GOFFA FROM THE BLOCK

Worked from home today - the new normal.  I'm not keen to be honest.  My set-up's reasonable enough.  A room set aside, a big desk and a nice chair so it's comfortable enough but home's home and good and work's work and tolerable. I try to work hard at home but it would be silly to deny that I'm a bit pre-occupied at the moment.  Anyway, as it's the new normal I decided that listening to music is going to be part of the new normal and that this week I'd concentrate on listening to The Kinks.  Why the hell not?  I know little about The Kinks.  Obviously Ray Davies and his brother Dave was in them and in the sixties they had loads of great singles, they played a memorable (in my opinion anyway) concert on Christmas Eve 1977 that was televised live on the BBC and they brough out a great Christmas single that bombed.  They had a long list of great songs that were covered by other artis.  David Watts (The Jam), Stop Your Sobbing (Pretenders),...

Hardly the countryside but the Cowpen Bewley Woodland Park was beautiful today.  It's just on the edge of Billingham, semi industrial and a quite smelly in parts but we like it. From what Johnson said tonight it might have been our last trip out for some time.  Not as many people out as yesterday.  Lots of talk on the news about people being irresponsible.  In fairness not us, we managed to get out twice this weekend and our social distancing was text book if I say so myself. Had a chat with my brother in Spain.  He said we're going to be locked down tomorrow.  I didn't think so at the time but when I saw Johnson on the news I can see what he's saying. Spoke to my ex-wife about Michael in Lowestoft. She assured me he'll be ok so I'll stop fretting for now. That's enough  for tonight.  Working from tomorrow in solitary confinement.  Here's a few snaps from today.  As I used to say more filler than thriller.  This...

Definitely felt a bit weird today.  There were about 10 people stood outside the pharmacy as I parked up to pick up my 4 weeks supply of tablets.  When I got closer I read the sign in the window "3 customers only at any one time".  Fortunately only 2 of the 10 were waiting in the queue. As I entered the shop I got a view of the pharmacist with a mask over his mouth.  For some reason his assistant didn’t.  I really hope it wasn’t because of a shortage of masks.  I received my tablets and exited and sighed with relief.  Quite rightly lots of talk about heroic staff in NHS but lots of heroes also elsewhere.  I’ll start with shout for chemist staff, shop workers generally, post workers, carers, bus drivers, logistic staff, (all) cleaners.  Lots there and sure will be more. After that we drove over to Coulby Newham Farm (of course closed) for an 8 mile walk through Fairy Dell, along Marton West Beck through Marton to Nunthorpe Vi...

So I haven’t posted for a while (again) but all good things must come to an end.   I’d never even heard of social distancing a week ago but the government has advised anybody over the age of 70 or under 70 with an underlying health condition (defined as anyone instructed to get a flu jab as an adult each year on medical grounds) has to be “particularly stringent in following socially distancing measures”.   Count me in (under 70 and a flu jab). I treated today as the official day one of my social-distancing but it turns out it doesn’t start until Monday (I must have missed something).   In any case I’ve actually been socially-distancing since last Tuesday when my employer offered me the chance to work from home.   I’ve done home working before and I’m not keen but I’ve been told by BJ that it’s my duty to try not to catch the virus so I felt it was the right thing to do.     I don’t feel particularly vulnerable but I had a mild heart attack ne...