Lockdown - Day Three and Four

No post on day 2 of lockdown, because it wasn't really a very productive day. I managed a few very small re-organising and tidying tasks around the house, ordered a few bits I needed from eBay and did some laundry, but not much else really got done. I thought about starting another big indoor project, but didn't, as I wanted to get the garden finished before moving indoors, so it was a bit of a wasted day really, but it was good to have some down time too. 

When I think about how long this lockdown is, it's potentially only 28 days long, which isn't really that long, compared to the one in March and I suspect that it will go by super fast, so I do really need to make the most of it.  There is already talk that the rates of infection in London are dropping, so I'm sure they'll want us back at work in December, but I guess only time will tell.

Anyway, day 3 was a lot more productive. Whilst OH took the dog out for a walk in Epping Forest on Saturday morning, I got straight out into the garden and did more pruning and tidying down the other end of the garden. By the time OH got back and had had lunch, I had just about done all that I could without his help, so it was then time to tackle the pruning of the overgrown fruit trees. 

Whilst I stopped for some lunch, OH proceeded to empty the compost from our hot bin onto the raised beds, which was another job done and then I was ready to help direct him in the pruning and more importantly hold the ladder, of course.

It was a tricky job, as we hadn't done a proper job of it for a few years and many of the branches had grown very tall and unruly, but within an hour or so it was done and the trees were looking so much better.  We were pretty brutal and removed a lot of the branches, but it had to be done as they were getting way too big for our small city garden and I'm hoping they'll be better for it. 

We managed to finish the pruning just before the light went and then I had to take the dog out. We weren't out to long because of fireworks scaring her home again.  When I got in I found out that the US election had been called and Biden had won. Probably why so many fireworks were going off on November 7th or maybe people were just celebrating Bonfire Night on the weekend.

It felt so good to get the pruning done, partly because the trees are on the boundary with our neighbours property and I'm always conscious that they may be a nuisance to them. The branches that we cut off still needed to be cut up, but that was a job for day 4 of lockdown.

Day 4 of lockdown dawned and I came downstairs to the sight of the tree massacre in the garden. Maybe we were a bit brutal after all.  Anyway, it was too late to worry about it as there was a massive pile of branches was piled high on the decking outside the back door. waiting to be cut up. Once I'd taken the dog for a walk, I got to work on this and cut down the thinner branches and filled up several bags full of them, ready to take to the tip.  The thicker branches were left for OH to saw, some of which we might season in the shed and burn on the log burner next year.

The final job of the day was to sweep up the leaves again, this time the ones that had come off the fruit trees and when this job was done I downed tools for the day.

There are still a few small jobs to do out in the garden, such as washing dirty plant pots, planting some bulbs/planting out some ferns I bought a few months ago, tidying the greenhouse and sweeping the leaves from the front light well and path, but these jobs are relatively small and easily done in comparison and I can tackle them on my own at anytime in the next few weeks.

Tomorrow, I think I may start some household cleaning, starting in the bathroom. I was going to do it yesterday, but LB was planning to dye her hair, so I thought it was better to wait until she'd finished or I would end up cleaning it twice.

On the subject of cleaning, I've just finished reading a small book I bought from work, written by a Buddhist monk, which is about cleaning your house and looking after your possessions and how this can help purify your heart and keep you healthy and feeling positive. It was a good little read and I do think that when your house is clean, you feel much more positive about your life and self, so to some extent I do agree with this point of view. 

Hopefully, by the end of lockdown, I will have worked my way through the whole house and will feel much better, as everything seems to get a bit out of control when I'm at work and I find it hard to keep on top of things.

Hope you're having a productive lockdown, or not, if you are happy to take it easy and enjoy the break from normal routines. I am planning on doing a bit of that myself at some point.