Diary > Wednesday 8th April

[Rhododendron]

Starting now with a cup of cappuccino, then will bring the bins in for me and my elderly neighbour.  Then a short run and later I will settle down and start that online course I have just enrolled for.

Hope everyone has a good day. 

[trystan]

Woke really early this morning. I was lying in bed trying to work out how many vehicles I could hear. There was probably less than three over an hour. I got up.

Added my diary entry for yesterday. The kitchen smells like a chemistry lab, then I remembered the homebrew I was doing yesterday. The smell took me right back to the excitement of playing chemistry both in school and with a chemistry set I had as a child.

First cup of tea of the day always tastes amazing. Pitch black (outside, not the tea).

I read a bit of  my online newspaper subscription. Then fell back to sleep on the sofa.

5:45 I see "Dodgy Sean" going off in a taxi. Half an hour later it returns. The taxi waits there for ten minutes. Then Dodgy Sean appears from nowhere, and waves off the taxi driver. Had he sat in the taxi for ten minutes talking with the driver? I hadn't been watching close enough. More episodes with Dodgy Sean to come up, I'm sure.

Email comes through - "Your Updated Asda Groceries Order". How exciting. Today is picking up the shopping day. Six items in my list are unavailable. Most disappointingly was the no beer, tomatoes and vegetable oil.  I probably won't have drinkable homebrew for at least two weeks. Great - they found my some "large letter stamps".  They've done well fair play. To think they are up doing our shopping when most of us are in bed, quite incredible.

Egg on wholemeal toast for breakfast. My last egg for quite a while I expect. Really enjoyed it.

Another brew. Should have drunk it quicker, it went a bit cold.

I see Mrs Blackbird in the back, followed by Mr Blackbird. Both look happy with themselves (perhaps it's my imagination). Glorious sunshine now.

Door bell. It's the postman. I wave at him through the lounge window, and he waves his arms around explaining that he'll leave the parcel by the front door.  I raise both thumbs up at him and a big smile, in a proper "Rock on Tommy" kind of way.

The usual people coming and going to the shop to get their daily papers and their latest chance to spread of get a dose of the virus. A chap eating a bag of monster munch on his way back from the shop. Pickled Onion flavour, I hope, the only flavour to die for!

So I've got my Asda list printed now, so later on we'll go and pick up our shopping and we'll see what the rest of the day brings.

I'm planning on making Chicken Chow Mein for tea.

Enjoy your day!

[panda40]

Hubby is putting new skirting on in the kitchen. I am taking this opportunity to sort through the boxes of photos that have accumulated and trying to sort them in to families and write details on the back. Later my usual dog walk in the sunshine we are having.
Have a safe day everyone
Panda

[KGarrad]

Usual start to the day - crumpets and cup of Assam tea.

Showered, dressed, then walked into town for TV Listings mag and local paper.

Had a cup of white tea - a new one for me. Bought 30g just to try it!

Made quesadillas for tea.
Not easy to eat without making a mess

First truly warm day today.
Blue skies all day and very little wind.
So I spent most of the day outside basking in the sunshine
T-shirt off; kept shorts on! Well, we are on a main road

[BumbleB]

I've just completed - thanks to last Friday's release by FindMyPast - a document listing all the Electoral Roll entries for one of my surnames - Archbell - 1832-1932 (I found entries up to 1938) - 14 pages.  And so I now have a trail of addresses etc for those people mentioned.  Luckily Leeds figured highly.  Sad, aren't I?  BUT I'm not going to extend the search to Milner, Kendall and Appleyard 

I'm so looking forward to being able to shower again - haven't had one since 27 March due to an operation on my leg.    And have had to go to the kitchen to even wash my hair (minute bathroom with limited basin space).   

[Chilternbirder]

Had deliveries from the local brewery and one from the deli including a veg box yesterday. Today I had to pick up a prescription. Town was about as busy as 4pm on a Monday as it was market day. The greengrocer had taped lines down the high street for their queue as had Boots.

Short queue for Boots while Waitrose's was shorter than Sainsbury's but still long enough. It was nice to chat with strangers in both queues, while remaining 2 metres apart of course. Waitrose was out of frozen peas but otherwise I could get everything I wanted.

Lunch - ham salad with some Waitrose olive bread. Tonight a Chinese ready meal will make a nice change.

[IgorStrav]

Another beautiful day here, in fact it was so warm just after lunch I decided to postpone some gardening until early evening.

Ocado has released some delivery slots for its SmartPass members, though I had some thoughts about whether I should use one.  I am perfectly capable of shopping at the supermarket, taking suitable precautions and have done so for the last two weeks, waiting in line.

So should I leave these slots for those who are more at risk than me, or less capable of shopping on foot?

However, the whole point about staying inside is not to inadvertently spread the virus if you're already suffering but asymptomatic. 

And there were a number of available slots, so I booked a late evening Friday delivery.

Still not sure whether that is the right thing to do - will do it this week, and (all being well) go to the supermarket myself the next time.

In the garden mended my wooden ladder shelves, where slats always come loose over the winter, and started to sweep up.  Have many tasks to complete, and only a few plants to put in pots so will need to investigate if it's possible to get more (without, of course, putting more people at risk of picking/packing/delivering them.  It's a nightmare to try and support Garden Centres but not put people at risk.)

But I'm not the only person worrying about that.

[Roobarb]

Same stuff as usual, get up, cups of tea, read, faff about, put the dishwasher on, read the news. Dig out some short sleeve t shirts for this warm weather, although it's forecast much cooler tomorrow then warmer again the day after. Lunch.

Later walk again, same route. Looking forward to the time when it's safe to follow the narrower path through the woods. Gardening again, planted some lettuce seeds. Long chat with a friend, the day seems to have gone.

People are complaining of being bored and trying to find things to do, I'm not short of things to do, in fact I still haven't got round to some of them. Some of them are actually things that have been on my to do list since before all this.    I did get round to giving the fridge and microwave a good clean yesterday but not the oven, that's a job I really hate.

I'll be ready to take my newly delivered paperback out of quarantine tonight to read in the bath. Splish splash! 

[trystan]

An update on my diary.

I went to the pharmacy to pick up my prescription today, instead of having to wait in all day for delivery or risk missing it.

As I approached the door, an intercom sounded out asking what the purpose of my visit was. I told them it was to pick up a prescription for myself. I was then asked if I had a persistent cough, or high temperature or if I suspected I had coronavirus. Once I passed the test the door was released and I could go in.

Only one punter was allowed in the chemist at a time.

There was a sign telling me to stand in the red box marked on the floor.

From a distance she asked me for details, I confirmed that I pre-pay for my medication, then she handed me my bag of drugs (lucky me) and I headed out of the door. An orderly socially-distance queue had formed in the street outside.

Everybody very well behaved.

Excellent stuff.