Isolation Day 116

It’s early. 5.45 a.m. I watch the life stirring in the garden as the sun tries to ease itself through the clouds. I gaze out of the window for a good while and then consider what to do. Get dressed and go for an early stroll? Or sit in bed and read my book? Or snooze on? In the end, I decided against the walk. I picked up the book I was reading but my eyes turn heavy and it isn’t long before I fall back to sleep, dreaming delicious dreams that whisper away as I wake up, five hours later.

The front doorbell is jangling in amongst my dreams, and I spring up out of bed and leg it downstairs, pulling on my jeans as I go, to find Hobbo outside. “John phoned me yesterday. He’s got a few plumbing bits for me.” Ah, OK. John is also still a-snoozing in bed. I’ll go and see.

John hoofed it downstairs, and I hoofed it back. In the short time since awakening, I decided I’d get back to my book. I was surprised at myself really because, for the whole of lock down, I have been struggling with one of my first loves, that of reading. However, I joined a small book club, and this book, ‘The Girl with the Louding Voice’, was the next one to read. My friend, Penny, said she couldn’t put it down once she’d started it. Same. Spent all day reading it, in fact.

I was so engrossed in the book that sustenance was forgotten until John brought me a feast to breakfast on in bed, about twelve noon. I read on and finally unrolled myself from my bed about two o’clock in the afternoon. Bliss.

“What are you doing today?” John asked. I thought I might start cleaning the walls in the ‘office/gym/snug’ but on the second thoughts, perhaps I’ll do nothing but read my book, I told him. He, on the other hand was busy in the garage with his beloved Lotus, gluing more carpet into the boot. Although, in the end, he thought he hadn’t actually done a great deal today and has felt a bit ‘loose end-ish’.

I think Mum has been ‘loose end-ish’ too, today. Of course, getting up late myself I thought nothing about food for her. Surely, on rising, she’d had her breakfast, and by two o’clock, some lunch? About half past three, she started to say she was hungry. I suggested she go and find herself some cake. You’d have thought I was suggesting some torture. “Ohhhhh……well, I suppose so.” she said. “But I’ll have to have something to eat.” And, martyr-like, she tottered into the kitchen. As she ate her cake, I asked her what she’d had for her breakfast – nothing. And lunch? Nothing. Oh. Then I queried it. “Why didn’t you have any breakfast, Mum?” She just shrugged. She didn’t know, and she couldn’t tell me.

I sat reading my book in the lounge this afternoon whilst John was a-tinkering. I put on a bit of Wimbledon for Mum to watch and as background listening for me, but as it was last year’s men’s final, it was fresh in my memory and Mum wasn’t too fussed either. “Would you like Tipping Point, Mum?” She looked at me pityingly, “Well, yes, anything will be better than this.” she said. But, an hour later and the beginnings of The Chase, she said she was fed up of ‘this rubbish’ and wasn’t there anything else to watch? I put TV Gold on which was showing ‘Only Fools and Horses’. She liked it and she was laughing. What she didn’t like was that I wasn’t watching it and laughing. “You should be watching this,” she said, “it’s funny.” I told her I didn’t want to, as I was reading my book. She gave me a hard stare. That was enough to drive me from the room. I mean, I do like to do what I like in my own house…….

Conscious that Mum hadn’t eaten well today, I made a good evening meal for everyone and made sure she had plenty. She polished the lot off, so I know she’s not starving. After our evening meal, Mum went back to ‘Only Fools and Horses’ and John and I had a very merry evening on Zoom with George and Sue.

We had a good old natter and put the world to rights in every direction. We chinked our glasses of wine virtually and threw hugs and blew kisses at the end of the evening, everyone agreeing it had been a lovely time, but virtual reality is not the same a real reality. We planned to see each other in the flesh, in our garden, in the near future. Yes, please.

Corona Virus was one topic of conversation, of course, and what are we doing about relaxing our own rules to going out? I am still in the ‘anxious’ category and John is still in the ‘let’s take a risk’ category. However, as the numbers continue to ease a little, maybe our two minds might meet somewhere along the line soon.

The latest on COVID-19 is relatively reassuring as today at 9 a.m., the government tells us that 48 people died in all settings, and 512 people were confirmed as infected, and these are steady figures. The NHS tells us that there were 6 people who died in hospitals yesterday and 8 were confirmed for the day before.

We are never going to get to zero. That is not our government’s strategy by all accounts, but if we can keep lowering the numbers of infectees and those who die, then I will feel happier about the risks of being out and about.

Handwashing and keeping our distance are still the secrets to keeping this virus at bay. Let’s keep at it, folks. And may peace be with you all.