Lockdown Fun March/April 2020

Last day of Level 4 lockdown. Woohoo!!! Not that Level 3 will be much different for us for the first week at least. (Will I continue to blog during Level 3, watch this space.) This will truly be a very short blog as today I have done absolutely nothing except lounge around watching TV. My excuse is I am resting to get rid of the lockdown lurgy and thankfully a day of complete rest seems to heave helped and I am feeling much better. Five more cases today and one more death, total deaths now 19. What I am thankful for today: The weather has been crappy today so it has been easy to stay inside doing nothing.

Another lovely Autumn day today. We had a busy day in the backyard today, Geoff splitting logs and cutting down a couple of dead trees. My job was to wheelbarrow the logs that have been drying out against the back fence and stack them in the woodshed next to the garage. Unfortunately I wasn't feeling too flash today, some sort of lockdown lurgy that made me feel quite lightheaded, tired and dizzy. I'm proud to say I soldiered on, taking breaks as necessary and got the wood stacked. Nine new cases today, a bit higher than I had hoped but still in single figures. What I am thankful for today: Sunny days which even when I'm feeling a bit under the weather can cheer me up.

Lest we forget. Today at 6.01am (I woke up unexpectedly at this time) I went out to the letterbox in my fluffy dressing gown to observe Anzac Day in the same way as many other New Zealanders were. It was a very mild morning and a small group of neighbours had assembled on the berm next door. Because they were all dressed I chose not to join them and stayed at the letterbox just long enough to listen to The Last Post reverberate softly around the hills before I quietly snuck back to bed. Today there were a couple of family birthdays to celebrate: Happy birthday Tane (2 today), and Kane and Santana (12 today). I FB messaged Dad and was able to wish my nephew and niece a happy birthday as they celebrated outside at their Grandad's place. I spent the rest of the day mowing the lawns, front and back and stacking some firewood that has dried out. I really wanted to cross mowing the lawns of our list but I crossed it out last time I did it, and I don't suppose it's worth cross...

Happy 83rd birthday Dad. In all Dad's 83 years he would never have dreamed that his 83rd birthday would be spent in a lockdown caused by a global pandemic! Went out for my normal morning walk this morning. The sun was shining and the Autumn trees looked quite stunning. Today is the day that we were supposed to be jetting off to Queenstown for our luxury getaway. The autumn trees must be quite stunning down there now. Never mind, we have a credit for our flight and hotel booking so hopefully we can go down this time next year. Had a FB chat with Dad this morning to say Happy Birthday. Grant, Sharon and the twins were at his fence bringing goodies and a happy birthday sign. Geoff ventured out of the valley this afternoon to go to the Master Builders to get some signage for his building site when he goes back to work (whenever that might be). I decided to make a mini chocolate birthday cake for our Zoom birthday conversation. Not my biggest success but I am hoping that Zoom wi...

Normal morning, out for a walk then back to have a chat to Dad on FB. Had a practice Zoom chat with him too so hopefully tomorrow we can all connect for his 83rd birthday. Only 3 new cases today and no deaths. This afternoon I set up a Zoom meeting with the Silverstream crew, it was great to literally see everyone in their bubbles. What I am thankful for today: Being able to connect with friends even though we are not in the same place.

Today was supposed to be the last day of level 4 lockdown, but we have five extra days before we go to Level 3, which for us won't be much different at all. This morning we ventured out on yet another walk in the bush around the valley, going up the Kopara Grove track (which has to be one of my favourites because it's a nice track no matter whether you're going up it or down it) and coming down the Green Track. We worked out that there are ten tracks in the valley and many different walks you can do by combining them in different ways. Six more cases today and sadly one more death. I had a well deserved lazy afternoon after our 2 1/2 hour bushwalk this morning. What I am thankful for today: I have got through the initial 4 week lock down, still blogging and still sane (relatively speaking😊)

It's hard to believe its now been 4 weeks since I have left Stokes Valley. Four weeks ago we did a mad rush around plumbing and hardware stores to get the supplies for the bathroom renovations. In some ways it seems like a lifetime ago, before the world went mad! This morning it was housework time, riveting stuff! Only 5 more cases today, now 1445, although over 1000 people have recovered. Sadly one more death, bringing that total to 13. It was a lovely afternoon (in fact Lower Hutt has the national high for temperature today at 20 degrees) so I did my "here and there" long walk around the streets of Stokes Valley. We finished the day with a yummy roast dinner. What I am thankful for today: That I am finally learning that it is OK to sit and do nothing, to just sit on the front porch enjoying the sun and the sound of birdsong.

D-day today, decision day as to whether we stay in or Leave Alert Level 4. This morning we went for yet another bushwalk in the valley. We are so very lucky to have so many beautiful walks to choose from. Today we walked up the Tawhai Street track (very steep at the top), along the ECNZ Road then down the Kopara Grove track, which is a rather long, but gentle descent back down to the valley. On the way back we picked up our newly repaired laptop from the porch of our friendly computer repair man. In all our walk took us 3 1/2 hours. Nine new cases today and no additional deaths., a total now of 1440. Lockdown has been extended until 11.59pm on Monday 27 April, an extension of five days. This is a slightly shorter extension than I had envisaged, but Level 3, which for us will not be much different to Level 4, will last for at least two weeks, being revised on 11 May. Officially Geoff can go back to work, but having read the necessary protocols I'm not sure that it will happen....

Another lazy morning, they seem to be becoming the norm. Changed bed, did the washing and chased the washing around the backyard as it kept being blown off the line. This morning Geoff and I made a bear hunt for the kids. We hid hospital bear in various places around the backyard, took photos of him hiding and sent them off to the sandpit. Today a global concert was televised. Famous singers and bands from all around the world performed from their own homes to recognise health workers around the world and raise money for WHO. Ironically while the world unites to support WHO Trump has withdrawn all USA funding from WHO, because he says they got it wrong.😠 Nine new cases today and one death. 1431 cases and 12 deaths. This afternoon we went for a walk up to the monks. On the way we came across a beautiful kereru perching in a small kowhai bush right next to the footpath. I was able to get up really close to him to take a few photos. There were also two bellbirds in the tree above h...

It seems to be getting more difficult to find things to write about.  I had a very lazy morning, reading and watching a bit of TV. By the time the afternoon came cabin fever had set in so I went out for a walk. Obviously a lot of other people had the same idea. For the first time for ages there wasn't a 1pm update today, just a written statement. Thirteen new cases today, no more deaths. Well I think this might entry might hold the record for shortest blog entry yet😄 What I am thankful for today: Donald Trump is not our leader!!

More exploring today. We decided to go for a walk this morning with the weather looking a bit doubtful for the afternoon. We ventured up the Stokes Valley Road track (I forgot how steep this is!) then along to the  Reservoir track. We could hear a deer roaring as we walked along the top. We haven't been down the reservoir track for a very long time and it has changed quite a bit. Someone has been cutting down the dead pine trees and at times it was quite difficult to pick out the track. Thank goodness for Geoff"s  expertise in this area. Our walk, which we thought would take about two hours, ended up taking 2 1/2 hours. Only 8 more cases today, but sadly 2 more deaths, taking the total number of cases to 1409 and total deaths to 11. Seven of these deaths are from one aged care home, which is really sad. Also had a chat with teacher friend Justine to ask her how her first few days of distance teaching has gone. She shared her newly created Google site. Teachers are doing an a...

Happy Birthday Bex 🎂. Who would have thought 31 years ago that on 16th April 2020 I would be entering the fourth week of a nationwide lockdown! Out for my morning walk this morning I noticed an increasing number of cars on the road. Hopefully people aren't getting complacent! I have made some birthday cupcakes for Bex, and seeing as we won't be sharing them they're not gluten free lol! I'm not much of a baker but they don't look too bad even if I say so myself. Fifteen more cases today and no more deaths. The prime minister explained today what life in Alert Level 3 will look like. Geoff will be able to go back to work if he wants to, but we'll just wait and see what happens on that front. Schools will reopen but on a voluntary basis. Kids should still learn from home if they can but schools will be open for kids who parents need to go to work. Not sure how that's going to work! Restaurants, malls and shops will still be closed and no travel between...

Three weeks in lockdown. Maybe only a week to go, but I'm not holding my breath. This morning Geoff and I went for another exploratory bush walk, making sure we we weren't venturing too far away from home. This time we walked down to the Horoeka Reserve, from there we went up the track to the ECNZ road then along to the Green track. Last time we went up the Green track we noticed what looked like a track going next to the creek (I always find navigating the creek a bit difficult.) So we decided to explore this track on our way down. It was pretty steep and while Geoff says its definitely a shorter route than going down the rocky creek, I'm not convinced. In all it was about a 3 1/2 hour, 12 km walk! Twenty new cases today but fortunately no more deaths. We had a well deserved lazy afternoon, after our big morning walk. What I am thankful for today: We have so many beautiful bushwalks right on our doorstep. There's not many of the Stokes Valley hills that we hav...

Not a lot of people out walking this morning. Walking is a bit like a game of chicken these days, as you walk towards someone on the footpath you have to decide who's going to step to the side first. I have to say I usually make the decision sooner rather than later, just to be on the safe side. When I got home it was housework time.  Felt a bit strange cleaning the new bathroom. Geoff cleaned the gutters, swept the chimney and cut the hedge. Lots of jobs to cross off the list today.  Sad news today, 4 deaths almost doubling our total, taking it to nine. Seventeen new cases, which is encouraging. What I am thankful for today: I have written a list of everything we have achieved in the first three weeks of lockdown, the time has been well spent so far. Perhaps when lockdown is finished I will write the list here. 

Back to doing my morning walk again this morning, not so many people out and about today. When I got back I packed the new vanity drawer in some semblance of order. Had a chat with Dad for a while before lunch, he's been having a few down days which is understandable. As I type Geoff is sorting out the medicine cupboard. I don't think he is quite as ruthless as I am when deciding whether or not to chuck something out. Nineteen new cases today, total now 1349, and sadly another death bringing the death toll to 5. What I am thankful for today: Despite my entries getting shorter as we run out of things to do, I am still blogging.😊

Easter Sunday and the supermarkets are allowed to stay open, so Geoff ventured down to the local New World at 8 am to beat the queues and experience lockdown shopping firsthand. I woke up in a bit of a grump, feeling very over everything! (I'm told we are allowed to have bad days and we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves.) So to keep busy I tackled the linen cupboard, which is actually on Geoff's to do list, so I actually got to cross something off a list. Woohoo!! Eighteen new cases today, new total 1330. Yummy roast beef for dinner, followed by apple pie and ice cream! What I am thankful for today: Our lockdown seems to be working, although I am not convinced that lockdown will finish after 4 weeks.

Another lazy morning, reading and just chilling. As usual I watched the 1 pm update, not good news today with two more deaths, bringing our total to four. Twenty nine new cases and a new total of 1312. This afternoon we went on an exploration of a bush track leading off a little park just up Stokes Valley Road. Our little expedition ended up taking three hours. While we out in the bush I took photos of Geoff hidden in various bush settings and we sent them to the boys to play "Where' Grandad?" We got a lovely video message back from them telling us how much they enjoyed playing it. We Zoomed with the sandpit people again tonight, the boys were asking where Great Grandad was. I decided I'd rather have another Zoom practice with Dad before we do a group meeting because he got a little bit stressed at then end of our last one. What I am thankful for today: Having multiple chats with the sandpit people.

It's Good Friday, Easter holidays, only it doesn't feel any different to the last couple of weeks. I had a very lazy morning, sitting in the sun watching the bumblebees on the marigolds and reading my kindle. I have joined the WCC Library and have borrowed some books online which is great, as I was getting a bit tired of rereading my Kindle library. Bex has also downlaoded some more books for me so I should have sufficient reading material for the next two weeks of lock down. After lunch Geoff and I went on what we call the monastery extension walk. This is a tramping type track that goes off the main walking track up at the monastery. When we were just about down at the stupa we heard a stag roaring. Quite a surreal experience sitting in the sun at a Buddhist stupa, in Stokes Valley, listening to a stag roaring. There were 44 new cases today, bringing the total to 1283 and sadly another death. Tonight we have spent a few hours chatting with the family. We were able to ...

I'm a bit behind with blogging so this might be a very short entry. I started my day with my normal morning walk. Not so many people out and about, probably because the weather wasn't flash but it did improve as the day went on. Today I cleaned, tidied and relabeled everything in the pantry, another job to cross off my non existent to do list. (I so should have written a list!) The bathroom is pretty much complete with a working toilet, bath, vanity and new acquisition, a "bum gun". Only the finishing off to do, and we have to wait until we can get to the underfloor heating people to see if the little mishap can be fixed. Only 29 new cases today, bringing the total to 1239. Promising signs. What I am thankful for today: My nice new, very shiny and white bathroom.

This might be the shortest blog entry yet. I went for my usual morning walk, but Geoff had to do a mercy dash to pick me up to prevent a crisis occurring. I won't go into detail here, I will leave that to your imagination. So after a cup of tea I ventured out again, this time to the monastery, one of my favourite local walks. I haven't achieved anything on my non existent to do list, so no pretend crossing off to do. Geoff has been installing the new toilet and my job has been to try to help him identify why there was a leak. I'm pleased to say the problem has been identified (not by me) and we are back to a two toilet household. Our total number of cases is now 1210, only 50 new cases overnight. However I don't think schools will be going back in 2 weeks. The government announced today a $88 million dollar package to support distance learning. I hardly think this amount of money would be spent to support distance learning for only 2 weeks. What I am thankful for ...

Not a very productive day today, but I am pacing myself. I went for my morning walk and even more teddies have appeared in windows around the valley.😊 Today's job was cleaning the oven. I'm beginning to wish I had written a to do list, like Geoff did, so I could cross things off it. I guess it would be a bit weird to write a retrospective list just so I could cross stuff off it. Today's total number of cases is 1160, which is the smallest increase in numbers for two weeks. The powers that be are cautiously optimistic, but I am not getting my hopes up that the lockdown will only last for four weeks. Watch this space. I had a lovely chat to Nicolla this afternoon, it's always nice to hear what's going on in other people's bubbles. Today was payday and I found to my surprise that I had been paid in full for the days I was booked to work during the lockdown. A very pleasant surprise. What I am thankful for today: That we can still go for a walk in the fre...

Monday really isn't much different to Saturday or Sunday for me at the moment, but Geoff 'went back to work', continuing the the bathroom project.  I braved the supermarket again this morning and despite getting there just after 9.00am I still had to queue. I find going to the supermarket quite unnerving and try to get it over and done with as quickly as possible. I filled in the rest of the morning doing housework. Probably not really a good idea with the renovations ongoing but it helped to fill in the time. This morning I received a FB message from one of our fellow Morocco travellers. We had set up a FB group to share photos and Clarissa, who actually lives in Upper Hutt, messaged us all asking how we were getting on. Within a very short time we had heard back from all the other members of our FB group.  I went for my daily walk this afternoon during which I noticed that the teddy bear population is growing every day.😊 The total number of cases today is ...

Today would have been Geoff's dad's 115th birthday! Another beautiful day today. Being in lockdown is so much more challenging when the weather is good. So having done a big walk yesterday, and my knees feeling the after effects, we decided to attack one of the jobs on our to do list. Geoff washed the outside of the house and I cleaned all the interior windows. House is all now spic and span and another job is crossed off. Dad finally mastered signing into Zoom and we had a Zoom conversation, practising for when the sandpit whanau invite him to a Zoom meeting. He's done very well with the iPad, considering a couple of weeks ago he barely knew how to turn it on. The total number of cases in New Zealand is now 1039 with 3 people in ICU, two of whom are in a critical condition. What I am thankful for today: That I am able to help Dad keep in contact with a variety of people, which is making his self isolation less stressful.

Weekends don't really feel any different to the rest of the week, the only difference being that Geoff is not working on the bathroom. In fact I'm really appreciating have to day on my watch as it's very easy to forget what day it is. This morning we cleaned the car then promptly parked it back in the garage. At least it will be nice and clean when we are allowed out and about again. This afternoon we decided to go for a bush walk, making sure we were staying in our neighbourhood. We went up Kamahi Street to the ECNZ road then down Raukawa Street. We have been up to the ECNZ road many times, but never have we met so many walkers and bikers. During our two and a half hour walk we met about 17 other people, also enjoying the great outdoors. Part of me felt a bit like the man on the train in the movie 'Ghost'. I wanted to yell, "THIS IS OUR WALK!!" It was Geoff's turn to be domesticated when we got home, making home made burger patties for tea. Da...

I woke up feeling a bit grumpy and over being stuck at home but went off on my morning walk hoping it would lift my spirits. Along the way I met Sharon and John from our playgroup and we had a lovely chat while maintaining our 2 metre distance. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways, then around the next corner I came across John and Sharon chatting with Marie, also a playgroup member, and another triangular chat ensued. We haven't seen each other for ages and it was so lovely to catch up. I have had a pretty lazy day today, stewing rhubarb was the extent of my domestic tasks today. I managed to get Dad to install Zoom on his computer, that was the easy bit. Trying to get him to sign in using his email account (which for some reason he can't access) was a little more challenging. I have found his email address and his password and all I need him to do is sign in to Zoom using these. We had to call it a day after many attempts and stress levels, both here and in Rot...

I noticed two things when I was out walking this morning. Firstly I noticed the number of houses with their windows open and secondly the sound of cars has been replaced by the tweeting of birds. I was very domesticated this morning and made a lockdown loaf, aka beer bread. It wasn't too bad for a first attempt and Geoff and I both enjoyed giant slabs of freshly baked bread for lunch. I haven't got much flour left and I don't like my chances of being able to buy any more in the near future. Apparently there is no shortage of flour in New Zealand but there is a shortage of small packaging for it so unless you want to buy 20 kilos of flour bread baking might just have to wait. Today's total 797, an increase of 89, the biggest increase so far. We have been told to expect a big increase in numbers, maybe this is just the beginning. We had a lovely 2 hour chat with the Pikaris tonight. We played what is Nana drawing? guess the the pattern and noughts and crosses on Zoo...