Saturday 11th April 2020

Today was undoubtedly the most exciting day of lockdown so far. In fact, we’ve probably peaked and should’ve saved some of the excitement for another day because now we can’t top it. I even remembered to take regular photos throughout the day, how productive.

I’d woken up early, around 6:50 and started sorting myself out. Getting my iPad, going to the ottoman and adjusting the curtains. I waited for the sun to rise and it was beautiful. The dark blue faded into light blue which faded into a deep pink followed by a beautiful sky blue, I love the sunrise when there’s a few clouds, it’s just stunning.

I had a cup of tea and a few Bourbon biscuits for breakfast when Alex woke up about 8. I wasn’t particularly hungry nor did I really fancy anything, but I knew I needed to have something. Some biscuits were all I wanted to eat. It was a 24 hour championship game on brawl stars, so we played that. You get 15 maps to play and 4 lives. We got to the 8th one, you get paired with somebody else and the people we got put with weren’t great. I set my timer for 20 minutes and did my languages too. I think I’m getting pretty good. I’m starting to be able to form sentences in both languages which is cool.

Around 10ish, I started reading my book for an hour. It’s one of those books that I had to keep going. So much so, that in the same day later on tonight I’d end up finishing the book. I’d read the book in the morning, the afternoon and then again at night. It’s the first time I’ve done that since I was a child. Started a book yesterday and finished it today. I loved reading Eleanor Oliohant is completely fine. I also thought it had the most lovely of endings, it didn’t end how I thought it would, I thought it better.

At midday, I started getting ready. I needed some fresh air and a walk around the garden. I could also do with some photos to post not wearing the same outfit as before. It was a lovely, sunny and hot day and I just really wanted to go out. Either to a bar or to a beach. It was one of those days. I’d sat on the balcony whilst Alex was doing his workout and the sun was just beating down. Spring was well and truly here.

We went down into the garden and it was glorious. The cool air hits you like a brand new sensation. The cool air prickles against your skin, it’s so unfamiliar, but all so familiar at the same time. I find myself approaching with an element of caution. Like, it’s something brand new. I guess it kinda is. It’s been a week since I last went outside so it feels odd. There are a few people the go down to the garden but all at different times. The place that is usually filled with laughter and splashes from the pool and picnics set out on the grass is deserted. Empty. Lifeless. The sprinklers still go on every morning and night and the greenery is as lush as ever, but in terms of people. It’s eerily silent. For miles around. A helicopter comes and starts whirring above, circling the area and breaking the outside world silence.

We went back up after 10 minutes in the garden. It’s always just a quick wander around, not touching anything, and then heading back up. Alex was still backing up my phone, he’d managed to get to December 2019 by the end of the day. 20,000 photos to back up. Most of this is because Alex takes 100 photos in place of 2 or 3 photos. But, it does mean I have better photos to choose from and don’t have to settle for the one where I’m pulling a funny face.

Mid-afternoon, I decided to create a bar. We couldn’t go out for wine and tapas but why couldn’t wine and tapas come to us? The ottoman had been rearranged as a corner one and it reminded me of a bar we’ve seen before. I could move the table to frame it and then find some props to put on it, a candle, a mason jar. Something like that. I gave the table a wipe down and dragged it over. The wooden place mat from Christmas placed in the centre and a mason jar with fairy lights, 2 candles that were a leaving present gift from a child, and the bottle of wine. With the panoramic view we have of the sea it actually looked pretty cool. We’d never had the idea before, but I think it worked.

I decided to call it “La Nostra Casa” our house in Italian. Our Italian restaurant that served Spanish tapas and only refers to meatballs as albóndigas. Sounded perfect. Alex cooked the albóndigas whilst I was setting everything up. I put on an acoustic playlist and Alex had vacuumed round. It was like our own little bar from home. I made a little menu too. I propped the iPad up and it looked lovely!

It was great to be sipping wine like we would be on a Saturday afternoon with some tapas listening to acoustic music, it wasn’t so great having a hangover from one glass of wine at 8pm when my head was throbbing. Yes, after one glass of wine. ONE SMALL GLASS OF WINE. I would like to remind you all that the meatballs were the first thing I’d eaten after the Bourbon biscuits, but to be honest, normally one glass of wine or two, is normally enough to finish me.

After lunch, I did a yoga flow. Alex decided he was going to do a second workout of the day. I also did as Alex would refer to as a real ab blaster. Apparently, the ab blaster I’d been doing was so slow and could hardly be referred to as an ab blaster at all. So, I did another one. And it was a killer. I’d done quite a fire yoga flow as well, so I was shattered. But, the exercise wasn’t stopping there. Alex wanted to play Just Dance.

Now, I get really into Just Dance. I can’t just go through the motions, I have to go full out. It is why I usually win. I end up burning a lot of calories in Just Dance, not that I count calories but just because my watch tells me I have. I can never take any photos of Just Dance because I have to use my phone as my controller and Alex has to use his as his. We played for half an hour before I was too tired and desperate for a drink.

We sat on the sofa for a bit. Alex singing to me and Rio. Then we had a singalong together. I could’ve fallen asleep. Me curled up on Alex and Rio curled up on me. The entire apartment space is available but we’re all taking up an Alex sized spot on the sofa.

The rest of the evening, after we’d had pork with tomatoes, peppers, spinach and grated carrot for dinner, Alex watched some TV and I carried on reading my book. I’ve now got to find another book to read. That means, I’ve now read 5 books during lockdown. That’s more books than I’ve read in 5 years. Five. I played some more brawl stars after I’d finished my book.

I checked the news, to see what was going on. The recoveries are going up and up, it’s looking really positive after a long stent of bad news. 59,109 recovered so far. 87,312 active cases. And 4,167 new cases since the day before. Lockdown isn’t so bad. It was hard to begin with, but now it’s just our new norm.

I keep getting random pains, like in my feet sometimes I get a stabbing pain or in my knee. And I know it’s because we’re not as active as normal. My 5k steps have plummeted to 1k steps but there’s only so much you can do at home. The government have announced that state of alarm has officially been confirmed and accepted until Sunday 26th April 2020 at 00:00 which means 2 weeks Sunday at midnight technically would be the first time we’re all allowed out. I don’t see that happening though. They’ve already filed for an extension until May 10th at 00:00 which sounds more realistic.

The construction and some other non-essential are allowed to go back to work on April 13th though, so I guess they’ll monitor if there’s a huge spike then. There are talks of the schools not opening at all before summer, but again, it’s all speculation at the moment.

I go to bed content with our busy day. Content and tired. I fall asleep the second I’m in bed. I’ve never had trouble sleeping and lockdown was no exception. I’m lucky, in every aspect of the word.

Stay safe

L x