Lovely to read all that; not pleasant experience for you Pharma, but I only go before 08:00 a.m. to avoid people, and I do make a point of trying not to touch more stock than I have to.
I do think Roobarb, that the large supermarkets these days, at quiet times should be fairly low risk as they are really enormous warehouses, and though we rarely look up, the ceiling space is cavernous. Plenty of room for air exchange?
Desperate news about your friend Caroline, and fingers crossed the marvellous health system can get him right again.
Somewhat jealous of your goldfinches nesting, though I don't think I could stand the hassle of a garden big enough to accommodate three patios!!
Yesterday was very sunny here and the wind slightly less cold, so we decided to have an away day, and drove about 20 miles to a small town situated on a tidal estuary, where H has an ancestor who was baptised the same day her parents were married in 1697. She was transported across the Atlantic at the age of 42, and I know she arrived, but can only speculate what happened to her after that.
It's a very pretty place, with an ancient butterwalk, and we explored more outside the town than we have done previously, as the main street is narrow and was busy as you might expect on a Saturday morning. H procured a hot pasty straight out of the oven for his lunch, and we found a slab of frittata for me which was very tasty. The tide was gradually coming in, but very few wading birds in evidence on the mud flats.
A small cafe was open for a couple of hours, serving take way coffee, (and cake, though we didn't have any,) through a perspex screen across the entrance. We sat on a bench to enjoy the peace and sunshine, and had a brief chat with a young woman who had an Australian Kelpie dog. They are most unusual over here, but I recognised it as the same breed number 2 son has in Oz.
On the return, passing Totnes we were held up by a long, and very loud, cavalcade of motor bikes under police escort. I messaged number one son, who is a biker, to ask if he knew anything about it, which he didn't though he said police escort is unusual.
Some snooker, and a "Prime Suspect" later.
