We are almost a year into Covid being a common part of our lives. How the world has changed in that period.
The original lockdown was, for me, both very enjoyable and sad. Enjoyable because I have a sizeable garden and love gardening and I could walk all I wanted without moving the car although on bitter windy days I tended not to because I prefer to walk in the shelter of the woods in the Stornoway Castle Grounds. During the first lockdown 6 months my car did about 100 miles (to the hospital and surgery in town). Then September was manic as I drove 3,000 miles to four hospital appointments in Glasgow and Ayr.
Since then there has been a small semblance of normality as the Islands were in Tier 3 with cafe's open. We could meet one other family (total 6 people) in a café but NOT in each other's homes. I live alone so could have, in certain circumstance, been in a bubble. However, my son's family is in a bubble with his wife's parents (my son usually being away 2 months at a time). During lockdown I didn't see my grandson and the winter on Lewis isn't the best time for meeting outdoors. So I've seen little of my grandson or, indeed, my family (though it's easier to grab a coffee with my son. Keeping a wee one happy and occupied at coffee time isn't so easy.
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| Brodie fascinated by real live fish! |
I'm assuming that our rules are stricter than in England because YP is fortunate enough to see a great deal of his new granddaughter.
Unfortunately the Western Isles have not been so good since Christmas with a large outbreak in Barra after a wedding and New Year's party left over 40 with the disease and 110 isolating (the population os only about 1100) and a number in hospital on the mainland and here in Stornoway. Barra went into Tier 4. Now we have an outbreak in the Hospital and as the hospital is almost at capacity we have gone into Tier 4 so no more coffee's with friends in The Woodlands. We are in lockdown. Thank heaven for virtual coffees!
A few photos to lighten the day:
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| Gaz woke to a couple of stags on his croft. Next job is a cattle grid! |
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| The Mainland in snow a few days ago taken from my window. |
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| I decided to cut down a an area of cotoneaster to plant wild flowers. The daffodils are doing well. |
I have lost track of Lockdown here but it doesn't really matter as I am not in anyone's bubble and never see anyone anyway. My contact with people is all virtual via Zoom and Whatsapp and the old fashioned telephone, unless it is a medical appointment, but it now all seems like the norm and quite pleasant really and is a great equaliser. Thank you for sharing the photographs.
ReplyDeleteRachel, during the original lockdown I got very used to seeing very few people in the flesh although friends and neighbours would pop in on a nice day for a coffee in the garden. I did enjoy it when we were able to meet a friend in a café but I'm now looking upon this lockdown as an opportunity to get things done. Having said that I find phone/video calls can take up an astonishing amount of time. Like you medical appointments are now my only reason for going to town. Which reminds me I hope that your ear is a lot better today.
DeleteI am very sorry to hear about the outbreak of virus cases locally, especially as your hospital must be worried about being able to cope with more cases.
ReplyDeleteThose are wonderful views, I particularly like the snow capped hills from your window, and the postbox.
I hope that you remain safe and well where you are Graham.
Thank you JayCee. I think the hospital is quite worried but hopefully we will be sensible and the outbreak will be contained. I am fortunate in having a wonderful view. I feel for people constrained by four walls during lockdown.
DeleteThose numbers are quite scary, considering how small the total number of people on the island is.
ReplyDeleteA wedding and New Year's Eve party like that would have been illegal here - not that people have not been doing such things here as well, and sadly many others (mainly medical and care staff) had to pay the consequences.
The photos are beautiful - that stag is poster-worthy!
Meike, the wedding gathering and party are illegal here too. The people of Barra have paid a very dear price for their stupidity. Some people travelled to the Island also breaking the law. Whether they will ever be prosecuted is not known. The stag photo was taken by my son. He is a superb photographer. I will pass on your compliment.
DeleteLovely photos. The daffodils will be fantastic even more so in bloom. Seeing the green shoots makes spring feel closer.
ReplyDeleteMaywyn, that is just a wee bed of my daffodils. In the spring I should have a few wonderful displays in different parts of the garden.
DeleteSorry to hear you are now in Tier Four. I hope you manage to cope with it all okay.
ReplyDeleteThe stag is a magnificent creature, and I love the snow on the mainland - it would take me hours to cook and do dishes simply so I could keep stopping to look at that view :)
Margaret, Tier 4 will be a minor inconvenience to me although to many it will be a serious financial and personal matter. I have to admit that I do often spend too much time looking out of the window drinking a coffee.
DeleteIt's scary the effect the last year has had on the children especially. Ben has seen family members outside the household a total of four times in his life (three times before the first lockdown and once since). It's so difficult even when you're allowed to meet outside if family live so far away that it's not worth them travelling just to meet for a short walk. Of course very young children are hopeless at social distancing anyway.
ReplyDeleteI hope your lockdown ends soon and that you can get back to meeting up in cafés. It's lovely to see the photo of Brodie, thanks xx
Helen, Brodie has been brought up with lots of his maternal family's children of a similar age around him and for the last year a lot of that has come to a stop and it's very obvious that he misses his peers. Hopefully that will end soon.
DeleteInteresting how more and more bloggers are blogging about Covid...including me.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid to say, Red, that Covid has become a major part of our lives.
DeleteYour Daffs look to be at the same stage as ours. Flower heads forming, with just a hint of yellow.
ReplyDeleteCro, those daffs are well established and are well ahead of all my other daffs. We are generally about a months behind most of the UK to the south of us.
DeleteI read with sadness about the outbreaks on the Western Isles, perhaps it was rather too fanciful of me to think that small communities such as yours might be more sensible about gatherings and not have the same problems as the mainland. Stay safe Graham, x
ReplyDeleteJayne, I would have said that most of the adult population on the Islands are quite sensible but unfortunately it only requires a few people being silly and breaking the law to cause absolute chaos and misery in a community.
DeleteWhat magnificent views/photos - those in themselves would suggest unbearable isolation to some people - and sweet release for others. Your life (sans COVID) sounds like a desirable balance of open space and sociable pursuits. It is children your grandson's age I feel most for - how do they learn to become part of a functioning society when such an important developmental stage of their lives is blighted like this?
ReplyDeleteTigger, I couldn't agree more about the young children. I know that my grandson, Brodie, is very much missing all the family's children of a similar age whom he grew up with for the first two years of his life (he has just turned three). Who knows what long term ill effects it will have on the children of society in general but one can only hope that the period of isolation for them will be over sooner rather than earlier.
DeleteSome wonderful photographs, I especially love the Tam O'Shanter :)
ReplyDeleteWe're living in very strange times for certain. I feel sad for young children in all of this. Lily hasn't played with another child in almost seven weeks! I'm hoping the weather improves soon and we can go to the park.
Thank you, Jules. I do hope that Lily will be able to meet her peers soon. Many people say it is hard for single people to be alone, and it can be, but I think that for a child it must be even harder because it must be harder to understand the need and concept of isolation.
DeleteCOVID has probably affected us in as many ways as there are people, and stories will be told and books written when this is finally over. But I think that two themes will probably be seen as common to many accounts - the utter loneliness and sense of desperation of single old people being confined, and deprived of virtually all social contact - and the despair of people being unable to visit their families. I always have the sense that Miriam and I are fortunate, we have each other and we like each other, we are busy people and always have multiple things on the go, COVID or not. So, while life has certainly changed our daily habits somewhat, its impact on us has been in many respects quite minimal. And I am getting so accustomed to wearing a mask it's almost like putting on my hat!
ReplyDeleteDavid, I agree that there are many people in the two categories that you mention who do have a very challenging time. Like you I am very fortunate to have lots of interests and, whilst I love people and company (in small numbers) I am very happy on my own too. However I do wonder how I would feel I lived with three children in a top floor flat in a multi-storey building during 6 months of lockdown.
DeleteNice to see the photos of Brodie. They grow up so fast... I suppose it must be a bit sad not to be able to see more of one's grandchild in spite of not living all that far apart. But then there are so many limitations in this corona situation that one just has to accept.
ReplyDeleteI saw (and shared) a video on Facebook recently, it was a collection of video clips of toddlers who had all obviously been taught to frequently wash their hands, probably even before being able to walk. So they now toddled around pressing anything remotely reminding of a possible hand sanitizer dispenser, and then rubbed their palms together (even when nothing came out of the object they were trying). Funny and sad at the same time...
Sorry the virus has spread so much on your island. I'm not entirely sure what your Tier 4 involves; it's challenge enough to keep up with our own restrictions here. (Some national, some regional, some by law and some by "recommendation".) Thinking back, I haven't actually met with anyone privately IRL since back in the summer - and even then only outdoors!
Thank you Monica. Tier 4 basically is do not go out except for exercise in your immediate vicinity, essential shopping or medical appointments or to go to work if you are an essential worker. There are, of course, some exceptions such as child care and schools for children of essential workers.
DeleteLovely to see little Brodie and his shy smile. I think it's such a shame he can't get to spend more time with you (and his little family friends). Children are very resilient but I fear Covid may be putting that to the test.
ReplyDeleteThat stag photo is fantastic. Lucky Gaz had the camera at hand. He must be so proud of that shot.
Ahh, that snow on the faraway hills looks so close. Even the ground looks cold in the other shots.
I think there are few people who would cope with your Tier 4 lockdown as well I expect you do. our view must lift your spirits on the bleakest days.
Pauline, I think many children will miss out on very early contact. Indeed most of us even non-huggy people will realise that a lack of human contact is very hard and not very natural for us either. I think that I am very fortunate in that I have a lot of interests, plenty of space in and out of my house. If I were stuck in a high rise flat I might be less happy (but my vast photo collection would probably have been sorted by now!).
DeleteHello Graham,
ReplyDeleteWe have arrived here by a circuitous route but are delighted to have reached you in this most beautiful corner of the world.
Although we have a house in Norwich, most of our time is spent in Budapest, Hungary where we have an apartment. We do not begin to understand the tiers or bubbles of the UK, it is simpler here in Budapest where the borders are closed, a curfew is in place, everywhere except essential shops is in lockdown and we have been shielding since 11th March. The police and army make sure that the rules are enforced with heavy fines if necessary. Well, at least one knows where one stands!!!
So, virtual escapes into Blogland are welcome. It is an age since we last posted but it seems a good time to reconnect and meet up with acquaintances old and new.
Love the tam-o- shanter on the postbox. Good to see a sense of humour prevailing to cheer the dismal days.
Well, well, wee, Jane and Lance. You are a blast from the past. I'm not sure whether you followed this blog or my New Zealand blog but we were mutual commenters once upon a time. There is a lot to be said for a strict enforcing of the rules although to use the army on the streets of the UK might not be universally popular (to make a massive understatement). As for a sense of humour that definitely helps one keep one's sanity.
DeleteYes, we think that we recall our connecting with you 'down under' so to speak!! In the Blogosphere one can travel the world without leaving home and without noticing. It has been too long....so much catching up to do.
DeleteThe only reason we get to see a lot of Phoebe is because we have formed a permitted "support bubble" with our daughter and son-in-law. They are really the only people I get to meet these days.
ReplyDeleteNice to see pictures of Brodie with his papa. He is turning out to be a handsome chap. That was a massive cup of coffee you had in the cafe! It's bigger than Brodie I think... though that might be to do with perspective!
Thanks YP. In Scotland I think I'm right in saying that in a support bubble one adult part of the bubble has to be single so it's better for you in England. I think it is a better idea because strictly speaking my daughter-in-law can only be in the bubble when my son is away. As for the coffee no cup can be big enough for me!
Deletegov.uk
DeleteYou can form a support bubble with a household of any size if:-
your household includes a child who is under the age of one or was under that age on 2 December 2020
Thanks YP. I've just looked at the Scottish rules again and your rules are more generous. In Scotland "There are two circumstances in which someone is able to form an extended household in Scotland.
DeleteThat includes people who live alone, and couples who do not live together.
If you are an adult who lives alone or with children under 18, you are able to form an extended household with one other household of any size.
Any children who live with you will also be considered as part of the extended household."
Until recently I've not bothered much with the details of the rules for myself because I am a single person living alone and I've been in self-isolation all of "full" lockdown (which is near enough what Tier 4 in Scotland is). I am trained in reading legal and bureaucratic verbiage and I have had some difficulty in ploughing through all the small print of the basic 'stay home' message. What hope is there for the man on the back of the Clapham Omnibus (who at least is likely to know that he has to wear a mask).
I noticed that your area had gone into Tier 4. I know the rules are a bit different in Scotland, but I didn't realise they were as complex and hard to understand as ours. Forgive me if this sounds strange, but I did wonder if there could be a case made for vaccinating everyone on an island like yours? The numbers must be low, so it would not take too long to vaccinate everyone. Of course people do have to come on and off the island, but once again, are the numbers sufficiently small to be controllable? As for those who don't want to be vaccinated for one reason or another, a case can be made for them staying in strict isolation until the disease is under control. Nobody should force them to be vaccinated, but it's not very reasonable for them to expect to be able to endanger others either. Mind you, it is awfully easy to sit at home and say what ought to be done by other people, as I am sure you are thinking to yourself, reading this. I hope that the outbreak dies away soon, and that the pressure lifts from your local hospital.
ReplyDeleteJenny, our rate of vaccination here is the highest in Scotland. They are doing the over 60s at the moment. There is too much interaction between us and the mainland even though it is winter and it is illegal to come and go without a proper reason. Unfortunately we have several large building contracts one of which is a mainland contractor with workmen going home at weekends to the mainland (don't ask!!!!). However most of the very few Lewis cases had been people going away to visit someone. The latest outbreak at the hospital could well have been as a result of someone going away but that is speculation because details have not been released. The problem is that being a hospital outbreak many staff had to isolate as well. So staff had to be brought in. On the whole I believe that most of the older people on the Islands have been obeying the rules but in a relatively enclosed and small community it only takes a few to ignore them. We are all hoping that this will be contained and over quickly.
DeleteI am loving the photos of where you live, it looks very windswept. Good that you were able to catch up with your family but not good about the virus being spread, I hope 2021 is the year it gets sorted.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your hopes, Amy. It is very windswept. In fact this week the gales have been bitter and constant since Monday. It gets a bit tedious.
DeleteHi Graham, I can feel your sadness of not being able to see much of your grandson!
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen my grandchildren - triplets, girls, 1 year and a quarter living in Bavaria - since February 2020 -- then they were babies, now they are little children... All because of Covid -- but now I made a plan that will be changing that, I am determined to see them, and full of hope.
Covid restrictions in The Western Islands seem to be as hard as the German ones.
So: One has to keep the mind working to not live in a bubble (and if ironing helps - why not? :-), and the feet going - as far as we are allowed, with mask of course, "explorer of the vicinity" here in Berlin is ok.
Britta, the UK Covid restrictions are hard but I think the Scottish ones are har and seem to have fewer 'ifs' and 'buts' than the English ones. Having only recently 'met' you I hadn't realised that you are from Berlin. In the late 70s/early 80s we, on a number of occasions, with our two young children spent the month of October in Berlin (we stayed with German friends in Heiligensee). It was one of my favourite cities and holds treasured memories for me. Unfortunately our friends split up and I have never been back.
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