Pandemic diary 19: Going to the supermarket – wish me luck

The mighty lawn-mowing Bunminster.

I wasn't planning on going to the supermarket for another week or two but my elderly friend (84, with vascular dementia) phoned up for help as he had run out of some foods. It's very good that he rang and remembered not to go the supermarket. On the downside going to the supermarket is now the mostly risky thing that we do.

So I'm heading out shortly with the hope that nearby shoppers can keep some distance (two-way shop aisles aren't great for maintaining a 2m gap).

Before coronavirus, we used to know when to go to avoid lots of people. Saturday night was a favourite time slot – nice and empty and quick.

Now? Who knows. Perhaps Saturday night is now the busiest time if people think it will be quiet. Trying to think like a contrarian in this outbreak is impossible.

[Update: it was the emptiest supermarket shop yet and most people were good about distance as a result. Amusing that the welcoming Sainsbury's lady put her hands up when I rounded the escalator in my scarf mask. Should have worn the Stetson too.)

It's becoming more 'normal' to stay at home. The initial panics and claustrophobia have worn off a bit. But the numbers are a good reminder that this bug could be anywhere – on a shopping trolley, on open fruit, on the plastic gloves of the person at the till handling money, on the mask that maybe I didn't properly handle last time I used it.

I've been avoiding the numbers but before going out it's good to remind myself why we are doing this and to be careful. As of today there are:

  • 79,865 confirmed cases in the UK
  • 9,875 hospital deaths in the UK (care homes not included in the stats)
  • 917 UK deaths in the past 24 hours
  • 2,108 deaths in the past 24 hours in the USA
  • 106,469 deaths globally; 392,781 recovered

Data source: https://gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html

Thanks Bunminster

Today I am thankful for having a few more days with our original rescue bun, Bunminster, who is nearly eight years old. He is not well and the prognosis isn't good. The next vet check is Tuesday. But at least today he was eating well and enjoying the sun. In our household, we have learnt a lot about how to live life from rabbits. Today the lesson is to live in the present and enjoy the simple, good things while we can.

Hire/commission me: fiona [at] fionacullinan.com

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