An ancient oak

My alarm woke me at 0700, followed almost immediately by a phone call to say that my Tesco delivery would arrive between 1000 and 1100. Thank you Tesco. I was completely awake after that.

The morning was full of bits and pieces of things to do in the house. The Tesco driver remembered that my kitchen is upstairs and said he was sorry that I would have to carry everything up myself. He has a good memory from last year.

At lunchtime we watched the funeral service for Bill Campbell, widower of Mum's cousin Olive. He was living alone with support, but fell on the stairs last week, broke his neck and died in hospital. The video was good visual quality but the sound was very difficult to follow. 

Julie arrived just after this. We took our cars to Barrasford and walked in the woods. The rain continued but it was not too cold and there was a delightful freshness in the air. This oak tree, by the River North Tyne, caught our attention. It is a magnificent specimen.

This evening I watched a Royal Society of Medicine talk where Simon Wessely (Professor Sir SW) interviewed Philippe Sands about his book Ratlines. I expected more discussion of the psychological aspects of the book, but I was riveted at the end when they discussed Aung Sang Suu Kyi and her speech in the International Courts of Justice, denying the claims that the Rohingya people had been persecuted in Myanmar. Absolutely fascinating stuff.

The RSM seems to have an interesting programme including a Covid programme which I  may watch tomorrow.

Life in the Time of Covid 19
Today is the first time I have had a deliberate meeting with a friend. We walked and did our best to maintain social distancing. It was so much better than the 'phone or Facetime. I was quite anxious about it and that suprised me.

We may have a longer walk next week.

Supermarket deliveries - this is another interesting way of living. Substitutions are made if the item you order is not available. Today there was no frozen mashed potato, so crispy potato was sent (and returned). The bottle of sanitising liquid was not available so they sent six small bottles. That suited me well. I hadn't bought them because of the price!

Philippe Sands says that he and his family are following the advice of the Austrian government. I must go to see what that is!

Julie brought masks for me. Perhaps I will be able to venture out again before the end of the year!!