“Aren’t you going to get rid of that?”

I’ve never been reluctant to use a bin before. However, I didn’t realise I was getting bin picky. On our walk today I was carrying the bag when we passed a bin.

“Aren’t you going to get rid of that?”

“No sticks handy.”

Well let’s just say the look my partner gave me is a ‘you are mad’ look and I’m not sure if he’s right.

But I literally only use open bins or ones I can open with a stick.

P-p-pick up a penguin? Lady sniffs out a penguin biscuit wrapper on our walk today and no way do I pick it up. But I do read it: How do penguins get around? The answer I will never know as I don’t touch anything other people might have without a glove or hand sanitiser. I can’t help feeling reminiscent of youth. I used to love these biscuits. A time when Christmas jokes could make an appearance all year round. But I haven’t had one in years. If I did, I would need a warm drink.

I’ve tried it black, milky, with sugar, flavoured and the rest. Coffee and tea are just not for me. But offer me a hot chocolate any day and I’ll bite your hand off. So, with my 40cal hot chocolate I enjoy a relaxing evening with my fiancé watching tv, just minus the penguin.

The walks throughout the week continue to show how much has changed and yet some things never change. Lady and I even re-route today on our evening stroll. Even out of covid-19 I would have rerouted. It would have been cruelty on all animals involved if we hadn’t. As Lady and I watch a cat meet up, of no less than half a dozen cats, in a back lane. I bet they were all from different households too. I guess nobody informed the cats about the lockdown measures.

Yet on the other hand, as lockdown eases, I never thought I would ever say this, but I want the one-way system back please. This week at the shops the one-way system has gone, unleashing utter carnage. With masks not yet mandatory wear in shops, no one way systems, what hope did we have? There are unmasked people coming at me in all directions, social distancing seems to be lapse – no change there then from my experiences thus far. But I am masked and gloved up so feel a little safer. If only people could follow the 2 metre distancing floor markings my shopping dreams would be complete. It really is the simple things I cherish in the new normal. I have embraced the adaptations to my shopping experience, so why take them away before Covid is gone?

What a week at work! Now after a week off I knew it was lightly to be busy, but not reordering a growing list every day. With plenty to do I am multitasking to get through the essential tasks most days. That is until midweek, when I miss a message, a colleague suggests focusing on one job at a time might be more effective. When Friday comes the week has flown over, the list still exists, but I feel better having worked more logically on one task at a time.

I end Friday with a relaxing treat. Massage day has finally arrived. It’s been a lifetime, well just under 4 months, since I had my last holistic treatment. When I arrive, masked up I am greeted by a similar sight, with the additions of a face visor, gloves and a disposable apron. I complete a disclaimer, something that is becoming the norm for trips outside the home, then I lie between biodegradable disposable towels. I thought I would feel odd being massaged by gloved hands, yet after almost drifting off a few times I leave feeling very relaxed and warm. I can’t wait for my next visit. Todays’ massage is a welcomed reminder that with some added precaution measures we can enjoy the hobbies we had before Covid-19.

My imagination for one is still creating. In the park on Saturday I meet bin hero, a black caped superhero of the park. To the normal eye our superhero may appear to be a bin bag blowing in the wind. But we know better. Looks like looking for an open bin is the last of my worries today, think I’ll be taking my litter home. But it is a lovely windy walk that blows away my weekly worries.

We end the week on a high with a weekend of relaxing than began with my massage, then walks, mid-day naps, movies, computer games and meal planning for the week ahead. When Saturday evening arrives, I feel like I might be wasting the weekend by not getting the jobs in the house done. However, the jobs will still be there tomorrow, so I allow my body to lead me into more relaxing. I think as humans we all do this at times, think about the endless lists of jobs awaiting us at home. Living in lockdown, working from home, and being within four walls most of the day, seeing jobs and mess is unavoidable. But what I choose to do with my down time I can control, and this weekend I am choose chillaxing.