Life in Lockdown!

How are you?  Safe and well I hope. I'm wondering what you're all doing in these long days at home. I thought I'd get the ball rolling by sharing some of the things that fill my days. There are never enough hours in the day to do everything in my list, so I find I'm often surprised by the activities I prioritise... and those I don't.

For instance, washing my hair seems low priority, as is combing it nowadays. Make-up has become largely a thing of the past, and I've noticed a distinct lack of regular shaving from P.  Also as he's embarked on some serious DIY, torn trousers and moth-eaten jumpers seem to be the order of the day. No longer able to socialise, other than a brief long distance chat with any neighbour who might pass by the garden gate, we're all having to rely on our own resources now.

Having got the don'ts sorted, I must say that I've now got the chance to enjoy many things that there's been little time for before:

CREATIVITY
I've always enjoyed playing guitar, writing songs and working out arrangements for new ones. Five years ago, just home from a four month spell in hospital and as weak as a kitten, I couldn't even hold a guitar, so I'm so grateful to be able to play every day now.

My Guild D30

I've been trying to learn GarageBand to record a couple of recent songs, but got discouraged by not having the correct mic to use with my MacBook Pro - seems to be a common, but hard to fix problem! Seems these things are not as easy as I'd imagined so I've given up for the moment and recorded demos on my phone. One of these is a track called January in Yorkshire, a call to action on climate change, inspired by a walk in the park on a bright sunny day three months ago, when I noticed a cherry tree in full bloom.

Here's the cherry tree in question

The coronavirus is such a global emergency that Extinction Rebellion seems to have been silenced for the moment, so this song is just a reminder that we all have to think seriously about what we contribute to global warming if we want to avert further pandemics in the future. See what you think.

I'm also making an effort to be grateful and count my blessings. There are many people stuck in high-rise flats with children, trying to work from home in an impossible situation. If you're one of these folks, my heart and thoughts go out to you.

NB Several folks have mentioned that the audio file is corrupt, so apologies. I've removed the file now and will try to re-upload it later. Meanwhile it's available on Soundcloud, but not sure that Google supports this platform either.

KNITTING
There's been much ado in the press about knitting as a stress reliever. After a lifetime of knitting, much of it professionally as a knit designer, I never thought I could ever see it in this light. But I've recently taken it up again and I love the rhythm of the needles - it's like a mantra. I've always enjoyed playing with colour, choosing stitches and creating funky shapes. So right now I'm knitting a top down, zip-up-the-back baby jacket, one of my own patterns from Ravelry, a great resource for all those who knit or crochet.

Ava Back-zipped baby jacket,

PHONE A FRIEND
... or a family member. There's nothing like a chat with an old friend to raise the spirits. We have several friends who live alone, so it's good to catch up with them. Also it's lovely to see the children and grandchildren on Facetime, virtual visits become very important in lockdown. I hear there are all sorts of interesting initiatives for virtual music performances, quiz nights, virtual birthday parties, you name it, but haven't had time to explore these further yet. Treats still to come:).

AUDIO BOOKS
P and I are enjoying listening to Hilary Mantels Wolf Hall, twenty-four hours of  intrigue in Tudor England, one of my favourite periods of our history. It's lovely to be read to and this book is such a whopper that I'm sure it'll take us the best part of a month to finish.

WHATSAPP GROUP
We live in a small street of only 20 houses and we've recently started a WhatsApp group - a great way of sharing information, supermarket delivery slots, offering books etc. Community is important and I'm thankful we live in such a neighbourly street.

Glass of white and backgammon in the garden - heaven!

All these activities are supplemented by other things time permitting. P and I  are big fans of Scrabble and backgammon, and we both love cooking, especially store cupboard cooking, when you can really use your wits to create new dishes out of what's available. Also I can happily disappear for a whole day into my blog, composing and finding images and information links for it.

Red lentil, butterbean & hiziki soup

Finally a big shout out to all the essential workers who continue to put their health at risk to keep the wheels turning while this crisis continues. Doctors, nurses, ancilliary workers, social services, postal workers, shop assistants and many more too numerous to mention, you are all heroes and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

It'll be good to hear what you're up to in our enforced isolation.
Keep safe and stay well everyone! xo