During lockdown last year Sunday was my 'household day'. I decided that, as every day was potentially the same, I needed an 'anchor' day each week. I decided that I would do all my washing and ironing and some cleaning on Sunday. My Dad always said "The better the day, the better the deed." So it seemed appropriate. Generally speaking I am very organised so four lots of washing and five lots of drying in the dryer and ironing shirts, sheets and sundries should leave plenty of time in between for some housework and writing letters, emails, some time in Blogland some time in the garden and feeding birds etc. Of course there was always time for WhatsApp and phone calls. With earpods it's very easy to chat whilst ironing.
And so, for the six months of lockdown that became the pattern of my Sunday.
On the whole that has remained my Sunday ever since. Whilst ironing today (thanks to Adrian for alerting me to the fact that the Americas Cup can be watched in it's entirety on YouTube) I watched the second day of the final of the Prada Cup (a yacht race) in Auckland which will determine whether the UK or Italy meet New Zealand in The Americas Cup. These 'yachts' which travel around 40 knots lift out of the water on aerofoils. Unfortunately Team UK have so far lost all 4 races to Italy (the final is best of 13 races).
Mr B (English and a sailor who makes his living out of the activity) is following every race. F (a Kiwi and also a sailor, but only a recreational one) is just getting the highlights. so many of their friends are in NZ working in racing teams, and F can't even go home - which is making her a bit homesick. enjoy your housework day.
ReplyDeleteTigger, it's good to meet someone with such a close relationship with the sport. Given where you live I'm not surprised mind you. I understand that the Auckland lockdown has delayed the next day of races.
DeleteWe all have patterns these days, Graham, and my routine has been to do the housework chores on Monday so the rest of the week is free for things like laundry (but never ironing). YouTube is a great source of everything it seems these days and my preference is for older films.
ReplyDeleteBeatrice, I think that when one retires and therefore the 'work structure' of our lives stops it is important to create some structure. All the more so when we are in lockdown and therefore we miss out on so many things which involve other people of going out. I've used YouTube for many years but it's only recently that I've realised just how much is now on offer.
DeleteI much prefer the original yachts competing in the Americas Cup races. Back in the day, my daughter's then boyfriend worked on the USA entry during the races in Perth. Very exciting time.
ReplyDeleteJill, when they started allowing these new 'yachts' I was very dubious and I'm still dubious about them being so classified. Having said that the races can be very exciting although it would seem that whoever gets the pre-start correct has a massive advantage. It's amazing just what a following the Americas Cup has in the world.
DeleteIt is a really good series. Be better if we were winning but not to worry.
ReplyDeleteI agree,Adrian, that would be good if we were not 4 behind. Perhaps the delay caused by Auckland's lockdown will allow the team to reset.
DeleteI can't remember the last time I did any ironing.
ReplyDeleteFortunately, JayCee, my memory is still good enough to recall what I did yesterday.
DeleteGood grief, those yachts are something else . . . sailing is something I know absolutely nothing about.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about a routine though, and since retiring have tried (not always with much success) to deal with laundry/cleaning on Saturday and shopping on Sunday so that I have five "days off" during the week. Thanks for this post because it has reminded me to try and re-establish this schedule.
Jayne, I included a few photos because I wouldn't expect many people to realise just how different from a conventional yacht these new 'things' are. Shopping on a Sunday is not an option here because most shops including the supermarkets are closed.
DeleteThanks Graham. I did not realise that the islands still observed the Sabbath to that extent, but I suppose you could shop on Saturday and do the house on Sunday if weekend chores appealed?
DeletePS: I don't iron sheets but I do iron pillowcases - you are absolutely right about the lovely feel of crisp, smooth cotton 😉
We've been watching some of it live - just enough to keep up to date with it. The next race was due Wednesday, but has now been postponed because Auckland has gone into lockdown again.
ReplyDeleteMargaret, I do hope that the Auckland outbreak is contained and that the lockdown is short.
DeleteI marvel at people with multi-tasking skills... I find myself becoming more and more of a "one-thing-at-a-time" person - except that I do usually listen to the radio or an audio book while doing housework. I still have routines though. Lately I've usually been doing my washing on Wednesday afternoons; but since I have to book a laundry room shared with 17 other flats, it's not always entirely up to me. And this week I had a health appointment on Wednesday, so had to book Saturday instead. Have to confess, that tends to mess with my sense of time a bit! ;)
ReplyDeleteYes, Monica, it's my sense of time or, more particularly, what day it is, that throws me when I don't have some sense of routine. I have been known during the last lockdown to live through a whole 'wrong' day and get quite a surprise when the evening comes and the television programme is not as anticipated.
DeleteI usually do laundry on Monday or Saturday depending on how the mood strikes me. Your Stornoway neighbors or their ancestwould have tsk-tsked you for desecrating the Sabbath. My mother-in-law would not even cook on Sunday. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do.
ReplyDeleteBob, you are correct about Free Church neighbours. As it happens I don't have any any longer. My next door neighbours who were, and still are although they no longer live in the township (village), exceptionally close friends would have been very disapproving. So for several decades the one day when I could get into the garden and get some physical exercise (bearing in mind originally I had a 'desk job') was Sunday. I duly didn't work in the garden. In fact the incomers like me tended to be very good. Then a local person started cutting his grass on the Sabbath with a motor mower. I have to say that since my neighbours left the village I have joined everyone else in doing as I wish on Sunday. I draw the line at doing noisy things like grass cutting though.
DeleteIt makes me happy that you have developed a way to do things that makes you happy. In life there are many pleasures, not the least of which is doing things that are necessary in a way that contents you, and being able to enjoy things you love while simultaneously doing things that may not be as high on the enjoyment scale.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Marcheline, it works for me and means that I don't have to think about it the other six days of the week.
DeleteAn entire day of household tasks depresses me but the upside would be not having to worry about it for another six days.
ReplyDeleteThose boats!
Kylie, I do lots of other things on Sunday, it's just that I do most of the household chores on that day. As you said, I don't have to think of them for the other six.
DeleteI suspect you might get two lots of comments. One just disappeared. I wonder if adding some structure to my days might be beneficial? Yesterday was cooler than usual and I cleared my backlog of ironing while watching the yacht race. What ails Ben Ainslie? He seems off his game, somehow. I hope Ineos and crew come good.
ReplyDeletePauline, disappearing comments are the bain of my life. I try and remember to copy them before I press 'publish'. I think Ben Ainslie seems to have had a few Brain Farts in the pre-starts. Unless it's the tactician who is not on form.
DeleteWhat an amazing looking yacht. I didn't know that the aerofoils could be operated individually. For me INEOS is more associated with cycling.
ReplyDeleteCro, the way they control the aerofoils is amazing. However the slightest error can cause disaster.
DeleteWith work swallowing up most of my time during the week, I have not much choice in the matter; cleaning, changing the bed sheets etc. is done on Friday afternoons after work, so that everything is ready when O.K. arrives for the weekend on Friday night. It is only then, when we sit down together at the kitchen table, red wine poured, cheese and bread on the table, that I feel the weekend is here!
ReplyDeleteFor shopping, I try to limit myself to just one trip to Aldi's - not easy as I need to carry everything on foot, but doable. I find that Wednesdays just before lunch time usually makes for a rather empty supermarket, but I can not always fit that in; depends on what meetings are scheduled that day.
Washing and ironing are the things I can do "around" work - loading the washing machine before I start work and then putting the washing out (I have no drier) in between meetings; ironing whenever I have a half-hour time slot. It actually relaxes me, to do that between meetings, allowing my eyes to be away from the screen for a bit.
Meike, the heat-exchange drier that I have has been a game changer because it gives me total control (I'm not waiting for good drying weather) and is very cheap to run. I cannot imagine you not being in control of those things which need a routine in your life.
DeleteMy washing gets done when there is a 'load' of each sort of wash, ie clothes, bedding or towels. Since retirement we shopped during the week so that the 'workers' had less competition at the weekend, these days I pop in whenever The Dog and I need a top up.
ReplyDeleteSorry that I still haven't got round to answering your post on Procrastination - you will know why. Lesley
Lesley, that's how I used to do the washing. I've not been doing any shopping whilst I've been in lockdown because neighbours have been good enough to 'insist' that they do it when they do theirs. I'm still smiling at your last sentence!
DeleteYou are one organized guy, Graham. Up to this moment my impression of you has always been that of a chap a cut above average, but do I glean from this post that you iron sheets? If that's the case, I fear I may have to consign you to some hitherto unknown place of banishment! Ironing sheets must surely rank high on a scale of folly. We take ours straight from the dryer to the bed and they smooth themselves out as we stretch them on the mattress, and they are wrinkled a few hours later when we climb into bed anyway. Ironing shirts? Full marks! Ironing sheets? Madness!
ReplyDeleteDavid, I'm sorry to have ruined my street-cred but, yes, I do iron my sheets. There are few things more wonderful than getting into a bed with lovely crisp clean sheets. It would appear from this that I may be in a minority. However I think it's a few minutes well spend.
DeleteI'd never iron sheets because no one but us sees them, and I find them more comfortable the more rumpled they are. Softer. Ironed things feel pointy and crunchy, and are not sleep-inducing, for me. Maybe you were a love letter in a past life, GB, and are yearning for your crisp white envelope!
DeleteMarcheline, I just iron them. I don't starch them 😂.
DeleteHello Graham,
ReplyDeleteGosh, either we must get out more [not possible currently] or we need to catch up with the world of yacht racing. Is it a bird or a boat, we ask, as we are really unsure what to call this flying machine. And, since when did Prada add boat races to its fashion lines?
Whatever, we are Youtube devotees. As we have not had a television for 40 years, Youtube, we realise, has provided, free of charge if one has an internet connection, us with an endless variety of ancient television series which we never saw the first time round. 'Amazing British Crime Dramas' is a favourite site and gradually we have trawled through the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s one episode at a time. We reckon that we should be able to last out the lockdown.....just...
We agree with you about structure. Even when there is no actual nee for it, somehow it gives the day more of a sense of purpose and one can feel a sense of accomplishments as jobs are ticked off the virtual 'to do' list. We love freshly ironed sheets....such a luxury in life we feel. And, we have to confess that we iron socks....
Jane and Lance, given that I've used YouTube for many, many years it's only recently that I've realised what goodies there are on offer. My particular love is 'classical' music played live and its staggering what is available now. I think you have hit the nail on the head - structure provides an element of sense of purpose.
DeleteWe have been cheering for UK to win over Italy but we're hoping that Luna Rossa don't win, it's been very exciting though and a great way to get through lockdown.
ReplyDeleteAmy, much as I want the UK to win I have to admire the Luna Rossa team's improvement. When it comes to the final versus New Zealand if Luna Rossa win at least I don't have a concern about which team to follow. My old rugby practice was to support New Zealand when I was living there and Scotland when I was living here.
DeletePerhaps I should set down some patterns...then again.... :
ReplyDelete