November 2020

And so it goes on and on…the Covid situation. We are all sick of it, longing for normality however boring it may be. It will come but after that, how long will we remember the restricted life? Will we appreciate the normality? One tries to find something good in current situation whenever possible. The day gets a point if I wake up, still breathing. Another point if on waking up nothing hurts. A third point if it’s sunny, or at least not raining. And fourth point at the end of the day if I have had three meals and a glass of wine. Anything else is a bonus – like seeing No 1 Daughter and family, talking to a friend, making someone laugh.

All my plans have gone to pot. We are all in the same boat. Everything is in suspension at the moment. A big thank you to everybody who keeps the services going, be it caring for people or food chain.  Other businesses like clothing shops, restaurants, coffee shops being open keep us sane bringing in some normality.

Here comes a rant or two – I get angry when in the media they say that teachers should teach pupils good manners and behaviour. Sorry, that comes from home, how you were brought up before you reach schooling age. And the other day I heard someone say that the Government should stop blaming people for the Covid spikes. Eh? Was that fake news? So…how does the Covid spread..? Whatever ills there are in the world they are man made. Such a pity Utopia doesn’t exist. Even a lot of natural disasters nowadays can be attributed to human activity. When will people start taking responsibility for their actions?? Probably never. And not many people will admit to stupidity.

My memory isn’t the best any more. I blame the Covid. And yet, long lost memories come back instantly when you smell something from the past. You know where and when it was. Stubble burning is one of them. I do find that smoke very pleasant. It brings back the harvesting time in Finland tootynine years ago. At the neighbouring farm where my cousins lived, after the harvest we children gathered straw in a heap and set fire to it, threw in potatoes and boy they tasted good! I must admit some of them were rather black and somewhat crunchy inside but the flavour was great. Nobody came to tell us to put the fire out, to tell how dangerous it was to set fire to dry straw. They were probably watching us from a distance, just in case. Those were happy days, when you were able to be free range children. Nobody came to harm. Without a watch you knew somehow when it was time to go back home. After the potato baking you couldn’t tell fibs where you had been. You were smelling like a kipper and your teeth were black.

18 April 2021

Well well, that’s five months since I attempted the BLOG last. Quite a lot has happened since Nov 2020 even when I keep on saying that we now live in a Groundhog Day. There is a variation in every day and you appreciate it if something different happens.

I like my newspaper, the 2-D kind, that you can fold away and light fires with. At the start of the lockdown I asked the paper to be sent by post but the PO didn’t take on new customers which I thought was stupid. So, I drove most days to town to collect the paper, a round trip of 14 miles. At least it meant I wasn’t stuck at home all the time. And I have been going to the beach every day if possible. It is exercise for the Katie the dog and I. Well, she does – did – all the running. I just threw the ball. I got fresh air and walking on the beach is therapeutic, clears the mind, calms you down. Poor Mutt though, she had another funny turn at the beginning of March. The vet saw her but I think she had a stroke. She didn’t walk the next two-three weeks. She ate and did her toilet lying down on a towel and papers. Then one day after we had washed her back end, we left her drying on the front step and the next thing we saw she was walking with great difficulty and wobble, away from the step. Wow! A miracle dog. This is now facility for an ailing recuperating blind old dog. She is doing quite well. She now walks out and does her toilet outside which saves me an awful lot of bother. I have had to reduce her food intake though. She is putting on weight, as is her owner. I can’t blame tumble dryer for shrinking my clothes. I haven’t got one. Clothes shrinking in the wardrobe if they are not used for a while…?

I have tidied the studio and am intending to start work soon. Honestly. We have had lovely sunny but cool days and it is nice to think that spring and summer are still ahead of us, with the promise of warm weather, lots of light. The easing of restrictions and Covid news, reports haven’t been very positive in spite of cases going down in Britain. We all are getting impatient and frustrated. Today didn’t start well, I wasn’t in a good place for various reasons. Then a conversation cheered me up no end. I phoned the Finnish Seafarers’ Mission (!) in London. They have a shop selling Finnish products as well as offering spiritual help. I like pickling my gherkins but it needs a particular Finnish vinegar and with Covid and Brexit I probably would have to wait for a year to get it from Finland. Well! They are sending me the three bottles they had. The best thing of all though was the girl Mervi at the other end. As we were talking she asked if I am from the west coast. Yesss… So is she. We both come from the same town, Pori. Small world. We had a cracking conversation about the town, our dialect, laughing at its peculiarities, specific words that baffle people from other areas. Think of Glaswegian…Doric…Highland accents…

On that happy note, I wish you happy Spring and take care.