My last entry was 3 May and it is now 13 May! How time flys when you’re having fun as they say.
On Monday at 4.00 pm the Prime Minister announced that we would drop to Alert Level 2 at midnight on Wednesday 13 May - about 4 hours from now. Shops will open, cafes and restaurants, people can go back to work…. schools and learning centres will open on Monday 18 May. There are still lots of restrictions until the Government feel it is safe to go to Alert Level 1, which will be an almost normal existence.
One of the good things about this new level approaching is that in the initial level governance people over 70 were urged to stay at home even at Alert Level 2, but this has been changed as it has been seen that not everyone in the 70+ age bracket is decrepid, and also people are suffering from not having social contact. Ian and I are not in that group as we have managed to keep ourselves busy and engaged during this whole 7 weeks of lockdown. We have been fortunate that we have been able to talk to the grandchildren, Katherine & Angus at a distance at least once a week and we have also engaged in zoom chats and virtual drinks etc.
So, how do I feel about returning to a ‘normal’ routine. To be honest, I am in two minds about it. I am looking forward to having more contact with the grandchildren and their parents, and also friends, but I have so enjoyed this time of no diary commitments and being able to do what I want to do when I want to do it without having to refer to a diary or timetable. I have no doubt that I will soon revert to my previous hectic life, but I would like to think that I will be more mindful of how much time I am giving to activities outside of the home instead of putting my own needs first. Watch this space!
We have been in touch with James regularly via Zoom and Slack and we are so grateful that we are living in a time when technology makes this possible. It has been good to see him on the screen, albeit the laptop screen, and to see that he is well and (appears to be) coping. I think if we are all honest there have been times when the share magnitude of what has been happening in the world just seems so daunting and overwhelming and a return to what we have taken for granted seems a long way off. We must be thankful here in NZ at least that the coronavirus seems to have been contained and hopefully by the end of 2020 we might be able to plan some travel which includes and involves James and the whole family. At this stage even a road trip to Christchurch sounds enticing!
And so from midnight tonight we are allowed to visit friends, go to the malls, the Farmers Market, the gym (I won’t be rushing in for that one). Tomorrow we are going to mind the three grandchildren while Katherine goes back to work at Health 2000 - they are very excited, as are we. It will be a change of scenery and routine for them as well as for us. Then on Friday we have invited our good friend Dorothy to come for afternoon tea, and on Sunday we are having lunch with Katherine, Angus and the children, and Angus’s parents at their house. AND, the most exciting news is that I have a hair cut appointment for next Thursday at 9.00 am! If I ever had thoughts of growing my hair longer they have certainly gone out the window during this long period since my last hair cut which was at the end of February! When you have a short hair style and have it trimmed regularly it doesn’t take long for the wheels to fall off and for things to take longer to manage.
Now is not the time to get cavalier - we still need to be vigilant and have been asked to keep observing social distancing when we are around people we don’t know, and to keep up the hand washing at home, hand sanitising when at shops and public spaces and staying at home if we don’t feel well. Let’s hope that as a nation we can maintain these practices and be sensible about what we dive into.
kia kaha New Zealand - keep well, keep safe.