An idiots guide to an Idiot: Groundhog Day.

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Groundhog Day.: So, another three weeks of lockdown announced by the Government. Not stricter lockdown as some thought, though there are so many bloody expe...

Groundhog Day.

So, another three weeks of lockdown announced by the Government. Not stricter lockdown as some thought, though there are so many bloody experts popping up and the media are doing what they do best and painting the blackest picture they can and really just scaremongering! Its a terrible terrible thing but people are recovering. Just seems to me we need to hear the positives as well as the negatives.

Don't know whether you've ever seen the film I used as a title to this blog. Its a comedy starring Bill Murray  who's day gets repeated time and again, and life is turning into this abit. I'm still working from home (for now anyway!) and one day is much the same as the next with the added excitement of shopping on occasion. I also had to take Ella for a blood test at the doctors. I could not believe that she announced that she'd thought she would come shopping with me to Sainsburys after!! I tell you if the virus doesn't get my In-laws I'll end up bloody well strangling the pair of them!   

Another brilliant family quiz last night with Laura in the chair. Teams being Tara, Alec and I (ATM), Gary & Ellie (Bucks Quiz), Oliver & Laura (their quiz name escapes me)

Another good laugh and good evening, with us coming second (again!) to Bucks Quiz win (again!). Olly & Laura are doing next weeks quiz. It wasn't purposely going to be a weekly thing but I'm glad it is. It's a way of seeing everyone which is great! 

The Herts At War Project I belong to has for some time now run a series of lectures about World War One and now opening out to include other conflicts. With things as they are the lectures aren't taking place but the organisers arranged to run them on line instead. This has proved very successful. Now they are very week (shortly to be twice a week) all by leading historians who, like us are on lockdown. The talk on the Battle of Trafalgar had about nine hundred people listening from all round the world! Go to  www.hertsatwar.co.uk/  to find out more.

A talk a couple of weeks ago was about the Battle of the Bulge in March 1945.  When asked the question what did he think of the film of the same name the speaker said it wasn't very accurate but did say 'Band of Brothers,' was a very good portrayal of Easy Company, 506th Infantry Regt of the US 101st Airbourne Division. I've never seen this series but Alec has and likes it. he also has it on his laptop so we started watching it this morning. I have to say it is very absorbing viewing, can't think why I've not watched it before. There is an interesting piece at the start of each episode of veterans talking of their experiences, it is they who are portrayed in the series though you don't find out the vets identities until the end of the series. It's about  Alec's sixth time of watching!

Alec is cooking dinner today, the romantically named of 'Chicken with a can of beer up its arse.' 

Said chicken with a can of beer up its arse.

 

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Continued strangeness

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Continued strangeness: Day 21 of lockdown (I think!) A routine has taken over in these strange times. People still shop, there's no food shortages to speak of,...

Continued strangeness

Day 21 of lockdown (I think!) A routine has taken over in these strange times. People still shop, there's no food shortages to speak of, though I go shopping as little as possible. Tara had a nice idea of sending Olly & Gary & Beren a bottle of gin for Easter (we got Alec some beers) as we won't be meeting up, we'd originally planned a get together here. Had a really nice day on Good Friday. Got the BBQ going and cooked sausages ( a given for any bbq!), chicken drum sticks, pork chops and bacon, had some salad and as a sort of starter a carrot dip with veg. Played a game called Flickin Chicken in the garden, it was a beautiful day, then later on played a board game of QI which was very good. It's National Camping Day and Paul & Kate were planning to camp in their garden, Kate even rigged up an outside shower for them, so we thought we'd have the BBQ today to show solidarity with them though they ended up doing it the next day, Kate is very clever as she also made a kind of cooker out of a couple of tins. Very enterprising!

On  Alec's suggestion  we watched a Danny Boyle directed film called 'Yesterday' a couple of days ago. What a great little film! Basically a small time musician  gets knocked off his bike during a freak power cut across the world. He wakes up in hospital and although everything appears normal the world has never heard of The Beatles or coca cola. Although I'd say I'm not the greatest Beatles fan , the music was great. Basic feel good film, the girl who has loved him for years of which he is oblivious , eventually gets him. Do watch ! In these strange times we are living through abit of uplifting fluff like this is just great!

Also watched 'Emma' the screen adaptation of the Jane Austen novel. It starred Bill Nighy, twitching away as only he can, also Miranda Hart being, well Miranda Hart really. Didn't mind it though it was bit of a slog at times. Tara, who wanted to watch it more than I wasn't that keen which is a shame. It was never an Alec film though he sat through most of it. The musical accompaniment  was of the period (Regency) and T thought it sounded like Maddy Prior, on waiting for the credits it was indeed Maddy Prior and the Carnival band!

Another film Alec suggested was 'The Gentleman.' Bit of a gangster geezer type film and not generally a genre that would interest me but this wasn't bad at all. Hugh Grant can play characters other than a confused English toff as he displayed here. Though he was in a sort of Michael Caine warp for the film but it worked well. Chases, shoot'em ups and geezers. Enjoyed it!

Ida is on anti inflammatory tablets. The vets as everywhere are having to do things differently. So a phone consultation was the order of the day! Having described Ida's limp best I could the Veterinary thought it was probably a pulled ligament or muscle so no walks for a week and this medicine. Difficult of  course as it could also be just a bit of old age creeping in.  We're back walking her now and have done a maximum of 4 miles. She would seem OK. Getting the medicine from the vets was also unusual. Got to the car park, phoned to let them know I was there I'd already paid by card, a nurse lent out the door and put Ida's prescription on a chair then I could retrieve it. 

Taken by bino's on one of my walks with Alec, didn't really see anything though it was a delightful walk. The blossom is coming out and the Blue Belles are showing too, Alec has seen a couple of Hares on his early morning walks. I was pleased to hear this as its sometime since I've seen any in the general area of Church Bottom. It's still strangely quiet even when on walks as there are very very few aircraft flying because travel has pretty well stopped. We're only half an hour from Luton Airport so regularly saw and heard the planes around yet now its hard to find  even a vapor trail. Oh, nearly forgot! A Sparrow hawk actually took a Pidgeon  and devoured it in our garden! I got a couple of rather naff photos, there as alot of feathers! Paul told my about the British Trust for Ornithology's weekly garden bird count. They usually charge to do it but Paul thought as they'd made it free I'd be interested, which I was, so the count that week was abit more interesting. 

What else has happened? Oh yes, Beren did an excellent quiz for us all on Sunday night. We all connected on Skype and played in houses so Alec Tara & I were a team, as were Gary & Ellie, Olly & Laura and Alec's Laura played on her own as no one there wanted to do it. Beren had worked hard to make it varied and also a good balance of difficult and less difficult questions. The cleverest round  was one where all the answers were our names! It whiled away most of the evening and was a great laugh.

Just finished watching 'Rocketman' the Elton John biopic. A good film with some great music but not one I'd watch again I shouldn't think. If half the film is true to his life then he really wasn't very happy and certainly had a very odd and unloving family, felt sorry for him to be honest.

     

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Still Strange

An idiots guide to an Idiot: Still Strange: So it goes. Day 9 of lock down  and in some ways its getting like Groundhog Day and in others a routine is setting in. I'm still working...

Still Strange

So it goes. Day 9 of lock down  and in some ways its getting like Groundhog Day and in others a routine is setting in. I'm still working from home, for now sales of games and particularly puzzles are going well. Customers are doubling, quadrupling what they'd normally order if they are on line that is, as of course most shops are closed. There's a hardcore of customers that are doing well, all garden centres for instance are closed but it means I've been working daily and kept that routine going.

Alec has been walking Ida every day, if anyone, he is becoming alittle stir crazy. Both him and Laura have come from travelling the world, going to exotic places and I guess never a dull moment to lockdown! Very frustrating for them, I go with him at the weekend we are getting to know the walks round the quarry quite well.

Alec is a very good cook so he's cooked us some really nice meals. He's also done one of my 2000 piece puzzles and a 3D puzzle of the Man Utd stadium, he's just started another puzzle today.

Tara quite likes not going out! Which Ok to be honest as with asthma and fybro its not a good combination,  however she should probably get out sometimes. My exercise today was a trip to the supermarket. It was very civilised and calm. I got to Sainsburys at 8am, there was an orderly queue stretching around  the building but it only took about 10/15 minutes before I was in the shop. Staff were pleasant enough, everyone tried their best to keep distance, sometimes easier said than done with the inevitable bottle necks. I was able to get everything I wanted with the exception of gluten free flour and one or two unimportant items. By the time I got round to the pharmacy to collect prescriptions for both of us they were shut! New hours dictate they shut between 9& 10  to sort out drugs and re stock shelves. Got a couple of odds & sods for Ella & Julian, delivered them having a conversation with Ella from a safe distance, then back to Sainsburys for the pharmacy. I didn't have to queue again though, I just told the security bods I only needed the pharmacy and they let me in, I mean, why would I lie?   Then to the post office to send off Taras eBay sales which are buoyant at present and then home.

Alec helped unpack and £249 later we were sorted.  Alec was out with Ida before I left this morning, she'd developed a limp in her front left leg, its been on and off for a while so phoned the vet today. They too are obviously doing things  differently. A nurse took details and a vet will phone me tomorrow to discuss. Ida is probably aged somewhere between 7 or 9 ish so it could well be a touch of arthritis, I expect she'll get some tablets of some kind. This evening I did a film quiz  Oliver's friend Brandon had made. You had to identify the film from little pictures. 30 questions, there was 5 I couldn't get anything for, answers sent to Oliver and I am awaiting results. Tomorrows excursion will be to Holland and Barrett where they should have had some gluten free flour delivered so another fun packed day. 

Currently listening to 2112 by Rush having had an evening of Saxon, Iron Maiden, Magnum and Nighwish. So it goes.