Living a New Normal

As the month of May ticks away and we emerge from lock down I think we know that our old “normal” probably won’t return soon and this new “normal” may continue for many months.
People have lost loved ones, bread winners have lost jobs, and many shops, businesses and factories won’t open their doors again. Even though we are tucked away at the bottom of the world, within 2 small islands, we could not escape this deadly pandemic.

Over the past 6 weeks news updates have drilled us daily on how to self protect and how to protect those around and beyond us.
And until there is a vaccine for covid19 I can’t see how this can change.
Living in the country, I thought our life, despite a few new rules, would continue as usual.
But it didn’t. Our gravel road, we so often cursed, when local tradies sent clouds of dust our way, was suddenly very, very, quiet.
And we started to feel the isolation. Solitary trips to our local laundromat were a bit like a pass from jail, except it felt surreal. One person in and out – then return to your vehicle in the empty car park to wait for the laundry cycle it finish.
For the first time in 7 years we walked our dusty gravel road. Heading further and further up and onwards every day. We love the smell of country livestock. And we chatted to the sheep as they turned to stare as we passed their parched paddocks.
Supermarket trips became exciting weekly outings. We took turns heading out for some much needed “alone” time spending much more on junk and much less on the healthy.

But for now, I am done with jigsaws, unfinished knitting, media updates, new recipes, old recipes, Netflix, re-arranging furniture, online shopping, checking water tanks, bird watching and walking up our, now busy, gravel road.
Now I am looking forward to family & friends together time, beach walks, choosing overdue birthday gifts, getting a long overdue hair cut, finding and buying those lock down “earmarked” plants and stopping by our favourite pie shop.


We
are catching up on deliveries after a 6 week lock down. We use NZ Parcel Post for all our deliveries. This service is door to door, no signature required. At despatch we email you the track & trace details so you can track your parcel all the way to your door.

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