It's just over a year since the UK went into lockdown for the first time. I looked over my March 2020 entry for Sentence a Day to see what it was like. On the first day, March 24, I went into the local Co-Op and was horrified to see empty shelves. It was as if locusts had been and stripped the place.
For the next few days there was a crisis over toilet rolls. But don't hate the stockpilers too much. We are genetically programmed to become selfish at times when we're threatened by famine or disease.
I remember feeling a great sense of relief when the government finally announced the lockdown. We had seen what was happening in Italy. Thousands of people from Wuhan and stricken skiing resorts were continuing to arrive in the UK with impunity. 65,000 people went to the Cheltenham Festival in March, a few days before lockdown began. More than 50,000 were packed into Liverpool FC's stadium on 11 March for a match against Atletico Madrid, including thousands from Madrid which was already in the grip of Covid.
Still the government dithered with Boris Johnson, the famous "libertarian" believing we could all get by with herd immunity, as if it was the flu, and a senior medical officer, Jenny Harries, saying face coverings weren't much use.
Fortunately common sense was prevailing among the people, if not the government. My company was among many which mandated working from home two weeks before Johnson got round to it.
This week, after a third lockdown which began for London just before Christmas, we started seeing some tentative relaxing of the rules. It's now possible for six people, or two households, to meet outside. Group outdoor sports have resumed. There's a roadmap of when we can expect to restart other activities, such as seeing people indoors and meeting in pubs and restaurants. Foreign holidays don't look likely until August at the earliest.
I'm hoping that people don't go too mad too soon. I know we've all been cooped up, and two Easters have been ruined, but I don't want to have to endure another lockdown because people couldn't be sensible.
Now for a few outfits. Above: poncho and infinity scarf from Kettlewell. A poncho is particularly good for this time of year as it starts to warm up, but you still need a jacket or cardigan outside. We're having strange temperatures lately: very hot yesterday for March, but it will be cold again next week for Easter.
Infinity scarves are a great way to add a splash of colour to an outfit, particularly for Zoom sessions. I now have them in several colours - emerald above, Chinese Blue below. You can't go wrong with bright metallic belts and boots in different colours either, to give a bit of a wow to a jeans and t-shirt combo.As you know, I've been growing my boot collection over the years and added these green suede boots this winter. More here on the
collection.
A velvet skirt but worn in a casual way with trainers. It's got an elasticated waist and the velvet makes it very comfortable for sitting down working (more so than jeans). The cardigan was mumsy looking, too long, until I tied it.
Finally my new Rachel jacket from
Kettlewell in bright violet. It's a soft suede and will be perfect for my morning walks until it gets too hot. Certainly a bit more stylish than my usual Rab or North Face jackets! The lilac brogues are fun - they came from The Bias Cut. Jacket, top, belt and infinity scarf in iced lavender are all from Kettlewell. The white trousers are new and from M&S - you can also see them in Monday's post. They're Mia slim leg ankle grazers. Perfect for summer.
I'm unapologetic about buying clothes. The retail sector in on its knees, and even John Lewis is now closing eight stores in the face of stiff local opposition. Thousands of jobs have been lost, mostly the jobs of women.
Women, particularly those with children, are not always able to take warehouse jobs which are mostly out of town and need a car, or Uber or Deliveroo jobs. The government clearly cares very little about 50% of the population - look at how hair and beauty salons were de-prioritised, but barbers were able to open sooner last time!
Ending on a sober note, we will soon be seeing a lot more analysis about what the government did wrong, so wrong that the UK has the highest death rate worldwide per millions of population. This analysis is urgently needed. Don't be duped into thinking it's all turned out OK because of the vaccination programme. To me, what happened with care homes in the first lockdown was comparable with war crimes. Care homes were ordered to take sick people who had been discharged from hospital, without having had a Covid test. The result was sadly inevitable, along with critical delays in getting PPE and testing for staff.
What are your thoughts a year on about lockdown #1 and escaping from Covid?
No items were gifted for this post and no affiliate links used.
Now it's time for #WowOnWednesday, the link-up where readers find new blogs to read, and bloggers find new readers!Last Week's Favourites - Most Clicked
Shelbee from Shelbee on the Edge and her post What to Wear on a Cold Spring Day Shelbee combines spring and winter pieces to create the perfect layered look that speaks to spring but keeps her warm. This is what we'll all be doing over Easter for chilly gatherings in gardens!
Vanity and Me's post "
Interior edit: what's going on around the house" . Laurie asked in the post if we want to see more interiors posts, and I think the answer is a resounding yes.
Is This Mutton's Non-Fashion Favourite
I love all the "Friday Favourite" type posts where you can get recommendations for books and TV. I particularly enjoyed Rena's slightly different take on this -
21 IN ’21: DELIGHTFUL READS.
Rena, from Five Whatever, has selected 21 interesting and varied online articles to read, including topics such as:
- I Tracked Down The Girls Who Bullied Me As A Kid. Here’s What They Had To Say.
- So You’ve Been Told That Your Skinny Jeans Are Over…
- Tips For Falling Asleep When Stressed
- The Case For Semicolons
Well thats a eye opener, because Gerben and I say to each other how good the UK is doing. I heard yesterday that I could be vaccinated in october! I can tell you, I cried!! That lilac jacket is gorgeous, I always love the color combinations you wear.
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