Day #2 Connection: Good

I was woken up to the sound of a snapchat message gatecrashing it’s way through my iPhone speakers. I take a look, it’s a message from a very special person wishing me a good morning and that I had rested well.

These messages occur on a daily basis and are really nice to read first thing in the morning. Especially as I have few friends and the ones I do have seldom check up on me to that extent, nor would I want them to on further thought. From her though, it’s quite alright and very welcome.

Next I gave grandma a call, seeing as I had arranged to do some shopping for her today. Granny D (as I refer to her) said that she had tried to put up some curtains the day before but had struggled.

Not to be ageist I suggested perhaps it wasn’t the wisest decision for an 82 year old lady to be putting up a brand new set of curtains; including installing the railings I might add. Granny D in her own words is not an easy woman.

We both went through a list of things she would need such as groceries and household items until we completed writing out a shopping list. I told her that I would have breakfast and then get ready to head down to see her.

Granny D had made usual enquires to my sisters wellbeing so I decided to call her straight after. No response. 9:30am. Maybe too early.

So I proceeded to prepare breakfast which consisted of the usual fried suspects of eggs, chicken sausages and beans. These were flanked on the side by two cheese toasties and washed down with a hotly infused ginger tea. Lovely!

After my shower whilst I was getting dressed, America, my sister called. I can always tell from the tone of her ‘hello’ or ‘hey, what you saying’ whether she is in a happy or not so happy space. Today’s happiness was of the not so kind. Frustrated at having to be confined to the house during the current Covid 19 situation.

I gave her some productive and useful techniques to employ during her time of enforced solitude, which didn’t go down too well as my Taurus born sister was currently still in a serious funk.

The final straw came when I said that I would send a link for access to a short week length meditation playlist. A quick back and forth ensued from which America proceeded to state she was leaving the conversation and hung up forthwith.

Now dressed and ready for my date with Vicky, I swung her from the backyard and brought her through to the front drive. I have to concede that I had been neglecting Vicky for quite some time and was not sure how she would react on this long journey; it’s a 20 mile trip to grandma’s house.

Vicky, if you haven’t already guessed is a bicycle. A Pendleton to be exact, hence the reasons she’s named Vicky after the Team GB medal winning cyclist. Dutch looking bike in the colour of sage with brown leather grips on the handlebars and nicely cushioned seat.

Of course, it did come with a bell. No basket and no chihuahua I’m afraid. I do however have my Sony XB40 speaker that I wouldn’t be caught dead without cycling with. So with playlist selected I made my way towards Granny D.

The weather was absolutely glorious as it had been for the past week and with not that many people nor cars around it gave me the opportunity to take in much more of my surroundings.

Riding past Stratford seeing the leftovers from London 2012 to right of me in the distance, or cruising by Marble Arch where on a normal day you’d have to dodge and jostle your way through the constant conveyor belt of people wandering through to Oxford Street or Hyde Park. Today’s scene, eerily quiet and lifeless.

It’s in these times you appreciate the small things in life, which looked at from under a microscope become huge things. Everything’s just a matter of perception and vantage point. In that moment I appreciated the fact that I still have a choice to take my bicycle and ride it for 20 miles in order to carry shopping to my gran.

Just imagine if even those privileges get taken away. I might just get as petulant as America.