The previous entry, dated 3 June, has been sitting in draft form waiting for me to finish it off! Can’t believe that was 6 weeks ago.

Since then we are well and truly down the ‘almost normal’ path here in NZ with numbers at venues unlimited, sport being played in front of spectators, and schools and businesses have reopened. Sadly our neighbours across the Tasman are not doing so well and the state of Victoria is into its second lockdown for 6 weeks while they try to halt the rampant spread of this virulent disease. Major outbreaks are occurring in countries around the world and currently the only cases of Covid-19 in NZ are those that are being carried back by returning Kiwis - most from India and Pakistan but a couple from the UK and from the US. As people return they are required to have a 14 day isolation period in managed hotels (paid for at present by the NZ Government). If during that time they test positive for the virus they are removed to a quarantine hotel where there are other people recovering from the virus. People are tested on the 3rd day and the 12th day of their stay. If by Day 14 they are okay they are allowed to continue to their home town in NZ.

Because of what is happening outside of Aotearoa and the fact that some returning Kiwis are returning with virus symptoms, it is unlikely that the trans-Tasman bubble which was suggested some weeks ago will happen. Having said that, because the Pacific Islands seem to be free of the disease there may be an opportunity for travel and trade to be started up between NZ and the Pacific.

Some of the shops are running low on stock, especially clothing shops if their garments are produced in countries where the virus is till prevalent. If factories are not working then garments are not being produced, so there is likely to be a shortage of some things going forward. The other thing that is becoming in short supply is paracetamol as it is manufactured overseas. I’m sure there will be other things that we will notice as we get further into the year.

Well, I see that my last entry was 13 May! Hard to believe where the days go.

Since then we have had Katherine and James’ birthday on 20 May and then mine on 28 May. We enjoyed dinner with Katherine, Angus and the children and Jill & Graham for Katherine’s birthday but also were able to have a virtual drink with James for his birthday.

New Zealand is currently in Covid-19 level 2 - social distancing, limited numbers in cafes, no cinemas open. Shops are open but you have to either scan a QR Code or register manually that you are there, sanitise your hands before you enter, and the staff have to sanitise everything you touch.

We decided at the Information Centre at the Dunedin Botanic Garden that it was all too hard - social distancing would have applied without a problem but having to sanitise surfaces would have felt like preying on the visitors and following them around to see what they touched. The Return to Work Plan to be implemented and displayed was pretty difficult for a volunteer group, so we have decided to wait until we are further down the track towards normality - that might come sooner than we anticipated as today the Prime Minister has talked about how things will be if we go to Level 1 which will be discussed by Cabinet and advised on Monday 8 June.

I am involved with the church, and likewise, we are working on Return to Work protocols which involves cleaning all buildings before we return and then maintaining a level of cleanliness and surface cleaning which we have not previously had to maintain. It is important socially that our community be allowed to return to church but it needs to be in a safe way and with an environment which is acceptable and meets the current regulations.

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.

I seem to be commenting each time about how much time has passed since my last entry, and this time it is about 10 days!

I know some people will find it hard to believe, but we really are busy each and every day - haven’t even sat in the sun to read a book (although I do sit and do the Codecracker each day at lunch time or morning tea time, in the sun). We continue to have mild and very pleasant weather which has helped with motivation and achieving tasks in the garden and tidying drawers etc.

On Saturday, 25 April it was ANZAC Day. As a mark of respect New Zealanders were encouraged to stand outside their houses at 6.00 am and think about the men and women who have fought for us in various wars and conflicts, and now this other type of war that we are dealing with, that of the coronavirus, Covid-19. Ian and I went out and stood at our letterbox and listened to a broadcast of the Last Post and the ANZAC prayer. It was very moving even though we were in the dark and alone - we could see some other people up and down our street but didn’t move from our spot. John & Sue who live further up the hill came down and stood in the middle of the road and had a quick chat - John had raised the NZ flag for his neighbours who have a flagpole and he had found that very moving.

The Otago Daily Times newspaper had provided a full page poppy in the Friday edition of the paper which we cut out and put on our window. Using that as a template I also made a poppy out of a red supermarket bag and used black earrings for the centre. Ian backed it with some cardboard and taped it onto a bamboo stake - it has survived very well outside in the garden for a week. At the front door I placed the framed citation from the King, medals and photo of my grandfather, who died at home in Lyttelton but from wounds suffered in World War 1. Also the wedding photo of my parents, who got married in Auckland towards the end of World War 2 when my father who was in the Royal New Zealand Navy, returned from overseas. Mum worked at the Devonport Naval Base as a Wren, keeping track of the whereabouts of every officer on a big board - no such thing as an electronic database of course.

Front door

On Saturday night 25 April, Gail & Ross had a ‘wedding’ to which we were invited - we just had to post photos of ourselves dressed accordingly. Ian was asked to be the minister -

Minister
but he also went as a guest - here he is as his long lost cousin ‘Wayne’ (not a real cousin! - as far as we know) alongside me, dressed in my mother-of-the-bride outfit from Katherine’s wedding in 2006.

Guests
At midnight on Monday 27 April NZ dropped back from Alert Level 4 to Alert Level 3. We are to stay at this level for a couple of weeks and it will be reviewed again on 11 May. If the number of Covid-19 cases has stablised and there has been days without any new cases, the Government will take us to Alert Level 2, which enables much more freedom. At the current level 3 cafes have been able to open with contactless delivery and payments, and many stores are offering online orders with contactless delivery which seems to be working well for everyone. On the first day the queues outside fastfood outlets like McDonalds and KFC exceeded expectations and traffic management had to be brought in!

Ian has had a trip to Bunnings to collect a garden shredder, and we also had delivered a paper shredder, so we have managed to reduce some of our rubbish considerably - we do have a lot to dispose of though when we can. I drove up to the Gardens shopping centre on Saturday morning early to clear the mail box for Friends of the Botanic Garden and there was quite a bit of mail there. Because it was pretty quiet I made a quick trip around the supermarket and picked up a few things before driving home again.

Today Sunday 3 May has been very mild and Ian & I went for an hour long walk around our local hill. I had intended getting into the garden but the day flew by and didn’t achieve that - but it doesn’t matter! I think it is going to be hard getting back to normal routines and commitments; we haven’t spent so much time together during waking hours in a long time and it has been good for us.

How time flys - can hardly believe it is a week since my last entry.

We continue to order our groceries online for home delivery and apart from the odd thing that for some inexplicable reason is out of stock, it seems to be working okay. More and more businesses are getting on to online ordering and local delivery - yesterday I placed an order with Veggie Boys, a local fruit & produce market, and also Harbour Fish, for some fresh blue cod and sole. I always get fish from this business so I have no hesitation in ordering their produce sight unseen.

On Monday 20 April the Government announced that we would experience one more week at Alert Level 4 and at midnight on Monday 27 April will drop to Alert Level 3. This enables more businesses to open up, including cafes that can maintain contactless payment and delivery - no customers to be sitting around inside - we still have to maintain the 2m social distancing. There won’t be much change for Ian and I in our bubble, as over 70’s are encouraged to stay isolated right down to Level 2! It will be some time before our committee meetings and group activities return to normal and cinemas and theatres still won’t be able to open up. I think at Level 1 there can be gatherings of no more than 100 but at Level 3 it is still no more than 10 at weddings or funerals with no catering.

On Saturday night we continued our idea of making an effort for a meal and we encouraged a few friends to join us (in their own homes) for an International Themed Food & Dress-up night. At first our friends were a bit sceptical about how it would work but we just took photos of the food and the dress-up and sent them around. Ian and I took the easy way out and had an Indian meal. I dressed up in what could loosely be described as female Indian attire, and Ian was able to wear the genuine Indian pyjama type outfit which Katherine brought back from India about 15 years ago!

Sue&IanIndianIan

June & Paul went all out and had a delicious 3 course French meal - Paul dressed in his bowtie and beret, and June with her red ‘witches-britches’ and garter for the can-can (or, as she said, the ‘can-can’t’. Gail & Ross took to Hawaii with beach chairs and umbrella on the lounge floor, Hawaian shirt for Ross and swimsuit for Gail (I bet they turned the heating up really high!), cocktails and fish pie! We were very impressed with the effort everyone went to.

This week the weather has been great and no-so-great - this morning dawned fine and relatively mild with rain expected later in the day but sadly the rain has arrived earlier than expected so we won’t be able to attend to the sections of garden we were each working on yesterday. Oh well, tomorrow is another day, as they say, and there are still lots of inside things to be done. I was talking to someone when I was out in the front garden yesterday (a woman my age) and she is getting bored now and has nothing left to do! I don’t think I will ever be able to say that - haven’t had to resort to watching day time TV, or even just relaxing with a book.

Gail has decided on this Saturday night’s theme and it is to be a wedding! She and Ross are going to be the bride & groom (traditional by the sound of it); Ian has been asked to be the minister but he also wants to be a guest, so there’s going to be a big of juggling for the photographs we have to send. I have decided our wedding catering will be a continuous delivery of hors d’oeuvres, with bubbly and a selection of wines & beers (promise we won’t drink everything! We will be the perfect guests, and just take what we need).

This morning Katherine came up with the children with some flour, eggs and brown sugar for me and as I was pre-warned I had hot sausage rolls for them. We put them down at the letterbox and retreated to the front door while we chatted and they had their food. Made Katherine a coffee in a takeaway cup! They are all doing well and the children are doing some amazing things instead of structured school lessons. Katherine has a great programme of learning going for them which includes exercise breaks. Schools are reopening next week but only children of essential workers or people who must now go back to work are encouraged to attend so that social distancing can be maintained. Katherine was telling us this morning that the children are to be 5m apart in the classroom (!) and still maintain the 2m social distancing in the playground. A tricky one to regulate once they all get excited about being back together.

Easter 2020 is one we will probably never forget because of the isolation from friends and the need to stay home in our own bubble. The weather was lovely the first couple of days but cool and showery for Easter Monday.

View
Katherine invited us all to a Zoom 5 pm drinks on Good Friday and it was good to have a catch up with the family again. Early Saturday morning I made a quick trip to the local Four Square store - they opened at 8.00 am and I was there waiting for them - first and only customer for about 5 minutes so was able to grab the half dozen things I needed, deliver Easter eggs for the children to their front door and home again within 25 minutes. Then on Sunday morning at 8.00 am NZST time we joined with James from London for an ‘Easter Bonnet Parade’. The challenge was to make and wear an Easter hat, or tell everyone an Easter Bible story.

Easter bonnets
A screen shot of all of us online together. However, the star of the show had to be James, who did a ‘puppet’ show about Jesus and the disciples, using cut outs from magazines pasted on to sticks, and an improvised mountain with house plants and a sheet representing the mountain for the story of Jesus feeding the masses with loaves of bread, and in the ‘second act’ a plush blanket representing the sea when Jesus challenged the disciple Peter to ‘walk on the water’. Sadly we overlooked taking a screenshot - we thought we were recording it but if we did we have no idea where the recording went!

A southerly change came through on Monday with very strong and very cold winds; yesterday was freezing cold with heavy rain showers. In the newspaper this morning there are photos of snow at Kingston, near Queenstown, and reports of snow on the Crown Range road and the Milford Pass road was closed - that shouldn’t have affected anyone but it is early in the ‘season’ for there to be road closures due to snow.

Today, Wednesday, is still overcast but no rain so far. The forecast is for a change to a north westerly wind from the southerly we are currently having so it might be a bit warmer but we are still only forecast to have 13 degrees.

Checked a bag of carrots this morning to find half of them had black mould on them - something I’ve never experienced with carrots. So we’ll be having carrot this and carrot that and I will make a large pot of carrot & cumin soup (which is very yum anyway) and put some in the freezer.

What many people don’t seem to get is that social distancing is just that - we are hearing of people who are gathering in their streets for a catch up and even some friends who went walking with another couple - albeit 2m distance but not what we are supposed to be doing. This lockdown Alert Level 4 is to be reviewed on 20 April but we will not be suddenly jumping in cars and going to the shops and meetings etc. We will go back to Alert Level 3 (which originally we were only in for 2 days) which is still very restrictive on travel and what businesses can operate so we are a long way from ‘normal’ activities. We’re fine and still keeping ourselves busy - haven’t had to divide the house up into separate areas yet so that’s a good sign!

The days go by and I was surprised to see that my last entry was 6 April and it is now 11 April - ‘time flies when you’re having fun’ as the saying goes.

We are continuing to do neighbourhood walks and on Thursday morning I took part in the Les Mills fitness programme - I think it was a bit advanced for me but I just marched on the spot when it got a bit much. The music was good and the presenters very fit and enthusiastic so that keeps you motivated. The ‘class’ is conducted from the top of a high rise building in Auckland which in itself was rather lovely instead of inside a studio.

During the day I had a great spring clean of the cupboards and drawers of the buffet in the lounge then decided to move furniture around for a bit of a change. Actually very pleased with the result and both the lounge and living/dining room are looking less cluttered.

Beautiful day on Good Friday - calm and sunny.

View

Had breakfast, morning tea and lunch on the balcony but didn’t do very much ‘work’ as it was a holiday after all.

Made some mince pies yesterday and marked three up with the children’s initials. Also made some Easter cupcakes with yellow icing and tiny Easter eggs nestled on the top. (Only 2 left - the rest went to the grandchildren early this morning)

Cakes
Good Friday we had 5 pm drinks via Zoom with Katherine, Angus and the children. They are all in good spirits and Katherine is doing an amazing job of keeping their day varied and interesting with sport activities as well as crafts and TV - movies come with a quiz to be answered afterwards to see what they have got out of the story.

And now it is Easter Saturday and currently is foggy and cool but we are supposed to have another nice day - wish it would hurry up and arrive! We had planned to be in the garden today but there are still plenty of things to do inside. This morning I was up bright and early, showered and dressed by 7.30 am and was first customer at the local 4-Square store - a great time to shop and also a great place to shop as they simply can’t have crowds of people in the shop because of the size. While I was out I made an Easter Bunny delivery to Richardson Street and just left the above cakes, pies and wrapped up Easter eggs on the porch.

Tonight is our Saturday night ‘dinner party’ night and we have decided it will be a themed night so are having Indian food and will dress up - photo will be posted after the event.

So we’re in this until at least 22 April - a decision will be made by Government on 20 April as to whether we stay in Alert Level 4 or revert to Alert Level 3. This will depend on the number of Covid-19 cases and the controls in place. Any reduction in levels will be a slow process and Alert Level 3 is still pretty restrictive, especially for those over 70 or with vulnerable health conditions. Not all businesses will be able to reopen at that time and communal areas such as libraries, gyms etc. will still be closed. (I had a hair cut appointment changed from 26 March to 23 April but doesn’t look as if I will be able to have that - my hair is manageable at the moment but I usually have a trim every 5 weeks so trying hard not to pick up the nail scissors!)

Technically, because we are in the 70+ group, we have been in ‘isolation’ since 26 March - in some ways it seems much shorter but in other ways feels much longer.

We are coping and still managing to keep ourselves busy. We would have hoped for better and more consistent weather at this time of the year but we do have indoor tasks as well as outdoor and we are still getting out for a walk around the neighbourhood most days.

My last entry was Thursday 2 April - have been so busy I overlooked updating the blog! However, I won’t be making an entry every day unless there is something interesting to report.

Friday night we once again had our ‘After Work Drinks’ and it seems to be catching on with friends now. Because in our street the houses are only down one side of the street we can’t have a street ‘happy hour’ which is what some communities are doing, but we are keeping in touch with neighbours via email and waving as people pass by.

Saturday night was dinner party and we made it a ‘pot luck’ as that is something we do regularly. Ian was in charge of the main course and he really excelled with a very tasty roast leg of kid goat! I ‘brought’ a salad and a dessert. Once again we dressed for dinner, this time ‘smart casual’ was the brief. Had a lovely dinner and we haven’t run out of conversation yet. Next Saturday night our friends Gail & Ross want to have a fancy dress night, so we are already planning what we will do for that!

Some gardening in the weekend but today was much cooler than predicted. Ian went out to finish off a job he was doing in the weekend and I spent the day sorting out all of the toiletries that we take when we travel either locally or overseas. I am such a hoarder! Managed to cull them quite a bit but have some favourite things to use up and some to keep for when we are able to travel again.

Haven’t been out in the car apart from a trip to the local shop on Friday morning to get some Council rubbish bags. We are having groceries delivered and there are now several other suppliers taking online orders and delivering to your door, one of whom is Harbour Fish so we are keen to get some fish from them this week. Some of the Farmers Market producers are also setting up online ordering and delivery systems - we might never have to go out for food again!

I guess the worst part of all of this for us, apart from not being able to socialise with friends, is not having the regular contact with the grandchildren but we have been able to talk to them via Zoom and see what they are up to in their family bubble.

I will get tired of putting ‘Lockdown Day …’ so have decided to change the headings from time to time.

Beautiful day today although a bit foggy early morning but once that cleared it has been lovely. Ian got out the heavy gardening equipment today and has trimmed back trees and chopped things into smaller pieces for Angus to collect some time for fire starters.

Angus did come about lunch time to return our wheelbarrow which had been put to use to move a load of firewood, and also to pick up some printing he had sent electronically for a colouring competition for the kids. He is busy working from home as are lots of people. Our neighbours next door, Jan & Arman, are both working from home and the two girls doing school work online I think.

There was lots of water in the fridge the last few days so I needed to attend to that - definitely something wrong but it will have to wait as the food is still being chilled. I mopped up the water and then cleaned every part of the fridge and rearranged everything. Looks pretty good!

In the afternoon I joined Ian in the garden and did some tidying of part of the garden at the back of the house. The weather is supposed to be good until Sunday (when it will turn to rain and cooler temperatures!) so hopefully will be able to continue with gardening tomorrow.

Today we were allowed out!!

Had a call from the doctor to go for our flu injections at 10.00 am. What a great system they had set up. A tent on the carpark being used solely by the nurse giving the injections. When we started up the ramp into the Medical Centre the receptionist came out masked and gloved and asked us to fill out the usual consent forms in our car. Completed those and the nurse came out gowned, gloved and masked and we went into the tent where she gave each of us our injection. We had to wait the usual 15 minutes to make sure we didn’t have a reaction - in our own car of course. Strangely enough this is the second year running I have had my flu shot in the carpart - last year I was on my way home from the hospital with my leg in plaster!

The doctor had faxed through prescriptions for Ian’s regular medication and my bone density one that I now take once a week so we went to the pharmacy to collect those - again, great system with entry being controlled by the staff inside, no more than 3 people in there at a time I think so easy to keep social distance of 2 metres apart.

The supermarket up there had a long ‘passageway’ created by a marquee type arrangement. People had to walk down that and get hand santiser squirted into their hands. He then kept an eye on numbers and told people when they could enter the store. All very orderly and again, a great system.

So this afternoon it has been more tidying of electronics for Ian - every now and then I heard a shout of delight as he found things that he’s been looking for for ….. months! So we are gaining some benefits from the isolation.

The weather has improved as the day has progressed so hopefully will be fine and sunny so that we can do some outside things. Didn’t even get a walk in today but have had plenty of exercise up and down the stairs etc. - and we did get a bit of a walk when going to the doctor and pharmacy.