Getting into the swing - Lockdown week 3
May I begin this week's effort by saying "Happy Easter" to those Christian types among you, and "happy zombie Jesus, chocolate egg, isolation barbecue day" to everybody else. I sincerely hope that this extended weekend finds you in great health, and tremendous spirits.
For the throngs of hard working parents throughout our fine nation, the Easter school holiday period began at the start of the week, instantly relieving the burden of home educating millions of confused and disillusioned children, and providing a psychological break for lots of adults and their offspring alike. Many of you are still working despite the lockdown conditions, either directly, or from home, but for others (me included) it's a case of accepting the current state of affairs and staying safely at home with no constructive employment for the foreseeable future. Amazingly, the British weather has given us a bit of a break, and allowed those of us lucky enough to have a garden the opportunity to get some fresh air. I can actually sympathise with those people who are being victimised by the press, and are feeling driven to escape their cramped living spaces in order to simply be outside for a couple of hours. Being stuck in a London bedsit with some knacker next door streaming Reggaeton music night and day is most people's idea of hell, and the urge to escape captivity albeit temporarily is a basic human instinct. Having a nation of property-owning Boomers chastising their every move from the comfortable digital fortress of some newspaper comments section while sitting in their lovingly tended south facing garden doesn't really help anyone, ........... although playing basketball, surfing, mountain biking, fell walking, having illicit house parties etc. is admittedly plain stupid, and I'd agree with old Maureen and Maurice at number 10 in this instance. Stay at home unless you absolutely have to go out for shopping. medical supplies, or to work unless this can be done from the safety of your own abode.
My old working schedule was exhausting to say the least, so this extended, enforced break is actually a positive thing for me, despite the fact that I have absolutely no income whatsoever until further notice. We've found different ways of keeping us all occupied in some way or other, and this whole crisis has definitely brought us all further together as a family. Cooking and eating outside has become something of a habit, with my wok burner proving invaluable in helping to whip up quick meals using heat usually only found in commercial kitchens. I've also got the time to plan and prepare meals so that we can all sit down together. My diabetic dietary routine is back on track - one 600 calorie, ultra low carb meal a day at breakfast time, with a tiny snack around lunchtime, zero alcohol, zero sugar, and a 30 minute run 5 days a week unless my dodgy right knee is too painful. My aim of a 62kg weight, (from 74kg) and a 28 inch waist is beginning to take shape. It's a chance to finally take personal responsibility to reverse my Type 2 Diabetes condition, which was my own fault frankly, and also to give me a fighting chance, should I be one of the unlucky folks to cop for this (or any other) virus.
One of the more surreal images shot in the limited environment of the back garden - not our cat!
Some of the other ways I've been spending this precious time:
Completely sorting the garden out - 3 years of mild neglect to remedy!
Watching all episodes of The Sopranos at a rate of one a day. Bada Bing.
Scanning, editing, keywording, and backing-up the remainder of my huge collection of old family prints in various albums and boxes.
Curating an epic music playlist for the biggest garden party ever seen once this crisis has abated somewhat.
Populating this blog using my old Wordpress platform entries.
Updating my portfolio in order to hit the ground running, and try to transition from so much estate agency work to commercial work in the future.
Plenty for me to be getting on with there then. It's currently Saturday afternoon, and I'm live-streaming the Hacienda FAC 51 all-day House revival concert, which seems to be working towards some proper hardcore acid house later on tonight. That's me sorted.
Anyway - everyone stay safe, stay positive, stay tuned, and I'll update this bad boy next week. Cheers.
