It was a wet and windy bike ride to the Uppermill market this morning but it’s not a bad way to start the day. There are some very puddly places along the way though. And I managed to source some chestnuts to put in my sprouts dish for Christmas lunch. I was considering a foray into Tesco, which I have not visited in months, but there was no guarantee that they would have what I wanted. So this morning I asked at the deli, just on the off-chance, and was directed to the cheese and biscuit stall on the market. The biscuit lady will get me some for next week. Tesco can wait. Besides, I like to support our local shops and markets.
This has not prevented me from doing most of my Christmas shopping online. I am not averse to shopping online if I know exactly what I want to buy. Then I am quite happy to hunt the internet to find the best bargain. But when I don’t have a specific idea in mind, when browsing is required, I really prefer to go to shops and look for inspiration. So this year’s bags of presents for the family will not have the usual collection of little odds and ends, bought on a whim because “X, Y or Z will really appreciate this amusing little extra”. So it goes. There’s always next year.
Of course, at the moment we don’t actually know whether Christmas will go ahead. There is much talk at the moment of reversing the decision to let bubbles mingle. It’s quite likely that the original decision to let small groups of family or friends get together indoors was only taken because they were afraid people would do that anyway. But now the scientists and experts are holding their hands up in horror. We shall see.
Meanwhile, as London moves into Tier 3, Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester is shouting about Manchester needing to move down into Tier 3. And the radio news has just told me that Mr Johnson says we must use our own judgement as regards meeting for Christmas.
If you think we have problems, consider the mountain hare in Scotland. In the winter they turn white to camouflage them from predators in the snow. The problem is that Scotland is not having as much snow as it used to have. The hares are suffering as a consequence of global warming because now they are more not less visible in the wintertime.
Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!
No comments:
Post a Comment