I’m feeling rather like Rip Van Winkle, as I’ve been poorly on and off since mid Feb and was self-isolated by choice until last weekend, so, apart from at our local store, I’ve not seen any of the scenes of retail devastation everybody’s talking about other than via t’internet and TV!
@Heavenlyannie , we’re another Abel and Cole customer; their box usually does for the two of us, plus top ups from the local market (though not sure now long the latter will last). We’ve enough food to last us...just, with a bit of inventiveness.
Mr M has been trying to make his own fresh pasta from flour and oil , (taken from a recipe in New Scientist). His Spatzle are quite tasty.
I was a prepper for Brexshit. Thus my canned food, flour, oil and pasta stash, bought well before Christmas. Now I’m a prepper in case things get worse. I remember the power cuts of the early 70s due to the shortage of power workers.
So I have now bought -
A camp stove with eight spare canisters.
Three solar powered lanterns.
A wind up radio.
Three large power packs for my phone and iPad.
Napisan, cloth bum wipes and a nappy bucket.
I already have two large water butts.
Six large bottles of water.
200 tea lights
More coffee!
I very much hope they won’t be needed.
My family laughed at my Brexshit stash. They are now laughing at my ‘what if power and water is rationed?’ stash.
I was brought up in South Africa when ‘power sharing’ (it went off a lot!) was normal life. So I prepare like my Mum used to.
S's cleaning gentleman did turn up this morning; if I'd known he was going to, I wouldn't have cleaned the shower room ("my" bathroom) before he got here ...
Oh well.
I've got a phone meeting with the bloke from Into Work later; I must make a list of Sensible Questions to ask him. I doubt that he'll be able to offer any really helpful hints: I'm sort of assuming that employers are putting any searches for staff on hold, unless you're a nurse or doctor.
I was a prepper for Brexshit. Thus my canned food, flour, oil and pasta stash, bought well before Christmas. Now I’m a prepper in case things get worse. I remember the power cuts of the early 70s due to the shortage of power workers.
So I have now bought -
A camp stove with eight spare canisters.
Three solar powered lanterns.
A wind up radio.
Three large power packs for my phone and iPad.
Napisan, cloth bum wipes and a nappy bucket.
I already have two large water butts.
Six large bottles of water.
200 tea lights
More coffee!
I very much hope they won’t be needed.
My family laughed at my Brexshit stash. They are now laughing at my ‘what if power and water is rationed?’ stash.
I was brought up in South Africa when ‘power sharing’ (it went off a lot!) was normal life. So I prepare like my Mum used to.
One other thing, though - do you have a chemical porta-potti (just in case)? If you use the proper chemicals, it's OK to flush the contents down the regular loo, if the water comes back on.
I’m also not panicking about loo roll; I have a room full of fabric from my old sewing business.
My quarantine is, in theory, over as I have been symptomatic for 7 days. But I don’t yet have the energy levels to go shopping. I did do a little work today though, just emails and admin.
Yes, I won’t be going any further than the corner shop behind our house for a few more days, I think.
The OU has been lovely and trying to encourage me not to work. But I don’t have any teaching or marking to do in the next week anyway.
The porta potti is a Good Thing. I have one, which I employed for a few days whilst the macerator of The Loo Of The Ark needed replacement, but it does need emptying quite frequently if more than one person is using it.
They're not cheap, but are freely available at your friendly local camping/caravan shop, or via online sources. They need special compatible loo paper, but that's no problem, given that the usual stuff has disappeared off the face of the earth...
I've got a phone meeting with the bloke from Into Work later; I must make a list of Sensible Questions to ask him. I doubt that he'll be able to offer any really helpful hints: I'm sort of assuming that employers are putting any searches for staff on hold, unless you're a nurse or doctor.
Some grocery stores are hiring clerks and shelf stockers, as are some warehouses, I believe. Delivery drivers are also in demand in some areas. (Not suggesting any of these for you, just mentioning areas where hiring does seem to be happening.)
I'm not overly worried about the water supply. Given that pretty much the only weapon we have against the bastard disease is good hygiene, I would hope the plumbing is high on the list of priorities for the powers that be.
The porta potti is a Good Thing. I have one, which I employed for a few days whilst the macerator of The Loo Of The Ark needed replacement, but it does need emptying quite frequently if more than one person is using it.
They're not cheap, but are freely available at your friendly local camping/caravan shop, or via online sources. They need special compatible loo paper, but that's no problem, given that the usual stuff has disappeared off the face of the earth...
We had a pumpable loo when we had our narrowboat.
I remember Mum and Dad had porta potties in their various caravans.
I discovered that my mini stash of tinned tomatoes (actually, my caravan larder supplies) is in fact baked beans. So I’m being creative with them. Tonight, a burger that called for chilli flakes. Oh. My. Word. I needed an extinguishing G&T (any excuse!).
I was embarrassed to find a tin of chopped tomatoes at the back of my cupboard which went out of date in 2016. Do you reckon it will be ok?
One of my planned jobs in this post-work era is to sort my cupboards and rotate stock properly, à la Boogie. Today's discovery proves I've not been great at that up to now.
I was embarrassed to find a tin of chopped tomatoes at the back of my cupboard which went out of date in 2016. Do you reckon it will be ok?
One of my planned jobs in this post-work era is to sort my cupboards and rotate stock properly, à la Boogie. Today's discovery proves I've not been great at that up to now.
We used to be told that if the top of a tin wasn't swelling and there was an audible suck of air into the tin when you pierced it, then it was likely to be good. (The warranty on this advice expires as soon as you read it).
Went for a nice Pigletian* amble round the village late afternoon yesterday, through forests and meadows and fields, for a good two hours! Very cold north wind still, but I was dressed very appropriately. Only a few warmly wrapped joggers, and a couple of farmers pottering about, the latter milking cows, driving tractors and all that.
And quite a few sheepsies were to be seen... with quite a few tiny and tiny-ish lambs! Life goes on.
@Wet Kipper - That's a very good question! I think Pig-letty-an - it just feels better on the tongue.
Despite it being a misty-moisty day, I too have ambled, and shifted suitably far from the one fellow-ambler who was on the same pavement as I was. I waved her past with a smile and said "just keeping my distance": I wonder if this whole business will actually make us friendlier than we were before?
I suddenly realised a wee while ago that it's six months today since David died, which caused fairly major eye leakage, and the deployment of a Small Bear for alleviation of same. It seems worse knowing that my nearest and dearest can't offer anything but virtual hugs.
Anyway, enough of this morosity - there are daffodils coming up in S's garden, so it must be nearly Spring.
Pig-lee-shan is good, though it makes the Democratic Porcine Republic of Pigletia (Pig-lee-sha) come to mind.
Sounds like something out of the Marx Brothers: "Pig Stew".
The weather here is lovely. I've been going shopping on foot, thus combining foraging with exercise. However both yesterday and today I discovered short cuts which turned out to be considerably longer than The Usual Way. And sadly we live an in area where all the walks home with the shopping are uphill.
Just back from walking the dogs. Have just said to our daughter that I’ve crossed the road to avoid others so many times that if I’d a bottle of fluorescent paint trailing from my person I’d have left a creditable cat’s cradle behind me.
Did we all go out and applaud the NHS at 8 o'clock?
S. and I went out into the road, wondering if we were going to be alone (we were a minute early), but we heard a faint clap through the fog and joined in, and there was enough to make us not feel daft.
We have a vested interest: my niece, nephew-in-law and niece-in-law all work for the NHS.
Not the huge response in the places where the TV cameras were, but it was definitely there.
@Wet Kipper - That's a very good question! I think Pig-letty-an - it just feels better on the tongue. [...]
I'd agree. I believe there is an old spelling, 'Piglettian', which is near extinct now. And in American English, it may well sound like the word 'Grecian'.
Once a (... and no, I'm not going to use that adjective here and now!) linguist, always a linguist!
Upon creation, I was wondering whether to use two 't' but chose against it, as I think it looks more elegant with just one. And, as we see, it lends itself to pleasant speculation.
We live in a bungalow with bedrooms at the front, and a side entrance facing the wall of the neighbouring property in a street of similar properties - so community celebrations, such as putting up Christmas decorations, or bunting, are generally absent.
Nonetheless, I opened my door, and clapped out into the dark. Happily, I could hear clapping and cheering from all around, which was gratifying.
They must be very lazy round here - nobody is walking out except me!
I was schools’ IT co-ordinator in another life and now all my friends and family are asking for help getting them on to Zoom/Skype etc. I’ve been mowed under with calls. Some of which take a Great Deal of patience!
My dogs are very big and I’m having shoulder troubles, so I walk one at once. I take Echo, drop him off and take Tatze - it’s one walk for me but with different dogs.
I’m lucky to have a garden they can hooly round. I’m doing lots of scent work and games with them at other times. The pup’s training is suspended as we have no access to cafes, restaurants, buses, trains, shopping centres etc where I am normally required to do his training. So it’s fun walks only - he’s not complaining.
Did we all go out and applaud the NHS at 8 o'clock?
S. and I went out into the road, wondering if we were going to be alone (we were a minute early), but we heard a faint clap through the fog and joined in, and there was enough to make us not feel daft.
Pretty good response in our wee street, and very moving. No fog though!
I've had yet another pizza from the now 'only take-away' restaurant across the road from me. They seemed to be grateful. This time I chose one with some chicken and pineapple pieces (not entire slices, thank Lucullus), and plenty of ... curry!
I know! We have yet to get decent curry take-aways over here. So I guess I make do even with the occasional be-curried pizza.
Lots of clapping here, it was quite noisy. But I live on a council estate walking distance from the hospital and lots of people will know NHS staff.
We had our first takeaway delivery since quarantine last night, nice posh pizza cooked in a wood burning stove. It was from a little stall in a pedestrianised leisure area about a mile or so away, which must be glad of the takeaway trade.
My fatigue is improving, though I still have a tight feeling in my chest, especially in the evening. But my oxygen sats are fine so nothing to worry about. The cough seems better too. This morning I am going to attempt to walk to the corner shop as I am now allowed out of the house.
It's a dreich day here - the fog doesn't seem to want to lift, and it looks more like actual rain, so there may not be any ambling today unless it clears a bit. I'll be cross if I can't get out - even if it's only for 10 minutes, I feel better for it.
We're enjoying clear blue skies, but yes, you can tell it's March still. The washing machine has been well used this week.
I must admit I wasn't clapping, but I was engrossed in work, having finally got the chance to get my head down properly post-Dragonlet bedtime, which is for an NHS screening programme.
Yesterday evening I was chairing a Zoom meeting, so we had a clap break. I went to the front of my house and met my neighbours for the first time in probably 4 weeks (I was away for nearly 2 then we’ve all been cautious) who said they were clapping both front and back, and that the back was much noisier. Not surprising as we face a high hedge and back onto a circle of about 30 houses. No-one has joined me in my flute practice yet.
Today I finally tracked down a sewing pattern for scrubs and some fabric so when that arrives early next week I can start on some sets for my GP who is on the “hot site” team here. I approached the surgery to see if they’d like some, and they put me in touch with her. If you hear the whirr of a sewing machine near you it could be someone doing the same for their local hospital or GP.
I am bracing myself for a visit to the allotment this afternoon as I was reminded this morning that there are still leeks to pull. Hopefully they haven’t bolted. It’s lovely and sunny, although very nippy, and I’ve been so careful not to get close to anyone including my very elderly and ailing neighbours there. But I’ll risk it this afternoon, it’s about time I went further than the nearby post box.
Having had no choice about putting off shopping any longer, I did the 20km round trip on my bike a little earlier (Government having advised the avoidance of buses). It was dreich and cold!
Mostly well organized at Tesco though (good social distancing lines, not too busy). My only minor annoyances were:
- no TP. I managed to get a box of Kleenex though.
- Tesco seem to have set their ApplePay limit to £30 (each store sets its own, I have discovered). There is no need for such a low limit - it is more secure than a CC and the amount is unlimited in many stores. So having deftly avoided touching anything or anyone, I then had to key my bloody pin in with the CC rather than using contactless. Since most customers were spending more than £30, they had all touched it. Great.
And of course, in accordance with the rules of weather, the drizzle stopped as soon as I got home.
I've just downloaded the Highway Code, both as a (free) pdf and a (very moderately priced) set of audio files. They have a reader with quite a lovely voice and timbre, and I may lull myself to sleep with this, should need arise, or might listen to it during daytime, if I ever should get bored. Which could well happen, you never know! (As long as they haven't got extended versions of the Shipping Forecast!)
The whole thing just for pure fun. It's that kind of audio book where at least you'll learn something, or are reminded of a number of rules to adhere to, all of which cannot be bad in these times of strange virusian insecurity.
NB. Quote: "The Highway Code is essential reading for everyone."
Homemade burritos for tea, stuffed with kidney beans, veg and leftover rice, and served with salsa, cheese and crepe fraiche.
I managed the trip to the corner shop with no ill effects so tomorrow I hope to start going for a morning walk again.
Comments
@Heavenlyannie , we’re another Abel and Cole customer; their box usually does for the two of us, plus top ups from the local market (though not sure now long the latter will last). We’ve enough food to last us...just, with a bit of inventiveness.
Mr M has been trying to make his own fresh pasta from flour and oil , (taken from a recipe in New Scientist). His Spatzle are quite tasty.
So I have now bought -
A camp stove with eight spare canisters.
Three solar powered lanterns.
A wind up radio.
Three large power packs for my phone and iPad.
Napisan, cloth bum wipes and a nappy bucket.
I already have two large water butts.
Six large bottles of water.
200 tea lights
More coffee!
I very much hope they won’t be needed.
My family laughed at my Brexshit stash. They are now laughing at my ‘what if power and water is rationed?’ stash.
I was brought up in South Africa when ‘power sharing’ (it went off a lot!) was normal life. So I prepare like my Mum used to.
Purely out of curiosity, you understand, I’ve just googled ‘Homemade toilet paper, ‘ to find this:
https://www.askaprepper.com/homemade-substitutes-toilet-paper/
Luckily we’ve still got reasonable stocks at home. I really would baulk at having to boil up my back copies of the Church Times for hygiene purposes!
Oh well.
I've got a phone meeting with the bloke from Into Work later; I must make a list of Sensible Questions to ask him. I doubt that he'll be able to offer any really helpful hints: I'm sort of assuming that employers are putting any searches for staff on hold, unless you're a nurse or doctor.
An impressive list @Boogie!
One other thing, though - do you have a chemical porta-potti (just in case)? If you use the proper chemicals, it's OK to flush the contents down the regular loo, if the water comes back on.
My quarantine is, in theory, over as I have been symptomatic for 7 days. But I don’t yet have the energy levels to go shopping. I did do a little work today though, just emails and admin.
Emails and admin don't take too much effort (hopefully), but shopping may be a bit more demanding.
The OU has been lovely and trying to encourage me not to work. But I don’t have any teaching or marking to do in the next week anyway.
They're not cheap, but are freely available at your friendly local camping/caravan shop, or via online sources. They need special compatible loo paper, but that's no problem, given that the usual stuff has disappeared off the face of the earth...
We had a pumpable loo when we had our narrowboat.
I remember Mum and Dad had porta potties in their various caravans.
I discovered that my mini stash of tinned tomatoes (actually, my caravan larder supplies) is in fact baked beans. So I’m being creative with them. Tonight, a burger that called for chilli flakes. Oh. My. Word. I needed an extinguishing G&T (any excuse!).
One of my planned jobs in this post-work era is to sort my cupboards and rotate stock properly, à la Boogie. Today's discovery proves I've not been great at that up to now.
We used to be told that if the top of a tin wasn't swelling and there was an audible suck of air into the tin when you pierced it, then it was likely to be good. (The warranty on this advice expires as soon as you read it).
Well, we ate some anchovies priced in shillings and pence (the UK went decimal in 1971) some time after the millennium...
And quite a few sheepsies were to be seen... with quite a few tiny and tiny-ish lambs! Life goes on.
*Piglet-inspired
It will give me an excuse to be out and about and the puppy can come for the ride too.
Pig-lee-shan, or Pig-letty-an ?
Despite it being a misty-moisty day, I too have ambled, and shifted suitably far from the one fellow-ambler who was on the same pavement as I was. I waved her past with a smile and said "just keeping my distance": I wonder if this whole business will actually make us friendlier than we were before?
I suddenly realised a wee while ago that it's six months today since David died, which caused fairly major eye leakage, and the deployment of a Small Bear for alleviation of same. It seems worse knowing that my nearest and dearest can't offer anything but virtual hugs.
Anyway, enough of this morosity - there are daffodils coming up in S's garden, so it must be nearly Spring.
I read it as Pig-letty-an. Pig-lee-shan is good, though it makes the Democratic Porcine Republic of Pigletia (Pig-lee-sha) come to mind.
Alas, a state NOT found on Discworld...more's the pity. Sir Terry's imagination would have had a field day.
It must be time for lunch...
The weather here is lovely. I've been going shopping on foot, thus combining foraging with exercise. However both yesterday and today I discovered short cuts which turned out to be considerably longer than The Usual Way. And sadly we live an in area where all the walks home with the shopping are uphill.
Now I think about it, where we lived in St. John's, while on an almost vertical hill, was actually downhill from the nearest supermarket.
Streets round about so quiet you would need to search for someone to avoid. About the only traffic is parent + child out for an airing.
S. and I went out into the road, wondering if we were going to be alone (we were a minute early), but we heard a faint clap through the fog and joined in, and there was enough to make us not feel daft.
We have a vested interest: my niece, nephew-in-law and niece-in-law all work for the NHS.
Not the huge response in the places where the TV cameras were, but it was definitely there.
Once a (... and no, I'm not going to use that adjective here and now!) linguist, always a linguist!
Nonetheless, I opened my door, and clapped out into the dark. Happily, I could hear clapping and cheering from all around, which was gratifying.
I was schools’ IT co-ordinator in another life and now all my friends and family are asking for help getting them on to Zoom/Skype etc. I’ve been mowed under with calls. Some of which take a Great Deal of patience!
My dogs are very big and I’m having shoulder troubles, so I walk one at once. I take Echo, drop him off and take Tatze - it’s one walk for me but with different dogs.
I’m lucky to have a garden they can hooly round. I’m doing lots of scent work and games with them at other times. The pup’s training is suspended as we have no access to cafes, restaurants, buses, trains, shopping centres etc where I am normally required to do his training. So it’s fun walks only - he’s not complaining.
I have sweet pea and lettuce seeds to plant today
Posing in the garden - https://tinyurl.com/vvfuqj6
I know! We have yet to get decent curry take-aways over here. So I guess I make do even with the occasional be-curried pizza.
And very nice it was too!
We had our first takeaway delivery since quarantine last night, nice posh pizza cooked in a wood burning stove. It was from a little stall in a pedestrianised leisure area about a mile or so away, which must be glad of the takeaway trade.
My fatigue is improving, though I still have a tight feeling in my chest, especially in the evening. But my oxygen sats are fine so nothing to worry about. The cough seems better too. This morning I am going to attempt to walk to the corner shop as I am now allowed out of the house.
Same here in Somerset, long may it shine!
I must admit I wasn't clapping, but I was engrossed in work, having finally got the chance to get my head down properly post-Dragonlet bedtime, which is for an NHS screening programme.
Today I finally tracked down a sewing pattern for scrubs and some fabric so when that arrives early next week I can start on some sets for my GP who is on the “hot site” team here. I approached the surgery to see if they’d like some, and they put me in touch with her. If you hear the whirr of a sewing machine near you it could be someone doing the same for their local hospital or GP.
I am bracing myself for a visit to the allotment this afternoon as I was reminded this morning that there are still leeks to pull. Hopefully they haven’t bolted. It’s lovely and sunny, although very nippy, and I’ve been so careful not to get close to anyone including my very elderly and ailing neighbours there. But I’ll risk it this afternoon, it’s about time I went further than the nearby post box.
Mostly well organized at Tesco though (good social distancing lines, not too busy). My only minor annoyances were:
- no TP. I managed to get a box of Kleenex though.
- Tesco seem to have set their ApplePay limit to £30 (each store sets its own, I have discovered). There is no need for such a low limit - it is more secure than a CC and the amount is unlimited in many stores. So having deftly avoided touching anything or anyone, I then had to key my bloody pin in with the CC rather than using contactless. Since most customers were spending more than £30, they had all touched it. Great.
And of course, in accordance with the rules of weather, the drizzle stopped as soon as I got home.
The whole thing just for pure fun. It's that kind of audio book where at least you'll learn something, or are reminded of a number of rules to adhere to, all of which cannot be bad in these times of strange virusian insecurity.
NB. Quote: "The Highway Code is essential reading for everyone."
I managed the trip to the corner shop with no ill effects so tomorrow I hope to start going for a morning walk again.