I’m not particularly in favour of the House of Lords. Neither am I a great fan of archbishops. However, I can understand to a certain extent the indignation of some people at the fact that John Sentamu, former archbishop of York, has not been made a peer of the realm. Apparently it’s usual for a retiring archbishop of York to be given a life peerage but this has not happened with John Sentamu.
Accusations of institutional racism and prejudice are flying around. John Sentamu was the first black archbishop after all. Excuses are also flying around - they wanted to prevent there being too many lords! Or something of that nature. This may be so but it seems there was room for Ian Botham and even Theresa May’s husband, among others.It was an oversight! Really! It should be remedied next time round, they say. Or somebody said. Am I bothered? Not really.
I have ranted on previous occasions about the popularity of “leisure wear”. The very term annoys me. And I have never understood why some people feel the need to get onto their pyjamas or their onesies to curl up and watch TV. If your workplace has a strict formal dress code, I can understand getting out of that formal wear when you get home from work, making a kind of demarcation line but also avoiding the risk of spilling your evening meal down your smart suit. But the need to have a whole range of “leisure wear” in your wardrobe is something I find incomprehensible. Especially when “leisure wear” and “sports wear” overlap.
The other day, out running, I spoke to a couple of my nodding acquaintances. For some reason one of them told me they are intrigued by my running gear and that they think I must have quite a lot of it. Why they should think that I cannot imagine as they have only ever seen me in two different sets of running clothes and maybe two different rain jackets. I was reminded of the time when I used to go to aerobics classes, in my basic black leotard and tights, and I would be stunned at the range of exercise clothes some people had, in a range of colours and styles. How can you have styles of leotards? Well, I suppose you can if they are “designed” by famous actresses and singers! It just became silly with some people almost vying with each other to see who had a new and exciting outfit each week.
Anyway, it appears that in the UK there may be a shortage of sports shoes, track pants and stretchy leggings as retailers and suppliers struggle to keep up with a pandemic-related surge in demand. Partly this is because more people have been exercising but also because the only clothes some folk wear are stretchy pants and baggy tops while they work at home. In addition much “leisure wear” is made in factories in places like Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia which have been forced to close, some for several months, in order to control the spread of the virus. Goodness! Another odd consequence of the virus!
Here’s something else to get indignant about, it is rumoured that people who have been told to self-isolate through NHS test and trace could have their contact details passed to police. On the one hand this means that self-isolating can be monitored. On the other, it could be a move to control what we do, a step towards a police state. There is some fear that it could deter people from being tested for coronavirus. There is after all a legal requirement to self-isolate, failure to do so incurring a £1,000 fine, more than some people earn in a month!
Wayne Rooney meanwhile is reported to be “seething” because a friend who had been instructed to by test and trace to be tested for the virus went to visit him. After the visit it transpired that the friend tested positive, thus putting Rooney and family at risk and also meaning Rooney had to self-isolate too. Oh boy, maybe the friend was not too bright and thought the rules did not apply until after he got the results of the test!
Donald Trump and followers still don’t worry about contamination either. POTUS went to church in Las Vegas on Sunday before a rally. He and his followers mostly don’t wear masks. In an interview on a Wisconsin radio station, Trump was asked if rallies at which mostly maskless supporters are packed tightly together sent the wrong message. This was his answer:-
“I don’t think so because I’m not a big shutdown believer. If you take a look at your state, they’ve been shut down and they’ve been locked down and locked up and, you know, they’ve been doing it for a long time.”
Well, that was a very meaningful reply, I don’t think!
Here Wales has just declared a national lockdown from 6.00pm on Friday, a “fire break”. Someone is taking it seriously.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
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