Day 65, Level 1 AND Day 1, Level 3 (we move from L1 to L3 at midday): To Covid Lockdown L3, Regensburg and Rugby

-

As of midday today Auckland is back into Level 3 due to community transmission.
And the rest of NZ at Level 2.

Our Community-Covid-Free days are sadly OVER! 

It is what it is.
We needed some veges so I went up to the fab local fruit/vege shop around 10:30am this morning - uh-oh, chaos. Normally you park right outside, pop in, pick up the freshest fruit and veges, pay the best prices, and off you go. NOT TODAY! But I thought it would be a better bet than any local supermarket.

There were no parks in the vinicity, and queues galore. Hmm. I wondered whether the supermarket might be a better bet, but drove round the block a couple of times, found a carpark and walked up to the shop (good exercise!) 

It was busy but you could get in easily enough. Problem was - there was hardly any stock left. The shelves were almost bare - no potatoes, no broccoli, no cauliflower, no ... well lots of nothing. 

I grabbed what I could and then headed next door to the dairy to get some bread and eggs - not a loaf to be seen. But they did have some fresh farm eggs, boutique style, which I bought. They'd run out of milk, but we didn't need any. 

The queue into the butcher's shop went round the corner - crazy. We've got lots of meat in the freezer so no way was I waiting in line for a bit of chook we didn't need.!

Brett went to work this morning - to meet with colleagues and make a plan. His plan is to carry on working from the office. Everyone else will work from home, but not him. I think he simply can't be bothered setting up to work from home. I disagree with that stance, and I've said so, but it won't change his mind.

I did lots of catch up stuff, including GST and that sort of [dull] thing. I could head back to Omaha (it's still in the Auckland area) - but am thinking I really could make use of lockdown time here in productive manner - even if work itself has been depleted and no-go. 

One step forward - ten steps back. All traction I've made with Beyond over past weeks - well, that's on hold. Hopefully not for too long - but who the hell knows. It's all crazy nuts stuff.

This time last year I was leading a group tour through Europe, part of which was a Danube River Cruise. On this very day last year our lovely cruise ship was docked in Regensburg, in Bavaria, Germany. After days of perfect weather, we got to Regensburg ... and it rained. Well, the German word "regen" means ... "rain"!!!  So it was apt I guess. And being NZers, encountering rain wasn't that unusual at all!

Shame though, as it's a fabulous town with a lovely square and architecture, and gorgeous cobbled parts all over. Our city tour was cut short by RAIN. It was so WET, umbrellas everywhere. Most of the tour group escaped back to the boat, others went shopping - shops were the driest place to be! I poked around various shops with some of the group - and I even bought a few things as it was the only time I did actually get to spend time shopping.

There were some great [cheap] clothes shops in Regensburg - linens and whatnot, made in Italy. I've worn everything I bought there almost to death, including a fab scarf that I've worn regularly through winter. I wore it today as a matter of fact! Tick tick tick, love Regensburg!

There's a golf museum here, which brings 7 centuries of golfing history to life - who knew! I'm a retired golfer and was intrigued - but we went shopping instead. 

Note the statue of a golfer in the lane here, where the museum is. And the rain. And the umbrellas.


Raining in Regensburg


A local Bavarian Oompaah band came on board to give us a recital - great fun!

Back to present day ... tonight - talked to Sam, talked to friends, texted friends - near and far ... lots of updates as to how things affect who. We're all watching the space ...

SHARE-NOTE OF THE DAY:
Rugby ...

I've been on the sidelines of my boys rugby for decades ... love it.
But miss it, as Michael no longer plays and Sam is in London.

Here are some photos of Sam playing for the Auckland U85 Team in 2016 ...


 
 

GO SAM!






Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 69, Level 1: Quiz (a decade of it), Venice, opera and incredible paper dresses

-
Image
Gorgeous day. Blue sky, no wind. Not too hot. On computer or phone most of the day sorting stuff so didn't see too much of it. But it was nice to know it was there.  Quiz tonight - we did well - and came 2nd (again!) by just one point. The team that usually wins and who we battle with won again. Oh well, we did our best. We'd thought it was the last quiz for the year but the final one is next week. So we go again ... maybe next week will be our winning one, to wrap the year up. Despite the strange year of Covid and lockdowns, quiz has provided a steady and pleasant interlude to everything else. It too, shut down of course in lockdowns - but we remember the weeks we were there having fun, not the ones we weren't. Always good food, wine and camaraderie. A few wins, a few placings, and a few duds. That's the nature of life in a nutshell.  Our quizmaster is a lovely young guy who, we found out tonight, has just completed his masters with honours. Not sure what he's stud...
Read more

Day Eight - IndiCat, Emmylou, Home and Dad

-
Image
A stunning April day today, I love this time of year. It was hot. The sunset was sublime. Omaha Photo of the Day - pure beauty right there Today, the 2nd of April, is my Dad's birthday (b. 1937). In 1993 we celebrated his 56th birthday with a family dinner at his favourite Thai Restaurant. A month later he was gone. He would have turned 83 today. Cheers Dad, wish you were here. Yesterday, I talked about Little Barrier looking like it was erupting (see photos from yesterday's blog). Today, every exquisite contour of the island was more clearly visible from Omaha shores than I've seen in a very long time. The clarity was astounding. Dad used to go on occasional fishing expeditions with mates to Hauturu/Little Barrier in the '70s/'80s. One time, however, the boat's motor conked out and even fearless Dad was worried for their safety. He was a GP, well-regarded to be able to fix just about anything in the human and DIY realms, but his recounting of events of...
Read more

Day 86, Level 1: Another post! Rain! And crawdads!

-
Image
Ok so I have done another post (it's become a habit, and habits are hard to break!) But do check back about my next blog ... it's coming Oh how it rained today. On and off, all day long. Heavy rain.  The day was a mix of sunshine and rain - often in huge deluges that hit the deck like the wrath of the gods. The tanks and plants loved every drop of it! And then - by evening - blissful sunlight with golden hued clouds.  And thus is the weather these days ... It blows away the cobwebs and rubbish ...! 6.11pm SHARE-NOTE OF THE DAY: "Where the Crawdads Sing" ... Now here's a book worth reading. I don't read a lot these days, mostly write.  But a friend lent me this - and it was right up my alley.  Different, refreshing, and with a fabulous sting in its tail.  A story about humanity and nature that touches on just about everything life offers.  Gentleness meets resilience. Innocence meets revenge. Oh it's a good story.  I am so looking forward to the movie ....
Read more