A whole month of “lockdown” conditions has meant that both of us have done very little really, so Im really scraping the barrel to make this months blog even reasonably exciting! Being deprived of being able to go out and worse still, not being able to see friends and family is beginning to get tedious now, but at least we are still well, as is all our family so I suppose this strategy is working. We have stopped watching & listening to many news broadcasts as they are so repetitive and full of doom and gloom. We catch up with the main news at ten on the TV, but we find we are turning that off halfway through. We like all the rest of the UK are clapping for the key workers on a Thursday evening, but even that, I feel, is beginning to lose its real raison d`etre as it seems to have become an excuse to set off fireworks and for some idiots to try and get on TV by having little parties on Westminster bridge in London.
Easter seemed to pass us by completely this year. I had hoped to get to church and sing some of the great rousing Easter hymns…but had to tune into a rather odd Methodist service on the web instead. Im afraid it wasnt uplifting for me at all…no good hymns and when the kazoos appeared for the final “hymn” I switched off! We did listen to Andrea Bocelli’s mini concert from Milan on Easter day though, which we did appreciate. Also, with my new dietary restrictions I had to endure my first Easter without a chocolate egg for many years. I was not amused to watch Geoff demolishing his chocolate bunny with relish either!
It is interesting though how quickly we have adapted to these conditions…even if we dont like it much. Thankfully we have a little garden so we have been able to enjoy watching the birds who visit the feeder and to sit outside when the sun has shone. We have enjoyed the unexpected sunny days even finding it too hot to sit out on occasions…and yes, we are still in Cumbria! I am really regretting having left most of our summer clothes in France not to mention the parasols, which we never thought wed have need for here! I have had to rig up an old brolly to act as a sun shade on some days! Hazel keeps telling us that this good weather will not last so we are making the most of it. Mind you, you will be pleased to hear that I am insisting that Geoff wears his swimming trunks to sunbathe in and not his pants which were his favourite choice of clothing in our secluded garden at Chabanol. We have neighbours here after all! The good weather seems to have gone now though for a while which is a shame.
We are also very fortunate in having nice riverside walks on our doorstep here too. We have been taking our daily exercise by walking at Cummersdale Holme each day…yes, my friends even me…walking, that is! It is part of my new healthy lifestyle! Geoff has found a way of collecting the dog from Hazels drive whilst keeping the social distancing going, and walks with her in the morning and I am keeping to my new regime of taking daily exercise by walking by the river every day. I am amazed by the great variety of wild life habitats I find there…fields, dry and wet areas, ponds, small copses and woody areas and of course the river itself. I have started recording the changes in the flora (and fauna) I see as I walk there and am really enjoying doing so. There are such a lot of different wild flowers in this area…most of which people dont really see as they go by but with a bit more scrutiny, they are amazing. As you all know I love wild flowers so I am in my element here peering into the undergrowth and identifying them. Mind you, there are an awful lot of nettles, as my poor sandal clad feet are discovering, but there are dock leaves too (something which were pretty rare to find in France) so I have become very adept at the old ways of sorting out the nettle stings. Also, with nettles come butterflies so I must not grumble.
Like everyone else we are largely surviving the lockdown by using Skype to keep in touch with our family and friends. Contact with my virtual friends via social media has also been important…heaven knows how we would have coped without an internet connection. I have enjoyed and participated in some of the many quizzes and challenges posted on FB – especially the 30 day song challenge which I and many of my friends enjoyed so much that I have decided to write another months challenge, so that we can all continue. It has been fascinating seeing other peoples choices of music and making me listen to music would never have thought about before. I have to say that this challenge cost me a “friend” who took umbrage at it clogging up her time line…but frankly that was her loss not mine. These social media chats and contacts have kept me sane. I have so many great virtual friends on FB and Twitter. I have also donated one of my poppy paintings to an on line FB auction (Art Auction for Hospiscare) to help raise money for this charity. This is still ongoing if anyone wants to bid by the way.
April is always a heavy birthday month for our family with our son-in -law, son and grandson all celebrating “lockdown” birthdays. Happily, by using the internet again, presents and cards all reached the birthday boys in time. We were a bit disappointed not to be able to see Ethan celebrate his 6th (where did those years go??) birthday in person, as we have never managed to be around for previous ones and had of course hoped to see more of our family now that we are back in the UK…but no 
He did have a great day in spite of all the restrictions. There are more birthdays coming up in May…including mine…so I am keeping my fingers crossed that we might all have a bit more “freedom” by then.
We have also seen a change to our buying habits due to lockdown. Although I am still able to go shopping without any difficulty, once a week at our local Aldi, I do find the inability to just nip our and buy say a birthday card is very frustrating. We have bought a lot more things via the net than ever before…including birthday cards, clothes, ink cartridges and I am awaiting a delivery as I type of special low carb food and ingredients to allow me to continue with this flipping diet. My experience of trying to obtain my prescription medication via the internet was frankly a disaster…it arrived yesterday after a 3+ week wait, during which time I ran out and had to get an emergency supply from the local pharmacy. I am very well stocked up now though…and won`t be doing that method of supply again! Our replacement summery clothes (our normal ones are in France, where we should have been at this time of course) arrived yesterday too…just as the sun disappeared!
Geoff had a bit of a shock, one morning, to discover that his beloved newly restored bike had been stolen from the “secure” garage we have here. It had been locked to a bar there but the smashed lock was on the floor along with two others and the bikes had gone. Happily, after having reported the theft to or caretaker and the police, the bike was found having been thrown into some bushes in the flat complex. It obviously wasn`t trendy enough for the youngsters (we suppose) who nicked it. Fortunately, they didn’t realise how valuable and collectable it actually is (it’s a Brompton folding bike), and it does look a bit odd compared to trendy new ones! In any case Geoff was very pleased to have it back…and I am thrilled that it now seems to have taken up residence in the hallway
As we are not going anywhere just now, our poor car sits forlorn in the garage except for its weekly outing to the supermarket and back. We have started to donate the money we would have spent on petrol each week, to a local charity instead. Its not a great sum, but it makes us feel better, as we know that the charities are suffering greatly due to the loss of revenue coming in from sporting events and charity shops. I am missing the charity shops too as I need to replenish my jig saw pile and refuse to pay the exorbitant sums they are selling for online! Anyway, back to our donations, so far, we have donated to the local food bank, a local hospice at home scheme and a local womens refuge. If anyone local to us (Carlisle) can suggest other worthy recipients Id love to have some other ideas.
Just before I finish, a quick update on the diabetes situation. I am continuing with the diet which I am still hating but I am being good! My blood sugar levels are way down from when I was first diagnosed but seem now to have become stuck. I have a phone call appointment with the practice nurse today but I dont find those very helpful really. I have joined a very good diabetic forum on the internet and get more support from those people to be honest. However, I have to say I have lost weight (not surprising really!) and I am buying trousers 2 sizes smaller so I suspect Im doing things right!
Well my friends, I do seem to have managed to create a half decent blog post after all! Ill quit while Im ahead and hope that by the time I write the next one we will all be out and about a bit more. Stay safe everyone.
A bientot mes amis