Life in the Time of Coronavirus 9

Apparently the Health Secretary (or Death Secretary as he's being called on Twitter) Matt Hancock has said we can start to loosen the lockdown and see up to 6 people outside . Boris said we can have bbqs - but Chris Whitty stood awkwardly next to him in that Daily briefing looked very uncomfortable and added that we had to still observe 2m social distancing and bring our own food plates condiments - and if you have to go in the house to the loo - wash everywhere down afterwards! Doesn't sound much fun.

The problem is the R rate - which is how many people get infected from each infected person is supposed to be below 1 before you do this. It is only just under that - but we are still getting way over 300 deaths per day. I am not sure if I trust this instruction.

As Dominic Cumming is still in the newspapers every day - with criticism of his actions mounting - Boris is trying to give people something to distract them. He knows how much we are missing friends and family - and he is trying to just deflect attention from all the calls for him to sack his SPAD DC.

In other words it is a political decision - not one guided by the science. He'd rather have extra people die than lose his special advisor - and that is disturbing.

So, our instincts are to continue to stay home as much as possible I can't see that I will be called into work for a while yet - as who would want to be in a theatre full of other people in an enclosed space yet? Or ever? So I will stay home as long as I can.

Laura has had emails from her work that say they are putting in distancing and safety measures in place and bringing a few people at a time. She doesn't know when she will go back though. She has been refused a mortgage extension though - while she is on furlough - so if her flat purchase does get ready for completion - she no longer has a mortgage! It has already taken over 12 months - it seems like it is never meant to be!

I don't like the idea that once she does go back to work - she will have to move back to her rented flat. It would be risky for us if she stays here and is working with loads of other people. We'll have to see.

Little Easter Bunnies

Posh Fox for Sharon

Lemon Biscuits

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Dom and Sharon have asked if they can come round one day next week. They have to go over to Endon to take my dad his latest batch of medication. So I aid thy could come into the back garden and we can distance and have a chat. I am actually really excited to think we can see them again. They have been isolating really well - and so I trust them to be okay. They still have Nathan's birthday gifts - and I have their Easter Eggs here. Well, kind of. I got them little Easter bunnies crocheted by Tracy - and each with a Cadbury Crème Egg inside. I did eat the eggs though - so I have ordered some more from Amazon!

I still have the fox head that I knitted for Sharon too. Would be lovely to see them.

Me and L have been baking again - this week two types of cookies - lemon drizzle ones that I made and choc chip pnut ones from Lol.We are gong to emerge from lockdown much fatter than when we went in!

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 8

Getting a bit fed up of lockdown now.

All this week there has been nothing on the news except how the (special advisor to the) PM Dominic Cummings has been breaking lockdown and driving to Durham with his sick wife and child. Then had a day out to Barnard Castle for his wife's birthday. Quite extraordinary - given that he was the guy who made the rules and the slogan STAY HOME SAVE LIVES. Needless to say everyone is livid - but BoJo will not sack him. He really doesn't have a clue what to do without him I guess.

I think Marina Hyde explained it best in The Guardian

Here I have had a second staff meeting via Zoom with the New Vic. Still not a lot of concrete information - given that the general consensus is that theatres will be one of the last places that will be allowed to reopen - and who knows what restrictions will still be in place.

The Plan A - is to commence productions from September. They have put together a new schedule some of the plays we were going to put on and a few one night events they have managed to reschedule. They are not selling tickets or letting the public know yet - as there is no guarantee that it will happen.

They know they may need a Plan B ( and possible Plan C) - but haven't come up with that yet.

One good bit of news is that the refurb may still go ahead over the summer. The company that is making our new seating has reopened its factory - and the colour has been chosen - a deep purple! The tenders for the new toilets have been received and some are now coming in for the new stage. So, the theatre will be all ready for the next 30 years. 

The furlough scheme is still being used - and we may have that extended after June - or some of us may be asked to come back part-time. I am already employed part-time - so I am not sure when I will be back. Unless we get the go ahead for our new September Programme I guess there's not a lot for the Box Office to do. Will have to see what transpires!

Me and Laura have been doing lots more baking - and we are also running out of jigsaws. Just ordered another 100 piece one - with lots of books on it. We started that one today! 

Here are photos of our lemon drizzle biscuits and chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies. Both were delicious. 

The weather has turned gorgeous again - so we had a barbecue on Bank Holiday Monday (was like every other day - except N didn't have to work from home!) We have a new swinging seat which was delivered by Amazon. 
The other photo is Grumbles enjoying snoozing in the sunshine by the window.

Life in time of Coronavirus 7

Laura and I went for our daily walk today - decided to do a longer one than usual so we walked to the theatre and back. I quite often walked to work - it takes 28 minutes there - so we were out an hour. It was quite sad to walk past my theatre and see that the posters outside were still advertising the shows that were on the day we had to close. It was 39 Steps and I had bought loads of tickets - as I as going to see it with Janet, Jane and Gill on the Wednesday and Nathan, Laura and N's parents Dilys and Colin at the weekend. It was going to be a treat for Dilys for Mother's Day - but of course it never happened.



We also had tickets for the Birmingham Hippodrome to see The Book of Mormon - for Nathan's birthday treat - but of course that was cancelled too. In fact I am wondering if we will ever see it now. After three months of lockdown many theatres are warning that they are going out of business as they have no income - from  ticket sales, café and bar takings or donations. Among these is Shakespeare's Globe - so if they are struggling I can only imagine what our own New Vic is going through. The problem is that even if theatres do open later in the year - if we still have social distancing rules then that is not financially viable for us to put on shows. In an auditorium that can fit on 500+ people - we would only be allowed 70!

Also, even when rules are relaxed many older people will still not want to risk going out. I would say a large percentage of our regular customers are retired - so I think the revenue would still not be enough to keep the theatre going. I am not sure I will ever work there again! Once the government stop the furlough scheme - will they have the money to pay my wages again?

Theatres in Trouble

In other lockdown news - we have finished the Gothic jigsaw at last! Took 3 of us weeks to do it! There were 1000 pieces - but so many looked the same!
We have another 1000 one - but it is all about the 80s and have lots of words, logos and faces on it. Should be done much quicker!

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 6

Had a staff meeting via Zoom the other day. It was the first time I had used that kind of software - I had no idea what I looked like on camera - or even if my whole head was on there. I did se one or two others from Box Office - glimpsed Lou and Lyndsay. Looked like Lou was in the theatre and Lynds was at home. Random staff just popped up on my screen before we started - not sure why!

When it started I saw Hayley from HR and she handed over to Fiona at home. She was having rouble with her internet connection - so kept disappearing - in the end she did audio only. Her house looked lovely and light though. All white with lots of bookshelves. Maybe it was one of those Zoom faux backgrounds that you can download. I wanted to get a gallery view so I could see who else was listening in - but I couldn't see what to press and didn't want me to pop up on everyone's screen.

 The gist of the meeting was that they have got a new schedule of plays and concerts that could start from September - but they can't go ahead and make it public until the government say that they are allowed to open. No-one knows when that will be. Fiona did say that those of us that are on furlough will be asked to use some of our holidays while we are off as they don't want people coming back and being owed loads of holiday or lieu time.  

That was all they could say really. Pete had said a couple of weeks ago that some theatres he knows have decided to abandon everything until their Christmas shows.  

After that meeting there was an article in The Stage by Cameron Macintosh saying that West End Theatres won't open before 2021 - unless the social distancing rules are relaxed soon.

Tasty Lemon Drizzle Cake

Pale green fences - much brighter!

One resident in the Insect Hotel!

Still keeping busy painting the fences in the yard and baking. cooking loads. All three of us are in for all three meals a day. I've never spent so much time in the kitchen! 

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 5

Yesterday I had a Zoom meeting at work! I had never used Zoom before - and it looked like not many other staff had either! I downloaded the app and logged in with the Meeting ID that our HR department at the theatre had sent me. I managed to get in - and saw various other staff - some from Box Office I aw Lou and Lynds - waiting for it to start. No idea who could see me! Fiona - one of the Directors kicked off the meeting with an update - although she had terrible internet connection so she kept dropping out. Eventually she had to go to audio only. It was nice to see her though - and her house looked lovely!

The gist was that they still have no idea when theatres will be allowed to open again. A very few staff are in the building - including some BO who are not furloughed. They are getting through refunds and have raised £11000 for the theatre asking customers to donate their ticket money rather than having a refund - to help keep the theatre going.

Us staff who are on furlough were told that we may be asked to take some holiday during this time - and TOIL time - as they don't want us to be owed loads of time off when we get back to work. They are also looking at training for us while we are off.

Tracy - head of HR said they would be holding coffee mornings online for people to pop in and have a chat with colleagues. So we don't forget who our colleagues are! No-one can go into the building for any reason unless they call ahead as strict H&S rules are being followed

They have a tentative schedule for shows from September - but can't release that to the public until we definitely know we can open by then. Everything is up in the air.

After the meeting I saw a news article from The Stage which said that theatres probably would open until social distancing was o longer needed - probably next year!

Today (Tuesday) I had to drive to Hanley to deliver some documents to my dad's solicitor. They are his original deeds which couldn't be trusted to the post! I had arranged with his solicitor Natalie - that I could just put them through the door of their Hanley Office. Laura and I parked at Tesco - expecting to see a queue in the car park - but it was really quiet. I think the panic buying had subsided now. it was scary in the first week of lockdown to see empty shelves at our local Sainsbury - something we don't even see at the busiest Christmas time.

Shelves in Sainsbury 18th March 2020

It was like walking through a ghost town, as Hanley itself was also deserted - very strange for such a usually busy town. No shops open - except for Wikinsons - where there was a socially distanced queue outside - most people wearing masks. Life is pretty much like being in some zombie apocalypse film now - it all seems so unreal!

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 3

Yipee!
I went to the hospital yesterday and saw Mr Hughes - I think it was him - he was togged up like an astronaut with all his PPE. I had quite a wait in SubWait 1 - the small waiting room outside his clinic at the Royal Stoke Hospital. We are no longer allowed to take someone with us - they want as few peope as possible in the waiting areas - and we have to sit at least 2m away from each other. Some patients wear masks - but I haven't bought any yet. As there is such a shortage over the country where the NHS and care workers cannot get them - we were told not to buy them as the were needed for medical staff. It may become compulsory in public once they start to loosen the lockdown - but it is still being discussed. Don't have much faith in the government since they ignored their own social distancing advice and Boris - his health minister and chief medical advisor all caught it.

It was quite dramatic when Boris was taken into hospital and ended up in intensive care. He survive and has been recovering at Chequers before returning to work this week.

Anyway - I eventually got called through by a nurse and told to gel my hands to sanitise them before being shown into Mr Hughes's empty office. He is usually just sat there in his good suit looking at his computer but this time he popped his head into the room - and through his masks and goggles told me that my scans were alright. He was just going to get more PPE on before actually examining me It always involves putting a camera up my nose an down my throat to check for signs of cancer. He only usually wears gloves - but he returned in full gear and said "I'm sorry for treating you like a plague victim" - but that is what is required now. He told me he is meant to be dealing with patients via the phone now even new patients! he says it is impossible to diagnose them. "It's alright for me and you as we know each other - but not for anyone" One of the thing he has been told by the Head and Neck council was that they now have to give patients a third rate service - as resources are all going to corona virus. He couldn't believe it!

I felt very lucky to be given a appointment. He elaborated on the scans - the patch on my lungs had been see by the chest team too and had decided there was no cause for concern after all. They will repeat the scans in 6 months time to make sure. ut he feels that I am fine - and I certainly feel fine.

That was quite a weight off my shoulders anyway. I can just concentrate on not catching coronavirus now!

On Saturday we all - me Laura and Nathan went for a walk in the local area and discovered a park we never knew about! We walked down Porthill Bank - but took a right turn near the top and found ourselves in a small park - with a small pond in it - with a small waterfall and ducks. Including one with a cute crest!

There were one or two dog walkers in there - but it must be popular as there was bread floating in the pond which the ducks had a nibble of now and then. Along the bank of the pond there were some rodents - not sure if they were mice or water rats. They seemed to be enjoying the bread too - and kept disappearing down there holes with some.


 It was a bit dull and chilly but we enjoyed the fresh air.Everyone is still being good and keeping their distamce. We are often crossing the road to avoid walking too close past someone.

On Saturday nights we join a Jackbox Party online - hosted by a guy who is always in our quizzes - Rubbafish. We have actually met him when we went to EGX last time at the Excel Centre (now the Nightingale Hospital - having been turned into an emergency field hospital by the army - to deal with Coronavirus patients if the hospitals become overwhelmed)

It is nice for us to be able to play games online that we haven't had to create or host! So, we grab a beer and play things like Fibbage or Lie Swatter with various others from our quizzes. The funniest game is the one where we have to make up rhyming raps and they are read out by robots - and voted on by the other players. It is a good laugh. I always look forward to Saturday nights. It is the nearest we can come to going to the pub and playing games with friends.

It is very strange to us when we walk down our road and see The Wulstan (where we used to go once or twice a week) all closed up and dark with no- cars in the carpark. It is usually buzzing - with kids in the playground and smokers (and vapers) standing outside with their pints. It is all eerily quiet when we pass now.

Who knows when they will be allowed to open again - or if they will survive as businesses after all this time.

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 4

I think it's Sunday - but everyday seems like Sunday anyway!
Laura made us banana pancakes for breakfast - a vegan recipe that tasted pretty nice.

We all did relaxing things that we like - I am trying to read all three books in the Hilary Mantel Wolf Hall series. I also realised that the series made by the BBC in 2015 is still available on iPlayer - so have been watching those too as I get through the books.

After a lunch of left-over pizza from last night's delivery Laura needed to go back to her flat to check for post and get more clothes. I went with her - just to get out of the house. There is no-one else in her flat. We decided to do our daily walk from there - just to get a change of scenery.
It was really quiet in town - the only place we saw a lot of people was in a big queue outside KFC - who have recently opened to allow drive-through orders Seems like a lot of people have missed that. I'm not sure if it is safe enough yet - I don't think we'll be trying it any time soon.

We strolled through the Queen's Gardens - there were one or two other people about but everyone was observing the social distancing so we kept away from anyone else.

People are being really good and will cross the road to avoid each other. The gardens were looking beautiful - and this weekend is usually the one when we have the Limelight Festival - with live music outdoors all over town - including the Queen's Gardens

Obviously with the pandemic - it has been cancelled.

Got back and checked my questions for the quiz - tonight we have the normal quiz with 5 rounds on different topics. I think our friends and family and players of Interference are still enjoying them - they keep all turning up! It's nice to see them in the chat and be able to ask how they are coping and if they are still well. MightyMo (N's friends from school) who is an optometrist has actually had Covid9 - and is still recovering weeks later. He is so lucky to be okay.

Life in the Time of Coronavirus 2

Every day is pretty much the same at the moment. Get up at 9am and have breakfast with N and L - then into the office (on our second floor) to work on our extra quizzes that we are streaming to try and keep friends, family and our Interference players busy and distracted while stuck inside.

Our Lockdown Schedule

We have lunch together at 1pm and then L and I go for our daily government sanctioned walk outdoors. We can only set off from the house - you are not allowed to drive somewhere for a nice country walk. We are exploring the streets of Wolstanton, the deserted golf course and the marshes where dog-walkers and small families play.

One nice thing that kids are being asked to do (to keep them occupied) is to paint or draw a rainbow - add a positive message and display them in their windows. It is something nice for everyone to see when they go for their walks. Another scheme is for people to put bears in their windows so that kids can go on a bear hunt like the book by Michael Rosen. It is sad to hear that MR himself is in intensive care with Covid19 himself and very poorly. Hope he pulls through.


The three kids next door to us have made us 3 rainbow pictures to put in our window - above our Paddington bear. Natasha next door asked us if they could do some for us as it would keep them busy! I said it would be fine - we could pt them up and then wash our hands afterwards like we do after handling post. They say the coronavirus can live on various surfaces - so it is the safest way.

The afternoon is sometimes watching box sets or doing jigsaws with L. We have dinner together with N in the evenings then watch films or play board games together in the evenings. We even played Pandemic (ironically) and managed to save the world. We took heart from that! It is nice that TV companies are putting lots of new stuff onto keep people occupied and willing to heed the governments instructions to stay at home. We have started watching the films of Studio Ghibli which Netflix have put on. I am enjoying The Split with Nicola Walker (BBC) and Sex Education with Gilliam Anderson (Netflix)

N is often up in the office all day as he is working from home and has all his company's equipment up there for that too. He's quite enjoying that as he can keep in touch with his team via Skype and get on with work without phones ringing or people coming by asking him stuff. I think it works quite well.

I get official emails once a week from the theatre - at the moment they are putting together a new schedule starting in September and may bring out a new brochure - but there is no guarantee that they will be allowed to open by then. Government are saying when we can ease the lockdown it will be very gradual. Can't imagine gatherings of over 300 people will be allowed right away. Everything is very uncertain!.

I get phone calls from Pete my line manager - to check up how I am.

Rather inconveniently I have had a bit of a health scare just as all this was starting. I had an MRI scan on my shoulder due to some pain in my left arm. This showed up something on my left lung so my GP decided that should be investigated with a CT Scan. I had that about 3 weeks ago and was waiting for the results to come through - I was rung by the hospital and asked to go for a PET scan. I asked why - and they said that Mr Hughes had asked for it to be done. I have no idea what the CT scan showed. I had that last week and this week I was told I have an appointment with Mr Hughes next Monday. (27th) so I may get to the bottom of all these scans and everything.

I have been being extra cautious during this lockdown in case I have some lung condition that may make catching Covid-19 even more hazardous. So, N has been doing our once-a-week shop and I only interact with L and N. Fingers crossed that all is well - I feel fine but given my history of CUP (Cancer of Unknown Primary) anything could be happening in there!

Watch this space!