How Long Did Covid Last?

 I was talking to my sister about moving here during covid and the time in holiday lets that could only be used if you were moving and needed somewhere to live and people  were banned from actually using them for a holiday. She said  " in April 2021? I thought it was over by then."

That made me look back at some of the "Strange Times" posts I did at the time. The last post with that label was in February 2022 - almost two years after the start.

It made me smile to re-read these headlines of the time from another Strange Times post...............

Here are some of my 'favourites'

From The Independent. 19th April 2020 "UK must prepare for volatile and agitated society after lockdown lifted says a senior police officer

From  The Daily Telegraph. 28th July 2020 "People over 6ft have double the risk of Coronavirus"

From The Daily Star.23rd July 2020 "Baldies are 40% more at risk of coronavirus says a US study

From The Daily Mirror 12th November 2020. "Covid survivors could have life threatening allergic reaction to hair dye"

From The Sun 13th November 2020  Doctors say "Masturbate during Coronavirus to boost your immune system and fight off infection"

From  The Daily Mail 16th November 2020 "Dog owners face 78% higher risk of catching Covid 19 and home grocery deliveries DOUBLE the risk." 

 

People who read and took that last one as gospel presumably then starved - being too afraid to enter a shop and then finding their home delivery was too risky to receive.

Those quotes came from a book I borrowed called  "A State of Fear". They all seem even odder now than they did 5 years ago. I looked on the library website to see if they still had the book. And yes, there were 4 copies in the County , but only one copy out on loan. I've no intention of borrowing it again!

Back Soon

The End of Restrictions?

 I think all legal covid restrictions have finished today. The virus hasn't gone and will probably re-emerge again in different guises for many years, especially during the winter.  We will learn to live with the virus as we live with 'flu and be careful as necessary. Common sense reigns. 

But some people are still scared and not mixing or visiting others - when will they decide they have to be braver or will their fear never go away?

I don't think I could live in fear for the rest of my life - it wouldn't be worth living.

***************

 

The second tin I needed for Christmas Hamper cakes was found in a charity shop in Diss when I went for breakfast and to warm up in Morrisons, when the electric was off on Saturday............... Of course I did a tour of the charity shops first! 

 Also charged the phone, filled up with diesel and bought a copy of the East Anglian Daily Times to read while I waited for my bacon bap............and it was a long wait.....I reckon everyone whose electric was off had had the same idea!

A few years ago I wouldn't even have thought of going out  for breakfast, because back then I had an LPG hob and a wood-burner. 

Things always change for better or worse. We just have to do our best to live our lives. 

(This will definitely be the last post that has Strange Times as a label!)

Back Tomorrow

Sue

 

Last Saturday in November

This week I've raked up more leaves, read a book, fiddled about on the blog for far too long, made a huge batch of vegetable/Paneer  curry and popped it in the freezer for a  Family Christmas meal, made a small batch of 4 mini chocolate and meringue gateaux also into the freezer, wrote lists, been Shopping, worried that my bread-maker had gone wrong (it hadn't - it was just bad yeast) had a visit from DiL and the two grandchildren and had my Covid booster vaccination.

 

And Yes I did know what I was doing, I've NOT been forced into it like some poor people in other countries and I signed the petition asking the Government to debate and stop employers making vaccinations compulsory. I'm as much my own person as anyone else! I don't believe this is a way to control the population, people should be free to choose and as the world always changes people have been frightened and worried about  those changes forever.

It was once thought that traveling by the speed of trains would cause women to miscarry their babies or make them infertile! There was a huge fear of flying as no-one could understand how the planes didn't fall out of the sky. Television was thought to be so dangerously bright that it had to be watched in a dark room and tomatoes were too poisonous to eat.

 

It's a funny old world and always has been. My motto for  my life is to do what I think is right at the time as long as it doesn't hurt anyone and then to have no regrets afterwards.

 

Have a good weekend.

 

I shall return on Monday by which time my covid vaccination will have turned me into a Zombie.

But anyway it doesn't matter as  the apocalypse is coming, the earth will either hit by a meteor or civilization wiped out by a massive volcanic eruption!

 

(But while we are waiting for that to happen, if you live in the N.E of England or Scotland please take care - the weather forecast is dire, damaging winds and blizzards and very cold)

 

Sue

 

A State of Fear

 This is a bit about the book that I picked up from the mobile library last month (not really a book review - it's one of those "read it and make up your own mind" sort of books)

 

A State of Fear by Laura Dodsworth

 "This is a book about fear. Fear of a virus. Fear of death. Fear of losing our jobs, our democracy, our human connections, our health and our minds. It's also about how the government weaponised our fear against us - supposedly in our best interests - until we were the most frightened country in Europe. But why did the government deliberately frighten us, and how has this affected us as individuals and as a country? Who is involved in the decision-making that affects our lives? How are behavioural science and nudge theory being used to subliminally manipulate us? How does the media leverage fear? What are the real risks to our wellbeing? Ahead of any official inquiry into the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, Laura Dodsworth explores all these questions and more, in a nuanced and thought-provoking discussion of an extraordinary year in British life and politics."

It starts by saying how the nation was gripped by fear when Bojo told everyone to stay at home (March 2020). That's when I realised that I must be very odd as I wasn't gripped by fear just very  cross that some plans were going to have to be changed.

 

The Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Behaviour said on the 22nd March 2020.....

 

The perceived level of personal threat needs to be increased among those who are complacent, using hard hitting emotional messaging

  

And by golly they certainly did up the scare level...............and still are, with every night's news still reeling off a list of meaningless stats. Had Covid, recovered and then 3 weeks later knocked  down and killed  by a truck? Then you've died of Covid !

Life was too short to read the whole book so I just dipped in and out but I did read the interviews she'd done with various people, several of whom were saying how terrified they were and the list of newspaper headlines/TV news that the author researched is incredible. There really were some strange headlines.......... I didn't see any of them at the time.

Here are some of my 'favourites'

From The Independent. 19th April 2020 "UK must prepare for volatile and agitated society after lockdown lifted says a senior police officer

From  The Daily Telegraph. 28th July 2020 "People over 6ft have double the risk of Coronavirus"

From The Daily Star.23rd July 2020 "Baldies are 40% more at risk of coronavirus says a US study

From The Daily Mirror 12th November 2020. "Covid survivors could have life threatening allergic reaction to hair dye"

From The Sun 13th November 2020  Doctors say "Masturbate during Coronavirus to boost your immune system and fight off infection"

From  The Daily Mail 16th November 2020 "Dog owners face 78% higher risk of catching Covid 19 and home grocery deliveries DOUBLE the risk." 

 

People who read and took that last one as gospel presumably then starved - being too afraid to enter a shop and then finding their home delivery was too risky to receive.

 

I'm just worried for  the people who are still worried, who've put life on hold for 18 months and still don't feel safe to go out. So sad.

 

The book is £9.99 or £8.09 depending where you get it........ or free from a library.

BTW thank you to everyone for all the comments about cutting up my store cards (which I didn't use anyway). It was one of my 'not to be taken completely seriously' posts and Ramblers comment which I only found yesterday made me smile.

 

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Cutting Loose

I  read the governments idea for a new  app 

 

From January 2022, a pilot will see users wear wrist-worn devices that can generate personalised health recommendations, such as increasing their step count, eating more fruit and vegetables and decreasing portion size.

 

A new app to help people make positive changes to their diet and physical activity will launch next year, the government has announced today. 

• Points awarded for increasing step count and eating more fruit and veg which can be redeemed for gym passes and discounts at selected shops

• HeadUp Systems awarded contract to develop a new app with £3 million in government funding made available for rewards

Tracked everywhere! Is it a good idea - you can decide. I'm opting out!

 

 Read the whole thing about it HERE

 

I've taken one small step and freed myself from being tracked by supermarkets and shops and cut up all the cards in my purse.

 

 (This is not quite as drastic as it sounds  because I've kept my Co-op card and didn't use any of the others anyway since Morrisons withdrew their points on the More card thing!)

 

 I have another way of staying anonymous as I never subscribed to the controversial (now proved to be an expensive waste of money) covid track and trace app on my phone and have no intention of adding the new "healthy living rewards" app if it's eventually rolled out nationwide after the six month trial somewhere.

Not doing online banking is another way to keep myself free of being tracked even though it's getting harder to get to an actual physical branch.

I don't do instagram or twitter or tik tok (whatever that is) and only have Facebook - which we now have to call meta - to belong to local village groups. 

Facebook/meta will eventually allow us all to live  virtually - our whole lives will be online. I seem to remember a Star Trek programme from 40+ years ago where holidays were all taken in a virtual world on board the Enterprise and I've often said science fiction will become science fact. 

 

( Did you watch The Man From Uncle in the 1960s where their communications were via something the size of a pen - we'd never dreamed of small mobile phones back then).

I expect most of my ideas for keeping under the radar are a complete waste of time because, as everyone who watches crime dramas knows, we can be tracked everywhere we go by our mobile phones and what we purchase online! Neither of which I'd want to be without now.

 

And of course I really shouldn't be blogging!!

Back Tomorrow

Sue

I Really Don't Understand

 I really need some help to understand what some folk are saying. I'm being completely serious here (hard for me I know) but I just don't get it.

This is what I read  "Life as we know it is being completely destroyed". and I really want to know how, in what way is my life being destroyed?

 2 years ago, before the pandemic my life was like this .............................

                            I lived alone following the death of my husband of 38 years in 2018

I tried to be positive and enjoyed life as much as possible 

My children and grandchildren visited me and I visited them

I requested lots of lovely library books and enjoyed reading  them all for free

I listened to whatever I wanted to on the radio and ignored all the rubbish news and didn't believe all I heard

I watched all sorts of interesting programmes on TV and didn't watch things that didn't look interesting and didn't believe all I saw

I didn't  have time to read any newspapers

I rode my bike or walked whenever and where ever

I drove my car whenever I wanted to go further

I went to lots of car-boot sales

and haunted charity shops

My Brother in Law helped out sometimes

I grew some food in my garden and greenhouse

I went shopping in supermarkets and other shops and bought all the food I needed easily

I had a warm and comfortable home

Electricity and water came to my home without problems

Heating oil was easily available

I went swimming once a week

I went to WI and listened to interesting speakers

I visited and enjoyed all sorts of local events

I got my prescription medications for free and easily from the local doctor

I wrote letters to a couple of pen friends and they wrote to me

I used the internet for communication and some shopping.

and my favourite indoor hobby was blogging 

I was never bored

 

Now, two years on and a house move - downsizing and releasing equity to make life easier...................

I live alone following the death of my husband of 38 years in 2018

I try to be positive and enjoy life as much as possible 

My children and grandchildren visit me and I visit them

I request lots of lovely library books and enjoy reading  them all for free

I listen to whatever I want  on the radio and ignore all the rubbish news and don't believe all I hear

I watch all sorts of interesting programmes on TV and don't watch things that don't look interesting and don't believe all I see

I don't have time to read any newspapers

I ride my bike or walk whenever and where ever

I drive my car whenever I want to go further

I go to lots of car-boot sales

and haunt charity shops

My Brother in Law helps out sometimes

I will be growing some food in my new garden and greenhouse next year

I go shopping in supermarkets and other shops and buy all the food I need easily

I have a warm and comfortable home

Electricity and water come to my home without problems

Heating oil is easily available

I go to WI and listen to interesting speakers

I visit and enjoy all sorts of local events

I get my prescription medications for free and easily from the local doctor

I write letters to a couple of pen friends and they write to me

I use the internet for communication and some shopping

and my favourite indoor hobby is blogging.

I am never bored 

 

 

Please can somebody tell me in what way my life is being destroyed or tell me in what way it will be destroyed in the next few years. I can see no point in worrying about the more distant future ........I can't change it. Perhaps I shouldn't have had children and they shouldn't have had children..... bit late for that now. So I can only do what I can do.

(The only difference in the two lists?.........swimming. Which has been abandoned for the time being as the pool has cut the times for lane swimming, increased costs and since moving I'm now a bit further away. I'm doing more walking instead)

 

 

Although I don't understand how my life is being destroyed there are a few things I know for definite

• World distribution networks are under pressure due to many reasons that are out of our control
• No government are ever brave enough to make major changes because they are scared of being voted out next time round........... therefore............
  
• We've not paid the proper amount for food to cover the cost of good production for many years
• and we've not paid enough for the services we now all expect with an aging population
  
• Europe is still in a hissy-fit because we were brave/mad (take your pick) enough to leave
• There's no such thing as "fair" and never has been
• Too many people rely on "them" for everything and blame "them" for everything wrong
• It's all the fault of us "baby boomers" ( might be being facetious here! I can never be completely serious)
  

 Discuss ...................

 

 

Back Tomorrow

Sue

After 3 Days of "Freedom"..........................

..................... what exciting things have I done?

Well I went shopping without a mask, other than that ........nothing. Surprisingly I wasn't in a queue for a Nightclub to open at Midnight and also haven't waited to be served at a pub bar either. 

And I've not been "pinged" as I didn't fall for that temptation to add the app to my phone! Apps? what are they?

 

Unlike those people waiting for clarification for their foreign holiday booking  or for things to "open up" I'm no longer waiting for anything. I've come to the conclusion that everything I want to do is already available to me.

 

What else do I need except my family, a home, a garden, access to all the books I want, lots of hobbies and a TV to keep me company. Life is Very Good.

So................. the only things I'm waiting for are the 15 books I have on order from the library .

Here's what I'm waiting for...............a  Good List to fill a blog post..................!

 

The Eastermost Sky by Juliet Blaxland

The Widow of Bath by Margot Bennett

Till Death us do Part by John Dickson Carr

Murder by the Book - Edited by Martin Edwards

A State of Fear  by Laura Dodsworth

These Names Make Clues by E C R Lorac

Loved Clothes Last by Orsola De Castro

Clutch of Constables by Ngaio Marsh

The Comfort book by Matt Haig

The Heron's Cry by Ann Cleves

The Joy and Light Bus Company by Alexander McCall Smith

Woodston - Biography of a Farm by John Lewis Stempel

Transient Desires by Donna Leon

The Stone Chamber by Kate Ellis

Easy Vegan by Brett Cobley 

and that's not including the 9 books that will be on the van for me when it comes next week. Yes, life really is VERY good  especially with the warmth and sunshine.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Running Short of Clothes

Thanks for comments about the second vaccination yesterday. The lady said a lot of people have had more side effects after the second. By chance DiL's appointment was cancelled so if I feel grotty today I can stay at "home" and if I don't I can go and visit them anyway.

************

  I didn't know most of my clothes were going to be in store for 9+ weeks so didn't bring everything on my journeys around holiday lets.

Luckily the weather has been chilly most of the time so it's been OK for the few pairs of leggings I packed but wearing, washing, wearing, washing has made the elastic go a bit baggy(they were many years old already!)........and guess where my sewing box is? Yep in storage - all except this little sewing kit which happened to get chucked into a bag with lots of other things from my coffee table drawer.

I didn't want to pay full price for sewing things from the Sewing shop in town because I've got enough already so I searched the charity shops and found a reel of black cotton for 50p and the stall on the market had elastic by the metre so I spent 32p there.

I'll turn the waistband over and thread new elastic through and mend some tiny holes that have appeared.

Saved me buying some new leggings.  I like Make Do and Mend!

Back Sometime

Sue

 

 

25th Lady Day

Last year on the 25th my blog post featured some photos of the flowers on the meadow to cheer us up after just starting the Strange Times of lockdown - never thinking that a year later we would still be  stuck at home and I'd have sold the house! It is a relief to know I've not got to take care of so much garden this year but worrying to note that I've not labelled any posts "Strange Times" since 20th February - no longer strange just a resigned sort of normal now.

And once again it's Lady Day, the Christian festival remembering the Annunciation of Mary and the Immaculate Conception and my sister is another year older again!

 Lady Day was the day when servants and farm workers made an agreement with their employers that they wouldn't change their jobs in the next year and until the mid 18C it was the first day of the year for official purposes.

According to Chambers Book of Days it was once thought to be unlucky for Easter Day to fall on 25th March

                     "When Our Lord falls in Our Lady's lap, then let England beware a rap"

The book then goes on to say that over history this has been proved to be false (bit like most of the weather sayings!)

Two paintings of The Annunciation from my book of Saints Days. The top is by Roger A d'Hulst and the bottom one by Leonardo da Vinci.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

What a Week

Before I get onto "What a Week", thanks for all the comment yesterday and suggestions.

I've already been to Australia and New Zealand with Miss Fishers Mysteries, Brokenwood and Dr Blake as they've been on terrestial TV here for ages so I've seen them . I'm saving Inspector Montalbano in Sicily for later as there are so many of them. Haven't heard of  Zen and Single Handed and had forgotten about The Killing.

Lots of good ideas for later so thank you everyone

 Anyway as I was saying.........What a weird, stressful week................ and I won't go on about it anymore!

(Except to say that Thursday I had the Equity Release hitch explained to me by the Estate Agent for the bungalow and now I understand what's going on and the reasons for the delay....she knew more than the solicitors, and the delay might not be as long as I feared)

On Tuesday  I pootled over to Debenham Leisure Centre for my Covid Vaccination. It was well organised  with volunteers everywhere pointing people in the right direction. Just a few minutes wait outside and then sitting in a cubicle inside and then 15 minutes afterwards to make sure there were no sudden side effects.  And there have been no side effects at all - no arm aches or fever or chills which some poor people have suffered. My 2nd vaccination is already booked for May 1st. Brother in Law Andrew who is 4 years younger than me had a surprise call to go the next day and he hasn't had problems so far either.

Other than the above I've not really done much this week - saw my two bubble grandchildren when DiL popped over with them for a change of scene and yesterday I delivered the wheelchair that we'd borrowed for Colin 4 years ago  back to his sister and husband. They are still shielding and thankful that this Brother in law has also had his first jab.

My task for the weekend will be to sort out what things to take with me for 4 weeks in a holiday home which includes unpacking a couple of boxes and a box of books......must have books. The forecast for today and tomorrow is for a couple of warmer days...... although it's so windy it's difficult to know if the temperature is really any higher. There's still snow in the ditches in some places.

Then next week I need to start phoning to cancel things for moving out - that will be fun - I don't think. 

 This week I'm grateful for

• Eventually understanding the reasons for the house purchase delay
  
• Finding somewhere local to stay while I wait
• Good TV to take my mind off the above

 Have a good weekend

Back Monday

Sue

First Week of February

If the 21st of November(the last time I counted) was week 36 of  STRANGE TIMES  this  must be ....roughly week 47.......... so can't really be called Strange Times anymore - it's become quite worryingly normal. 

My week went like this.................

 

Monday................. I'm not a huge fan of Estate Agents - they always seem to have their own agenda (money and fear of losing their commission!) but it's difficult to sell without them. Mine rang me on Monday saying how worried he was that nothing seemed to be happening - he'd left messages with no replies - did I know anything as sometimes no replies to left messages signaled a problem.  The young couple buying here are desperate for things to happen and they keep ringing my agent. I rang the agent selling the bungalow and she said things were on track - Heavens knows what's actually happening.

I'll just carry on packing and hope for the best. There's 7 weeks until the end of the Governments Stamp Duty  Holiday and  in my experience there's always a hold up somewhere before it all comes together in a mad panic at the end.

 

Tuesday................Gloomy and dull.  Dull and Gloomy.  Lots of box packing and tidying, then I went to pick up my prescription meds from the doctors and got my Pensioners £3.50 Plaice and Chips. The sun finally came out at 3....for half an hour

I'm watching another subtitled crime drama - this time it's from Germany/Poland - no snow. I had to find a map to work out where the island was that seemed to belong to both countries....who knew there was such a place?..........amazing what you can learn from crime dramas.

Wednesday......................Guess what..............packing more boxes. Then a selfie hair cut - a 6 all over, it was much needed.

Thursday .......a very small first birthday party for youngest Grandson, being an almost lock-down baby means he's hardly seen anyone except his Mum, Dad, Sister and me since he was born. Everyone one in the extended family and friends made up for this by sending or delivering more toys than you would see in  a toy shop.😀

 

Friday...........Fine and sunny after rain over night. I nipped out to get a few things just in case we have as much snow as is forecast for Sunday and Monday. The postman brought me things to sign for buying the bungalow........... moving in the right direction albeit slowly.

This week I'm grateful for

• Time spent with 2 youngest grandchildren
• Some sunshine 
• Hopes of getting moved before the end of the month.
  

Today I'd better get my signature witnessed on the forms and get them into the post before the bad weather. Then home to watch the first games of the 6 Nations rugby.

Usually on a Saturday I say "Back Monday", but at the moment I've no clue for things to write about next week so may not be back until something....... or even anything happens...... the heavy snow forecast for Sunday will be fun...........?.

 

Sue

 

Week ?? of Strange Times

Thanks to everyone for comments yesterday  about house moving, lots of people moving here there and everywhere!

No idea how many weeks its been since the first mention of "being careful" which was quickly followed by the first lock-down and  I have no intention to count them - too depressing.

 It's been a very grey week here in Suffolk and I've not been far at all but it's been a good week for sorting things out from drawers and cupboards. So far I've moved out to the workshop........a chest of drawers and the old dresser top that sat on them and a small table with a drawer. The local facebook page doesn't allow selling and there's no local selling site for out here in the wilds so  I'll try and  give them away. Still waiting for Youngest Daughters ex partner to come and collect things from the garage, he might want the chest of drawers.

I got a quote from the removal company that moved me from the smallholding to the Very Small Bungalow (I say me because Colin was in hospital that week) and moved us from the Very Small Bungalow to here (Both of us that time) - Blimey removal prices have gone up since 2017. Did you know there is a shortage of cardboard boxes? No neither did I. The governments idea of removing the Stamp Duty until the end of March  is good for me and brilliant for the young family buying here(they couldn't afford it if had to have another ? thousand pounds added on) but is making it hard for conveyance solicitors who have everyone wanting to complete by 31st March and the removal companies who are likely to have lots of people all wanting to move at the same time. 

Not much of excitement to mention this week although I made up the tin of orange cheats marmalade that was in the cupboard and used whisky to replace some of the water. I'd found a new bottle of whisky in my "wine cellar" (a crate in the garage) when clearing it out last week. No idea when it was bought and what it was planned for - not to drink that's for sure. It should liven up the marmalade a little!

Now I can pack away my jam pan and other preserving bits - won't need them again for a while and all remaining  jars that were in a box in the garage can go in the bottle bank. 

Yesterday was the dullest day of the week with fog and frost staying all day. I went out in the garden to see if there was a frosted cobweb to photograph but couldn't see one and it was too nasty to stay out for long so just a frosty seed head and a foggy meadow.

So what am I grateful for this week?

•  A wonderful stock of books to read
•  Clearing out more things and getting boxes packed - less to do later.
•  A warm house
  

 The weather forecast for the weekend here is a bit better than the last week- no idea what I'll be doing apart from digging up part of the Chives plant to pot up and take with me and I spotted a self sown Rosemary seedling somewhere too. Plus  I need to empty one of the water butts if it isn't frozen solid as I want to load all the gardening tools into one to take with me.

Back Monday

Sue

Saturday in Week 36 of Strange Times

 Another week gone - surely we are getting to the end of this second lock down? How many days left?............. 9 I think.......Only 9 I hope but who knows and as for what's happening for Christmas, no one seems to agree on the way forward.

What have I done this week......................Not A Lot, apart from doing a good house clean and tidy ready for the House Photographs it's been a nothing sort of week (and apologies for not replying to all the comments yesterday about the house ad and St Edmund)

Although I did get one vegetable bed weeded so I suppose that's a plus and made half a dozen jars of lemon marmalade from a tin of the prepared lemons.

 

 

Haven't  mentioned  how I'm getting on with.................

 

 

(Direct Debits for Council Tax, Phones, Car Breakdown Insurance,Charity Donation Total £260)

1st.        No Spend

2nd        Food  £33 + Cat £6 +  Diesel £18 + Printer Paper £4.          = £61  

3rd         No Spend

4th        Swimming £2.25

5th         No Spend 

6th        No Spend

7th          No Spend

8th         No Spend

9th        No spend

10th       Food £18 + Cat £5 + Kitchen stuff £2.50 + Pharmacy £3.80 

               Christmas bits £3.50      = £32

11th        No Spend 

12th        Whoops forgot I'd pre-ordered a book published today from up the amazon £8.19

13th       No Spend

14th        Fruit, Veg and Yellow sticker pizzas + Flowers  £11

15th      The cat calming stuff for Polly which I have on a 3 times a year regular order £34

16th      No Spend

17th      No Spend

18th       No Spend

19th       No Spend

20th      No Spend

 I will be popping out today for fresh fruit and some frozen bits and I really must get on with ordering/buying some presents for the grandchildren that are not yet sorted. Already organised are hampers for the 2 sisters and Brothers in Law, small presents for penfriends. The 3 children and their OH's will get money. Just leaving BiL who is always a problem.  I'm not doing gifts for niece and nephews this year, who are all grown up with their own houses and earning more than me!........ (now there are 4 grandchildren something had to give). The plan for my 12 days of Christmas treats has ground to a halt at 7 as I can't think of anything else!

 

Oh, remembered another thing I've done, and that is to take a whole lot of photos for the Advent Photos 2020 posts. I'm planning something a bit different to the last 5 years. 

This week I'm grateful for

• Good photographer who took some excellent house photos
  
• Some dry days to get gardening done
• Always something to watch on TV .......... tennis this week
  
• Mild weather most of the  week - saving oil.

And finally isn't it brilliant to see Pat at Weaver of Grass home safe and sound and back blogging and also hello and welcome to some new followers.

 I will return on Monday - full of bright ideas for blog posts.................I'm lying about the bright ideas!

Sue

Week 35 of Strange Times

Apologies......................... This post is just a whole lot of lists!!

 This was  Week 35 of Strange Times and 9 Days of our second lock-down have passed = 19 left until hopefully things are relaxed a bit.............getting through.

 First of a winter harvest this week - Brussels Sprouts and very nice they were too. They are from one of the four plants that I bought as part of a 16 plant  Brassica Collection from one of the seed companies.

I didn't get many heads from the 4 Calabrese plants and the 4 Cauliflower plants only produced a couple of small Cauli's but I've had two big cabbages and 2 still standing and out of the 4 Sprouts plants  2 have decent Brussels sprouts. Conclusion  = Probably not worth growing next year! Although it is so good to have fresh Brussels Sprouts. If they were available 'on the stalk' all winter rather than just at Christmas that's how I'd buy them.

And that reminds me...............what happened to my "Food Produced by One Old-ish Woman on Her Own" list?.................. Forgotten since 5th October.

All these are finished now

• Lettuces
  
• Rocket and small beetroot leaves as salad leaves
• A few asparagus spears
• Lots of rhubarb
• A surprising amount of strawberries from 6 new plants and a few from the old bed.
• 3lb of gooseberries
• Lots of raspberries and 3lb put in the freezer
• 2lb Redcurrants
• Few mange-tout peas  - put in the freezer
• Green beans  - some put in the freezer
• 2 small calabrese heads.
• 2 small cauliflowers 
• Figs 
• Courgettes
• Aubergines
• Cucumbers
• Plums
• Runner beans
  
• Plenty of tomatoes from greenhouse
• A few potatoes
• Beetroot
• Onions 
• Cooking Apples (Some left in the freezer)
  
•  Eating Apples
  
• Few peppers left in the greenhouse (lots in the freezer)
  
• Pears 

All I have left are

• A few leeks
• 2 Cabbages
• A few Brussels sprouts 

Quite a successful year.

*************

I enjoyed re-doing the 30 ways to save £1 posts from 2013 and seeing if they were still relevant and thanks to everyone who commented. The reason for pinching pennies in some places is so that I can spend on more interesting things. This year I'm not buying an Advent calendar, an expensive diary or the Almanac book and that's freed up some money to use for my 12 days of Christmas Treats to cheer up the days alone after Christmas and I've already stashed a few things in the cupboard. It might seem a bit self-indulgent and it took me a while to "allow" myself to spend this way but it seemed a good idea this year when everything is so weird. 

No spend November is still ongoing

(Direct Debits for Council Tax, Phones, Car Breakdown Insurance,Charity Donation Total £260)

1st.        No Spend

2nd        Food  £33 + Cat £6 +  Diesel £18 + Printer Paper £4.          = £61  

3rd         No Spend

4th        Swimming £2.25

5th         No Spend 

6th        No Spend

7th          No Spend

8th         No Spend

9th        No spend

10th       Food £18 + Cat £5 + Kitchen stuff £2.50 + Pharmacy £3.80 

               Christmas bits £3.50      = £32

11th        No Spend 

12th      Whoops forgot I'd pre-ordered a book published today from up the amazon £8.19

13th       No Spend

 This week I'm Grateful for

• Sorting out the Ride on mower when it stopped working -again
• Making an important decision
  

Have a good weekend, I shall be back Monday

Sue

1st Saturday of November - Week 34 of Strange Times

Sheep grazing ....................A very unusual sight for this part of Suffolk. Farming here is all arable, wheat, barley, oil seed rape and sugar-beet. Occasionally there might be field beans, maize or linseed but never sheep.....but here they are just up the road. Fenced in with electrified wire strands and grazing on a field of  I don't know what.

They look like the Suffolk breed and obviously less prone to escaping than some of the sheep we kept in the past.

  

 

I went back on my bike for a closer look at what was growing and still couldn't work it out. There is grass but something else has been sown , very annoying that I don't know what it is!

 

After two days of lock-down I've settled into it,  although more or less run out of library books already. To get the ones I'd read and those I didn't want to finish out of the way I shoved them through the return letter box at Eye library on my way back from swimming. So it will be back to reading from my shelves for 7 weeks until the mobile is round again.

Obviously the way to get through the next 3 and a half weeks is to write 'A List of Things To Do While Locked Down..........'

• Cross stitch something Christmassy
• Watch the two DVDs I picked up from a charity shop last month (didn't write about them at the time as I was going to do a review when I'd watched them to fill a blog post)
• Write a letter to my penfriend who I should have written to about 3 months ago (Sorry W)
  
• Knit some dishcloths until I've used all the dishcloth cotton
• Ask for ideas for Christmas presents for two youngest grandchildren and oldest granddaughter (Oldest Grandson already sorted) and get things ordered.
• Actually get round to sorting out the soil in the Camellia pot and the old strawberry plants
• Sort out more craft stuff and put aside for charity shop reopening
• Chop Kindling wood as and when I need some more
• See what else there is to sort in the workshop.
  

 

 No spend November

(Direct Debits for Council Tax, Phones, Car Breakdown Insurance,Charity Donation Total £260)

1st.        No Spend

2nd        Food  £33 + Cat £6 +  Diesel £18 + Printer Paper £4.          = £61  

3rd         No Spend

4th        Swimming £2.25

5th         No Spend 

6th        No Spend

And finally GOOD NEWS. I went and had another go at the compressor which lives out in the workshop, switched on at the mains and it made it's usual charging up noise (which it didn't do on Wednesday)......just for a few seconds and then switched off. Oh! thought I......... must be something there after all. So I fiddled with the plug connection and by keeping my foot on the compressor plug where it's plugged into the extension lead - hooray - it charged itself up. So I haven't got to buy a bike pump/car pump after all.

As requested............... here is the recipe for the CHOCOLATE CAPPUCCINO SQUARES from yesterdays post.

Grease and line a square 8 inch cake tin. Preheat oven to Gas 4/180C/160C fan oven.

1 tablespoon coffee  concentrate (I use instant coffee dissolved in a teeny bit of boiling water)

2 tsp cocoa powder

5oz butter at room temperature  softened by beating a little

5oz caster sugar

2 eggs at room temperature

5oz SR Flour plus 1tsp baking powder.

1. Beat everything together until well blended but don't over-beat.
2. Spoon the mixture into the tin, smooth the top. 
3. Bake for 35-40 minutes until firm to touch on top.
4. Cool for 10 mins then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely
   

For the topping melt 2 oz chocolate in a bowl over pan of simmering water with 1oz butter and 1 tablespoon milk. Remove from heat . Sieve in 3oz icing sugar and spread over the cake. Cut into 8 bars or 16 squares.

This week I'm Grateful for

• Getting through a bad patch
• Strictly Come Dancing able to carry on
• Books on my shelves
• Some sunny days this week 

 

Have a good weekend. I'll be back Monday

Sue

A Little Bit Further From Home

 My Small Suffolk World (which will be the title of my biography if ever I write one) has been even smaller since March - like most other people.............. Shopping in Stowmarket or Diss, swimming, visiting family and one trip to Ipswich and that's it.

In the Ogham Tree Alphabet book the "tree" listed for the 12th Lunar Month isn't a tree or a bush or anything that I could find growing anywhere in November - it needed an adventure to track it down.

So I adventured to somewhere I knew I could find this mysterious thing. It wasn't a very long journey - only 25 or so miles but it took me to somewhere with all sorts of pretty things and included something that felt almost normal.

 Coffee and cheese scone - almost normal except for the mask! I love it when you get enough butter to spread it thick!

The pretty things I found looked like this.........Advent calendar Christmas cards bet you can guess who those will be given to and a magic snow-globe card which intrigued me. I could have spent a small fortune here but didn't!

Plus the thing I went there specifically for,  which will be revealed at a later date................

Back Tomorrow

Sue

(This trip out was last week and not yesterday when the weather was just awful all day - I went nowhere)

Surviving Week 31 of Strange Times

THIS WEEK...................

 On the whole it's been a grey dismal week since last Saturday, with some rain everyday. I wrote then that it had turned colder and this is what was on the ground when I got back from my trip across to the coast to take card and pressie to Eldest Granddaughter............Hail! covering the path and looking like snow. 

All the way home I'd driven through pouring rain and floods but the hail was a surprise........... proving it's colder here on the 'high' ground in Mid Suffolk!

THIS WEEK............. the new header photo  a tractor is ploughing the field beside the house and meadow, this now means the footpath across the field down to the railway has been ploughed and will be a sticky heavy clay mess, even when(or if) the farmer has re-instated it with his quad bike -  unless we get frost. Good thing I walked to the railway last week.

  THIS WEEK.............I'm not at all sure about swimming at the 12 Noon session on a Monday. There is a Rather Large Man who swims very slowly and he ought to stop at the end to let faster people (ie ME!) go past AND he tends to swim down the middle so there's no chance of getting by. Monday last week was the second time he's been there at 12 at the same time as I have and just to add insult  2 other people were also held up by him AND the lifeguard didn't ask him to wait at the end of the pool to let other people by until just before I was about to get out of the pool.

THIS WEEK...........After the PM's update on Monday we in Suffolk are in a Medium Risk area - nowhere is Low Risk - not even Devon and Cornwall where infection rates were actually falling. I'm still carrying on with the few things left in my life that I'm allowed to do and hoping that we don't get a full lock down before half term week when Eldest Daughter and Eldest Grandson should be coming to stay for a couple of nights - but it's not looking hopeful.

THIS WEEK.................. I've made a decision NOT to buy The Almanac Seasonal guide for next year

             Or The Country Wisdom and Folklore diary     

Much as I like and have enjoyed both for a few years, a year without will save me £20. The Diary was really good when it had spiral metal coil binding - they changed to normal book binding this year for environmental reasons - but then of course the diary won't lay flat or stay open on the right page. My 2021 diary is a £2 affair from The Works - with No Moon timetable so would be no good for my blog friend Rachel-in-Norfolk! So in theory I now have £18 to spend on books if I'm ever short of reading!

THIS WEEK.........At last a communication from my Dentist - telling me they are closing the local bit where I go - 4 miles- to concentrate everything on their Ipswich hub. I don't really want to travel that far to get teeth sorted but they have £120 of my money that I had to pay in March  as a deposit for having a tooth fixed. Since then more of the tooth has broken anyway so it might have to come out. I shall try and get my money back first I think. There's no hope of having anything done on the NHS - it's impossible to find a dentist that hasn't gone private nowadays.

Highlight of next week?

I've booked a slot at the recycling centre (AKA The Tip). Bit puzzled by this instruction........

 

                                 You must stay in your vehicle until you have parked

This week I'm grateful for

• Finding snooker (The English Open on Quest) on TV for wet afternoons this week
  
• Strictly Come Dancing is back on TV tonight - it may be different due to Covid but it will still be sparkly and happy. 

 

Hope you all have a good weekend, I shall return with more pearls of wisdom(?) on Monday

Sue

Side Effects and Contra-indications

 Had my free flu-jab this week and as it was my first time the nurse gave me the leaflet of possible problems.

 

 When I asked around about Flu-jab reactions my BiL (who is a patient at the same doctors group) said that once - only a couple of years ago -  they used to give the jab and ask people to wait in the waiting room for 10 minutes to make sure there was no serious reaction. This year with Covid and the reluctance to even allow people into the Health Centre at all, it was a case of walk in, stand where told - in the corridor OUTSIDE the nurses room, get jabbed and walk straight out of the back door - so as not to meet people queueing outside.

Do you read the leaflets of contraindications that are always in with medications? I'm guessing most people don't, especially if it's something that you've taken before. I've read the leaflet above and so far haven't noticed anything listed or not listed............Thank Goodness.

Back Tomorrow

Sue

Going Back to Strange Times? Week 28

Thank you to everyone for comments about books yesterday. Sorry for not replying - I had the sort of day that hopefully won't be repeated very soon. More on this later..............

 

Now..................shall I write about all the strange things regarding Strange Times that I've heard this week...........?

"There could be queues of up to 7,000 lorries waiting in Kent to cross the channel during the first few weeks of January, with a No Deal Brexit"

"People mustn't visit inside another persons home in Scotland"

"No one is allowed in a pub or restaurant  after 10pm"

 "Huge increase in purchases of toilet rolls reported at Cash and Carry stores this week" 

"University students may not be allowed home for Christmas." 

"Half the population of Wales is in a type of Lockdown"

 

No, No and  No!!  I'll just write what's happened up the end of a lane in Mid Suffolk......................

Two late flowering gladioli on the table this week. The same colour as the first. There should be 2 different colours but only these gorgeous dark pink have appeared. 

Both Youngest Daughter and Son decided they didn't want the bookshelves that were originally in Col's bedroom. So I got Brother-in-Law to help me get them downstairs to use them in the conservatory for the grandchildren's toys.

 I do seem to have rather a lot of toys, at least there's no chance of them being bored when they come to visit! Everything on these shelves are my car-boot bargains, except for the little cart of bricks bottom left, they were new.....................handmade about 63 years ago! And the "vintage" Fisher Price Play People, they were new.....................about 38 years ago.

 

Hooray for Ian, the boiler repair man, who arrived much later than planned on Monday due  to problems at the previous job.  He apologised for being so late but I said it was just good that he could get here before the weather changes to cold later in the week. He repaired and serviced the boiler and said did I know the boiler is nearly 40 years old (blimey!) and it could give up anytime. He's reminded me of this every time it's serviced. He doesn't do new boiler installation  but gave me details of 2 companies that are reliable. That means the boiler and the sewer need doing sooner rather than later......Expensive...............The outside of the house could do with painting too.....sometime.

Swimming was good, just 3 people in the slow half of the pool so we had to go round and round but plenty of room to avoid each other. A new sign in the Sports Centre told everyone they have to download the new NHS app so they can register where they are and be informed of coming into contact with someone with a virus. My cheap phone does do apps but it clogs things up and apps soon stop working - which doesn't bother me because my phone is just for phoning and texting.. As the pool have all my details because of the on-line booking system  I don't intend to go out and buy a new phone. 

And then yesterday, a day that involved driving across to the coast, getting the  nearly-4-year-old Oldest Granddaughter in and out of the car several times. Picking her up. Feeding us both lunch, getting her changed out of Nursery uniform,  and into Ballet clothes, driving to ballet and back and then out of Ballet clothes into home clothes and finally a late and slow drive home to Mid Suffolk and all this in pouring rain with the wind blowing a hooley. Floods and trees down all over the place and roads closed................ I didn't do much when I got home except collapse in a heap. This Nana business is Hard Work!

 

Got up this morning to find a huge branch from the Field Maple in the back boundary hedge is down, right where the raspberry cage was -...........phew...........thank goodness I took the cage down and got it sold.

Hope you all have a good weekend.  Apart from going swimming - mine will be quiet - Very Quiet!

Back Monday

Sue

Puzzling

Many years ago I had to spend a week in a convalescent home after a major operation. I couldn't go straight home because we were doing up an old house while living in a caravan and sleeping on a mattress on the floor and the hospital doctors reckoned it wouldn't be a good idea!
The home was full of elderly poorly people - everyone was about 50 years older than me -  but one lady was friendly and  tried to show me how do Cryptic Crossword Puzzles which until then might as well have been written in Chinese - I hadn't a clue.

I later borrowed a book about doing Cryptic crosswords - it didn't help  and I forgot all about them.

Then we had lockdown, more time and SiL sent me a heap of puzzle pages from the East Anglian Daily Times (and I've been going to pick them up once we were allowed out) I've been trying to do Cryptic Crosswords again, usually managing to sort out about 3 or 4 answers - that's my limit and even when I can see the answers in the next days pages I still can't work out the  hows or whys.

So you can imagine the shock to fill up nearly the whole crossword. Wow I thought - I've got it!

Sadly Not. The next one I tried it was back to normal - just the odd two or three filled in- Oh well back to the Sudoku - at least I can complete those OK.


Back Tomorrow
Sue