Started off sadly with an expected death in his family and basically never really recovered.
We heard vague rumblings of Covid-19 while we were in NZ but it seemed to be like the SARS which never really took off in the West. What it did mean for NZ was that Chinese New Year was very quiet. We were on the South Island on a motorbike trip just the two of us in early February so were quite pleased as the chinese drivers are not the best bless em. When we returned to the North Island his sister and her family went to the South Island on a tramp so no internet etc and we moved up the hill to house sit and keep an eye on the cat and the chickens for them. The world went mad while they were incomunicado and it amused us that the first text she sent us was - the world has gone mad can you get us some loo roll? Since we were living there we knew full well that they had none in and had bought a four pack to keep us going but himself went out and got them a nine pack and so we too became part of the problem! Yes even in NZ there was the rush on loo rolls.
As our return flight loomed we were getting increasinly worried as airlines were shutting down left right and centre. His nephew had taken a sabbatical from studying to be a doctor for a year to travel and cycle/run up mountains etc He left in February planning to finish up in Portugal in September. He managed one event in Chile but then he had to abandon South America and his bicycle as he caught the last flight out of Peru and into NZ before they shut the airport. He then had to self isolate at his parents in a tent in the garden. Luckily for us Singapore Airlines was still going and we caught all our booked flights and all connections. We even managed to go out of the airport at Singapore to our hotel and we were let back in again the next day. They took our temperatures at every possible occasion. Very slick. The planes were crowded with people who had been shunted off their flights. But the toilets were scrubbed clean every hour or so by the staff. One Danish girl who had been travelling in Bali was on her fifth flight into Heathrow so was facing yet another night in an airport. Before hopefully getting a final sixth flight back to Denmark. Her luggage had been taken off her in Bali and she had no idea if it was ever going to catch up with her. We gave her all our snacks!
Heathrow airport was eerily quiet. Only our flight landed and that was an hour ahead of schedule because we clearly didn't have to circle around waiting for a landing slot. We spent the night with my son on his narrowboat then the next day 22nd March we caught the coach back home. Son and his girlfriend opted to spend lockdown up north with her family and poor souls they are still there as they can't return to the boat during lockdowns. Our neighbours had sweetly bought us milk, bread and eggs and bravely fetched us from the coach station.
Lockdown 1 - strangely I enjoyed it. April and May I had the best sleep I have had for years. I think it was because nothing was expected of me. Shame that I appear to have reverted to the not sleeping well since.
End of April I took up cycling and racked up 1260.4 miles to 31st December. Once I got onto the boat in early June to move it from the old mooring location to the new one I continued with the cycling. 687 of my total miles were done on the old boat bike and the rest at home on the ebike. (There are lots of hills at home).
Took my time moving the boat and I chose a route with the fewest locks so that I didn't have to touch things others might have touched too often. I found it very relaxing as normally I am a head down get the miles in kind of a girl. So I didn't get to go to Ellesmere Port or Chester or even back up the Llangollen as had been the plan.
In August I took delivery of son's cat and she spent the month with me on the boat while he and his girlfriend managed a much curtailed travelling acting tour of Britain. It should have been for the whole of the Summer from May to October but a month was better than nothing. Cat and I meandered down the Coventry Canal to meet up with some friends on the Ashby Canal and we did social distanced chatting on the towpath. We even travelled in convoy into Coventry Basin. Thoroughly enjoyable. I then meandered back up the Coventry canal and left the boat on its new mooring in the middle of October. A much shorter boating season than normal early June to mid Oct instead of March to Nov but probably more days in total on the boat. As once I was on it that was it. I picked a good year to choose to retire it turns out.
Lockdown or not lockdown we haven't altered our habits for the whole year we have basically shielded ourselves at home or on the boat not seen anyone, not had anyone visit. (other than son and even then it was no hugs, elbows only) I have made many masks. Cloth ones and plastic bottle ones. We have both worn masks for shopping since the 23rd March and as the first incarnations were made out of some gazebo material I had lying around they definitely protected us from them as didn't, as well as protecting them from us. I have taken up lots of different crafts, painting, crochet and my latest craze is tablet weaving. I am not very good at it but I am determined to get the hang of it. Made my own loom and everything out of stuff from home or the skip opposite!
Christmas was hard simply because our heating packed in on the 23rd December and today 4th January the plumber came and fixed it. Our heating is generated by a Stanley cooker (like an AGA) so cooking a full roast dinner using one induction hob, one camping gas ring and a combi-microwave oven was a an amazing feat carried out not by me but by himself. A week ago the immersion heater decided it too wasn't going to play the game so not only no heating but no hot water either. And it snowed. BAH HUMBUG!!
Still I am hoping that that is all behind us now and 2021 can only improve.
The ecobricking continues. I am waiting for himself to finish another 2 litre bottle so I can finish all the 2020 generated non recyclable plastic before I feel that we have totally put 2020 to bed. (He had actually saved me enough bottles while I was away but I turned three of them into masks.)
I went on a walk near Christchurch NZ and kept coming upon these little mot juste. Eventually I came upon the explanation. They had been written by a young woman coming to terms with terminal cancer.
RIP 2020
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