The beginning of the end

June 2021

Student Lola Life ended in 2012 with the End of the Beginning, as I transitioned from a student to a qualified Dietitian with a real job. Dietitian Lola Life started on the same day, and is now ending with the last day of my job as a Dietitian. 

In my diabetes workplace we had a celebratory lunch last week, and this evening I met my Dietitian colleagues for a pint and a pizza. We ordered our pizzas in the pub, only to be told that due to unforeseen circumstances there weren't any pizzas, but we could order our own for delivery. Having tried unsuccessfully to do that (no deliveries at the moment) we decamped to order in person and sit in an actual working restaurant - third time lucky. It was a lovely evening.

I'm not retiring as there is plenty for me still to do, paid and unpaid, but a new look for the blog is called for to mark this momentous event, not least in order to introduce a slightly larger font size. I hope you'll stick around - my new home is Lolatastic!

Loose ends

Witley Court Gardens, May 2021

Vaccination

My last vaccination shift wasn't cancelled, and I discovered a little about what's going on. Because we're not a public vaccination hub our customers are all front-line healthcare workers. Nearly all have had both vaccines by now, so it was decided to close most weekday operations and open only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. So all my weekday shifts have been cancelled - the one that I managed to book was a 'late' on Saturday running from 2 to 8 p.m. so I'm guessing not a popular time for many.

The nurse in charge told me that there was an idea that we would try to become a public-facing local vaccination hub which would potentially allow GPs to return to normal business (it's shocking how many GPs have not yet restored their services). But until this happens, each time I look at the online roster system there are no available shifts. It may be that my short-lived vaccination career is about to come to a premature end. Before I even get paid. I was contacted this week to ask for a form that I'd already submitted three weeks ago.

LTRP

In LTRP news, Olf's mate the plumber came on round with his mate to have a look at the stain on the upstairs hall ceiling which is not growing particularly fast but is located underneath the water tank in the loft. They poked about for quite a long time before finding anything that could be the root cause, but eventually found that the overflow for both that tank and the central heating header tank runs uphill. This makes sense, as the stain would only grow in the event of overflow. They cleaned the ball valve nicely and Olf's mate said he would call to talk about a date for the rest of the work, which I chased last week. I haven't heard from him yet.

The builder (Glf) I've engaged to work on the pub wall isn't due to start until the end of June, but in the recent downpour one of the Velux windows over the (tiled) hall started to let it a few drips, and I noticed that the wall which I had thought was no longer damp was actually soaking. So I'm hanging on to see what he can come up with, but it looks like I'll be waiting a while to finish the downstairs decoration.

Parents

I took a trip to the Woodland Cemetery with mum and her friend. The cemetery is fairly new so trees and shrubs are not yet tall enough to shield it much from the noise of the M25 motorway, but I'm sure it will develop into a lovely site. We happened to meet one of the gardeners there. He was a youngish man, maybe in his 30's, and after a quick hello he looked at mum more carefully and asked, "Do I know you?" She was a little taken aback, but then he introduced himself and revealed that she had taught him to read from the Torah scroll for his Bar Mitzvah, presumably more than 20 years ago. 

Pub

The pub has now been allowed to open for customers to sit indoors. When they opened the outdoor area back in April they installed a speaker to pipe music out there, and although this is something that I have always managed to negotiate away with previous pub managers, I felt it was only reasonable to let it go while outdoors was the only place customers could go. When customers could go indoors, the music was still going outside with no customers there. 

I really don't mind voices, not even the worst kind (which for me is the screeching of drunk young women), but I find the 'doof doof doof' of amplified pop music that can be heard most clearly in my kitchen and living room most annoying. So eventually I decided to go round and have a chat, and the manager on duty was really nice about it and said that he was sorry and he had been told to keep the outside music turned down and he turned it off straight away.

Commonwealth Games

While I was in the pub I noticed that one of the most regular customers was in - a local man who is also one of the contacts between residents and the Council over the Commonwealth Games. In 2022 this event is being hosted by the City of Birmingham. Royal Leamington Spa, however, is the chosen spot for the lawn bowling events, which will be happening on my doorstep. Literally, from the sound of it. There is a bit of a fuss because the District Council (which owns and manages the greens) has been working with the relevant Commonwealth Games committee without consulting residents.

So I had a really interesting chat with him - despite there being just three streets and a park involved, there are three different residents organisations, and he's already had to withdraw from one of them due to a difference of opinion - how very British. I found out that the plans involve erecting large spectator stands which will displace at least half the residents' and park visitors' parking spaces, and also presumably block the view so tickets can be sold. There are a few other issues, and I do intend to read all the material online and comment if appropriate, but I haven't done it yet. There is a residents' meeting tonight, which I plan to attend.

What I've been reading

The Talented Mr Ripley
by Patricia Highsmith

narrated by David Menkin

"Tom Ripley is struggling to stay one step ahead of his creditors and the law when an unexpected acquaintance offers him the chance to start over. When his newfound happiness is threatened, his response is as swift as it is shocking."

Another book from the 'Classic' list, which was made into a successful film that I seem to remember I enjoyed. The book doesn't follow the same storyline, and was filled with unpleasant characters and a plot that made me constantly feel uneasy. So not a comfortable experience, although I won't deny that it is a 'good' book.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
by J. K. Rowling

"Back at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for his second year, Harry hears strange whispers echo through empty corridors - and then the attacks start."

Not as good as the first book of the series, and strangely unbalanced - the whole story seems to take place in the last chapter. It does have the bonus of introducing Dobby, who I've decided is my favourite character at the moment.

Solomon Gursky Was Here
by Mordecai Richler

"Since the age of eleven Moses Berger has been obsessed with the Gursky clan, an insanely wealthy, profoundly seductive family of Jewish-Canadian descent. Now a 52-year-old alcoholic biographer, Berger is desperately trying to chronicle the stories of their lives, especially that of the mysterious Solomon Gursky, who may or may not have died in a plane crash."

A strange mess of a book, in which the author seems to have written a quite entertaining family saga then chopped it up into bits, thrown all the bits in the air and reassembled it in a random order. The writing was fine so I didn't mind continuing reading, but even having finished it I have no idea what happened to whom and when, and I don't have the inclination to work it out either.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
by J. K. Rowling

"Harry can't wait to get back to school after the summer holidays. But when Harry gets to Hogwarts, the atmosphere is tense. There's an escaped mass murderer on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school."

Definitely the best so far, and many would say the best of the series, but she still spends most of the book setting up the final section when everything happens. And no Dobby.

Getting paid and getting fit

Newbold Comyn, February 2021

Two more of my vaccination shifts were cancelled, and I wondered whether all our customers have had their second jab so the clinic isn't needed any more. But I looked at the online calendar of available shifts and signed up to one that hadn't been cancelled, so we'll see whether that goes ahead. If it does, maybe I'll get a feel for whether I'll be needed in future.

One of the reasons for finding out is because... Big Announcement... I'm leaving the diabetes job. In just two more weeks, I'll be fully unemployed, apart from vaccinating and Mr MXF and helping mum and dad and the LTRP and everything I'm doing for the Buddhists. Leaving the substantive post but carrying on vaccinating has highlighted some 'interesting' aspects of NHS bureaucracy. 

The main thing is that I haven't yet been paid for vaccinating. Because my first shift was right at the end of February I expected the time to be added on to March, so I wasn't altogether surprised when it didn't appear in my payslip at the end of March. But when there was nothing in my April payslip either, I telephoned a nice lady in the payroll department. She checked it out, and agreed that yes, I hadn't been paid, and one reason was that a significant form had not been completed. She sent it to me, I completed it, and sent it back. But then there was another problem - a 'job' had not been created against which I could be paid, and I was directed to the 'Temporary Staff Services' department which is responsible for this.

Another nice lady in the TSS dept took my details and told me that her systems showed that I had been paid and I should check with payroll. When I recited the form of words that I had been given by the payroll lady she checked again, and this time agreed that I needed a job to be created, and sent me another form, which I duly signed and sent back. Then she sent me a different copy of the same form, and then a third version, and encouraged me to give her a call, which I did. No answer. I emailed back and was asked for my mobile number, which I gave with the proviso that I couldn't answer until a later time because of having to talk to patients. At the end of the clinic I saw that I'd had two missed calls during the time I'd given as being unavailable.

Anyway, I finally got hold of someone who explained what all the versions of the form meant, and I signed the one that I think I was supposed to sign and sent that one back. I was told that it might be too late to catch payroll for the end of May, so I might be looking forward to a bumper month in June. And if vaccination is ending, that might be the last of it.

My physical fitness is probably the worst it's been in my adult life. The knee is feeling much better but the hip is still playing up, and I'm certain it's because I'm not moving about enough. I haven't done any badminton for over a year, and I had to stop running in the autumn because of the knee problem, so apart from a bit of walking about once a week I've been doing nothing. So when my friend suggested we go and bat a shuttlecock about in the park I jumped at the chance, and while it couldn't be described as badminton because it was so windy (we were lucky if we could manage a rally lasting three shots) it was nice to feel I'd moved about a bit. We only played for an hour or so but I definitely felt it the next day, which is a good sign, especially as the hip felt so much better.

The same friend also recommended an online yoga class, which I finally tried this week. I could manage about half of the moves, and after an hour I was exhausted. I've never done yoga before but I quite liked it, and there's certainly a lot of scope for improvement.

In other badminton news, we had a message from the school where my Monday club used to play, saying that they were increasing their health and safety measures and before we would be allowed back we would have to show them our risk assessment, our health and safety policy, and evidence of our first aider's training. We wrote back saying that we are a bunch of friends playing badminton and we don't have any of these. I'm still doing the Buddhist class on Mondays so it doesn't affect me at the moment, but if the school where I used to play on Thursday is the same then it's not looking good for badminton.

More tech support

Victoria Park, February 2021

Back in October last year I volunteered to support Lola II with her training course for community mediators, which involved finding out a lot about mediation, a deep dive into Zoom and much stress about Internet access. Well, for the last two weeks I've been doing the same for another course, with very much the same issues arising. Especially the Internet access.

Last time we were in a room in the ancient Town Hall, the sort of old echoey building where pigeons provided noisy interruptions at the windows and despite all the movable partitions it was almost impossible to avoid background noise. That room is now being used for vaccination and a new venue was needed, so we were installed in a less cavernous modern-ish room in a building associated with a church. Lola II and the other two trainers and I all did Lateral Flow Testing for Covid now that flow testing is available to all, so we all felt able to work without masks.

Our host was very welcoming and accommodated all of our requirements - tables, large TV screen, partitions for noise reduction, access to kettle and water, flexible about keys and getting inside in the morning. There have been a few minor issues - the venue also has lots of other activities going on, some of which involve children. The more major issue was with the Internet access.

The Facilities Manager (who by the way does not believe in vaccination or wearing a mask) told us on Day 1 that there had been an intermittent fault with their broadband, it seemed to be working OK at the moment, but they had logged it with the ISP. On Day 2, with no notice at all to us or to him, an engineer came to try and fix it, but obviously this would cause an interruption to the broadband access. Not a chance, we said, this course is run via Zoom and we can't do without continuous Internet. Although we would be having a 40-minute lunch break...

The engineer was actually prepared to come back at lunchtime and try to fix things within those limitations. Which he did, except that we lost our Internet on one PC a few times over those first two days, and you can imagine the disruption this caused. Lola II and her co-trainer were amazing, as I moved them to a different and unfamiliar computer with no notice and they continued to deliver the course without little hint that mayhem had erupted out of sight of the camera.

We also discovered on Day 3 that we should have cleared the room at the end of Day 2 instead of leaving our gear all plugged in and screens etc filling the room, because of the dance class that was supposed to be taking place that evening. We apologised and promised to do better next time. Day 4 started with the information that the Internet had broken the previous day (while we weren't there) causing the Pastor to be rather cross, so we thought about more backup plans, which included running four PCs through a mobile phone data hotspot, or decamping to Lola II's house.

Despite these dire portents of doom, the critical Days 5 and 6 (when the delegates practise the skills they have learned, followed by their assessments) passed with rock solid broadband. Phew. The only slight problem was when a guy turned up with a music centre ready to blast out Music and Movement for fifty children in the room across the hall. I ran over to ask him to turn it down a bit, and luckily he did.

The main lesson I have learned is not to be so ambitiously busy. I had booked a Sunday vaccination shift, followed by two days at the Diabetes Centre, then three days of tech support for mediation training, then home on Saturday via mum and dad. I had two Zoom meetings that weekend, and Sunday afternoon road-testing the pub garden with two friends (a tough job, but somebody has to step up). Then back to the Diabetes Centre for two days before three more days of tech support, another trip to mum and dad (this one being my fault as I had fixed the problem with dad's incoming email but created a new problem with his outgoing email). Then home, at last, with only one online social event on Sunday and a blissfully empty Bank Holiday Monday.

I was similarly overcommitted in the coming week, when I had rashly signed up for a double shift of vaccinating running from 7.30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesday. But it has been cancelled, and I can't say I'm sorry.

Spring revival

November 2020

And with the spring comes snow, and tradesmen!

Somehow I regained the motivation to start on the LTRP again - perhaps it was because I had to do something about the ceiling stain. Olf's mate the plumber replied to my message saying he's a bit busy and I might need to look for someone sooner, but I pointed out that because he's a plumber he probably doesn't realise how hard it is to find a plumber, and the stain is growing very slowly so I'm prepared to wait until he's available. Of course if the water starts gushing through the ceiling I'll have to move a bit more quickly. 

New builder Glf has visited to survey the wall on the pub side, and seems like a friendly reliable type of chap (but I've been mistaken before). He even phoned back after the visit to check a few details. I've sent a list of jobs to Ilf as well, including general maintenance and decoration, asking for a date in late spring/early summer when I'm hoping the wall will be done. Setting myself up for disappointment as usual, but my next door neighbour wants some work done as well so if I'm not ready for Ilf then at least he can do stuff for her. And last but not least, the saga with the broken glass on the hob has moved on through contacting the original supplier (Ylf), establishing that the warranty period covered the work, a scheduled visit cancelled due to the part not having arrived, and finally the visit taking place and the glass replaced.

And the pub has opened again! They've put up a marquee in the garden with nine tables of six and an area for standing up that isn't under cover. The kitchen isn't open but they've got an arrangement with a local pizza place for delivery. I went over to say hello and ask them to turn the music down a bit if there's nobody there. I'll try and find some friends to go and actually buy a drink, so I'm not just the neighbour that complains about the music. It's been odd being reminded how quiet things have been for a year, or conversely, how much noise I had become accustomed to before the pub closed.

I also wrote a long time ago about how overdue the dress that I promised Lola is, and how I ironed a hole in it. Well, it hasn't progressed at all because my sewing machine kept breaking needles, and I eventually got round to finding out that a local shop was able to carry out a service despite pandemic restrictions. So it's had a service. Now I've got to find time between the diabetes, vaccination, Mr MXF, visiting mum and dad, providing tech support to Lola II (of which more later perhaps), the Buddhists and the LTRP to get down to some sewing.

What I've been reading

Conundrum
by Jan Morris

"As one of Britain's best and most loved travel writers, Jan Morris has led an extraordinary life. Perhaps her most remarkable work is this grippingly honest account of her ten-year transition from man to woman - its pains and joys, its frustrations and discoveries."

This is a fascinating account from the early 1970s of a gender transition from James to Jan Morris. It was mostly a memoir of the journey, and coincidentally a reminder that such things are not new in the 21st century although they are now more commonly known, and hopefully accepted. The story was going well until the chapter after the surgery, when the author was comparing her feelings as man and now as woman, and describing the difference in how she was treated. My hackles rose at the stereotypical attitudes of the times - it was the 1970s after all - and how welcome they were to a woman who had been born as a man in the 1920s. How unwelcome they are to me, reading as a woman now living in the 2020s! The first man who kissed this woman newly born from surgery was a taxi driver, uninvited. " 'There's a good girl,' he said, patting my bottom and returning to his cab: and all I did was blush." Later in the chapter she compares men with women on the basis of her n=1 experiment, and it made me furious. "Men are [like this] and women are [like that]," she decides, without knowing what the hell either men or women are like. She now takes more interest in clothes, she describes how good a mother she would have been, how she can imagine more vividly how others feel, now that manliness is replaced with femininity. My goodness, how irate I became. Anyway, I am glad that she found happiness and even more glad that some things are different now, although there's still a long way to go.

The Old Wives' Tale
by Arnold Bennett

narrated by David Haig

"From working as children in their family's drapery shop to their later years, Constance and Sophia's journey through life could not be more different. While one travels the world and defies male expectations, the other becomes a dutiful wife and mother."

I really enjoyed this. It's been a long time since I've read Arnold Bennett, but I remember that I used to like his writing. And what's more, he writes wonderfully about women with agency, who are most definitely constrained by the restrictions of the era but don't sit back and let it define them. I think after all my forays into the Classics I have to conclude that I enjoy writing from the 18th and 19th century much more than anything more recent. 

The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

narrated by B. J. Harrison

"Nick Carraway is an aspiring writer; his cousin, Daisy, is married to the fabulously wealthy Tom Buchanan. Their neighbour, Jay Gatsby, throws extravagant and extraordinary parties in the exclusive and hallowed neighbourhood of West Egg."

I do think this is a fine piece of writing, although I can't say that I enjoyed it all that much. I found it hard to like any of the main characters, even the neutral narrator, and when you don't like any of the people it's difficult to like the book.

Breakfast of Champions
by Kurt Vonnegut

narrated by John Malkovich

"Set predominantly in the fictional town of Midland City, Ohio, the book focuses mainly on two characters: Dwayne Hoover, a Midland resident, Pontiac dealer and affluent figure in the city and Kilgore Trout, a widely published but mostly unknown science fiction author."

He's certainly a strange fish, this Vonnegut fellow. He writes in an odd manner, and it's lucky that I found it attractively odd this time or else the book would be unbearable. The author himself features as a character towards the end, revealing himself to his fictional counterparts as their Creator, and throughout the book there are drawings that have to be described in this audio version. I probably wouldn't recommend it, but I didn't find it too bad to listen to - John Malkovich is a great narrator. And it's admirably short.

Sailing the Worldly Winds
by Vajragupta

"Tossed around by gain, buffeted by loss, borne aloft by praise, cast down by blame, how can we not be ground under, lose all direction, confidence, and sense of purpose? This book focuses on the Buddha’s teaching of the worldly winds, how we can learn to navigate them more effectively, so that we can sail safely through life rather than being blown off course, however stormy the weather."

The second time I've read this, and this time I was doing it for my book group. Still my favourite Buddhist author, and most accessible (in my opinion), with some useful things to say about dealing with what life throws at me.

Lockdown lifting

Riverhill Himalayan Gardens, September 2020

There has been lots of vaccinating, lots and lots. For one whole shift, six hours, I did nothing else. Usually we each swap around to do at least two roles, but that's not how it worked out on that occasion. There have been no particular highlights - I meet a variety of people who work in all sorts of different places, but now that second vaccines have started there really isn't time to chat - we're working flat out. One tip if you're planning to get vaccinated any time soon - don't wear a tight-fitting long-sleeved shirt. It's surprising how many people end up having to get half-undressed, and it's not just the men.

Nothing notable to report at the moment. A bit of brain stretch with Mr MXF, a bit of meditation and study with the Buddhists, and we've managed to start walking together now that restrictions allow up to six of us to gather outside. The variable weather makes scheduling a walk a bit of a gamble, though, especially the day after it snowed. I met Lola II and Mr M at mum and dad's and made a splendid trifle for the occasion, and Mr M brought a garden plant for mum, and Lola II cut my hair at least as well as the salon without any of the fuss. 

I have been watching many films, doing some cooking, cleaning, sorting out the house, but no specific LTRP projects completed although I noticed a growing stain on the ceiling in the hall upstairs. I finally got round to going up into the loft to see what was there, and unfortunately the stain is growing under a water tank, so it's back to Olf's mate - the plumber who helped out after Flf left me in the lurch. And I've been in touch with a new builder to help repair the render on the wall next to the pub, and he's coming round to have a look at it next week.

Luckier than some

Munich Botanical Garden, December 2019

It's been more than a week and I feel the pressure to report in, but also resistance to writing a whole post about what I've been doing. It hasn't included anything that I imagine would interest anyone but me. Really, look away, there's nothing here, move on. But for the sake of my dedicated readers, who remind me how much they look forward to what I write, I feel bound to put something down.

I was on leave from the diabetes job for two weeks, and so had a bit of time for Mr MXF. In my first week I did some work that would actually affect one of his customers - not a real paying customer, but an organisation that Mr MXF supports on the side with website and email management. And it was successful! It still feels as though any success is more by luck and educated guesswork than knowledge and judgement, but still, it worked. Mr MXF reported back that I had received a vote of thanks at the Trustees meeting, which makes me feel even more of an imposter. In the second week I carried on my efforts to understand email hosting and servers, without noticeable success, which makes my triumph with the real customer even more surprising. 

I did another vaccination shift, where we had to use up 90 doses before 11 a.m. to avoid having to throw them away. So I contacted my diabetes team, and they all trooped over to help out. Which means that everyone except me has had their second dose - mine is due after Easter, but I might ask nicely at the end of my next shift and I should be able to have it then.

I had a big day of Sorting Out Stuff like renewing home insurance, reviewing my broadband contract (which ends in June), having an argument with my mobile provider about itemised billing, then investigating alternatives to find I could halve the monthly cost with a different mobile supplier on a month's rolling contract. Halving the cost only means saving £3 a month, but I'm giving it a try anyway - if it doesn't suit I don't have to wait more than a month to move to a different contract. The supplier I'm leaving got in touch, as they do when you threaten to move on, and told me that I'd been with them for 21 years. I was amazed. Can you believe mobile phones have existed for 21 years?

There's lots going on with the Buddhists, as always. I now have a meditation mentor who I chat to about twice a month, and so far has given me some good advice that I'm finding very difficult to follow. (Sounds familiar? I have managed to do the physiotherapy exercises more regularly, but it's still a struggle for motivation.) My regular Monday study group has finished the first whole year of the course in just a little more than a year, and we have settled down to a regular group of nine women via Zoom. The Tuesday group is still going and has maintained its Thursday study by choosing another book to work through together.

And as well as all that, I'm still pushing for expansion to our local group. We've managed to maintain our attendance for the last year despite not meeting in person, but without continually attracting more people the group is always at risk as people drift away over time. The difficulty is that we don't have an experienced practitioner to lead us on a regular basis, and for a number of reasons it's difficult to find one. I have some ideas, but I need to take the other members of the team along with me. So that's what I'm trying to do at the moment, which is occupying much time and thinking space.

I was very hopeful of finding a better venue to meet when we are ready to do so, and one of the group did make contact with somewhere that looked perfect. Unfortunately, when we were ready to get back to them we had lost the Tuesday evening slot. So unless something unexpected happens we'll probably have to go back to where we were meeting before, where there isn't WiFi. It's not an insurmountable problem, just a bit of a challenge.

And that's it for now. There's the exciting prospect of being able to do more and go places and meet people soon, but I'm trying not to raise my hopes because all this can be snatched away at a moment's notice if infection rates rise. But going out to work in two places, and having access to Lateral Flow testing, and seeing mum and dad a couple of times a month means I'm much luckier than some.

Vaccinating is exhausting

Coronavirus Vaccination Clinic 2 (the Portakabin), March 2021

You've had to wait for it, but the answer to the puzzle of what's in the bag hanging from my clothes airer relates to the fact that due to overconsumption and lack of willpower I had to go cold turkey on chocolate and snacks. I still had quite a large supply in the house and didn't want to throw them out, which meant that they had to be more inaccessible. Hence, hanging them up out of reach and out of sight. It worked quite well.

I've done a lot of reading in the last month as evidenced by the huge blog post last week, but there's also been a lot of other activity. The physiotherapist is suggesting that the longstanding issue with my hip is probably the source of the problem with my knee, and has changed my exercises. I am finding it increasingly difficult to motivate myself to actually do the exercises. And I have attended a very interesting Zoom webinar about the Libre 'Flash Glucose Monitoring' technology in diabetes, and I wonder if my colleagues already know about the things I learned.

I have been on annual leave from that job and signed up to many vaccination shifts, some of which were cancelled. We are doing far more work compared with that first session when I was shown the ropes - enthusiastic people are coming for their second dose as well as a few unenthusiastically turning up for their first.

We are now using iPads instead of paper forms to track our vaccinations, which I'm sure saves an enormous amount of data input, but relies heavily on our systems finding the individual. This means that the NHS number is quite important, name and date of birth being surprisingly unreliable. Obviously nobody knows their NHS number, but there is a website where it can be found, and so notices were put up asking people to type the long URL on their phones. This is quite difficult, so I suggested to the people doing the clerking that they could generate a QR code, at which they looked very blank.

I've only just started to appreciate the power of the QR code, which is the two-dimensional bar code that can be scanned by a phone camera and take you to a website. It was suggested to me for a diet sheet I was writing where I wanted people to have a look at a set of YouTube videos. The diet sheet would almost always be printed and provided to patients on paper so a clickable link would be useless, and even a shortened version of the URL would still be difficult to type, so I was just going to suggest that people searched on YouTube for keywords that would take them to the videos. A Young Person (now defined by me as someone under the age of 30) who has joined our diabetes dietetic team had the great idea of using a QR code, and it worked beautifully.

Reception in the Portakabin clinic

So I went off and produced some notices with QR codes for the clerks, and even laminated them (because: infection control), and handed them over on my next shift which was more than a week later (because: cancelled shifts). I think they made life a little easier - I wasn't in the same room as the clerks for most of the time so I really don't know how they were being used. But this picture of the reception area shows one of them on display.

Proximity alarms being charged

The other innovation is a proximity alarm worn around the neck, which vibrates and/or beeps when it is within 2 meters of another proximity alarm. These are given to patients when they check in and are supposed to make sure they stay 2 meters apart from each other. Obviously staff aren't wearing them because we can't vaccinate from 2 meters away, but we have extra face shields or goggles as well as masks and we test ourselves regularly using lateral flow kits.

The hardest thing about the shifts is the need to be standing up for six hours (with half an hour allowed for a break). The shift starts early and finishes at 2pm, then this week I had my weekly shop to do afterward, and needed to make some soup while I had time and before all the veg went mouldy. By the time I'd finished all that it was 5 p.m. and I was shattered, so I thought I'd have a nap. I became conscious again two and a half hours later, had some supper and went back to bed.

What I've been reading

Second Foundation
by Isaac Asimov

"The old First Empire lies shattered. It has been swept from the Milky Way's bright spiral by the inexorable expanding forces of the First Foundation, established by the psychohistorian Hari Seldon - the only man to have foreseen the shifting patterns of the inhabited cosmos."

I stamped my foot like a toddler and said that I wouldn't enjoy this book - well, I didn't, much, but it wasn't quite as bad as I expected. I can't for the life of me understand why the series has been labelled a classic - I still don't know whether I'm supposed to be for or against the Foundation, or which army was on which side and why. Anyway, I'm done with it all now.

The Lost Duke of Wyndham
by Julia Quinn

"Grace Eversleigh has spent the last five years toiling as the companion to the dowager Duchess of Wyndham. It is a thankless job, with very little break from the routine... until Jack Audley lands in her life, all rakish smiles and debonair charm."

One of the books on my shelf that I kept because I liked it the first time, but twice is definitely  enough. Hooray! I can move one solitary book out of my shelves. I'm going to have to think up another plan for emptying the house.

On The Road
by Jack Kerouac

narrated by Matt Dillon

"Sal Paradise, a young innocent, joins his hero Dean Moriarty, a traveller and mystic, the living epitome of beat, on a breathless, exuberant ride back and forth across the United States."

Another book from the list of Classics, and so marvellously narrated in a way that brought all the characters alive. Not much of a story arc, just a description of a few trips from New York to San Francisco by way of all sorts of other places, sometimes by bus, hitchhiking, and driving and meeting all kinds of people. The last trip to Mexico was probably the best.

Death in the Stocks
by Georgette Heyer

"Beneath a sky the colour of sapphires and the sinister moonlight, a gentleman in evening dress is discovered slumped in the stocks on the village green - he is dead. Superintendent Hannasyde's consummate powers of detection and solicitor Giles Carrington's amateur sleuthing are tested to their limits as they grapple with the Vereker family - a group of outrageously eccentric and corrupt suspects."

Easy to read and all the clues are there, such good fun to pin down the murderer.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
by J. K. Rowling

"Harry Potter thinks he is an ordinary boy - until he is rescued by an owl, taken to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, learns to play Quidditch and does battle in a deadly duel."

A nice short one to start the series. It's good, but it's still going to the charity shop - or to the downstairs shelves for the time being.

Behold, Here's Poison

by Georgette Heyer

narrated by Ulli Birvé

"It's no ordinary morning at the Poplars. The master is found dead in his bed, and it seems his high blood pressure was not the cause. When an autopsy reveals a sinister poison, it's up to the quietly resourceful Inspector Hannasyde to catch the murderer in time to spare the next victim."

The plot was a good one but the book was slightly spoilt by the strange, slow narration, and the fact that the 'hero' came over as pretty unlikeable, which might also have been because of the narration. It seemed unrealistic when the girl fell for him, and the dialogue of the proposal scene was dreadful. In fact I've now convinced myself that it was the writing not the narration. Pity. 

The Journey and the Guide: A Practical Course in Enlightenment
by Maitreyabandhu

"The journey starts with our mind, particularly when we begin to look into the truth of things - the truth of the friend in hospital, the coffin we carry to the graveside. What we find in our guide, the Buddha, is a man with a fit, healthy mind. To get fit, we need to work on becoming a happy healthy human being."

Within my Buddhist group we've spent eight weeks reading and discussing this book, chapter by chapter. It's very readable but not particularly coherent, and most of us agreed that there are some bits that we bump up against, the main one being the author's focus on same-sex friendships above all other relationships. We've invited him to speak to our group next week, so that will be interesting.

Prosperity Without Growth: Economics for a Finite Planet
by Tim Jackson

"This challenge to conventional economics openly questions the most highly prized goal of politicians and economists alike: the continued pursuit of exponential economic growth."

I'm no economist so the majority of this book was way beyond my understanding. But I read all the words anyway, and luckily the last chapter summarised the argument in non-economic terms. Essentially, to support a growing population our capitalist society relies on economic growth fuelled by our inclination towards consumerism and novelty . This is not sustainable in the context of a planet with limited resources. The answer has to be found within social policy, as do most of the issues that compete with the selfish and hedonistic nature of humans (like better health, diet and exercise).

Pandemic contributions

30, 000 vaccines administered, March 2021

I've done a second vaccination shift in the Portakabin, which went OK. It was a bit hectic in the morning because between 8 and 9 a.m. we delivered as many vaccines as we had in the whole of my first six-hour shift. Word was that the other vaccination location in the hospital was closed for some reason, so everyone was redirected to us. Whatever the reason, we coped. At that point I was doing the 'reconstitute the vaccine checker' role, which involves checking everything that the person reconstituting the vaccine does, so I wasn't under as much pressure as some.

Halfway through the morning we had a visitor with a cake marking the fact that 30,000 vaccines had been administered by the Trust. Despite my contribution being in low double figures, I wasn't about to hold back on tasting the cake, which was very good. I also feature in the team photograph that was taken, although I was standing at the back with mask and visor so it's unlikely I'll be noticed.

Towards the end of my shift I was sent over to the other vaccination location in the hospital to be shown the new electronic version of the paper form that we've been using up to now. It runs on iPads and allows for more flexible updating of the questions asked, e.g. people's reported reactions to the first vaccine are now being collected when people rock up for their second dose.

Another Covid-related activity I've participated in has been a survey for which I have seemingly been picked at random by the Office for National Statistics. I completed one fairly long online questionnaire a little while ago for which I was given £15 for my trouble, and then I was asked if I'd do another. This time I was not only entitled to receive another £15 but was given an ONS-branded cloth bag as a gift. 

It was an interesting questionnaire all about how my life has been affected by the Covid restrictions - practical stuff about how often I go out and what for, how my work and social life has been affected, whether I'm likely to continue with some of the changes I've made, but also how I feel and how worried I am about various things, The first questionnaire also contained a whole lot of statements for me to agree or disagree with, many of which were the myths that have been circulating (e.g. 5G masts giving you Covid). It was an interesting glimpse into the Government's data collection strategy.

If you can guess what the bag contains and why it is suspended from my clothes airer, you will be awarded points. And we all know what points mean.

Nurse Rosenberg

Here we are at the end of February, and I feel pretty good about how the month has gone, despite the physiotherapy exercises having done very little to improve the knee situation. Other things have been very helpful in lifting my mood, including Zooming with at least four different groups of friends, walking with another friend and his dog, and some pretty inspirational online talks.

I have completed my first shift as a Covid-19 vaccinator. It started with me going to the location on the first floor of the hospital where the e-roster system indicated I would be working, to find the door locked and everything inside looking dark. So I returned to the Portakabin in the car park, only to find that locked too, but with someone waiting outside who let me into the secret of access to the first floor ward (knock hard on the door). So I went up there again and managed to get in, only to be told that I was actually going to be working in the Portakabin. A good start.

There were about ten of us working there as vaccinators plus about four doing reception and admin on my shift, which ran from 7.30am to 2pm. Reception and admin are about checking that people are who they say they are and are entitled to receive the vaccine, answering basic questions about the process, enabling them to avoid being charged for parking, supervising them for the 15 minutes they must wait afterwards in case of adverse reaction, and setting a date for the second dose.

There are three different roles for which I needed to be supervised and signed off. One is going through the protocol and ticking the boxes on the paperwork to establish entitlement to the vaccine and any contra-indications to be taken into account - for example, people with clotting and bleeding disorders are not necessarily disqualified but vaccinators need to be aware. The second is the process of diluting the vaccine and drawing it up into syringes for administration, and the third is checking paperwork before sticking the needle in. 

The paperwork role is pretty straightforward, the main skill being remembering to ask all the questions and providing the necessary information - it takes two weeks for the first dose to reach full effect, you can still catch Covid, you need to carry on taking all precautions. Reconstituting the vaccine is fiddly. There are many, many steps - drawing up saline, mixing with the vaccine in a particular way, then getting six doses out of one vial, and timing everything to make sure no doses are wasted. When I did the first part of my training a month ago we were only being asked to get five doses out of a vial, which is obviously much easier. I got the hang of it with a bit of practice.

Sticking needles into arms was obviously the most nerve racking for someone who has always been pleased that being a Dietitian does not require you to touch people at all, and certainly never expected to be performing this role! The supervisor was really good and took things just at the right rate, and my first victim was very calm - in fact, they all were, even the one who said she sometimes went a bit funny with needles. I did get some strange flashbacks later in the evening of needles going into arms, but nothing traumatic.

The most interesting experience came when one of my victims was sitting ready to be injected, and I was running through the information he'd provided on the form. In the place where you state your role in order to ensure that you qualify for our clinic (which is for health service and associated roles only) he had written 'Transport'. When I asked what sort of transport, he said 'Uber'. So I went off to fetch the supervising nurse.

I'd been warned that the taxi drivers of the area had found out how to play the system and were presenting themselves at the clinic despite not being entitled to a vaccine. This chap had got through the reception and the paperwork stage, where I would have thought his entitlement would have been challenged, and nearly got his jab. He was turned away unvaccinated. But it does expose the weakness of a fairly loosely defined protocol operated by well-meaning health workers who are reluctant to deal with conflict. Much easier just to let people get away with it than challenge their entitlement.

This decision was made more difficult because it was not very busy in the clinic that day. We are reaching the end of the wave of first doses, and second doses are about to become available at which point it will turn busy again. We only have a certain allocation of vaccines, so it's important not to give too many first doses otherwise we will run out of second doses - hence the criteria for entitlement. I was lucky to do my first shift when I did, because it would have been much more stressful if lines of people were forming outside and there was pressure to operate quickly. As it was I had time to practise and get things right in my own way. I've now booked a day a week for the next six weeks and two days on the weeks when I'm on leave from my main job.

The latest 'road map' out of lockdown has made me feel slightly better because of having an idea of how long things will take to change, and at the same time makes me feel slightly worse because of having an idea of how long things will take to change. There is a risk of raising hopes and expectations only to be disappointed. So I'm still trying hard to take it a day at a time, finding ways to tame my increasingly wild hair, and taking pleasure in music, in visiting mum and dad, in walking, in Zooming with friends, and in films. It's hard to remember what it was like to play badminton.

Exercising

Great Dixter, July 2020

More than a week has passed in which I've been fully occupied with nothing that is particularly memorable. Of course I went to work, went to the dentist, had at least seven Zoom calls and travelled down to act as Supervisor of Works with mum and dad. We are rearranging the spare bedroom to make it easier to make the bed, and coincidentally increasing the workspace that dad can use. It's all still very cramped but my campaign to empty the dusty junk out of the house is still very much alive.

I'm trying to do some more reorganisation with my own home but there's a long way to go with that, not least because I want to move some furniture that's a bit too big for me to manage on my own, and I'm not inviting anyone else into the house just yet. And it's really difficult to get rid of things with sentimental value or that might come in handy one day.

I've also had a consultation with a lovely physiotherapist about my knee, which is a service that I can access as part of the Employee Assistance Programme offered by my employer. This meant that I was seen within 2 weeks of filling in the form, but also meant that the first 15 minutes of the consultation were spent trying to make the video technology work, first unsuccessfully on my phone, then unsuccessfully on my work computer. All very unsatisfactory, especially given that she was actually in a room on the same hospital site as I was, but similarly unable to see people in person without prohibitively time-consuming risk assessment paperwork.

We just had a normal telephone call in the end, but she has sent me a link to a very fancy shmancy online portal where I can print text and pictures of the three prescribed exercises. We are going to try using a different video technology for the follow up appointment. I may suggest that we meet in the car park after that, but I don't think it will be acceptable.

She seems to agree with the suggestion first made by a friend that it is probably 'Iliotibial Band Syndrome'. I hadn't connected this with the return of the ache in my right hip that I get when I sit down for too long. Obviously there has been much more sitting down since all the badminton stopped, and this may have meant that my running was off-line because of the right hip pain which resulted in the left knee pain. Anyway, whatever, I'll do the exercises because that's all I can do.

What I've been reading

Foundation and Empire
by Isaac Asimov

"In this struggle for power amid the chaos of the stars, man stands at the threshold of a new, enlightened life which could easily be put aside for the old forces of barbarism."

I can hardly believe that I thought this series was worth keeping for re-reading. Admittedly the twist at the end of this book is a good one, but doesn't justify the 200 pages leading up to it. I'll probably skim the third book of the series for completeness but I won't enjoy it.

Wise Children
by Angela Carter

narrated by Tracey Ullman

"Born illegitimately, spurned by their father Melchior and brought up by their landlady, Mrs Chance, Dora and Nora learn to dance, and begin to forge a career. After the post-war decline of their careers they are reduced to performing in nude revues, while the latest generation of Hazards rise to fame as stars of television."

It wasn't a bad book to read, and the narrator was terrific, but I ended up wondering what was the point of it? Pleasant enough, but nothing has stayed with me after a day or two.

Thinking, Fast and Slow
by Daniel Kahneman

"Two systems that drive the way we think. System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. The impact of loss aversion and overconfidence on corporate strategies, the difficulties of predicting what will make us happy in the future, the challenges of properly framing risks at work and at home - each of these can be understood only by knowing how the two systems work together to shape our judgments and decisions. "

An academic book written for a lay audience, I was very impressed by this book the first time I read it, but gave it back to the person who'd lent it to me and declined to buy it for myself. Well, that was four years ago and now I not only have my own copy (which I found in a 2nd hand book shop) but bought another to give to a friend for Christmas. With Christmas being cancelled that book is still gift wrapped in my hall. Anyway, I thought I'd re-read my own copy, and what do you know, I found it much less interesting this time. Now I'm wondering whether to find a different book to give to my friend for Christmas.

Ritual and Devotion in Buddhism: an Introduction
by Sangharakshita

"Imagine a world without beauty, myth, celebration or ritual. It seems that to feel fully and vibrantly alive, these experiences are essential to us, helping us to feel in touch with all levels of our being by engaging our emotions, senses and imagination."

My Monday study group is about to embark on a series of sessions about ritual, and this is the textbook to go with that. I'm not entirely comfortable with the Buddhist ritual I've encountered so far, and my discomfort is readily acknowledged in this book as a common reaction. But I continue to enjoy the study, and nothing within Buddhism is compulsory, so I'll keep trying it out to see if it becomes more comfortable over time. And if not, that's fine too.

Plumbing news

January 2021

At last I have a working wet room! Olf's mate and Olf's mate's mate turned up to help finish the job so heartlessly abandoned by Flf.

First things first - they are only the second of all the tradesmen in the past 12 months to wear masks - the first was Dlf 1, the damp estimator who lives round the corner. I set up a DIY hot drinks post for them, complete with hand sanitiser and regular kettles of boiling water. I even bought biscuits for them, which was rather dangerous because they looked like really good biscuits. But unlike all the other contributors to the LTRP I didn't take any photos of them, not wanting to appear even slightly threatening in case they took fright and fled.

They started with the faulty shower, and with the help of the installation booklet that I'd found online they diagnosed a broken part:- 453.10, the Thermostatic Harness Assembly. A phone call to the manufacturer was surprisingly fruitful - the operator understood the part number, reported that it was in stock, arranged to send it out, and cancelled the manufacturer service visit which was due the following day.

Then they got stuck into the tiling that had run too close to the light switch, put the shower screen in, had a bit of trouble finding anything in the wall to attach the retaining bar to but found something in the end, and replastered the consequent hole in the ceiling. Outside they have adjusted some of the drainage and shown me what should probably happen next out there. They worked for the whole day until it was nearly dark, and the next morning the Thermostatic Harness Assembly arrived and they fitted it and finished the job. And Olf's mate took away both the biscuits and my Tower of Plastic Pots resulting from the over-supply of lunches, which I encouraged him to use for putting screws in or whatever.

So all that is left to do in the wet room is to join the light and the fan switches and decorate the ceiling which has taken some punishment over the course of shower transformation to wet room and a bit of tiling I discovered when I was up a ladder in there. I put off the celebratory shower for a couple of days to let the fresh plaster go off. It was brilliant. There is still a bit of work to do outside with rendering and drainpipe adjustment, but that's not urgent and I may wait for Olf to be available or look for another tradesman. It would probably be a good policy to look elsewhere, given that we're not going to be Covid-free for some time and Olf is retiring anyway, so I'll need a new tame builder.

More tragic LTRP news though: the toughened glass on the top of the induction hob has broken! Only in the corner, not in the main heating surface, but it will have to be fixed. So I got in touch with Ylf the kitchen, who told me they would send me the manufacturer's contact details, but I would need the serial number, which will be on a sticker under the hob. Except that 'under the hob' is a series of drawers. I got creative, sending a torch and my camera in on the drawer to see if I could locate the label and take a picture of it. It took a bit of fiddling about but I managed it in the end.

The Ylfs clearly did some back-room work because next day I received an email containing my warranty registration, except that it showed only 2 years warranty for the hob, not the 5 years I was expecting. So more delay while that is investigated.

I sent Flf one more email saying "this is the last you'll hear from me" and what do you know, he sent me an invoice! So he's not dead, he is the no-good low-life that I thought he was, and I shall be deducting the amount I've paid Olf's mate before paying him.

Vaccination

Great Dixter, July 2020

What a week it's been.

There was a massive low point, just after I wrote the last blog post. I felt terrible, everything was awful, I very nearly walked out of work but had the sense to talk to Lola II before doing anything foolish. I'm glad to say that my brain chemistry has reset itself and I'm feeling much better, thank you for asking. My Tuesday Buddhists saw the worst of it, and they and Lola II have rallied round like troopers to make sure that I'm OK. With chocolate, in Lola II's case.

I got vaccinated. I'm not over 80 or in a care home or in the NHS front line, but I am a healthcare professional and became eligible together with every clinician in the Trust. This Trust was where the first patient in the UK was vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine, and the 'SODA' (Surgery on Day of Admission) ward has been converted to a vaccination centre, with another in a Portakabin out in the car park. We aren't running on the scale of those mass vaccination hubs in a sports stadium that you read about, but we're working towards a target of 850 vaccinations a day.

How do I know this number? Because I volunteered to support the vaccination programme within the Trust without knowing exactly what that would entail. After doing the online learning I heard nothing, and they are understandably a bit stretched in that department, so I managed to find out that I needed to attend a training session in person, and was I a Registrant or a Non-Registrant? These are new terms to me, but it turns out that I am a Registrant because being a Dietitian requires you to be registered with a professional body - the Health and Care Professions Council, which also regulates 14 other professions including paramedics, hearing aid dispensers and prosthetists.

So with my newly discovered Registrant status I turned up for the training, which is when I discovered that I might actually be the one behind the mask wielding the hypodermic and approaching your deltoid muscle (another new word for my vocabulary). You might be lucky enough to get the paramedic, which I for one would be happy with. Not sure about the hearing aid dispenser.

A slightly-too-crowded room full of masked-up nurses with a few imposters like myself were shown the whole of the job role, which starts with administering the screening questionnaire to check for pregnancy, bleeding disorders and other eligibility criteria. Then there's the preparation of the vaccine itself, which has to be reconstituted with saline very carefully to avoid damaging it, then drawn up into syringes for administration. 

A number of steps within the protocol caused the nurses in the room to make the noise that plumbers make when they have had enough of working for you, because we are required to - wait for it - re-sheath a needle after poking it through the vial bung, and then stick the same needle, not a new one, into the mark's arm. Apparently this has been outlawed for long enough to provoke horrified glances among the nursing Registrants. Of course, I'm happy to learn bad habits without a second thought.

The actual sticking-the-needle-into-the-deltoid practice was done using a pad clipped to the arm of my practice partner. It's quite a long needle, and my only question throughout the whole process was to ask how deep you stick it in? The answer is that you have to judge for yourself based on how fat the arm is. Not really what I was hoping for. My practice partner was a bit taken aback when I said 'ow' as she stuck the needle into the pad, but she soon saw the joke.

Now my paperwork goes through some sort of process which will lead to me being able to use some e-rostering system to book a shift, where I will be supervised doing the job. And then, presumably, let loose on the punters. You can be sure I will keep you up to date on progress.

Annoyed

Munich Botanical Gardens, December 2019

When I'm about to moan about some aspect of my life, there's always a voice in my head reminding me that it could be so much worse. Of course it could, but still, I'm allowed to get annoyed about stuff. Even if the annoyances are very definitely in the 'First World Problems' category.

My colleagues at work are still very annoying. My wet room still lacks a fully working shower, a screen, a fan that comes on together with the light, and I have a whole lot of other water-related problems. A surfeit of food - that shouldn't be annoying of course, but I almost ran out of fridge/freezer space.

The food surfeit started with something that was entirely my own fault - I mentioned a while ago that I bought some groceries for mum and dad and forgot to take them when I visited. What contributed to this situation was that before Christmas I ordered some delicious vegan ready meals which come in 12 different varieties in a large box. Normally they deliver next day, but I asked for a date in January, which passed without any delivery. When I queried this on Monday they were quick to make amends and announced that I would receive my box on Tuesday. I responded very quickly to ask for it to be delayed until Wednesday because I wouldn't be at home on Tuesday, and was told that this change had been done.

Despite this, the box was left on my doorstep on Tuesday morning, and by the time I got home it was gone. The company was quick to arrange another delivery which came early next morning - and then my neighbour turned up at the door, with my box from the previous day which he had rescued from the doorstep. So I have had to find fridge/freezer space for 24 delicious vegan ready meals, which is no hardship really as they are very tasty.

The wet room situation continues. I find it quite difficult to go through the process of finding someone suitable, arranging for them to visit then deciding what to do when they do or don't respond with a quote. Olf recommended a reliable plumber, and I also had a visit from the company who service my boiler. It's a tricky situation for anyone to come in and finish a job started by someone else, especially now that most of the problems are not about plumbing - the light switch, the ceiling, the drains, water penetration through the wall. I had a chat with Olf as well, but he is shielding at the moment, and retiring soon.

The shower itself has been faulty all along, and I found a guarantee card and phoned the manufacturer. We have arranged for someone to come out and have a look, but if it is a fault due to installation, which it probably is, then there will be a fee. They will fix it at no charge only if it is a manufacturing fault. But since I owe Flf a good deal more than the call out fee I don't think I can lose. I've set a date for the call out that's a little way off, so if Olf's mate fixes it first I can cancel.

In between all these annoyances I spent some time on Zoom with Mr MXF, who shoved so much more stuff into my brain that I couldn't cope. We have started to record our Zoom sessions so that I can go back and replay them in short sections, which makes it easier to take everything on board. It's quite interesting and I like a challenge, but I had to take the rest of the day off.

And the most annoying thing - the pandemic. Or maybe it's Brexit. Or the state of affairs in the USA. Or the cold weather, or the rain. Almost nothing in the world is how I would like it to be, and it makes me sad. While I am cosy in my house (despite all my wet room woes) and have enough to eat and enough money to live on and no sign of plague, I am missing the life I used to lead, with badminton, and restaurants, and holidays, and festivals, and visiting people, and weekends away with Lola II and Mr M, and friends that I could hug. Not that I wanted to hug them back then before all this started, but I could have, and not being allowed to is annoying.