MY A – Z

2020 - CORONAVIRUS YEAR

A - Aim in life is to be happy and spread a little sunshine around. Life is too short to be miserable.

Aim to get through this dark Coronavirus tunnel and into the light. We are survivors!

B - Blackberries

Our ground floor flat is on the embankment of an old railway line which is now a cycle track. There are lots of blackberry bushes nearby down a little lane and as we had a good spring and summer this year, there was a bumper crop of blackberries. We really enjoyed going out in the sun picking them. We usually pick about 8 lots 8 ounces each, but this year we picked 30 lots of 8 ounces each. I have filled the whole bottom basket in the freezer with them. They will be made into apple and blackberry pies or crumbles and the best part is they were FREE !

C - Coronavirus

To coin an old English saying "Least said, soonest mended." which means the less you say about something the sooner it will be put right, or words to that effect.

D- Dogs

We have stayed away from our family members mostly, so I've missed my son's two dogs a lot. One is a honey coloured female, Bella and the other a black male called Kevin. He is the noisiest and the biggest of the two. They are Cavapoos, King Charles spaniels/poodle cross. They have the softest, curliest coats, but need regular clipping. Kevin hates the car so when my soon took them to the dog groomer Kevin barked and whined all the way. We were all wearing our face masks, I was sat in the front and my son drove. My grand daughter sat in the back, holding the dogs, no mean fete as they tend to pull a lot. Honestly, Kevin gave us all a headache and we were relieved when we got to the groomers! Ha, ha! I haven't seen them since. I'm particularly fond of Bella, she is really gorgeous.

Dressmaking

I did some dressmaking during the first Lockdown. It was good to have something different to do. I made a summer skirt and then bought some fabric for a long sleeved dress. It is viscose fabric which is so soft and drapes beautifully, but it was difficult to cut out as it moves in all directions. I made the mistake of not making the dress long enough and it needed extra darts here and there and taking up from the shoulders! It is also a fabric which easily snags, so unpicking it is really hard. I'm fed up with it at the moment and have shoved it back into the cupboard until I feel able to carry on! Ha, ha. It was so big it was swimming on me. I said this to my grand daughter and she replied 'What does that mean?.' I replied 'Far too big.' I wish I'd never bothered now, but when you want a dress in a certain style or colour it is hard to find it in the shops. Lots of dresses are far too short for someone of my age, they really don't appeal to me. Obviously they are nice on younger women.

I have some fabric to make a summer dressing gown. It is pale green and has daisies on it,it's really pretty, but I think I may have bitten off more than I can chew! Ha, ha!

I love looking at fabrics and could easily swamp myself with them, buying all I see. I had to be firm with myself and not buy anything else. Buying the fabric is one thing, but making it up is another. It always takes me a long time. I think I'm a bit of a perfectionist, but there's no point making something if it isn't going to look good at the finish.

E - Excitement

During the first Lockdown, we tagged our shopping order onto our son's and daughter in law's online shopping. It was almost impossible to find slots for our shopping, so they did it for us, sometimes staying up late at night looking for suitable time slots. Every time the shopping arrived, it felt like Christmas to me. Honestly, having plenty of food is better than money in the bank and I am so grateful for it. I am so thankful I've never gone hungry.

F - Friends

I am missing my friends. We are too worried to socialise at the moment, so keep in touch with friends by letter, e.mail and phone. I am thinking Christmas is not going to be good this year.

G - God's Promise

It was very scary for me going out during Lockdown to the cashpoint to get some money. I had kept away from all of the family and everyone else and did not go out shopping. I looked furtively around the streets as I walked and wondered why, if everything all looked the same, why did it all feel so very different? This verse, which is one of my favourites popped into my head. I can always find a bible verse to suit any situation. I find it very comforting.

Isaiah Ch. 41 V. 10

"Do not fear, for I am with you. Do not look anxiously about you, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand."

I am sure it is not right to live our lives in fear, but saying something and doing it are two different matters.

H - Holiday

This is the first year in my whole life that I haven't had a holiday due to the Coronavirus. We could have gone to Sidmouth, down by the sea in the UK as we had provisionally booked it, but we felt the situation was too unsafe to go especially as we like to eat out and it would not feel carefree to do that at the moment. No point in a holiday unless it is carefree, is there?

Husband

I am truly blessed to have a lovely, supportive husband and we get on so well together. He spends Tuesdays working from home as a volunteer for the Citizen's Advice Bureau. The CAB is an organisation where people can go to get advice on any problem. He gets given a few names and then has to ring them to talk the problem through. Lots of the people ring up about their benefits which are monies paid to people who are disabled or unemployed. The CAB can't help everyone, but if not, they know the organisations who can and point them in the right direction. I am very proud of my husband and all that he does to help others. I particularly like the way he speaks to the clients very respectfully.

I - Invent

I have always thought the 'Cat's Eyes' which fit into tarmac roads and light up in the head lights of cars, are a most ingenious invention. They are often placed in our country roads where no street lights are available.

I would love to invent something which the human race really needs and make myself a lot of money. I would give lots of it away to help homeless people. I think poverty and homelessness are the two worst things in this world we live in.

Sorry to say this will never happen as I'm neither scientific or technical or even very clever! Another story or poem is about all the human race can expect from me! Ha, ha.

J - JAM

Important decision to make! Ha, ha! The strawberry jam is almost gone, so what flavour am I going to buy next? I am thinking Apricot.

K - Knitted

I knitted a cardigan in Lockdown, it took me several months. It is white with flecks of silver/blue in it. I knitted it quite well, considering I haven't done any knitting for years and years. However, it is a bit out of shape! Ha, ha! It hangs down longer in the front than it should. It is cosy, though. I will wear it in the winter (which is now!) and just hope no one notices.

L-  Library

Our local library was closed down completely during lockdown. Now, they do click and collect on the books. I go into my account and can ask for authors I want to read. I got my husband reading again last year, so we both read the books. We like stories which take place in warm countries, like Italy or Spain as it is great escapism.

We never know what books they have picked for us, so it is a lovely surprise when we collect our books and bring them home and unpack them. It has worked really well for us and we have found several new authors. Lucinda Riley being one of them, we like her books a lot. She is Irish and has film and TV interested in doing serials on her books; every writer's dream.

M- Marigolds

I bought one packet of marigold seeds, thinking they were the common marigolds which English gardens used to grow. I haven't seen them for years and wondered what had happened to them. The marigolds turned out to be French marigolds which I grew in the ground and then put into pots. They were a great success and filled three large pots full of these beautiful yellow/gold flowers. It is now November and they are still flowering.

Lockdown spoiled my garden a bit. Several large plant growers lost their businesses as they were unable to pick and pack their plants because of the restrictions. One owner said he had lost millions of pounds. It is so sad. Others adapted and delivered plants. I really missed going out to buy summer bedding plants this year so I hope it will be okay next year. Well, I suppose it will as all the safety measures are now in place, but it depends on what the virus is doing next year. I hope and pray it will die out sooner than later.

N - No need for exclamation marks !!!

No writing is ever made better by swearing or exclamation marks. Neither of these things do writing any favours (just my opinion). I have a terrible habit of overdoing exclamation marks.

In my Creative Writing book, Diane Doubtfire (my mentor) said have no more than one on each page. I have gone back into my writing and got rid of many of them.

Oh dear, I just can't help myself !!!!!!!! Ha, ha, ha !

O - Oranges and Lemons

I have an orange tree in a pot and a lemon tree. The orange tree never grows any oranges, which is quite a disappointment, but it is still a nice tree. The lemon tree does grow lemons, but they take a long time to grow in our climate. I had five lemons on the tree last year, or maybe it was the year before that. There are two on the tree at the moment. One the size of a golf ball and the other a bit smaller. Both the trees are now covered over to protect them from any frost.

P - Patience

I wish I had more patience. I find myself getting really annoyed with all of the people doing stupid things during this time of Coronavirus. They will stand too close in shops, we are supposed to be 2 metres away from one another (6 feet to people like me who only understand feet and inches). And people wear their masks, but not covering their noses. I ask you, what is the point in that?

I don't say anything, but I do get so annoyed. My friend said it isn't worth it. I sometimes wish I was more assertive, and then I could go around arguing with everyone! Surely, it is dirty and stupid people who are mainly spreading this virus? My sister said she saw a man on the bus wearing a mask which was so filthy it should have been thrown away. Oh, for goodness sake!

They could make me the Coronavirus Police – I'd love it! They would all be placed in handcuffs and taken away to some dark, dank place to think over their misdeeds! ! !

Sorry, far too many exclamation marks.

Q- Queen

The Queen always speaks to the nation (UK) on Christmas Day. I sometimes listen. I admire the Queen very much.

During the first Lockdown she spoke to the nation to tell us to pull together and that if we do the right things, we will get through this. We are a resourceful nation and we have come through bad times in the past, we can therefore do it again. It was comforting to me. We will, of course, but there will be lots of damage along the way and lots of grief and pain. The world be will be different place to the one we knew, when we finally emerge at the end of the tunnel.

R - Relaxing

I am not good at relaxing or keeping silent, which is what my new blood pressure monitor tells me to do each time I take my BP. My BP is coming down slowly, thankfully. It says "Keep silent and relax and keep the cuff at heart level" and then at the end , usually says "Your blood pressure is high." It annoyed me so much, I taped a piece of sellotape across the speaker to soften the voice.

S - Scooter

My husband recently bought himself a lightweight mobility scooter. It is blue and comes apart so that it will fit in the car to take on holiday (whenever that will be). We love it. We bought a plastic shed to house it and it fits in like a hand in a glove. The only problem is the camber of the pavements where we live. If only they were level, it would by much nicer for him to ride the scooter, but there is nothing we can do about it. We can now go for walks to the shops and to the park now and then, when it isn't raining. The scooter has a button for speed – on the lefthand side is a snail and on the right a hare! I thought that was very funny. If my husband puts the speed on the middle setting, I have a great deal of trouble keeping up with him. We don't have a dog, so he takes me for a walk instead!

Sewing Machine

A few years ago I bought a Singer sewing machine called a Tradition. I wanted a lightweight machine which had the least amount of buttons and levers on it, which is what this one is. I hate being blinded by science, and my poor brain is getting old. I can pick up the machine with one hand. I really love getting it out and using it on whatever project I am doing.

T -  Trump has been beaten – Hurrah !!!

'Least said, soonest mended.'

U - Umbrellas

It rains a lot in Bristol and when it does it is often windy. I have therefore given up on umbrellas. It is such a battle keeping one up in the wind. Instead, I bought some spray to waterproof my raincoat and wet weather trousers. Not sure it has worked.

V  - Very disappointed with the Christmas cake I made last year. I think I didn't put enough fruit in. Decided not to bother this year.

W -  Weather

I think the British are always talking about the weather because they are not clever enough to make conversation about anything else! (I AM BRITISH). Or perhaps it is because it is not the best weather in the world. Either way, we talk about the weather an awful lot!

Washing Machine

My washing machine started to leave yellow marks on the clothes, so we had to call the repair man in. There was nothing wrong, it just needed a good clean out. I was so pleased, I've had it for seven years and it has not gone wrong yet. (I call it mine because my husband never uses it!) It is a Hoover Optima and I love it. There is quite the love affair between a woman and her washing machine.

X - X marks the spot

Does anyone know where there is any buried treasure? I will gladly come and help you dig it up.

Y - You and I

United we stand, divided we fall.

Z - Zillions

Zillions of people are still kind and caring, if they get the chance to be. We must never forget it and perhaps we should try harder to bring out the best in others.

November 2020