Lockdown again!

Day 1 of a 3 day lockdown at our highest level of Covid alert - level 4.

Here we go again - a hard lockdown to defeat the Delta variant showing up in the community in NZ. Auckland and Coromandel on 7 days lockdown to start, with the rest of NZ starting with 3 days. But, it may well go on longer as authorities rush to try to trace the source and spread of the outbreak.

We all sensed it was coming - I felt it in the water and the earth and smelt it in the air!

Yesterday we did the grocery shopping in the morning because the cupboards were bare. “We’d better get a little extra”, I said, “because there could be an outbreak “… By lunchtime there was news of a community case in Auckland, with a government announcement at 6pm that the whole country would go into the highest level of Covid alert (lockdown) at 11.59pm.

It was surreal but we were sort of ready. We’ve been watching the virus spread in Australia with alarm, and it sort of felt inevitable.

You guys living in other countries may not have too much sympathy for us, because you’re still living with the prevalence of Covid and often a resurgence with Delta. But we’ve been literally so insulated. Not without real problems of course through the loss of people coming in for work and tourism, but we’ve been able to enjoy an almost normal life for over a year now, and our vaccine rollout is only just starting to gather steam.

I’m feeling it like a shock, though I totally support the approach being taken (most Kiwis do I think).

Really weird to sit with my beloved and watch the PM and Chief Medical Officer do the 1pm briefing at Parliament - it used to be the daily show during lockdown last year, and it’s just as riveting again.

I’m noticing that it’s a bit grimmer this time round. There’s less talk of kindness. We seem to be focusing more on endurance and grit. Maybe because it’s winter rather than the golden late summer last May. It’s making me really feel sympathy for my best friend and LOTR co-conspirator who lives in Melbourne. I’ve video chatted so often with her while she’s been in one of their many lockdowns (including the monster 100 day one!!!!) and I thought I understood. Nah!

I remember last lockdown feeling so de-energised and not being able to complete projects that I thought I would have the time to do. I was working on a Legolas tunic but I just couldn’t progress it. I finally finished it well after lockdown (I’m really delighted with it).

So, I’ve committed to doing a few tasks. I was going to work more on my Theoden helmet (I finished the leather armour a month ago). But I didn’t get to it, though I still did other worthy projects. I ended up purging my emails because I’m nearly out of space. Such a boring job, but good to do it. And, I’ve knitted a scarf for my mum and video chatted with my sister. A good start, but tomorrow I’ll work on the helmet. Can’t wait! Please, please don’t let me get de-energised by lockdown like last time.

And, I’m blogging Covid again! I had some cool blogs planned - about the fab teen group that visited a few weeks ago and about making the armour, but these will have to wait. Covid calls. So, let’s see how this new adventure goes. I hope I will be kind. Best wishes, Kathy