Beyond COVID-19 NZ

This is a somewhat lengthy post - the "bones" come at the end in the Share-Note of the Day! Don't miss the hilarious movie clip midway that involves wine bottles ... Another stunning day dawns ... but sadly, what Covid really needs to knock itself on the head, is a run of miserable rainy hideous weather to keep everyone inside and far away from each other! And also keep the grass green - in the north at least! Omaha Beach wasn't too busy this morning when I first got there. By the time I left, numbers were building, but in a reasonably Covid-friendly way - dogs out romping, humans going for a Bubblewalk (mostly 2x2) and a few in surfing (waves not up to much). It's a big expanse of beach, and only dots of people. The water was definitely cooler today, but the sea looked utterly glorious on the incoming tide. Omaha Beach Photo of the Day - Blue and white perfection Meanwhile, across town, Mike and Pat (dog breeders and fellow horse enthusiasts) are actin

The internet went down last night - but thankfully not until after I'd had a Facetime chat with my friend Lyn who lives in Dorset, UK. She showed me the fab retro-style interior of an old dolls house that she's doing up. Rather apt, as you'll see when you get to today's Share-Note. Love this pink flamingo bathroom! Evokes another era ... This morning the internet was intermittent and rain fell quite heavily. The recycling and rubbish trucks came. Michael had a busy work day. Went for a run at 6pm. I've done a bit of catch-up and planning stuff. Toasties for lunch. Nachos for dinner. I kept my early afternoon walk to the beach rather short. A strange kind of feeling down there today, very different to yesterday. The place was almost deserted apart from a dad and four kids having some fun, a guy walking/swimming with his dog and a woman doing a slow power walk. The sand on the foreshore had been sculpted by the sea, there was an onshore bree

It's Sunday, there's no need to be in a hurry, a lie-in this morning was nice. Had a long chat with a friend in Melbourne who was driving off to go kite-surfing - I said that was forbidden here in NZ (potential accident/rescue and all that). They're not in full lockdown in Victoria, Australia - yet! I went to the beach late morning, and sauntered down to the water's edge. I even paddled quite deep and the water was beautiful and warm. Quite a few people were swimming. And walking. More than the past few days. And mostly in clusters of 3 people today. The beach was pretty busy. Yes, it's Sunday ... but are Kiwis beginning to get a bit too complacent? On the topic of swimming, even though I'm not a water baby, I've been in swimming at Omaha more times this summer than I have in the past decade (or maybe even two decades). The sea has to be "Mediterranean warm" for me to venture past the knees - and this summer, it has been. And it still i

Today's post is a little sad and reflective ... but also uplifting (literally) - and with a few photos!! But first a statistic - todays' COVID infected numbers 451. This morning, as I headed to the beach for a short walk, it became very clear to me why I had so keenly wanted to come up to Omaha to SISO (self-isolate) - the connection with my Mum and Dad. The essence of my late parents resides right here at Omaha in so many ways ... They bought the section in 1972, built the bach (about the 6th one up here), and our first Christmas here was in 1974 (I was 12). We came up every single weekend, and every holidays, without fail, for years. Such good times had and so many friendships made. Now, 46 years later, the house has recently had a major makeover (another post, with photos, I promise) and the area has developed beyond belief - but the beach retains its pristine glory. My parents loved this place and it is wonderful to still be able to enjoy this stunning part of t

A beautiful morning turned into a somewhat dull day with a few spits of rain appearing now and again. Michael went for his morning run, and we've both been flat out on our computers most of the day. Michael works in the honey industry - more on that in a future post - and I've been writing. Our workspace Brunch was mashed avo on bagels, crafted by Mike. We watched the 1pm live update. My baking isn't up to much, but I decided to whip up a batch of triple chocolate brownies - with Betty Crocker's assistance! Even though I only had to add eggs and butter and beat with a wooden spoon, I wasn't quite sure how they would turn out, using new oven, limited baking equipment at beach house, no kitchen scales, etc. As it turned out, they were just the right amount of chewy and tasted jolly good. Thumbs up from Mike. Ideal for afternoon tea - which I never usually have! And plenty more for scoffing tomorrow. We had a check-in with Brett who had commandeered my offic

I woke this morning to a glorious sunrise - such a thing is not unusual up here at Omaha Beach, but my seeing them is rather rare (I'm a night owl). I do wonder why I'm up and about so early and put my unusual morning verve down to a sense of anticipation to see how our country handles this new way of being and what positive changes can come from it all. Today will be an indicator of how seriously people are taking this. For a long time I've lamented the state of chaos that the world has been tumbling deeply and out-of-control into, wishing it could somehow get back on an even keel, get back to basics. How on earth that might happen was utterly beyond me ... but it seems the universe had a plan. Let's hope it works. As Day One gets under way and the water glistens out on the horizon, it's eerily quiet. Usually a procession of cars, tractors and boats passes our place at any hour, families and dogs walk by on the pathways, kids cycle and people come and go with

Reality - today is by no means first, last or normal! BTW, I'm posting this at 11.59 Wednesday 25th March 2020, on L-Day (Lockdown Day)! So many tasks to tend to before SISO (my acronym for self-isolation). Firstly, get a What'sApp from son Sam who is in London - they're now in immediate full lockdown after a few weeks working from home followed by partial lockdown. Getting cabin fever. Have had to cancel trips. It's a bugger. But this is the world today. My SISO plan - decamp to Omaha, so I've spent the day organising things to this effect. What to take? What not to forget? Won't need many clothes as no one is going to see me or what I'm wearing. Will need some warmer clothes as temperatures are likely to cool down at any time. Better pack some extra toiletries and medical bits and bobs.  I know I can pick these up at an essential business if I need them. But just in case ... Pack reading, writing, research, art materials (I have

We are all now busy preparing for SISO = my self-coined term for Self Isolation!! So where were you when you heard the news of impending lockdown? Chances are you'll always remember. Everyone is impacted. We're all in a similar boat that has been set adrift and we're not quite sure where it'll end up. As long as people don't panic and stand up and cause it to capsize, we'll get to the other side. There is little traffic on the roads (yahoo). The supermarkets are chaotic (stay away). People are anxious and confused. And getting themselves sorted. My son Sam is in lockdown in London. My friend Anna is in lockdown in northern Italy. My son Michael was due to go flatting this weekend - he'll hold off for the moment. My brother-in-law is cutting short his NZ holiday. My other brother-in-law is cutting short his Oz expedition. Friends have cancelled holidays, postponed events, and are scrambling to get back to Auckland from around the country.