Today I shall be Mainly...

[Gloria]

That sounds all sensible Sue. Xx

[PanBiker]

I've just had my walk and as soon as the Cathedral of Choice opens I shall go for milk.

Why don't you use one of the local milkmen Stanley? Cost a little bit more but supports the dairy farmers better. I can recommend Ian Greenwood, he does a range of other products also and it's all done online, (message on FB or ring). He delivers to us on Mon, Wed and Frid.

Ian Greenwood - Milkman - Barnoldswick

[Tizer]

Do air fryers cause cancer? Not only does air frying still run the risk of creating acrylamides, but polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heterocyclic amines can result from all high-heat cooking with meat. These compounds have associations with cancer risk, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Plaques, it's obviously time you started listening to Radio 4's excellent `Kitchen Cabinet' programme. There's nothing they like more than a good fry up and lots of butter!
`Jay Rayner hosts a culinary panel show packed full of tasty titbits that might change the way we think about food, cooking and eating. An expert panel answers audience questions.' Next episode: LINK

My cousin has just dropped off bread and eggs and we had a quick 2-metre chat from our porch. Great, now Mrs Tiz can bake more cake!

[plaques]

....now Mrs Tiz can bake more cake! Mrs P is in charge of all things culinary. Its more than my life's worth to get involved in these matters. On cake baking her output would put Greggs to shame. Most of this finishes up next door where the teenagers wolf it down. Spotlessly clean plates are usually returned with a complimentary bunch of flowers. Its not for me to say but somehow I think this trade is travelling in the wrong direction.

[Sue]

Prescription sorted and now in the post.

A busy day today, two online pilates sessions, a couple of Whats app connections. Briony , aged 8, as part of her school work had to read to someone using an online network. She read to me. She said I looked tired, very observant that one. Lots of gardening. I started edging our main lawn and flower beds. I cannot remember last time I did it. Bob laid some more rail on his railway. I have started with hay fever! Spot on time, daffodils going over and I start sneezing.

[Big Kev]

...gardening. I don't do gardening but have spent a couple of hours this afternoon digging weeds, out of the beds, in my little front yard. It's dangerous work around rose bushes, I thought I was in for major blood loss

[PanBiker]

Leave an armful for Blood Donors Kev.

[Marilyn]

I had a GP consult via phone today. A bit strange, but Dr said he would leave a script at Reception for me.
An hour later I headed to the surgery...it was packed to the brim. Script hadn’t yet made it to the receptionist...had to wait 10 minutes in a packed surgery. Why had they offered me the phone consult? I would have got the same exposure waiting for a face to face appointment.
Then I had to run the gauntlet at the Chemist.
They were not overly packed, but scripts had a 30 min wait time (and please don’t wait inside the Chemist).
So I went to buy some bread and get out through the express lane where there are social distancing markers on the floor. All worked well until a sweet old lady came and stood alongside me...so close we were touching. I gave her as much room as I possibly could, pushing myself against the fixtures, but she cuddled closer.
After escaping her, I stood in the quietest possible corner I could find, to wait out my time for script collection.
What I observed in that 20 mins really annoyed me. The passing parade was mostly...wait for it!...Grandparents with school aged children in tow! I was appalled. ( for starters children are supposed to be home-schooled, shouldn’t be at the shops at 10am on a weekday. Grandparents shouldn’t be caring for school aged children that do not live with them. Older persons should shop in the dedicated hour in the mornings to lessen their risk of exposure.). Why aren’t people taking this thing far more seriously?!
Anyway, all that exposure for me today made a complete farce of a GP appointment via phone.
Time to sit with a cup of Tea and get these anxiety levels down...

[Stanley]

Glad the medication looks as though it is sorted Sue! That must have been a worry. Very little to cause hayfever here yet.
Ian, that thought has crossed my mind but I like the walk to the Co-op and the social interaction with the staff, my life style gives me very little of that.
Today will be normal routines including a bit of shed. Saw a friend yesterday for the first time for a few days and my God he looks terrible! Worrying... Onward and upwards!

[Sue]

...gardening. I don't do gardening but have spent a couple of hours this afternoon digging weeds, out of the beds, in my little front yard. It's dangerous work around rose bushes, I thought I was in for major blood loss

I think ours is mainly cutting back, pruning, weeding, mowing the grass. Yesterday was the start of many days edging the lawn and flower beds.Today there is a thick frost, I hope our pear tree blossom survived.

Today there are lots of online pilates classes but I shall only do the yoga ay 9.00 pm our time. Its good fun, lots of good humoured banter. It is what is needed

We have decided Wednesday afternoon is not a normal shopping day for the french so may do a bit of shopping. We don’t need much, just a top up on a few essentials, and see if there are a few different things we fancy. I am trying to cut down on the veg, to reduce the amount of Imodium I need. Today we shall also go to the pharmacist to try and buy some. Then that will be our weekly outing done. No walks out and about here. I would rather not anyway, just keep to ourselves and safe. There are over 240 cases in the whole of Brittany mainly centred round Vannes, Nantes and Rennes with a few on the north coast.

[Sue]

Maz, our scripts are emailed to a chemist of choice. Our choice is a bad one! Poor service but it is next door to the surgery. Claire said there were queues outside but people were keeping their distance.

[Marilyn]

My thoughts exactly Sue. If the surgery emailed my script direct to the chemist, then the chemist messaged to say it was ready it would have saved an hour+ of exposure for me.
I don’t know why they haven’t thought of that! I certainly did as I hovered nervously in the corner of the shopping centre. Made a total mockery of a telephone GP appointment.
I am ok now, but was stressed out by it this morning. I am not particularly stressed about my own health...more worried about my husband’s welfare. He goes down like a 20 storey building when he gets sick.

[Wendyf]

The phone consults are probably to protect the GP and staff at the surgery rather than the patients Maz.

[Marilyn]

I know Wendy. And we must protect the medical staff of course. I just got a shock to see the surgery so full.
( I left hubby home, and scrubbed my hands as soon as I got home of course.)
One weird thing that kind of tilted reality for me was that I noticed the florist shop full and bursting with flowers, as if everything was normal and business as usual...
These are very odd times.

[Sue]

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Our neighbour sent us this

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This is the reality

[Stanley]

I've had a nice hour in the shed. Now for a short walk for Jack and breakfast.
I am managing to ignore my front garden.......

[Cathy]

Day #. I think it’s Day # of Isolation, I can’t be sure.
Up, cup of tea, check the News and get caught up in whatever else the talking heads are talking about.
Shower, open windows and doors, make bed, get dressed.
Stay away from the talking heads.
Might go shopping, and try my luck.
Must remember to do some indoor exercises, and go for a walk at some stage today.
11.30 ish. Meeting with the Prime Minister.
Lunch - late again, PM has so much to say, not to mention the Finance Minister, the Health Minister, this Minister and yes , that Minister.
Must look at my ‘Things to do when I have nothing to do’ List, and find something to do!
3.00 ish. Coffee with Bradley and a few others, as we Chase each other, trying to answer all manner of questions. Oh - more news interrupting!
4.00 News. No thanks.
5.30 ish. Evening Meal. Escape for awhile, then go on a Bargain Hunt.
Any random time during the evening- another meeting with the Prime Minister, and any other Ministers.

[Tizer]

I've put links to some `covid coping' tips on the Household Tips topic LINK

I mentioned last week about the long queues at our local chemist. They've got longer and now go all the way around the courtyard and past the doors of the Tesco Express store so you have to brave breaking the queue to get your bottle of milk. We've now worked out why it's so busy at the chemist's. Many of the local residents probably get their stuff in normal times from the big chemist's shops in the centre of town but now they're staying at home all the time they come to the local one next to the surgery. It's a small shop and they can let only a few people in at a time and don't have enough staff for this level of demand.

[Sue]

Got the Imodium , thanks Stanley. Two packs of 12.

[Marilyn]

Keeping busy. Cooked a cake, decided what is for tea tonight, two loads of washing now out on the line, cleaned the bathroom, and am now doing Ancestry ( as well as being distracted by my husband who seems to have multiple computer problems today - mostly lost emails!). He gets in a bit of a knot if he can’t find something, largely due to the fact that he has zero patience.
I still plan to clean out my wardrobe, but have to work up the enthusiasm for it. I’ve opened the doors and drawers several times and closed them again. Must be in the mood to inflict that degree of boredom on myself.

Once again, I find I have plenty of Ancestry filing to do. I soon get into the zone of doing that, but with all the interruptions I have to have my head in two camps.
Not watching news services today until the evening news comes on. That is one less distraction. There is no good news anyway.

[Stanley]

I'm avoiding the news as much as possible as well Maz but was heartened by the fact that over 250,000 volunteers for NHS etc. came forward in last 24 hours. Nice!
Sue, glad Imodium is sorted, now you don't have to stay within running distance of the lavatory! (I know the feeling at times...... )
I shall be in the shed as well as the other activities, it's going nicely!



Best of luck to you all in finding things to do. If all else fails consider sex, they tell me it's good for you....

[Cathy]

I wonder how many ‘extra’ babies will be born in the next 9 to 15 months?

[Marilyn]

ZERO here Cazza!

Animals have sex when they are stressed, Stanley. I think we have evolved...

[Stanley]

Cathy has a point, I suspect the birth rate will go up!
Maz, so do humans!

[Marilyn]

Not all humans...some of us stick to age appropriate rates of engagement!