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It was such a beautiful morning that I thought, “I know, I’ll put on me shorts.” I did, but they aren’t half tight!! It’s all that chocolate, and the lovely wine I’ve been drinking wot’s done it……I have kept them on all day though, and they feel quite cosy now.

They were a boon, too, when we were out in the garden, sitting in the sunshine. The sun was lovely and warm, the birds were singing their heads off, the garden is looking neat and we were all quite companionable together once we’d got Mum settled. It was almost a case of Goldilocks and the Three Bears again today, but not quite. Just the two chairs to try out today before she was happy. Mind you, there was still a bit of running about. “Do you want a cushion, Mum?” Oh, yes. Then she was rubbing her neck, and I thought the breeze was bothering her. “You’re not cold, are you, Mum?” But no, it was the sun – too hot. So up we get again to get the parasol for shade.

Whilst we were out there relaxing, John and I had a bit of a giggle trying to take a selfie in front of our rather glorious jasmine, which climbs up the back of the house. But how is it that the kids can do these things so well? They must have arms like Inspector Gadget to get the angles they do on their selfies! We finally managed a pic that we thought was acceptable though, after much gurning and a zillion failed attempts. Another one for the lock down scrapbook. We’re getting quite a collection now.

After a lovely lazy time sitting sunning ourselves, we thought we’d better get on. Heaven knows why we still push on, but we do. There is always something to do in our house. It’s like the Forth Bridge – nothing is ever finished. So, I toddled about to tidy the utility room which, during the ‘great kitchen makeover’ had become the paint store, the tool store and a plant nursery. I pretty much had to dig it out, but it’s done now – whoopee-doop!

John, on the other hand, thought he’d have a go at completing the cupboard above the fridge freezer. There was a lot of grunting and swearing as he refitted the cupboard shell – not an easy job, after all. He’d been at it for about an hour maybe, fitting, removing, refitting, popping out to the garage or ‘man shed’ to get drill bits, the right screw or an extra piece of wood, when I heard a bit of a yell. As I looked through into the kitchen from the utility room I saw him flying through the air – all in slow motion – then tumbling to the ground. What the……?

You know how you think you know where the steps are to step onto? Yes, it was one of those! The darned steps just weren’t quite where he thought they were, and he stepped into thin air. Did a grand job of flying though – I was very impressed. And his tumble to the ground was pretty good too. Managed to avoid all sorts of hazards on the way down and was up pretty quickly, panther-like, after the not-so-soft landing.

Fortunately, not too much damage done – a bit of a shock and a very bruised ego; he wasn’t half cross with himself. So we thought we’d wait a day or two before carrying on with sorting out that particular cupboard. Get our breath back, so to speak. Which he needs just now, probably, as he’s still coughing and wheezing well. As I write, I hear ‘Puffing Billy’ coming up the stairs – it’s great new nickname, which he chose himself…..

Having put the jobs on hold, the lazy day continued then into the evening and we sat down after our evening meal (at which, I am pleased to tell you, I did not have any wine for a change) to catch up on some TV. I don’t even remember what we were watching, but I was amused to find, when I woke up from my little doze, that both Mum and John were dozing through the programme, too……..crikey, I thought, who put sleeping pills in the tea? Must be sun making us tired, do you think?

Looking forward to more sunshine tomorrow, according to the weather forecast, so I am planning to get out into the garden again and tackle the blooming bindweed. It’s having the time of it’s life winding itself around all my lovely plants. Don’t get me wrong, unlike most people, I quite like bindweed. It has such a beautiful flower. But just now I can’t tell where the jasmine starts and the bindweed ends. So I reckon that’s going to be a fun job…..

In the meantime, I am relieved to see today that the virus is beginning to unwind itself from infecting the population in quite such vast numbers. As of 5 o’clock yesterday evening, the official government figures show 2,684 people infected, 138 deaths in hospitals and 160 in all settings. The NHS figures for deaths in hospitals on the same day was 27; with the previous day’s figures finalised at 92.

As the lock down rules relax, I hope we will all relax, too. God bless, and peace be with you.

Oh, dear!! I have started to wag my finger at my dear Mum!! How on earth has that happened?

Well, after breakfast, I suggested that she might like to go upstairs to get dressed, so off she went. John and I went into the lounge to drink our tea, as well as me to do some ironing. After a goodly while, John said, “Where’s your Mum?” Grinning, I offered, “Upstairs getting dressed? But we’ll see when she comes down, won’t we?” Ten minutes later, she drifted down the stairs and into the lounge, still in her nightie and dressing gown. “What have you been doing, Mum”? I asked. “I don’t know” she said and went to sit down. “No, don’t sit down again, Mum, I think you were going to get dressed, weren’t you?”

She was reluctant to stay standing and made a determined effort to sit down. “Come on, let’s go and get you dressed.” I cajoled.  Very unwillingly, she dragged her feet like a toddler, as I led her back upstairs. That’s when the finger wagging started. “Now, then, make sure you change all your clothes when you get dressed won’t you? I shall be checking…..” I teased. But I realised how deadly serious I was when I noticed my finger wagging at her…… oh, dear!! I had to laugh that it’s come to this! Fortunately, she didn’t seem to mind……

Other than that, it’s been quite a good day.

John has thoroughly enjoyed mooching about in his ‘man shed’ and garage. The only annoying thing was that he planned to bolt on the fascia for his Lotus – only to find that the fixings he’d ordered were ‘bolts’, and not ‘set screws’….. to be honest, I didn’t know the difference, until he showed me!! But now I know! How about you….do you know the difference??

In addition to John’s mooching, there have been two exciting episodes today. Firstly, we had a bit of a conversation with Paul on WhatsApp, which offered two alternatives: a) we’ll come to your house to deliver the bits we’ve got for you; or b) you come to our house to collect the bits we’ve got for you. In the end, Paul came to us. Aaaahhhh, bliss!!

We sat on the patio, Paul sat on the lawn……and we chatted and chatted and chatted….. it was beautiful and sublime. Even Mum joined in for a bit, asking Paul how the family was going on (several times) and telling him how she was faring.

I didn’t want to let him go. I knew he had the family to get back to and we thought we said goodbye as soon as he felt it was time, but did we hang on to him too long? I don’t know, but we would have liked to hang on to him even longer!

Then, secondly, we had a family quiz this evening, organised by the ever-efficient Catherine, and we so enjoyed ourselves. We came last as expected (if only we knew anything about music which we don’t), but it didn’t matter to us as we did OK on some of the rounds.

In between the beautiful family moments, we drew on our own instants of satisfaction during the day. I nipped out into the garden to lift up some Montbretia from the front garden to transplant it into the raised beds at the back; and John, contentedly, tiddled about on his car. I also cooked the traditional Sunday Roast, which was absolutely delicious, and we had a fabulous rhubarb crumble for afters as well, to which we all went back for seconds. Yummy, yum, yum!!

To accompany the rather delicious roast, I opened a beautiful bottle of Pouilly Fumé that Paul had gifted me the other week. Oh, my! It was nectar. I had said to him that I hadn’t yet opened it because it was such a nice one and he said, “Mum, just enjoy it.” So…….. we did!!

And so, to the tally…..3,534 infectees, 147 deaths in hospitals, 170 deaths in all settings, attributed to COVID-19, according to the government figures yesterday; but, more up-to-date and more accurately, just 33 deaths, as reported by the NHS.

The figures are coming down……..Let’s hope they stay that way. God bless.

Hopped out of bed fairly early this morning, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, keen to face the day. The only thing is, it didn’t last….. I did that fateful thing of sitting back on the bed when I took John his morning cup of coffee, chatted with him for a while and then, when he went downstairs, I browsed social media. The brain does weird and wonderful things when it’s hooked into a phone, and I found myself feeling daft all day after that. There were things I had planned to do, but I found little inclination or energy to scamper through the day.

I was delighted to see Malcolm with my shopping mid-morning, and had a lovely chat to him but, after he left, the thought of ‘shopping washing’ descended like a dark cloud and I was a reluctant recruit. In fact, I was a reluctant recruit to nearly all tasks today – didn’t really want to prep lunch, wasn’t thrilled at doing the ironing, definitely put off cleaning the bathrooms and loos, wasn’t keen on prepping the evening meal either, and the excitement I had felt early on of pottering in the garden palled, so I didn’t do it.

I am not blaming social media totally for all of how I have behaved or felt today – I know that anxiety is playing its part. Each time John says he’s keen to get out and about and go to see the family, I feel a bit panicked. What? Leave the security of our home? Leave behind our sanitised cocoon and risk the germ-infested world? Not sure I’m ready for that yet!! Nor am I sure John’s chest is up to it yet, either, but we’ll see. In the meantime, John’s researching full boiler suits and full-face masks to buy, for when we see the kids and the grandchildren. Not sure what they’ll make of them!! Darth Vader eat your heart out…..

There is also the underlying niggle of what to do about Mum – this is also worrying me. She’s not been great again today – another dopey day, falling asleep for most of it, not knowing what she’s doing for the other half of it and irritating the socks off John again. However, I put the film ‘South Pacific’ on for her this afternoon, and she stayed awake for most of that and thoroughly enjoyed singing the songs.

John, on the other hand, is determined to ‘keep going‘ with a growl and a stiff upper lip, so he has been moving all of the gardening gear and the garden chairs from the bottom of the garden up to the newly cleared top shed. He’s done a grand job of repairing the rotting floor, fitting a shelf and attaching chipboard to the sides, ready to put hooks in and hang the garden tools up. It’s going to look ace when it’s finished. He is the most amazing man.

Despite the doldrums, we have had lovely interludes in between times, when Chris from church called to drop in some yoghurt for John that she had thoughtfully bought when she was in Sainsbury’s yesterday, plus chocolate. We had a lovely doorstep chat with her for a while too. Then, a bit later on, the doorbell rang again, and it was Caroline, on her daily walk, just stopping for a chat. How lovely it was to see her smiling face and share in uplifting talk.

And just before our evening meal I video-phoned youngest son, Andrew, and unexpectedly, chatted to him for at least an hour as I prepped the meal. It was lovely to see him and just mull over what’s been happening and share in our current triumphs and disasters. I do so love my kids and I love the fact that they are now adults. It’s so refreshing to be able have an adult-to-adult conversation with them all.

I have marked today as a ‘can do better‘ day, and I thought one of the social media posts I browsed earlier on in the day, was spot-on. After lock down, we probably do need to be stronger than before the lock down, to face the challenges of the different, emerging world before us. Stronger than before in body, mind and spirit, because who knows what the challenges will be? Much as I recognise the wisdom of the advice, I am not particularly cultivating a stronger ‘me’ just now though – maybe tomorrow?

In the meantime, thank you to everyone who is holding us up – it is such an indescribable feeling to know that there is a network of such amazing people who care enough about us to keep us going. Mwah.

So, to the numbers, just for the record, as at 9 o’clock this morning, the government’s official figures are: 3,451 people tested positive as infected with COVID-19; 260 people died in hospital and 468 in all settings. The NHS figures for yesterday were 39 deaths in hospitals.

Nothing new to see here folks. Keep on keeping on. And God bless you all.

‘Normal Lives’. No-one has normal lives. Everyone’s is unique to its owner, but the thing that got me most about the series on BBC3 was how recognisable the situations were. Sometimes confusing but true. And I loved how it ended – the unspoken, unconditional love emanating from the two key characters, essentially saying it’s OK not to be OK; it’s OK to do what’s best for you at a given point in a relationship; it’s OK to let someone go. But love wins. Cracking stuff. As you can tell, I watched the last episode this morning and found it powerful.

Love wins. That’s what getting me through the lock down. I hang on to that daily. What is it for you?

So today, following loving advice from several people for maintaining one’s sanity, I picked out things I wanted to do and mostly did them, unlike other days when I often drift from one half-finished thought to another. I watched ‘Normal Lives’; did a bit of yoga; did a bit of gardening; listened to some music; helped John as he cleared out the gardening shed and watched The Great British Menu.

Nothing exciting, but these were things I chose to do. They were naturally interspersed with things I would rather not always be doing, of course, like the washing; the dishes; cooking; washing the shopping; cleaning and being general dogsbody. My choices leavened the bread, which was rather good.

I think both John and I were excited that the last of the intravenous antibiotic had been administered today, though. No more early starts being a particular relief. I think we both feel tired from it. However, tiredness hasn’t stopped John getting on. He’s feeling a bit better (although not best, yet) and is keen to tackle a variety of jobs. First off today, it was putting together pieces of timber for a cupboard above the freezer. The front still needs to be fitted, but it’s a very good start.

Then, he’s keen to get his ‘man shed’ at the bottom of the garden well-organised, which means clearing out the shed at the top of the garden. You know that horrible dependency thing? Can’t do that until you’ve done this; and then you can’t this until you’ve done the other? Everything seems to hinge on everything else in the ‘tidy up’ stakes, so a bit of a bother to know where to start. Having said that, the ol’ man has done a grand job on the ‘top of the garden’ shed and it’s ready for racking. (Does a little skip and a dance…)

Although tiredness hasn’t stopped John from tackling jobs or me doing what I need to do, it has made both of us a bit irritable and short on patience. So keeping Mum going today has been less than easy. She’s doing her best, but struggling in quite a few ways, and the latest thing today was toast. For lunch, I offered poached egg on toast. “Lovely.” she said. But once she got it, it wasn’t too lovely. Straining to cut the lightly toasted, thinly-sliced pieces of bread, she puffed and sighed a bit. I succumbed, and said with a brightness that I wasn’t feeling, “Shall I cut it up for you Mum?” I cut off all crusts and then cut the slices into small pieces. Or so I thought. The small pieces weren’t small enough, and there was more puffing and blowing as she tried to cut the small pieces in half. Oh, dear, oh dear. I think toast might be off the menu in future. It certainly irritated the socks off John and he felt obliged to eat his lunch elsewhere.

Sadly, Mum isn’t always remembering from one minute to the next, and there is anxiety about what we are going to do after lockdown is eased, but for now, we plod on and do the best we can. Another little toddle in the garden this afternoon, which she was reluctant to do initially, but thoroughly enjoyed once done.

And then there is always the night time ritual which she and I chuckle about but is wearing, nonetheless. I tell her it’s time for bed. She doesn’t want to go. I tell her I am going upstairs to write my diary. She nods and steadfastly watches the TV. Five minutes later, she comes upstairs and tells me, with her halo shining and with an air of righteousness, that she’s going to bed. I smile and look approving, then ask, “Have you had your night-time tablets, Mum?” She looks puzzled for a minute, thinks hard, putting her finger to her chin before saying, “No, I don’t think I have.” She grins, and I always respond with, “I’ll just run down and get them for you then, shall I?” And we both laugh, as if it’s the first time this has happened – which, for Mum, it may seem to be the case.

This is us, today and probably tomorrow and the next day……..

We are getting through it with love, a bit of humour and a bit of hope. Hoping that we will soon be able to see our family – unless there’s a second wave of the darned virus of course. This first wave is waning with government figures showing 3,560 people infected, 234 deaths in hospital, 384 deaths in all settings as of 5 o’clock yesterday; and the latest NHS figures showing 45 deaths as at 5p.m. on 14 May.

I regret I am numb to the numbers now, although still alert (get the connection?) to the virus in our midst. Hoping that none of the nurses have brought it into our home and that we will be able to live ‘normal lives’ again, sooner rather than later, that involves proximity to our loved ones.

With love to you all – may you be protected and loved every day of your lives.

Potter, potter, potter. That’s what we’ve done today. I’d love to be a fly on my own wall watching us as we move ourselves and items from one place to another and back again. I’d be interested in a ‘time and motion’ study of our lock down movements. I swear the longer it goes on, the more we simply retrace our steps over and over. Up and downstairs; in and out of this room or that; back and fore from front door to back; round and round the kitchen; then round and round the garden. Not like a teddy bear. We haven’t done that yet – we have left that particular activity to others in the village who are telling full and creative stories with their teddy bears on their front doorsteps; from scenes of birthday parties to tributes to Captain Tom, and then on to Zoom meetings, for the delectation of both children and adults walking by.

With the weather being pleasant enough today and John feeling a bit better, he was pottering down at the ‘man shed’ fitting the final touches to the soffits he’d put up a few weeks earlier. This time, there was no Del Boy moment and the ladder stayed put. The ol’ man was pleased with his work, and I was pleased he was pleased, because it’s a step forward in the recovery stakes. I must say, it’s all looking good, and he was only a little bit out of breath after the exertion.

Whilst John was doing that, I had the pleasure of pottering in the utility room washing the washing machine. I hadn’t done it for a while and was shocked at how grimy it had got. I had also forgotten what a fiddly job it is. I mean, you think you’re just going to bung some liquid into the machine, put it through a hot wash and Bob’s your Uncle. But no, there’s all that business of removing the dispenser and giving it a good scrub; and then there’s the rubber seal inside the door to go at; then the door itself, not to mention the filter. Anyway, it was a good job done and it’s all sparkly now, but it’s a reminder of the sort of chore that I’m really not awfully keen on.

Meanwhile, I was surprised to find Mum had got herself out of bed early-ish this morning and was downstairs before ten o’clock. She is funny though. She wafts down in her dressing gown and then drifts into the lounge before settling herself into ‘her’ seat (which used to be my seat, once upon a time), and then just sits, as if waiting for something, but she has no idea what. I bustle about in the kitchen and make her a cup of tea, putting it on the table in anticipation that she’s going to come through for her breakfast. It never happens without the reminder, “Are going to get your breakfast, Mum?” to which she always replies, “Oh, yes.” as if it’s a lovely unexpected surprise.

This morning however, instead of coming through to the kitchen to actually get her breakfast, she disappeared upstairs again. Sensibly, she was getting her hearing aids, but of course I didn’t know that and, after fifteen minutes (and cold tea) I was beginning to wonder where she was and what had happened to her. So, I run upstairs to check – just one of the many occasions when I dart after her to check she’s OK, when she’s been gone for an inordinate amount of time. Ah, well, I suppose it keeps me fit!!

After lunch, I decided to have another ‘sesh’ with ‘Normal People’. Not quite finished it with one more episode to go, but I have really enjoyed it. The characters are brilliantly portrayed, and it is extremely well directed in my opinion – so much so, that I may even watch it again, once I have finished it this time around.

‘Round and round the garden’ beckoned after I’d finished the ‘sesh’ and I suggested to Mum she might like to do the circuit today. She is mostly always reluctant because she’s nicely settled and ensconced in her cosy seat. She peers out of the window anxiously to see what the weather might be like and whether there might be a good excuse for saying ‘no’. Today, however, she simply said, “If you say so.” So off we toddled into the beautiful sunshine and had a lovely mooch around. Even John joined us, and we sat by the raised flower beds, companionably chatting for a while.

Once back indoors, Mum beamed with delight at the experience and said, “I really enjoyed that.” I knew she would, but it’s not always easy to convince her beforehand, and there’s certainly no way she’s going to remember it for the next time it’s suggested, so we’re just going with the flow…….going with the flow…..

After our evening meal, for the first time in a long time, John and I ‘went out’ separately. I ‘went out’ on Zoom for a chat with my college crew, and John ‘went out’ on Zoom for a quiz night with his Uni friends. To paraphrase Elton John, it felt a little bit funny, knowing we were each on a ‘night out’ but not with each other. Whatever is lock down doing to us?? Whatever it’s doing, we both enjoyed our evenings and delighted once more in the friendships we have.

John’s medications went well again today and, excitement of excitements, tomorrow morning will be the last dose of the intravenous antibiotic before he starts on the nebulised version for the next three months. We have been very grateful to all the nursing team who have looked after him so well. They have been kind and thoughtful and gentle – just what we have needed. But in the nicest possible way, we hope we don’t see them again!!

And for the record, we continue in an ‘eased’ lock down with, according the official government report, 3,446 people infected with COVID-19 as of yesterday at 5 p.m. and 280 deaths in hospital; 428 in all settings. More precisely and ‘live’ data, the NHS reports 47 deaths as at 5 p.m. yesterday.

God bless – and peace be with you all.

We’d like to say there’s never a cross word between us, but it’s not true. Although, generally speaking, since lock down we’ve managed to rub along quite well without too much disagreement – even though Mum, as an extra body, is living with us. But you know when you’re both tired and and a bit jaded? Can’t always hold on to the courtesy we’d like to afford each other. And not only that, I’m going deaf. Or, at least, I can’t always quite hear (or I don’t fully listen to) what the ol’ man is saying….which leads to misunderstandings. Oh, dear, we both say to each other, “I didn’t mean it like that!” or, “Oohh….I see what you mean, now! I thought you said….”

Today was one of those days. No matter how hard each of us tried, it was a day of misunderstandings. Fortunately, by the time the evening came, we’d sorted ourselves out and we won’t go to bed on a disagreement.

Despite the umpty-numpty of misunderstandings, we have had a reasonable day. All medication delivery has gone well – always a relief – and John has felt sufficiently well to potter about in the ‘man-shed’ for half an hour, as well as do some more investigation into re-upholstering the roof of the Lotus with his headlining. Not only that, it was our turn to be Quiz Master for our weekly quiz with Centre Stage friends and, as I had made a bit of a hash of it last time, I suggested John might like to do the questions this time, and I’d join in. So he spent some time thinking about the quiz questions today too.

For me, I focused my attention on food, household chores and, excitingly, reading some of Michael’s essay for uni. He asked me if I’d be interested in reading it, thinking perhaps I’d have other things on my mind, but honestly, it was such a welcome relief to activate those grey cells that have been lying dormant for so many weeks. I loved it. I always felt I had never been cut out for household duties but, of course, needs must so you just have to get on with it, don’t you? But offer me the chance to do something else and I’ll leap at it.

So, it was cooking, cleaning, tidying the darned kitchen again, bed changing, cooking, cleaning, tidying the darned kitchen again…..etcetera, until this afternoon when I exercised the grey cells.

However, before all of that, I had decided that, in order to give myself some head space, I would at least do half an hour of something like meditation, yoga, reading, or listening to music. I plumped on one of Jaime’s latest offerings – a yoga Nidra, which is a meditation and relaxation practice aimed at inducing total physical, mental, and emotional relaxation. Oh, wow!! It was powerful.  So powerful, in fact, that I felt pretty good for the rest of the day. Thank you, Jaime.

Mum also went on quite well today too. She struggled to get out of bed though, citing a pain in her back, but once she was up and about she was fine. Banana sandwiches for brunch, which was even later than yesterday, and for afters? Cake. We had lots of other exciting things – freshly made fruit salad with all manner of exotic fruits; a well-made yoghurt, or strawberries and ice-cream? No, cake it had to be. Then on to TV watching and the daily menu of Tenable, Tipping Point and The Chase before she undertook her regular task of laying the table for our evening meal.

John and I rolled up for the evening quiz and everyone agreed it was a cracking one this week. John had delivered a blinder. Great questions which made us all think, and a really funny ‘quick-fire’ round for fun at the mid-way point, to which we knew none of the answers, but each answer, when revealed, made us all laugh.

I thank God for great friends and family, and today was another day proving that they are invaluable for one’s sanity and well-being. The ability to share, with no agenda; the pleasure of engaging with those we like or love, even though it’s by ‘e’ something; the resurrection of happy memories in e-conversations and the anticipation of events to come – each interaction today has reminded me that we will get through this, even though it’s tough some days and we sometimes weep over the things and people we miss.

So, thoughts go out to all those missing their loved ones today and every day – especially if those loved ones have fatally succumbed to the virus. Official data (delayed reporting) indicates 3,242 people infected and 325 deaths in hospitals, with 494 in all settings. However, the NHS figures show only 40 people died yesterday in hospitals, which remains on the downward trend. I feel a little sense of relief. How about you?

After living on the edge of our nerves over the weekend and having had a much better day yesterday, I think all of us felt a little bit flat today. I certainly did, having woken up from a weird dream which I haven’t seemed to be able to shake off all day. So I had another little lie-in, reluctant to face the world; but John was up and had started doing chores i.e. tidying the kitchen, before I joined him for a late, leisurely and luxury breakfast of smoked salmon, avocado and asparagus. My excuse for such a breakfast is that John’s diet dictates it……… Mum also had a long lie-in, until about 11.15, but by the time she managed to make it downstairs all dressed and looking smart, it was lunchtime, and she enjoyed an egg sandwich for brunch, instead.

After breakfast, it was lovely to see Steve, our milkman, who had come to mow the lawn. We clung to the doorway and shouted our conversation across to him as he stood, mower at the ready, mid-lawn. We put the world to rights as we always do and then, reluctantly, we let him get on with his task. Lawn looks nice and neat and tidy now. In fact, the garden is looking quite good.

With the lawn mown, we decided we really must order some more plants. Since lock down, we haven’t researched who would deliver what when, so today seemed to be the day to do it. It’ll be a ‘lucky bag’ of plants arriving I am quite sure, because I was like a kid in a sweetie shop, saying, “I’ll have one of those… and one of those…ooooh, and one of those!” Hope I’ll find the right places to plant them in.

In keeping with the idea of a rest day, I decided I would start watching the BBC3 series, ‘Normal People’, which seems to be all the rage. John had watched it on the tiny screen on his phone when he was in hospital and he recommended it, so just one episode, I thought? Well, six episodes later….. I am hooked and can’t wait to watch the rest. A binge-watch – first time I’ve done that! Mind you, there does seem to be a lot of sex in it, so I wondered how Mum might take to it – but she doesn’t seem to mind….and, of course, John was happy to watch it a second time around!

While I was binge-watching TV, John went and had a little look at his Lotus. He had a good look over the nice, new headlining (of which he’s got two sets….. long story) that is to be fitted to the roof of the car. I think it’s going to be a bit of a fiddly job, so it might take both of us to tackle it, but we’ll see. I am not sure what John was thinking, but I was thinking how good it is that he feels up to tinkering.

Feeling too lazy to cook the evening meal, John volunteered. He did a grand job of serving us a duck breast each and all the veg. The only excitement (there’s always excitement when John’s around) being a good swirl of smoke wafting through the house, setting off the smoke alarm. Duck fat always seems to do that, I find!! For Mum, however, an exquisite serving of fish fingers. It sounds like we’re holding back the ‘good stuff’ from Mum, doesn’t it? But, do you know what? Fish fingers is just what she likes. If she’d had the duck we’d certainly have been struggling from tea-time until midnight with it.

After our evening meal, I thought, “Just one more episode of ‘Normal People’ before The Great British Menu.” So I did more binging on TV this evening too. John was so knackered after doing the evening meal that he went and had a lie down in bed before the evening medication arrived.

All has gone well on the medication front today, thank goodness, and we’re keeping our fingers crossed that it stays that way until Friday when the last lot of intravenous antibiotics are due to be administered.

Whilst all this is going on, we are mindful that other people are living their lives too. Others, with their own triumphs and difficulties, are wondering quite how they will live in a new normal, which is atypical of our previous lives. I, too, am wondering the same thing, and feel we have been handed a prison sentence, some of it suspended but not yet……..do the time first, then we’ll see about the suspended bit.

For those with any life-threatening illness I say a prayer, daily, for them to find strength, kindness, support and calmness in the face of it. So I offer that same prayer for those who have been infected with COVID-19 or who have sadly died from it.

Government stats, which include the delay in reporting, are 3,403 infected and 627 deaths in all settings as at 9 o’clock today. However, as Malcolm points out, the stats reported daily by the NHS of deaths in hospitals, are more up-to-date and accurate, and they show a marked downturn in May, as the graph shows, which is GOOD news. So can we say Hallelujah yet?

Chocolate!! The great comforter of all things. Confused by the advice of the government? Stay in and eat chocolate. Anxious about your husband’s health? Stay in and eat chocolate. Suffering from lockdown syndrome? Stay in and eat chocolate.

What great advice and, courtesy of dear Margaret and her hubby, Chris, who called on me today to drop in a bar of Cadbury’s fruit and nut, that’s exactly what I am going to do!!

I was so thrilled to get an unexpected knock on the door and see two lovely, smiling faces standing there with such a gift. I was so grateful and overwhelmed and all I could do was stutter a big thank you. Oh, and we had a virtual hug which was nice, too!!! Made my day. Thank you Margaret.

It’s been a day of grateful thanks to many, many people today.

Firstly, we have been (well, as always) grateful to the medics for their attention to detail, carefulness and reassurances in treating John. First nurse of the day reassured us that the horrible mess on John’s arm was still OK for one more infusion – and don’t worry, Joy is coming at lunchtime. Joy is the IV nurse on whom everyone seems to rely. Joy duly arrived at lunchtime and promptly and efficiently sorted the situation. New line in, old line out – bish, bash, bosh!! She returned again this evening and inspected thoroughly, administered the antibiotic and left with a reassuring wave and smile – all will be well. Thank you medical team.

Secondly, every time I have a problem on the computer, I panic. Did I click on something to introduce a virus? Is this a phishing email? Should I put my password in when it asks for it unprompted? And every time, without fail, my dearest friend, George, comes to the rescue. As he did today. And I confessed to him that I was getting less confident with the darned thing as time went on. With the wisdom he has demonstrated over and over again in all the years I have known him, he said, “It’s cabin fever. You’re just suffering from being indoors.” Well, yes, that makes complete sense. Thank you George.

Thirdly, friends and family have offered tremendous support across the e-connections. In particular, Lizzie, with soft words of understanding and advice about my Mum; Michael, echoing Lizzie’s sentiments; church friends offering prayers for better times ahead, with Dawn’s words equally resonating; and Carol, sympathising with us. Thank you, all of you.

In addition to all of that – as if my cup doesn’t runneth over enough – I was blessed with an hour’s chat on Zoom with Meg (or Michelle to me) and delighted in that easy conversation of old friends; and the dishwasher behaving itself all day – I think it was frightened into submission by the thought of us following Malcolm’s very practical advice to put a hand into its bowels to see if there’s blockage!

The other members of the household, too, have had a relatively good day today.

Mum got herself up, dressed herself before going downstairs, and got her breakfast pretty much all unprompted. She then took herself a little walk round the house to be out of earshot of the music on the radio, which was tinkering with her hearing aids adversely, and happily ate our slightly unusual food at lunchtime. Even more exciting was the fact that she sat in the kitchen with me as I prepared the Chapman Family Traditional Hotpot, and she instructed me from beginning to end. Then, while we waited for it to cook, we played a hand of cards which she thoroughly enjoyed.

John was also slightly better today and felt well enough to tackle the curtain rail in the lounge which had fallen off its perch. Mum always closes the curtains for us every evening and had had a horrible shock on Saturday evening when it fell down from a great height. Although I had had a little go at mending it, I didn’t have the time or patience just then, so it had lain limp for over 24 hours, looking a bit like we felt yesterday, very weary. Anyway, the ol’ man got up on the step-stool armed with his trusty electric screwdriver and set about pinning it together – forever – we hope. It certainly withstood Mum pulling on the cords to close it this evening, so fingers crossed it holds!!

Later on in the day, John managed a good few laps of the garden to try and exercise his lungs a bit, so things are beginning to look up. The power of prayer? I like to think so.

So prayers for every single one of us who feels like the latest advice from government has offered mixed messages and left us confused. These Sleaths are not confused because we are continuing to stay put, but….. who knows how the general public is going to respond??

Let us pray that whatever they do, it doesn’t bring a second wave of the virus. Still too many are being infected – 3,877 on the government website – and too many are dying – 289 in hospitals and 210 in all settings. Figures we believe may not show the full picture, and so everyone still needs to take the greatest care when out and about.

Mask anyone?

Well, a better day today – except that the dishwasher is on the blink. For some reason, it is objecting to emptying out the mucky water at the end of the cycle. We haven’t had the thing that long, but it seems to me that manufacturers are now building obsolescence into their products and nothing lasts as long as you expect it to. I’ve given it a Paddington Bear hard stare, just as I did to the cat-trespassser the other day, and I’ve given it a talking to, so we’ll see what happens next. Watch this space for the next instalment on the dishwasher, folks.

And, probably, at this point, you might find that that story is as interesting as it gets today……… oh, wait! There’s excitement at the end of the day!! Wait for it…….

We have done nothing very much at all throughout the day. John was so exhausted after yesterday’s escapades that, after he’d had his early morning dose of antibiotics (which behaved), he went back to bed and slept all morning. I ‘went to church’ and was uplifted by the wonderful piece currently doing the rounds called ‘The UK Blessing’. Actually, this piece is international, with its origin in the USA, where choirs have rendered it there, as well as in South Africa so far, that I know of.

The link is here for your delectation if you haven’t heard it. I recommend that you watch it on a big screen if you can and turn the volume up!

After church, I spent a good hour making up John’s tablets which Mum said looked ‘very pretty’ as she wandered into the kitchen and hung about in the middle of it, wondering what to do next, bless her. I was thrilled to see she had got herself up, but really, she has again been a bit dopey today, not sure where anything is or forgetting what she is doing. I think the weekly effort of a ‘wash and brush up’ takes its toll for a day or two, so am hoping it’s that and nothing else.

So, she’s been fairly happy to sit in the lounge and watch whatever we’ve had on TV. I suggested she might like to come to bed a bit earlier (it would help me…….) so that her sleep pattern is improved. At the time, she thought it quite a good idea, but come this evening when I suggested she might start her move upstairs at 10.00, I was met with incredulity that I’d had the audacity to suggest such a thing! I gently reminded her that we’d talked about her coming to bed a bit earlier, but she was set that she wasn’t going just yet. “I’ll go up about half past ten,” she said, which made me laugh, “That’s the time you normally start going up, Mum!” She looked startled, “Is it?” she replied. Ah well, never mind…..

As uneventful as the day has been, in which we have generally relaxed a bit, John has begun to feel the futility of it all again, and there have been several moments when he’s muttered, “What’s it all about?” or, “What’s the point?”. A reaction, no doubt, to the troubles of the last ten days or so, when he’d been feeling so much better in the weeks beforehand, and it’s another uphill fight to be fit(ter) both physically and mentally.

All I feel I can do is maintain the pilot fish approach of hovering (and sometimes hoovering!) around him and my Mum, cleaning, tidying, feeding/watering and nurturing, and praying that things will look up soon.

Mid-afternoon meds went well with nothing untoward reported and we began to relax a bit. And, despite his fatigue, John tidied the kitchen, which I’d left a mess again – I really don’t know how to cook without leaving a trail behind me – and kept me company while I prepped the evening meal. A meal which we thoroughly enjoyed, of roast lamb, mint sauce and all the trimmings. Mum struggled with the meat. She is struggling to cut up her food now and everything has to be soft. I thought the meat was soft – it was just right for us – but not soft enough to cut through and chew for Mum. Another: Ah, well…….

The evening passed uneventfully, and I thought I’d write early this evening so that I could go to bed a little bit earlier. But hang on a minute…… I hadn’t reckoned on the ‘Sleath factor’ where just as things are going swimmingly there’s a spanner in the works.

Late shift nurses arrived and took one look at John’s arm where the cannula is and decided it was a bit iffy. Our hearts sank. Oh, no….. not again……

This was nurse number one from yesterday, who has yet to gain more experience in fitting cannulas after returning to work from maternity leave. She flushed the line through and it was OK. But she was concerned about the redness of the vein, suggesting it might be phlebitis. She thought she ought to perhaps leave it and ask another nurse from the overnight team to come and re-cannulate. She phoned a senior colleague who thought it would be OK to continue, without seeing it for herself but going on the description provided.

So, she continued but we have clear instructions that if there is any pain whatsoever in the night, we have to phone them up. Fingers crossed it’ll be OK until tomorrow. Honestly, you can’t make it up!! And if you did, no-one would believe you!!

I suppose, in a way, it’s a bit like the current situation with the virus – there are people who don’t believe that there is one and certainly not people being ill or dying. They are thinking it’s all made up and a conspiracy. Well, it’s one helluva conspiracy if it is…..with today’s official figures of 3,923 infectees and 269 deaths as at 9 o’clock this morning.

Keep safe everyone……or should I say, stay alert???….and peace be with you all.

The day has run away with us today at times, then stalled a bit, then run away again. Mostly feeling like it was hurtling downhill with no way of stopping it. But we’ve slowed as bedtime beckons and we’re (hopefully) now pulling into a siding for a breather. Are you ready (and got time for) for the ride?

It’s always an early start now as the nurses arrive to administer John’s antibiotics at 7 o’clock in the morning. This morning, though, John was up to dealing with it all himself, so I stayed in bed, drinking tea until about a quarter past seven. I got up and planned to spend a few minutes doing ‘Mindfulness’ meditation before settling down to a bit of yoga. I’d just started when John rang me from downstairs. Oh, blimey! What now? It turned out that the District Nurse (medic number one) wasn’t able to deliver the antibiotic because there was/is a kink in the line in John’s arm – and she didn’t feel competent to insert another canula as it’d been two years since she’d done one, having been on maternity leave.

What should we do? She made some frantic phone calls. There was no-one on duty with the competence to insert a cannula at that time in the morning. Best bet? Let’s get a non-emergency ambulance crew to come along and do the job. OK then, we’ll wait.

A ‘nee-naw’ turned up, paramedics pounding down the path, just at the same time as Malcolm was dropping off a spot of shopping – can’t stop to talk…… “What’s your problem, then?” they (medics numbers two and three) kindly asked. We explained. “Oh. We thought we were taking you down to Warwick Hospital.” Oooh, no…. don’t want to be trundled off to hospital if we can help it, thank you very much. “Well, we’ve never had a request like this before. Don’t think we can fit a cannula and just leave – that’s not what we do.” They checked with their seniors who looked in the rulebook. No, that’s not what they do, and they can’t leave the premises having left a cannula behind in someone’s body. And, anyway, they are an emergency crew – is there any such thing as a non-emergency crew, they wondered?

Ah……what shall we do now then? More frantic phone calls. The ambulance crew could take John to Warwick A&E and they’ll fit the cannular there? We weren’t keen. “Anne, you could take John to Heartlands A&E and they’ll fit a cannular there?” We weren’t awfully keen on that option either but, if necessary….. Still more phone calls, and they finally plumped on the option of them fitting the cannula, another District Nurse (medic number four) turning up to administer the antibiotic, and then the ambulance crew removing the cannula before they left. No leaving cannulas in anybody’s body at home by an ambulance crew.

It was a hectic morning, and we were both still in our jammies underneath our clothes. We decided against getting dressed just yet and sat out in the garden to soak up the sunshine and try and breath in some peace and quiet. We did do just that, the only interlude being a delightful ‘virtual picnic’ with Freddie and dear Paul. Oh, what a pleasure, that was. Freddie is getting more and more charming on the phone as his little piping voice tells me what he’s doing. A bit of a life raft in an otherwise choppy sea this morning.

John rested a bit while I sorted out Mum’s weekly ‘big wash and brush up’, which always takes a while because of setting her hair. But she was a bit confused today and struggled to think where the bathroom was. No sooner had I finished sorting Mum out than it was lunchtime and food prep was needed.

Lunch was a very pleasant affair, and John and I enjoyed sitting outside together. Mum, meanwhile, had gone upstairs to get a cardigan because she thought it would be cold. We had finished our lunch and I was wondering where Mum had got to, so went on a hunt. She was in the loo – ahhh, OK. But when she came downstairs again ten minutes later, she was minus cardigan. Clearly, she’d got upstairs and wasn’t sure why she was there!!

At about two o’clock another District Nurse (medic number five) arrived – this time a competent cannular fitter. So now John has two lines in…..

At about three-thirty another District Nurse (medic number four again….) arrived, just at the same time as the specialist groceries from Ocado – over which she had to step to get into and out of the house. She administered the antibiotic. All good this time. Phew.

A little bit of rest for John, then tea-time, after which he was still exhausted and went to bed. Mum hadn’t helped – nearly having a ‘turn’ at the tea table, which went off quickly, fortunately, but she decided she didn’t like lasagne after all…… I think, in what had been a long day so far, that was the last straw and John thought to absent himself for a while in case he said something he might regret.

Anyway, the evening District Nurses arrived just before 10 o’clock (medics six and seven) and busied themselves getting ready for the infusion – only to find that the cannula couldn’t. A great balloon of fluid manifested itself in John’s arm and so that attempt had to be abandoned. No worries, the nurse said cheerfully we’ll find another vein. Ha! Ha! If only John’s veins weren’t shot, we thought. Attempt number two: another ballooning of fluid. Eeeeeh, dear. Finally, and fortunately, attempt number three seemed to be successful and he is now pumped full of antibiotics. Whether the cannula will behave tomorrow we’ll see, But, it’s been one hell of a ride today.

Obviously, though, our ride has not been as bad as those who have contracted and been hospitalised with COVID-19 (3,896 infected as at 9a.m. this morning according to the official figures) or who have died (346), but we’d rather not have another day like today tomorrow please. We are ‘Cannula-nackered’.

God bless.

P.S. I never did get to do my ‘Mindfulness’ meditation or yoga – maybe tomorrow? Please?