Today I have been thinking more about what Chris Evans was saying yesterday on The Chris Evans Breakfast Show. He was talking about how people are re-evaluating what is important for them in life and making changes to their lives right now. Not adding it to their list for things to do at some point in the future, but doing them now.
This morning on my walk with Honey the Dog, I spotted three different double glazing vans, from different local companies around the local streets. There were old windows in the streets, with the new ones lined up waiting to get fitted. This made me think of Chris Evan’s words and I wondered perhaps a lot of people have more money at the moment. We haven’t had anything to spend it on, but most people are still working from home or on furlough leave, so probably have more money which they have saved – I mean double glazing isn’t cheap!
I was recording Day 57 and Day 58 of my blog today for Deepness Dementia Radio. This was the time of the anniversary of my grandmother (Mama)’s death in 2007. It made me think back to that time again. In 2005 my father died and then in 2007 my grandmother died. Over this period I was re-evaluating my life, thinking about what was important to me and what I wanted to do in in life. The death in May 2007, led me to take the leap and become self-employed. Logically, it didn’t make sense – I was earning a good salary back then and had no self-employed work lined up. But there was a sense of urgency to do it.
This seems to have parallels to lock-down?
Grief and bereavement shakes everything up for us, it’s like you have to re-create your identity with that person missing – like a jigsaw with a piece missing. It often happens all of a sudden without any warning and the shock in itself is just as hard.
Lock-down has been the same, it has shaken everything up for us. It happened very suddenly and we had to readjust our realities in a very short period of time. I wonder, whether in fact lock-down has created a sense of grief and bereavement within us?
Have we had a loss? I think so.
We certainly had a loss of our freedom at the beginning. We also have experienced a sense of loss from our friends and family, who we have not been able to see, connect with, hug, etc…for many many weeks.
So ultimately, lock-down has created loss, grief and bereavement in us all?
What do you think? This is just my thoughts and my theories!
Another point around this, I wonder, whether Covid-19 has increased people’s fear of dying and/or getting the virus? Or perhaps they know someone who has died from it, which as led them to re-evaluate their life.
The thing with the virus, as we are told over and over, is that it is invisible – we don’t know who has got it and if/when we are going to get it. Which ultimately is the same as dying. We don’t know when we are going to die. It could be tomorrow, it could be next year, it could be in many years in the future?
Perhaps lock-down has touched our mortality?
I mentioned on Day 19, the book ‘A Year to Live‘ by Stephen Levine, which is based on the premise that when we know we are going to die we live so much more consciously, doing the things we have always wanted to do. I guess, this is what has been happening with lock-down?
And, perhaps as everyone has ultimately been in their homes nearly all the time for the last 11 weeks, they have had to stay with that feeling rather than filling it up with all the other things we do to avoid these uncomfortable feelings?!
I must admit, I have been doing a lot of that during lock-down. As you will have read in the blog 😉
Yesterday at Bedtime Chi Gong, Fi was saying there was a pink rainbow outside.
She said it is a rare occurrence that occurs either at dawn or dusk. I asked her to take a photo, but it didn’t work, the light wasn’t good. But she shared some photos of it that she took a few days ago.
I did some research on pink rainbows and found this article – https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-48756551?fbclid=IwAR0zw7wKPspPC_1I7LdrSUWPsE_NUy4nAt1GJW_Mh5TL7LesUnNmLhO345Q
There are lots of pictures in this article – the first picture seen in Dorset last year in June.
It says it is caused by “reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky”.
The pinkness is due to a low sun angle at the time of day of dawn or dusk. When the sun is rising or setting, it travels through a thicker part of the atmosphere, with a shorter wavelength of light being scattered by the time it reaches us seeing it.
Fi’s Video Corner
This is a brand new section in my blog!
Fi made a ‘Pinkness Video’, which you can see below. She says it takes a lot of time to edit, but is planning on creating a weekly video!
So I thought I would create this new section, which will include Fi’s weekly video! So expect to see Fi’s Video Corner every Tuesday.
Wow! That was great! Fi said she “just through that video together“. I can’t wait to see one she has spent more time putting together 😉
Today I have been super tired. I couldn’t get to sleep last night.
Having to get up about 2.00am to make some Yogi Bedtime Tea. I usually have it every night, but last night I was sooo tired I thought I would fall straight to sleep.
It seems, if I go to bed too late, like after 1am, I find it harder to get to sleep. The Bedtime Tea did the trick! It has valerian root in it, which helps you sleep.
Subsequently, I have been feeling tired all day today and not had a very productive day.
I did manage to go and buy some food at Graham Cherrie’s – the butcher. Well worth a visit if you live in Leith, he’s based at the Leith Walk end of Albert Street.
I had no energy to take Honey the Dog for a long walk so we went to Kate’s Park.
Readers Corner
Matt
Matt left a Facebook comment on yesterday’s blog, saying:
“What happened to Kate 1 and Kate 2 from the speed-dating, Jim? Your readers (well me anyway!) demand to know!”.
Well, Matt not much really to say. I honestly can’t remember if I actually met Kate 2 or not. I think during our messaging/text I realised my error, as she was not a police officer, that was Kate 1. Kate 1 had not marked me down as wanting to date me or be my friend, so I didn’t have her contact details.
I was speaking to Helen about this this morning (after Chi Gong) and she said it would be really funny if either Kate 1 or Kate 2 are now reading this blog and come forward to identify themselves?!
A message to Kate 1 and Kate 2
If you are reading this – drop me a line 😉
I was recording Day 55 of my blog today, which included Matt sharing the poem about Bredon Hill. I hadn’t read it so fully until I recorded it. Messaging Matt afterwards saying….”Just recorded your poem for the radio about The hills of Bredon – what a great poem 
”
Matt replied:
“It is a wonderful poem, isn’t it. Bredon Hill is fast becoming a favourite with us finding different routes up it! We combined a walk with a swim in the Avon at nearby Eckington Bridge on Sunday late afternoon.”.
Thanks for all that Matt. I can see your two favourite hobbies is walking and swimming – no wonder you are so fond of Honey the Dog – those are hers too 🙂
Mark
Mark is a family friend who posted a comment at the bottom of yesterday’s blog saying:
“We are enjoying lockdown too but feel very sorry for those who aren’t at all. Our friends who are not are those that live alone in blocks of flats and for whom enjoying life is all about socially engaging with people outside their homes – often in cafes and pubs. I got the impression that the rush to shops yesterday was more about being in a gathering of people that consuming…”.
Thanks for that Mark. Makes sense, people were wanting to be with others rather than buy anything! I personally am enjoying the solitude. I guess, I do have Honey the Dog 🙂
As I come to the end of today’s blog, I am feeling really tired.
The day started misty, then brightened up for a while in the middle of the day. By this evening it was misty again. I am missing the hot sunny days we had a few weeks ago – this definitely lifts my mood. At the moment the weather feels more like winter!
I wasn’t feeling very inspired to write anything today, but it seems like my reflections at the start were actually quite interesting.
I need to try and get a better sleep routine into my life for the rest of the week. I don’t want to be super tired at the weekend.
I also missed going for my daily run today – more sleep, means more energy and motivation. I need to keep reminding myself of this.
Thanks for reading.
Stay Safe
Jim xxx