Diary

Only 2 weeks before the main tennis tour starts up again. It feels like forever since they shut everything down.

Doing a few match previews this week has helped to get used to the new routine that is coming.

I’ve just got back from a great walk with the dogs. The sun’s shining and they haven’t had a run off lead for a while. There is a large dog field just a 5 minute walk away. A few more people seem to have got dogs during the lockdown. Hopefully they won’t be taking them back to the kennels when everything gets back to normal. Some of them have been taking them to the field. The trouble is that they don’t have much idea about dogs yet. Charlie loves to chase other dogs and if they aren’t running he will growl at them to get them on the run. Some of the new dog owners think he is going to attack their new baby. They flap around in panic and sometimes jump in front of Charlie who just looks at them as if to say, “What the hell are you doing?”

This morning there was no one on the field. It’s beautiful down there. Lots of greenery as far as you can see apart from the allotments. There is also a newt pond that Molly likes to jump into. Another guy came onto the field with his dog. It was a friendly labradoodle type. Looked a bit like a sheep. Charlie is part collie. The chase was on! The guy looked mildly concerned but once I explained that Charlie makes a lot of noise but is just trying to initiate a chase he was fine. Charlie did his public relations bit and sat in front of the guy with his tail wagging. Good lad.

After 20 minutes we carried on with the rest of the walk. During the pandemic most people wouldn’t reply even if you just said good morning. Today there was a very different feel. We passed quite a few families out for a walk. Every single person replied. Things are getting back to normal.

The street has been very quiet. That’s how it is during normal times. A small number have lost the plot during the lockdown which has been well documented on here but since the rules have been eased we have our quiet street back.

I’ve got most of my planned jobs out of the way. The final one is to clear out the shed. I was going to pile it up in the back garden and then call a “man with a van” to take it away. As we have the gardens looking better than they have for a good few years Sue doesn’t like that plan. She doesn’t want a pile of rubbish spoiling the look. Not even for a day. Wonderful. So “we” decided that I would just take it to the local tip. A few weeks ago there were queues of 2 to 3 hours to get into the waste site. I’m sure that isn’t the case now. I guess I’ll find out next week.

Sue is working today and tomorrow. I had a few jobs to do so I got them out of the way yesterday. I cut the grass and trimmed the hedge. The tree in the front garden was also starting to grow over the path so that was pruned too. The local cats seem to have stopped shitting on the new gravel. There was loads of crap on there a couple of weeks ago. Maybe the cats thought it was full so moved on to another place.

I have a lazy afternoon planned. I’m going to watch a couple of films and put my feet up.

Enjoy your Sunday. Stay safe.

 

So people in England will have to wear face masks in shops. It’s essential. So essential that the rule will come into force a week on Friday. A WEEK ON FRIDAY?? How many mixed or weak messages are we going to have in this pandemic?

I actually saw this coming a couple of weeks ago and had ordered a mask just in case. I haven’t worn a mask so far. Sue brought a couple home from work. There are no PPE shortages now. I don’t have a problem with wearing a mask. I’m not convinced that they will make much difference. If they are handled correctly even the NHS masks are only effective for a few minutes apparently. members of the public will not follow rules like washing their hands before putting the mask on. Will they take the mask off the correct way bu holding the ear straps and pulling it away from their face before putting it into a clean bag before taking it home to wash it and have a spare mask to use while the other is being laundered? Nope. they will pull it off by the mask part and stuff it into a pocket or a hand bag until the next shopping trip. I have seen people pull the mask down to have a cough for god’s sake.

A corner of Twitter isn’t happy about the masks.

Somehow i think if these people were ever faced with REAL tyranny that they might not cope well.

Personally if we have to wear a mask when I go into Tesco I don’t have a problem with it. Some random MP was on TV yesterday and was asked if the prices of masks would be held low so that retailers could not make a massive profit on them. He said that it didn’t have to be a mask. Just a cloth face covering. How about a teatowel? There’s an old table cloth in the cupboard. I mean if it’s going to save lives I could even use the NEW table cloth. it’s never been used as a table cloth.

Did anyone see the Back Voices advert before Emmerdale last night on ITV? AT first I thought it was one of those pointless Nationwide ads. Then this ad mentioned that there was an issue with white supremacy in this country. Fuck off! Who on Earth gave the OK for this ad to go out at all never mind in a prime time slot? This isn’t America. Why are so many people desperate to paint the UK as having the same level of racism as they have over there? Christ they’ll have us all taking a knee at 8pm every Thursday while we give the black power fist salute.

The Swiss have cancelled their tennis tournament. I think that has more to do with the fact that Roger Federer won’t be there than anything to do with Covid-19. Without Roger there ticket sales and probably advertising revenue will drop enough to make it not financially viable.

I have traded a few matches this week. The standard is improving as the better players get involved. Today’s matches in Germany are delayed by rain so I might make a start on the next thought process flow chart for the members area.

Stay safe.