Island living. Unseasonal weather. Taking advantage of the sunshine. Celebrating birthdays.

A friend of mine lives on one of the Greek islands. I don’t know which one. My knowledge of Greek geography is sketchy, almost nonexistent, and besides it doesn’t really matter. Recently she has reported an increase in Covid cases on her island, which has largely been Covid free. She blames it on Athenians who have holiday homes there and have been travelling from Athens quite regularly to escape restrictions there. The trouble is that they get bored on the island when it’s not summertime and then they travel back to Athens for a while ... until they once more feel the need to escape. And so the virus gets moved around. 

According to my brother-in-law they traced the recent outbreak in the Isle of Man to someone who works on the ferry and who caught the virus either on the boat from a passenger or during a ferry stop in Liverpool. Either way, it broke the island’s carefully preserved Covid-free state. 

No man is an island and it seems than even an island isn’t an island for long in the pandemic world.

My Greek island friend reports they have snow today. Surely that’s a bit unusual! We are forecast snow over the weekend apparently, it won’t be the first time we’ve had snow when it’s officially spring. It rained in the night, just as the weathermen predicted, but this morning has been a mix of cloudy and bright. Yesterday my brother-in-law, who usually likes us to organise Chippy Hikes on a Friday so that our daughter can also join in, suggested a walk in the sunshine as Friday could well be wet and cold. As I had already cycled to Uppermill and back, I reduced the proposed walk to a tramp up Lark Hill to admire the view.

Including this view of the amazingly stripey field.

Coming down the other side of the hill towards Dobcross we admired the daffodils all over the place. The daffodils are back, proof positive that we have been doing this lockdown business for a year. 

 

If further proof was needed, some of the neighbours were sitting in the garden again, just like a year ago. A definite feeling of déjà vu!

  

I am keeping my fingers crossed that tomorrow’s forecast rain and possible sleety snow is proved wrong. Our second granddaughter is 18 tomorrow and , faute de mieux, wants to celebrate it by doing a family walk up to Heights Church. After all, she can’t, even though she will be old enough, go out to the pub with friends. I have been commissioned to make a chocolate cake but we might have to sing Happy Birthday by the front door, again as we did last year!

Another friend, living in Wales this time, has alerted me to an incipient bit of overt patriotism:

“All government buildings in England, Wales and Scotland will fly the Union flag every day, following new guidance from the culture department.

Currently flags are only required to be flown on certain days such as the Queen's birthday.

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden described the flag as "a proud reminder of our history and the ties that bind us".”

As with the almost enforced wearing of poppies for Remembrance Day, this led him to an almost apoplectic outburst about how we are being bullied into not just being patriotic but being seen to be patriotic.

Strange times!

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!