What's in a name ? Schizophrenia.

 Yet more pandemic parlance It is late February 2021 and the lockdown lingers on. New expressions have emerged in response to this global pandemic. In no particular order they are : - ROLLOUT. This refers to the progress of the vaccination programme. The speed at which the arrangements are made to bring the vaccine  to the people is always discussed. Are you PFIZER  or ASTRA JENECA ? These are the two brands of vaccine being given in the U.K so everyone asks which one you have received. Whichever one you have  the same type for your second dose some 11 weeks later. Pfizer is American and Astra Jeneca is British , developed by Oxford University. ROADMAP This is the plan , devised by the government,  to escape the lockdown and gradually return the various sectors of society to almost normal but not to the way they used to be before the pandemic. KEY WORKERS  People whose jobs are considered essential to the working of society such as medical staff, teachers and  police officers . Their c

 Such a long time since I have posted a blog. Our covid year has stretched and dragged on seemingly without end. However it's now February 2021 and maybe there is a glimmer of hope that in the spring - maybe March - we will see shops opening and cafés coming back to give us pleasure.  Meantime my life has been changed in a big big way by the acquisition of a puppy. Her name is Molly and she is a tiny black and tan Jack russell terrier. She was born at Dan y Banc farm in Carmarthenshire  and we collected her from there on January 8th when she was eight weeks old.  She was the second smallest of a litter of 7 puppies and my first reaction on being handed her was to say " Oh, she's so tiny !" She is now eleven weeks old and has had her second vaccinations at the vet's. She won't be able to walk out in the big wide world for another 10 days but  she is enjoying running around our small garden sniffing and exploring, climbing into flower pots and sliding under gard

 In this December when the news gets more and more dire I have decided to write on a positive note. Three very nice things which have happened this week are:  1. We received a box in the post marked ' OPEN ON RECEIPT '  Inside we found delicious Scottish foodstuffs -  ham, sausages and pâté plus shortbread and chocolate brownies. The goodies were a present from our Aunt Ann in Scotland and it was a lovely surprise to receive them.  2. I had an unexpected  phone call from my cousin Gordon who lives in Eastbourne. I haven't spoken to him for a couple of years but we have always had a good rapport and have seen a lot of each other at different times in the past. We had a catch up on family happenings and discussed the current health crisis.  Wish I lived closer to him to make a meeting feasible. Maybe one day... 3. We received a parcel from our granddaughters Poppy and Jasmine who live in Hampshire. They are now aged 13 and 10 so able to organise things like buying and posting

 In the seemingly never ending progress of Covid 19 new terms and buzz words keep popping onto the scene.  As I write in October 2020 the phrase to be heard and read everywhere is ' local lockdown ' It has a melodious sound to it but the reality is not appealing. The idea is to restrict the inhabitants of a specific area in the way they can interact  with each other So you may be banned from meeting people from other households indoors and restricted to a number who can meet outdoors.  Similarly you should sit in cafés and restaurants only with those in your household. The decision to lock down is based on the rate of the R Number . This means the rate t which one person with Covid 19  will infect others. The idea is to keep the number down to 1. If it claims as it has to 1.6 or 1.7 then the virus is spreading more quickly. Here in Wales we are told not to leave our local authority area except for named purposes such as work, medical needs, caring for someone vulnerable or edu

 Today I attended my local GP surgery for my annual vaccination against influenza , the 'flue jab as we call it. As a reluctant member of the over 65 club I am entitled to this. So I had phoned for an appointment earlier in the week and was given a 9.10  a.m slot for myself and my husband.  As we drove up to the building we could see lots of people arriving at the door and being sheperded in  in fairly quick succession. A security  guard in a yellow tabard and black mask stood at the entrance. Goodness knows why they were expecting trouble.  The whole process was slickly organised like a military operation.  A masked lady at the door asked if we were well that is free of covid symptoms. Then we were each  directed to a different desk where we were asked our names and date of birth then given a white paper form with that information on it. We then went in different  directions. I followed stars on the floor around the waiting room and down the corridor and was directed to a lady who

 What would David Lloyd George think of the Internet ? Where would I have my conversation with David Lloyd George ? Maybe at the top of Snowdon , the highest mountain in Wales . There is a café  up there  where we could escape from the mist and cold drizzle and enjoy a cup of  tea together. He would prefer something stronger I think but he would make do if we could have a plate of welshcakes as well. Much as I would have liked to speak to him in Welsh, his first language , I would  not feel confident to do so as Welsh is my second  language and there are many differences between the Welsh spoken by a North Walian like D. L .W ( I’m going to abbreviate his name from now on ) and the Welsh of South Wales where I live. So in English it would have  to  be. There would be so many things to discuss.  I share a love of Wales and its language with him. He believed in devolution of government to Wales and would be very happy to see how the welsh language has grown despite English attempts to er