The Distancing Diaries - Day 58 & 59

Day 58 and Jon was first up, he made tea and brought it back to bed where we read until 9am. For breakfast, we ate wholemeal toast with Whole Earth peanut butter and Morrison's version of Marmite.

I replaced the elastic in the cuffs of the blouse I'd worn the previous day while the Andrew Marr Show was on. It had needed doing ever since I'd bought it last year but looking at yesterday's photos was the kick up the arse I needed to get it done.

Jon decided that the chindri rugs (made from scraps leftover from the Indian textile industry) in the bathroom needed an airing and slung them over the line in the sunshine. 

It was warm enough for me to water the patio plants barefoot and for the first time in days, Jacob was awake and keen to go outside.

This week's lockdown nail paint is Barry M's Passionfruit, part of the order I'd placed a few weeks ago and the first time I'd worn it. I'm liking the tropical vibe.

Like most of us, I hadn't seen my brother since before lockdown. He doesn't do social media and I don't do mobile phones or any of that Zoom or Facethingy stuff. We decided that, as our garden is accessed from the street as opposed to the house, it would be perfectly safe if he came round, we sat outside and maintained a safe distance throughout...so we did. 

A few of you commented on my groovy coffee set which my parents received as a wedding present in 1966. It was designed in 1962 by Jill Pemberton for Denby after being inspired by a trip to Russia. Originally called Samarkand, the name was changed to Arabesque after Portmerion, a rival pottery firm, exhibited an exhibition with the same name.

Jon continued painting the chairs, while the lads lazed in the sunshine.

Here are the noodles we eat most days - not homemade or anything fancy like that. They're part of our staple diet at festivals and since we cut back on our bread consumption three and a half years ago they're a quick and tasty alternative to a sandwich.

After lunch, the sun had vanished and it had clouded over. Oh well, it was good while it lasted! I moved a couple of plants that were outgrowing their pots. I've not idea what either of them is or where they came from but Jon calls the one below a spiky bastard and insisted I plant it somewhere away from his legs, so I stuck it in the empty border behind Ebbie. Hopefully, it won't cause any mischief there. 

This is some kind of a climber, I thought it was dead but a couple of stems seem to have burst into life in the last few days.

I've trimmed off the dead bits, replanted it and woven the stems under the electrical wire on the garden wall, let's see what happens next.

Are there signs of alien life in the garden?

No, that'll be Jon respraying his wheels on the lawn. 

 Lockdown outfit, day 58? Saturday's blouse and last week's Phool midi skirt again. I'm sure my hair's grown since I washed it last night.

Tea was cheese salad with half a tomato & garlic flatbread from the freezer. We watched the rest of Age of The Image, a fascinating series we'd started watching the night before on the i-player exploring how the power of images have transformed the modern world and, of course, Killing Eve.

Monday (day 59) started with a Wii Fit session and fruit and yoghurt for breakfast. Jon did a grocery run and the lads sat outside anxiously awaiting his return...

I dug up one of the grasses and a clump of wild geraniums from the border beneath the lounge window and moved them to the bed in which I'd planted spiky bastard and the half-dead climber yesterday.

If the other wild geraniums we've moved during lockdown are anything to go by, this should perk up in a day or so. I gave everything a thorough watering and, just as I'd finished, Jon arrived back with the shopping which he disinfected before putting away.

After our noodles, Jon mowed the lawn and trimmed the edges and watering the veg plot. It was so hot in the greenhouse that my sunglasses steamed up.

Whilst I cut back the brambles, bamboo and bindweed from the pathway that leads from the Kinky Shed to the pond and planted out the globe artichokes into the border.

 I'm growing them for their good looks rather than their flavour.

As always I was accompanied on my rounds by Mr Blackbird. he's not scared at all.

Jon tinkered around with some technical stuff at the kitchen table whilst I took my book outside and read in the sunshine. It's my 24th book of the year, here's what I've read in 2020 so far.

• The Runner                                           Peter May
• The Blue Nowhere                               Jeffrey Deaver
• Speaking in Tongues                            Jeffrey Deaver
• The Likeness                                        Tana French
• The Coffin Dancer                               Jeffrey Deaver
• Personal Injuries                                  Scott Turow
• The Vanished Man                               Jeffrey Deaver
• The Winner                                          David Baldacci 
• Triangle                                               Jeffrey Deaver
• Tuesdays with Morrie                          Mitch Alborn
• The Stone Monkey                              Jeffrey Deaver
• Faithful Place                                      Tana French
• In The Woods                                     Tana French
• A Small Town in Germany                  John Le Carre
• The Kashmir Shawl                             Rosie Thomas
• Arthur & George                               Julian Barnes
• A Rising Man                                      Abir Mukherjee
• Our Game                                          John Le Carre
• I'm Travelling Alone                           Samuel Bjork
• Devotion                                            Louisa Young
• The Stationery Shop of Tehran           Marjan Kamali
• The Memory Box                               Margaret Forster
• Snowblind                                          Ragnar Jonasson

The airport fiction (Jeffrey Deaver, Peter May, David Baldacci and Scott Turow) were all beach reads. Jon found a lot of modern American fiction to download on my e-reader for free. I enjoyed Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme books but wasn't wild about his other thrillers. Tara French is worth reading, her characterisation is excellent and there are lots of twists and turns in her plots. Much as I enjoy a Scandi Noir I wasn't keen on Samuel Bjork's I'm Travelling Alone, far-fetched bordering on the downright daft. I adore Le Carre and both Our Game & A Small Town in Germany were of his usual standards, the latter particularly, Cold War-era espionage at its finest.

I really enjoyed The Kashmir Shawl, which Gill kindly sent me; Devotion was superb and I learnt a great deal about the rise of fascism in Italy prior to WWII; I'd also recommend A Rising Man, detective fiction set in Raj-era India post WWI, Snowblind, Scandi noir at its claustrophobic best and Arthur & George, where Arthur Conan Doyle attempts to help an Anglo Indian solicitor (from the outskirts of Walsall) clear his name after being accused of an atrocity.

Jon joined me outside for a coffee and Richard, the postman, turned up with a couple of parcels. A Hex Bit set for Jon, made up the road in Birmingham, and my latest order from &Keep - a wooden dish brush, dental floss refills, reusable tea bags, a coconut bottle brush and plastic-free wood floor cleaning drops.

We went for a walk around the block, saw a grand total of eight people - the busiest it's been since lockdown. We all maintained a safe distance and made a point of stepping off the pavement to give ourselves adequate space and, of course, there was lots of smiling and saying hello despite only recognising one of our fellow walkers.

Recognise the skirt? It's the 1970s Ayesha Davar midi skirt I wore on Saturday (as they say on Instagram #reweardon'tcare). This time I've combined it with an embroidered cotton blouse (originally from Zara) and my trusty tooled leather belt.

Tea tonight is Halloumi with roasted vegetables which Jon's currently chopping in the kitchen. Tonight we'll watch Fenix (we've had to limit ourselves as there are only 8 episodes) and Grayson Perry's Art Club.

How's life treating you in lockdown land, are you still staying put?