There are lots of things helping to keep me sane during this lockdown.
I thought today I would list just a few.
Television.
When there's nothing on the box, we at least have the recordings we have already made over the last few weeks and of course we have DVDs. We have already worked our way through a couple of box sets, finishing Scott and Bailey last night. I have a feeling Luther might be next, then maybe Vera. On the tv we have been watching copious amounts of Midsomer Murders ... do you see a theme.
I just need to find a few CSIs and have a bit of a recap, and then I'll know how to dispose of Alan's body in the least discoverable way if he starts to get on my nerves 😉
Having a son with a degree and a Masters in Forensics might come in handy yet!!
Nature
We've been refiling all the bird baths and drinking stations every day. Watching the birds drink and bathe, along with all the busily flitting insects and buzzy giant bumble bees is relaxing and makes us take ten minutes out from whatever we are doing outside to watch.
All coffee breaks have been taken on the patio during the day so we can relax into nature and feel revived. Thank goodness for the beautiful sunshine we have had almost every day since lockdown. All showers and wet spells have been overnight, which is very unusual here in North Wales. It's as though Mother nature is looking after us.
Our paddock.
Without the large paddock our dogs would have had nowhere to exercise, it's been a godsend. Each morning Alan walks them round it a couple of times and every afternoon we spend 20 - 30 minutes sitting on the grass chatting to each other and waving to passing buses, ambulances, cyclists and people we know as they whizz past on the road, while the dogs explore and sniff.
Flowers
No matter where they bloom, whether we planted them or nature just sent us some beautiful 'weeds', it's as though my eyes are drawn to the colours and shapes and I sink deep into the beauty that is all around us.
Something I haven't got is an Easter Egg ... a chocolate one or one with a Pug inside either would do. But we have been good and remained at home, no shopping has been needed by us as we have spent our days chomping our way through the contents of the fridge and freezer, so there have been no outings to anywhere that might have sold a dairy-free egg..
Try as I might I couldn't find an Easter Egg anywhere in the house, I have been forgotten by the Easter Bunny 😢
💖 Happy Easter Everyone 💖
And sending lots of love to blogging buddy John, fingers crossed for a good outcome after his test. 🤞
Sue xx
Aww, no choccy eggs? So sorry.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness we can get outside at present, and enjoy our gardens, and queuing outside a supermarket is not difficult when I am standing in the sun with my Kindle. Standing outside a grocery store in driving rain and wind is going to be no picnic . . .
I know ... bad planning eh!!
DeleteFingers crossed that the rain continues to be overnight only ... it did it again last night, the sun is back out this morning :-)
Yes I agree Sue, the weather has helped with self isolation. My walking is very bad at present but at least I can have doors and windows open and sit in the garden. Happy Easter to you all (not forgetting the pug) And yes I think we all have our fingers crossed for John.
ReplyDeleteYou're so lucky to have the garden, apart from the worry of the imminent return of the Mares Tail it is lovely. I love how John's friends in the village have all rallied to his aid, he's in the best place.
DeleteVera, Midsomer, Lewis, NCIS (the original, with Gibbs) - nothing better for taking you out of yourself for a few hours - knowing that it will all work out at the end.
ReplyDeleteThe weather is beautiful, but a bit odd at this time of year. We are having to water pots and fill bird baths. My greenhouse water-butts are half-empty. We'll have to get the hose out if it doesn't rain soon!
Sorry you are egg-less. Bad planning there! Enjoy otherwise!
I must have seen every episode (except the most recent as we don't have Sky) of NCIS at least twice, Alan loves to lose himself in them. I too only like the original series with Gibbs, the others are poor imitations. He's also quite into old reruns of The Professionals.
DeleteLuckily our underground water storage tank is huge so we have lots of water for using in the polytunnel and for filling all the outside drinkers still.
Terrible planning on my part to be eggless!!
Happy Easter, Sue and family. We have been watching NCIS from the begining, we are now up to season 6. When we have watched it all I may go back to series 1 of Vera, I love the accent. Watching quite a bit more TV at the moment. I am also being an armchair traveller and enjoying some of the travel programmes, from the safety of home. The weather here is also warm and sunny, thatnk goodness for our garden. Helen S.
ReplyDeleteThank you :-)
DeleteI love Vera ... the slower pace is brilliant, although I have to admit the too-ing and fro-ing with lots of different people seeming to have committed the crime is somewhat confusing.
And I thought you loved that man!!! I think I might be watching the tv etc for the same reason. David is working from home mm in the kitchen, and if I'm in there, he decides he'd be better working at the kitchen table. I go in the living room, he decides the light is better in there! GRRRRrrrr! We have a tiny house and there is no escape.
ReplyDeleteOn the good side, the house and garden have never been so tidy and I've started making my Christmas cards. They'll al be done by the time I go back to work in June.
Glad to see the rain is being co-operative and only showing up at night. Sunshine and being able to get outside makes all the difference at the moment, doesn't it?
Happy Easter!!!
Who spread THAT particular rumour!!
DeleteGetting things ready for Christmas is forward planning indeed!!
I'm still working but am grateful for the special NHS times as as well as us I'm shopping for my mother who is doing as she is told and staying in. We are all thinking about John and sending good wishes for a speedy recovery I'm sure. I have an Easter egg (vegan obvs) which someone bought me but as I'm not too bothered about chocolate you could have had it Sue. We are missing Wales a lot but are grateful to have a garden and nice countryside close by that we can walk to.
ReplyDeleteThe people that are still working are doing an amazing job ... and richly deserve our clapping and admiration each Thursday night. I only hope that the work of the NHS and all the other care services and organisations is remembered long after this pandemic ends and their work and loyalty is rewarded properly.
DeleteWales is looking particularly lovely this Spring, nature is claiming back her land and it's invigorating to watch, it's good that you have countryside close by that you can walk to.
Indeed a positive about the lockdown is the lack of planes flying overhead and traffic. So quiet and the air feels so much cleaner. Listening to the birdsong is fabulously cheering. Here's hoping we NHS and other key workers will continue to be valued after the storm passes.
DeleteContinuing to work and putting yourself in harm's way is something we all do as it's a vocation. It's infuriating though when people are refusing to follow the rules or think that they don't apply to them or complain that they are 'bored' with the lockdown. Honestly I wish I could be bored.
Thank goodness for catch up tv and my recorder. Happy Easter to you both x
ReplyDeleteWithout our Freesat recorder and my DVD stash I would be totally lost. I have developed a real love of that 32" screen in the corner of the room.
DeleteHappy Easter to you too. xx
I love all those progs too. Add to them Death in Paradise...ooh another murder theme!...and we're watching the reruns of Vera too. There's not much else to do at the moment is there. Happy Easter to you both, Sue & Alan, enjoy the lovely sunshine x
ReplyDelete!
Ooh yes, Death in Paradise is a lovely series, I liked the Kris marshal years best ... and I really miss the character Dwayne Myers, he was such a star.
DeleteHappy Easter xx
I love the pug in the egg.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good picture isn't it.
DeleteI'd love to find a little Pug in my egg ... if I had an egg!! :-)
So cute, yes!
DeleteHappy Easter, no eggs here neither. BBC demand a series called London kills is good and if course Killing Eve which is sheer Brilliance.
ReplyDeleteI loved London Kills, I recorded them recently and we watched them all in three sittings 😃
DeleteI love Killing Eve too, the new series starts next week 😄 Unfortunately we can't use On Demand as we don't have unlimited internet use, and we both need the internet for work.
Yes I wonder if these programs give people ideas?
ReplyDeleteWe have been watching allsorts of things, we do like a crime, detective, thriller etc.
Tonight it will be tv for us Countryfile, Antiques Roadshow, The Nest and then Homeland.
I didn't buy eggs for us apart from a box of cadburys creme eggs.
I doubt it, my son used to watch all the CSIs, NCISs and all sorts of real murder solving programmes on obscure channels and he went into the Police rather than a life of crime!!
DeleteI started recording The Nest at the Van rather than here so I still have that to look forward too. Ooh I couldn't eat a Cadburys crème egg if I tried, far too sweet for me now, I don't know where my sweet tooth went but it's far, far away.
I never had a sweet tooth, a crisp tooth however :-/!
DeleteGood afternoon, or at least it is here.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the post. I have watched all the shows you mentioned but I watch on my computer...Honey Bear and I sit in our side by side recliners, each with a laptop watching whatever interests us individually. But hey, we're still together doing it and sometimes we get each other's attention to share something from our viewing or reading...
Stay sane,
Mama Bear
I only watch YouTube clips etc on my computer, all 'proper' watching of things is done on the bigger screen. Unfortunately we can't watch anything long on the internet as we don't have enough download capability.
DeleteI thought I'd get lots of reading done but instead there's been more TV than ever. Lots of the various services here are offering freebies for the duration - Youtube has had some amazing stuff - yesterday they streamed Runrig's farewell concert form Stirling castle in 2018 - today it was the Andrea Boccelli Live Stream concert from Milan - followed by two new postings of the UK Antiques Roadshow - I've been throughly distracted! "Killing Eve" starts here tonight so I'm looking forward to that as well! They are determined to keep us indoors!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes to John also - I see by today's post that the villagers are looking after him really well so its wonderful that he was able to stay there.
Perhaps you will find some vegan chocolate on your next trip to the shops as we all deserve a treat now and again.
I thought I would be powering through my books as well, but it's not happening at all.
DeleteAlan loves Runrig so he would have loved the concert, although I think he has watched it before. He watched an old rugby match on Saturday, Wales v Ireland from 2005 he really enjoyed that.
I'd love to watch Killing Eve from beginning right through in readiness for next weeks new series, but sadly I can't.
I will be looking out for some dairy free chocolate next time we go out for sure, for now I have some homemade tiffin chilling in the fridge to take the edge off the chocolate cravings ;-)
I agree with you totally on NATURE - definitely the most important thing here and we are so fortunate to have an abundance of wild birds, wild flowers and beautiful countryside surrounding us. Now some of the Swallows have arrived back at Next Door's Farm, I am checking daily to see how many more have arrived and eagerly awaiting thearrival of our "stable" Swallows.
ReplyDeleteCrafting (mainly patchwork, but some x-stitch too) is also keeping me sane and thank heavens for my fabric Stash. In June, when I will be on another Pollen Lockdown (as at present), I shall start my WIlliam Morris Heirloom quilt.
Cooking - I have always enjoyed making everything from scratch and am glad our eldest daughter moved back with us, as together we can rustle up some fabulous food. I have always baked my own bread, cakes, biscuits etc and now the challenge is to use up the contents of cupboard and freezer so there is no waste (not one breadcrumb escapes, as stale bread gets turned into them for using in stuffing, coating fish or meat etc.)
Growing fruit and vegetables - we are doubling the size of the veg plot and established a 2nd soft fruit garden using young plants from the paddock plot, as well as currants and berries I had in pots to take with us when we move. They are needed here now.
Walking - when the tree pollen levels fall - keeps us happy and sane too. So many wonderful local walks with amazing views.
Friendship and good neighbours. Not short of either, and much needed in these difficult times.
It sounds like you are doing really well with everything, apart from the dratted pollen. It really seems to have started early this year unfortunately for you. I've been using my spray already and usually I'm safe-ish for another month or so.
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