Masks again

Well, it looks like masks are coming back as Covid numbers start to rise here. The government is recommending the wearing of masks in enclosed public spaces again although it is not mandatory yet and my building is asking people to wear them in lifts and communal areas.

I never really stopped wearing one when out and about, especially on public transport and in the gym, so it won´t make much difference to me. My biggest concern is if this new wave grows to the extent that it affects travel plans - my trip to Portugal and England is in three week's time. Fingers crossed!
 

 Photo by Mika Baumeister - Unsplash 

Why not?

BBC News 

Spanish village on sale for €260,000 The new owner would get 44 homes, a hotel, a church, a school, a swimming pool and even a barracks.

The above news item caught my eye. It is similar to other articles where, in Italy for example, the government is trying to repopulate villages by offering houses for sale for a few euros.

 

I would have thought it a good idea to use these homes as accommodation for the many refugees flooding across the borders. They would have somewhere safe to live, maybe a little garden where they could grow some food and work towards rebuilding and revitalizing the villages. Surely it wouldn´t cost the government any more than they are already spending trying to deal with the refugee problem, and it would also create new jobs in the community for health workers, teachers etc. Genuine refugees would surely be grateful for a safe haven and the chance to rebuild their lives.

It is a simple idea but there must be something wrong with it, otherwise surely the powers that be would have done something along those lines.

 

 

 

A young Apollo

I have just googled a quotation I have always liked as I couldn´t remember where it was from. It turns out is was written by the poet Rupert Brooke. I think I originally came across it in my teens and it stuck in my mind for some reason. I remember it as follows:

"A young Apollo, golden haired,

  Stands waiting on the verge of strife

  Magnificently unprepared

  For the great littleness of life."

According to Google my version has two incorrect words, "waiting" instead of "dreaming" and "great" instead of "long". Here is the correct version:

"A young Apollo, golden haired,

  Stands dreaming on the verge of strife,

  Magnificently unprepared

  For the long littleness of life."

I have always found the lines very expressive and poignant, which is probably why I still remember them, and doubly poignant now I realize he was talking about a young soldier in the first World War with its terrible loss of life.

I must confess that I prefer my "great littleness" to his"long littleness" though, (heresy, I know!).

Three hundred and counting

I have just completed my 300th Wordle...it has become part of my morning ritual when I jump back into bed with my first coffee.  According to my statistics I mostly find the right word on my fourth try although once I actually got it right first time, but that was a sheer fluke. I do enjoy the daily challenge and I´m sure a little brain exercise does me good!

Whimsy

If a butterfly

can flutter by

so can I

 

Photo by Gayatri Malhotra on Unsplash
 

Just a little pinch

Toby has a bit of a cough from time to time to clear his throat from mucous, mostly when he wakes up after a snooze. I thought I´d try a home remedy before resorting to the vet. According to several Google sources cinnamon or honey may help. He is only a little fella so a pinch of cinnamon sprinkled on his kibble is the recommended dose. I was a bit dubious about his accepting it at first, but he loves it! He is somewhat of a reluctant eater but now he scoffs his food as soon as I put it down for him. I hope the cinnamon helps his cough but even if it doesn´t at least I´ve found a way of persuading him to eat when he turns his nose up at his bowl. I wonder what he´d think of some honey? 

Photo by Rens D - Unsplash
  

Slow but sure

So, I´ve just had an idea for a war story with a difference... I don´t know where it came from and although I´ve always fancied myself as a writer I don´t think I have the patience to write a book, but if anyone wants to grab my idea and run with it, you saw it here first!

The story is about a British agent/downed airman/escaped POW in France who is trying to evade capture while traveling across the country to escape to England. He initially shelters on a remote farm helped by the farmer´s widow. Ever since her husband´s death the farm has been neglected and machinery lies around unused and rusting. Our hero has the idea of using an old tractor as a means of getting to the coast. He can alter his appearance to look like a farmer and slowly make his way along quiet country roads where he would hopefully be mistaken for a local farmer by the Germans. If he wore an eye patch this would justify his not having been called-up.

It would be a slow but sure way of getting to his destination and the story would consist of his encounters, narrow escapes and troubles on the way. He could start out with a supply of fuel from the farm and when that ran out he would have to beg/borrow or steal some. If it were late summer he could hopefully try to live off the land and sleep in the woods. Maybe he would pick up a companion for part of the way, a young street-smart lad/runaway who could help him out.

Anyway, that is my idea. I think it might actually make a good film...does anyone have Tom Hanks number?

 Photo by Timothy Eberly on Unsplash