Things have been a little quiet over this way recently. With a dear friend still in hospital battling that bastard Coronavirus, and all sorts of stuff going on at home, the blog has fallen a bit by the way side in terms of updates.
Also, there isn’t really a lot going on worthy of talking about.
At the moment in Kent we are in the midst of Tier 3 hell; no pubs, no restaurants, nothing much open except for shops rammed with sweaty strangers for whom the words ‘social distancing’ appear to mean bugger all.
The kids are at school until the end of the week, and then it’s the Christmas holidays.
They are having their school Christmas party today. Unlike previous years they’ve had to go in ready dressed, and have had to take in their own little bag of party snacks as they can’t share with their friends.
But at least they still get to celebrate, as Christmas is quite different this year…
No Nativity
There is no Nativity or Christmas play for parents to attend this year; instead we will have access to a video of our children speaking and doing the actions. They can’t even sing along to the songs because this might spread the virus. Oh my heart.
Of all the things I expected to break me this year, it wasn’t the lack of terrible singing at the Nativity or the fact I wouldn’t be able to spend half an hour on an uncomfortably small seat watching the person in front of me play on their phone whilst trying to catch a glimpse of my child’s one and only line, but here we are.
At least you can drink during it, I suppose, and you can fast forward all the bits with other people’s kids.
No Christmas cards
We have had one or two – which is amazing frankly as I haven’t bothered for years now – but usually the kids come laden every day from school. Now everything coming in and out of the house poses a risk (as opposed to coughing directly in each other’s faces at Daily Germ Club, which is fine).
I’m quite OK with that, to be honest. I do think Christmas cards are probably a wasteful tradition that need to die out but I didn’t expect it to happen so abruptly; the house looks bare.
No Christmas shopping
Of course as a relatively sane person I actively hate Christmas shopping. However I admit that there is just something about that panic as I spend an hour waiting for a parking space and then scurry around Bluewater grabbing whatever I can on the busiest day of the year after failing to do it in advance as I always promise myself I will. It’s traditional and Coronavirus has taken that tradition away.
The smaller local shops will never recover. Well done, Bezos, you must be very happy.
No Christmas parties
My friend got invited to a ‘virtYule‘ work Christmas party and quite frankly this upsets me very deeply.
Zoom to your heart’s content but if you have to supply your own alcohol and drink alone in your living room, and there is literally no chance of people accidentally getting off with each other and causing all sorts of new year’s gossip, then that my friend is not a party.
There is no eating, drinking or being merry, especially in the darkest depths of Tier 3. I suspect that the majority of pubs (other than Wetherspoons) and independent restaurants will never recover from this which makes me immensely sad because I miss them and I’m terrified of having to stay in forever.
No Father Christmas
Sitting on a stranger’s knee and telling them that you’ve been good is officially cancelled; in its place we have Zoom meet and greets, and socially distanced Santa drive bys – anything to keep the kids happy and, more cynically, the old men in beard oil.
Rationally thinking, it is an entirely odd and slightly creepy tradition. I am still sad though because we don’t have many years left before they’ll start to question everything, and it feels as if this one has been very cruelly ripped away after a shitty year.
No big family get togethers
This is the saddest one for sure; there might be an exception to the rules over Christmas but realistically, no one wants to put their elderly relatives at risk. Coronavirus doesn’t own a diary and it doesn’t actually know it shouldn’t infect people during the three-day window we’re all being allowed to spread festive cheer and germs.
I did everything by the book, I went where I was allowed (and encouraged to go, remember that eating out thing?!) and I still felt like total shit knowing I could have passed it on. It’s a no from me.
Although I got through it OK, I have learned the hard way that Coronavirus can affect different people in different ways. One of my dearest friends – only in his mid-50s – has been intubated an induced coma now for almost three long, painful weeks. I miss not being able to talk to him every day, to go out for lunches and cocktails and even park dates.
While he is making small steps towards recovery each day, it is bloody awful for everyone who loves him. I wish I could finish this on a funnier note, but seriously. Fuck this stupid virus and fuck this stupid year.
Stay safe and have a good Christmas x