Something completely different from CAHMS's former secretary.
How I Spent My Lockdown
The biggest change has been our inability to look after one or two grandchildren a day a week. That has been a distressing and emotional wrench but it's true that that wasn't a problem for their parents as they were available to look after the children!
I've put off essential decorating for years (at least 10!) so we got most of the materials to do the job just before lockdown and I spent the first 3 weeks or so up a ladder in the stair well and lounge.
The garden received far more attention than I would normally give it too. Efforts were hampered by the initial lack of rain making it hard to remove weeds and then the rain ensuring rapid grass growth requiring more mowing. You can't win!
Restrictions on travel and inability to shop where necessary also made my other main activity more difficult. Old cars have been a major interest of mine for almost 50 years and over Xmas I started negotiations to acquire a vintage Morris. I finally travelled to the Midlands to collect the 1928 Flatnose 4 seater Morris Cowley tourer in January. A two leg journey involving my Wiltshire son-in-law's car trailer for the first leg and my Exeter brother-in-law's car trailer for the second leg, finally saw the car safely rolled into the garage. It had been laid up for the last 3 years but was frequently used rallying prior to that so only had to be recommissioned, rather than rebuilt. Finally got it on the road again a couple of weeks ago so hoping for some sunny weather again when we can use it.
Our inability to open the museum in April meant that I was not needed to assist in staffing the Research Corner but, like my colleagues there, I was available for 'remote' work. I took on 3 cases, two enquiries from the USA and one from the home counties. More about those elsewhere but meanwhile, here's what the Morris Cowley looks like:
