Monday, 18th May 2020. Phase two begins.
Today we can meet up friends in groups no bigger than four. The planning has already begun. I said to Son (20) last night, “Are you looking forward to tomorrow?”
"Why, what’s happening tomorrow?"
"You can get together with your friends, no more than three, but you can meet up outside and have a kickabout?”
He frowned and said, “I don’t know Mum, I think it’s too soon.” He’s happy some football is back on TV, the Bundesliga in Germany. According to the news, some 20 million viewers tuned in to watch.
On Saturday, three of us went shopping without telling the others. We now have 40 eggs, 12 avocadoes and, 25 bananas.
Today we can meet up friends in groups no bigger than four. The planning has already begun. I said to Son (20) last night, “Are you looking forward to tomorrow?”
"Why, what’s happening tomorrow?"
"You can get together with your friends, no more than three, but you can meet up outside and have a kickabout?”
He frowned and said, “I don’t know Mum, I think it’s too soon.” He’s happy some football is back on TV, the Bundesliga in Germany. According to the news, some 20 million viewers tuned in to watch.
On Saturday, three of us went shopping without telling the others. We now have 40 eggs, 12 avocadoes and, 25 bananas.
Yesterday, I spent most of the day in bed reading Sue Townsend’s The Woman Who Went to Bed For a Year. It was an impulse buy, so long ago, I can't remember when but according to the sticker on the cover it was a 'buy three, pay for two' deal. I flicked through it while waiting for the kettle to boil. The first five pages made me laugh. It perfectly captures my mindset these last few weeks.
My friend Mary, who attends the University of Limerick (UL), emailed me on Friday to tell me that UL announced that from September, students will be restricted to a maximum of 20% presence on campus. Mary is not happy about this as she feels college is more than just learning; it's about social mixing and networking too. Mary reckons she's learned as much from the classroom discussions and listening to the opinions of others as she has from the lecturers. She argues that college is about opening the mind, prodding students to think for themselves, and instilling curiosity about the world. How is this to be possible, she wonders, unless you are sharing space: being in the presence of others creates a fluidity and spontaneity in the conversation which becomes lost in translation through Zoom. Mary devours books and the new restricted access to the college library will be a big loss. On the plus side, since she only has to be in college on her 20% days, she doesn’t have to rent in Limerick anymore nor eat out as much and so will save money. I agree with her about the social interaction but if UL is taking that route, maybe other colleges will follow suit. If so, then college courses conducted 80% on-line can be done from anywhere which means college becoming more accessible to people who cannot afford to take a year off or give up whole chunks of their day to study, cannot travel, nor afford rent in another town.
And so, it has finally hit me that Covid-19 has forced us to change how we do things forever. My friend Annette assures me that it is the natural order of things. "We were due a pandemic anyway, she says. The last one happened in 1918 with the Spanish Flu."
My friend Mary, who attends the University of Limerick (UL), emailed me on Friday to tell me that UL announced that from September, students will be restricted to a maximum of 20% presence on campus. Mary is not happy about this as she feels college is more than just learning; it's about social mixing and networking too. Mary reckons she's learned as much from the classroom discussions and listening to the opinions of others as she has from the lecturers. She argues that college is about opening the mind, prodding students to think for themselves, and instilling curiosity about the world. How is this to be possible, she wonders, unless you are sharing space: being in the presence of others creates a fluidity and spontaneity in the conversation which becomes lost in translation through Zoom. Mary devours books and the new restricted access to the college library will be a big loss. On the plus side, since she only has to be in college on her 20% days, she doesn’t have to rent in Limerick anymore nor eat out as much and so will save money. I agree with her about the social interaction but if UL is taking that route, maybe other colleges will follow suit. If so, then college courses conducted 80% on-line can be done from anywhere which means college becoming more accessible to people who cannot afford to take a year off or give up whole chunks of their day to study, cannot travel, nor afford rent in another town.
And so, it has finally hit me that Covid-19 has forced us to change how we do things forever. My friend Annette assures me that it is the natural order of things. "We were due a pandemic anyway, she says. The last one happened in 1918 with the Spanish Flu."
“Why is it ‘due'?" I asked. "Is it to cull the human species?”
She shrugged and said, “It seems to be the natural order of the world.”
Speaking of natural, I think both sons urgently need to get out and interact with other human beings: they are reverting to Lord of the Flies standards of behaviour. Son's (20) belches are getting louder; some days he sits in the recliner in front of the TV particularly after a satisfying omelette and lets them rip. He's proud of them. “Mum, listen to this,” he says and then throwing his head back his mouth wide open like a basking shark, he barks out a series of thunderclaps that bounce off the walls and echo in my ears.
Speaking of natural, I think both sons urgently need to get out and interact with other human beings: they are reverting to Lord of the Flies standards of behaviour. Son's (20) belches are getting louder; some days he sits in the recliner in front of the TV particularly after a satisfying omelette and lets them rip. He's proud of them. “Mum, listen to this,” he says and then throwing his head back his mouth wide open like a basking shark, he barks out a series of thunderclaps that bounce off the walls and echo in my ears.
Son (22) has his own specialty; he releases loud quantities of gas while eating and reading at the same time but seems oblivious. “Could you open the window at least?” I said. “What?!?,” he replies in mock horror. "But then I’ll wake up the neighbours.”
From today, we are allowed to meet other people. I really hope they do.
From today, we are allowed to meet other people. I really hope they do.
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