Brace Yourselves,

there’s worse to come, Apparently.

Everything is dead, there is no life in Valley’s End at all, except for the volunteers who help those forced to stay at home. I hardly even see or hear any dog walkers in the castle grounds. I went to the surgery yesterday morning for a blood test and a consultation with the practice nurse. I saw one cyclist and one car, no other pedestrians, for the 20 minutes it took me to get there. All doors to the surgery were closed, I had to ring a brand new bell to be allowed in. A receptionist came to the door, told me to use the hand gel and wait in the empty waiting room. I was assured that there would be nobody else waiting at the same time. The nurse soon called me in, she stayed at the farther end of the consulting room and I stopped by the door while we talked. She had to come close to take my blood but we instantly moved apart again when she had finished.

It seems I have both COPD and asthma. Both recently diagnosed and only now confirmed. What a time to choose to develop lung disease! New medication works, I can breathe without wheezing.

I had a few general questions for Nurse Marian about Marzena, my cleaner, and Paul, the gardener. Would I be allowed to have them still? Both need the income. Provided we all keep a 2 m distance,  wash our hands, or even better, for me to stay in a different room from Marzena and away from Paul in the garden, there should be no problem. Both are sensible people and want to risk neither their own health nor mine.

I also had a more serious question for Marian. If I caught the virus, what were my chances? Would I die? She looked me in the eye and said, instantly, without hesitation and a dead straight face: “Yes”.
That’s telling me in no uncertain terms!

I suppose I am one of the lucky ones; I may be alone without family near, able or willing to help, but I have friends with whom I am in touch. We all keep an eye on each other. I am also resourceful; I live in a house with a good private outdoor space rather than an apartment block. I am quite able to look after myself and never need anyone to entertain me. The only family member moved to ring me without prompting was my former son-in-law, even my own son needed a reminder. He apologised for the lapse. Another bit of luck is that I am apparently on my supermarket’s list of vulnerable customers. How I got there is anybody’s guess. However, that means that they offer me a regular weekly delivery slot. There’s no guarantee that I get everything I order online, but they usually find an acceptable alternative. I even have a sufficient supply of toilet paper! Not having to stand in a queue is a huge weight off my shoulders.

There’s much worse to come, this whole misery is to last for a long time yet. we are told that the peak of the epidemic in the UK will not be reached for another two to three weeks. Even that is no more than a guesstimate, of course. How anybody can think - and say - that things will be back to normal by Easter (Hey there, Mr Trump) in a country which has barely begun it’s COVID 19 journey buggers belief.

I repeat my mantra from the previous post: Take care, look after yourselves and your loved ones and Good Luck to all of us.