Covid-19

Covid-19 – Week eleven: beginning 18/05/2020

What a weekend? I can’t stop thinking about what a great time I and the 1,400 Facebook users in the group and their families had. In the debrief today, when we shared our favourite posts from Facebook, we all realise that we have been part of something unique, special, the effect of which cannot be measured by stats. Scouting has been well and truly unleashed over the county of Durham. And one thing is for sure – this is only the beginning.

The week is flying over and that it not normal for this time of the month. Take last month as a typical example, I was lounging around, craving every food under the sun I know I shouldn’t eat or should at least moderate my intake of, all the while feeling sorry for myself. If you haven’t already guessed, this is period week.

Yet this month is different.  It may be drizzly rain, but as I approach 30 minutes, I cannot believe I have only gone and smashed the couch to 5k. I am ecstatic, proud, beaming: if you had asked me nine weeks ago I never would have thought I could jog more than a few minutes, never mind the half an hour I can now jog at ease. I think that seals the deal; I am now a fully-fledged jogger. No more will I write on my new year’s resolution list to join a gym. I don’t need to trap myself indoors, because I am a jogger. I can jog anywhere and enjoy the beautiful outdoors rather than being cooped up in a gym building. I can also save money in the long run that I can invest in jogging clothes. Well if this new fitter lifestyle is not a positive of Covid-19, I don’t know what is?

It seems as time passes since the outbreak of the pandemic and in my case time is going quickly, elements of my life are getting better. I feel I am gaining more balance in the form of exercise, food exploration and health. It’s like being shut off from the real world and living in the virtual has gained me more time than just the morning rush hour commute to work. I feel like I have time. Time for me, time to focus on what is important. Time to Scout and help others. Last week I had time to prepare for a weekend of Scouting at home. But recently I have time to connect more with family and friends as technology closes the miles between us. Time to start blogging and here is the outcome of that pursuit.

However, I am delighted by the lifting of some sanctions. The fact Lady and I can now go out whenever for outdoor exercise is a welcome relief. There is only so much in-house exercise you can do with a Labrador Retriever and I mean that on both sides. Lady loves fetch, tug of war, treat toys, puzzle toys, hide and seek with any toy and any affection or attention. But it isn’t the same as a walk. So I will start by saying I forgive her for all her energetic responses to my exercising. Yep, she is a team player. When I have been exercising in the house Lady tries to join in. During yoga, she shows affection by giving kisses, moving under me, and lying pressed up against me usually while I am trying to balance on one leg. When I’m on the stepper she jumps up at me, while running on the spot or step she tries to join in or claim the spot I am using. At the time I have and do find this annoying. But in hindsight she is cute and very affectionate. And as it hasn’t featured in my blog much until now, it honestly mustn’t have been a terrible experience.

In fact, none of my current predicament is terrible. I am seeing, how I feel about everything that happens is all a matter of perspective. Take today, as I empty the dishwasher my mind on the next task, until my partner points out the item I am drying is in fact dirty, along with the rest of the items – only joking he stopped me at one item. It turns out neither of us had remembered to set the dishwasher off the night before. Hilarious as this sounds, a domestic was looming, but not today. Today I giggled at my lack of concentration and leaned in for an affectionate embrace.

I just don’t feel in a rush anymore. Lady and I are choosing walks based on things we want to see, rather than how much time we have. Yet the wind is rushing us along today, it is literally blowing us to Kansas. Nature is being animated by the wind: leaves are dancing through the air along the paths like something out of a Disney or Pixar movie.

On our walk today, we pass an old lady, all wrapped up and sitting on her drive. She greets us, and not in any rush we pause to talk. But what to talk to a stranger about? A stranger who is stuck in the house due to the pandemic. Yet I don’t think, I just start.

“How are you?”

“Very well and you?”

“We are both well and enjoying our walk.”

“She is lovely, what is her name?”

“Lady.”

The conversation continued now directed at the dog.

“Is this your first walk Lady?”

Now of course the conversation should go silent here and yet we both know I filled in the gaps. Lady sits down and looks between the Lady and I, which adds to the effect of a conversation.

“Second, unlike last week I get to go out lots now.”

“I’m so glad to hear, I am getting outside now more too. And where are you walking to today?”

“We are almost there, to the cemetery,”

“Well, I will let you go, enjoy your walk,”

As we left, I noticed a change in the woman, her smile for one, like mine filled her face. Her joy at our conversation made me realise how even the small things can make a big difference to someone’s day. I know now, we will try to see her again by walking this way tomorrow. The thought of bringing joy to one person each day is making me feel more alive and reminding me the world is still moving and can be filled with joy.

One of the things recently I find joy in is sweets. A yummy reward after working hard. The sugar releasing a new burst of energy that makes me feel ready to face the unknown. I am trying to moderate these treats and recording them as part of my Slimming World plan, which is helping me feel in control and stopping me from eating a whole family pack.

Today on my walk, I can smell sweets specifically refreshers bars and lemon sherbets. As I walk on, the wind blows vanilla and amaretto my way and I gulp it in like a sweet treat. As I turn the corner, fresh cut grass tickles my nose like a sweet shop of treats. Then it starts, the symptoms that always seem to come when the weather improves. A tickly throat, ready to cough unexpectantly, an itchy face and then my streaming nose and eyes. But today I am already armed with an antihistamine taken this morning, so the symptoms are mild, and I welcome them so the sweet smells can linger.

Nevertheless, other parts of my life are less sweet. Even though, sanctions have been lifted and we can go out whenever we want, I find myself anxious, worried, and less likely to leave the house. I’m not alone – right? There is more movement, more cars, and more people outside. The peak of the virus has passed, but this is far from over. And so for the first time since the outbreak, I mask and add plastic gloves as an added barrier before going into the shops.

The shops are a massive trigger of my worry, and totally warranted as we go about our weekly shop while being invaded from all angles by other hungry shoppers. The queue to get into our local supermarket may have been short, but inside it’s chaos: wedged isles, queues down isles for the tills, some – lots of people not following the one-way system and others impatient push past neglectful of social distancing. My anxiety is rising, my head is spinning, as I watch in slow motion at the lack of the two meter social distancing. I imagine I am wearing a two metre skirted dress that fellow shoppers are bouncing off when they come too close, thus protecting me from this madness.

I try to focus on my list, crossing off items as we trail up and down the isles like snails. I stare at empty or depleted shelves and am surprised that product stocks still have not recovered since March. It’s the random products that you would think no one else would want that surprise me, like a lemon meringue mix, coconut and well let’s face it the full home baking isle. But then that is what some people are doing with their acquired time. Yet today, what is more frustrating is that, in some isles it is not stock shortages leaving shelves bare, but rather that the supermarket staff still cannot replenish the shelves quick enough to keep up with demand. So as I stare in disbelief at an empty shelf and the product sitting on the top storage shelf out of reach. I wish I was a giant or had a pet giraffe. If only right, so like normal during Covid-19 we go home without items on my Mam’s or our list.

I am not saying this is anyone’s fault, there is so much to prioritise and cram into the day. But I can’t help questioning why are the shops so busy, so much busier than before? More people have not suddenly arrived in Sunderland. People are still buying more than they need and the shops are still struggling to accommodate for this. Surely things will get back to a more ‘normal’ soon before we all turn into mad hatters and end up in Wonderland.