Strange times indeed. No sooner do we leave one lockdown than another beckons. Well, not so much beckoning as galloping towards us. But thankfully, whatever the rights and wrongs of the Christmas break (assuming it’s still allowed in a day or so) the arrival of Christmas cards through the letterbox gives everyone a welcome taste of normality. So for any of the select band of the Musing Group for whom we have no address, here’s the card you should have received:
Please note though, there’s no hastily scribbled personal news, welcome though that often is. Nor a lengthy, interminable, boastful memoir of holidays spent, theatres visited, children’s achievements and troubles endured that sometimes accompany cards (though never ours I hasten to add). However, one round robin we received a couple of days ago was so amusing and apposite that I thought it was worth sharing. So, along with very best wishes from Rosie and me for a happy and safe Christmas, together with the hope that 2021 will turn out a wee bit better than the year we’ve all just been through, here it is:
“In the garden we have been remarkably busy since March 23rd. In spring there was digging, sowing and planting to do for the vegetables, which we have nearly finished eating now. We spent happy hours watching them grow, which was real fun. Summer mowing and autumn leaf collection added variety.
Edmund finds cooking the daily porridge for breakfast is worth getting up early for and it keeps him occupied for the first couple of hours every day. He is now a very proficient breakfast chef.
I find that cleaning the house is challenging and am still working on a plan to initiate stage one.
Most Mondays I have a lovely time changing the sheets and doing the washing. Always so satisfying. Getting into a clean bed is one of the greatest luxuries in life and it has been so nice to have time to indulge in it.
Tuesdays are splendid if the sun is shining but we are surprised how enjoyable it is when it rains, watching the raindrops running down the windows takes up hours of our time.
Wednesdays are so full of fun and writing lists of interesting things to do that I’m afraid it would take too long to tell you about it.
Edmund finds Thursdays are his best day of the week not just the breakfast cooking but it is also rubbish day. He gets very excited on Wednesday evenings gathering things together and sorting them into the right coloured bags. Sometimes he has so much recycling that he has to decide whether he has to force it into one clear bag or get another one to put the extra in.
Fridays is usually supermarket day. Such fun going to Lidl and Waitrose and deciding which mask to wear. Customers in Waitrose seem to have some very stylish face coverings and I worry that they might think mine a bit naff. Sometimes we put on blue plastic gloves just to cheer up our outfits.
It is lovely when the weekend comes as we deserve a bit of relaxation and it’s nice not to have to do a thing.
A handy tip is to run the dishwasher alternative days as this results in a different day for switching it on and emptying it every week.”