Field Trips

             I have been incredibly lucky during lockdown that I have been able to get outside every day for my state mandated walk. In fact, don’t tell anyone but I am usually out for longer than the hour I was allowed. I am such a rebel!

               Over the last few weeks, I have been swerving kids on bicycles, keeping a wide berth of the cows (and their deposits) and remembering to open gates with my elbows. I noticed this week, the government put out advise for people who go outside to ‘regularly wash clothing’ and thought what it says about the state of the country, which meant that particular piece of advice was needed.

               While wandering through fields and passed housing estates things that caught my attention have included a man wearing wellington boots even though it hasn’t rained in weeks, the young girl with a chalk stick decorating the pavement who shouted ‘Daddy, how do you spell NHS’ and a woman who nearly leapt into a hedge when somebody on the other side of the road coughed.

               My sense of direction can be a weak point, I remember hearing (about 30 years ago) that looking at a map makes you a target for muggers and that has lodged inside me to such an extent that I frequently wander around with no idea where I am. My inner confidence is that I will work it out eventually and if all else fails, I find a building. A building must be somehow connected to a road, by following a road, I will find a road sign and assuming I recognise somewhere on the sign, all will be fine. It was not long ago, I accidentally wondered into a stranger’s back garden. Luckily, nobody challenged me as I went round the side of their property to find the road.

               I have no idea about varieties of plants, birds or any other kind of wildlife. As a rule of thumb, I can distinguish between a squirrel and a butterfly but would struggle with any further detail. This is possibly because Mum was always a keen gardener and that must have put me off. To help with this, I got a book with pictures of varieties of trees and creatures, but it is too heavy to carry around. I should put this on my to-do list, along with cleaning behind the fridge or finding an ISA but I think having a nap will always take priority.