Guest post by Isobel Nissen, adapted from an email to my mom.
 
Update (see previous rambling):

Hopefully this will all be over soon because I’m running out of things to do. However there is a difference between wanting to do and should be doing.

Hotel management

Following on from my first observations about isolation, I spoke to management about the lack of spa and pool facilities. They apologised profusely and said that my concerns would be passed to the Board of Directors for consideration at the next AGM!!

The Museum of Food

I have made at least three forays to the major Museum of Food plus two to a couple of satellite ones. I’m pleased to say that many of the exhibits are slowly being returned to their rightful places in the MoF i.e. pasta and loo rolls. Household cleaning products however are still not always on display (probably because I have quite a lot of them). I’m not hoarding by any stretch of the imagination; it’s just that I forget what I have already and if I see something that hasn’t been available for a while I get a little bit excited! I have however had my fill of the cheese display for a while. A person can only eat so much Wensleydale with Cranberries and Cambozola (other cheeses are available).

There are thousands of Museums of Food around the country, but it seems that I had my own personal one and I had no idea. I decided to go through the dry and canned goods cupboard. Well, what a revelation.

Just how many cans of out of date coconut milk does a person need?

In my case, it seems, many. I think I must have bought them during my vegetable curry making phase. There is also the matter of the very large, out of date, can of tomato soup (nine years out of date to be precise) that I found right at the back of the cupboard. How it got there is a mystery.  

The recycling facility

Visits to the recycling facility have been frequent although I have noticed that my neighbours are also finding this of interest and it’s quite full at the moment. I think one of them has found a new pastime – cleaning out his garage.

The Museum of Household Utensils

In my previous ramblings I mentioned the interactive activity at The Museum of Household Utensils. Well, I finally made a visit on Easter Sunday or it could have been Easter Monday, I can’t remember. I don’t know why it took me so long to get there. Really,  it’s been there all day every day with no entrance fee or queuing.

During my visit there I found my garlic crusher and the small kitchen knife that I thought I’d thrown out at least a year ago. They have been returned to their rightful place. I also found at least five pairs of chopsticks both plastic and wood. The wooden ones are great for getting the toast out of the toaster when it gets stuck.

I have also found four metal skewers for use on a BBQ. I don’t have a BBQ so that’s another mystery that may never be solved. Also in the collection was a utensil for removing avocado flesh from the skin, which I bought while on holiday in Israel three or four years ago (it’s useless). Most people buy souvenirs and postcards, but I buy kitchen utensils.

I also found what I think is a knife with no sharp edges. I’m sure that whatever this is has a special purpose but I don’t know what it is. I bought it in M&S and I know this because it has Marks and Spencer stamped on it. Could this be a clue?

Household Admin

I made a brief visit to Household Admin. I didn’t like it. I left.

Oh yes, the final observation

I’m pretty sure, that I am by nature, a couch potato. However, I really resented it when I was told, officially, to be one and to stay inside. With this in mind, I have started going out for walks for pleasure; well it’s not really a pleasure but I do it as part of my allocated exercise hour (or less). I did find myself dancing around to YMCA a few days ago so I’m saying that was part of my exercise regime too. I’ve also dipped into the Joe Wicks exercise for seniors YouTube thingy. Least said about that the better.

There won’t be any more of this nonsense because I hope by the time the next newsletter is due out things will be back to some sort of normality. Until then be well, stay safe. Hopefully we’ll be able to get together soon.