#LivingInLockdown
Day 19 – Friday 3rd April
I woke up really early today, between 4am and 5am. This is happening to me about once a week. It is nothing to do with anxiety or sleep problems. Quite the opposite in fact, the issue is too much sleep. I normally get about 7h to 7.5h of sleep a night. At the moment I’m averaging at least 8h. I don’t need this so every 6-7 seven days my body wakes up early as if to say ‘you’ve had enough sleep this week, so no more’. This is all very well but what the hell are you supposed to do at 4am?
In hindsight I could have got up and finished off sorting out my photos. That would be have been productive and not disturb the neighbours. Instead I spent the time playing games and reading on my iPad. By the time my normal day started I was seriously bored. Friday morning is when I do the weekly accountability conference call with a business colleague. I was wondering what I was going to bring to the table this week given that my brain was numb. As it happens it was the perfect tonic.
This friend works with older teenagers. Like all of us she has had to move much of her work online via video conferencing and the youngsters were finding it difficult to concentrate. This is hardly surprising given the shifting sands they find themselves in. Together we decided that a pep talk was needed to inspire the youngsters to action. Our conversation was full of grand ideas: how times of adversity can make or break you; that it is through challenge we learn and grow; now is when we choose whether to come forward and be counted; decisions we make now will define us and this world’s future; each of us has the responsibility to choose for more than just ourselves but for the greater good; we must look inside and find what we can do to make life better for all. You know the sort of stuff.
I don’t know how well this will work with the youngsters but I certainly talked myself into a good mood. I came off that call revved up and the mood has carried through over this weekend.
Friday is also one of my shopping days. (Yeh! Escape to the outside world.) I needed to get a repeat prescription from the pharmacy. Last week the lady pharmacist was in full face mask and gloves yet refused to open the door. Everything was done via a small metal cylinder with her on one side in the shop and me out on the street. I understand her concern, but it was a surreal experience. This week the door was open and there were two different members of staff. Myself and the other customer dutifully kept our distance and paid with card so there was no need to touch or approach each other. We kept to the 2m social distancing between ourselves and the staff at all times. Maybe the lady is in the right and these staff are taking an unnecessary risk, though I don’t think so, but it was a far pleasanter experience than the fear inducing episode of last week. Dealing with someone through a glass window is a soulless experience, long live customer service and genuine human connection I say.
I then decided to go to the local fruteria, which is just round the corner from the pharmacy. This would count as my new experience of the day, as I’ve never been there before. I’m embarrassed to admit that I’m one of these people that does all their shopping at the big convenient supermarket rather than use the local traders. Anyway there is a big push to support these local traders during the quarantine so they don’t go out of business. The fruteria is also next to a smaller supermarket, so I could pretty much get everything I need and feel good about it. Unfortunately both of these shops were shut. I don’t know if I’ve left it too late to help them out or if they always made the decision to close for the duration. Either way, at least I tried folks, I can do no more.