Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day six

Lazy Sunday morning breakfast

Lazy Sunday morning

It would be easy to lose track of the days, but as Sunday has always had a special start for us with croissants for breakfast, today was no exception. The only difference being that this morning there was no chit-chat in the boulangerie as only one customer is allowed in the small shop at a time. It will be a sad day for me if boulangeries have to close their doors for a while.

 

Ice yoga!

The rest of today has been very productive, especially for a Sunday, although I have found myself questioning why I’m now so keen to complete jobs I could and should have done weeks ago. I have no answer, but it is making me happy. In fact, I am ridiculously happy now all the freezers have been defrosted, cleaned out and I now know what I’ve got and where it is. 

 

Adrian on the road to nowhere

To keep our spirits and energy levels up I’ve baked another cake and Adrian has set up his turbo trainer, enabling his legs to feel the benefit of cycling, even if the rest of him was going nowhere. I’ve also made more soup, using up some of the more dubious items found in the freezers, but also packed full of chilli, ginger, turmeric and today’s special ingredient, nettles. I’m planning on ensuring we are all kept fully topped up with as much vitamins and minerals as is possible over the coming weeks.

Council

In other news Covid-19 has managed to overrule Brexit, even if it is only for a short time. Last Sunday France went ahead and held the first round of the local elections, but for many communes, including ours, a second round of voting to obtain the required number of councilors was required. This should have been happening today, but sensibly, this time, President Macron decided to delay voting. I felt so strongly at his decision last week, I refused to do my two-hour slot at the polling station, out of protest, so I am glad that common sense has prevailed today. What this means for all communes in France who have yet to vote in a Maire and deputies, is that until at least 15^th May the previous Maire and councilors are still in office. I’m still on the council – yippee! I know we won’t be sitting around the table making any decisions, but we are all in regular contact and I will do all I can to help those in the commune get through this. 

With my Mum in the 1970's. Can you tell I was a bit of a handful?

Mother’s Day

As the UK is celebrating Mother’s Day today, we had a good catch up on Facetime with both our Mums and although celebrations were probably more subdued for many this year, I hope if you too were celebrating, you had a lovely day.

Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day five

Welcome to spring

Welcome to Spring

Spring has always been my favourite time of year, full of new buds and shoots, blossoms and the first flowering bulbs; it promises so much in terms of new life and new beginnings. This year that all seems at odds with the world we are currently living in. 

 

Cherry blossoms

However, it only took a quick walk around our orchard this morning to realise spring is still as vibrant as ever. The grass has cowslips and orchids pushing their way through, the bay tree is in flower and the first cherry blossoms are out. The invasive thugs were also in evidence, so fired up after our morning coffee we were inspired to do some bramble busting and trying once more to tame the rampant Clematis Vitalba, or Old Man’s Beard. 

 

Defrosting the freezer

As well as gardening we also managed to hack away around 9 litres of ice from the small kitchen freezer this afternoon, freeing up more space for food. It’s amazing the things we’re finding to keep ourselves amused. Once I’ve worked my way through the other three larger freezers, I’m determined to be a bit more organised with what we’ve got and how long it has been there. There may be a few interesting meals in the next few days, depending on what I find lurking in the dark corners. 

Today we should have been wishing our neighbour Pierrette a happy 80^th birthday, but as she and her husband only return to the house she grew up in here in the village at weekends, they will have to wait for the lockdown to end before their next visit. Our weekly chatters about anything and everything have certainly helped improve my French vocabulary and are something I’ve been enjoying for over fifteen years, so it doesn’t seem quite right without them here today. She always says the first swallow appears around her birthday, so I’m keeping my eyes and ears open for its arrival. We also have new neighbours in our little dead-end square of four houses, who moved in on Monday, but we can’t go over and introduce ourselves just yet. All we have managed so far is to stand at our respective front gates, smile, wave and shout bonjour.

Who to call in France if you feel unwell

Saturday statistics

We have been having a bit of a play with numbers as it does seem odd that we are on lockdown here in France, only allowed to leave home when absolutely necessary, while much of the UK is carrying on as normal, even though pubs, restaurants and schools have now closed. In our not so small area of France, there are only 8 cases here in the Deux Sevres and 6 in the Charente, which is 14 cases spread over 12,000 km2. Where our parents live in the UK there are 65 in Berkshire and 57 in Surrey, so 122 in an area just over 2,800 km2. It seems to me the UK hasn’t quite grasped the severity of what is just around the corner and with the number of deaths being reported in Italy and Spain still on the increase, it’s rather scary to watch from so far away.

Is it really so hard to close your front door, step back from your friends and family and just take some time out in order to stop the spread of something that might kill you or those you love? I don’t think so.

Take care and keep yourselves safe and healthy.

Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day four

Kindle reading in the sun

Needing motivation

I’m feeling a little more locked in today and although I managed a little cleaning, I failed to find my motivational mojo to do more than that. We have created a ‘bored’ list of things to keep us occupied, but none of it appealed to me either and I found myself sneaking back to the sunlounger with my kindle to keep my company. There are times when escaping into a good book is the only option.

The sun is doing more than just helping with our moral as it’s enabling me to keep up to date with drying the washing too. Being bored shouldn’t be a problem any time soon as I’ve got used to washing and cooking for one, not three, so there is plenty of normal chores to do to keep me occupied. Whether it was overcautious or not, the clothes I was wearing when I went out yesterday, went straight in the wash on my return and now have that fresh, clean sun-dried smell.

Last week Macron assured businesses that no one would suffer financially, however the first announcement of an aid package will be inaccessible to us and I’m sure many others. To benefit you need to have a business in a certain sector (that doesn’t include us) and able to prove that your March 20 turnover is 70% less than your March 19 turnover. Seeing as the shut down only occurred this week, over half way through March, that seems a little unfair and is a worry for us.

I am however trying to remain positive and as Adrian’s mum said in a text message at the weekend:

“I think of my Grandparents, mother and aunt, severe rationing, sleeping in a communal air raid shelter in the park night after night and having the bad luck to live in London dock lands and be bombed by the Luftwaffe most night. Much of that lasted for 6 years. They’d have thought this was a breeze!”

Online apexes with friends

We did have something to look forward to today, an afternoon shared apero with friends, thanks to the power of video group call. Dress code was casual, we all provided our own drinks and nibbles and we even had a quiz to keep us entertained. It was great fun to catch up and we all agreed something we will do again soon.

 

Adrian's new look

Despite not going anywhere we are trying our best to keep up appearances, so I’ve only slopped about in leggings for two days so far and I’ve clipped Adrian’s hair. My friend also admitted to attempting a tidy up on her man’s hair, only she had to use the dog clippers - desperate times call for desperate measures. I mentioned a few days ago that Adrian had decided to grow a beard, and with a bit of an edge/neck trim this morning, I hope you will agree it is starting to look quite stylish. 

Another flicker of hope is that our department of Deux-Sèvres is still only reporting seven cases of the virus and so long as everyone takes a responsible attitude to going out, hopefully it won’t rise too much more.

Take care and stay safe.

Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day three

Online yoga in the lounge

A new routine

It might only be day three, but I have noticed our lives have slipped into a new routine already. Adrian and I are up around eight o’clock, we’ve been lucky enough to have breakfast in the garden every day and the house and village are peaceful enough for Adrian to work and me to write. By the time we stop for a late morning coffee, Ed is opening his shutters and his breakfast is usually a similar time to our lunch. The afternoon and early evening are family time. We work outdoors together, we eat dinner together and there is usually something we all enjoy on the TV. When Adrian I head off to bed, Ed takes over the lounge and the TV and goes to bed at some point that doesn’t exist in my 24-hour clock. I know teenagers can have a reputation for being lazy, but you won’t hear me complaining. He has been so accepting of this massive change to his life, he is still working on his uni projects and his music and is always willing to help in the garden and walk the dog. By having slightly staggered days, I think we stand a much better chance of getting through this without falling out. 

Yesterday afternoon I should have been running the village library and in the evening, we should have been listening to our friend sing at the monthly live music event in the village bar, neither of which happened as everything is closed. 

To fulfil my need for reading I thankfully have plenty of books on my kindle, as well as many review posts to catch up on, so no worries about being bored there. I’m hoping to get a bit more organised in the next few days and start sharing lots more book reviews with you here, to give you some ideas of great reads to escape the current madness. Don’t forget to check out my Facebook page for discounted or free kindle books on a daily basis. 

Having Ed at home means we are not missing out on live music either, as he breathes through his guitar strings, but we did cheer ourselves up looking back on videos taken at the bar last year. This was one of my favourites, so I thought I’d share this clip of Adrian and Ed playing for you to enjoy too.

I also managed to take part in my weekly yoga class today, via the online classroom Zoom. It wasn’t quite the same with Mini keen to investigate what I was up to and Adrian trying to keep her busy as well as working, but it was great to still be able to do something normal. Marc and Kate from Phoenix Yoga are now offering all their normal classes as online options, so click here if you would like to give it a try.

Mini is delighted to have her pack back together and is no doubt benefiting from an afternoon walk with Ed and an evening stroll with Adrian and I, but she is missing out on her crusty baguette treats. Stale bread no longer goes to the dog as it’s now being used to dip into our lunchtime soup. Sorry Mini.

Chef-Boutonne, quiet and deserted

I’ve never been a drug mule before

This afternoon I took my first trip out of the village by car since Monday. To be honest there is nothing unusual for me not to use the car, or leave the village, for four days and if it had just been for us, I would have stayed put. However, I had errands to run for some older friends who were running low on their standard medications and also needed a bit of shopping. I packed my Dettol wipes, hand gel, a scarf to cover my face (even though it was too hot for a scarf today), my ID and my filled out authorisation form, and set off for the 7km drive to Chef Boutonne. The weather was perfect for taking the bike instead of the car, but I was a little unsure as to whether this would be allowed, so erred on the side of caution. With Adrian having jobs cancelled, we don’t really need a fine of 135€. 

I was almost the only person at both the supermarket and the pharmacy, which was reassuring, and apart from milk and ham, I didn’t notice any empty shelves. Fresh fruit and vegetables were in abundance, so I stocked up on some more courgettes. Having completed my tasks at the pharmacy and supermarket, I set off back home with my drugs haul, pleased I was able to be of assistance to some friends, but absolutely gutted I hadn’t been stopped by any Gendarmes.

I hope things are not too difficult for you, wherever in the world you are.

Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day two

Blue, sky, blossoms and sunshine

Feeling Positive

We awoke to a perfect day. The sun was burning through the mist and by the time we took our breakfast outside, the sky was blue, and the birds were singing. Adrian being far more observant than I am noticed what was missing, the aircraft. Our sky is usually crisscrossed with plane trails, but this morning it was clear and quiet. I’m sure we will see an improvement in air quality in the coming few weeks and that has to be a positive thing. Maybe this virus was the something dramatic needed by the planet to stop us in our tracks and save our futures?

I am still bubbling with the excitement you get at the beginning of a holiday. It is not often I get both Ed and Adrian home together for more than a long weekend and I’m going to enjoy every moment of this enforced family time. We are lucky to have a house that feels much too large when it’s just me rattling around but offers each of us space to do our own thing when we need it.

Adrian has decided to try something radically different and grow a beard. We have been friends for twenty-five years, together for 23 years and married for 22 years and this morning is the first time he’s not shaved in all these years. I guess when you are approaching fifty and you know that holding a party will be impossible, you are allowed a moment of madness. I will keep you up to date on what I think about the new man in my life.

Macron has now addressed the nation twice and has mentioned we are at war. With the three of us gathered around the TV listening to his every word (thanks France 24 for the simultaneous English translation), it was difficult not to make the comparison to Churchill’s addresses during the war and I think Macron has shown himself as a true leader able to keep calm in a crisis. 

The situation in France, especially the north east is critical, but I am keeping up to date on the figures closer to home. Thankfully, for now at least, the Deux-Sèvres department where we live is holding its own as is the neighbouring department of the Charente, only a few kilometres from our village. There have been five confirmed cases here and four in the Charente. Sadly, the lockdown has been misinterpreted by many, especially those in Paris, as an extended holiday and the roads to the coast were busy yesterday, including towards La Rochelle and Ile de Ré. I fear this will mean an increase in virus levels in our rural idyll in the coming weeks. Please, wherever you are in the world, think before you leave the house and only make journeys that are necessary and take no risks.

 

Security cordon at the village boulangerie

We have been in regular contact with our parents back in the UK, all of whom fall into at risk through age and two certainly with the added risk of health issues. I am happy to report they are all taking things seriously, keeping indoors and not taking too many risks. They have complained about the empty shelves in the supermarkets and the difficulties in getting the basics. Although we have stricter restrictions on movement here, we have been lucky not to see too much panic buying and Intermarché even went as far as sending me a text message yesterday to assure me they would be restocking daily and wished me and my family well. That is customer service. It is almost business as normal at the village bakery too, with just the addition of a barrier to ensure safe distances between them and customers are maintained.

Afternoon tea in the potager

We will be being as profitable with our time as possible and taking the opportunity to try new things. Adrian is determined to teach me how to do simple bike maintenance and I think I might teach him how to bake a cake as I’m guessing I’ve left it too late to introduce him to the washing machine. We are also hoping to use Ed to help us improve our French. Ed’s first lessons in self-sufficiency began today, courgette seed sowing and weeding while Adrian used the rotavator to start preparing the soil in the potager. Being able to eat from the land might be a skill we all need to practice in the future and if he’s home long enough I can teach him how to preserve our harvests for the freezer.

Stay apart, stay safe and keep healthy.

Useful phone numbers for emergencies in France

Diary of Covid-19 confinement, day one

Back home, tired, but with five minutes to spare

Be careful what you wish for.

I can’t remember how many times over the last fifteen years I’ve wished that I could live my life within the village. Whether it was yet another early morning school run I couldn’t face, a wild and windy airport run I could have done without, or just the fact that being here makes me feel safe and happy, there have been many times I’ve dreaded getting in the car and driving away. Well, as from midday today, this will be our life. 

In an attempt to restrict the spread of the pandemic virus Covid-19, President Macron has closed down France. Borders have been shut, all non-essential shops and business have been closed, all social gatherings are forbidden and leaving the house has to be for a justified reason. See more here, in French.

I can only feel relief at the happy coincidence that Adrian and Ed both came home last Thursday, just hours before President Macron’s first address to the nation. It was at this point we realised that neither of them would be leaving me or the village for quite some time as schools and universities were to be closed, and for the foreseeable future Adrian’s work as a freelance trainer, working from a different office each week, was no longer tenable with the current situation. As someone who is so often home alone things feel far less scary knowing my nest is full and we are all here together rather than in three different locations, as is our norm.

A last bike ride with friends 

What would your last outing be if the world were about to end?

Even though the weather was nicer this afternoon than this morning, we couldn’t pass up on the opportunity to have a final bike ride with friends before the midday curfew arrived. We avoided each other’s houses, we didn’t make any physical contact with each other, but we did ride hard and fast, and even going uphill we didn’t stop talking. It will be the face to face conversations with others that I think we will miss the most. Adrian is used to spending each week interacting with a different group of people and talking business. I can merrily chatter away about bone broth soup, yoga and the goings on in the village for hours, but as someone whose corporate life ended almost twenty years ago, I fear he finds my conversational skills lacking.

For Ed, life has changed dramatically. At 19 and with the independence of a studio apartment in Poitiers, with his girlfriend of a year, the shock to be stuck back in a village in the middle of nowhere, with both parents, no girlfriend, a car he can’t drive (as his driving test on Monday was cancelled) and a never-ending list of jobs to do in the garden, as well as checking online for any university deadlines, must be hell on earth. However, he is a star and taking it all in his stride. He is not angry, sulky or any of the emotions I know would have been bursting out of me if I had been put in a similar position at his age. He is calm, chatty and helpful. His usual escape when he is home, walking the dog, is still possible, but only if he is in possession of the signed form stating who he is, where he lives and why he has a justified reason to be outside of his home. 

 

Ed (upstairs) and Adrian working together in the garage

We always have, as I am sure many of you do too, a long list of jobs we never get around to finishing. The hope is that this period of isolation and three pairs of willing hands, will see many of them ticked off and I’m pleased to say that this afternoon we have got off to a good start. Adrian has started sorting out his garage shelves, Ed has mowed the orchard and I have carried on as usual; washing, sweeping, soup-making and keeping abreast of things on Facebook. Although I have become more used to preparing easy meals for one, I’m glad my freezer and cupboards are well stocked to keep my men well-fed. Tomorrow will be the day the potager gets some much needed attention and my aim is that this year I’ll be able to keep on top of the weeds.

My other plan is to keep you up to date on our daily situation here in rural France, if nothing else it will keep me out of trouble and hopefully prove an interesting read when this madness is over.

Please take care of yourselves and stay safe.

The form to complete to leave the house from https://www.gouvernement.fr/info-coronavirus

52 Weeks of Writing Author Journal and Planner by Marielle Smith

52 Weeks of Writing Author Journal and Planner

52 Weeks of Writing Author Journal and Planner

Are you ready to become the writer you were always meant to be? 

52 Weeks of Writing will get you cracking by making you plan, track, reflect on, and check in with your progress and goals an entire year long. 

52 Weeks of Writing will help you dig deep by offering questions and writing prompts designed to unravel whatever truths about your writing you’re ready for. 

52 Weeks of Writing will keep you inspired by delivering a thought-provoking writing quote every week. 

-       Do you struggle with setting goals that reflect your daily reality? 

-       Do you want to practise breaking goals down into manageable chunks? 

-       Would you like more insight into your writing habit(s) and figure out why you keep getting in your own way? 

-       And do you want to create a sustainable writing practice that honours your needs and desires as a writer?

Then the 52 Weeks of Writing: Author Journal and Planner is for you. 

52 Weeks of Writing brings together every lesson Mariëlle S. Smith has learned as a writing coach and writer. Wary as she is of comparisonitis and unhealthy competition, this author journal and planner was designed to help writers develop and fine-tune a practice that works for them. 

If you’re ready to get out of your own way and become the writer you’re meant to be, pick up your copy of 52 Weeks of Writing today. 

 

52 Weeks of Writing Author Journal and Planner

My Review

This book is certainly something rather different from my usual reviews and I apologise in advance that it won’t whisk you away to France to fill your heart with the flutterings of a new romance. I have to admit that for purely personal reasons I was intrigued by the concept of this weekly journal and planner, so I couldn’t help but take a peek inside. I struggle to think of myself as a writer. I blog, I write reviews, I’ve been writing a five-hundred-word magazine article every month for eight years and I enjoy an informal writing group, with delicious homemade cake served on the side, but am I a writer? Maybe if there is anything else hovering in the corners of my mind, this might be the tool to help me focus and achieve something with my writing.

It has been a long time since I looked at writing regularly in a diary, although to a certain extent blogging is just a diary written to share, but I am a great believer in the healing power of writing down both the good and the bad. From the beginning this journal/planner admits it is a process ‘not for the faint of heart’ and I agree 100%. Although I have not been able to work my way through the entire process, it is obvious that to achieve results there is work to be done, in the mind as well as with the pen or keyboard, and some things might feel uncomfortable at first.

The author shares her journaling experience and the changes it made to her life and this really gives you that grain of courage to make a start. With the repetition of looking at similar themes and ideas every week it is easier to stay focussed and not lose sight of goals. Setting and achieving them is down to you, but with this book by your side, anything feels possible.

We are most definitely living in unusual times at the moment, with many countries (including France) in lockdown, so now is as good a time as any to take stock of life and of what is important. Why not use this as an opportunity to start something new and exciting. If you think there may be a hidden writer within, this may be just what you need to see for sure.

Purchase Link  

https://mswordsmith.nl/journal/

Marielle S. Smith 

Author Bio

Mariëlle S. Smith is a coach for writers and other creatives, an editor, (ghost) writer, and custom retreat organiser. In 2019, she moved to Cyprus, and island in the Mediterranean Sea, where she organises private writer’s retreats, is inspired 24/7, and feeds more stray cats than she can count. 

Social Media Links

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https://mswordsmith.nl/en_GB/giveaway/

Giveaway to win….

• THREE paperback copies of the 52 Weeks of Writing Author Journal and Planner,
• TWO paperback copies of Tarot for Creatives: 21 Tarot Spreads to (Re)Connect to Your Intuition and Ignite That Creative Spark, and
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https://mswordsmith.nl/en_GB/giveaway/