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What to do if we don’t travel?

Hedgehogs! I have about 100 ft of native Dorset hedge along the edge of our garden and I have a hedgehog house in the hedge, but we’ve never had a hedgehog. Lucky you!
We do put feed *out, which definitely attracts them. Such conflicting advice out there, so we go for a broad mix and avoid the obvious problem foods (e.g. mealworms)

* in a plastic container with a hole cut in it, plus with a wooden block a few inches in front of it to form a simple zig-zag (which discourages cats, who would wolf the food down)
 
We’ve been home and self isolating for nearly three weeks and I’ve done nothing except some spring cleaning, lots of cooking and freezing some meals in case we get sick, and going walking. I am listening to books (just finished 34 hours of Anna Karenina), knitting, listening to podcasts, watching the Beehive guys cooking videos, and talking to friends on the phone. Anxiety is at a pretty high level.
 
Hang in there folks. It is a very tough time, and may be for a while yet. We've got each other though, so lean on us when you need to.
 
Pauline: you have been busy, so that's not nothing! (Terrible grammar on my part though!)

If people worry that they are doing nothing much at home; remember that you are doing something.
By staying home, you are participating in a Global effort to slow and stop the spread of the virus.
So: you ARE doing your part, no matter how small!
It's global teamwork.

I have seed potatoes chitting, will plant them in buckets next week.
I also have seeds planted indoors for sweet peas, tomatoes and peppers.
I'm a hit and miss gardener, so hopefully these will all do well.
Outside is all tidied up, but it's still too cold out
there to want to spend too much time gardening as yet.
Other than that, reading; but I'm down to my last two actual hardcover books now.
I'm not keen at reading books on my Ipad, but I guess I'll have to.
 
I've been working from home for the last three weeks and hate it! I miss the lack of interaction with people (I'm a public servant). I also find that working from home makes me eat more!
I was able to cancel our trip to Italy, dammit. It was scheduled for early-June. I really would like to start booking the next trip, but we still don't know how things will be in the coming months. Frankly, I think 2020 is a total write off. It's sad. Things will never, ever be the same again, unfortunately. :(

But we WILL travel again!! :)
 
I've worked from home before, and it is a different experience. At best, untroubled by distractions, work can be done much faster. At times when I got disrupted a lot by queries at work, working from home (and switching off chat/email) might mean the task I needed to be completed would be done in hours not days. Of course when I got back the next day was mostly spent sweeping up those queries.

In more normal WFH times, managing disruptions was still important, and it really helps to focus on small milestones e.g. even if chat window is flashing, I'm going to finish this task before opening it. Otherwise the distractions can stop you in your tracks. Likewise I liked to set a realistic target for the day. The idea being that if I was too easily distracted, then I'd simply have to work later to hit the target, but if focused, then I'd finish early (or stop working early and just keep tabs with any emails / chat after that).

These lessons learnt from studying at home in my early career, when there were some good days and too many bad ones!

As for the eating more, yes that's a challenge. Partly I suspect it's down to the mind needing breaks that it gets in the office, but is getting less at home. Perhaps try fitting specified non-food breaks into the day e.g. water the garden plants / water the house plants / fill up the bird-feeders etc. etc. FWIW, given the groaning table full of cakes, sweets etc. that people used to bring into the office, I find it slightly healthier eating at home!
 
In the UK we are starting week 5 of the lockdown. Things have settled down a bit. In our area people who are vulnerable are finally getting priority for grocery deliveries. The council is organising volunteers to pick up prescriptions and other things for people who don’t want to go out.

I’ve managed to get click and collect with Waitrose (supermarket) where I order online and just go in to pick it up. That saves me walking around the shop. Our local small natural food shop allows only one customer at a time in the shop and I enjoy going in once a week. I still get my weekly vegetable and fruit box.

There still is no flour on the shelves but I got an online order from a mill in the Cotswolds.

The weather has been exceptional since the lockdown began. This week is like summer. Sunshine, highs in the high 60sF, still light out at 8pm. We go out nearly everyday, from the house, into the countryside for a 5+ mile hike. I’ve done very few of the projects I thought I would but I have sewn a few face masks and I am getting better at home maintenance (next project painting exterior window sills).

So, all is well but I MISS TRAVELING! I really set up my whole life to be able to travel a lot.

How is everyone else doing?
 
Also starting week 6. I hope they ease up a little after May 1st. I have a 20ft trailer in storage that I can't get to since they're considered a non essential business at this time and are closed. I'm pretty close to O'Hare airport and I have no idea why I still see so many planes taking off and landing. It's less than normal, but I have no idea where people are going with most states on a lock down.

Grocery stores near me still have issues keeping paper towels, toilet paper, pasta in stock.
 
Our governor here in Kentucky, USA, is the greatest! The curve is starting to flatten and on Monday he is allowing the hospitals to start doing pretesting of people who want to have elective surgeries and also letting the medical doctors open their offices again for regular checkups, etc. The chiropractors can also open for business. He says they are all going to have to take extra care in their exams though. Everything else is still closed except for essential businesses. We do online ordering of our groceries from Kroger and go to the parking lot there to have them put in our trunk. I love it! I hate not getting to visit our children and grandchildren though. We had just gotten back from visiting a set of them in Florida when the stay at home order hit. But we can see them by doing video calls. So wonderful to see them but we need to hug them!
 
No easing as yet here in BC , but they are beginning to discuss it.
BC has the flattest curve in all of the Canadian provinces, but our authorities do not want to jeopardize this at all, hence the caution.
I'm very happy about that.
There is still a great fear that the virus will make a come back in Fall and Winter.
No one can possibly know, can they?!
 

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