4 Weeks into Lock Down...

As I write this we are just starting week 4 of Lock Down here in the UK and I have just read in the newspaper that the government will announce on Thursday that we will stay locked down for another 3 weeks, taking us to 8th May.

I try not to get down about the work stopping on The Dunlins, after all, the only thing we are wasting is time and in the scheme of things and particularly compared to what others are coping with, it's really not a big deal. We check on the site almost daily, it is all fenced off locked up and eerily quiet. As I peep through the wire fencing I can't help but feel sad seeing it sat there looking broken down and unloved.

The good news is that the nation is listening and adhering the govenment's instructions and if this continues we will hopefully turn a corner soon, small businesses will be able to get back to work, materials will become available and we will be able to get going at The Dunlins again.

Don't get me wrong, I am not complaining as we are blessed to live in this wonderful part of the world during these unprecedented times and the emptiness and silence also means that folks are heeding the message to stay at home and not travel to their second homes and Holiday Let owners have closed their bookings for what would be a very busy time for them and the start of the season proper here in Padstow.

Every Thursday evening, at 8pm when the UK steps onto it's door step to clap for the NHS, the lack of second homers and holiday makers is now very obvious, we are the only people out clapping on our street. Last week we could very faintly hear people much further down the road, who we realised were using spoons and saucepans, to make their presence felt. So, this week we did the same to be sure they could hear us too.

On Monday last week, directly after the weekend that kicks off the two week Easter period, I went for my daily run and was disappointed to see so many more people in and around Padstow, on the Camel Trail and the Coastal paths. On the way back, as I ran through a few of the streets in Padstow, low and behold the holiday lets with parking, now had cars on the drive and the top carpark, where folks have to park if they let a property without parking, had a spattering of cars parked there.

On the news that evening we were hearing stories of second home owners travelling and arriving in the middle of night thinking that their arrival would go unnoticed. In responce to this, the government asked that people report/provide addresses of holiday properties that were being inhabited and the police were starting to randomly stop folks, checking how far they had strayed from their main residence.

All the shops/bars/restaurants in padstow have emptied their windows and in some instances the whole shop, leaving any would be visitors in no doubt that Padstow is well and truly closed for the forseeable future.

Remarkably, when I went back out for my run on Wednesday, the top car park was completely empty, second home/holiday let driveways were empty once again and I probably only saw two or three people, who were also out exercising or walking their dogs, on the whole 10k circular route I ran. And, I am pleased to say that this was the same when I ran again on Friday and ventured out for a walk over the Easter weekend.

It's odd, but we seem to have adjusted to this strange way of life quite well, we have got ourselves into a new routine quite quickly and I can't help but be thankful for all the postives this forced isolation has bought into our lives. You have probably gathered by now that one of the things we have been doing to keep ourselves sane during this time has been making the most of our exercise allowance. For the last 4 weeks we have been blessed here in Cornwall with gloroius weather, providing the added incentive to get out and exercise. Today is the first time we have seen any of the wet stuff. The ground certainly needs its and I am sure the farmers who have been busy planting over the last few weeks will be jumping for joy.

We have not wasted any of our exercise allowanace and have gone out every single day to either run or walk. We are very lucky as we can leave our house on foot and be on glorious walks within about 10 minutes and fortunately the landscape makes social distancing very easy, so we feel we really should make the most of this.

An added bonus from our consistent exercise and having to be more creative from a shopping point of view, has meant that we been keen to clean up our diet and eat healthier.

On a normal "non lock down" week we would probably go somewhere for lunch two or three times per week and out to dinner at least once or twice. Staying at home has saved us calories, reduced our waistlines and certainly saved us money. We often find ourselves asking the question, "will this experience change the way we go about our day to day lives when the world eventually returns to normal". I suspect we will and we won't be the only ones, there will be a new normal for everyone, on every level.

Never have we been more thankful for our access to great technology, particularly as our son is on his own a couple of hours drive away. FaceTime means we have been able to check in on him regularly and the fantastic online suppliers and delivery drivers that have kept going through all this has meant we have been able to send him the odd treat.

Good friends will always find a way to stay connected, but again technology has really helped. Pre lock down, every Friday, we would get together with our friday night crowd, affectionally known as the "The Binsters". We would normally meet up at our favourite wine bar in Padstow called BinTwo, most Fridays, so we decided to continue this little bit of normality into Lock Down, but vitually! Our most "techie" Binster "Philly", set up a Zoom call for all of us to dial into at 5pm every Friday for a hours chat and the odd "sundowner".

I'm not sure who suggested it, but before we knew it our early friday call and sundowner metamorphised into "lets all cook a Curry and eat it together next week!". Ali P being the "Curry King" between us, sent the menu and recipes out to everyone and before we knew it, there we were, having all cooked the same dishes, comparing our Onion Bhaji's and eating our curry's together. Such a laugh, great food, truly breaking the bordem and keeping us all connected.

Unfortunately, we were so busy having a good time, none of us got a photo of the finished dishes!!

This coming Friday Ali B has chosen the menu and provided the recipe's, a homage to a brilliant restaurant in Padstow called "Prawn on the Lawn". Promise to get some photo's of the dishes this time.

Well that's it for now, until next time.

Stay Home & Stay Safe