 10 the day before. The government numbers are 155 deaths in all settings and 689 people infected.

The confusion appears to be that these figures take no account of Pillar 2 where figures have been unavailable for a good while – and if you can make sense of the blurb explaining why it’s unavailable, please let me know. Dan Walker, the BBC presenter tried to get to the bottom of this today when he interviewed Matt Hancock, but to no avail, and I remain ‘Confused of Coventry’.

All I know is, I am still insisting on keeping very strictly to mask- and glove-wearing, hand-washing and/or keeping our two metre distance whenever we’re in anyone’s company. Stay safe everyone, let’s not get sloppy.

PS….. I had chocolate delivered today….. dear Margaret called to drop it in, and her husband, Chris, is lending John a Lotus magazine, too – happy days.

After the excitement of successfully laying the kitchen floor just before lock down, there was a bit of spare laminate, so we thought we’d continue the wooden floor theme into where the old office was, at the back of the garage. Of course, there wasn’t sufficient spare of everything we need, so John ordered the relevant underlay and extra pieces of laminate to fulfil the job. The laminate arrived a few days ago and we had been waiting for the underlay which – ta-da! – arrived today.

I scrambled some clothes on as the doorbell rang and ran, helter-skelter, downstairs to see who was ding-donging so early. Ah….. it was the Wickes’ delivery. In our current state of floating about, early morning deliveries are a bit of a distant memory. I gave the delivery driver the thumbs up and scampered back up to bed. The house felt a bit cool, and the bed was cosy warm. I’ll get up in a bit, I thought.

It was half-past ten before I eased myself out of bed. “Come on, John.” I said, “Dave and Chris’ll be here at eleven o’clock.” I hummed happily as I made a cup of tea and had just sliced myself a nice piece of melon for breakfast, when Dave and Chris arrived. I beckoned for them to go round the back for our garden get-together.

As they walked in through the back gate, Chris offered me a goody bag. She had brought her famous home-made cake. And some lovely fruit. And a gift for the new baby, Thomas, as well as a little something for William. So thoughtful and so exciting. Hmmm…… we’ll just have to make another trip over to Sutton soon, shan’t we? What a hardship that will be….. (does an excited little dance…..)

When we made the arrangement for an outside chat with Dave and Chris we hadn’t bargained on just how windy it would be, nor how cool it would be. It wasn’t cold, but the gusts of wind made it feel slightly chillier than it was. Ah-ha! I know, said John, we’ll light the chiminea and sit right on top of it to keep warm.

So, that’s what we did and ooooh, it was smashing. We gathered the chairs round, all suitably distanced, and settled down to enjoy each other’s company, warming our legs in front of a blazing fire. “We won’t stay long.” Chris said. But we couldn’t stop chatting and we were enjoying ourselves so much that, when we finally thought it was time to call it a day, three hours had elapsed. That’s good friends for you, isn’t it? When you don’t notice how the time flies.

Having got up late myself and fallen immediately into entertaining, I hadn’t checked on Mum’s progress. I finally thought I oughta about twelve-thirty and popped upstairs to see how she was doing. Still in bed, sleepy. I suggested she got up but had no expectation that she would really. However, about three-quarters of an hour later, Dave said, “Here’s your Mum at the window.” Sure enough, there she was peering out at us, all tidily dressed and wearing a bit of lipstick. She even opened the patio door to say hello. I don’t think she had any idea who Dave and Chris were though, because she asked me later, “Who were those people you were talking to today?”

After lunch, John went into the garage to tinker about with the car and glue some more sound proofing material into the shell and boot of the car. He was very successful and once again enjoyed himself. I’ll have to have a word. This enjoying himself is unprecedented. Two days running – it’s unheard of….

I had an hour or so in the garden, despite the breeze. The roses had been absolutely battered by the wind and, from a distance, the white rose petals on the flowerbed looked like snow all over it. But I am delighted with the plants I bought from Bracey’s as they have settled in well and are flowering beautifully. The Gardening Express plants are still gasping. Certainly most of the house leeks look like they won’t survive and the ten echinacea rootlings were rotten, so never likely to take. Disappointing.

Not a lot else to report today. As Chris said, the blog is ‘same, same’ every day. I mean, there’s not exactly a lot to write about is there, when you’re still in isolation? I had thought I might develop deep, philosophical thoughts during this enforced period of seclusion, but no. Just brain atrophy instead. Ah, well. I am hoping that a bit of book reading will help. I am starting to read again with the help of the little book club I belong to, so maybe the grey cells will show a bit of activity before much longer. If only I could find some energy from somewhere though, that’d be a bonus.

So, the latest book we are reading (when I’ve downloaded it onto the Kindle) is ‘The Girl with the Louding Voice’ by Abi Dare. I’ll let you know if it’s any good. Thoroughly enjoyed the last book we read: ‘An American Marriage’ by Tayare Jones, and can recommend it.

Good news in the West Midlands today on the COVID-19 front, with zero deaths being reported in the region’s hospitals. Nationally, 6 deaths have been reported by the NHS in hospitals up until five o’clock yesterday, and 9 confirmed for the day before. The government has reported that by nine o’clock this morning there were 25 deaths in all settings and 815 people infected.

There has been a reported spike in cases in Leicester today, however, and there is a kerfuffle about who is going to be responsible for managing that, so we’ll see what happens. A little glimpse of what is to come, I suspect.

Keep on keeping on, folks. Wash your hands. Keep your distance. Treasure your loved ones. God bless.

Footnote: Mum enjoyed her lemon curd sandwich today.

Sunday. A change of pace normally, when I stop for a short time and catch up with myself. There was no catching up with myself needed today, but I still paused to be still and ‘re-centre my scattered senses’. I ‘went’ to church. I have got used to the on-line service now and am especially thrilled that Kim, our choirmaster, has started to play all the hymns each week and, as requested by me and others, played the intro and the ‘outro’ music today. He is such a talented musician that it’s an absolute pleasure to listen to him play. Rachel read the New Testament beautifully, while Alison gave us a wonderful sermon. And, of course, I sang my head off as usual. Mum and John were still in bed, so I don’t think they heard my howling – well, they made no comment anyway.

After ‘church’, I made myself another cuppa and then went back upstairs to ‘Zoom’ in for a coffee chat with other members of the congregation. It was so nice to see everyone, and we had a good old natter. It was interesting to hear about the plans for the future and how services will be delivered. As John and I are continuing to shield, I was heartened to hear that there is an intention to buy equipment for streaming the live services online. Good-oh.

Once again, I had no plans for the day. So, after the ‘Zoom’ coffee chat had finished, I stayed upstairs in the computer room to sort through all the stray papers that were littering the bed. I have folders for filing letters, bank statements, tax affairs and so on, but habits of a lifetime mean that I don’t file things away immediately, so they float about the premises waiting to be dealt with for weeks on end. I am still looking for the receipt for the TV, just in case that goes on the blink again, but even a deep dive into the papers revealed nothing. Goodness knows what we did with the blooming thing.

John was all about the Lotus today. He’s putting all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle together for sound-deadening. Fiddly bits of felt, pre-prepared, that seem not to fit anywhere, and then new pieces that he’s bespoke tailoring to fit. The ‘cabin’ is all finished; starting on the boot tomorrow. Overdid it, of course, but I think he’s enjoyed himself.

John is also pleased with himself. Bit by bit, he’s finding things to sell. The latest was one of the kids’ boom boxes from when they were teenagers. We have (had) two, carefully conserved, just in case they ever wanted them back. I don’t know who we’re kidding, us or them. They had them when they were teenagers for goodness’ sake and they are in their thirties now…… Anyway, John advertised them locally and one of them has sold. A little bit more pocket money for the Lotus. Oh, do I hear you wonder why we’re not handing the dosh to the kids? Storage costs – that’s all I’m saying.

Mum has also had a good day. She can’t remember anything of course, but she’s been happy. Emerged by one o’clock and had a sandwich before settling down to watch Songs of Praise that we’d recorded. She, too, was singing her little heart out to the hymns she recognised. Then I suggested she help me make some lemon curd. I like to use Delia’s recipe. Delia says, ‘Home-made lemon curd is so easy even a child can make it’, so I thought Mum might manage it and get a sense of satisfaction from working alongside me. She did, although she had to abandon ship before we were finished.

She was nervous about cracking the eggs, not having done that for a long time, but managed it beautifully; then needed reassurance that she was mixing them properly – which she was; then ever-so-carefully measured out sugar, spoonful by spoonful, before adding the butter. All good. The recipe asked for the mixture to be frequently stirred on the hob while it was cooking. Well, Mum is about four foot nothing now and can hardly reach the pavement, let alone the cooker, so she started the job but found it just beyond her, so I finished it off. She was delighted once she saw the results potted up though.

After our evening meal, we decided to see if there was a film to watch on TV. There probably was a much better option, but we chose to sooth ourselves with Downton. Mum loved it. We had seen it before, but still found it pleasant and even funny sometimes. Suited our moods just fine. Not challenging, but a reminder of times gone by when the gap between the haves and the have-nots was very marked. We were wondering whether today is any different to those times where even today the rich are very rich, and the poor are very poor. Couldn’t make up our minds as to how well our society has moved on in that respect.

So, a quiet day in which we were very busy doing nothing much at all but enjoying it, nonetheless. Feeling helpless that we can’t rush over to help out with the kids to give their parents some respite, though. The latest from Sutton in particular is that we hear the new baby is sleeping very well – during the day. We understand he’s enjoying being nocturnal and just dropping off to sleep as the rest of the household wakes up. I can provide matchsticks but that’s about all…… And we hear from Kenilworth that the TV is an excellent babysitter when the parents have ‘working from home’ duties. Oh, we’d love to be there, playing. Well, I would, anyway.

The NHS report, up to five o’clock yesterday, records just 3 deaths in hospital and 18 the day before. The government reports 96 deaths in all settings, and 901 people infected. It may be the ‘weekend’ syndrome and both figures will alter significantly tomorrow, but I do hope these figures indicate a real levelling off.

As another week beckons and the loosening of the strings kicks in, may you all encounter nothing but goodness and love along your way. God bless.

Saturday. The weekend. Not a lot different to every other day except Malcolm comes and drops off a spot of shopping, for which I am always grateful. Makes me laugh every time. The Co-op doesn’t always have what I’m after so Malcolm substitutes items and makes me smile as I delve into each bag’s depths. It’s a goody bag, and I never know what is going to be in it. But it’s always something good. Today there was a little nugget of something unexpected – a little bar of chocolate nestled in there – ooooh yeah……. And it’s always nice to see him for a little ‘path chat’.

I was determined today, not to have a plan. Just go with the flow and do whatever took my fancy. That meant a little tidy-up in the kitchen, which is forever untidy no matter what. There’s always tools on the counter and some post, parcels, food remnants or remnants of ‘projects under way’, crockery and cutlery – and the dishwasher is always waiting to be stacked or unstacked. It seems to me that the kitchen has a mind of its own. For a nano-second I tried the ‘Ideal Home’ kitchen when we first redecorated, but it’s not finished and it’s not ideal yet. But it is home, so I go with that. And we usually find a space to eat our meals, so that works.

Mum made heavy weather of getting up again today. Once persuaded to be out of bed at eleven o’clock, it then took her an hour and a half to get downstairs. Heaven only knows what she was doing. I don’t know, and neither did she when I checked on her. Once she’d arrived in the lounge, I sent her off to the kitchen to get her tablets, but she was very confused today and got as far as the kitchen door before turning back. “What are you doing, Mum?” I asked, gently. “I don’t know.” she said. “Tablets?” I suggested. Oh……. she trotted back to kitchen. Not long after, she was back, tablets in hand, triumphant. “I’ve got my tablets.” she smiled, “but, I don’t know…….” It turns out she was looking for water and couldn’t remember where the cups or glasses were. Ah, well, it was something that she found her tablets, I suppose.

I don’t know what I was watching on TV just at that point, having given myself a break from kitchen cleaning, but it must have been soporific as I dropped off to sleep. I knew I was asleep, and I knew I shouldn’t have been, but couldn’t quite rouse myself to sort food out for Mum. Fortunately, John, my knight in shining armour, came to the rescue and made her a sandwich. Phew. Might have been world War Three if he hadn’t…..

Once awake, instead of leaping up to do more jobs, I sat and watched daytime TV. John sat alongside me and couldn’t drag himself away either. We were fascinated by how you can make a programme out of four competing B&Bs. Hilarious and a study in human nature which amused us no end. Mind you, I don’t think we’ll be making a point of watching that particular programme again.

Mum was alert enough later on in the afternoon to do a little job. I had suggested to her yesterday, that if I cut some hydrangea heads, would she like to arrange the flowers in a vase today? Yesterday, she thought she might. Once we’d finished watching afternoon TV, I went outside, in between showers, and picked half a dozen hydrangea. And sure enough, Mum was up to the challenge and spent a very happy twenty minutes preparing them and slotting them into a vase. Nice job. Well done, Mum.

Apart from watching daytime TV, John has been busy on the Lotus this afternoon, up and down from the ‘Man Shed’ to the garage, and back again, fishing out the right tool, and crafting pieces of metal into the right shape. I was an able assistant, after a bit of a false start when we had a misunderstanding, and expertly held a spanner in place while John grovelled under the car to tighten a couple of nuts. And, no, I wasn’t counting us as the couple of nuts, thank you….. although now you mention it…..

We had also done a ‘specialist’ shop from Ocado last Sunday, and delivery was this evening. We set up a military operation of me washing the shopping and John putting it away. I got the better end of the deal of course, as I wasn’t bending up and down or reaching into cupboards with the stuff. But I salved my conscience that such exercise is good for John because he is trying to improve his fitness, so what better way to do it? Tee-hee.

We haven’t had the promised thunderstorms here in our next of the woods, but we have had the rain, which means that the plants are looking very buoyant and lush. It also means I haven’t had to trundle round the garden with the hose pipe watering everything. And it’s freshened the air. I think John and I both feel better for a bit of a breeze and some cooler air.

The figures published by the government today tell of the continuing plateau of COVID-19 cases. 100 deaths in all settings and 895 people confirmed as infected. The NHS reports 10 deaths in hospitals up until 5 o’clock yesterday and 32 confirmed for the day before.

I am pleased that the virus no longer appears to be out of control, but still think of those people battling the disease and their relations trying to support them. No matter what, and whatever the weather, it’s still a tragedy for some families, even if the numbers are reducing.

Peace be with you.

I think it is true to say that isolation now, is not the isolation we knew at the beginning. In the beginning, we saw no-one. We stayed in. No-one came in, although people came to the door, and we went nowhere. Now, thanks to clement weather, we are out in the garden and our friends and family visit us there. Still no-one comes in, but people have hovered in the porch, with us adrift in the middle of the hall. And today, because there’s a new baby in the family, we ventured over to Sutton for an unexpected ‘garden visit’ to coo over him. It’s the first social outing in four months, and it was ruddy marvellous.

It’s a good job we had something exciting to do today, as neither of us was particularly feeling great this morning. We had each got out of the wrong side of the bed, feeling grumpy, bickering on and off from the minute we got up. I am more ‘hard of hearing’ than previously, and John only has one hearing aid now, since he sent one off for repair on Monday, which means that each of us think the other has said something different to what was actually uttered. Confusion ensues and we both think we are in the right. “But you said….” “No, I didn’t….” We are like school children all over again. It’s probably nothing to do with our hearing, we’re probably just losing our marbles. Or is it the heat? Do say it’s the heat….

The original plan this morning for me was to go and have a cuppa in the vicarage garden – a first outing. I felt very tired and lethargic. Linda called in with the shopping and said, “See you there?” I hummed and hawed. I don’t know, I’ll see….I’m not feeling great. In the end, I texted Sandra and said I’d go next week. Give me some time to pull myself together, I thought.

I drifted about for half an hour – couldn’t be bothered with a shower or putting on fresh clothes; couldn’t be bothered to wash the shopping; couldn’t be bothered even to get breakfast. I rallied and had started to unload the dishwasher when Michael texted. ‘What are your plans for today?’ he asked. ‘Nothing. Nada. Rien.’ I replied. ‘Boring’ he said. Well, yes. There’s more gardening, of course, and upholstery, and painting, but nothing planned. John was on the sofa inspecting the back of his eyelids, so I hadn’t asked what his plans were. Hope glimmered. Would Michael invite us over to see the baby?

For ten minutes or so, the conversation stalled. Ah…… maybe Michael was just being polite and checking on the old ‘uns. Then…. ‘If the weather’s OK and you wanted to visit….?’ All of a sudden, I didn’t feel quite so tired! Yes, please!! I was then spurred into action. I whizzed through the dishwasher emptying and the ‘shopping washing’, then ran around gathering bits and pieces to take with us, including the obligatory bottle of ‘fizz’, and I even managed the shower I’d been putting off.

Mum decided to stop at our house. In fact, I think she was a bit relieved to have some time to herself. I laid up her lunch before we set off, made her a cup of tea and then we were on our way, roof down on the car, sun hats on and joy in our hearts.

We had anticipated thundery showers this afternoon, so I loaded the car with a couple of parasols so that should it rain, we had some shelter. No thunder storms materialised, however, and we sat on the newly erected decking at the back of Michael and Danielle’s until tea-time and had a wonderful time.

Thomas was the model baby (I wonder how long that’ll last?) snoozing contentedly in his pram, only murmuring awake for a feed and then dozing off again. We donned our masks and gloves and risked cradling him. We toasted the new born with a drop of Bucks Fizz and wished the family well. Oh, my, my heart is full. John was the proud grandfather again and he, too, felt a burst of pride.

William woke up after his afternoon nap and joined us. “Come and see my baby” he said to me, beckoning me on. “See? My baby brother.” Yes, I see your baby brother; and I see a tender big brother alongside him.

Mid-afternoon, the sun was hot, and we were sweltering. Danielle had been hoping for cooler weather today as she’d had two nights feeling like she was in a furnace already. The cooler weather didn’t arrive as expected in Sutton, but the jingle of the ice cream van did. William was in the lounge, cooling off, watching TV. He heard the jingle and ran out to us on the decking. “It’s an ice cream van!” he exclaimed, his eyes sparkling and as big as saucers. “Shall we get an ice cream then, William?” Michael asked. “Yes, please.” was the earnest and very prompt reply. And two metres apart, in an orderly manner, the children and parents waited patiently to be served until it was William’s turn. He was as happy as a sand boy. So was Danielle – a cooling ice cream is just what she needed.

All too soon, the afternoon was over. We weren’t keen on leaving but were mindful of our responsibility back at home.

Mum had enjoyed her afternoon and was bright when we got back. I even persuaded her to eat her evening meal outside with us, despite the breeze. Our evening meal of pulled pork, courtesy of Michael, was absolutely delicious. But hey! What’s all this? I’m the one who’s supposed to be doing the Red Cross food parcels, not the other way round!!

I decided to rest this evening and watch TV. John decided to tackle the kitchen cupboard above the fridge/freezer. There was a lot of hammering and drilling and cursing. But boy, has he done a grand job. It’s a cracking piece of work and I am thrilled to bits with it.

I’ll try not to bicker with him tomorrow…..

And so, to today’s reports on COVID-19: 9 deaths up until five o’clock yesterday in hospitals and 34 confirmed for the day before according to the NHS. 186 deaths in all settings and 1,006 people confirmed as infected according to the government report for the same time period.

The death toll and the infection rate appear to be flattening out, but we are not going to eliminate the virus until there’s a vaccine, so I imagine these figures will stay much the same for some time to come. Unless, of course, the second wave that is predicted takes ‘R’ rate above one and it sends us all back into our homes again. I do hope not. Might be the pattern of things to come though – in, out, shake it all about….

God bless.

.

After the excitement yesterday of the arrival of young Thomas Michael, weighing in at 8lbs 5ozs, we have both felt a bit flat today. Our normal reaction to such an event would be to visit and, of course, we’re not yet able to do that just yet. If the weather holds, we will go for a ‘garden visit’ as soon as everyone is up to it. Can’t wait for that.

Not only have we felt flat, but we have felt exceedingly hot and a bit bothered. It’s been far too hot, at 31 degrees, to even think about working in the garden. Except I did a little bit. Some weeks ago, we ordered plants from Gardening Express. They didn’t arrive and they didn’t arrive, so we cancelled them – only to be told they were on their way and, sure enough, they arrived yesterday. But, oh, dear, what sad little specimens they are. I have planted and watered them though, out of sympathy. They might survive – we’ll see.

After I’d rescued the plants, I thought I’d scuttle indoors out of heat of the sun but even in the house it was a bit oppressive and the idea of re-upholstering another chair definitely didn’t appeal today. Instead, I thought I’d spend the day reading my book. After all, I was ‘zoooming’ this evening with the other book club members to talk about it, so it would be helpful to have read it.

Well, that plan didn’t work. I settled myself in a deckchair under two parasols to keep the sun off and started to read. Phew! It was hot. I got up for a glass of water. Settled myself back in the chair. Read a few pages, but the sun had moved a bit, so had re-arrange the parasols. Settled again, read a few more pages but found the reflections on the Samsung tablet were confusing the issue and I couldn’t concentrate. I retreated indoors again. Only to find that the reason I couldn’t concentrate was because I was tired. Found myself nodding off, didn’t I?

John, too, nodded off this afternoon alongside me. And I think Mum was probably asleep as well. It’s the heat, you see……..

However, despite the heat, John got his tools out and tackled the cupboard above the fridge/freezer. Because we had got ourselves a new fridge/freezer, we’d had to dismantle the original cupboard to accommodate its size. A new cupboard has been languishing for a little while now, but we thought we’d sort it out when we decorated the kitchen. So John has been looking at it, planning it and fiddling with it in fits and starts for a few months now. Today, it was hinges. The cupboard now has hinges. The door is made – just needs to be fitted together now. He has made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. Honestly, he’s brilliant.

We had a ridiculous evening meal today. If only I were better at planning, we’d be alright…… I don’t recall why, but John thought he might like some braised steak at some point, so I got some with the shopping at the weekend. Instead of popping it in the freezer for serving on a miserable day, I left it in the fridge. Oh dear, the ‘eat by’ date appeared and, in the absence of anything else easily available, I thought I’d prep it. So we had a hot stew this evening. We are crazy. It’s the heat, y’know…..

After we’d eaten, I told Mum that I was ‘going to Book Club’ and then chat to the college crew on Zoom. She pulled a face. I knew what that meant. I said brightly, “Let’s have a look and see what’s on TV, shall we?” That was clearly the wrong thing to have said. “That’s all I’m good for now, isn’t it?” she retorted. “Just watching TV.” For a minute, I didn’t know what to say. All attempts at entertaining are short-lived, so I thought it was a bit unfair. However, I remembered that we’d got the colouring book Carol had sent, and Mum hadn’t had a go at that yet. So I suggested it. “Well, I can……” I knew what she was going to say: ‘I can but not at the moment’, which is her stock phrase. Before she had chance to qualify it, I whipped the book and crayons out and switched the TV off. She sat down, unsure whether she wanted to join in this game or not. But she did, and she made a good start on one of the pictures and she was very pleased with herself.

Book club was great. The people who are in it are thoughtful and insightful and it’s a pleasure to share the experience of reading a book with them. I had to admit to not having finished the book, of course, for the second time in a row, but I had read enough to be able to join in.

By the time it was the college crew hello, I was feeling very tired. It was all bitty, too, as one of our number planned to join in later, another was out drinking with friends so not joining in, and another two had been drinking with friends so were late to the party, and one of those found she couldn’t connect the audio, so she couldn’t hear us and we couldn’t hear her. In the end, we abandoned our lovely chat early, with the cry, ‘same time next week?’

Now it’s cooler, I might get to bed and back to my book……

By five o’clock yesterday, the counting of those who’ve died or have been infected with COVID-19 were 149 in all settings, and 1,118 respectively, according to the government report today. In hospitals it was 6 deaths, with 29 confirmed for the day before.

Given the scenes on the beaches today I am supposing we’ll see a rise in figures shortly. Professor Chris Witty says, ‘COVID-19 has gone down due to the efforts of everyone but is still in general circulation. If we don’t follow social distancing guidance then cases will rise again.’

Stay safe everyone and keep your distance. Two metres – not one, but two…..

Crumbs! Who would have thought that Day 100 of isolation would be so great? We are still in lock down, but that doesn’t stop a baby being born, so we were over the moon today to hear that Michael and Danielle’s baby boy was born safe and sound this morning.

We always knew that June 24th was going to be the ‘birth’ day, as it was a planned operation, but nevertheless it was still a relief to hear the news. And we have been skipping through the day, all day today, like youngsters because we have been so happy.

Not only that, we got to see and hug Michael. When Michael phoned us, just after mid-day, he said, “I’m coming round.” That was when we first started skipping of course. John was so excited that he said, “I’m going to make a ‘cuddle curtain’.” He rigged up the washing line and hung an extremely large waterproof sheet from it. No armholes, but sufficient material to gather in and wrap your arms round someone on either side of it. It worked a treat. Couldn’t see Michael as we enveloped ourselves in the cuddle curtain, but we could feel him and at least give him a very big congratulatory squeeze. I thought I was the soppy one but it seems that John is too……

It’s funny isn’t it? How you get up in the morning, and think you are going to plan out your day, and then it turns out to be almost totally different? John had said to me last night, “What are you going to do tomorrow?” Well, I told him that I had planned to do some more gardening – there is lots still to do – and start to re-upholster the kitchen chairs and read my book in the swinging chair. “What about you?” I responded. He replied that he planned to cut the other conifer down first and would see after that.

We did do some of our plan this morning while we waited for news. We wanted to keep busy. I re-upholstered the seat of one of the chairs but haven’t got it screwed back together yet. John had a high old time cutting down the conifer, carefully placing the brash on the patio rather than the lawn. Then Michael said he was coming, and I promised to do lunch for him. We’ll sit at the patio table I said – him one end and us the other, like we did with Andrew. Oh….. there’s an awful lot of brash on the patio. I had a mad twenty minutes gathering it up and barrowing it down to the bottom of the garden to clear a space.

All a waste of time at that moment of the day though, as Michael came and we ate lunch and drank tea with him at a table in the middle of the lawn instead. I didn’t make his lunch either. He was so starving he’d grabbed a petrol station sandwich on the way. We chatted and cooed over pictures of Danielle and the baby until it was time for him to go.

Then Paul and Harriet said they’d call on us so that Freddie and William, who’s staying over at their house until Mummy and the baby come home, could have a run around the garden.

Naturally, we were delighted at the news that the children were coming to play but, oh crikey!!! There’s still a lot of wood shavings; and some brash; and a helluva lot of pine needles everywhere that are sharp and nasty for children who might be in bare feet. The first twenty minutes of work on clearing the area previously obviously wasn’t a waste of time then, but we did spend another twenty minutes of gathering up as much of the remaining debris as fast as we could.

John always has the right equipment for any job. “Hang on,” he said, “I’ll get the leaf blower.” The leaf blower is a leaf sucker too. So, he blew the debris into a corner for a bit, then spent a good five minutes going over the lawn, where we thought the children might play, sucking up as much conifer-related material as he could see. I had to laugh though. “John!” I said. He didn’t hear – too much of the sucking noise going on. “John!” I shouted. He turned, a little irritated – what does she want now – “The zip on the collection bag is open. Anything you’re sucking up is just being deposited behind you…..” We both saw the funny side of it…. and what seemed funnier is that we couldn’t actually see where the debris had been spread. Ah well, we’ll just have to tell the children to keep their shoes on then…..

Regrettably, we decided to take the ‘cuddle curtain’ down before the children came. I am sure it would have provided hours of enjoyment but I thought it would be seen as a piece of play equipment and it wasn’t safe enough for that. Now that we’ve got it sorted though, maybe we’ll set it up another day……….I mean, it would be churlish not to, wouldn’t it?

Seeing sons and daughters-in-law and children is always the very best thing in my book, and this visit was no different. Honestly, my heart is full. The kids had a great time charging round the garden, playing on the swinging chair, up and down the slide, in and out of the sand pit, playing ‘Tig’ and hide and seek, swinging on the swing and feeding the fish. I had a great time watching them. We had a great time watching them and chatting to them and feeding them biscuits. Even Mum joined in. We savoured our time with them and that, oh so precious, time with Paul and Harriet too. We are just so very blessed to have a beautiful family.

Later on, after our evening meal, happily exhausted but keen, it was time for our regular Quiz Night with the Centre Stage crew. Another good quiz and another enjoyable few hours together in the company of dear friends.

100 days we have been staying at home, keeping our distance and washing our hands (and everything else in sight), and there have been some highs and lows. But nothing compares, does it, to the thrill of new life?

May God bless us all – our family, our friends and acquaintances – and, of course, all those who are sick and dying whether from COVID-19 or not, and especially anyone known to us.

There were 4 deaths in hospitals yesterday up until five o’clock. 24 deaths were confirmed for the day before. 154 people died in all settings according to the government report for the same time period, and 653 were confirmed as having contracted the virus.

The first wave of infection is on the wane. Let’s pray that, as lockdown eases, people remember to keep themselves and their loved ones safe. We know what to do. Let’s just do it.

In the meantime, we are going to enjoy our beautiful new grandson from a distance.

I didn’t rush to get up early this morning, but deliberately lay in bed until 9 o’clock just to savour the luxury of our lovely bedroom, the sunshine streaming in through the window and the thought of Pete and Dawn coming to visit. This felt like a good day in the making.

And it really was, from beginning to end. John got up and brought me a cup of tea in bed; I managed to get Mum up and out of bed before I went downstairs; I ate my rather delicious breakfast on the patio in the sun; the parcel sitting in the porch due for collection was duly collected, and the parcel due to arrive duly arrived; the colouring book Carol sent to my Mum arrived on the doormat; and the cushions for the outside chairs were all put in place before Pete and Dawn made their way down the side of the house and into the garden about eleven o’clock. Marvellous.

We spent a good hour and half chatting and sunning ourselves – well, Dawn didn’t sun herself, she followed the shade wherever it went, of course. But oh, it was so lovely to see them. To be able to chat naturally and not shout at each other via a phone/tablet/computer/TV screen was just blissful. With the lock down rules easing next month, it might just be possible that we can go their and other friends’ houses soon to return the compliment, which will be very exciting.

After Pete and Dawn left, with their socially distanced hugs still being felt in our hearts and bodies, we all sat outside and ate our lunch, even Mum, to make the most of the weather while we can. Then I settled Mum in front of the TV and we got on with a few more gardening projects. John’s plan was to cut down the other conifer on the patio, and mine was to tackle the field bindweed that is choking the hydrangea to death, before planting up another species of cultivated bindweed called ‘Morning Glory’ nearby. Neither job was as simple as it sounds, but we both stuck to our tasks and felt we had had a successful afternoon, despite the heat. We are both as brown as berries now – well, nearly. John did get his legs out and wore his shorts today, but his legs refuse to respond to sunshine, so they remain as white as a lily – as always.

The doctor phoned this afternoon to talk through the results of Mum’s blood test. I was expecting additional tablets, but no. Mum is absolutely fine. Oh. The doctor said she thought it’s just Mum’s age that makes her dopey……. oh, darn it! Had hoped for an improvement but I guess that’s not going to be. We’ll just have to put up with Dopey, then. She’s gone through some of the other fairy stories in recent weeks so it’s about time we had a new one, I suppose!!

After I’d done my little job with the bindweed, I had intended to lounge about on the swinging chair and read my book this afternoon. However, Michael and Danielle were dropping William off overnight at Paul and Harriet’s in readiness for tomorrow’s ‘birth’ day, so they said they’d call in on the way home. I am always excited when I hear such news, so was prompted to start cooking our evening meal a bit earlier than normal. That way, Mum was at least fed before they arrived. The chilling on the swinging chair didn’t happen after all…….maybe tomorrow.

Michael and Danielle arrived at about quarter past six, and we were all so thrilled to see each other again. Before we settled ourselves in the back garden though, John had suggested that we have a ‘lock down’ photo in front of the house, so Michael took photos of us, from all angles, grinning away like idiots. The climbing rose above the porch is such a picture this year, all thanks to my friend, Livia, who came and pruned the rose for me before lock down and taught me how to prune the other rose bushes, which are also looking wonderful, too.

As we sat in the back garden, the latest ‘William News Flash’ pinged into our WhatsApp inboxes. Paul sent through photos of William and Freddie happily bouncing on the trampoline, playing cars on a road map and having a bath together. Both playing very nicely until there was a tussle over a bath toy and then it was tears……. had to smile, that’s cousins for you!!

We said a very reluctant goodbye to Michael and Danielle and, with the anticipation of meeting our latest grandson after a Caesarean delivery, there was lots of ‘All the best for tomorrow, Danielle’ and ‘Hope it goes OK’ and ‘Hope you’re in early and don’t have to wait all day’ and, if we could have, we’d have been hugging the pair of them very, very hard. Instead it was blown kisses and air hugs.

After the goodbyes, it was ‘tidy up time’, bringing all the cushions in from the garden furniture, shifting the debris from the conifer cutting and then watering the plants. I felt very happy, but tired. It’s been a busy, full, emotional and fabulous day. I sat awhile, counting my blessings before choosing to watch ‘Talking Heads’ at nine o’clock. I love Alan Bennett’s work – such dry humour and such an observant author and playwright. A great conclusion to a great day.

I spared a thought for others outside the family though again today, and said prayers for all those who are sick and dying, whether it is from COVID-19 or not, as well as their families.

For the record there were 6 deaths in hospitals up until five o’clock yesterday (22 June 2020) with 17 deaths confirmed for the day before. The government reports 171 deaths in all settings and 874 people having been tested as positive for the infection as of nine o’clock this morning.

The lock down restrictions may be easing, but the virus is still floating about so take care everyone. Sanitise and keep your distance. God bless.

Woke up to glorious sunshine this morning and it got me out of bed early for a little constitutional. Met no-one en route at all. Home again, I breakfasted at the table on the patio and then spent an hour doing a bit of gardening before tackling the rest of today’s chores.

I took both hubby and Mum a cuppa at 9.30. John was tired and still only thinking about getting up when he suddenly remembered that he had to be at the Hampton surgery for some treatment. That galvanised him and he had to get out of bed pronto to find out exactly what time they were expecting him. Mum, on the other hand, was planning to stay in bed for as long as she could. However, she was up and getting dressed at the second time of asking today, so she was downstairs by 11.30. Basically, my technique today was simply to stand by her bed until she actually got out of it.

I am hoping that Mum’s dopiness is going to be improved by an increase in the dose of her thyroid tablets, but we’ll see when we have a telephone consultation with the doctor tomorrow afternoon.

Some of the morning was spent wrestling with packing up a parcel for Andrew. A while ago we’d bought him a KitchenAid, but it had stopped working and needed to go back for repair. As I’d bought it, the courier would collect it from our house. I tell you what, though – those appliances aren’t half heavy!! Anyway, it’s as snug as a bug in a rug now that I’ve packed it with layers and layers of bubble wrap, and it’s ready to go.

Indoor chores over, John and I spent a lovely afternoon in the garden having a jolly good clear up. The main aim was to clear the side path so that Pete and Dawn can come for a ‘garden visit’ tomorrow, but it turned out to be tidying all sorts, from shrubs and hedging, plant pots and watering cans through to the cement mixer and barbecue and, of course, stuff in the ‘man shed’. Good fun but tiring.

The pheasants started their day at the top end of the garden, but by mid-afternoon had made it down to the raised flower bed. Mum had a little wander out to look at all the new planting and then sat on the patio by the patio doors looking out on the ‘Estate’. As we looked out, we thought that the pheasants were keen to come a bit further up the lawn, so I duly fetched them and settled them in a new spot. Clearly, they are happy as they lit up beautifully this evening.

As we sat on the patio just taking in a few moments of the sunshine, Michael phoned. “Do you want to tell Grandma where we’ve been, William?” he said as I took the call. “We’ve just been to take Mummy to the hospital” William proclaimed. Ooooh……. and….? Well, one or two twinges today suggested that the baby might be getting ready to be born. In the event though, it was a false alarm and she was soon home again, although the medics were pleased that she’d gone in to be checked over. All our fingers crossed that the baby waits until D-Day now and that the arrival all goes to plan.

We were both a little weary this evening, so we had our evening meal on our laps sat in the lounge watching TV. The TV which, this afternoon, looked like it might be on the blink. All the faces of people had turned bright orange. No matter what we did, we couldn’t change it. It didn’t seem to be a problem with Sky or any specific channel, so we thought it must be the TV. I’ll find the receipt, I said. When did we buy it? And where did we buy it from? Erm…… our brains are so shot that neither of us could remember. John thought we’d bought it four or five years ago; I thought it wasn’t very long ago – just before Christmas – was that last year, or the year before? We still don’t know because I haven’t found the receipt yet…… I’m sure it’s here somewhere……

The TV must have righted itself though, because we sat and watched a couple of episodes of The A Word all evening and neither of us commented on anyone’s bright orange faces. We had clearly forgotten all about it between times.

Lock down has had an effect on us in quite a few ways, and our brains atrophying seems to be one of them. Another is indecision – shall we do this? Or perhaps we should wait? And then there is the: ‘do we go out?’ question. I have taken to having a short walk and we have been catching up with family and a couple of friends in the garden, but we are still anxious about going out. I laughingly tell people that I am now agoraphobic, which is not true of course, but there is an element of reluctance to leave the cosiness and security of our four walls just in case. Those very walls that we have been railing against over the last few months – doesn’t make sense does it?

However, the government – or at least, the Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr Jenny Harries – tells us today that it’s going to be OK to meet six other people from outside our home from 6th July, outdoors. Garden parties are going to be de rigueur this year, aren’t they? I’ll get my waterproof mac and galoshes ready……

The government report today tells us that there were less than a thousand confirmed case of people infected with the virus up to five o’clock on Sunday, 21 June, and 15 deaths in all settings. The NHS figures indicate three deaths in hospitals for the same time frame and 18 confirmed for the day before (20 June 2020).

So, all positive then. Praying for the downward trend to continue. God bless. Look after yourselves.

Two days on the trot!! Another good day with some icing on the cake.

As it was Father’s Day, I left John to snooze on this morning and took him a cup of coffee when I was having my mid-morning cuppa. “Happy Father’s Day!!” I said, and offered him a little parcel, which he said he’d open later. No worries, I’d already ‘been to church’ and was just going to the Zoom coffee congregation catch-up, so that suited me.

The church service was uplifting and interesting and, once again, I loved Kim playing the music for us. His ability to capture the mood of whatever music he is playing is just marvellous and brings a smile to my face every time. Sang my heart out, as usual.

The Zoom coffee interlude was also interesting. As we get more used to talking to each other on this medium it is getting easier. There’s not quite so much talking over each other – although I have to confess, I did do that a little bit, today. Lovely to see everyone who joined in, though. And grateful thanks Moira and Mark who always do the leg work on this.

By the time I’d finished nattering, John was up and ready to open his parcel. I had my fingers crossed he liked his gift because it was something I wanted too. We’d been talking about lighting up the garden and how we were going to improve it, so I’d bought a pair of solar-panelled pheasants to stand on the lawn. Thought the ‘Estate’ could just about take it, y’know…..

He does like them and so they are now outside, wandering about the lawn until a) they actually light up, and b) they find their natural habitat. Can’t wait to see what the obese pigeons make of them when they come into land tomorrow morning.

Of course, it was a struggle to get Mum out of bed again. It’s become a well-worn ritual now. I start suggesting she might like to get up at about 9.30. She demurs. I go in again at about 10.30 and she makes moves as if she’s about to get up – and I believe her. At 11.30, I pop in again, usually to find her fast asleep again. A drink of cool water is offered, and the covers are slightly drawn back, and she says, yes, yes, she’ll get up. One o’clock and she’s made it downstairs to have a bowl of cereal. Tomorrow I am going to try a different tack. Don’t know what yet, but the constant tussle to remove her from her bed is getting wearing now.

John and I were busy in the garden all afternoon, so much so that we forwent our lunch. Which meant Mum did too, although she did eat at 1.00. John decided to tackle one of the low-spreading conifers that we’ve got at the front of the patio and cut it down. What a slog. Really hard work. And not only that, once he’d cut the thing down there was all the brash to take care of, and where were we going to put it? Haven’t planned another skip for a week or two yet.

I was busy filling hanging baskets and pots with the compost Peter had brought yesterday and the plants Louise had brought on Friday. Hmmm….totally out of compost again already!!!

At four o’clock, Mum started her perambulations and John and I were getting weary, so I suggested we have a break and a cup of tea. Mum said she was hungry, so I offered her cake and biscuits. I took the opportunity of the break to pop a chicken casserole in the oven, intending to eat about 5-ish to accommodate all our rumbling tummies. Just as we were about to settle to drink our tea though, the doorbell rang. Who should be standing there but our Andrew again!! I was just as excited today as I was last week!! We hadn’t expected him to visit today – he’d promised to come tomorrow, so it was another delightful surprise and the icing on the cake.

We started off in the garden for our chat but the heavens opened and so it was the ‘awkward pose’ instead – i.e. Andrew perched on the little chair in the porch with the front door open, and John and me half-way down the hall. Of course, we chatted and chatted and chatted. Then, when it came nearly time to go Andrew emptied the back of the car – lots of his stuff coming home again for storage as he moves out of his flat in a few weeks’ time.

Just as we’re in the throes of furniture lifting, all manner of things happened at once. Margaret and Chris called with a Lotus magazine for John and we had a great ‘path chat’ for a while. Paul phoned just as we were greeting them, so John had to cut the call short; and then Mother came hovering at the front door….. she was hungry still. “Come on out to see Andrew.” I invited. She shook her head. “I’m too hungry to come out.” she said – I had to laugh. The great outdoors is not for her – even to see her grandson. Oh, well.

The planned early evening meal became a late evening meal as we hung onto Andrew for as long as we could. I thought he might stay to eat, but we weren’t sure the weather would hold, and so he said he’d head back. I’d stuck another jacket potato in the oven in anticipation of feeding an extra mouth. However, when he said he wasn’t going to stay I thought I’d parcel it up for him to eat on the way home, until I suddenly remembered that he’s doing a ‘no-carb’ diet. I ended up eating the potato myself. But I’d forgotten that, actually, white potatoes don’t really agree with me……still, at least I hadn’t wasted it, even if I have got tummy ache now.

So, Father’s Day was a great day. All three sons either video-chatting or there in person; jobs done; gifts received and enjoyed, and love shared. Blessings, no? Oh, yes.

The government reports that, by nine o’clock this morning, 43 people had died of COVID-19 in all settings. 1,221 people were confirmed as infected with the virus. The NHS reported that 7 people had died in hospitals up to five o’clock yesterday (20 June 2020) with 22 deaths having been confirmed for the day before.

I am still confused about the stats though. Anyone else? The government’s chief statistician, Sir Ian Diamond, stated today that there are 3,000 new cases of COVID-19 every day – presumably the other 1800 aren’t counted for the daily briefing because those people haven’t had the tests. But how do they know these numbers one way or another?

In the meantime, stay safe, folks and love each other – that’s the way to do it in these troubling times.