Masks and hugs...

.... my biggest personal bugbears right now.

Without the mask rule, I'd feel able to go out for a spot of shopping followed by lunch somewhere nice, but there's nothing normal about having to cover your face to go to into a shop or restaurant. It's also completely irrational and illogical... Mask on to go into the restaurant, mask off when you sit down, mask on if you need to pop to the loo, mask off when you get back to the table, mask on when you get up to leave. Jesus bloody wept! Someone explain how the hell that constitutes "normal" because I'm damned if I know. Does the virus know when people are standing up??

Then there's hugs. This piece caught my eye. Touch is a normal part of our existence - starting with cradling a new-born baby and continuing in a myriad different ways throughout our lives... until the final hand-holding as we breathe our last.

All I want is to hug my son and grandchildren. It's a physical pain I carry around with me. The Govt has told them not to, to protect us because we're "old"... so, until the Govt tells them it's ok, they won't. We love them for thinking they're protecting us, even though we don't want them to! I honestly don't blame them at all for being cautious, they're just following instructions. The instructions have come from a discredited, dishonest Govt, though... and therein lies the problem.

The situation needs a shift in public opinion, where the public finally says "Enough - we're sick of this! We're not doing it". That shift can't come quickly enough for me.

I know there are bigger issues attached to Covid but these are my issues... the ones that really brass me off and affect the quality of my life. The biggest issue, of course, is the trashing of the economy; thankfully, at my age, that has limited scope to affect me, although for some poor souls their lives have been irreparably damaged. Well done, you absolute planks in Govt. *walks off, shaking head*

I'm still working through all the bits of housework I usually ignore - the pantry has come in for some serious elbow-grease this week. I'm very lucky to have a proper pantry where absolutely all our ambient food is stored, but it's a bit of a job to clean. One shelf at a time, followed by a cup of tea, is the way I'm tackling it!

Mr S-V has also taken on a mammoth task - he's attempting to teach me to play chess... again! He's tried several times over the years and I still haven't got it, but hope springs eternal... there's a chance I might grasp it this time - a slim chance, but you never know!