The time had to come!

Regular readers will probably be wondering how I've managed to read so many books over the last few days.  This is why:

This was my LFT result on Monday - Positive!  So I'm currently isolating.  Fortunately I haven't felt too unwell but I have felt very tired.  I decided to be sensible and take things easy so I've had lots of reading time as well as catching up with some TV.  

I have no idea where I caught it.  We've still been fairly careful but we did use public transport last Friday and I did go to the supermarket on Saturday.  Although I hadn't done a test for a week or so before this one so I could have picked it up from the grandkids who I saw last Wednesday.   They haven't had it as far as we know but they do attend nursery and so many cases are asymptomatic and therefore not always picked up.

I was kicking myself for not testing before a get together on Sunday with quite a few extended family members.  One of our nephews was finally setting off for his new job in New York so there was a leaving get together in a pub for family members to say goodbye to him and his fiancée.  As you can imagine, when I tested positive on Monday after feeling a bit like I was going down with a cold I was worried that I could possibly have been infectious at the gathering and passed it on to others, including them.

Thankfully their pre flight tests were negative and they left as planned on Tuesday.  I haven't heard any other family members testing positive either so that was a relief.

Hubby tested positive today so despite trying to keep our distance in the house which isn't difficult I have most likely been the one to pass it on to him.  

Under our current rules I can start testing myself from day 5 (Saturday) and as soon as I get two consecutive days of testing negative I can stop isolating.  Otherwise I have to wait 10 days.  Of course hubby is now a few days behind me.  

I'm just thankful that we're both fully vaccinated and hopefully our cases will continue to be mild.

#JusJoJan - 5/1/20 - Lockdown 3

 

Well the rumours were right.  We are now in our 3rd national lockdown here in England as of last night.  All non-essential shops are closed, we have all been told to stay at home, work from home unless we can't and all schools have moved to online learning except for vulnerable children and those of key workers.  We can only exercise with our own household or 1:1 with someone outside our household.

These circumstances will be reviewed in February.

Thankfully we can maintain our support bubble with my daughter and her family.  And staying at home is no real hardship.

We will get through this.  

Another bonus?  My hair is completely back to its natural colour so no worries about roots  coming through!  Not sure how good the short cut will look after a few more weeks though.  But then who is going to see it?

Goodbye 2020 & here's to 2021!

When I posted my last Friday's Fave Five we were still on course for a family Christmas.  We were all so looking forward to getting together as a family.  It would have been the first time the new babies met each other - and the first time all the aunties and uncles would have met all of them.  It was going to be wonderful.  I had the house prepared, tables borrowed and so on.  It was so exciting.

But Covid numbers were rising and there were rumours of the 5 day Christmas break being reduced and we were being asked to be sensible and use our common sense.

Then on 19th December London was locked down, again, due to rising Covid cases.  Christmas was cancelled.  We had gone from Tier 2 to Tier 4 in just a couple of weeks.  We were (and still are) on a Stay at Home order. 

This of course meant my son and his family would have to stay in Nottingham.  Thankfully they were able to see his in-laws who live nearby and who they are in a support bubble with so their Christmas wasn't totally ruined.

We then had a dilemma.  We had formed a support bubble with my daughter and her family so we could still see them but that would mean excluding my younger son and his family.

After much debate and soul searching and, given that we have all been really careful during the whole pandemic but particularly in the week or so leading up to Christmas, we settled on spending Christmas Eve at my daughter's house, doing presents, big dinner etc and then my son and his family came here on Christmas day and stayed until the next day.  We all agreed we were using common sense.

It was wonderful having them here after hardly seeing them but it was heartbreaking when they went home, not knowing when we will be able to see them properly again.   We did get out for a walk while they were here:

 

As you can see we still needed our wellies and poor Rory kept saying "I don't like it" when he was sinking in the mud lol.  He only fell over once bless him but we were glad of the foresight of taking wipes to clean up his hands and the all in one waterproof suit!

We managed to use the large turkey I'd ordered in anticipation of there being 8 adults for dinner and couldn't subsequently cancel.  Nick's turkey broth was excellent as usual although it never tastes the same twice as there is no recipe to be followed.  His turkey curry went down well too.

I don't think we've finished all the parsnips though.  I ordered 2 packs of the honey roasting parsnips as on the left in the picture.  I intended using one with our meal at our daughter's and one at home with our son and family.

 

Unfortunately the supermarket only supplied 1 of the ready prepared pack.  So they substituted with ordinary parsnips as on the right.  6 bags of them!  Just one bag was probably more than the prepared version but 6!  The good thing is that I've grown to like parsnips over the last couple of years but not by that much lol.

But now Christmas is done and we're about to see in the new year.  My decorations are still up and will probably come down at the weekend.  

2020 has been the strangest year of my life and it's been hard not being able to see family and friends as we would like but, we have all stayed well and although those who work may have found that working from home isn't all they thought it might be they do still have jobs.

We have moved house and gained 3 grandchildren.  That's how I'm going to remember this year and hope that 2021 is even better.

Wishing you all a better, and healthy year to come.

20 in 20 - Weekly Photo #28 - 12/7/20

Well technically I'm a day late but it's been that sort of week.

This is a screen shot of the photos I took this week.  Not very exciting.  Apart from the rucksack they're all of jigsaws that I've done.  I was trying to see if any of our kids wanted them before I add them to the "pass on" pile in my house.  As in pass on to someone else rather than just trash.

We're still sorting things into that pile or the trash pile, slowly.

We feel a bit in limbo again this week - the survey on our house was done on Tuesday 7th and we've yet to get any feedback on it, despite chasing the estate agents.  We don't know if our buyers have had the report back or not and consequently we don't know if there is anything to worry about, or not.

I'm sure the optimists out there are shouting out "no news is good news"  or "don't worry until there is something to worry about" which of course I get.  I'm just not very good at doing it.  Of course there are various scenarios from this, the worst case being that there is something very wrong with our house, the buyers will pull out and we will be back at square one with a problem to solve.

I know that this would not be the end of the world.  There are things that could happen that would be much worse.  And of course we would deal with whatever is thrown at us.  It's just the not knowing that's frustrating.  It deters me from making much effort in the house.  I'm not good at tempting fate so the plans to do a really thorough deep clean is on hold but the longer we wait to move forward the less time we may have if suddenly everything takes off and we head for the end of August deadline that has been proposed.

The Covid-19 situation is not helping.  Especially now that restrictions are being eased and the messages given out by the Government are far from clear.  They seem to be passing the responsibility for keeping safe onto employers and the general public.  Our PM even seems to think that things might be quite normal by Christmas.  It would be lovely if he's right but I'm not convinced.  Wearing masks, keeping apart and avoiding certain activities is not normal!  But I've ordered some pipe cleaners and plan on making some more masks so that we're prepared although we're still being extra cautious.  It will keep my idle hands and busy brain occupied.

In other news Hubby and I actually sat down and watched a film together last night.  "3 Billboards outside Ebbing, Missouri" was on.  I'd say it was an OK film.  I didn't like the ending and it was hard to follow what was being said at times due to the accents and the sound seeming a bit muffled and of course if you don't like swearing it's one to be missed.  During the adverts they were promoting "The Post" which will be shown next week.  That's the last film Hubby and I went to see at the cinema.  Thankfully there are so many films available on cable/Netflix that we don't miss going to the cinema. (We don't even miss the popcorn as we're not lovers of it lol)

On a final positive note we're seeing Grandson Rory this afternoon.  Can't be miserable around him!

Happy birthday me! 26/6/20

This is taken from my Facebook page.

Today is my birthday. Thank you all for your good wishes. Looking back on my Facebook memories of this day many of them revolve around either eating out at some nice restaurant or being with family members. Not today.

Today I'm spending a lazy day at home, just with hubby who brought me breakfast in bed and has just cooked my lunch, washed down with some wine. We have cake to eat later.

This will be a lengthy post as I know it will pop up in my feed again next year and will serve as a good reminder that we're still dealing with Covid-19. We've spent months now under restrictions that have driven us all mad at times. Staying at home, keeping safe, protecting the NHS. Not seeing our families, or friends. We've managed to get our shopping delivered and got our daily exercise nearly every day and Nick and I are still talking to each other!

We've watched the horrors of the ICUs when things were at their peak and remain grateful that those we know who were working on the frontline (Sarah & Coralie) have remained safe and well. We clapped especially for them on the Thursday nights.

Now we're moving through the "Staying Alert" phase to what feels like a "Use Your Common Sense" phase. Sadly many people don't seem to have much common sense as recent news reports show crowded beaches, massive gatherings and, in our local area, forest fires due to the stupidity of people holding BBQs on tinder dry open spaces.

We're still a long way off getting a vaccine, or a reliable antibody test and as for track and trace well good luck with tracing anyone from the beach or mass gatherings with no reliable phone app in place. It would be interesting to know how many parents with kids on the beaches would try and justify how being there was safer than sending their kids to school.

Yes I understand that we need to get the economy moving again and restoring some sort of normality to our lives but it feels like we are rushing into this next phase and I wonder how long before we pay the price? How long before the mothballed Nightingale Hospital down in Docklands needs to be reopened or how long before the temporary morgue near us is dismantled and removed because it's no longer needed?

I know that the reality is that, until a vaccine is available or reliable treatments found, we are going to have to live our lives knowing that Covid-19 is still out there and many of us who are either older or more vulnerable need to continue to be cautious and try our best to avoid getting it.

That's why today, I'm glad to be safe and well, have a roof over my head and money to put food on the table and that my nearest & dearest can say the same.

Happy birthday me!

Friday's Fave Five (on Saturday 20/6/20)

Friday's Fave Five is hosted by Susanne over at Living to Tell the Story.

The idea is to step back and think about the good things from the previous week and list your favourite five.  Then pop over to Susanne's blog and join up with the other people taking part.

Well I'm a day late AGAIN! But things are getting hectic around here:

1)  We found a house!  We saw the house on Saturday and we both really liked it.

2)  Our offer on the house, which we made on Monday, was accepted the same day!  The vendors have already exchanged contracts on a house so our chain is now complete.  And we all breathed a sigh of relief.  Of course we still have to get surveys done and searches etc but hopefully there will be no major glitches with any of that and the solicitors can just get on and do their thing.

3)  We visited Grandson Rory and his parents and took a walk in the park.  He was so excited to see us.  It was lovely to have time with him (and some cuddles).

Apparently he's fascinated by the hoover!

4)  Things are gradually easing here - non essential shops were able to open this week as long as they can maintain safety and social distancing etc.  Our numbers are still coming down but I do worry that the events of the last couple of weeks will cause a spike in cases.  Time will tell.  I personally won't be rushing to go shopping.  I want to continue seeing the Grandkids and families without risking their health, or ours.  I just wish we could visit Noah some time soon.

5)  Quite a few phone calls this week catching up with people, especially a long chat with my cousin, who's more like a sister to me.

Knowing that, all being well, we will be moving house at some point has made me feel a lot better this week.  I feel like I have a purpose again - getting ready to move!  There is a lot of decluttering still to be done and of course lots of arrangements to be made nearer the time.  We also have to get our kids to sort out what they left behind - we have a lot of their boxes in the loft.  We made a start on that today by bringing some of the boxes down.  It's going to take a while - long story short hubby is having to decant the contents into bags to hand down to me which I then put back into the empty boxes he then passes down. (Yes it would be easier if the kids could come and help but.....Covid-19!)

Enjoy the rest of the weekend all.

Friday's Fave Five - 5/6/20

Friday's Fave Five is hosted by Susanne over at Living to Tell the Story.

The idea is to step back and think about the good things from the previous week and list your favourite five.  Then pop over to Susanne's blog and join up with the other people taking part.

I've had a rather lazy, unproductive week.  We're still in limbo with our house move so that is not helping with my motivation but there were still some good things going on:

1)  A nice delivery from my online book group organiser (I won a competition)

2)  A visit to Grandson Rory and his Mummy & Daddy on his birthday.  We stayed outside their flat in the communal garden but they had the window wide open and we could see in and chat to them all.  We'd decided that was better than trying to socially distance in the garden with Rory.  He wouldn't have understood.  He was very pleased to see us but was ok with being separated by the window. 

3)  Lots of reading time. 

4)  2 of my DILs had scans this week and the babies are all fine.  We now know the sex of 2 of them, the others want a surprise but no reveals here.  You'll just have to wait until they arrive!

5)  Our Government has slightly relaxed lock down rules - we can now meet in groups of up to 6 people outside and socially distanced.  More shops are also due to open in a couple of weeks but only if social distancing can be maintained.

Of course that's a good thing but the situation is still tricky.  Schools have also been allowed to reopen for certain year groups but many have chosen to stay closed as they're not sure it's safe to open yet.  Our death rate is reducing but very slowly, as are the numbers of infections.  It's very hard as there have been lots of examples of larger groups flouting the rules.  There have been a number of BBQs held on the common by our house which is also a fire risk given the lovely warm weather we've had.  Thankfully there has been a change in the weather the last couple of days bringing rain and lower temperatures.  Hopefully that will reduce the number of larger gatherings.  I'm not sure what effect it will have on the protests planned following the events in the US.  There have already been a number of protests which although more peaceful than in the states it has still meant large groups of people which will not help to stop the virus spreading.

We are still being very cautious and just doing our daily walks.  We've managed to get shopping deliveries each week (or a click and collect) which has meant us being able to avoid going into shops. 

Tomorrow we have another family quiz via Zoom to look forward to.

Enjoy the weekend.

#WDIIA - Sunday 24/5/20

Well my Fitbit tells me it's Sunday so it must be so.  Am I the only one losing track of the days here?  As as for the actual date - well thankfully my Fitbit tells me that too!

Today has been a lazy day.  We did get out for a walk but I've spent most of the day looking at houses for sale on my laptop.  We're still waiting to hear that our chain is definitely still intact so it's hard to get too excited yet.  I have bookmarked a few houses that look promising but I'm not sure how the viewing process is going to work.  

Some agents seem to be saying they'll be doing virtual viewings - hopefully that would be like a video call so that you could direct them on what you want to see rather than the agent not showing you things they don't want you to see.  Others seem to be putting steps in place so that one of us could go and view the property and be socially distanced and safe. It's all a bit nerve wracking.

I've sent the house details to Hubby so we could end up viewing none of them if he doesn't like them.  It's been fun looking at them all though and working through all the estate agent's jargon and trying to visualise what a wrong might look like without the various decorating disasters - or with furniture in if the place is empty.

Although it's likely to be difficult to find and purchase a house at this time at least it would give me a sense of purpose.  I think that's what I'm finding hard at the moment.  Not knowing whether we're staying or going makes it hard to focus on doing much at home.  I'm not always the most patient of people!

But another day is almost over.  That must be one day closer to a successful treatment or vaccine right?  Let's hope so.  

Apparently it's a Bank Holiday tomorrow.  Who knew?  Well I do now because they e-mailed today to tell me our HelloFresh box will be delayed until Tuesday.  Because they notified me so late they've also given me a £10 credit.  Not going to complain about that!  Better go and get something out of the freezer for tomorrow's dinner before I forget.

Friday's Fave Five - 22/5/20

We are on day 60 of Lock Down here in the UK due to Covid-19.   In these difficult times it's even more important to take a breath from time to time and be positive.  That's why this meme hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story is a lovely place to come and share our gratitude and positivity.  Check out the link above to find who else is taking part.

Here are mine:

1)  3 Grandchildren on the way.  Our 3rd DIL had her 12 week scan this week and all is well so I can share that news.  Christmas is going to be hectic this year!

2)  Lots of phone calls catching up with family members this week.  When the lockdown started I set myself a challenge to try and make a phone call each day to a different person, either an extended family member or friend just to see how they're doing and catch up.  This week I've been better at remembering to make a call.  It's good to talk.

3)  Slightly better news than we had feared for one of my SILs.  She had been diagnosed with secondary cancer but following scans etc this week the news is, yes you have cancer but you can live with it.  Much better than being given a time limit.

4)  Beautiful weather this week.  I've been out for a short walk everyday and the garden is looking lovely too.  Helps to keep the positive attitude going.

5)  Webcasts of funerals.  My elderly Aunt passed away last Sunday, not from the virus but existing health issues.  She was 88 and the last of the 4 sisters on my Mum's side of the family.  In normal circumstances we would have attended her funeral but that's not possible right now.  However the cremation service was available to us via a webcast so at least we could see and listen to it.  Not the same as being there of course but good not to be totally excluded.

I hope you're all keeping well and sane in these difficult times.  Enjoy the weekend.

#SoCS - 16/5/20 - Want

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “want.” Make the word “want” the first, second, or third word of your post. Have fun!

Haven't done one of these for a while.  You can join in here.
Thanks to Linda for the prompt. 

I want to wake up tomorrow and find this whole corona virus thing has been a nightmare.

Yep I know that's not going to happen so just have to get on with it.  To be fair, although here in London it's been awful and we're still locked down pretty tight, it hasn't really been too bad for us.

We have a roof over our heads, we are still putting food on the table and Hubby has got to grips with working from home.  I'm still getting to grips with having him home ALL the time but now that we are allowed to take more than one daily walk I can at least look forward to some time and space on my own.

The worst thing for us has been not seeing the family, especially the grandbabies.  I miss them so much but technology does help.  It would be so much worse if this had happened pre Internet or video calls etc.  Imagine that?  No I don't want to either!  

Things were eased slightly in the UK this week, well England - there's a bit of divide opening up between us and the other countries.  We now don't have to stay home, instead we have to stay alert!

The message is ridiculous because actually the Government are still telling us to stay at home and socially distance unless we have to go to work.  (Thankfully neither of us do.)  But if we do have to go to work we shouldn't use public transport unless we have to.  In London that is not an option for most people going to work everyday!  Oh it's ok to use your car.  But then you give notice that you're going to make it easier for cyclists and pedestrians to move about and socially distance so....don't try using your car - you'll just get stuck in gridlock!

Better off just staying in lockdown if you can.  We are.

Wednesday Hodgepodge - 13/5/20

Wednesday's Hodgepodge is brought to us courtesy of Joyce at
From this side of the pond

If you want to take part or just see what others have posted pop over to Joyce's page - the Linky List is at the end of Joyce's post and don’t forget to visit at least your neighbours on the list.

1. Ever played the game Farkle? Are you a risk taker? In games only or also in life?
I hadn't even heard of the game but now I have I think I'll be challenging Hubby.  I would probably take risks in the game but not in life.

2. What's your favorite thing about your yard or whatever outdoor space you may have?
I'm grateful that we have a garden right now - it's blooming nicely but I love sitting on the patio which is usually quite shady.
 
3. Tell us about the most interesting building you've seen or been in.
That's a hard one.  I like comparing the architecture of buildings like e.g The Guggenheim Museum in New York and the Sydney Opera House for their innovative styles but also looking at some of the older buildings like Westminster Abbey etc and being amazed at how they managed to get them built!
 
4. In this current season of social distancing, what's something you've come to realize you take for granted in more ordinary times? Do you think you'll make a conscious effort to appreciate whatever that 'it' is once normal life resumes?
So much has changed here in London.  We haven't been in close contact with anyone since Lockdown was imposed (apart from a couple of forays into a corner shop for milk).  Not being able to see family members has been really difficult.  Before we could just pick up the phone, make an arrangement and be with them.  Keeping in touch has changed but we're probably doing more of it.

This week restrictions have started to be eased but it's very confusing.  The message "go to work if you can - but don't use public transport" is so contradictory.  You cannot drive into London - parking is a nightmare and expensive.  For most people that means having to use public transport - their commute is too far to walk or cycle.  Social distancing (which we are still supposed to be maintaining) is not possible.  Many people will, fortunately, be able to continue to work at home and that's what they will be doing. 
 
5. Share a favorite song with a springtime flower in the lyrics somewhere. 
I'm rubbish at remembering lyrics of songs.  Is there a song with daffodils in it somewhere?  Although my daffodils and tulips are done but my roses are starting to bloom.

6. Insert your own random thought here.
Following on from #4 here - so I still cannot go and visit family members but, as someone looking to move house, it's ok for me to go and view a property as long as I socially distance!  This is the kind of confusion that has been unleashed this week!  I'm waiting to see how long it is before our agent contacts us to try and hurry us along to find a house!  Not going to be happening anytime soon for me.  I'm happy staying home and staying safe. 

I understand that for people living in more rural areas, particularly if the cases of Covid-19 have been low you may have less concerns but, where we are the situations in hospitals and care home have been horrific.   Hospitals have had to take measures like installing additional oxygen tanks to cope with the demand and, more depressingly, temporary morgues to cope with the number of people dying.  Our numbers are coming down but slowly.  I'm not sure our Government has got the timing and message right on the changes they've made!

Ending on a positive note though - on this day, quite a few years ago, I gave birth to our wonderful daughter.  Happy birthday Rebecca.  Can't wait until we can see you again in person.

20 in 20 - Weekly Photo #18 - 3/5/20

A few photos this week:

Books chosen for a book group challenge - all from my TBR pile.  I've already finished 2 and enjoyed them both.  Just the Ian McEwan to read now.

An old photo of me (c early 1980s) in response to an Instagram Challenge

 

Another jigsaw completed (well almost - again it had missing pieces (2) - a downside of buying them from jumble trails/charity shops!)

 Sunset yesterday (Friday) on our daily walk.

A rare selfie (I'm rubbish at taking them) - of me wearing a home made hat.  We're getting together with the extended family on Zoom later for a family quiz and have to wear a hat.  I decided to make one!  I think there will be too many of us to get very far with the quiz (unless we all get put on mute lol) but we will see.

Close up of the front.

And the back!

Friday's Fave Five - 8/5/20

We are on day 46 of Lock Down here in the UK due to Covid-19.  In these difficult times it's even more important to take a breath from time to time and be positive.  That's why this meme hosted by Susanne at Living to Tell the Story is a lovely place to come and share our gratitude and positivity.  Check out the link above to find who else is taking part.

But....it's hard to find new things every week so forgive the repetition:


1)  Video chats with the kids.  I think I'd really lose the plot without those!


2)  Good weather which means getting out for a walk everyday has been ok.


3)  A hubby who cooks!  Yep that one's on repeat, he just keeps cooking and I'm so thankful for that.  (He did ask how he could help during this crisis and cooking was my response!)


4)  We're all fit and well.  Including the growing bumps.  One DIL is really suffering with morning all day sickness but hopefully that will start to pass soon.


5)  Flowers from my daughter and a peek at a sleeping Nathan!  They drove past to collect something I'd managed to get for them.  Nathan was asleep in the car but that was probably best - if he'd been awake and seen us he wouldn't have coped with not being able to come close to us.  But it was good to see them.

I hope you and yours are all safe and well.

#WDIIA - Monday 4/5/20

It's Monday, I think.  Yes it is - my Fitbit tells me so.

Having completed the A-Z Challenge in April I'm determined to keep blogging regularly but some days that's easier than others.

Today has been a good day.  I got up determined to get moving earlier and set myself some goals - for the week in terms of steps etc and for today as in a To Do list.  I had a few bad days last week thanks to this ongoing Lockdown but I really have nothing to complain about compared to some people so I'm trying to be positive.

I managed to do most of the things on the list.  I got the boring chores bit done first - getting dressed everyday means that washing still has to be done!  Then I managed some exercise courtesy of the Wii.  My yoga moves are not very impressive but as least I tried.

I spent an hour sorting out some photos - we have loads just stashed together in a couple of boxes so I'm trying to sort them and put them into albums and then discard the rejects.  Then I want to get some of our digital ones printed.  It's lovely having them all in one place on the PC but when do we look at them?  Also I did a photobook of our youngest son's wedding and have never got around to doing the same for our other son and our daughter.  And of course now I can't claim to not have the time.

I just need the concentration.  Something that's been lacking during these strange times!

I also need to do a reflection post for the A-Z Challenge and I'm way behind in responding to comments.  Where does the day go?  I mean it's gone - it's now 21.48 here as I'm typing but I did also manage to finish an online shop that will come tomorrow.  

I also watched some TV and Hubby and I went our for our daily walk.

Our youngest son video called us too so that was nice.  Grandson Rory is funny on the phone.  He will say things but then he sometimes just stares at the phone as if he's trying to work out how Nanny and Grandpa can be inside the phone!  But it helps to see him and the others.

And now I should be thinking about bed.  I didn't sleep very well last night.  I had a coughing fit about 12.45 and lay awake for ages thinking dark thoughts as you can imagine.  But I was fine when I woke up.  No cough, no high temperature.  I'm fine!  And so I reported on the app that's tracking people's symptoms that I was fine.  My nephew's wife reported she had a sore throat one day last week and received a testing kit for Covid-19 through the post!  She is also fine.   I've saved them an unnecessary test.  Although as their count of daily tests carried out includes any that have been mailed out, rather than those that have been sent back, the Government would probably have preferred me to declare my coughing fit so they could up their number!

I do not want to be a statistic! 

#WDIIA - What day is it anyway? was started by Linda - the host of #SoCS and One Liner Wednesday. You can find her post here.

 

Z is for Zapper (A-Z Challenge 2020)

In January of this year my hubby and I decided that it was time to move on to the next stage of our lives and move house.  I deliberated long and hard about whether it was a good move to take part in the A-Z Challenge this year (pun intended) given that we could be very busy, but decided on balance that having something to focus on might not be a bad idea.  Of course the decision on a theme was much easier to make – Moving House!  

Then Covid-19 put a stop to any ideas of moving so I’ve had to regroup and rethink my posts.  Which means I’m not as prepared as I’d liked to have been but here goes:

Z is for Zapper

(informal term for a remote control)

Ok yes I admit it, I trolled the dictionary for my X Y & Z words to come up with ones I could relate to moving.

But keeping control of your zappers when you move is very important.  Nothing worse than getting in, deciding to flop down in front of the TV with a take away after the stresses and strains of moving day and then not being able to find the zapper!

Come on, how many of you would be able to control your TV without it?

Especially when you’re so exhausted you feel like a zombie.

I wrote this before we’d even got to the stage of packing but it made me aware I’d need to know where the zappers went although hopefully our removal men would be as careful as those my daughter used recently – they bubbled wrapped things like the TV having first attached and secured the remotes to the TV.   

Note to self.  Keep an eye on the removal staff.

Actually at the moment (early April) all I'm keeping an eye on is the TV and social media.  That's keeping me busy and there won't be any removal men coming into the house anytime soon!

 

Wednesday Hodgepodge - 29/4/20

Wednesday's Hodgepodge is brought to us courtesy of Joyce at
From this side of the pond 

If you want to take part or just see what others have posted pop over to Joyce's page - the Linky List is at the end of Joyce's post and don’t forget to visit at least your neighbours on the list.

(If you've landed here expecting an A-Z post you'll find it here.)

1. Expect the unexpected on From This Side of the Pond. Here's my x-ray question...when was the last time you felt like Superman? What's your superpower? Explain. 
I don't think I've ever felt like Superman but I like to think I can keep calm in a crisis and prioritise what needs to be done first. 

2. Are you a fan of the 'superhero' type movies? If so what's your favorite? 
Only if I can count James Bond under that heading, especially Daniel Craig's version of him.
 

3. Have you postponed or cancelled a trip to the dentist in recent weeks, and if so when do you think you'll feel comfortable going back? How about other routine medical procedures? 
Well I'm never comfortable with going to the dentist but I guess I'll be guided by the medical advice and then wait a few more months ;)  I need to get my eyes tested - was long overdue for that before we got locked down but again I won't be rushing back.
 

4. What's something that makes you feel youthful? Something that makes you feel 'not so youthful'? Tell us why.
Dancing makes me feel youthful - I did a lot of it in my youth but now it also makes me feel not so youthful thanks to the aches and pains afterwards. 

5. I feel compelled to include some sort of corona related question in the HP these days. What's the strangest thing you've seen in relation to the virus? Something that really struck you as odd, made you stop and think, 'Dorothy we're not in Kansas anymore?'
Not particularly a strange thing but when they started building a temporary morgue at the other end of our road it really brought it home just how bad it was getting.
 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 
Lockdown, unsurprisingly, seems to get harder the longer it goes on and, despite having all this time on our hands, it's hard to be particularly productive.  The next review here in the UK is due on 7th May but I don't expect there to be any sweeping changes.  I just hope we might be able to visit family members.

Still, I'm thankful that we can get out for a walk each day.  Some countries even banned that so things could be worse.  We even went out in the rain yesterday and I think we'll be doing that again today.  No sunshine this week.

Y is for Yak (A-Z Challenge 2020)

In January of this year my hubby and I decided that it was time to move on to the next stage of our lives and move house.  I deliberated long and hard about whether it was a good move to take part in the A-Z Challenge this year (pun intended) given that we could be very busy, but decided on balance that having something to focus on might not be a bad idea.  Of course the decision on a theme was much easier to make – Moving House!  

Then Covid-19 put a stop to any ideas of moving so I’ve had to regroup and rethink my posts.  Which means I’m not as prepared as I’d liked to have been but here goes:

Y is for Yak

No I’m not talking about a domesticated (?) ox of Tibet but the art of yakking!  As in talking persistently, usually trivially and irritatingly.  I’m an expert at it.  I found myself doing a lot of it during the moving process, particularly when we had viewers in the house.

If I told the story of how we ended up moving to our house once, I must have told it to nearly every person who viewed our house and probably to many of the estate agents we had to deal with.

And of course I’m going to tell it again now.

By early 1993 we had been married and living together in our first home for 10 years and had 3 children.  They were 3, 5 & 7 but the house we were living in was perfectly adequate for our family.  We hadn’t even discussed moving although I suppose it was something we’d thought about as we were beginning to feel a bit cramped.

Anyway one morning an acquaintance of mine, who I knew through the playgroup both our youngest children attended, arrived at the group looking rather down.  We got into conversation and it turned out that her family were set to move but the buyer had just pulled out.  Upon further discussion (her describing her house, me not getting the layout) she extended an invitation for a coffee.  I was intrigued so I accepted.

I went to the house and fell in love with it.  The rest is history.  Although there was of course the slight hurdle of persuading my hubby that yes we did need to move and yes it had to be this house!  Sensibly he did make me go and view other houses in the area but eventually he had to admit this house was the one.

At the time of writing this post (early April) we're at a standstill with the moving process and, thanks to Lockdown, I'm not doing as much yakking.  Probably a double bonus for hubby!