Cherry takes the reins

Sun_Addict

Boo to the cancelled contract for DH - his manager sounds like a nasty piece of work no wonder he wants to look elsewhere.  Good that you can manage for a while, it's surprising what can be done.  When Mr SA first became unwell I never thought we'd be able to manage without his income but as you know he's never been able to return to work and we've survived. 

One of my friends has most likely got the virus, she's been in bed for the past 4 days with a very high temperature and cough.  She's just starting to feel a bit better today. I think there's a lot of scare-mongering with this virus, I know it's deadly for the vulnerable but most of us who get it will come through it fine and build up the necessary anti-bodies should it raise it's head again.

I'm lucky that I've been able to get everything I need online, however, I haven't been ordering things like toilet roll or pasta just the things I really need - like gin 🤣 When I went to Mr S during my work lunch break on Monday most of the shelves were bare. I hope these people who are stripping the shelves end up with a load of stuff they can't use, it's so greedy. If everyone just bought what they needed there'd be plenty to go round.  

At least we can all get out in our gardens and have a good tidy up now the weather seems to be picking up and Spring is here.

Honeysucklelou2

2 friends in RL commented that Britain will be truly blooming this year if everyone spends more  time in the garden!

Cherryfudge

DS2 is volunteering to work on the Covid ward. I'm so proud of him - and a little anxious of course.

My work is getting quieter by the minute. It's not the sort of job you can do from home but I did tell my manager he should be at home (I'm a bolshy so-and-so but I don't see why he should be in work,  potentially adding to the germs, when all he does is sit in his office doing emails and phone calls, which he can well do at home). He muttered something about not working very well at home and I resisted the temptation to say something ruder than 'tough'.

DH worked from home after the collective onslaught from DD and me yesterday, and actually didn't find it as difficult as he thought. My own foibles are around having to work in a care home with a different client group: I'm aware that in many ways I work towards the cushy end of the care spectrum where we have decent staffing levels. However I'm a bit reassured after talking to DS2 who used to work in just such a setting: I can follow a MAR chart and that seems to be the area I could be under most pressure. We'll see. I may be wrong in thinking that's where I'd be redeployed if it came to it.


I didn't go for a run or do the garden today: it was lovely but chilly outside. Instead I fell asleep on the sofa after work. That's not unusual after early shifts. I also negotiated an unexpected day off next week straight after a run of booked days off. I'd worked on what should have been an annual leave day so I get the time back and so many clients have cancelled that there were too many of us on one shift. I have a feeling this is going to be a lull before a storm if we have to cover care homes.

Unbelievably, a huge part of the area's workforce has been blanket designated key workers. I just can't see how that can be justified: it will mean services are covered and their children will be in school so economically and practically disruption will be minimised, but let's face it, some jobs are more key than others. Mine is less important than, say, a doctor or home carer, but more important (in a time like this) than, say, my previous secretarial role. I'm flabbergasted that so many people will continue to be out and about breathing the same air and touching the same surfaces when there are other people wearing hazmat just to give a better chance at life to sick people.

End of rant. For now.

So, it's been an NSD. No surprise there: DH managed to get potatoes the other day, I had onions and corned beef in store and we had baked beans in the cupboard so it was corned beef hash for tea. Every day I can stay away from the shops is a victory won.

Nothing really money saving or decluttering to report. I have a day off tomorrow and most of the days till Thursday , too. I hope I can make progress in the garden and maybe DH and I will replace our London trip with an extra journey to work on Mum's old house. We can avoid most social contact by doing that.

Tonight I'm thankful for being able to stay away from the news most of the day, for a chat with DS2 and various texted conversations with friends, and for sunshine.

Cherryfudge

A day off - but I'm now going to work for six hours tomorrow as cover is needed. In the morning church will be online - so I will miss my exercise walking there and back but won't have any excuse for being late!

Today was cold. Spring, definitely, but cold. Still, DH went out in the morning to see an auction (he assures me the chairs were placed well apart) and I spent ages texting various friends and family then made a start on trimming the hedge which now looks thinner but doesn't stop us pulling the car in properly. We found an unexpected benefit to the current situation: the chip shop seems to have run out of chip boxes and were using fish boxes so our weekly shared portion of chips was very generous!

 Later in the day we took the garden bin to the tip but went straight back home afterwards. I'm hoping to have that bin refilled by next Saturday. I've also messaged my neighbour to let her know we will probably have to get a tree surgeon in to our conifers. I thought it only fair to let her know as she loves the trees probably as much as I do, but it turns out they too were  worried about how much they bent in the recent high winds. I'm hoping we can reduce them to about 30' tall without wrecking them or having to be overlooked by the houses the other side of them.

Other than that DH and I braved the cold and went for a run - it was cold enough to make me go faster than usual just to warm up. This evening I've been reading about restrictions in European countries which would put a stop to running if put in place here, so I'll make the most of it while I can. I also managed a bit of one of my courses.

DS2 has come home despondent as his ward has been disbanded and he's been taking patients to other wards. The hospital is moving things around to be ready for more coronavirus patients, as I expect all hospitals are. DS is devoted to his colleagues and is going to miss them but I expect he will still see them socially once everything quietens down again. No definite news on whether he will be helping to staff the Covid ward yet.

It's been an NSD and nothing money-saving has happened. I decluttered a couple of pieces of paper of mine, and a handful of litter and empty drinks cans from DS's room when he wasn't looking. I've also stuck some recipes in a notebook rather than have them loose in a cupboard which also counts as decluttering.

Tonight I'm thankful for being able to avoid the shops, for running a bit faster than last week and for a hot bath and hair wash this evening.

VelvetFreak

That's good news re. the extra chip portion
And well done on the gardening

Seasidegal58

You sound very organised Cherry - well done. 😀

Not quite sure how they will police the directive about not leaving the house for non-essential journeys if it takes place in the UK.   I read that in France you have a little chit that you fill in to say, for example, you are off to buy food. How does that work - you might not be going to the shops but to visit someone for a cup of tea!  There will be people out there that will do that as we know......

Happy Mother's Day💐💐💐

HairyHandofDartmoor

Seasidegal58 said:

You sound very organised Cherry - well done. 😀

Not quite sure how they will police the directive about not leaving the house for non-essential journeys if it takes place in the UK.   I read that in France you have a little chit that you fill in to say, for example, you are off to buy food. How does that work - you might not be going to the shops but to visit someone for a cup of tea!  There will be people out there that will do that as we know......

Happy Mother's Day💐💐💐

Apparantly they will be able to monitor 'where' we are via our mobile phones! So if people are going somewhere they shouldn't be then they will need to leave their phones at home.

Although it would be nice to think that people will follow the rules, we know already that some idiots aren't. So I can see a complete lock down ahead for everyone, thanks to idiots who can't follow rules 😡.

Happy Mother's Day Cherry 🌷.

Cherryfudge

Happy Mother's Day one and all.  

It's been unusual for a Sunday off: we had church online as I mentioned yesterday and apart from some minor technicalities it went really well. Lovely to see the usual faces but strange to have just DH and me visible in the congregation! It helps to give us a more balanced outlook.

I made a pie for lunch of various bits and pieces and it was very tasty. The freezer is still near-enough full! Afterwards we tried out the 'Zoom' app for a family chat and that went well too. I'd recommend it for conference calling. Then it was off to work.

Social distancing is very tricky at work. Given that we have hands-on care for some people, it's obviously not totally possible but it's actually hard to break old habits of coming up to others to read the same piece of paper or check something that needs a closer look. We did open the windows and enjoy the spring air, and I disinfected all the pens (again), and was pleased to discover someone else had started an official 'disinfect list'. The office is cleaner than it's been in a long time.

I didn't have to do the full 6 hours which was nice: getting home though, through rapidly dropping temperatures, I wrapped up warm and am now very sleepy. DH has mowed the grass but the beautiful clear sky makes it feel icy out of doors. It's that part of spring where there's a battle between the rising season and the sharp night air.

Yet another very MS day - I am determined to stay away from the shops! I suggested to DH that we book a supermarket delivery for about a week's time and aim to get quite a few things in but he thinks we should save the delivery slots for those who can't go out. Hard to get a balance between this and the possibility of coming into contact with Covid. We don't need anything but bread right now and actually we could cope without that if necessary.

Tomorrow was supposed to be a trip to visit Mum's old house and press on with clearance but it's in an area with a higher instance of Covid than here (though we could probably avoid extra social contact), and as Dh said, what if either of us got ill while we were there? I think we may stay at home.

Tonight I'm thankful for this morning's service, being able to talk as a family despite being apart and for the spring weather. 

Seasidegal58

Up until this evening's new Directive I decided not to shop online so that I could free up the slots too.  The idea was to go out each day for my walk along (deserted) high street and shop if I needed anything. I'm now going to go out to shop for groceries twice weekly if needed and take an early morning walk before I start work from home. 

I'm so glad your online church services are going so well. It must help you both so much in coping with these difficult times. 

Stay safe Cherry. X

Cherryfudge

So we went over to the house after all, then of course on Monday night came the directive to stay at home. We reasoned we could adhere to the rules while at the old house and in fact made use of beautiful open country to have our permitted walk. A little has been done around the house and we've left it in the best order yet, coming back this afternoon in time for some online meetings we had set up.

DS2 has moved out! He seems to have arrived okay and has warned us we may not see him for a few weeks due to the emergency. He likes the new house a lot and I'm hoping this will be a good move for him: it isn't easy to be in your twenties and having to stay with Mum and Dad. Of course we miss him and are concerned for his safety but 'twas ever thus. He left some years ago and did a year at Uni so we know he can feed himself.

I have more or less cleared the cupboards at Mum's old house of food and cleaning products, leaving enough basics for the lady who keeps an eye on it while we aren't there. Of course there isn't room in our cupboards for what I've brought back but at least we can use everything. We even had tuna pasta out of the foods left at the house - that's a luxury these days!

Talking to my friends online tonight was lovely, I think it cheered us all up so we are meeting again next week (if not sooner). DH enjoyed his meeting too but has heard that a friend is likely to have the corona virus.  

I'm really tired tonight and have a sore mouth and rather swollen glands in my throat. This can happen due to tiredness so I'm hoping that's all it is. I was really excited to hear there may be tests for immunity in the near future but then I read that it might be just over optimistic reporting. It would be so useful though, wouldn't it?

Money-wise: nothing spent by me over the past three days. I bought a couple of books on Kindle but sent them back. DH had to go out for his prescription so he picked up bread, tuna and a tin of fruit. I need to look into online ordering soon to try to avoid this happening too often.

Tonight I'm thankful for safe journeys there and back, DS2 having found accommodation near his work and for video calls with friends.