It’s weird how small the world becomes in lockdown. And the joy of the mundane. I went food shopping today. I scored half a dozen eggs, and a tin of baked beans. There was even toilet paper on the shelves. I didn’t buy any as I already have enough for now, but it was good to see.
But finding the eggs and the baked beans brought me a strange sense of satisfaction. I hadn’t been able to find any on my two essential shopping trips last week. And they aren’t so important that I would go into a shop only for these two items. In normal times yes, in lockdown times, no. The bulk of the shop was fresh food. I lucked out on garlic, and peanut butter, on this trip. They’ve been added to my list for next time.
And I continue to be surprised by the vagaries of my lockdown moods. Yesterday I could have ripped heads off. Today, I got up early, kicked off some work around 7am. Got some groceries including some for a neighbour. Had lunch. Had a Zoom chat. Got some more work done. Went for a walk. Did some more work. It’s been a while. It feels good to have a functioning brain again. And all of this has been done while being in a pretty damn good mood.
I wandered through Dulwich Park and ran into my friend again with her dog. Her husband was there as well. We walked and chatted.
In terms of the weather, it’s been a glorious day. A little chilly, especially in the shade, but a bright clear sky. I’ve not heard a plane all day. My hayfever has started kicking off. It’s the occasional cough which is irritating for me, and potentially disturbing for others when out in public. It’s also having the sniffles. I’ve got months of this to look forward to.
So, the numbers are out. Another grim day. An additional 778 deaths reported since 9am yesterday and 9am today, bringing the total to 12,107. But these number only tell part of the horror and devastation that this bloody virus is bringing to us. There’s still very little sense, or at least I can’t make sense, of what the full figure is as these figures only account for deaths in health settings. We can’t know the full scale of this until those ill and dying in care homes, and those ill and dying at home, all from this bloody virus, are taken into account. I know I’m not the only one frustrated by this, by the lack of testing in the wider community, the lack of PPE.
Tonight I’m going to take it easy. Maybe time to watch a few episodes of the Vicar of Dibley.
So that’s it for Day 22. Stay safe, stay well, and stay home!