Bit of a social whirl this week.

CV19 Weekly Record 22^nd June to 28^th.

Official lockdown day on Sunday 28^th is 96, 14 weeks on Tuesday 30^th June 3.5 months.

The week started off hot and sunny and ended up hot and sunny, well to Saturday when the cooling rain set it. The week was an absolute scorcher with our garden thermometer reaching 36 on Thursday afternoon and it was 29.9 in the house.

Monday we caught up with Liz and Ray on FT, Ray is getting cabin fever and wants to go away somewhere. They are well and have been getting out and visiting a few friends.

We picked up a click and collect order from Dunelm, there was no one in the shop but the queue for home basics was massive.

Tuesday it was 27 degrees and Ian went for a walk with Martyn, Martin and Max. For some mad reason they did the Winter Hill walk, he was exhausted when he got back and slightly dehydrated. I ventured to John Lewis, which was fine as no queue but the car park was quite busy. I needed ink cartridges and could not find them anywhere else, straight in & out no problem, there were quite a few people browsing though. Fantastic organisation outside the store and lots of staff wearing face shields inside and brandishing sanitizer at you every time you turned a corner.

Other people had tried to get into JL and the queue was round the car park so they went away again.

I then went to age concern to give it the once over and was horrified to find that the pruning of the climbing Hydrangea turned out to be total decimation. There is nothing left of it but a quarter of a bare trunk. In this heat I doubt it will survive. Also Mr Robin liked to nest in there, in addition they have just piled the branches on my newly jet washed patio. Not Impressed.

Tuesdays briefing was held by Boris, Chris Whitty and Patrick Valence. Lockdown is all but ending (If it hasn’t already, I cant really say we are in lockdown still) on July 4^th. More of that later. However there will be no more daily briefing only if there is something significant to report.

Jeremy & Nic went to St Ives for the day it looked very nice & must have been a treat to get out out. Jon And Sarah continue to keep the country running by working, they are still working from home although Sarah is starting to go back into the office a few days.

Thursday morning we went out to Frieth where a landowner has planted wild flower meadows, the sight of it was breathtaking. The pictures tell the story. Popped into Rhiannon's garden for a coffee on the way home.

Thursday evening we went over the road to Donna And Pauls, we sat in the garden for a couple of hours it was very nice, we have struck up a good relationship with them through the pandemic. We took our own drinks and glasses which was indeed quite an odd thing to do but is the norm nowadays apparently.

Friday we had some people round, all socially distanced, we just provided drinks, no food. It was meant to be a couple of hours for a “Pub” drinks but they stayed for 5 hours. It was a hot evening and the only reason they finally went home was it turned a bit chilly about 9ish. It was a really lovely evening, everyone enjoyed it and for all of us the only real social occasion we have had for over 3 months. Everyone said it had done him or her the power of good.

Having to sanitize the loo and provide anti viral spray and disposable hand towels was a bit strange as was the social distancing. I was a bit anxious about it but it was just a few friends and we all know who has been where and they are all sensible people. We would not have been able to do it if we did not have the downstairs loo, I certainly would not have let people through the house. We also had the bifolds open to allow plenty of air to circulate round the place and easy access to the facilities.

The garden looked nice but was past its best at present. It was very hot on the patio and due to the 2 metre rule one couple could not get into the shade of the umbrella. It was supposed to have been thunderstorms but thankfully they did not materialise.

Saturday it is raining here and with that thankfully cooler. We are just getting a few jobs done. Well I am writing this and Ian is cleaning the cooker. We are doing Glasthomebury tonight, no wellies in the house though. Today is a typical Glastonbury festival day weather-wise.

Sunday we have been invited to Rhiannon’s for birthday brunch then we have the Stay Inn later and Ian is cooking me scampi Provençale my favourite.for dinner.  I Cant claim it really as a lockdown birthday like other people, even though we can’t go out to celebrate but we have more freedom than at the start of this. 
We spent time in the kitchen on Saturday afternoon, baking a cake and prepping the sauce for tomorrow’s dinner, also doing the ironing. All this was accompanied by us singing along to Paul Gambaccini pick of the pops1977 and 1988. Ha ha we knew all the words and had a good sing along.
Then we listened to Jo Wiley presenting the Non Glastonbury show, great memories and a few sticky muddy ones too.Had a bit of a Glasto fest on Sat night.

I guess now that we can go out more we have kind of got used to just being At home and are quite happy doing that.
There are times when the air traffic seems to be picking up but if you check the app there really is nothing in the air. Vehicle noise at night and early morning is picking up and waking us up. With that and the heat we decamped our summer residence aka the back bedroom which is quieter and cooler.

Some other points.

The BBC reported thousands of businesses are committing furlough fraud. Furloughing staff whilst making them continue to work.

The Bank of England has pumped another 100 billion into the Economy to aid recovery.

The FTSE was up and down this week it finally closed at 6157.

Mass raves are taking place across London.

Chris Whitty tweeted that we must abide by the 2 metre rule or the infection will start up again.

Since Boris announced the easing of lockdown on July 4^th some people have gone feral. Beaches are packed and the rubbish they leave behind is criminal, this is also happening at Cock Marsh and Higginson Park.

Our Portugal holiday has now been officially cancelled. Or rather the wording is cannot take place as planned. No further information as how to reclaim the money. We cancelled the taxi transfers and the wine tasting and Douro river trip and got a full refund on those.

The Deaths and rate of infection continue to fall but there is nervousness around human behaviour. PM says people need to act responsibly.

The R value remains at .7 to .9.

A major incident was declared at Bournemouth as hoards of people flocked to the beach. There are no facilities open and the police were unable to cope. Roads were gridlocked, there were fights and people camping overnight.

The virus is still spreading around the world with numbers in South America rising sharply.

There is a record spike in the USA this week. DT says this is due to there being more tests done so more cases are being reported and suggested to stop testing to get the numbers down.

Ah! must mention the football. I have never witnessed something so ridiculous as the canned crowd noise being dubbed over the matches on TV. NUFC won their 1^st Match and drew the 2^nd one so a bit of peace reigns no news on the other thing.

Patrick Valance says we have to live alongside this virus for a long time.

The Covid Symptom study reports on the impact of obesity and high blood sugar levels being a major factor in having severe symptoms. Which apparently goes someway to explain the BAME  population that have suffered more than most.

From July the 4fth all things are changing.

From 4 July you will able to go to a pub, cafe or restaurant, visit a museum, library or theme park, watch a film at a cinema, or stay in a hotel or on campsite – as long as the venue can open safely. You can also be part of a group meeting at a place of worship. If you need to sort out your lockdown hair, you will be able to go to a hairdresser or barber.

What won’t I be able to do?

You can’t go to the gym or do any type of exercise class – the risk is still too great to allow people to breathe heavily while in close proximity. The risk level also means that you can’t watch a play, except on a screen, or live music. Soft play areas will still be closed, as will activities that involve sharing or borrowing equipment – for example bowling or ice-skating. In more bad news for anyone trying to shake off any lockdown pounds, swimming pools will remain closed. Beauty salons, casinos and nightclubs won’t reopen yet, nor will cricket clubs. If you are a church goer, you will not be allowed to sing at services.

Further easing of holidays and travelling abroad is to follow from July 6^th.

Social distancing at John Lewis.

The big cat flap gets opened

Too hot for anything but sunbathing.

Day trip to the Cotswolds and things are moving on.

CV19 The Weekly record from 14^th June 2020. To 20^th June 2020.

Sunday -A blue sky start to the day, the hot sun hits my back through the window as I bring the tea upstairs at 7am. I decided to get on with a few jobs and knocked the render off the garden wall, it turned out not to be such a big job and the 5kg bag of render is looking redundant as the wall underneath looks better without it. We then put paint stripper on the lean to door

 It took 2 hrs. to get the varnish off, but pleased to get it started it's been bugging me for years. Amazing how it takes something like covid19 for you to get your arse into gear. Ian had been feeling a bit down again but started getting the pallet planter together and helped out painting it for me. He did feel better after doing something. We have learnt to get on with something and not mope about. He also did a bit of repair work on the paintwork on the stairs. After all that work the sun came out so we celebrated our efforts with a glass of rose, read a bit and watched Country file after dinner.

Just a note here, my hair is getting longer, people are telling me it looks nicer longer but it is getting in my eyes and is so flat and soft, no body to it unlike my own body which has more than it fair share of body!

Monday  Today the non essential shops are opening again, we are keeping well away from anything remotely like a shop. It’s not going to be pretty.

You may recall my constant moaning about not being able to go to the sea / coast. I have this need to be near running water, or noise making water like waves. It’s probably because I can’t do it that I want it. Anyway we decided a week or so ago to go to the Cotswolds but the weather turned and it we wanted to wait for a sunny day, it has arrived. We gathered ourselves and cobbled a picnic together turned the roof down on the car and drove to Coln St Aldwyn. The M40 is quiet its about 10am and little traffic on the road mainly vans and lorries, the lorry drivers must be loving the freedom of the road they have at present.

We parked up in the pretty village right next to the closed up New Inn, all of a sudden it felt a bit chilly, never mind we carry on. I had forgotten that I had downloaded 3 or 4 different walks and Ian was following one and I had another one in my head. Needless to say we got sort of lost. Well we knew roughly where we were and how to get back but not exactly where we were on the map. We then happened upon the Roman track that was mentioned, ah ha, and then we happened upon another, this must be the right one, then another. Luckily we could see the Coln Valley below us and just headed in that direction. Finally we got down to the river and decided that we would continue the walk to Bibury it must only be ½ a mile away now. It was or seemed further by the time we got there Ian was clamming for a sandwich and drink. We sat on the wall as the river flowed past us and ducklings swam around, it was idyllic. Not too many people around either. The walk back was supposed to be 2 miles seemed like 4, it was very hot, but a beautiful walk, so peaceful, the river was a bit cloudy and no trout in it which was sad as there has always been trout there. It did my soul good to be there. There were Damsel flies, Dragon flies the size of helicopters, we saw a Deer, Moorhen chicks, and Ducklings the birds were tweeting and the bees buzzing in the summer meadows.

Walking through a wheat field, the earth was dry and cracked, large cracks very large cracks, we could both feel the heat emanating up from the soil and you could imagine the wheat feeling the warmth and giving it the energy to grow. However a like me it also needed a bit of a drink.

The 4 mile walk I had planned had turned into 7 I did 22 thousand steps that day, my feet were singing by the time we got back to the car and I was really glad I had brought my sandals to change into. Homeward bound making the most of the quiet winding country lanes with the wind blowing in our faces and cooling us down. The day had turned into a scorcher. The traffic had got busier whilst we were idling away the hours. Burford roundabout was hectic and Oxford was just like a normal day apart from the Covid warning signs along the river walk and the signs for a testing centre in Oxford.

Checked on the Easyjet site and our out flight is cancelled but no news from Broadway travel yet. the return flight from Porto is still active. I have cancelled our taxi transfers and our Wine tasting and river trip down the Douro.

We had torrential rain for quite a bit of this week. Walks had to be cancelled and much mooching around the house was done. It pushed me to do some admin that I had been putting off for ages.

The replacement part of the bed was delivered much to Willows horror. People in the house and someone rang the doorbell, which sent him into frenzy. He ran out into the midst of the monsoon we were having. We couldn’t find him, but eventually I heard some whimpering over in next doors garden. I managed to coax him back indoors but he was soaked through. Not nice for a little geriatric cat. Big cuddles and a warm blanket soon got him sorted.

Rhiannon came round for a chat on Friday, haven’t seen her for ages. We sat at a safe distance in the summerhouse, doors open and drank tea and Rhubarb gin. Lovely couple of hours.

The "Stay Inn" opened up again on Saturday evening, reasonable weather all round but a bit windy. Jon had sent out a mammoth quiz which people were still ploughing through so he did a 

general knowledge quiz to keep us amused. He had a bit of a tough week but coped with it very well. Sarah has been back into the office a couple of days. Jeremy & Nic have been socializing on the streets of St Merryn hobnobbing with the Steins and various other people and a Kookaburra, must try to find the video of it.

Ian is rather sad at the moment hopefully the good weather coming this week will help lift him a bit.

Some snippets.

2 million school children are reported by the daily Mail to have done zero schoolwork during lock down. (What a surprise – who will they be blaming for this for the rest of their lives?)

Easyjet did a flight to Glasgow from Gatwick, no social distancing and a packed flight. EJ are said to be starting up a minimal service between certain UK cities.

Thousands of people queued to get into shops. Primark being the main attraction, Nike a close second with people barging into the shop pushing and shoving each other out of the way. I just don’t get it!.

Shops have to have social distancing in place, plastic screens around tills and checkouts. Cards only no cash.

6 Million tests have been carried out by 16.06

410 new admissions yesterday, 385 on ventilators compared to 3301 on 12.04.

There are still 5254 people currently with the virus

Total deaths UK 41969 that +233 since yesterday.  16.06

Boris says he will address social distancing as fairly as possible to minimise the risk. He re –iterates July 4^th.

There has been a breakthrough for treating CV19, it has been found through clinical trials headed by Peter Horby from the Nuffield Oxford. It is a Steroid, Dexamethasone widely available throughout the world and has been found to reduce the risk of death by 35% if on a ventilator. There is enough of this drug available even if we have a 2^nd peak.

Premier league football started again on 17^th June.

Royal Ascot is going ahead, Jockeys, officials, trainers only. It is the 1^st time in her reign that the Queen will miss it.

Other royals have started royal duties. Prince Charles and Camilla went to visit a hospital, as did William.

Redundancies are starting to hit the workplace.

China is reported to be getting a 2^nd spike with Beijing being closed down and hotels requisitioned for quarantine.

Berlin reporting hotspot flare ups.

Travel news is back on the radio.

Face coverings are obligatory on public transport. £100 fine for non-compliance.

Eleanor turned 25 on Monday 15^th.

Vera Lynn died she was 103.

The track & trace App has failed due to technical difficulties –some thing to do with Apple.

Coronavirus alert level has been reduced to 3.

Scottish Pubs will not reopen until well into July whilst Boris still refuses to confirm England reopening of 4^th July.

Wales currently has a 5-mile travel restriction in place. This is set to be lifted early July, however it means that people that live 5 miles outside of Cardiff are unable to go shopping as the non essential shops reopen on Monday.

Boris seems to have got his mojo back.

Food for thought.

Pork chops, roasted veg and New Pots.

Left over Thai food – always better a day or 2 later.

Red Pepper Paste stuffed Mackerel.

Merguez sausages, ratatouille, jacket potato.

Sea Trout, Jersey pots, green beans.

Sizzling Beef in Black bean sauce.

Lamb Steaks, broccoli and New pots

Farm shops, plant sales oh and a Covid test.

CV19 Weekly update to 13th June 2020

82 days since lockdown.

Weekly happenings. Starting Monday.

A very quiet ½ hour in Waitrose with no queues and very few people saw us stock up on a few basics. Shopping is fine now, if you time it right there are no queues, plenty of food and even flour is back on the shelves. The social distance thing in the shop itself depends on where you go Waitrose is fine, ASDA is a nightmare.

Ian went for a walk with the boys, Martyn, Max and Pauric , its was a long walk which apparently required quenching thirsts with beer afterwards. They ended up buying take away beer from the Crafty Tap and taking it to the park to drink, socially distancing of course. Not only was the beer rather strong it was very expensive, he was a bit tired when he got home, blaming it on the 8 miles or so he walked. Hmmmm. They only had 2 pints but one was over 6% and they had not eaten anything since breakfast. Pauric was resting his eyes on the sofa according to his wife; Ian managed to stay awake but did smell very strongly of beer!

I went for a walk with the girls, Sue, Coleen Angela and Adele, we walked from Bourne End to Cookham via Cock Marsh looking for a reported White Stock (no luck on that front). We did about 5 miles, the sun got out and it was really quite hot. There were a few people about but not too many to make it uncomfortable.  We tried to work out which house was Steve Backshalls and have a possible idea which due to spying a Swallow nesting under the decking as he reported on Spring Watch. Further investigation is required. However we did cross paths with Lorraine Kelly (she lives along that stretch of the river too)as she crossed the railway bridge. Mind you she did see to think that we were Covid spouting lepers as she rushed past us, head cowered down. If she felt so bad she should have waited for us to crossover. Nuff said.

We ended up at Sue's house for a post walk coffee and cake. It was very nice to have different people to talk to and walk with. 1^st time in 11 weeks I have been out without Ian and with other people.

We also had a visit to the Italian shop in Maidenhead to buy some different foods, Scampi in preparation for a special lockdown birthday meal, Tuna for a change and Tortellini for a nice lunchtime treat one day.

Laceys farm shop lovely place, great fresh meat, homemade sausages and pork pies. Ian has eaten a lot of pork pies during lockdown I am getting concerned about his cholesterol level. They also had fresh Samosas and other lovely treats, which we indulged in.

We had met a couple when out for a walk on Sunday and they told us about this little nursery in Stokenchurch so we drove out there to have a look and ended up buying 7 plants. We got home just before the rain came, nice Wednesday morning.

Ian is busy sawing up pallets he got from the “loud” builders down the road. When I went to Adele’s she had made a flower stand from a pallet, I am going to have a go at doing one. Ian has sawn it to the correct size, I just need to paint it. I don’t think he it that enamoured by the idea, well he can always saw it up for kindling if it doesn’t work.

Ian got another haircut this week, it was rather daunting as it had got a bit long and need quite a bit off. It’s easy to snip the ends off but giving it a deeper cut a bit scary for both of us. Ian looked like a condemned man sitting there as I snipped away. He was greatly relieved once he looked in the mirror and saw the result. I must admit so was I

You can tell the dishwasher man has been as Willow is hiding under the bedcovers, he does not like workmen. His least favourite is a window cleaner.

Well you know that I report on a covid symptom study, on Wednesday Ian & I were not feeling too well, very tired and scratchy throats, runny eyes. So I reported this on my covid app on Thursday morning as hay fever symptoms. On Friday morning we get an invitation to get a test, random testing as we are not feeling normal. I booked the test (Secret Squirrel not allowed to tell people how we did it) and within 10 minutes we were on our way to Handy cross to get tested.

We were sent emails with codes and a barcodes on our phones. Our testing site is being run by the Army and it is like entering a scene from a film. All the testers were in Army combat gear and PPE (Not Hazmats) various stations were set up for the different stages of the testing. On our arrival they check your Vehicle reg as submitted on line and then hold up a notice telling you to ring a number, this then puts you through to the person holding up the sign, they check your ID and scan the bar code. They then talk you through the procedure and what we need to do as this is a self-testing site. Ian and I are not enamoured by this as we can see it getting messy, I am already in a heightened state of anxiety just by being there, we don’t for one minute think we have it. Even though Ian has been on at me or a couple of days to get tested as I don’t feel too good.

We move onto the next stage where we are instructed to crack open the window and 2 testing kits are placed on the dashboard. We are then talked through the process and told to move onto the next area and park up. If we have any problems just put on the hazard lights and they will come to assist.

We sit and read through the instructions and decide it best for us to do it one at a time, I go 1^st. You are not allowed for the swab to touch your tongue or cheeks and have to swab around the tonsil area. This is extremely difficult trying to do it in cramped conditions whist looking in the vanity mirror of the car. Much gagging and retching and I am still not sure I got it in the right place. Then you swab your nose, this is not so bad. Once done you snap off the swab and put it in a tube with liquid in it.

Now Ian’s turn, we decide it will be better if I swab him. Trying to get in a position where I can see the back of his throat and get him to keep his tongue still is a bit of a trial but we manage it, poor love he looks really stressed by it or should I say me! Anyway much gagging and choking later we think we have managed it. We then move onto the next station where we have to call another number. They then photograph your barcode and your swab test. The swab test and all the paraphernalia have the same barcode on it, this is all done through holding up signs or talking via the phone, Windows tightly shut. You then deposit your test into a box that they hold up to the window and you’re done. From booking the test we were back indoors in 30 minutes. There was a steady flow of cars arriving but no queuing or waiting at all. It was a very professionally executed operation quite the experience even if very surreal. Not we await the results. The only thing is that we are not allowed out until we get the all clear. Hey ho good job we are used to it and it’s going to be a nice weekend weather wise.

There is no news to the NUFC takeover, I am sure you are all dying to know about that.

 Ian was supposed to be going to the Theatre to night with Martyn to see a Pink Floyd tribute band and we had a RSPB trip to Greenham common obviously both cancelled.

The "Stay Inn" was open again Saturday afternoon - evening. The Marlow branch bathed in glorious sunshine and blue sky for the most part, although it did pour with rain once the pub had shut. St Merryn was chilly and a glimpse of a waterproof coat was seen and rumours of thermal vest being worn. WSM started ok but had to retire indoors as it got chilly. Some food was served various themes of Italian, Indian and Thai. A good night "In /Out"

They seem to think its all over. I am talking about the people in gardens yesterday having parties and the drunk noisy people coming home between 1 and 2 this morning. Staggering past our windows and waking us up! Because of the rain, I know they have not been outside all this time! Just saying.

Points of Note.

TV adverts are starting to change with the shops opening from next week.

It is now becoming very obvious with people on TV who has a partner or family member that is capable of cutting hair. The weather man looks like he is wearing a wig, Home dyed hair and grey roots are all pretty obvious as are the ones that have managed to keep it all under control. My hair is becoming increasingly messy looking. I am not going to chop it any more as it is only a matter of weeks until I hopefully can take up the appointment I have made.

A low death rate of 55 was reported on Monday but that went up again to 286 on Tuesday. 40883 have been reported to die in total over this stage of the pandemic. Northern Ireland has reported no deaths 4 days in a row.

 Most of our friends (all in a ballpark age figure) fear the easing of lockdown and would not go to a restaurant or pub (outside being the exception to the pub). I thought I would ask Carl next-door, he is 20, what his opinion on how things are moving. He said that he believed if we all obeyed the rules then lockdown could be eased, however because of the people disobeying the rules it is not safe to ease the lockdown at this time. Riots all over and overcrowding on beaches being the main culprits.

The roads are getting busier but no way near as busy as normal. Little things are creeping back into our lives. Our dishwasher is getting repaired on the 11^th and the replacement bed will be delivered on the 18^th. The original date for that was 26^th March.

The Hoo Ha over schools going back continues. Airlines are said to be suing the government over the quarantine ruling.

Some furloughed people are worried that their workplaces will not need them once the lockdown is over as they have managed without them so far.

Gloomy headlines, Britain worst hit in Coronavirus, Britain worst hit in Economy. The Government is now getting a hammering over how badly they have handled the crisis.

Zoos and Safari parks to reopen from June 15^th.

10.06.20 Daily briefing key points.

Boris did the daily briefing on Wednesday – he still seems to be dithery. All 5 criteria have been met for a further easing of lockdown.

It has been 82 days since the shops had to close up to the general public. They can open up on the 15^th as long as they adhere to social distancing rules and provide sanitizer.

Places of worship can open for individual prayer.

We are allowed to have support bubbles. As I see it if a person lives alone they can have 1 visitor and that person is able to stay overnight. I think that the PM meant it for vulnerable and lonely people but the Daily Mail has it as Boris lifts Sex Ban!

The Epidemic is shrinking but not fast enough to release lockdown further at this stage.

A high percentage of the population is still susceptible to infection.

People who are shielding must continue to do so, but are allowed out once a day, but not in public areas or for shopping.

We will not be relaxed to step 3 before July 4^th at the earliest.

SAGE say that we need to stick to what the PM says, the rate of infection is not low enough and there are no risk free options. They need to balance the risk and minimise a bad outcome.

People are clamouring to reduce the 2-metre rule to one metre, as it will help industry and the economy. Boris is under pressure here and it looks like he might fold on this one soon.

Meals of note or not as the case may be.

Pork Chops, New pots, Carrots and Broccoli.

Spag Bol.

Gammon with Mango and Pepper salsa, New pots and green salad.

Navarin of Lamb with green cabbage.

Sausage and beans.

Thai Green Chicken Curry.

Fish & Chips.
Beef Randang

Coronavirus test update.

Both tested negative as expected. Test results returned in under 26hrs

Cookham walk with the Girls

Stotts Nursery

Tell me when he's gone.

Phase one of the plant stand pallet

Zany Gazanias

I'm back but things are changing.

CV19 The weekly update.  Publishing date 8^th June 2020.

Yes as you can see I am changing the diary to a weekly update. There is not a great deal going on, well anything worthy of note from the Floodys, so I have decided that it will be more readable and that a weekly issue is the best way to go. If there are other things of note I will issue a breaking news or bulletin update.

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday this week have been much cooler and cloudier. We did have the promise of rain but that has yet to materialise into anything decent so I am still watering the garden. Our garden is looking stunning even if I say so myself, the age concern garden is less so, it is very dry and nearly devoid of plants in the raised bed. I cannot justify spending charity money on plants when there is no one there, and also they would just die with lack of water and care.

On Thursday night there was no clap for carers but we and our neighbours next-door and over the road met up for a drink in the road, much to the bewilderment of passers by. It was cold and we were only going to have a quick chat, so an hour and 20 minutes later when we finally got indoors was a bit of a shock. It was good to catch up and build relationships with people.

We walked down to Marlow this morning to see the one way system in action. Needless to say although it was very quiet, people were ignoring the signs and stickers on the pavement.. It’s very tempting to say something but staff in Asda have been abused for trying to encourage shoppers to abide by the rules.

I have taken some photos today of Marlow in the state of Lockdown. There was a massive queue of people waiting to go into Barclays bank, what are they doing I think they must be giving away freebies. Hahahaha. Also the Marlow Bridge is looking very nice with its new coat of white paint. Both Peregrines were in situ but not doing anything apart from sitting. A nice swoop or even a fly around the spire would be nice.

We have just watched Kate Garraway speaking about her husband who is still in hospital after 10 weeks. He is no longer in an induced coma but is seriously ill. Possibly in a comatose state, she did not elaborate. He is now Covid free but the disease has wreaked havoc over his entire body and the Drs are very uncertain that he will recover and have no idea what kind of life he will have if he does survive. It was a very harrowing description of what happened to him, he had none of the symptoms that we are told to look out for, but he did feel extremely ill and had trouble breathing. In these days when lockdown is being eased it was a stern reminder of why we have to be very very careful.

Friday afternoon we were bored, the weather deteriorated so we took to the summerhouse for a read, needless to say we both soon felt a bit sleepy and were nodding off both with the comical head jerking. We had intended to go out for the day but abandoned it and made do with the walk into town. Lockdown is very boring at times.

Surgical Facemasks are to be compulsory for all medical staff and face coverings to be used by all outpatients from 15^th June.

There is an r rate rise in the South West and North West, it is over 1 but the UK overall rate is still below 1. Surely there should be a lockdown of places that are over?

On Saturday 6^th the total of new infections for yesterday was  9400 as reported on my Covid study app. That is 17% down from last week. I report on our health everyday to the ZOE Covid symptom study. I have also signed up for a clinical trial with them, if I get taken ill.

The death rate has fallen a lot and is now down in double figures.

There are mass demonstrations all over the world “Black Lives Matter” I am not writing about this here only to say that people have not been social distancing and mass gathering have been taking place. Again watch this space in a couple of week’s time.

Horse racing started again last week, but no spectators. I wonder if the bookies are open or if it’s just online or phone betting.

Jeremy & Nic indulged in a takeaway from the Cornish arms on Friday night. Whilst waiting for the food to be cooked they were able to order a drink (or 2) and sit outside social distanced from with some friends, it was almost “normal” and they really enjoyed it.

Sunday morning I woke up with a feeling of dread, I have been having this quite a bit recently, not sure why it is happening but its very hard to shake off. A good long walk through Happy Valley did the trick but it is back again today. We met a couple whilst out waking yesterday and they told us of a nursery in Stokenchurch so we may pay that a visit sometime this week. It was nice to chat to someone different; we exchanged good walks and places to visit.

The Stay Inn was open for business on Saturday but due to the inclement turn in the weather, all drinking was taking place indoors.  It was so bad at one stage the Floodys had to turn the lights on amid a thunderstorm, well the rain did the garden good at least.

Quarantine for arrivals in the uk starts today.

Dentists are allowed to reopen today.

New Zealand has zero cases and is nearly back to normal.

The FTSE closed up on Friday at 6484 and is up again this morning.

Something to look forward to only 1 month, 4 ½ weeks or 31 days until I get my hair cut!

Keep looking for updates. I do aim to post on a Sunday morning. If you have important points or things that you feel should be recorded, please mail me safloody@sky.com. Have a good week everyone.

Happy Valley walk Sunday 7th June

West St Marlow 07.06.20

One way system marlow June 2020

Newly painted Bridge looking very smart.

Mural outside Sainsburys Marlow June 2020.

Out and about madness.

CV19 Monday and Tuesday 1^st &2^nd June 2020.

Monday saw us going for our usual shopping trip, however Waitrose had a massive queue so we decided to abandon that. We went to the farm shop and bought Strawberries and eggs. We spoke to the owner who went and got the Reindeer out of their stable for us. Currently they are moulting so not so pretty and we weren’t allowed to touch them. Their antlers are currently growing and very delicate, they are full of blood and covered in the velvet that they will rub off in the autumn. One Reindeer had knocked off one of his antlers and the vet had to be called out to cauterise it, the man said there was blood everywhere, poor thing.

Tuesday saw us up and about early doors, it was another glorious day with the promise of it being scorching. We went for a walk and were back home just after 9.30 when it really started to heat up. The weather is turning after tomorrow so we just made the most of the sunshine.

Lockdown easing is still as confusing as ever. Some people are just going back to normal, however the roads are still very quiet, so not going back to work then? People queued for 3 hours to get into Ikea, McDonald’s had such long queues that the police had to be called to move the cars along. I wrote the other day how the British public had obeyed the Stay at Home rule, but unfortunately the masses are showing their true colours at the moment, they are allowed to do it  but I have to ask the question why.

Petrol prices remain low at 99.7 in Asda. We nipped into ASDA after filling up the car it was a nightmare. Everyone disobeying the one-way system and social distancing we couldn’t wait to get out. Ian and I ended up having a spat as he joined in the “lets walk anywhere theme”. Other people are doing it he says, well that does not mean you have to join them! Anyway peace and sanity were restored as soon as we got outside. I find wearing a facemask unbearable, its so hot. How the NHS are able to wear all that PPE, I don’t know and we all know how hot hospitals are without all that extra gear on. I would not venture in ASDA without a mask or gloves, in fact it will be a long time until we venture in there again.

The rate of infection appears to still be coming down and the death rate is at its lowest. There are hotspots in the country mainly in the North East and Wales but the South is really low now.

The daily CV19 check in today asked us what if any vitamins we are taking and have been for the last 3 months. We have been taking vitamin D, I take it regularly a advised by the Dr, also find it helps my S.A.D. We also take other vitamins and omega 3.

Some Scientists are saying that we need to keep lockdown restrictions up and have advised not to reduce us into step 3. Others are saying that it will all be over by September and we should be allowed to go back to a normal life ASAP. There are also questions as to why BAME people were not more protected from the disease! Well until we got this thing no one knew how or who it it would affect the most.

Our bird feeder is currently being ransacked by a hoard of young Starlings, the BBT’s came for a visit too, mostly we can just hear them but I did get a glimpse of one fluffy yellow youngster.

I tried to ring the holiday company to see what was the earliest we would hear about the holiday and they are not taking phone calls, voice messages or emails.  Hmm well I suppose it might be clearer by the end of the week as I have a feeling Boris is under pressure to revise the quarantine ruling.

Well I must away to clean the bathroom. The weather is poor today, still warm but cloudy with the promise of some rain.

Dinner was BBQ lamb and mint kebabs, with a little glass of pink wine.

This is the buttercup field now has just be mown for hay.