Oh……. would that the fleeting thought get the deed done!!! My house would be as neat as a pin and the gifts would now be wrapped and ready. Alas, the thought in my head does not quickly turn into the deed, and there’s lots still to be done.
I mean, it’s not as if any of these things are important, it’s just that I’d like them completed. For example, last year’s amaryllis – still sitting on the side and now turning green with new life. It’s long been on the ‘job-list’ to pot on. And then my poor orchids which are dying from neglect – all need a freshen up, but are waiting on the side, hopeful, but not yet fulfilled. And there are a few pictures to be hung. Leaning against the wall, with the space all ready, they await the hammer and nail…..
Ah, well. Maybe tomorrow.
In truth, we haven’t done an awful lot today. I have a bit of a cold. I think I picked it up from one of the grandchildren, but I am not sure which, so can’t quite pinpoint the moment of infection. I did do lots of grandchildren cuddling last week though, so it could have been any one of them.
Our main excitement of the day was the shopping delivery – and John groaning every few minutes as he found he’d mis-ordered. Or had he? Was it Tesco’s who’d given us erroneous items? Well, actually, it was a bit of both. The whisky wasn’t the Monkey Shoulder that he’d wanted – clearly they were out of stock. And I know tissues are tissues, but those silly little individual packets are no real substitute for a large box from which you can easily whip out a tissue in an emergency, are they?
However, can anyone make use of coconut yoghurt? We have twelve cartons of the stuff. Two trays. Obviously, it wasn’t so clear at the time of ordering that it was two trays that were input, rather than two cartons. It is delicious, but will we get through it all before the ‘use by’ date?
This afternoon we did a spot of Christmas gift ordering and hope that the things will arrive in time. I had thought I might make a trip into town today for a change, but with the advice being ‘stay at home’, we decided we’d do the online thing. Fingers crossed. I am still waiting for some items from Dunelm, who keep sending me nice little emails saying ‘we’re really sorry but due to COVID and staff shortages delivery dates are delayed….‘ Someone may not get a Christmas present after all…..might be a New Years’ gift instead.
And what are we all doing about our Christmas arrangements of meeting up, now that there’s revised advice? I mean, we’ve got plans for between now and Christmas day! Well, we are weighing up each circumstance and going to go ahead with some of them, knowing that everyone is going to do Lateral Flow Tests, ventilation will be happening and we’ll be keeping our distance. And hoping for the best…..
In the spirit of Christmas, I braved the loft this afternoon and hulked the Christmas decorations downstairs. I know I’ve got a bit of a cold, but I suddenly felt old as I laboured up and down with the heavy boxes. It wasn’t half an effort!! I caught myself making ‘old man noises’ – except they were, of course, ‘old woman noises’ and it made me laugh, despite the struggle.
That was it, though. The boxes are down, but staying put until I can summon up some energy to rummage among their contents and actually put the decorations up.
The news is full of the current advice from the government, with everyone scrambling to get their boosters booked. That’s a good thing – but what about the children? They are also vulnerable and in school which is hot-bed for incubating infection. I’d like the government to be offering the vaccination to them, too.
The Omicron virus is increasing at ‘a phenomenal rate‘ according to the news this evening, with 20% of the cases in London now attributed to the new variant. So far, we have no data on its severity of infection, however, so let’s hope it’s mild.
54,661 people tested positive for the virus today; 38 people died, of which one was was from Omicron. 926 people were admitted to hospital today which brings the total for the week to 5,677 and an increase of 5% over the last 7 days.
Stay safe, people. God bless.