there-could-be-a-sting-in-the-tale

As it was impractical for him to work at the moment he decided it was the perfect opportunity to get back to a level of fitness he hadn’t enjoyed for at least a decade. The good weather swung it for him; if it had been raining every day he would most definitely have had second thoughts. And when he went for his first run in the new regime, he wished it had been raining because, Christ, it was hard. After a while, it got easier. It never got too easy though, which was good. Running first thing in the morning meant he had a clear head. When he ran back in the old days it was always in the evening, after a bucket-load of issues, problems and situations at work that were not always possible to resolve. That kind of stress weighed heavy and he wasn’t able to give getting fit his best shot, regardless of how much he wanted to. No, he didn’t miss those days at all. He found he could think whilst out running. Well, perhaps ‘running’ is a little disingenuous. At his age the possibility of a...

Sally Anne (please note, no hyphen – it’s very important!) was frustrated. Not in a sexual context…God forbid, she was normally too busy for that kind of thing, but because of the delay she was experiencing in getting the plaster cast removed from her arm.   She’d fallen from one of her horses on the 5 th March, just a couple of days before lockdown started, breaking her left arm. Thankfully, it was a clean break and A & E were able to sort everything out relatively simply. If it had been her other arm, then who knows how she’d have coped! As it happens, the cast had caused no problems day to day (she’d read that some people had developed itchiness they couldn’t scratch, whilst others complained the cast was tight on them), but the obvious inconvenience she faced doing all those things you don’t realise involve your left arm until it’s out of commission were starting to wear her down a bit. She lived alone, in a small cottage close to the stables. Her mother had offered Sa...

Gilbert is at home, watching his pet llama destroy more of his hedge. Since the lockdown started, it is where he spends almost all of his time. Yes, he is becoming frustrated, but he perhaps has a better reason than most to feel this way. He is a foreigner living alone in a big house, in a rural area in the north-west of England. His command of the English language is limited too, adding to his problems. Welcome to an unexpected, if limited, consequence of the pandemic! Being a professional footballer playing for one of the bigger clubs is not always the bed of roses it is portrayed as being in the media. The obscene wages, bonuses, add-ons etc. are all very nice, but when you have a massive amount of free time and nothing to do apart from try to stay fit, things can get a bit depressing. Gilbert is also quite young. His girlfriend Angie is French. More relevant to this story, she’s in France, Marseille to be precise, with no intention of leaving the city until the virus is obliterat...

In some ways, it’s difficult to remember there was life before lockdown. People could travel to and from their homes, visiting places anywhere in the world within reason. As long as you weren’t obviously breaking the law, no-one objected. It’s only when something is no longer permitted that you begin to appreciate how important freedom of movement is to you. These were some of the many thoughts currently going through Graham’s mind as he sat in his rented narrow-boat. It was moored away from the nearest town, quite private in its own way, because he preferred it that way. It was late at night. Other thoughts included: -        ·         Why didn’t I see the lockdown coming? ·         How much stock have I got left? ·         Does anyone realise how much cash I’ve got on board? ·         Am I a target? ·   ...

  It’s a great job. Out in the fresh air all day. Talking to strangers who genuinely want to talk to him rather than being forced to do so by circumstance. Seeing the smiles light up on the faces of customers when something they are expecting arrives. Feeling a valued member of the community. Being a postie is everything he wanted it to be, and more besides. He is naturally an early-riser, which makes it even better! He’s home most days before 4pm so he can help out there too. If anything, the lockdown simply reinforces his view. It’s a protected occupation so, unlike many of his family and friends, he is still working and earning. He knows things are beginning to change though. Also, the people he delivers to on his round seem more pleased than ever to see him, even though the delivery times are varying now according to staff availability in the Sorting Office. Life is good. He has a mask to wear if he wants to, but has so far declined. He obeys the social distancing rules a...

  In the early days of the pandemic, the country experienced shortages the like of which hadn’t been experienced for many years. This is one story. “I can’t help it,” Adrian Summerfield (41) told the local Magistrates Court via video-link, “whenever a potential crisis develops I think the end of the world is coming and begin panic-buying to try to ensure I will be able to survive.” Here is what happened. Mr Summerfield, unemployed and living alone in a Council property in Gladstone Court, had been reported to the police by a security guard at the local supermarket for shop-lifting, despite having £143.75 in cash on him at the time of his arrest. He admitted the charge, and claimed the money in his pocket was a Universal Credit payment he’d obtained before entering the shop and was needed to pay other things. Following the arrest Mr Summerfield became abusive, shouting to the police officers attending that he was hyper-ventilating and needed his ‘whizzer’ urgently, and he’d in...