Have grasped the nettle..........now to deal with the ensuing rash

Igamogam

brizzlegirl said:

Hope you and the family are OK, Ig xxxx

Still here! We are well and healthy and eating.... and then trying to exercise it off! New found lost love of baking and cooking but it is like feeding an army!  Lovin zoom meetings - both professional ones and social ones. Frustrations come and go but we have a lot to be grateful for Life has taken on a new rhythm and I think this might be the new  normal for sometime.....

brizzlegirl

Yay!!! So glad you’re so positive, keep it up!!  

much love 

Brizzle xx

Igamogam

Still here. Still feeding an army. New normal continues. Have not set foot in work for 14 weeks....quite like it. Garden looks great. Waist line expanding. Hair is longer than it has been in years. Cant say I saved any money( refer to army above) . 
 As a lockdown family of 5 adults, one of whom is an add on and is yet to be able to meet up with his family, our daily rhythm continues. It hasnt been easy. There has been tears and shouts and swearing and laughter and hugs and late night discussions and flounces and long silences and practical jokes and hysterical theme nights that our FB friends have decided make us entertaining and cant wait for the next one We have kept sane with games and baking and BBQs and daily gratitudes shared at the table. We have resurrected knitting and sewing projects. Found skills we didn't know we had or had forgotten about . We have done long put off projects both indoors and outdoors. Watched films and box sets. Shared surprising guilty pleasures which have brought us together. Walked in forests and fields, cycled trails and swam in rivers all on our doorstep and wondered why we didn't do more before. We have got sweaty with Joe Wicks and found online yoga and breathe classes and we have clapped the NHS and all those others we cannot function without. We have found friendships can be maintained and even strengthened on Zoom and made phone calls to older relatives we have only communicated with in recent years by an annual Christmas Round Robin card.
 OH and I have WFH. We have supported, on the phone and zoom, some of the most vulnerable and drunk gin together  at the end of a long day saying !!!!!!,  thanking our lucky stars whilst staring at incredible dark night skies counting satellites and naming  planets and constellations we had forgotten existed.
 The young ones whose plans were dashed when the bottom seemingly fell out of their worlds in March, have planned and researched and re planned what they are going to do when.....when what? When there is a New Normal we all will live? Their resilience sometimes wanes but I tell them they have youth on their side, dreams are still in reach and never give up. 
Sadly about a month into this, the husband of a close friend found he could no longer continue in this world and left us all behind. Out of the blue. Strange virtual funeral and we have yet to be able to meet up with our friend  and her boys due to strict lock down restrictions.
 I was optimistic that 'we', the human race, would sit up and take notice and take a good long look at ourselves but I see from ridiculous queues at Swedish furniture stores and the obsession  with the need to buy cheap throw away clothes and the scrabble for trainers just jolted the cynic in me again today.........'we' have learnt nothing.
So,this has been our lockdown so far. It has been interesting and thought provoking stressful and insightful. We are healthy. We are fitter, but all weigh more. Why?....refer to baking above !  and we are looking hopefully to the future. We have changed but our values have strengthened. We have learned much from each other

.....and on the money front? Well I have paid off 2 CC debts  

pennywisepoundstupid

Wonderful post, glad to hear you are well and sorry to hear about your friends husband, very sad indeed.
Agree about the ridiculous queues, was quite cross when I saw a picture of long queues outside a certain sports shop, people either have short memories or just don't care about the ethics of some companies.
Well done paying off the CC xx

Igamogam

pennywisepoundstupid said:

Wonderful post, glad to hear you are well and sorry to hear about your friends husband, very sad indeed.
Agree about the ridiculous queues, was quite cross when I saw a picture of long queues outside a certain sports shop, people either have short memories or just don't care about the ethics of some companies.
Well done paying off the CC xx

Thanks Pennywise

brizzlegirl

Lovely post Ig. Good to hear how many silver linings for you, despite sadness and stress too. Not planning to step foot in a clothes shop for months....haven’t missed it and not gonna start now! Also started sourdough baking lots of cooking from scratch, long walks through our city parklands on Saturday mornings and knitting in front of box sets. DD2 loving embroidery. Feel grounded, thankful and close to what matters. 

Have a great weekend and thanks for all your support to our vulnerable kids x

Igamogam

Is it October? Feels like it looking out of rain streaked windows and the cloud base so low cant see beyond the end of the garden. Had planned a river swim today even in the rain but it is not looking appealing now..... maybe a blustery walk on the beach while we still have it to ourselves

brizzlegirl

Yep chilly here too. Hoping weather next week is nicer 

Igamogam

Wowzers....almost 2 months away. Not sure where time goes these days. Still here. Still debt busting. Making changes and facing new challenges. Have fallen back in love with Eb*y.............strange times indeed

Igamogam

And once more.........Wowzers! I think I made an subconscious decision to stay away from MSE. I was beginning to find other peoples stories too depressing and burdensome as I had no real  support or advice to offer. Sounds really selfish but I have been moving to looking after, commenting on and supporting what is important to me and mine for a while now. I decided that if I could remember my password then I would post but if I couldn't , then the universe was telling me something!
My last post came just as I went back to work after 6 months of WFH. It has been a strange old time. Due to the nature of the work there is very little social distancing. No mask wearing but a lot of hand washing, cleaning, sanitising, open windows and working outdoors as much as possible. We decided we cannot do our work effectively in any other way. We mitigate the risk. We all ended the term fit and healthy
My experience of 2020 so far is that we have carried on with little restriction on what we did before and by that I mean restrictions imposed have not really affected us. OH and I are fortunate we are in key roles. We are no longer huge consumers. We live in a rural area. We don't have elderly relatives to care for and worry about. We have our health - underlying conditions are  largely self managed and don't impact on what we want to do. We have 'discovered' new interests and we have embraced technology and kept to rules when meeting with friends - deck chairs on the sea front wrapped up in blankets on a dark November evening, eating fish and chips and drinking G and T so we could meet up in a group of 6 friends has been a highlight!!!
I have dived back into academia and taken up a post grad course  - all online, and have been asked to do a piece of research through work  related to the current situation that will feed into a larger piece of work. So the brain cells are being exercised At the start of the pandemic I had just started volunteering with a mental health charity providing face to face support. Still doing this but it is now all on the phone - different skill set had to be quickly learnt
HOWEVER all that said... although our life raft is still afloat it hasn't been without some bailing! We were 5 adults for about 6 months and that had its moments but we have learnt more about each other and to practice daily gratitudes. DD 1 decided to cut her losses and went back to France where she worked 3 years ago. Lockdown there is very different....but she is happier there with her tribe. DD2 and her BF are still with us on and off. They picked up work locally but are now furloughed - it is working for them. For Christmas they have gone to BF parents - within the rules!
This time last year we were on our way to the other side of the world. Christmas out of choice has always been a low key, personal affair for us but still enjoying the traditions. Last year was very liberating not doing it at all! So its just 2 of us and the cat. There is a tree up with a couple of small gifts under it. I have sent 2 cards and we have had one Christmas dinner already! I am looking to catching up on reading. OH is still WFH and is only taking Christmas day off. I have an open water swim arranged for Christmas Eve and probably Boxing Day....and a 10k word essay to write
Most importantly for me is that the debt is well under control and on track..........after all this is why I am here and yes I have used Eb*y at lot....so much easier these days. I am under no illusion that people are finding it hard but the above it our experience and I have no guilt about putting it down and saying so far we are fine. I am not further on with some things in my life that I thought I might have been by the end of 2020 but I am ok and grateful. 2021 will arrive and no doubt throw up some new challenges and of course there will be the ongoing challenge of reaching debt freedom.