Weekly Blog - W/E 18th December 2021

Since returning to London last Sunday, it's been quite a busy week, just getting back to normal really.

On Monday, I attended my usual class at the gym, followed by the usual grocery shop, plus a little bit of last minute Xmas shopping for LB. There wasn't much time left to do anything else that day, as there was still the dog to walk and the supper to make.

I was back at work on Tuesday, and as I expected, there was a huge amount of donations to work through. Luckily, I had the help of a lovely volunteer and by the end of the day, we'd made a lot of progress, cleared most of the donations and got lots of stock ready to be put in the shop.

On Wednesday, I had a homey day. I needed to get hold of some lateral flow tests from the local pharmacy, because everywhere is running out of them and I need them to test myself before going to work. I work with people who may be vulnerable or live with people who are vulnerable and I like to make sure I'm Covid free before going to work.  In addition, LB was pinged this week at work and needs to do daily lateral flow tests for a week, as a couple of her colleagues have come down with Covid. 

Once I'd managed to sort the above out, I needed to get stuck into doing some ironing, as the pile was super high and I didn't have any clothes left to wear for work, so it was a priority. I also got a call from an ex-work colleague, who I hadn't heard from for a few months, so it was nice to catch up with him and hear that he'd finally moved into a new house. I was really happy for him that he'd managed to get settled in for Christmas.

I spent the rest of the day catching up on other domestic tasks and cooking some supper and by the time I'd done that I felt really tired and took myself off to bed early.

On Thursday, I headed into work again. There was a fair bit to do when I got there. Lots of areas of the stockroom were piled high and needed tackling, so it was one thing and then another. There was still a lot to do at the end of the day, but I'd done what I could in the time I had.  I finally found out today, my rota for over Christmas, which was good. A couple of volunteers have stepped in to run the shop on a couple of days i.e. Christmas Eve and New Years Eve, to give me some time off over Christmas, which was very sweet of them. I was very touched by their kindness.

OH cycled into town to meet me from work, as we had tickets to see a performance of Handel's Messiah at St Martin in the Fields in Trafalgar Square.  I'd never been before, but was very excited to go.

We just about managed to get there on time and headed to our seats in the Nave. I understood them to be restricted view, but we were very lucky and we had a pretty good view, except for not being able to see some of the singers in the choir. I was very happy with our seat choices, as there hadn't been very much choice when we booked. We weren't sat very close to other people too, which was a plus.

We really enjoyed the performance. I'd definitely go again.  We had a glass of wine in the Crypt Cafe at the interval which was nice. I couldn't take any pictures of the performance, but here's a picture of one of the trees in the Crypt, which I thought was beautiful.

After the performance, we walked back to the shop through Covent Garden Market. I never venture down here, despite working 10 minutes away, but it was lovely to see the tree there too. London at Christmas is so festive, I do love it. We may venture into town on Christmas Eve to see all the lights and shop windows. It's something we've done a few times in the past and it will be nice to do it again, virus allowing.

 

Talking of which, I was surprised at how many people were out and about in town, in spite of the new variant. I guess that everyone is still determined to enjoy Christmas this year while they can and we were out ourselves, so I'm not judging. We eventually got back to the shop, picked up our bikes and rode home together which was nice, but it was a late night and we were glad to get to bed when we eventually did.

On Friday, OH took the dog out, so I had a leisurely morning, catching up on watching YouTube videos, writing the remaining Christmas cards I needed to write and doing some laundry and other domestic tasks. There seems to be so much still to do and so little time before Christmas now.

After lunch, I headed out to post my cards and do a bit of top up grocery shopping. and then in the evening, I decided to start some gift wrapping. I managed to get all my wrapping bar a few items done, which was a big load lifted off my shoulders, especially if I'm working right up to Christmas.

Saturday I was at work again. The streets seemed very quiet as I rode into work. It seemed like people weren't really venturing out, but as soon as I got nearer Central London, there were more people out and about.  

The shop was pretty busy, but not last weekend before Xmas busy. The theatre across the road from the shop has also now closed down, so there was less footfall in the area.  We got a lot of Christmas decorations donated today, so I spent quite a bit of time pricing them and putting them in the shop.  A lot of them sold which was good. I did keep prices quite low though, as we really don't know how much longer we're going to be able to stay open with the virus spreading rapidly in London. The day definitely had a bit of the feeling of the last day we worked before Christmas last year.  That was the last Saturday before Christmas too.

The remainder of the day was about getting as many things into the shop that might sell as Christmas presents, so I had a good dig around the jewellery and priced good items as they came in to ensure the best chance of selling them. 

I'm not back at work until Tuesday, but as we know from last year's experience, an awful lot can change in the next few days.