Lockdown 4/28 – Adjustment
Day 4 of my diary of a LOTR Fan Museum owner during our 4 week national lockdown - in NZ we’re uniting as a country to beat Covid-19 before anyone has died. It’s wonderful, but …
In my new job (STAY HOME, be kind), there’s this weird mix of big picture news and the intensely micro nature of living in lockdown.
On the one hand, we’re following the national news, instructions etc, and I’m obsessively following international developments. Some of the international news is so horrible that I find myself clutching my beloved’s hand every so often just to cope.
On the other hand, we’re starting to adjust to the four corners of our new world, especially as it’s still cold, raining hard and blowing a cold gale.
We’re talking about moving my rowing machine into The One Room Fan Museum (gasp!), so it’s easier to just jump aboard and have some private time while exercising. Am I a bad person that it’s taken a few days for me to come to terms with this obvious sensible use of the space? The Museum has been storing our e-bike periodically anyway. Our house buddy (a dear sister, who sleeps at her own flat is in our bubble as a person living alone) noticed this yesterday and, unknown to me till after she’d left, took undignified liberties with Gollum!!
This morning we treated ourselves to a “cafe” breakfast, and it was terrific. I broke out some black pudding that I bought in Hastings farmers market a few years ago. An amazing breakfast, and I really appreciated my Villeroy and Boch naif pattern plates.
My favourite is the little old man and little old woman next to the fireplace. The only thing we lack is grandchildren, which, sadly, I don’t think we’ll ever have. I bought this dinner set with my first “real job” pay check in 1989. The set was all seconds and so was half price at $600 (still cleaned me out!!). I use it every day and it goes in the dishwasher. Only 1 breakage in 30 years, and it gives such pleasure to us and guests alike.
I am thinking that this joy in small beauty is something those in colder countries discovered centuries ago, whereas we live in a temperate country and spend more time outside, even in winter.
I am wondering if intense focus on these memories and enjoying the small things is going to be a key part of our lives over the next 4 weeks - I do remember the Shire! I do remember the taste of strawberries! JRR, I hope that for us this world tragedy is never so terrible as to make us forget. My heart goes out to those whose suffering is so great right now that they can’t remember joy. Best wishes, Kathy x
