My 2020 Corona Diary - week three

This week has been a struggle. Death numbers are increasing, so we are starting to hear of people who have lost someone (but luckily this is staying at that distance), and some of the novelty of having the much-dreamed of time at home is waning. Boris Johnson has the virus so our daily press conference is taken by a variety of ministers and we are shown clips of a very rough looking PM working remotely. A really good friend has been burgled and our dschshund was sick seven times in as many hours - none of them outside.
The change in time that we endure twice a year in this country has left us all feeling a bit discombobulated and the puppy is still waking us at 4.30am. We have reverted to taking it in turns to get up; a strategy that worked so well when S was a baby but I keep waking even when it's not my turn and struggling to go back to sleep. Although it is good not to have to find your way around the house in the dark when he stops suddenly to pick up a discarded sock (typical Spaniel).
However, the weather is kind so we have made a herb garden, planted up the window boxes and planted the Evening Primrose. Plus, the washing basket - which is normally overflowing - has never been so empty. The sense of achievement is real.
I have been thinking about many, many things related to Corona. What impact there will be on the economy and people's lives, of course, but also the legacy of perhaps connections that have been made, changes to behaviour and ways of interacting, how some addictions might be affected, what habits might be embedded (for me, I'm hoping for Joe Wicks but I also have a 4.30pm wine going on) and what we will appreciate.
Chris Evans is a joy in the mornings. So upbeat and positive, with so many thought-provoking ideas. Today he was pondering posessions and said that if we don't use things around our home over this time of isolation then do we actually need them? I love this idea. This ties in beautifully with 'Outer order = Inner calm (from Gretchen Rubin, literally one of my favourite influencers), something that I feel so strongly about when it is applied in opposition... 'cluttered kitchen = really bad mood'.
Tonight we are clapping again for the NHS. It is so quiet on our street that we might need to take out some pans and wooden spooons. We also appreciate all the other people keeping the country connected, and in essentials, so we adapted our contribution to the Rainbow Trail to thank the people we rarely see