What's in a name ? Schizophrenia.

I'm listening to Elvis's music safely ensconced in my cosy home. Whatever is happening in the world ,  and right now the world is in a perilous state , his voice calms me as I listen to its rich and powerful sound. Why is it that over 40 years after his death his name and his music are as appreciated throughout the world as they  ever were ? Films of his concerts still enthral people and tribute artists strive to approximate his original sound and look. As a young girl I  dreamed of him while looking at his photos in my Elvis Monthly magazine. I saw him stood by the music gates at Graceland  waving to fans who gathered around. Eventually , some quarter of a century later,  I stood by those gates myself.  I heard him singing "I want you I need you I love you" as I waited to go into the mansion. Then I gazed at his white grand piano and imagined him sitting there on a warm Southern evening. ' Her hair is soft and her eyes are oh so blue. She's everything a

I had heard of the 1918 flu pandemic but knew very little about it. The main fact I knew to  be true was that it killed more people than the Great War as it was then known.  Now that we are living through a pandemic I thought I should check on the definition of this word. So a pandemic occurs when people are easily infected with a viral influenza. This virus must have the ability to spread in a sustained manner from person to person. In 1918 the number of infections of Spanish flu  followed an upwards  trajectory as it infected susceptible   people. Measures were then taken such as the closures of  childcare facilities and schools. This is exactly what we are seeing in 2020. The virus which caused the 1918 pandemic was H1N1 a virus of avian origin. It had a 20% mortality and particularly  infected under 5 's, 20-40 year olds and over 65's. Healthy individuals died as well as those with underlying health conditions. The mortality of Covid 19 seems to be in the order or 2

What has happened since my last post ? Everything has changed. There is a new world order and even when the present covid 19 nightmare ends nothing will be as it was. Just as there was before and after 9/11 so it will pre and post the pandemic. Who in their most confused imaginings would have dreamt that John Lewis would be closing its doors, that you could no longer meet a friend for coffee on the high street, that MacDonalds would no longer serve you a tasty big Mac.? The school playgrounds have emptied of all but a handful of children almost as if the Pied Piper has carried them away. They are still safe but they are confined to their homes. Fortunate are those who have a garden. It's perplexing and worrying , there is the fear of the unknown . Plans  for the coming months are put on hold  and bookings cancelled . We  older ones  look back on the carefree retirement years and the calm  days of just a week ago and wonder when they will return. Who would