The announcement we all knew was coming was made today. We have another three weeks of lockdown to look forward to. It’s no surprise as the messages about the progress of tackling Covid-19 in the UK are decidedly mixed. Late to the lockdown party and with no firm data to go on regarding infection levels or even deaths I’m not sure anyone really knows what the true picture is.

On the bright side, I still have plenty of pictures to scan, things to write about, chores to do and a lifetime of accumulated belongings to sort through with much to jettison. Oh, and the sun’s still shining. We’re having a glorious run of good weather, which is well – a real ray of sunshine! Sadly, for other reasons, the day was less than perfect. It was the shittiest of the lockdown so far and made me wonder about the future, but right now there’s little to do be done except carry on…

Despite it being Thursday when we normally have our ‘day out’ doing the shopping for Dawn’s parents I elected to stay at home today, so I managed to get a lot of stuff sorted out, which was good. Lots of pictures (new and old) made it onto my website which is growing at a rapid rate. Don’t forget, you can buy copies of individual pictures and all manner of other goodies by visiting the online shop. I’ve added over 2300 pictures so far this year with many more to come.

With the weather being too good to waste I relocated into the garden for a few hours to weed through old pictures, research my next article for RAIL and simply enjoy the sun on my skin and the chattering and antics of the local bird population, who’re clearly enjoying the good weather as much as us humans. 

I did take a break late afternoon to take my daily constitutional on the standard route. Hardly exciting, but it’s better than ossifying at home. I suspect there will be some interesting statistics to come out at the end of lockdown. How many people will have got fitter and how many will have turned into couch potatoes? Will the populations general health have improved or declined? Only the future will tell… 

Back at home my evening was spent glued to the computer, editing yet another batch of old slides. Hardly the most exciting task but I really want to feel I’m getting something out of the lockdown and making progress on a task that feels endless. I’m now into 1990 with (I think) just four rail albums to go, so if lockdown IS extended even more I may be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Oh, wait, there’s all the travel and social issues pictures yet: Bugger! Maybe after the next pandemic then…