25th April 2020

China has sent a team of doctors to North Korea to assess Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un’s health, Reuters reported on Friday. Meanwhile, Hong Kong Satellite Television claimed that Kim had died. On Monday, rumours circulated that the North Korean leader was in poor health following heart surgery on 12th April. His last public appearance was on 11th April, at a Politburo meeting. If this despot really has died, it would certainly be good news for his country and the wider world. Didn’t Trump have a surprisingly cordial relationship with Kim Jong Un? Perhaps Donald suggested he try a glass of disinfectant if he was feeling under the weather.

Like the rest of the sporting world, there hasn’t been much activity here at Willow Bank. Sue made cauliflower cheese for lunch, while I dismantled another bench for firewood and sprayed a few lingering weeds I’d missed last time. The new tree bench saw good use in the afternoon. Sue made the most of the sunshine, reading the entire newspaper from cover to cover while sitting on it. I spent some time discussing photography with friends on WhatsApp.

Charlotte, Suraj, and Lucas spent the day clearing out the chicken run, removing three years’ worth of wood chips and adding an old tree trunk for the hens to perch on.

There were celebrations in Newbold Verdon upon discovering that Mia has now lost 3.3 kg since the New Year, 1.3 kg of that during lockdown! She was put on a diet after Christmas due to concerns about her rotundness and lethargy. When Sue and I returned from our cruise, I took her for a walk and immediately noticed she was far more sprightly than before we left. Well done, Mia, have a carrot on me.

25/04/20

Today is expected to be the last dry day for quite some time. The number of people daring to defy the virus and venture out has been increasing during this spell of fine weather, though a few wet and chilly days may put a stop to that. At least I won’t need to water the fruit and vegetable plots, and the greenhouse will require less attention.

After Sunday lunch, Sue and I set off for our government-sanctioned exercise, taking a walk through the fields to Lubenham and back. Many others had the same idea. However, it was a beautiful day for a ramble, and everyone observed the lockdown rule of staying at least two metres apart. Most of those we passed seemed happily absorbed in their own conversations, unconcerned by the possibility of two deadly virus carriers approaching them.

Spring was in full bloom, and nothing was going to stop the walkers of Harborough from enjoying its sights and scents. Cornflowers, ragged robin, bluebells, cyclamen, crab apple blossom, and, best of all, hawthorn were all displaying their colours and filling the air with their fragrance.

On our return, I set about making cheese from the four litres of milk I had bought that morning at the Co-op. This time, instead of rolling it into little balls, I used a mould to shape the finished cheese. We’ll taste it over the next few days. Cheese-making is almost as therapeutic as mowing the lawn!

Jamie spent the morning tiling the new shower, then in the afternoon took Ruth and Joey for a walk through the woods to see the bluebells. They also explored the abandoned Oxendon railway tunnel.

Meanwhile, Sarah enjoyed a relaxing morning potting up what seemed like a million succulents she had somehow acquired in her greenhouse.

 

 

 

 

 

27/04/20

In his first public appearance since returning to work, Prime Minister Boris Johnson stated that there were signs the country was “turning the tide” against the virus. However, he urged the public to be patient, emphasising that it was still too early to lift restrictions.

Meanwhile, New Zealand has begun easing its restrictions, having recorded only 19 deaths in total. I suspect the rest of the world will be watching closely to see what happens next.

The forecasted rain never arrived; instead, we had a warm and pleasant day.

At last, Jamie’s birthday present, a jet washer ordered three weeks ago, was finally delivered. Late in the morning, Sue drove to Desborough and dropped it off with Ruth, as Jamie was at work. She then continued to Rothwell to leave some tomato plants with Suraj, as Charlotte was also at work. Both Suraj and Ruth are working from home.

After ‘my’ cheese on toast for breakfast, my sore back seemed to be improving, so for the first time in a week, I set off on my bike. I was out for just an hour and saw very few people, even when passing through the town centre. Perhaps, like the Boomtown Rats, they don’t like Mondays either.

I spent much of the rest of the day cementing stones back into place in the various retaining walls around the garden. Unfortunately, I ran out of sand before I could finish the job, so it will have to wait until after lockdown is eased.

As soon as Charlotte returned from her gardening job, she immediately set about potting up the tomato plants that had arrived earlier, a sure sign of how much she loves gardening.