Chickens in a box

We're gradually settling into a semblance of a routine. Well, I am anyway. Work is ramping up and I am grateful to be useful and still employed. On Friday our comms lead sent an email to let us know we were all allowed to take a day's holiday in the next two weeks to try and alleviate the pressure a bit, it's a really kind thought and I'm already looking forward to a day off, even if there's nothing to do! So, routine-wise, I've started doing PE with Joe  on the mornings where I'm free at 9am for 20 minutes. It's a good way to start the day. The boys would rather stick needles in their eyes than join me, but Dolly enjoys lying on my gym mat for a snooze while I jump up and down. Then it's time for a few hours of work before taking Dolly out for an hour at lunchtime. More work/calls through the afternoon, broken by 20 minutes dog training late afternoon. Last checks on emails/actions at around 6pm and then I log off. How long will this go on for? ...

As of last night we are only allowed out of the house if shopping for essential items and for one form of exercise - walk, run or bike, with members of the family only. If you have to go into work for any reason you can, but that doesn't apply to us. There's nothing else. So we are holed up here for the foreseeable future. It's pretty grim. This morning I forced the boys to join me for a 9am HIIT session with The Body Coach, who screeched at us for 20 minutes as we puffed our way through mountain climbers, high knees and a variety of other less-than-graceful moves. I thought it was great. The boys looked as though they'd rather have caught Corona. We move on to the 'remote schooling'. It's like pulling teeth. The boys would rather do anything than school work and if you take your eyes off them for a second, they'll be playing some kind of internet game instead. William produced a piece of geography so dire I made him rip the page out and start agai...

It's Day Five of self isolation since William was sent home from school. The fact that he bounced back within a couple of hours is irrelevant, the entire family now has to isolate for 14 days. The only outlet we have to escape into the outside world is walking the dog. As a result, life has gone online. On Wednesday evening we held a virtual book club and then on Friday virtual pub club. Both brilliant ideas and so great to connect with friends and actually 'see' people! For many it's a novelty and even space age idea, for me a bit of a busman's holiday and means I end up actually working longer hours as can check my emails at the same time as talking about book or drinking wine (possibly not a good idea). Also offended that everyone seems to be using Zoom, one of Cisco's major rivals to Webex and a poor competitor at that. Must try and turn the tide and set up some Webex calls instead. To be honest, as I work from home four days a week already, adding a f...

This morning I got a call from William saying could I pick him up because he was being sent home with flu-like symptoms. So I jumped off my Webex call and headed off to pick up a small, ghostly figure standing miserably outside Reception. What this now means, is that the entire family has to go into social isolation. So when I pick James up in about ten minutes, he's going straight home and none of us are allowed anywhere until 1st April. Now I'm worrying we don't have enough stuff in the house to keep us going. My friend at work has KitKats! Clearly we should have KitKats, but we don't. Have sent a panic email to Eddie asking him to do a post-isolation-run on the way home from work to get chocolate (including Easter Eggs), gin, wine, crisps and fresh fruit & veg. Essentials basically. Yesterday I gave Waitrose a quick visit to see what there wasn't: eggs, pasta, loo roll, flour, chopped tomatoes, tuna, Paracetamol, anti-bacterial hand wash have now complete...

Coronavirus is sweeping the nation, sweeping the world. How worried should we be? I went to the gym yesterday and there was much fuss made about spraying your mat before you got on it, after you'd been on it, then before you got on it again etc. That's after you'd opened and closed your locker, been to the loo, opened several doors - all without germ-killer. It's exhausting, boring and as far as I can see ultimately pointless. If we're going to get it we're going to get it. The boys are still at school every day in a haze of germs, and I can't see that any amount of anti-bac is going to ward off the inevitable. Having said that, I occasionally do a sweep of Waitrose on my travels and for the past week there's been no hand wash or loo roll on the shelves. Why people can't just use soap and water is beyond me. I moved swiftly onto the Easter egg aisle. Never let it be said I don't have my priorities in order.

It seems like a long time ago we were in Megeve skiing, but it's actually only been a week. The trip was fantastic, ski school worked brilliantly and we finally found a perfect instructor that the boys thought was cool - no mean feat. They're now very happy zipping down blacks, moguls, through forests, you name it. I wish I could keep up, but I've always been one for technique with style rather than speed, so am now designated rear-bringer-upper. Otherwise great weather, food, chalet, location. It was worth the wait. We are currently trying to settle back down into life as usual. William has chosen his options for G.C.S.E and we have Y9 parents evening tomorrow, meanwhile James has been picked out as Talented, Gifted and Able (we have put the emphasis on the 'able' to try and prevent him from becoming even more unbearable...). At the coalface I am stressing out about an All Hands event on Wednesday I don't feel ready for, but after 5 hours of solid planning,...