The sun is shining. The birds are singing and the sky is blue. OK it may not last long, let's face it in this country it never does, but oh how lovely it is when it happens and how the heart lifts in the warmth. I have just been sitting outside in our little communal gardens and about half a dozen neighbours have passed by and we have all had a chat and it is amazing how much more cheerful we all are.
I was going to call this post a Random Ramble but really these days it is more a Random Meander as I have become adept at doing things slowly and easily and thinking What is the Rush? I have disliked lockdown intensely, but one good thing is that it has made me realise that charging around shopping or getting hassled about things, is really not important. I am not bothered about the larger stores not being open and have no desire to visit the High Street, but I appreciate that this is selfish when livelihoods are at stake and so many businesses failing.
Like many over the last year I have found that shopping online is so much easier and quicker and the thought of going clothes shopping fills me with horror. The seismic shift in shopping patterns this year of Lockdown has escalated an already ongoing process and, along with many other things, will ensure that life is never the same again.
My main upset throughout all this is that a longed for three month visit by Kathryn who was coming over from Australia last year, had to be cancelled. This caused me more tears and upset than anything else and it is not looking hopeful for this year. By the time she finally makes it four years will have passed and if I think about it too much I get very weepy. But then I tell myself how much worse it would be if my grandchildren were also far away instead of being just an hour away and it balances it out a bit.
I have mentioned in previous posts that my reading seems to have fallen off a cliff in the last twelve months and my scrambled brain was unable to take anything new or challenging into consideration and I did a lot of re-reading which was familiar and comforting. But slowly the interest is returning. You will see that I recently read the Diaries of Chips Channon which took some doing (nearly 600 pages and weighing in at 3lb) but it had the advantage that when I had read a certain number of entries I could put it to one side which I had to do on a regular basis.
I read a recently published title by E C R Lorac who is one of the discovered Golden Age writers that I love thanks to the British Library (will review soon), and also a few titles by William Shaw featuring a DS Cupidi which I have also quite liked even if it is a tad annoying that she is divorced, has a difficult relationship with her mother and her daughter. Oh how I long for a well balanced policewoman or man, but then I suppose if you are in this profession it would be rather difficult.
I have also been busy in the last month or two with the website for the Felixstowe Book Festival which, calloo callay oh frabjus day, is taking place in June. It is a mixture of online events and live speakers (all socially distanced natch) and so many lovely authors who had to be cancelled last year, not literally I hasten to add, are back and it is a really good programme. I will give further information later.
So I am now contemplating my supper and feel very virtuous as I went for my walk today. I also weeded the garden and I washed and polished my car. The sun does weird things to ones psyche so now I think I am going to have a gin and tonic and relax.
Happy Easter everyone.
