Friday 23 October 2020

Covid Chronicles 1

 

                                                                                                                                                                          
Hello Everyone,

Lady M here. Yes, I am back as this awful virus is getting worse. I hope you have enjoyed a respite  here while Sofia and Donald dived into the archives. They left you with a quiz last week and I have posted the answers for you.

I am still scribing my log on the current events. It began as "Lockdown" for twenty-one days; it is now the "Covid Chronicles" and has reached 150,000 words. In real terms it is the length of 1 1/2 novels. I have posted the cover of my book "Stay in Touch" this week because I think the message is very relevant. We need to stay in touch with each other but not physically. I started phoning peeps every day at the beginning of this in an effort to reengage with the Landline telephone as opposed to texting and grunting at peeps. I am pleased to say that my humble effort has encouraged others to do the same. Please think about phoning friends or elderly relatives who are in seclusion as well as using social media.

This week I am sharing my chronicle entries for days 207-209. Yes, it is over 200 days since the UK went into lockdown! Enjoy


Day 207, Friday October 16th, 2020

Good afternoon Peeps,

I have just had another exciting experience courtesy of the Society of Authors. I have had online meditation. Thoroughly relaxing, comforting, and invigorating experience. I feel I can take the world on now. Brill.

My new blog is up and running. I have been pottering and playing but feeling great.

What is happening today?

Our Boris has commented that if the EU does not change its approach we are going for a ‘no deal’ Brexit. Let me get this right. We are the ones, (well not me, but some) who want to leave the EU, but we expect them to accept our terms? Who put this man in charge anyway? I remember, peeps who heard him utter three words, “Get Brexit Done” and they put their faith in him. I hear Judge Rinder saying, “Stupid”.

On the Covid-19 situation Wales is likely to be following Northern Ireland on the circuit breaker or short sharp shock to control the virus soon. I have neighbours who were looking forward to the half-term hols and a short stay in Wales. Cancelled. As we are in the tier 2 high category, we are banned from going there and the First Minister for Wales (I didn’t know they had one) is looking to tighten things up, more restrictions coming.

As the situation in England worsens what is our Boris doing? Pondering and dithering. Apparently, SAGE advised weeks ago of the probable second wave and that early action needed to be taken. I think Boris is still pondering over that. “To be or not to be”, “to act or not to act” That is the question. Thinking about it, Boris never really gives a positive instruction, he either advises or suggests things but never clearly. Leaving us as a country in chaos and disarray. Greater Manchester is borderline for Tier 3 and they are protesting and refusing to accept it because there are insufficient funds provided by the government to compensate lost revenue. Boris is sitting back, watching, and waiting, saying that he will intervene if he must. Meanwhile, the gyms in Liverpool are refusing to obey the instruction to close because there is no evidence that they are a danger to peeps using them. The owners have spent a fortune conforming to the instructions given in a lengthy manual and if they close, they know they will not open again. As of midnight tonight, Lancashire will join Liverpool in Tier 3, but not all the rules are the same. Gyms do not have to close there. So same tier, different rules. Can you work it out?

On a more serious note there has been a beheading in Paris. A terrorist attack on a teacher who had been teaching about free speech and using the Charlie Hebdo cartoons of Mohammed. What is the world coming to?

Okay, I am off for dinner and tv. Nice bubble bath tonight and playing games. So, goodnight, stay safe and positive. Remember whether you swim or sink in this crisis is up to you.

 

Days 208 and 209, Saturday and Sunday. Le weekend! Enjoy!

Howde Peeps, it’s the weekend again and what do I see this morning. The total global figure is 40,013,426. My prediction is spot on. Last Sunday it was 37,603,503 and I said it would be passed the 40 million mark this weekend. As winter approaches, we are losing the battle, but we will win the war. On Friday, the total daily case number rose to 400,000+ a record for a one-day increase. In the UK Manchester is still at loggerheads with the government over going into tier 3. We are moving up the league table and are at number 11 with a total of 705,428 case. Yes, we have passed the 700,000-mark including 16,000 new cases and 150 deaths. Spain is still the worst hit European country approaching the 1,000,000 mark. USA, India, Brazil, and Russia have 22,000,000+ cases between them which is more than 50% of the total.

Today, I have succumbed and brought in the last plants from my porch/conservatory. It is now a storage only area for the winter months. Sad. I have also lost my darling Antonio until the spring; he has made his last visit and his little van with melodic tones and ice cream will be like my plants in store for winter. A double whammy today. However, I am still happy because I choose to be. I am still feeling good after my meditation experience on Friday and I am accepting that which I cannot change. The secret of happiness lies within oneself which is why I can still smile and stay positive.

So, my weekend is one of acceptance. I am pottering and playing. I have been down to McColl’s to get those lovely chicken and bacon slices that I love and that meant little car has had an excursion. The leaves on the trees opposite my abode are an orangey colour and they are falling like confetti to the ground. Soon those branches will be stark naked again and waiting for new buds to appear. Yes, positivity means spring is round the corner, with new life and warmth until then we have Christmas and hopefully a better 2021 to look forward to. I am thinking of dear Sofia Haslington in “Look After Each Other”, she said, “look forward with hope but back with gratitude”. That woman inspires me.

Back to reality and the universe. Migrants are still risking life and limb crossing the English Channel for the hope of a better life. Peeps in China, who can afford it, are queuing up to test the first vaccine for Covid-19. Would you risk it? New Zealand has had its general election and Jacinda Ardern has won a landslide victory for labour her labour party. She is held in high esteem by her country after the way she handled the Covid-19 situation putting NZ into early and severe lockdown. Our Boris could learn a lot from her.

So, France has seen its first beheading since the days of the guillotine. (The last person executed by guillotine was Hamida Djandoubi on September 10, 1977 in Marseille.) I Googled it for you. Yes, I am surprised it was as late as 1977. I have images of the days of the Bastille, Revolution and women knitting as heads dropped. Also, Charles Dickens “A Tale of Two Cities”. And we thought times had changed. The present beheading is the action of an Islamic Terrorist. Children were asked to identify the history teacher, Monsieur Samuel Paty, before 18-year old Aboulakh, a Russian national of Chechen origin, decapitated him with a kitchen knife in a Paris suburb. The police shot him but not before he had managed to post his action onto social media. No, I have not seen it and I have no desire to. Once again, I ask the question, what is this world coming to?

Meanwhile, in America election fever continues. I have friends who have taken their ballots in person to the appropriate centres ensuring the votes are counted. There is much fear of rigging the election, votes disappearing etcetera. Trump v. Joe Biden? What a decision. I am still not convinced that President Trump has tested positive for Covid-19 so would I trust him? That’s something to be thankful for today, I am not in America!

On that note, I am signing off for the weekend. Gonna watch my first Christmas Movie as ice cream days are over. Then have dinner, roast chicken with veggies, vino and whatever follows. Then, we shall see. Probably, another quiet night in.

Stay safe, my friends. 

                                                       
 Love to you all, Lady M xxxxxx

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