Well, what a time it's been... we're now into Week 7 of lockdown, which has included 5 weeks of extremely restricted movement (no travel beyond 2km of an individual's place of residence, except for the acquisition of essential provisions or familial/work obligations) and there's ever-so-tentative talk of exit. Several US states and other European countries have already made some moves in this regard, opening up various places of business, schools, parks etc, but social distancing is still being practised globally (for the most part), despite growing isolation fatigue in populations and serious economic concerns - it's been so hard and continues to be hard and there really is a way to go yet...
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It always amazes me how nature keeps going, no matter what; the seasons change, the birds sing, the tide comes in. COVID-19, which I wrote about in my previous post, has utterly changed how the entire world goes about its business - we are all self-isolaters now, and it's hard to know how this will eventually be resolved - but spring has arrived as usual, and it makes my heart glad. As we all make the most of our allotted daily period of 'brief outdoor exercise', we can enjoy the birdsong and the arrival of blossoms and green buds on the trees... I have never been so grateful to live beside a park and be so close to the sea. These are indeed strange times.
So! This is the 3rd week of so-called 'lockdown' in Ireland, with more restrictions on movement having come into place last Friday night. Now, the only people who can go to work are those providing an essential service to the state (for example: employees in grocery shops, post offices, banks, pharmacies, certain research/manufacturing plants, utilities companies, bus/train drivers, farmers, and - of course - healthcare workers) and so far nearly 25% of the workforce is receiving some kind of unemployment benefit or government subsidy. I went to the supermarket yesterday for our weekly shop and it was the oddest experience; after dousing my hands with an alcohol gel I joined the queue outside with my trolley, 2 metres apart from the person in front of me and the person behind me, waiting to be allowed inside. Once inside the door, my trolley was disinfected and I took off around the place, making sure I stayed well away from the other shoppers, many of whom were wearing facemasks and gloves. There were some empty shelves (fresh fruit and vegetables, and cheese, for some reason) but I got pretty much everything I wanted (no need for panic buying, it's all good!); there was no music or advertising apart from a repeated message over the shop tannoy warning of COVID-19 and how to prevent the spread of infection. Nobody made eye contact or smiled or chatted - everyone was quietly focused and intent on their task. The girl at the till sat behind a plastic screen, wearing a pair of gloves; I paid, went to the car-park and packed my groceries into the car, before re-dousing with the alcohol gel and driving home along the deserted roads... all in all, it was a fairly grim outing. |
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Really, it contains a little bit of everything, from a celebration of science and the English language to the joys of travel and the Shipping Forecast. The title ('Meanderings') is a fairly accurate description of its content: I write about different things as the mood takes me, but hopefully there's something in here for everyone... Categories
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March 2021
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And on another note... |
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