Lockdown - week 5: 21st - 27th April

Part of me can't quite believe this lockdown has been going on for five weeks. The time seems to have passed in a daze. I've said it before but the day of the week, and the date of the month are losing meaning; the only real marker being the succession of flowers in the garden. The continuing warm weather still makes me feel that this is a holiday of sorts, which contributes to the aimless drifting of days.

With this in mind, I decided that I'd try to make something a little different for one dinner of the week. This week I tried making my own tapas - tortilla, patatas bravas, pan con tomate, chorizo in red wine and honey, and a cheese and meat board (or plate). It wasn't a total success as the tortilla got a little over-cooked, but as a whole it worked, and it's something that I'd eat out but not normally attempt at home. I even made gin tonico with my birthday Skye gin and  elderflower spritzer, garnished with lemon balm and thyme. I'm now wondering what to attempt for future weeks - possibly something that might pass as pub-grub with an 'all you can eat' salad bar, or 'extras' such as pickles and naan bread with curry.






I'm going to need to plan ahead for this when shopping but I'm now finding that although it may still be tricky to get a supermarket delivery (slots are sensibly being saved for the most vulnerable) it's comparatively easy to click and collect. This feels a safer, less exposed option than actual in-store shopping so Friday saw us heading off to top up supplies. Unfortunately the treats - chocolates and crisps - went a little rapidly, and we were soon down to 'proper' food.

I have a tendency to binge-eat like this at the best of times and lockdown has made that worse. At the end of Week 4, I looked at the scales and realised how easily and quickly I'm putting weight on, and decided I should do something to change my habits. I can't quite say I've been dieting, but I have started to watch how much I'm eating, and at least this week I haven't put more weight on (which counts as a result)

I've discovered online jigsaws - and yes, without a bit of caution, I could become hooked. As the pieces lock together they make an extremely satisfying 'click', so there's no change of putting a wrong piece in, and the monotonous sections such as sky are completed much easier than with a physical jigsaw.

I've finished a hat to go with my new rainbow scarf, finished a couple of weeks ago. Actually it's the second hat I've made, as the first was strange. I tried to use the scarf pattern but it looked like something a flower fairy might wear, so I unraveled the yarn, and knitted it up as a plain hat.



It's been another busy 'out and about' week, with livestreamed gigs and theatre.
Thursday - gig round at Frank Turner's, raising money for independent music venues, followed by Bruce Springsteen's segment from the Jersey4Jersey benefit.
Friday - Twelfth Night from National Theatre Live - brilliant and funny interpretation, and Tamsin Greig's Malvolia was wonderful. I followed it with Friday Night Dinner just to see her in something totally different.
Saturday - Bustival livestream festival, organised by Vans for Bands who are raising funds to supply their tour buses as rest and accommodation facilities for doctors and nurses. You can find more details on their FB page and a link to the crowdfunder here. I didn't attempt to catch all of the acts, just Mark Evans (with a Young Rebel set), Frank Turner (again), Will Varley, and Skinny Lister (with month old baby)
Monday - Sean McGowan livestream gig, followed by a trip to the theatre, this time for a RSC production of Macbeth starring Christopher Eccleston and Niamh Cusack




It's not been all fun though as recent news has reported that 'disruptive social distancing' is likely to the end of the year, and anyone over 60 ought to be considered high risk. For now things are manageable but I'm beginning to wonder what my situation might be in a few months, and whether I'll be able to see my daughters, especially if they're no longer working from home but mixing with other people in an office. Worrying, of course, won't make any difference so I'm trying to still take
each day/week one at a time; potter in the garden, sit in the sun, and try to enjoy this weird time.

Lockdown - Week 3: 7th - 13th April

Well, to be honest, this third week feels like it was almost indistinguishable from the second. Days and weeks are certainly starting to blur into each other, despite my best effort to recreate normal life.


I went 'out' to the theatre twice - first to The Globe to see Hamlet; a very interesting, compelling 'gender blind' production with various male characters played by women (including Michelle Terry as Hamlet himself), and Ophelia played by a man (Shubham Saraf). It's hard to make such a well-known script come over as new and fresh but this production did - and James Garnon almost made me feel sorry for Claudius. I wish I'd been able to see it live.
 A couple of nights later was a National Theatre Live recording of Jane Eyre, a co-production with Bristol Old Vic, starring Madeleine Worrall as the diminutive, feisty heroine, Felix Hayes as brooding Mr Rochester, and directed by Sally Cookson. I'm not generally a fan of books turned into plays, but this worked brilliantly - not trying to cram every bit of dialogue from the original in, but aiming more for mood and character development. Oh, and I loved Pilot the dog - the actor playing him almost stole the show.

In between these two, I went to an Isolate Live gig to see one of my long-live favorite singer/songwriters Sean McGowan performing live from his 'gaff' (well, his mum's front room), and on Easter Monday I went to a festival - not out in a tent in the back garden as I know some people did, but a sensible Front Room Festival organised by Folk On Foot presenter Matthew Bannister, featuring a mix of familiar and new (to me at least) folk singers. As at any festival I dropped in and out of the music tent, and I have to admit I left before the end but really enjoyed watching Beth Porter from the Bookshop Band, Nancy Kerr and James Fagan, Kris Drever, Rachel Newton playing the harp, and Jackie Morris paintings otters.

Apart from these 'evenings out' day to day life doesn't feel like it's changed that much. I finished knitting a scarf made with some fabulous rainbow yarn brought back from a trip to Riga by my youngest daughter.




I went out for a short walk one evening to see the sunset - but this time I encountered cyclists riding too close to the pavement, so there's another worry for when I'm out and about.










The weather has returned to glorious sunshine, and most of my days are spent pottering about the garden doing something or other.


Sowing seeds, watering tiny plants, tucking them up under bubblewrap at night, all with the intent of producing home-grown vegetables, makes me feel I'm clawing back a certain level of control over my life. I feel fresh fruit and veg may be hard to come by as spring progresses, and I'm targeting my sowing at producing crops as soon as possible. I already have rocket and mizuna for salad, and rhubarb for desserts; there'll be more to follow.



Obviously I haven't seen my family but we're keeping in touch with an almost daily video chat, often involving a lot of running around from my grandson, and a quieter pictionary style online game at weekends. There still seems to be as much traffic as ever out on the nearby main through-estate road, so at times it's hard to believe in the virus and that the world has changed.

I never expected three weeks to be the end of lockdown, and I've braced myself to follow the twelve week isolation period recommended to 'shielded' vulnerable people; I've no need to be as restricted as them but 'better safe than sorry' is my motto for now.

2019 - but only the good bits

There was far too much heartbreak and loss in my life last year, and a lot of months passed in a haze of grief, but there were good times too, so for the purpose of this blog post I'm just going to ignore the bad bits.



The highlight of my year has to be our short break in Argyll. we were only there for a couple of days but went walking through forests and along Crinan Canal, and, best bit of the whole year, my daughter persuaded me to go swimming one evening in Loch Fyne.

Wells Next The Sea

Whitesands Bay, St Davids

We cautiously started taking holidays again, with short breaks to Norfolk, Manchester, Appleby-in-Westmorland, Edinburgh and St Davids, and most of the time had beautiful weather.

In Appleby I saw red squirrels racing along branches, seals at Abereiddi, dolphins playing out at sea off New Quay, deer up close at Dunham Massey, a nuthatch (first time I've definitely seen one) and a watchful owl at Acorn Bank, and red kites flying above Bwlch Nant yr Arian.












Nearer to home, in addition to my normal rounds of visiting Chatsworth and local National Trust properties, I eventually went to places I've been intending to go for years - Wirksworth Hidden Gardens, Hopton Hall rose garden, and Melbourne Art Festival.















Throughout the year I went out to local gigs - less than normal, but I'm getting back into the habit -  seeing Sean McGowan twice, Skinny Lister, From The Jam, Skerryvore, Deaf Havana, and other smaller bands.








And, not least (in fact a close contender for top spot), enjoyed a wonderful, relaxing, inspiring weekend at Timber Festival courtesy of organisers Wild Rumpus.

One of those Sundays ...

 One of those bizarre Sundays - first a trip to local National Trust property, Kedleston Hall in the afternoon to see Christmas decorations.












I've found in the past that their festive decorations aren't as showy as other places', but this year they were very limited; the wickerwork dog at reception was definitely getting into the Christmas spirit though.

 Then in the evening a different sort of culture - a visit to Chameleon Arts Cafe in Nottingham to see Sean McGowan (and the ubiquitous George Gadd). This was the first place I saw Sean play, years ago when my daughter was doing gig promotion, but I haven't been back for a long while.


Sean was performing solo this tour, and sang at first without even a guitar accompaniment -there's not many who can quieten a chattering crowd with their voice, but he did!





Following Thursday's depressing election results, his songs seemed to have more of a protest element to them, but I think that's just me hearing old lyrics afresh in the light of current events; the protest has always been there.
Sean is, incidentally (and probably without realising it) the guy who persuaded me that I'm not too old to get out to gigs, so it's always good to go along when he's in town, and this is the second time I've seen him this year.

Sean McGowan and Brand New Friend at Bodega

Bouncing between one problem and another, nights out have become increasingly rare, but we thought we'd mark the end of February, and hopefully a return to 'normal', by going to the Nottingham stop of Sean McGowan's current tour. Apart from a couple of emotional songs, it was an upbeat, noisy, bouncing night - just what I needed.













I've known Sean for several years, since the days when my youngest daughter promoted gigs, and, although he was never one of those guys who slept on my floor, I'm really excited by the success he's having. I've seen him at small independent venues in Nottingham - Chameleon Arts Cafe, JT Soar - and since then he's signed with Xtra Mile Recordings, brought out an album, toured as support for famous names like Billy Bragg and Will Varley, and as headliner.






I missed one tour of his, on account of feeling too old, but since then I think I've caught him every time he's back up here. This time the crowd had quite a few older faces in it - this is good, because it stops anyone querying if I'm the mother/grandmother of anyone playing, but also I think shows that the acts have a wider appeal spreading outside their own age group.













For this tour he was supported by Brand New Friend from Northern Ireland - a new band for me, and one I'd go see again. Along with the merch from Sean (t-shirt and sweatshirt as we're up to date with CDs) we picked up their CD, so I'll certainly be gearing more of them :)

All in all, a good night out, and a break from the current sad circumstances of my day to day life

My Biggest Weekend (nothing to do with the BBC)

Radio One may have been off in Wales having the Biggest Weekend, but I've had one of my own here at home, with my living-away-from-home daughter back in town.

It started on Thursday with a JT Soar gig, and daughter (Ayres) opening for Mountain Schmountain and Scarecrow Boat.

Scarecrow Boat frontman, Dom

Chatsworth

Over the next couple of days we visited family, went to our favourite local places - Chatsworth, and Shipley - did some supermarket stocking up, called in at IKEA (what Bank Holiday would be complete without a trip there?) - and ate fish and chips from allegedly the best chippie ever (our local)

Honeysuckle-scented
azaleas at
Chatsworth

Shipley Country Park

Late Sunday afternoon while our daughter was playing in Nottingham at Dot to Dot festival, hubby and I went urban exploring around the city, through tunnels and wandering round its oldest park, the Arboretum.

Nottingham Arboretum

Monday night found us all back at JT Soar, with daughter supporting Bristol-based band, Vinegar. Timings and dog-walking meant I missed Alex Hale's opening act, and only caught the last few songs of Make A Halo's set (but they're both local so hopefully I can catch them elsewhere soon).





Tuesday came round too soon, and the car was loaded up for the trip up to daughter's Manchester home. I still feel sad when she leaves so luckily had something to occupy me that evening - Sean McGowan back out on tour, supported by Irish singer Anna's Anchor, and local guy George Gadd.

Now it's time to put my feet up, and ignore the Fitbit's promptings, for a while.

Busy day at Bodega

Last Saturday proved to be a long, busy and enjoyable day at Bodega. We'd been intending going down to catch Sean McGowan on the Nottingham stop of his 'Graft and Grief" tour - in fact we'd bought tickets the day the gig was announced, so had been looking forward to it for some while. Then, at almost the last minute, youngest daughter (playing as Ayres) was offered a slot at the afternoon Acoustic Sessions held in Bodega's bar, so the evening out morphed into a longer musical extravaganza.

daughter (Ayres) in action

The afternoon session started quite early, just before three, but we didn't make it down town till about half past four, and so managed to catch most of the set from the act before my daughter - Holly Redford Jones - and then the last two acts afterwards - Sarah Walk (all the way from the US!) and local indie band, Vega Bay.

There's always a slight problem for musicians playing in bars in that not everyone is there to listen to the music, so there's an amount of background chatter to cut through. I really enjoyed the afternoon but another time I might be more inclined to grab a seat right at the front, or nearest the speakers!

Vega Bay

  As you can tell from the photos, the performance area was at the front of the bar, with an open window behind the musicians (so they're all in silhouette!) and it was interesting to spot people walking past on the street, stopping to listen for a while and sometimes coming in. I've now spent enough time sitting in pubs listening to folks play to know that the quality was higher than average, so I'll be keeping an eye out for who's playing and hoping to drop back round.

Then after a quick bit to eat, it was off upstairs to the music venue proper.

Sean McGowan

First up were support act Happy Accidents, a group I've heard of and listened to on-line but never seen live before, with their bouncy pop punk sound, and a female drummer! How cool is that?

Then on to Sean McGowan. I saw Sean at JT Soar in Nottingham back in spring, and had the impression then that he had big news that he couldn't quite share at the time. Well, not long after, he announced a record deal with Xtra Mile Recordings, a new album (released last Friday) and this tour, his biggest ever headline tour, to promote it. Exciting times for him!  Now supported by a band, his sound is louder and 'rockier' than before. He played a mixture of songs from his new album and old numbers. Milbrook Road and Patchwork remain my favourites but perhaps only because they're the ones I first heard from him nearly two years ago.
He's back in Nottingham soon, as support for a much more well known artist*, but he wasn't really to be drawn on who (though my daughter has a really good guess, and from the look on Sean's face was right!)





*this has been announced now, so it's ok to share that Sean will be back supporting Billy Bragg at Rock City in November. I've always loved Sean's music since I first heard him and it's wonderful to see him being discovered, and getting the opportunity to play to larger audiences. I wonder where he'll be heading next ...

Somewhere new - JT Soar - to see Sean McGowan again

It seems to have been ages since I last went out 'gigging' but last week my teen was promoting, and performing at, a show in Nottingham alongside one of my favourite singer/songwriters, Sean McGowan, so I just couldn't stay home!

I 'discovered' Sean McGowan about 18 months ago at a previous show promoted by my teen, and since then I've been keeping up with what he 's been doing via social media, keeping an eye out for tour dates, and listening to his new songs on Spotify and such, but it's not really the same as seeing someone 'live'. Admittedly, I could have seen him last summer but chickened out , fearing I'd be the only old person at the gig. I think I've got over this attitude now,and I'm determined that if I want to see someone perform, I will, whatever age the rest of the crowd.

Sean McGowan

Anyway, while I've been gaining confidence so, I feel, has Sean McGowan. He seems more comfortable and assured in front of an audience now, and, possibly due to that, his voice seems more powerful - a deep resonating tone to give you goosebumps, particularly when singing unaccompanied ballads, such as the traditional Wild Mountain Thyme. I last heard this in Edinburgh one festival time, with the audience being encouraged to sing along to a harp - a very different rendition to McGowan's! The easy way to describe his style is to say 'like Billy Bragg' - a mix of social comment and oddly romantic songs, and his 'Milbrook Road' is a real tear-jerker.

George Gadd

As an added bonus to the evening, I got to eventually see local George Gadd perform a complete set - despite my best intents, previous occasions haven't worked out for a variety of reasons. Also on the bill was Ajay Henry, someone I've heard of on the local pub/open mic circuit but not actually heard before. His sound is a little different to the others' - nearer to 'pop' than their angsty, Billy Bragg-style folk punk - but he fitted in well.

The venue was a new one for me; J T Soar - an ex-fruit and veg warehouse converted into practice and performance space, and entered by an anonymous grey door -  there really ought to be a 1920s Chicago speak-easy waiting behind it, but we can't have everything.