Coronavirus | Not Just a Granny

Posts Tagged ‘Coronavirus’

Lockdown Day 26

Posted in around the UK, gratitude, Health, It's my life, me and Peanut, tagged Camino, Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown on April 18, 2020| Leave a Comment »

And another day down, another day bites the dust – will this ever end? Not for a while apparently…its so bizarre.

The numbers are just escalating and the number of people who are infected is frightening….somewhere, somehow, we are all going to come into contact with this thing…and no-one has any ideas….

Our politicians; not just the UK, are all just marking time and making noise….because no-one has a clue.

So lockdown till mid-May 😱😱😱 I simply cannot imagine how people are coping. I really do consider myself to be one of the very lucky ones…I’m working, getting paid, in a safe (for now) environment, I have food to eat (paid for by the client) and I don’t have to venture out unless I choose to. I have books to read, a window into the world (my phone) and my family are safe. I am totally blessed.

I spoke to my daughter today via facetime and watched my grandson playing in the garden 100s of kms away, heard him say Granny for the first time 🥰🥰🥰 and chatted briefly to my son-in-law about his job. He was wearing a pair of wellies I bought him some months ago and apparently he was walking sideways at first trying to get used to them. 💙💙💙 He’s such a funny little boy, so intent and so focused….when he sets his sights on something it’s like a laser….and he will not be diverted. He sometimes walks with head down, his hands behind his back and absolutely focused on getting to wherever he decides to go…looks like a little old man 😁😁 They’re safe and healthy.

Finally my walking poles arrived….but not to where they were addressed….no, instead they arrived at the ‘return’ address 🤣🤣🤣🤪 which fortunately I thought to have added as it’s my daughter’s address. So I shall soon be reunited with my trusty walking buddies. Gemini, I have missed you…wish you were here.

I finished reading the 8th book since I arrived here just 2 days short of 4 weeks ago…it was a different world then. This has been a rare luxury and I haven’t read this many books in such a short period of time for decades. Literally decades. I used to read vociferously in SA, and although I’ve read plenty of books in the last 18.5 years, I’ve not read 8 in 4 weeks 😁😁 a bit of a record.

Just before I hopped into bed I leaned my head on the windowsill to listen….to the sounds of silence. No cars, no bikes, no barking dogs, no TV, no music, no people talking….just pure palpable silence. Bliss.

I’ve been on Facebook for much of the day 😝😝😝🤔🤔 bloody hate it, but it’s so addictive. I follow a few Camino pages and every day I’m astounded at the number of people who seem to think that they can still walk the Camino this year. A common question is: “my airline has cancelled my flight for June, should I book for September?” Seriously, these people are living in lala land. If they could pull their heads out their proverbial….they might just realise that Spain is not going to be remotely able to deal with a bunch of tourists…pretend pilgrims. Ignorant…!!! So many people who are involved with the Camino have posted on the pages about the devastating effects of Covid-19 and how the infrastructure is struggling and yet these ‘pumpkins’ just don’t get it. Gahhh.

Talking of pilgrimage….I bought the April edition of Countryfile a few weeks ago and am just about to delve into an article about Holy Island and St Cuthbert’s Way. On my list of walks to do….I’m guessing that the Camino I planned for 2021 is going to be on hold…instead I’ll look at walking a few of the long list of UK walks I want to do, 3 of which are pilgrimages following in the footsteps of Saints.

Nothing much else to add really. I didn’t go out again today, had a snooze instead which is a treat. But I think I will make an effort tomorrow. I only have another 8 days here so want to make the most of it while I can. I’m booked to return in July for 3 weeks, and hopefully by then the lockdown will be lifted and I can venture further afield.

I’m looking forward to the return of blue skies….

Stay safe folks……

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Lockdown Day 25

Posted in around the UK, Fun Stuff, gratitude, Inspiration, Interesting articles, tagged captain tom moore, clapforourcarers, Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown, spitfire on April 17, 2020| 2 Comments »

This thing feels interminable….today was one of those days that I felt squished…so I just acknowledged the feelings and avoided Facebook as much as possible and kept the TV on any channel except the news. 5 USA is getting a good airing 🤨🤨🤨 I don’t actually watch or listen but it’s just comforting to have voices in the background.

I communicated with my sister and brother-in-law first thing this morning….just giving them support… He’s doing well and impatient to get up and start walking and looking forward to going home on Sunday. My sister is having a bit of a wobble which is to be expected…so she’s making macaroni cheese for supper. Sensible girl. It’s a staple of our childhood and one of our favourite ‘Mommy’ meals 🥰🥰 I too make it as comfort food, and often make it for my little family when I visit.

I spoke briefly with my daughter…giving her some hints on making, what is in my opinion, the perfect bowl of porridge 😉 I caught an even more brief glimpse of my grandson before he whizzed off…busy busy as usual. 💙👶🏻 The parentals weighed him today…he’s 24lbs now….started life as scrap of a thing at 7lbs ….its so extraordinary how humans develop. Its been fascinating watching him go from that tiny helpless little being into the bustling little toddler he is today …apparently he’s learned to say Daddy 😀😀😀💙👶🏻 and runs around the house shouting Daddy Daddy Daddy 😂😂😂❤

Okay….Wowwww. I checked Capt. Tom’s justgiving page…its smashed through the £20million ceiling….oh my gosh. Its gone crazy….£20 449 435.47 and growing. Thats a £4million increase since I checked late last night!! 😯😯😯😯 It’s a phenomenal amount of money and so uplifting!! I do feel for all the other elderly people also doing amazing things to raise funds for the NHS…something about this little gentleman has touched a chord around the world…

They’re now considering a Spitfire fly past for his birthday 👏👏👏 Imagine if they could give him a flight!! That would be amazing.

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/spirit-of-kent-spitfire-to-honour-nhs-fundraising-veteran-225836/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

Was watching Channel 5 – Stonehenge: Digging Up Britain’s Past. The history of this island is absolutely fascinating. I find it endlessly interesting. We’re so lucky to have so much history to explore. I’ve had the amazing experience of standing in a 5,000 year old burren in Ireland…..beyond description really.

I watched a bit of the news this evening, just to catch up, and I really feel so sorry for the religions; Judaism and Islam, and others that require people to be buried a particular way…within 48 hours of death…they can’t do that now and it must be so hard. 😭😭😭😭😭 This virus has affected us in a myriad of ways that are almost impossible to comprehend.

I read something really interesting yesterday….the Japanese custom of putting their hands together and bowing developed after the Spanish Flu in 1918….a way of avoiding contagion by touching another person’s hands…..the shame is that we Westerners barge in and expect them to shake hands….perhaps we need to develop the same customs….🤔🤔 I wonder what changes we will see in the future? Its certainly going to be a different world 🌍🌎🌏

So yesterday I read that we could expect to see a meteor shower over the next few days…..I got all excited and hung out the window last night, but didn’t see anything…a tad disappointed but never fear its here till next week…except what did I wake up to this morning?? Yup, you guessed it…rain!! Seriously, why am I even surprised. If there’s a hint of an eclipse or a meteor shower, you can almost guarantee it will rain 🤨🤨🤨 anyway here’s the link just in case

https://www.theargus.co.uk/news/18382169.lyrid-meteor-shower-visible-uk-tonight—see/?ref=fbshr

Rain rain go away…

So that’s it really. Day 25 winds down and the world has been turned upside down.

I hope you are all well and still healthy….lets hope this nightmare ends soon. Take care and be safe 👏👏👏💙💙💙🌈🌈🌈

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Lockdown Day 24

Posted in around the UK, Fun Stuff, gratitude, Historical, Inspiration, tagged Captain Tom, Coronavirus, Covid 19, Knighthood, lockdown, NHS on April 16, 2020|

Wowww, what a way to start the day…Capt. Tom has now raised over £12million for the NHS 👏👏👏💙💙💙 that’s £2 million overnight….extraordinary. what a wonderful initiative to uplift our spirits.

In the darkest times, there is always a light to guide the way 🕯🕯

If you’re keen to show your appreciation, you can send him a thank you or 100th birthday card

So here we are, day 24 and no real end in sight. I saw an article this morning that indicated social distancing could last until 2022. 😱😱

Meanwhile the plastic pollution has increased exponentially with people discarding their single use plastic gloves….in the feking streets 🤬🤬🤬

Seriously, come on people, surely you have more common sense or understanding that you should throw them in the trash!!! Or probably not because the type of people who do that are the same people who toss the cigarette butts in the street, plastic bottles in the grass, and candy wrappers in the gutter. They are disgusting. It infuriates me beyond belief. For years we’ve been fighting against plastic pollution and these morons just increase it without a care.

Frankly I think the fact that Covid-19 lasts for up to 5 days (or more depending on which ‘report’ you read) is an argument for ditching single use plastic. Of course that would also include PPE which is mostly plastic….so its tricky. But if we stop plastic willy nilly, then PPE wouldn’t be an issue and could be manageable. It also begs the question…is the NHS having their plastic incinerated? Does anyone know?

I saw this in the paper this morning 😁😁

I love how the English language keeps developing and evolving. Its a fascinating language and I love playing around with words…and of course Scrabble is my favourite leisure time game….just wish I could play it more often. I always totally admire foreigners who speak English because it’s not the easiest of languages to learn. Take the word spit for instance…it can be an action or a description. Its something nuckleheads do because they can’t keep their gob in their mouths and the distance between their ears is narrow and doesn’t leave enough space for brains 🧠 or it can be a narrow (see there’s that word again 😉) piece of land jutting out…usually into the sea, which is where I’d like to toss the yobs who spit 🤣🤣🤣🤣

One of my favourite exercises in school was listing words spelt the same, but with different meanings. These days I keep myself occupied with word searches and the previously mentioned polygons. However, I don’t like crosswords…😝😝😝

On the home front I got to see my grandson again just before lunchtime and watched him busy busy in the garden. Geez, that boy doesn’t sit still for more than 5 seconds at any one time. I took loads of videos of him when he was a baby (which I watch frequently), and even then while still barely out the womb, he was always moving moving…legs, arms and head…every video. The only time he was ever still was when he was asleep 🥰🥰🥰 and how much I loved just watching him sleep…so precious and so tiny.

My brother-in-law has had his operation in Cape Town and is out of surgery and doing well…thanks be that it wasn’t any worse…. They’re also fortunate to have (and pay a lot of money for) private medical aid, so instead of going onto a waiting list, he had the operation within 48 hours after the heart attack. I’d love to have private medical aid again like I did in South Africa, although it was expensive, it was still affordable, but BUPA charge a small (large) fortune with all manner of caveats and restrictions and limits….so what’s the point. I’ll work an extra 4 days each month just to pay for it and likely get declined when claiming…. insurance companies…they like to keep as much of your money as possible. So yeah, NHS for me and frankly, that’s no bad thing. I’ve only had occasion to use a hospital twice, maybe 3 times in 18 years, so I’m good.

Talking of hospital, I think Matt Hancock looked like he was going to have apoplexy on the Piers Morgan show this morning 😏😏😏 Jeez, he got burned and nailed to the wall. I may have mentioned before that I’m not a fan of Mr Piers Egotistical Narcissistic Morgan, and usually switch over to something else rather than listen to him, but by golly I’m enjoying watching him hang our ministers on a hook and make them squirm. I know I shouldn’t laugh, and they’re coping (not quite) with an ‘unprecedented’ situation atm, but I just wish they would stop bloody playing politics and be honest…say what’s happening. Don’t flubbergust and prevaricate and tell 🐷🐷🐷🐷ies when they KNOW the truth will come out. If they just stopped dancing around the issues and avoiding straightforward answers and admit they f¥cked up, you could have more respect for them. We don’t expect them to be perfect or have all the answers, but just for once be honest. 😡😡😡

Okay I’ll get off my 🧼🎁 now 😎😎😎😎

One last word on Piers….besides enjoying the daily 🔥🔥 he’s giving the government ministers, he’s pushing for Capt. Tom to get a Knighthood….he does have a ❤ after all 😁😁

I had a fantastic conversation with my sister in Cape Town this afternoon. She and her hubby have been involved with mountain search and rescue for a couple of decades now, both there and when they lived in Ireland. She was regaling me with tales of some of the ridiculously stupid situations people get themselves into on Table Mountain. Its unbelievable….reminds me of some of the people who go walking up Mt. Snowdon in sandles, no maps, no food, no water, no emergency items and no warm clothes. Seriously. 🙄🙄🙄

As for walking….I just read this article… so that looks like my plan to walk the Camino again next year with one of my younger sisters could be out the window…. we’ll have to wait and see. I doubt anyone can predict how anything is going to work out in the next few months. https://www.schengenvisainfo.com/news/covid-19-test-results-and-later-on-vaccination-will-be-required-for-schengen-visa-application/

I’m not particularly heartbroken about it…but I was looking forward to walking the Portuguese Camino again, this time with my younger sister, but hey ho, there are so many walks I want to do in the UK, so I might just concentrate on those instead….especially for the foreseeable future.

Clap for Carers again tonight and I get the feeling that enthusiasm for this is escalating in our street…nice turnout. ❤🌈👏👏👏💙💙💙 Neighbours wave, looking this way and that…”are you out”? “Yes, hello, nice to see you” rings out along the street. A real sense of community, coming together in a time of crisis, although we feel far removed from any hint of a crisis. Day to day, except for the unusual stillness of the day, and the lack of busyness…cars, bikes, trucks…hardly seen nor heard, you’d never think that our country is in the midst of a pandemic. I’ve never felt more remote…. Next week, being my last Thursday here for the time being, I’m going to take my client’s great big bell and ring it like crazy 🛎🛎🛎🛎🛎🛎🛎😉😉 just for fun

I leave the following Monday so can hide away till then 😂😂😂😂

I didn’t go out for a walk today… simply didn’t feel like it…..instead I snoozed and read and chatted with my sister….tomorrow as they say, is another day…

So just before I end off for the night I had another peek at Capt. Tom’s Justgiving page…OMG….. £16,316,160.37 I can’t even begin to express my thoughts on that…bloody marvellous. I just hope it gets to the right people, is used wisely and isn’t a way for the government to wriggle out of the financial black hole they created through their cuts.

Huge congratulations Capt. Tom you truly deserve that 🎖 and Knighthood…you’ve inspired a nation…

Goodnight….

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Lockdown Day 23

Posted in around the UK, Fun Stuff, gratitude, Health, Inspiration, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown, Travel, walk 1000 miles on April 15, 2020| 2 Comments »

Okay so after deciding to not continue keeping a ‘diary’ of this weird, surreal situation we’re living in, called ‘Lockdown,’ I changed my mind…these are strange times and after thinking about it, I just felt like I needed to record my thoughts and feelings and links of interest…one day my grandson might be interested to read them and get a very tiny glimpse of this weird weird time.

My client keeps saying ‘we’ve never lived through anything like this before ‘ and of course she’s right…we haven’t. Other countries have dealt with similar issues like the Ebola virus that is still causing death in the Congo, or the HIV virus that has caused so much death worldwide, and we’ve had other flu virus epidemics but this, this is different….no other crisis has caused a worldwide lockdown with 90% of businesses shut down. Although the word is/has been overused, it is unprecedented….

There are so many tragic tragic stories, heartbreaking stories that flatten you with sadness for the people living and dying in those stories….

Then we have the heartwarming stories like the now world-famous 99 year old Capt Tom. I mean what a perfect name for someone who will go down in history….

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-52290976

What started out as a generous idea to raise £1000 for the NHS, has turned into a worldwide phenomenon with thousands now calling for him to be on the Queen’s Honours list….for a Knighthood. 👏👏👏👏🎖🎖

As I write the amount donated has gone over the £10million threshold. Wowwww. Extraordinary doesn’t even begin to describe it. Beyond incredible. Bless his socks!!!

Amongst all the chaos of Covid-19 we keep hearing about inspiring stories, see people doing fantastic things and learning more about how in times of crisis, so many people step up and be amazing. And there are so many!!! I simply love that the rainbow has become a symbol of the times…🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈🌈

On the home front, I ventured out of doors during my break today for the first time since last week and covered a decent 2.54kms and got back to the house in my designated hour. The weather is absolutely fabulous and I’m convinced Mother Nature is teasing us…..I don’t recall seeing so many blue sky days in a row in all the years I’ve lived in the UK.

Enroute I noticed this crowd not practicing social distancing….clearly they didn’t get the memo 🙄🙄🙄

Along the way my daughter phoned and I got to spend some virtual time chatting to her and my grandson and a brief hello to son-in-law 🥰🥰🥰 I miss them so much. He was reading a book and my daughter let me watch how good he is at turning the pages…for a 15 month old he’s very impressive. Most toddlers his age tend to rip books apart, but he’s ever so careful with his books.

On my way back to the house I passed the shelter next to the clock tower and found a lot of free stuff, so carefully selected a few books and a toy to take home for him

I doubt many children have as many books as this boy.

I stopped off at the castle mound and climbed to the top where I noticed this beautiful installation

Its really weird to realise that I’ve been here now for just over 3 weeks and we’ve settled in really well together. Sadly it also means that my time here is rapidly nearing the end. Despite the really awful start, I’ve been quite happy here and although I do get bored, I am quite content. Not something I experience very often. Unfortunately the day draws near to when I have to venture out into the wide world again and I can honestly say that I am afraid.

I’ve done everything in my power to keep myself and my client safe from the virus; being absolutely vigilant about washing anything that may have come into contact with the virus and baking the newspaper and magazines etc on the Rayburn. But once I start travelling it’s all out of my hands and I’m not embarrassed to say I’m afraid.

Afraid some idiot may think they’re above all this and travel despite having symptoms. I’m afraid some moron will think its clever to spit at me or anyone else like they’ve done to others. Krist, what kind of twisted mind would do that??? Afraid I might accidentally come into contact with the virus…despite my precautions.

I’m dreading the long journey on 2 trains and the tube…its going to take bloody hours from here to there and that’s assuming there are no cancellations. And all the time I’ll be exposed. Urgh.

And then when I do get back I won’t even have the joy of spending time with my family….I’ll possibly be exposed to the virus at some point of my journey and I’ll have no way of knowing. So to keep them safe I’ve decided to keep my distance. I can only hope that by the time my next assignment ends in mid-May that the worst of this thing is over.

Meanwhile we got news today that my beloved brother-in-law had a minor (thankfully) heart-attack last night and is now in hospital 😥😥😥 I feel absolutely distressed for my sister as she and her hubby are joined at the hip. And he’s not yet even 50. Its insane. But he’s in hospital and the procedure they’ll perform is simple and hopefully he’ll be home soon.

Worrying times and we’re all so far away.

Anyhow, that’s me for today. I finished my 7th book yesterday 😂😂😂 and have just started the 8th….this has been a real treat for me as I don’t often get time to read as much. Oh and I’m working my way through a few polygons…a bit like scrabble but with only one word. My daughter maintains I’m some kind of weird word person 😁😁😁

So there we are, or is that here we are 😏😏😏 in the 4th week of lockdown….who knew at 00:01 on 1st January 2020 as we celebrated the arrival of the new year what a bastard of a year it was going to be…

Keep safe folks, maintain social distancing, wash your hands and please don’t take chances…stay home.

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Lockdown Day 22

Posted in around the UK, gratitude, Health, idiot category, It's my life, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown on April 14, 2020| Leave a Comment »

That. Is. All. 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

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Lockdown Day 21

Posted in around the UK, Health, news from around the world, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown on April 13, 2020| 2 Comments »

3 weeks ago, 21 days seemed interminable…and yet suddenly here we are, but with the possibility of another 2 or 3 weeks, I’m certain there are a lot of very unhappy people.

Like I said before, my life is no different to what is my normal in my job, so lucky me, this hasn’t been difficult and I’m still being paid.

Well no more difficult than ‘normal’ when you’re looking after an elderly person with various physical issues and dementia. Its emotionally and mentally draining and I always leave the latest assignment absolutely drained. So far, except for the first 5 days of living hell, the current position hasn’t been too bad.

I didn’t go out at all over the weekend, took the government’s request to stay home seriously and didn’t leave the house since last week, except for a brief walk on Friday night. I stepped out into the courtyard this evening to empty the dehumidifier and it was so quiet and so cool that I decided to take a quick walk to the top of the hill …. I’m so glad I did. Although it was already 8.30pm and getting dark, there were enough street lights to guide me. Perfect weather for walking; cool with a stiff breeze. The sky was absolutely clear and I could see Venus, and caught the tail end of a lovely sunset.

It cleared my head and left me feeling invigorated.

On the news….a possible 3 weeks extra lockdown!!! This virus has really taken a toll and its heart rending to hear of people’s stories, about loved ones lost. I personally feel obligated to hear them out…although I know it’s not, but its so terribly sad and the circumstances are awful. Thank God my friend has recovered and is now home with his wife and daughter. They missed their 30th wedding anniversary while he was in hospital, but thankfully they will get to celebrate many more. ❤❤

I’ve been in touch with my long-standing friend in America and thankful that they’re all well, although living far apart from her 3 sons and 2 granddaughters, they too keep in touch via facetime. I’m not always a fan of technology, but this is one time its certainly come into its own.

Of course the conspiracy theories are flying left right and centre and since I’m a closet conspiracy theorist 🤣🤣🤣 I’ve shared a few articles and boom….Facebook have rapped me on the knuckles!!! 😱😱😱😮😮 They’ve really stepped up their fact checking and actually I don’t mind their little ‘naughty girl’ messages coz it doesn’t help to share stuff that’s not true or accurate…that’s what caused Brexit here and an orange swamp thing risen to become President of the US… so yeah, I deleted the two offending articles and will henceforth only share newspaper articles by bonafide rags 😉

One of the best things to come out of this pandemic is clear skies…I don’t know if you’ve seen any of the images of Delhi, and Los Angeles to name but two major cities, but wowwww, the drop in pollution is extraordinary. Nature is getting a chance to breathe. Sadly of course, once we’re out of lockdown, its going to be ‘business as usual’ and we humans are going to continue polluting and destroying our home. I know there’s a huge determination by people to try and change things so we don’t go ‘back to normal’ but it’s not enough. Big business and corporations have made us slaves to technology. There are a minuscule number of people who can or are able to self-support or even have the knowledge of how to live without the support of big business. Can you imagine the majority of westerners; British, American, European citizens suddenly rushing out and slaughtering lambs or chickens for Sunday’s roast? No, its not going to happen.

The majority are going to go straight back to where we were before and people are going to continue buying junk from China and fast-fashion produced by slaves in Bangladesh or Africa and rubbish to plaster over the void in their lives. Its a really sad state of affairs….

In other ‘news’ My walking poles are still missing in action and according to the tracking are still in Weybridge. 🤔🤔🤔 time to call in the troops. But hey, how marvellous is our postal system in the UK…we’re still getting mail delivered 👏👏👏👏

So here endeth my diary of a lockdown. I’m going to go back to my regular routine of posting willynilly 🙃🙃😜 and stop boring y’all with my meandering thoughts. Okay don’t cheer so loudly I can hear you 😂😂😂

Seriously though

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Lockdown Day 14

Posted in around the UK, gratitude, Health, idiot category, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown on April 6, 2020| Leave a Comment »

As you may have noticed (or not 😉) I did indeed miss a couple of days last week. I started writing articles and then got reading the latest book and voila, before I knew it, the 11pm chimed on the clock tower and it was time for lights out. My day starts quite early, although I have managed to push it back by 30 minutes after gentle persuasion. Nonetheless, I will finish them off ….just not sure when.

So here we are…day 14 of UK lockdown almost gone and the statistics are terrifying. And our esteemed PM has only gone and got himself into hospital. Hmmm. 🤔🤔🤔 I wonder, if while he’s being cared for by the nurses, he thinks back to 2017 when he and his Tory cronies DENIED these very people a wage increase. 🤬🤬🤬

UPDATE: I just saw on Facebook that Johnson is now in ICU.

Seriously, if this government doesn’t now, after this pandemic is over, give these people AND all the other many many services keeping this country running an increase in wages/salary, then may they be damned forever. Its been proven beyond doubt that it’s not the bankers, or the hedge-funders, the politicians or the lawyers etc etc who keep this country running. No it’s the apparently low-skilled and definitely underpaid KEY workers….nurses, carers, doctors, police, ambulance personnel, post office workers, truck drivers, bus drivers, garbage collectors and so on sho have been the champions, who have kept the engine going. They all deserve a wage increase.

Cheers to them all 👏👏👏👏👏💙💙💙

I was shocked to my boots to discover that one of my dear friends is in hospital on a ventilator….christ I can tell you, my heart nearly stopped. Thankfully he is still communicating via Facebook, so not critical, but whewww. It really brings it home when someone you know is ill with this horror.

In other news I have been feeling ever so glum the whole day and didn’t even go out for my usual walk. The reason being that under normal circumstances I’d have finished off my current assignment today and would have been arriving back ‘home’ round about now…..this event would have preceded the joyful reunion with my beloved grandson tomorrow. But, instead due to the lockdown I am in fact still 243 miles away 😔😔😔

However I did get to chat to him this evening via WhatsApp facetime and it was wonderful. He’s such a joy and so very very cute….blowing me kisses without any prompting…it just made my day. I got to chat to Mummy and Daddy too and it’s so lovely to see them. 3 weeks and counting……❤❤❤

Grocery shopping has become a bit of a minefield what with all the plastic. Our shopper dropped off about 6 bags of items I requested, and it took me 30 minutes and multiple handwashes to unpack the bags, spray and clean everything down (even the bread packet and bagels were sprayed with flash and washed off 🙄🙄🙄🤔🤔) then dried and packed away. Urgh. It used to be fun unpacking groceries, now it’s like each item has the potential to kill. I said I was going to be paranoid about this bloody virus…. If only there was something we could spray over everything that would highlight if there were any particles of the virus on the surfaces. You know like they do in CSI….

Actually talking of plastic, I do truly hope that manufacturers are going to step up their efforts to reduce the amount of plastic packaging (pollution) still being produced. But I won’t hold my breath!!!

I came up with a genius idea for my client’s newspaper. Her family were worried about the virus being on the cover, so I’ve been removing them for the last 2 weeks. However I heard that Hester kills the virus, so I’ve been ‘baking’ the papers on the Rayburn before delivery in the morning… clever no!!

I did the same to some books I acquired and my magazine

Although I haven’t been watching as much TV as normal, how lovely it was to see the Queen last night on TV. Our one constant in all the mayhem. Long may she reign 👸🏻❤

Btw have/do any of you wear masks when going out? I haven’t quite gone that far just yet, although I do wear gloves in case I have to open any gates on my perambulations. But it may just come to that what with the number of infection cases escalating. Talking of masks, the D/N visited today and she’s quite pleased with the state of my client’s wound. Yayyy me.

So anyhooooo…..here we are, end of day 14 of lockdown with 7 to go. Who knows what the future holds……

I hope the bull can read 😉😉 hopefully our politicians adhere to this premise 😁😁

Take care folks and be safe. I hope you are all safe.

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Lockdown Day 13

Posted in around the UK, Health, news from around the world, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, planet earth on April 5, 2020| 4 Comments »

A message from the Earth

Coronavirus Letter To Humanity

The earth whispered but you did not hear.
The earth spoke but you did not listen
The earth screamed but you turned her off.

And so I was born…

I was not born to punish you..
I was born to awaken you..

The earth cried out for help…

Massive flooding. But you didn’t listen.
Burning fires. But you didn’t listen.
Strong hurricanes. But you didn’t listen.
Terrifying Tornadoes. But you didn’t listen.

You still don’t listen to the earth when.
Ocean animals are dying due to pollutants in the waters.
Glaciers melting at an alarming rate.
Severe drought.

You didn’t listen to how much negativity the earth is receiving.

Non-stop wars.
Non-stop greed.

You just kept going on with your life..
No matter how much hate there was..
No matter how many killings daily..
It was more important to get that latest iPhone than worry about what the earth was trying to tell you..

But now I am here.

And I’ve made the world stop in its tracks.
I’ve made you finally listen.
I’ve made YOU take refuge.
I’ve made you stop thinking about materialistic things..

Now you are like the earth…
You are only worried about YOUR survival.

How does that feel?

I give you fever.. as the fires burn on earth.
I give you respiratory issues.. has pollution fill the earth air.
I give you weakness as the earth weakens every day.

I took away your comforts..
Your outings.
The things you would use to forget about the planet and its pain.

And I made the world stop…

And now…
China has better air quality.. Skys are clear blue because factories are not spewing pollution unto the earth’s air.
The water in Venice is clean and dolphins are being seen. Because the gondola boats that pollute the water are not being used.

YOU are having to take time to reflect on what is important in your life.

Again I am not here to punish you.. I am here to Awaken you…

When all this is over and I am gone… Please remember these moments..

Listen to the earth.
Listen to your soul.
Stop Polluting the earth.
Stop Fighting among each other.
Stop caring about materialistic things.
And start loving your neighbors.
Start caring about the earth and all its creatures.
Start believing in a Creator.

Because next time I may come back even stronger….

Signed,
Coronavirus

Written by: Vivienne R Reich

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Lockdown Day 10 – Policing in a crisis

Posted in around the UK, gratitude, lifestyle, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, lockdown on April 2, 2020| 2 Comments »

I just read this on a friend’s timeline and thought I’d share it because it is absolutely accurate.

Borrowed
Okay, time for a Public Information Announcement on behalf of Police Officers throughout the UK.

We’re in the midst of a global pandemic, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in our lifetimes. The agreed and sensible advice from Scientists and the Government is to STAY AT HOME to prevent the spread of this highly infectious disease; simply to stop our Healthcare System becoming overwhelmed, resulting in unnecessary deaths.

This advice has been replicated around the world:

• In India, Police use large sticks to beat people for venturing outdoors.
• In South Africa, Police have fired rubbers bullets at crowds outside a supermarket.
• In Peru, those who flout government restrictions can be jailed for up to three years.
• In Saudi Arabia, they can be jailed for five years.
• In China, people regularly “go missing” for defying the state.
• In Spain, the Army are on the streets.
• In New Zealand, if you ignore advice they deport you.

Yet, the most scathing headlines are saved for Police Officers in the United Kingdom.

In these troubled times, those absolute b*stards that make up our Police Force(s) are:

• Encouraging people to go home, or in many instances, driving them there.
• Shopping for the elderly/vulnerable when they have no-one else to turn to.
• Trying to maintain Law and Order.
• Moving out of their family homes to keep their families safe.
• Trying to keep communities together.
• Dealing with ALL THE USUAL CRIME that they normally do, i.e. Domestic Violence, Burglaries, Thefts, Drink Driving, Drug Dealing, etc etc…and still have to meet performance targets.
• Having to cope with SCUMBAGS who are deliberately coughing or spitting at them, whilst claiming to have Coronavirus (amongst your daily assaults on Police)

… and when all that fails, they can report people for summons or issue them with a Fixed Penalty Notice! 😲

However, this does fail to address a few key points…

Why is action even required? If people LISTENED to the advice and stayed at home, it simply wouldn’t be.

This ISN’T a Police State. Not even remotely close to one.

If you want examples of that, try some of the other countries mentioned above. You’d have a shock when you start bleating about your Human Rights only to find a Copper beating you with a hefty stick before hauling you off to jail.

Ironically, the fact that you can BE such a difficult selfish individual in this country is largely down to the fact that the Police are usually around to keep you safe – no matter what stupidity you’re bleating on about. It doesn’t matter if they agree or disagree with you – you will find them defending your right to protest – stuck in the middle and receiving hatred and bile from both sides, regardless.

So, back to the fickle Media.

One day, there’s a terrorist attack and you’re all heroes…

The next day, someone else is told that they can’t do something – and you’re all suddenly Facists.

Last week, it was widely accepted that the Police needed to do MORE to enforce “social distancing” measures.

So they did.

This week, people who aren’t used to being told “no” are up in arms that their civil liberties are being restricted.

If EVER there was a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” scenario – this is precisely it.

The Public AND the Press need to decide exactly WHAT they want from their Police. Never has there been a better time to do so.

“Journalists” sit behind their desks, safe in the knowledge that any negative, inflammatory, Police-related, attention-grabbing headlines will garner hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of clicks – baiting people into crappy articles that spew an anti-Police rhetoric – and any resulting discussion just further increases the reach of the articles; all in all, an Editor’s ideal scenario!

So they continue to do so, not giving a damn about force morale and having little or no clue about what it takes for a person to put on a uniform and go to work – SIMPLY TO HELP OTHERS – and be hated for it regardless of what you do.

One thing is quite clear. Every piece has a hero and a villain. The Media have set their stall out early on with this one. The NHS will clearly (and rightly so) be put on a pedestal for weeks or months to come. Police on the other hand are the cheap shot; easy to depict as the bad guys, because that’s all they ever are.

Will this fall on deaf ears? Probably. But there’s always the slightest of chances that people will read it, take a step back, and just MAYBE consider what they would do if they were in your boots.

Ultimately, this whole situation sums up policing in this country.

People want you to do their dirty work. They want you to deal with things so that they don’t have to. And they reserve the right to criticise you, whatever decision you make.

You don’t have to be mad to be a Police Officer….

… but it sure bloody helps.

The message is simple – Stay at home; do not meet people outside your household.

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Lockdown Day 9 – lest we forget

Posted in around the UK, gratitude, Health, news from around the world, tagged Coronavirus, Covid 19, sacrifice, tory government on April 1, 2020| Leave a Comment »

THIS…
“Deaths are increasing and the government is going to blame the people rather than their own inaction and incompetence.

I don’t think that COVID19 has been deliberately released as a form of population control. However I absolutely do believe that governments, including the UK, have seized this opportunity – to experiment & learn just how compliant we are; to manipulate us; to grant themselves wide ranging powers which erode our civil liberties & set precedents to use them in the future. Why wouldn’t they?

“As this crisis deepens and the death toll mounts, a narrative is going to emerge that will be very seductive to many of us. It will all be the fault of “the people.”

The people who failed to practice social distancing.
The people who hoarded.
The people who didn’t listen to the government.
The people who didn’t listen to the science.
The people. Those selfish people. Look at them in their parks.

The government will start trotting this out. Right wing media will push it hard. Police forces have already begun assigning blame to “the people”.

Many of us will feel the tug of this seductive reasoning. Our brains will be tempted to lash out at “the people.” When we do, we must remember some things:

The government had 3 months to prepare. This was a train coming down the tracks.
At first we were told the plan was herd immunity. Then it wasn’t.
As the first few people started to die, Boris Johnson boasting of shaking the hands of hospitalised coronavirus patients. This was a week before the lockdown.
Why weren’t we in lockdown like other European countries, some asked. Trust us, they said.
Then we got the lockdown order. What did they say? The initial government advice was only “essential workers could travel to work”. A day later this was changed to “essential travel for work.” See the difference? There are screenshots of this.
They told us to practice social distancing as MPs crowded around each other in the House of Commons.
They said only the old and immuno-comprised were at risk. Then healthy twenty-somethings started dying.
They said the NHS could cope, then they started building field hospitals in stadiums.
They said the NHS had the protective equipment it needed, then we logged on to social media.
They said we were in it together, then they got tested before the frontline workers.
They said there was no such thing as society and it was survival of the fittest, then said we needed to show solidarity.
They clapped when they voted against a pay-rise for NHS nurses in 2017, then they clapped for the NHS.
They spent a decade telling us cuts were needed to save the economy, then they said the only way to save the economy was to spend trillions.
They spent a decade insisting £94 was enough to live on, then admitted it wasn’t.
They got us to vote for Brexit by rubbishing “experts,” then told us to trust experts.
They told us retail workers were low skilled, then said they were key workers.
They said homelessness was sad but inevitable, then they order it ended overnight.

So yes, “the people” ended up a little fucking confused.

Because our so-called leaders have utterly failed to lead.

They don’t know what they stand for; they couldn’t believe the world could change so quickly; they resisted “alarmism” when the only proper response was to be alarmed; they had no idea how to use the power of the state, having spent a decade dismantling it; they were arrogant and complacent, wallowing in privilege. The fundamental duty of government is to keep us safe. That’s what we pay them to do. They have failed.

As the death toll mounts, remember that our leaders are to blame, not “the people,” and we must resist the temptation to blame each other.”
~Nathan Williams

We must remember this, when we are back to whatever normal is waiting for us.

And please do remember YOU, YES YOU HAVE MADE A HUGE SACRIFICE FOR THE GREATER GOOD by staying home and taking the necessary precautions. So bravo and here’s my clap for you 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

Stay strong, keep safe and remember, for the majority of us, there will be another tomorrow, let us be grateful in these troubled times

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