Reflections
Yesterday for the first time in 10 weeks, I judged it safe to take a corporation bus.
It was spotlessly clean and for most of my short journey I was the only passenger.
The only breach of social distancing I saw was a van by the kerbside that sold hot food.
It is popular with workers at the hospital rebuild site and the pavement was so crowded with consumers that in normal circumstances there would be no passage.
Later in the morning I went to the pharmacy of my local ASDA. After a row with an over aggressive bouncer on the door I had moved my custom to Waitrose.
I had to collect a prescription at their pharmacy. The queue moved quickly and but for the shopper ahead of me telling me to keep my distance as she unpacked her trolley devoid of incident.
However, as I walked back at a safe distance from the queue I saw one man who looked extremely unwell coughing and spluttering. He wore no mask.
I bet at a German supermarket security would stop him from entry, maybe insist on taking his temperature. Here the scrutiny was woeful.
By and large I have coped with lockdown.
Out of the blue my Thai cleaner R informed me by What’sApp she is not coming in any longer but will return once she judged it safe to do so.
She also trousered money for shopping and some chicken from the fridge to be used for her to cook for me.
I pride myself that in any crisis I am quite focused and I soon established a list of priorities, one of which was not contacting R and accepting her decision.
I realised I would have to do some housework but my late mother had given me some grounding and my late father always advised the necessity to maintain standards of hygiene cleanliness and appearance.
In short it proved a challenge to which I responded.
R sent me a second message saying I should contact her if there is a emergency. This I ignored too.
I received a third that she was able and willing to return to clean but may have to work extra hours to restore the flat to her previous standards.
Being a man I am, of course, hopeless in the home. Imagine if I took the view which I do not hold that in my experience women do not make great CEOs. I replied to her message with a curt “If I need your services I will contact you’.
Which I have not.
Quite apart from saving money I derive a great satisfaction that, in time of stress and difficulty, I sorted myself out. A much kinder person than R, my p/a Polly, had offered to do a deep clean but at the time we were in lockdown and this was not practical.
Unlike some, Polly and I do not interpret guidelines for and to our own benefit.
