Travelling On 2 January 2018 at 3:38PM edited 30 November -1 at 12:00AM in Mortgage-Free Wannabe 5.7K replies 257.9K views

Suffolk_lass

I suppose it's because we have found our tribe but all your team of readers and mine are saying the same thing - I know the same will apply in the Village too. It does make me wonder where they find the (members of the public) people they interview on the TV (or what they bring to the party).

Karmacat

Thanks Apple much appreciated.  The picnic's going to be a doozy

 I suppose since my sister and her daughter are bubbled, they count as one household in some ways, and her daughter might be feeling as dodgy as me about a family Christmas, but ... yes, I have to put myself first.  That Long Covid form is what I dread (sorry, I feel like I'm repeating myself, but ...).  

I'm going to juggle stuff in the kitchen today (yes, literally   no, not really ).  I soaked some beans overnight, so they can go on.  I also pulled out my lovely cauldron type thing, pretty good quality stainless steel: I'm going to rinse the quince I've got waiting for me outside and make quince jelly.  Or at least the first stage of it.  I'd really like to do chocolate brownies as well, but I'm not sure I'll get there.  I want to be active today, but I don't think I can do any gardening - it's raining and it was *agony* getting down to weed level yesterday, even though the weeds came out easily - my posture when I sit isn't good.  I need to swap my armchairs around, which will mean the jumble sitting in the other armchair has to go ... it's all interlinked, isn't it!
All the above projects are very mse, and there's a paperwork kitchen project too: listing *all* the seed packets I now have, listing them in their sowing order.  Never occurred to me before but I'm determined to get crops into the ground, and use them, this year above all.

Staffordia

Suffolk_lass said:

I suppose it's because we have found our tribe but all your team of readers and mine are saying the same thing - I know the same will apply in the Village too. It does make me wonder where they find the (members of the public) people they interview on the TV (or what they bring to the party).

Just being contrarian, but there are probably people who read your diary and Karma's who will hold an opposing view but don't feel like they can or want to share it.  
I imagine that there are those who are going to go quietly about their business and celebrate Christmas how they see fit based on their risk analysis of the situation not what the Government has dictated.  Karma has assessed the risk to her in her particular situation, there will be others who come to a different conclusion based on their circumstances.  There is only shades of grey as far as I am concerned.

Karmacat

Logically, that must be true, Staffordia - even among people who've read my diary for ages, there'll be people who disagree with sizeable chunks, that's natural.  Risk assessments vary, over everything: eg, when I'm out walking with my sister, my risk assessments of where we walk, or where I walk when I'm alone, are hugely more liberal than hers, as well as who I'll talk to.  

Everybody's entitled to their opinion: if I was in my 20s, single, my RA would be incredibly different.  As it is, I'm rabbiting about my own decision, and people are welcome to share theirs (like you, what are you doing?) but I won't *justify* my decision.  I'm sharing my fears about long covid, not justifying my decision.

I see from your sig you retired in June this year?  Good for you!  How's it going?  Did you plan it for then, or take a new opportunity?

Staffordia

Hi Karma, I absolutely get your position, there is no justification needed for me (random internet stranger).  I was more pointing out that there would be people who don't agree with the current situation and would do as they saw fit and not necessarily comment what they were doing on yours or anyone else's diary.   I think that you got that from what I wrote?

I actually don't like Christmas, so it won't affect me much either way, but I would like to see my sister and her teenage children, but I will respect her decision on that.  She lives nearly 200 miles away, so we are likely to be in different tiers.

Retirement is great, although it hasn't been quite what I planned.  I retired early at 52, so that my partner and I could get married (spoiler it didn't happen thanks to Covid) and travel in our motorhome.  My hope is that this time next year Covid is a distant memory.

Keep safe, I enjoy reading your diary, it often gives me another perspective to think about.

Karmacat

Thanks for that, Staffordia - yes, I did get that, thanks.  
Sorry your plans for your wedding didn't work out I can understand not going ahead on the current basis, very measly.  As for Christmas ... I love the idea of a winter festival, but the Christmas Day focus exhausts me completely.  Demographics have made me less of a focus, though, and I'm happy with that.

But congratulations on such an early retirement, thats brilliant.  And a great plan, do post on here sometimes when you're ready/ are out there.  It's definitely something I considered, but even though I've got my test, I've never driven regularly, and the stress of re-learning, given my old chronic fatigue, means that I just can't face it.  Hence the folding electric bike research   

Right, there's a bit of a gap in the rain, so I'm off out.  Have a good day, all.

rtandon27

Happy Thursday KC - the drizzle lifted here as well, so I spent some of my lunch break out in the garden tidying leaves and pinching back finished flowers from the mums and geraniums. 

I'm rather pleased to find out that many of the herbs I planted earlier this year are cold hardy & faring rather well and that some of the ones that have been around for a few years are reacting well to the hard pruning of early autumn and sending out new growth!

beanielou

I will be seeing my ma.

apple_muncher

rtandon27 said:

 I spent some of my lunch break out in the garden tidying leaves and pinching back finished flowers from the mums and geraniums. 

I read this as punching the flowers... Oops!

badmemory

I think the difference between people on here & those in the real world is that we tend to think not oh great we can go out & do what we like but we can go out & do what we like but what is sensible for US, what will keep us safe.  I agree that long covid is scary & was never mentioned early on & flu never had that sort of effect either. 

Although thinking about it I am not totally sure that that is true.  Back in 1988 I got flu followed by bronchitis including giving up smoking followed by my thyroid going walkabout.  Taste buds also went walkabout unlike the norm of stopping smoking meaning your sense of taste improves.  So was that version of flu actually a version of covid?  It would not surprise me to find out this sort of thing has been around a very long time.