lockdownland

[lockdownland]

Day 32 // Wednesday 15 April 2020

The numbers are looking up. There are more people out-and-about without masks and gloves. I think people are anticipating the end of the lockdown, they think it's just around the corner now.

Yesterday, I taught a young adult whose grandmother had died of the virus that morning. His family had not been able to visit due to the lockdown and only two relatives will be able to attend the funeral. He said that she was living in a nursing home that was in an impossible situation, they had an outbreak and couldn't stop the spread. It appears to be so much harder for the families than the infected as the constraints of the lockdown are angering and frustrating many people.

[lockdownland]

Day 31 // Tuesday 14 April 2020

I have realised something that I think a lot of the (toilet paper-using) world might have recently come to understand: Not all toilet paper is created equally. We all knew about the ranges from unusable tracing paper to luxury quadrupole-ply, but through being forced into buying what is available rather than our preference we have learnt a lot. Ply isn't as simple as it sounds as it's not so much about how many layers but the quality of the layers! Two-ply of soft strong sheets is better than four-ply of sheets as unsubstantial as flat-earth theories. Then there are the tubes that hold the paper, these have subtle size differences! When you take the rolls out the pack and find that your arm fits through the tube you angrily realise you've been had! Also, no toilet paper needs to be scented, it's an inanimate object until we give it life to just cover it in piss or poop.

[lockdownland]

Day 30 // Monday 13 April 2020

We watched the Netflix docu-series 'Tiger King' which centres around big cats in the US. The documentary is about much more but essentially lots of Americans have big cats as pets. I think it was a mistake to watch this during lockdown, I might have been a little more sympathetic to the plight of the cats if wasn't also being forced to live inside. 'Screw you tiger! At least your cage is outside' 'Shuv off lion! At least you are walked, I might be up for a walk with a lead you ungrateful cat!' 'Suck it cougar! I don't have fresh deliveries of horse leg everyday!'

Walking the flat still happens but Grand Theft Auto V happens more. Amy jogged 2k of the flat yesterday, more out of boredom than need to exercise.

[lockdownland]

Day 29 // Sunday 12 April 2020

Easter Sunday.

There is talk of some sectors going back to work tomorrow, there seems to be two schools of thought. One school wants to get people back to work sooner rather than later and I assume this is financially driven. The other school is a little more cautious and is fearful of the numbers spiking when we start back to work. Nobody knows what will happen and nobody really knows which is the best option. Globally, we can't even agree on the effectiveness of masks or treatment. We are all peering into the dark and hoping that the answer will reveal itself.

We have started playing skill games with big old yogurt pots and wine corks. Amy has stuck to the yoga and is practicing for over an hour a day now. Honestly, I can't be arsed to do much, learn a new skill or develope an existing one. I prefer to clean mirrors, re-sweep floors, watch TV and do very little else.

[lockdownland]

Day 28 // Saturday 11 April 2020

Today marks four weeks of lockdown.

Easter, which is arguably the second biggest festival of the year in Zaragoza, didn't happen. A year of preparation gone.

The Easter break is difficult on the students as there is no break, they are still stuck in their homes, still doing homework and playing Fortnite.

[lockdownland]

Day 19-27 // Tuesday 2 April - Friday 10 April 2020

There has been very little change recently.

EAT.SLEEP.RAVE.REPEAT

EAT like grazing cattle, stocking up the cupboards has its down sides.

SLEEP is unpredictable, never tired out physically and sleep has been allowed to last between 4 and 12 hours.

RAVE and rant about being inside for so long, no knowing when it will end.

REPEAT!

[lockdownland]

A shot from the local paper of the snow on Tuesday morning.

[lockdownland]

Day 18 // Wednesday 1 April 2020

Pinch. Punch. First of the month.

5k completed, two days in a row! I have found a downside to my extreme level of fitness, I am walking holes into multiple pairs of socks! Every 20k I'm throwing socks away. I have been wondering for a while, whilst strolling through the flat, why does walking inside take so much longer? I realised today that having to stop and turn around at the end of each length is the equivalent of walking outside and stopping and starting every 25 steps! That might be the only way I feel comfortable walking after all this, like an animal raised in captivity who isn't able to adjust to the wild.

[lockdownland]

Day 17 // Tuesday 31 March 2020

The last day of March brings with it some odd news to report. We had snow in Zaragoza this morning, the good stuff that sticks around. Snow here is almost unheard of and snow that lays is as rare as large gathering of people (in the current situation). Secondly Amy witnessed a pigeon fall from a tree and not recover (it died). Ironically, moments after this ordeal she was introduced to 'Pigeon pose' on her yoga video. Finally, I completed a 5k walk in the flat, anything is possible now.

[lockdownland]

Day 16 // Monday 30 March 2020

One student has found an upside to learning from the comfort of his own home. He has started smoking in my lessons!

Supermarket day, my hour a week outside of the house and the majority of that time is spent in a windowless building.

The general public are becoming scared and cautious, only one in ten people were not wearing masks today, much more than when I went out last week. The queue had two meters between each shopper, not enforced by the supermarket but naturally occuring.

I had a nightmare getting the shopping home, in one hand I had my wheely bag with a plastic bag attached and in my other I had a bag of spuds and a pack loo roll. 20m from the security of my flat the handles of the plastic bag gave way and snapped my fresh loaf in half! As I lunged to catch my bag (which contained eggs) the handles of the spud bag broke and my potatoes fell with a thud. I now had two handless bags, which meant I had an armful of shopping and still had to roll my heavy wheely bag home. Now not having full use of my hands I had to touch all the doorknobs and elevator buttons which were the last things I wanted to touch!

Being fearful of bringing the virus into the flat and making the isolation pointless we have quite a ritual whenever we re-enter the flat. First thing, all clothes off and into the washing machine, full shower, wipe down everything that has been touched with disinfectant, wipe everything new that has been bought into the flat, mop all the floors then finally wash hands.

[lockdownland]

Day 15 // Sunday 29 March 2020

We have started to make lists of things that we would like to get once the world is back to normal. The list is very boring but being at home for so long has highlighted some luxuries we desire; a Brita filter jug, two self-supporting extendable curtain poles, a second mixing bowl, a digital kitchen scale. The list goes on in an equally dull fashion.

I repaired some clothes and turned some trousers into shorts. Amy has continued to do yoga and she is noticing a lot of positive differences.

[lockdownland]

Day 14 // Saturday 28 March 2020

Ahhh the weekend, a chance to take a break from the hustle and bustle of the world and just snuggle up at home. No need to even think about the world beyond our walls.

We moved a chair into the bedroom to make the most of the sun as snow is forecast for Tuesday! We took the time to organise our plants and shelves and cupboards and drawers. We don't have a lot of stuff but I know where every single thing is. I think Spain has some very organized well organized homes now, people don't have much else to do at the moment but to go through their old shit.

I also baked more bread and walked 150 lengths.

[lockdownland]

Day 13 // Friday 27 March 2020

A sort of Friday the 13th (day)!

Only three hours of work today, one (adult) student explained his scaletrix track issues and different years of his F1 car liveries. The same student also insisted on a specific order that one must watch the star wars movies:

1 Rogue One

2 Episode four

3 Episode five

4 Episode one

5 Episode two

6 Episode three

7 Episode six

Then you can choose the watch the others if you like.

Having not walked over 150 lengths of the flat for ages I thought I would try a workout from YouTube. I thought I was going to vomit through my eyes and I didn't even finish the workout. I'll just step up my walking next week.

[lockdownland]

Day 12 // Thursday 26 March 2020

I received an email from work that explained how to conduct ourselves as teachers over zoom. I really don't think it matters if we wear pyjama bottoms or joggers under the desk. I think they might push some teachers too far, insisting on such high standards the same week that you reduce someone's wage is a recipe for disaster.

I'm still happy to have a job to focus my day around, however, seeing bored children stare back at me through the screen is challenging. The dynamic of teaching in a virtual classroom is not great for learning how to interact naturally in English.

Amy has started to teach again this week, she is teaching a private student for three hours a week. Zoom making it all possible and almost easier. Zoom is very good for teaching a private student as there is very little difference from being in the same room.

[lockdownland]

Day 11 // Wednesday 25 March 2020

Now we are in double figures I am starting to find this situation difficult. Not being able to go outside without good reason combined with seeing people in England out for a run is making confinement difficult.

[lockdownland]

Day 10 // Tuesday 24 March 2020

I left the flat yesterday to do the recycling and get some fresh supplies from the supermarket. The majority of folks on the street were wearing gloves and mask, there was even a dog in a mask. The supermarket was surprisingly normal, it was lacking some fresh items and some sanitary items but business as usual. The social distancing made the paying and packing process much better, people don't want to be close so they are not on your back piling their loo roll and hand soap on to the conveyer. Loads of unpressurized time to pack your shopping bags.

150 lengths today and we spent an hour throwing a place mat to each other.

[lockdownland]

Day 9 // Monday 23 March 2020

This blog seems a little redundant now. Its purpose was originally to keep you UK folks informed about our Spanish lockdown, but now you have your own!

I'll continue to post stuff for my own sanity.

Military troops are now assisting the police to patrol the city.