Day Sixteen - 'You Better Run, You Better Take Cover'

Hmmmm, I quite like the idea of offering some titular, cryptic indication of the music I've been listening to on the morning walk. With some vague allusion to our current crisis. Yesterday the song I was referring to was The Rembrandts: I'll Be There for You. The theme to the TV show Friends? Each episode had a title beginning The One Where..........' Bet you're kicking yourselves now. ;) Okay today's little teaser, artist and title? Answers in the comment box please.

I had a text message from my Tai Chi teacher yesterday. Checking on how we're all doing. He's going to offer us weekly nutritional advice so we can support our immune systems. Bless him, he thinks he has a collection of little old ladies who don't know their arse from their elbow! He's so well intentioned it hurts but he does come across as patronising at times, implying that we aren't able to think for ourselves. And he can be quite dramatic. I quote ' A heck of a lot is going to change in our lives and you and me are going to face up to this.'  - sounds like a line from a soap opera or a bad western!  Worryingly though he went on to suggest that the future of Tai Chi classes may hang in the balance as 'social distancing could be the norm....'. Cripes. I don't like the sound of that. Will this thing condition us to a new way of behaving even when it's all over? Will social practices like hugging and shaking hands become historic customs? I hope not.

He also went on to mention, and he's absolutely right, that none of the politicians or doctors or virus experts were talking at all about our immune systems. I consider myself fairly clued up about nutrition so I upped my vitamin C intake when this thing began to give my immune system a boost. But something else has occurred to me with regard to the lockdown. I'm not sure if my understanding is correct but a healthy, working immune system has to be exposed to germs in order for it to become healthy and working. Is that the principle on how it works? By shielding our bodies from coronavirus we're also shielding them from everything else. So when lockdown is over potentially we could go out and catch every damn disease going? I think that was the principle behind the herd immunity thing too? Sciencey people reading this? Tell me I'm right? Tell me I'm wrong......

Several people have mentioned this, but symptoms that once would have been minor irritations suddenly loom larger. I have a sinus condition that causes various symptoms including a post nasal drip that gives me frequent sore throats. It's a damn nuisance but it's never caused me too much anxiety - until now. Every time my throat is sore I think, oh no, is this IT? Then other symptoms that are unrelated  to Covid-19 are of concern because the hospitals are so focused on treating sufferers of the virus that anything else is a mere distraction. My poor sister told me this morning that she had a pain on one side of her back and it was making her feel sick. Ordinarily I'd be worried, yes, but I'd be thinking she could pop to the doctor or to the urgent care department. Now I'm thinking that's the last place I want her to go because she'd be exposed to the virus and she might not get properly treated. So I'm worried sick.

I've a conversation today with a real live human being! Not something I'd normally diarise because it is normally normal! Not at the moment. It was my next door neighbour, Ryan. And we were much further than six feet apart. He admitted that initially he'd been one of  the 'fuss about nothing' brigade. He's changed his view and is taking this seriously. He said he's intending to go shopping and was there anything I'd like and I said strawberries! I know they're not essential........ but they are to me.

My friend's son has got me some carrots from the supermarket he works in. I'm delighted. Or I was. His mum's texted me to say he's forgotten to bring them home. 😂 Hopefully tomorrow. My fruit and veg box arrived today full of wonderful produce but - no carrots. and I'm a carrot a day kinda gal. I love them, cooked or raw. I love the colour. And I love the orange of a carrot with the deep green of kale or broccoli. Just looking at that makes me feel healthy.

I've been envying people who are locked down on their own but they have a pet. I keep thinking how much easier it would be if I still had my cat. Or would it? You couldn't keep a cat on lock down. And you have no idea where they go. I remember a book when I was a teacher called Six Dinner Sid about a cat who went to six different homes for food and sleeping and company. All six people believed him to be their cat and that wasn't evident to any of them until he got sick and had to go to the vets.

But the point is a cat could potentially be stroked or handled by people other than their owner and as owners we wouldn't necessarily know. I don't know how long the virus would stay alive on their fur, possibly not long but how long is not long? Long enough for another stroking hand to pick it up? I know that none of the cats I've ever had would take kindly to being cleaned down with Dettol wipes. Perish the thought!

Firstly let me stress I am NOT complaining, in fact I'm finding it quite amusing but given that I spend quite a lot of time alone with few interruptions in the normal way I find I am bombarded at the moment by people;  phone calls, texts, WhatsApp. I think that's another factor in my lack of productivity! I start something, someone contacts me, then I forget what it was I was doing, start something else, somebody else contacts me and the cycle continues. I'm surrounded by unfinished chores! Funnily enough I always manage this write my diary entry................ We're all asking each other how we are. For some reason I'm tempted to reply like Kevin from Home Alone -

'I took a shower washing every body part with actual soap; including all my major crevices; including in between my toes and in my belly button which I never did before but sort of enjoyed. I washed my hair with adult formula shampoo and used cream rinse for that just-washed shine. I can't seem to find my toothbrush, so I'll pick one up when I go out today. Other than that, I'm in good shape.'

My toothbrush is fine by the way.......