We are in the second week of the lockdown due to the pandemic of COVID-19 more commonly known as Corona virus.   The reality is slowly setting in and the realisation that we have to stay home for the near future is shocking.  We in the west were under the impression that we were protected and far away from the source of the virus but when Italy and Spain were affected, we knew we could not escape it.

As expected, everyone went mental and started emptying the supermarket shelves of essential items like food and toilet roll.  I am still wondering why toilet rolls were all wiped off the shelves so quickly with no consideration for anyone else.  This was the time when each one for him or herself…  grab as much as you can.  It took some time for the supermarkets to start rationing essentials.    What I failed to understand was where were these people who were buying so much and stockpiling food, storing it???  It was like Christmas shopping when people buy so much because the stores are shut for two days!!  For someone who hates wasting food, I dread to think how much of that would have gone to waste as it was past date!!!!

You always think you will never get affected by the anything, it will always be someone else…  But this time, it was too close to home.  Rima, my daughter who is a germophobe at the best of times, who has been wearing a mask and gloves all the time, who sanitises her entire house down to the door knobs,  who makes sure she is protected, who gave me so much advice on how to protect myself when I was away, got sick and tested positive for COVID-19.   It was an expected risk when working in the front line healthcare industry.  Fortunately it was such a mild attack and it was such a relief as with her asthma it could easily have been quite a different story.

Lockdown is very hard and difficult when you are living on your own.  Sisko, my adorable tuxedo cat, is my companion.  She keeps me amused and she is another heartbeat in the house.  I have been keeping myself occupied by spreading out my chores over the week.  Writing, reading, playing computer games,  painting the garden fence are the few things I have been doing over the week…

Two down, not sure how many more to go…….