The Distancing Diaries - 20th & 21st October, 2020

 On Tuesday morning I threw a load of washing into the machine and hung it up in the utility room before my Wii Fit session. Following my workout, I wrapped my eBay parcels and joined Jon in the kitchen for breakfast. I got dressed, caught up with blog reading and left the house at 9.40am. I'd got a hairdressing appointment at 10 which would allow for a leisurely stroll into town, just over a mile away. 

This was to be my sixth visit to the hairdresser since 2010 as I'd decided before lockdown that 2020 was the year I'd finally invest in my hair. I've always hated having my hair cut but Keri, my stylist, is fantastic and somehow manages to make my hair look longer despite loosing a couple of inches.  

Just like on my previous visit, I was temperature checked on arrival and there were just two other clients in the salon the whole time I was there. Each section was screened off, masks were mandatory, the towels and gowns were disposable and the stylist not only washes your hair but also takes your payment afterwards. Keri loves styling long hair and I left the salon with the most fantastic dishevelled waves (which she photographed for Bad Apple's website). Sadly it was blowing a gale on my walk back so my waves had all but vanished by the time I got home.

TUESDAY'S OUTFIT: Vintage Mayur Indian cotton gauze maxi dress (charity clearance shop, 2017), 1970s velvet jacket with the best sleeves ever (bought off a friend), Clarks' clog boots (clearance sale, 2018), tribal amulet (Gujarat, 2018)

Last time I'd been to the hairdressers I was chased through the town by a couple of ne'er do wells. On this occasion it wasn't until I was a street away from home when a middle-aged man in a car drove past, did a U-turn and proceeded to kerb crawl alongside the pavement with the window rolled down. Fortunately a lady came out of her house for a walk so I stayed as near to her as I could whilst social distancing until the perv got fed up and drove off. For crying out loud, I'm almost 54 years of age and I'm still being harassed by men. My first experience was when I was 11 & on my way to school when a man tried to drag me away and it's carried on for the best part of forty-feckin' three years. When will it ever end? 

Anyway, sod the perverts. Once home Jon made me a bowl of noodles and talked me through what he'd been doing while I was out, namely replacing Gilbert's defective electronic ignition system, doing the post office run & supervising the skip being collected. After lunch Liz popped round and we had a fabulous afternoon firstly catching up in the shelter over tea and then moving to the Kinky Shed where she had a massive trying on session and found a few choice vintage pieces for her Winter wardrobe. I also gave her first dibs on my charity shop donation pile where she was able to salvage some garments to cut up and remake into the bags she makes and sells.

Tea was a paneer and mixed veg bhuna with rice and a couple of Indian snacks. Later we had a mega Spooks night watching three episodes back-to-back.

Wednesday's Outfit: Vintage Indian Banjara skirt (Boostique, my friend Katy's shop), Recycled sari silk top (All About Audrey, Brighton), Doc Marten Darcie boots (eBay)

I was up at 6am on Wednesday. After putting away the previous day's laundry I did my Wii Fit workout, wrapped the latest ebay sales and had fruit and yogurt for breakfast. Once dressed Jon suggested a trip to B&M Bargains and B&Q, shops we'd not set foot in since before lockdown, as he wanted to see if there were any offers on for seasoned logs for the wood-burner. Happily, there was.

Even better was that all the bedding plants in B&Q had been reduced to half price. I went mad and spent £34! 

When it finally stops raining I'll remove my geraniums from the window boxes & over-winter them in the greenhouse, replacing them with cyclamens, trailing variegated ivy and Goldcrest for added height. 

I loved these purple ornamental cabbages, a favourite of my Grandma. 

Of course I couldn't resist a reduced to clear houseplant! This Crassula (which we Brits call a Money Tree/Jade Plant) had outgrown its pot, which I soon rectified once we got home (the £2 I paid is included in my £34 splurge). 

By the time we'd swung by the post office to drop off the parcels and unloaded the van it was time for noodles. With Storm Barbara and her endless rain showing no signs of abating there was no chance of planting up window boxes or photographing stock so instead I had a lazy afternoon catching up with blog comments, interrupted by an exciting delivery from the postman.

As I'm sure you've already noticed, I've got a bit of a thing about clogs, namely those by Lotta of Stockholm. As they occasionally have flash sales I've signed up for email updates, the most recent of which had a photo of the most gorgeous "Sanita" clog boots priced at £125, which keep haunting me. Imagine my joy when a pair in my size popped up on eBay and even more so when the seller accepted my very cheeky offer. I love them! 

 

Tea was mustard mash, parsnips, carrots, Yorkshire puds and veggie sausages. 

It's Wednesday which means rum & cola to accompany Spooks and Ambulance, although we can't go mad, we've got a National Trust adventure in the morning.

Cheers, stay safe & see you soon!