A question of priorities?

 I am incredibly lucky although I know lots of people who have had Covid I do not know of anyone very close to me who has died from it and most of my family have had a relatively good pandemic compared to some.  Yet that is not the case everywhere in the country. When I look at how many people who had died in the UK compared to in China it is astonishing.       One Chinese student asked if people were all trying to leave the west to come to China as it is so much safer there, which tickled me, but it is an interesting question. Our freedom comes at a price, but their safety also comes at a price but which is higher.  

Meanwhile Putin seems to be a new threat waiting in the wings.    

January jaunts. 1

I am relieved to say that most of the family seems to have recovered from Covid and now we have finally plunged into the new year with a mix of birthday celebrations, green party meetings and walks and work on a local community garden.  

Certainly the Green Party is taking up much of the time as we try and get to grips with planning law and all sorts of other things that affect the local community.  Once we start campaigning it could be very hard work. So, it was nice to get stuck in and do a couple of hours work on the community garden down the road in Cheshunt instead and do something practical. 

  

Over Christmas,  I failed to get to three parties, partly cos of timing and sometimes they were cancelled cos of the virus.  I am amazed to have so many invites.  That Boris might have been to the odd party was not a surprise but that so many parties were happening staggers me,  the rule makers ignoring their own rules.   Like many people I feel incandescent but at least I cannot say that I was under the illusion that Boris would be a good leader. 

The attack on the BBC also leaves me incandescent I really on the BBC for my education and entertainment all through the day,  I hate to think how diminished my life will be if this august institutions is diminished further.  

Lovely family Christmas but the spectre of the double line cuts things short.

 There is nothing nicer almost than a family Christmas, but at this time, it is difficult to organise and sustain.      But a meal out with all of us,  a panto with some of us, and a shared Christmas Eve, and  Christmas Day Dinner, both with brilliant meals produced by H and R - I have already decided that Christmas Eve curry - homemade of course - should be a thing,  all happened before the plans fell apart and people had to part early to self isolate and recover or just get away from potential illness.   We also had snow to add to the fun, three dogs, who sometimes were very very happy to be together and at other times looked ready to tear each other apart and one who escaped and was almost lost.  We even had two trips to the infamous Barnard Castle whilst away.  

Despite everything was able to stay on for mulled wine, dance and games and fireworks on New Year's Eve and am now back home and back to the ordinary every day.    However, I still find it shocking to have suddenly seen a positive result in a lateral flow device.  I did not know what it was at first I am so used to seeing the nice clear c line and I had to look it up to realise it was a positive - a very negative positive.    Luckily those affected seem to have had a mild illness and were able to self isolate and not affect others.   But the lack of post to order PCR tests  over Christmas, closed help departments on New Year's Eve and the late results back made decision making re work and isolation for those not ill more difficult.    One person who owing to their frailty might have received the new medical treatment is still waiting to hear back from a doctor even though the treatment is supposed to start within 24 hours of a positive test, so bits of the system are not functioning in a helpful way sometimes.  But we are all still here so we have survived but what a horrid way to start a new year. 

Dogged determination .

 I am come from Istria, via Slovenia, Austria,  Germany and France and now I get to walk by the Thames.  

Sun, sea and sour notes.

 I see I have been chided for flying.  Apparently the biggest thing most of us can do to help the planet at present,  is to change how our pension is used - and I have not actually shifted my few pennies.  I could virtue signal at this point the things I do instead, but I will just imply them as of course I do things to offset my flights.   I have had people who have five kids have a go at me for flying and people with no kids.  And of course I do not feel especially happy these days to fly,  but weirdly the whole of humanity is not resting on my few flights.  I think there are more things at play here, but at some point I will probably be drummed out of the green movement for having the audacity, like the oranges I eat for example,  to fly from time to time.    In fact I have just flown home from Spain just now and I was going to share some wonderful things about Spain and the sun, and the food and the friendships made, but a sour mood has come over me when I realise my only reader has not disappeared and is as warped as ever so time maybe, especially as this blog is really just a nice way for me to remember things,  to recall no one cares what I have done -  my life is too little.  I am stupid to keep a record of it anyway and I do not enjoy the comments, but it does help me remember.    

So, rather than a detailed happy blog, just a few words just a few celebratory pictures from a very good time.   Well done, Diane, you have saved yourself some reading. 

                                                     La Alberca, just after the snow in my first week. 

                                         Some of the more serious runners at the Valencia Marathon. 

El Parmar, the rice growing area, just outside Valencia. 

City of Sciences. 

Colon Market Christmas scene, Valencia

Water ceremony Valencia

Alicante market place. 

In Torrevieja with JC. 

Johnny in Torrievieja

Alicante

Madrid Plaza Mayor

La Alberca

Madrid, Tribunal first stop. 

Too much going on to keep up, but this is great fun.

 So much is going on at present it is almost hard to keep up.  Alongside the negative news about Covid and many countries in the world etc we continue with our attempts to relaunch the Greens locally,  and  internationally there have been the Earthshot awards which have been inspirational and positive.  I felt very pleased and a little smug to realise that a small group I donated to back in 2018,  Coral Vita was not only still going,  which was a relief,  but that it was one of the winners so that is really positive news.  One of my tenants best friends has just become one of the joint leaders of the Green Party,  so really hope he can help the party break through and make a difference.     I am over three quarters of the way through my short Introduction to Permaculture Course,  put on by Wyld Edges, and now have to do some design work to complete the course, so writing this as part of displacement activity.    And at last more locally the allotments seem to have more support.  I was up there today with my neighbours planting bulbs, so that was lovely.   And having fallen over and broken my guitar teacher's guitar,  I finally have a guitar of my own, as he kindly found me one.   I have even written a song inspired by the racist attitude of my son's headmaster who attacked my son for his beautiful cane rows and when my son refused to give in to his bullying,  the school found a way to punish him, by not allowing him to flower educationally.     If I can work out how to play the tune I can try and upload it but just present the basic lyrics for present.  

My baby's hair don't cut it. 

Oh my baby's hair don't cut it. 

My baby's hair don't cut it. 

That's what the big man said.  

You can't do that in my school

Don't care that it looks cool

I'm the one that makes the rules

That's what the big man said/says.  

Don't care what your muma says.  

Don't care what your popa says. 

Don't care about the folks back home. 

That's what the big man sayZ. 

My baby's hair - reprise or add additional verses as you want. 

And from a mum's point of view, how wonderful to have my son's beauty captured in a wacky ad for a Swedish company.   His previous ad has been viewed over a million times.  In this one he is the main lead and it has been viewed by almost half a million people.  Extraordinary.  

The Joy of Having Very Very Very Little Work followed by an insane weekend.

 8.15 - 9.15 Tai Chi at local community centre  followed by a walk back through the Lee Valley collecting rosehips. 

After breakfast a read and a relax.  I fell over and broke the guitar I have been loaned on Tuesday, but trying to get a tune out of it still just to have some practice, so spent some time on this. 

Followed this up by time on the car parking space that thinks it is a garden,  by drawing a zone of plants for the Permaculture course activity. 

Cooked a lovely aubergine dish in the oven with fruit pie for afters, then headed upstairs to do some research for the Green Party.  

Have just started work on video of the holiday in Croatia but will then finally have some work and then sort out the rose hips before watching TV and going to bed early ready for my weekend in London. 

Work pays for these activities but now lucky if I get 10 hours a week, but instead I have time.  

Saturday ,Sunday, Monday

Lovely sunny day.  Train to a very busy Windsor.  It is years since I have been there and everyone was out enjoying the sun.   Had a slight panic on route that it was beyond the zone of my train card, but not charged extra once there.  Popped into a little art exhibition and spent 5 minutes with artist Carole Benton looking at her work, then had a nice wonder along the river before heading back into town and the London Film Festival showing of Encounter starring Riz Ahmed, which was very frightening at times so was very glad I was in both the company of friends and a full cinema.   It was wonderful hearing everyone gasping together.  When we came out London was absolutely packed and each restaurant had a long queue.  Luckily my intrepid friend pinned down a Pizza Express member of staff so got us on the waiting list, then manoeuvred us to a pub for quick drink.    I cannot get served when a pub is quiet, so hats off to friend for getting served straight away in a packed London pub.  Tube up the creak after, so did not get home to late, so spent much of Sunday recovering before heading back up to London for the Sting hip hop dance production Message in a Bottle.    At the beginning we were told we should not film during the production, but could film the end dance, so I found it annoying that a couple of people were filming during the show - the former usher in me kept getting distracted, so I raised it with the usher hovering on duty.  However, the problem with that is she was next to me at the end so whilst I knew we could film then I felt too shy too and so didn't get Sting coming on to stage to take a bow!   The show had been on last year but the poster did not grab me then I saw a TV s how on it and realised it was exactly my kind of thing,  as this You Tube example from the end of the show highlights. 

The weekend had a slight downside, as I could not get the computer I had taken with me to work so had to cancel work, rushed back from London late last night and now back home and my other computer did not work so more cancelled work.   I am also shattered as unexpectedly got to see family members on Monday evening and did not get home till midnight, so quite a weekend.