Hi everyone, it was delightful to read so much news of people managing to stay sane and keep going. Fighting something by lying low? is so counter-intuitive.
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We¡¯re okay here. DD2 successfully crossed the border form Scotland late August at the end of her year¡¯s post at the Glasgow veterinary hospital, travel then being allowed, and flew to Geneva as she had not seen her Dad since Christmas last. Had a? good week with him but got caught by the new quarantine requirement for those returning from Switzerland, so spent her last two weeks of vacation quarantining in the opposite side of the house from myself. At that time Swiss cases were much lower than in the UK so it seemed a bit daft, but she was fine and spent a lot of the time in her room going? through drawers and cupboards and removing things no longer wanted. So all good.
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Got back over the border late September, to her anaesthetics post in a new hospital just outside Edinburgh, but now caught again in high level restrictions. No idea when I will see her again. She¡¯s had a tough year, like most of the central belt in Scotland. Hard lockdown, very heavy work schedule, off work 5 weeks with? coronavirus, straight back? into heavy schedule, no travel over 5 miles allowed from March until late July ?- so only 4 weeks of relative freedom before returning home. They have not reinstated the 5 mile strict limit yet but by mid-September no-one is supposed to leave the health area they are in (to prevent high infection rates spreading to relatively ¡°clean¡± areas!!). The exclamation marks are because lots of people ignored it and drove into the areas which were still open for dining etc, and now these areas also join the high infection restrictions. So thoughtless.
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I got out to Switzerland late September, had a wonderful ten days with DH, we visited Kandersteg and St Moritz which are stunningly beautiful. I then had to do my 2 weeks of quarantine so did a lot of those household jobs which are always on the upcoming¡± list but never make it to the top.
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In between all that, taking my regular turns for a couple of days with parents in London, piloting them to hospital appointments, sorting out their muddles and trying to keep them going.? With both developing dementia and heart problems, Mum now having some nasty face cancers which she is refusing to have treated, and general limited ability to cope with anything but the most basic, regular tasks, there will be a day of reckoning coming soon. We hope to keep things on an even keel at least until January, maybe even until Easter. But it depends¡¡..
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So, current state of play. Swiss figures atrocious, worst in Europe and no-one sure how it happened so quickly. DH may not get home at Christmas. DD2 likely to be stuck north of border, Dd1 with husband about 80 miles away, because I am on my own at present and they are shielding for her DH, we have special access arrangements allowed so she can pop over when she feels it is safe to do so. So we have had a few day visits and one stop-over since the rules changed in July. How we hugged and hugged when we first saw each other after 8 months ? But currently all England in? a 4 week lockdown where only education, work which can¡¯t be done from home, exercise, essential shopping and medical visits are allowable reasons for leaving home ¨C all to be done ¡°locally¡±. We¡¯re lucky to have a nice home and a small garden. And lovely woodlands nearby.
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I¡¯ve done surprisingly little knitting, taken up cross stitch which I have to really concentrate on (so it blocks stuff out). Started some drawing and painting again, thinking about playing with basketry. I¡¯m a real introvert but I am getting tired of the situation. I want my friends and family back. But I have been sure since last January that this would be the state of play until at least? Easter 2021, so we just have to hang on in there, plenty of time for reading anyway.
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Vaccine won¡¯t be a quick fix, with 2 doses 2 weeks apart, a 4 week wait for protection after that, the very first to get vaccinated will have to wait 6 weeks before feeling more safe. And it will take ages for enough people to be done to make much difference to transmission rates. But it will come. If nothing else, the better spring weather will hopefully get us ¡°out of jail¡± by April and by the end of next summer things should look more normal. Roll on 2022!!!!!!
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Best of luck to everyone meanwhile, in new jobs, relocation plans, in managing to keep connected to those we love. I try to remind myself of the lonely onlies who don¡¯t have anyone to miss seeing, for whom this is their normal everyday life. I do hope that ?out of all this will come more community effort to engage with these people and give them more connection and less enforced solitude.
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Jenny
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Happy Diwali to all of you! Today is the day that Hindus believe light triumphed over darkness, good over evil. May the light dispel your darkness and may you have good triumph over evil in your life. In some parts of India, today is also New Year¡¯s day and I also wish you a very safe, happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!
My Diwali traditions these days are far removed from what I did when I was growing up. Work, the inability to take the day off in the early days of my career (before personal choice or floating holidays), and the demands of raising kids meant that all I ever did here was make sweets and light lamps.?
We¡¯ve been pretty much home-bound since March. My sister occasionally comes over to see my father if she comes upstate. My father would have gone to visit my brother for some months but that hasn¡¯t happened. He is confined to the house except for doctor¡¯s appointments. We go to the grocery store, to the hardware store, and the pharmacy around once a week and most other things are quite rare.
DD was supposed to come at Thanksgiving with an extra two weeks of working from here when she would be quarantining in our house. In her bedroom with access to the other bathroom upstairs and maybe exercising in the basement when we weren¡¯t there. But we canceled due to spikes in her area and in ours. We¡¯ll reschedule when levels are down and not plan but just do it spontaneously.
However, some things have worked out well - I now have a Sat am Zoom call with Ravefry friends from the US, Canada and India. I taught DD to make Indian sweets yesterday so she can celebrate Diwali on her own. My yard is looking good. I¡¯ve been doing some weaving, knitting, spinning, but not as much as I thought I would.?
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On Fri, Nov 13, 2020 at 9:00 PM erica <knitzz@...> wrote:
I feel like I have been asleep ... on a bus ... and when I woke up ... y'all musta got off a few stops ago :-)
Can you tell I just finished listening to an interview with Mary Karr ... love her word*crafting ...
knock*knock ... anybody out there?
erica in sunny <blue> arizona
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