At last you say. Hope its worth the wait.

Well it’s been rather a long time since I last posted. I have been shamed into updating this by Mr Davison who has quite rightly made me feel guilty about not posting.

The world is still suffering with the Covid virus, the economy is struggling to recover, people are still furloughed and reluctant to get back to work. On one hand the message is just get on with your life and the other is hang on a minute nothings changed and all these precautions and rules have to be abided by. Having your haircut by someone wearing a face shield is just weird. Public health announcements are broadcast in shops as are safe distancing warnings.
Adverts for holidays are back on the TV whilst it is reported that there is a spike in Spain and that the air bridges might get closed down. America is still ignoring the fact although DT has been wearing a facemask (sometimes) Things are bad in Brazil and it is resurfacing in Australia. Holiday abroad anyone, No? I didn't think so.

What's been occurring with us, well the walking has got less,  the socialising has increased, the biscuit intake decreased, cake making and consumption increased and as for the wine consumption best not go there.
One day we drove down to Knepp a farm near Horsham that has been reverted (rewilded) back to nature. It’s is an amazing place, you really need to read up about it if you visit otherwise you will just think the place has gone to rack and ruin. Tamworth pigs, Exmoor ponies, Longhorn Cattle and Deer all roam free and are totally left to their own devices. There are no fences except around the perimeter, so you never know what you might encounter along the way. The main reason for the visit was to see some storks that have been released in the farm. Brought in from Russia they have nested and bred chicks for the 1st time in 660 years in the UK. We saw 3 chicks in a nest and 13 of them soaring away on thermals way up high. It was a very strange sight to see on the South Downs. It was a lovely hot day and as we were near to Liz and Ray we popped in for a chat and ended up staying for a very nice dinner.
Neighbours night keeps shifting from Thursday to Friday and back again, it is also getting longer and longer, last night we were still sitting in our garden at gone midnight. Wednesday we also had people round for dinner that was an 11 o’clock finish. We are pleased that people like our company and feel comfortable staying but I am going to have to set an alarm off on a timer or something as I am missing out on my sleep.
Various people have come round for coffee and cake too. Our downstairs loo is kept for visitors I am bleaching it and changing hand towels almost on a daily basis. All this is done within social distancing and as much care as possible.
Ian has been randomly selected for a COVID test via the NHS, this is a home test and he will receive it in the post, I expect that it will be me that administers it with much gagging and choking from MrF.
😝
With all the comings and goings here we decided to order a gazebo, well it’s either too hot outside or drizzly even if it’s warm and our parasol is proving to be inadequate. As we are not allowed and don’t want people in the house the gazebo option was the best idea. Also it should fit down by the bifold doors so we could have a bit of an outdoor extension going in. However the gazebo has not arrived, Amazon say it maybe stuck in transit, maybe! They can’t seem to tell me where it is although it is said to have shipped, you may gather I am less than impressed by this.
Also we were badly let down by Halfords who were supposed to be cleaning and re-gassing  our air con in the Saab. After an hour and a half of waiting around the shops they rang to say they couldn’t do it as the machine was not working ( they knew this the day before I later found out) and when we went to collect the car it was unlocked and all the windows down, in the centre of High Wycombe. They have offered me a £20 voucher as compensation which as yet has not arrived.
Also I have not received £24 refund from a plant company that sent me the wrong plants, we still await the refund of our Portugal holiday so I had better do some chasing up.
We have now completed the Age concern front garden which is looking rather good, a chap did all the hard work with help from Ian and I did the pretty planting bit.
There has been no rain here for a long time and the lawn is suffering, we were supposed to be getting thunder and lightning today but so far it has not arrived. The wind has got up so maybe it will arrive  soon.
We are watching the cricket, the players have all been isolated for 2 months, their hair tells the tale. Hair bands are much in use and they do look rather strange.
Face masks or should I say coverings are now compulsory in shops and we have a good assortment. I am finding them rather claustrophobic and hot, however this has the upside of a faster shop so I can get outside and remove the wretched thing.

Both Ian & I have visited the hairdressers, Ians hairdresser was quite impressed with my handywork. My gym is reopening today and whilst I really need to go (the cake is making itself known around my middle) I am loathe to do so. They have reduced the space in the changing rooms to make it easier to clean, which in my mind decreases the safe distancing space. Also I don't understand why you can't sing in church or a choir for fear of spreading droplets but you don't have to wear a mask in the gym class where you are only 2 meters from the person in front or to the side of you whilst you are puffing away at your exercise.

Now then what have we been eating?

Grilled gammon with lambs lettuces and nectarine salsa.
Chicken Piri Piri
Beef Koftas and Salad.
Chicken Basque
Parmigiana Melanzane
Seared Tuna
Sea Bass
Fish Goujons
Beef Rendang
Bangladeshih curry (too hot)
Lentil Ragu
Lamb Steaks
Pan Fried Beef Medallions
Grilled Mackerel.

Coffee cake
Sorrento Sunshine cake (recipe available)
Raspberry Semifreddo

We've had a holiday day.

Tuesday July 7th 2020.

The hankering for the sea had become insufferable. The weather looked better down on the south coast so after much planning and umming and ahhing we threw somethings in the car and took off to Littlehampton West Sussex.

Littlehampton has 2 beaches either side of the river Arun. The east beach is a bit scuzzy, some amusements, people probably lots of people. Whereas the west beach is a nature reserve a pebbly beach and sand dunes. So we have options, at present we are not wanting to be anywhere near anyone else and don't want to make the drive all the way there to have to a swift turnabout if the beaches are crowded.

Clearing blue skies herald our approach and the temperature rises, despite making several wrong turns and adding some minutes to the commute and to the atmosphere in the car we eventually arrive at the seaside. Both are busting for a pee, the beach cafe is closed and as I walk towards the loos and see padlocks I fear a trip into the dunes. Tentatively trying the door whilst holding my breath (public loos can hold all manner of surprises) it opens and inside is clean, sigh of relief and then a greater relief.

Strong semi warm wind blows into our faces as we descend on the pebble bank. It is almost void of people only a few near to the entrance to the beach, people don't like to walk far.  The pebble bank is massive, multicoloured rounded treasures, I love looking for special stones and seem to have always liked foraging out that special one. It's not very often I come away from the beach without some little treasure safely tucked in a pocket somewhere. Over the ridge of the bank and down on to a sandy strip left by the outgoing tide, we stride along the beach and marvel at the colour of the sea, if you add a bit more heat into the day and erase the pebbles and shingle from the picture you could be somewhere in the Caribbean it it stunningly beautiful. Walking as far as we can on the beach we sit atop some rocks and drink our coffee whilst listening to the swish of the waves and feel the sun on our faces, until the tide reaches our perch and we have to dash back away from the waves.

Off the beach and out of the wind it is very warm and we stroll along the nature reserve until we hit the sand dunes. Fine soft warm sand trickles inside our shoes it is a very lovely welcome feeling. I don't want to leave here, it is peaceful a different world, natural and soul reviving. Down to earth as the car parking is about to run out and we are hungry.

We cross the river Arun and enter Littlehampton, some parts of it are very lovely and some parts are in need of some TLC. We queue for fish and chips at Oscas. Only 5 people allowed inside at any one time, queue outside once you have placed your order. Not many people here so felt safe, we did toy with the idea of going into a restaurant but neither of us felt right about it anyway you can only eat fish and chips out of the paper sitting outside when at the coast. Ian is hunched over the crispy battered fish fiercely guarding it as the gulls swoop overhead, I don't fancy the gulls chances much.

Feast over we depart Littlehampton and make for Arundel just up the road it has a beautiful castle and is a very pretty town. We pootle about there and visit a dress shop I like, then we have a cup of tea and share a scone before making the drive home which was much less eventful than the drive there. We had a fabulous day and it was like being on holiday.

We were supposed to be in Portugal doing a Trip down the Douro today but as things go this more than made up for it. We have also made plans to come a stay here for a few days when it is safer to do so.

Covid 19 diary ceases

A drop in reader numbers due in the main I suspect to the boring content has lead me to cease the publishing of the Covid 19 diary. I am hoping that I will not have to return to another record of that type again.
Thank you for your support it helped me get through those very strange early days and hopefully made a decent record of events for future reference. It was nice to know there were people out there reading it.

Do not despair, I am going to write up events of our life which will hopefully become more interesting very soon. In fact I will write one up later today.

Mrs F

Super Saturday or Spreader Saturday?

Covid 19 June 30^th to July 4^th 2020.

This week we passed 100 days since the UK was locked down.

We were a bit tired on Monday after a busy weekend and staying up until 11.30 on Sunday watching David Bowie at Glastonbury did not help matters.

The birthday coffee cake was superb as was the Scampi Provençale. I made a banana loaf alter in the week, which was like a soggy brick, it tasted nice but very wet.

We nipped to Aldi, the roads in town are nearly back to normal traffic wise, although there are still a lot of people working from home. I remember venturing out in April and feeling guilty for driving to the supermarket and not seeing another car on the road. Tuesday was a drizzly day but we managed to keep going in the garden and filled up the green bin. I then reproofed the hood on the Saab having been shamed into it by Martyn.  It does look a bit better but it is past its best I fear.

Wednesday I went for a walk with the “walking group” girls.  They walk at a canny speed and I found it hard to keep up. Also Sue took us up along Sheepridge lane which was overgrown with nettles and thistles so we all got stung and pricked. I was not very happy, loved the company but I like a walk not a route march, also felt bad that they had to keep waiting for me, it took the shine off a bit. We stopped at Adele’s for a coffee after and she had made me a strawberry and cream birthday cake it was delicious.

The weather has been a bit off here this week, warm and a bit drizzly at times, windy too with the occasional downpour.

Ian went walking on Thursday; the weather was looking reasonable when he set off however they did get caught in  torrential rain. I was a bit concerned, as he had only taken a pack-a-mac with him. When they arrived back home they had mostly dried out but had had a good drenching.

Thursday night Suzy & Paul M, Donna and Paul T came round for our weekly chat. It was very nice as always. Suzy is back at work she is currently working on Jurassic park. Paul is looking for another film to work on and is currently lined up for 3. It was very interesting to hear them talking about actors, Suzy says Claire Foy is the most amazing actress she has ever met. She can turn on tears and emotion at the click of a finger. Paul T is a bank manager and his new client is Gino D’Acampo he says he is totally mad, but just like he is on the TV. As I say very nice and different conversation too. Although it was a bit chilly and overcast we sat outside until 10 to 10.

Donna S and Kev have had a big falling out with Suzy and Paul M over car parking.  There has been shouting in the street mainly from Donna S. We are keeping our heads down over that one.

There are too many Pauls and Donnas here now sorry for any confusion.

Marion (2 doors down) is back from hospital but is unable to look after herself so she has gone to live with her daughter down the road. The son has been in to Marion’s house and ransacked it and taken a load of stuff. Paul M (next to us) had the police round to ask if he had seen anything and what were the family like as the son is reporting that the Mother has kidnapped the mother to get her money and the house. Larry (Marion’s husband) died at the start of the pandemic (don’t think he has been buried yet) and she has been alone most of the time since then. She had a fall and has been in hospital for a few weeks.

What a lot of goings on.

I did some work down at the Age Concern Garden on Friday morning then we tried to patch up where we knocked the render off the garage wall. So far it looks ok, will probably get up in the morning and find it has slid off.

This afternoon at 4 we have a zoom meeting with 8 people. They are all the ones that we went to Glastonbury Festival with the very 1^st time. Ian and I are thinking we will just be sitting there while everyone else talks over each other, I have not done an 8 person virtual chat before, I am sure it will prove interesting. Simon will probably have some rules about who can talk when. It was ok actually and worked quite well. Nice to catch up although some plans were made to revisit the festival the year after next. Hmmm

Helen thinks that she will loose her job next week, Simon is not enjoying his job at present as with the need for cleaning hospitals etc increased, the demand for goods is high and supply is difficult.

Rhiannon has gone to Tenby with Sophie, pretty sure she is not allowed to do that just yet, but Jeremy’s parents are vulnerable and you are allowed to travel to a bubble. Rhiannon said she was nervous when driving in case she got stopped.

Saturday morning we took a stroll down into the town to see what is happening with pubs opening etc. Still fairly quiet, a lot of the shops are still shut, some have permanently closed. The chain restaurants are not opening just yet and many of the pubs are not opening on the 4^th. The Old Brewery was open in the high street and had a few people inside early doors. The main thing were the queues for the barbers, and people sitting outside whilst they waited, it looked fairly quiet in the hairdressers on the High St. though. Strange to see people wearing masks and face shields whilst cutting and having their haircut. The farmers market was on so we had a stroll around there. A pop up pub was selling pints of beer and wine, this woman had a pint of lager as she was walking down the street and said to someone it's been a long 3 months. Do you think she hasn’t had a drink at all during this time and does she normally walk down Marlow High St with a pint of beer, no I don’t think so either, but I might be wrong.

The Stay Inn was open on Saturday, all the beer gardens were closed due to inclement weather although it was 20 degrees in Marlow but windy and showery. The St Merryn contingent were late in attendance as they had been out into Padstow to visit a new drinking venue that had just opened that day, the previous owner of Bin Two has another new business it looks very nice and judging by the merriment of the Griffins a good time was had by all. Mind you if they are taking their custom elsewhere the Stay inn might have to go into administration, as it can’t afford to lose any customers.

Traffic jams were reported heading down to the South coast on Saturday, the A303 had miles and miles of traffic queuing and also the M5 was rammed. Is this how the virus will re spread or are we safe? It's a big question and I think we all know the answer, hopefully we are wrong but the Scientists keep telling us we MUST socially distance or it will spike again.

It appears that in the main people were drinking and social distancing responsibly.  In London there were crowded streets and pubs, the Government has again warned us to look at the rest of the world and see that second waves are happening

We should have flown out to Lisbon on Wednesday  for a Lisbon, Porto break. We will get a full refund less £5 for ATOL charges. What is that all about?? The taxi company have given us a voucher to use next time we are there, that might be fun trying to get that back. Its only £19 so no big deal, but cheeky. I am sure I will be able to transfer it somewhere else.

The virus is on the increase again and Leicester has gone into lockdown, only essential shops open and travel is restricted and the schools have to close again. They say lack of social distancing is to blame. This is the 1^st local lockdown in the UK  there is a spike of 800+ cases in Leicester.

Britons working from home have spent £2 billion on office equipment. Estate agents say that people looking to move have office space as one of the must have requirements.

Bucks Council have ordered 850 laptops and routers for vulnerable pupils to enable them to study at home.

Café rouge and Bella Italia have gone bust and most importantly the lovely card and gift shop in Bourne End has gone under too.

Scotland has announced that wearing of face coverings in all shops will be compulsory from July 10^th.

Air Bridges have been announced but Nicola Sturgeon is not allowing flights into Scotland.

Pubs can open at 6am tomorrow morning 4^th July.  (We won't be setting our alarms for that)

You can get married now but must wash your hands immediately after exchanging rings. No singing allowed either.

The FTSE 100 is bobbing around the 6150 to 6250 all week.

I went shopping on Thursday into Wycombe and it was noticeable how many people were wearing face coverings. Just visited 1 shop out of the town, didn’t go anywhere near the town centre.

People went to the hairdressers at midnight last night, they have waited 100+ days a few hours surely won't make that much difference. Then as its early hours of the morning they go home and sleep and mess it up. Duh!

Reading this back there has been a bit too much Cake going on.

Not a queue for Sainsburys but the barbers next door.

Outside the Coach.