Day 10 – Quiz advice

Double figures!

Well done, us!

Whoop!

Meh.

 

One thing I have managed to do while we’ve been on lockdown is a bit of quizzing. I’ve done some live quizzes on Quizando, I’ve played the old quiz that I used to play back in the UK (because he’s had to move online as all the pubs are shut), and I’ve been enjoying Jimmy Carr’s The Little Tiny Quiz of the Lockdown on Youtube.

10 questions every evening at 6pm UK time (that’s 7pm CAT), with the answers 2 hours later at 8pm UK time (that’s 9pm CAT) (although if I had to tell you that, you’re probably not going to do very well).

Less than 10 minutes per evening, all in, and there have been some cracking questions for pub quiz addicts. And amazingly family friendly as well.

Here are the Day 1 videos for you to try, first of all the Questions:

And the Answers:

I’ve just finished Day 6, and I’m doing pretty well. And this is just for fun: no prizes here, so no point googling or cheating or whatever – just enjoy it.

If you’ve got any decent quiz ideas while we’re all stuck indoors, please leave me (and with me, everyone else) a comment on the 6000.co.za Facebook page.
There is always space in my life for more pub quiz goodness.

Day 9 – The Garden

Mrs 6000 has been working overtime upon overtime for the last two weeks, so it was with some delight that I heard her suggest  that we should launch a bit of an attack on the garden this morning. Rather that than another day in front of the laptop.

However, it’s now 4pm. I’ve only just emerged from the shower and every single muscle hurts. Yes, even that one. Some hard work has been done and tomorrow is going to bring the traditional World of Pain™, but on the plus side, there have been no Zoom meetings, no spreadsheets and no billion work Whatsapps.

On the negative side, there is some music being played in the house, and (IMHO) it’s not really great music. Thus, I have retreated to some B-sides and remixes from The Streets while I have been writing this. This was a good call.

I fancy a beer but I’m mindful that I made a bit of dent in the stash last night and let’s face it, no-one really expects us to be out of this lockdown on April 13th, do they? I’m thinking that three weeks will actually stretch to six or eight. My beer cache will also have to last that long.
And so maybe I’ll have some milk instead of Milk Stout this evening.

Day 8 – I went out

I did. We needed shopping, so I went to the shop.

Obviously, everywhere was much quieter than usual, but not empty. Several (or more) cars on the roads, as well. My chosen supermarket had a one-in, one-out policy running to limit the number of shoppers in the place, but I was there early enough to not have to queue, although there was quite a wait by the time I left.

There was plenty of hand sanitiser available and it was being liberally squirted everywhere while I was in there. There were lots of people in face masks and lots of people not using face masks very well, although the best effort at pseudo-PPE was a guy in DIY safety specs, who had tissue paper wrapped around his lower face. When I saw him, I spluttered with laughter, eliciting immediate glances of concern from the paranoid shoppers around me.

As far as stock went, it was mostly ok. Frozen veg was gone, canned veg was a little short, and the range of fresh veg wasn’t great. So yes, veg was a bit of an issue. There were weird holes in the shelves: jam, chicken, rusks and rooibos tea all AWOL. But generally it was a reasonable experience – nowhere near as weird as I thought it would be – and now we’re stocked up for the next couple of weeks. I might not have to go out again. Ever.

Now that I – and through me, the family – have been exposed to the outside world again, we’re going to be doing even more handwashing and not touching of faces for the next few days. I’ve already disinfected the car and left the shopping bags on the washing line to bake any viruses off in the sun.

Day 7 – Bit short of bread

I’m writing this at [checks watch] around midday, which means that I’m 3 hours and 47 minutes (thank you Google Maps timeline) from a week of being inside.

I’m going to have to venture outside into what passes from the real world soon. We’re running a bit short of bread. I do have the means to bake some more, so it’s not desperate, but that time is coming.

It’s struck me that the chances of me having caught Covid-19 are becoming smaller and smaller, as we have had zero contact with anyone now for those 7 days. And it also strikes me that the chances of catching it while I’m buying bread are still small, but also still increasing.

There have been a few well-publicised incidents of people jogging or walking their dogs in the suburbs, which is naughty and illegal, but I have it on good authority from several independent sources that elsewhere, the lockdown is being treated as a bit of holiday. This is not good, and effectively negates the effect of the people obeying the lockdown and staying inside. This is basically the equivalent of you recycling a small Marmite jar in your Cape Town kitchen to help save the planet while China builds another ten coal-fired power stations.
In turn, of course, this lack of adherence to the rules will simply lead to an extension of the restrictions, which then won’t be obeyed again… and around and around we go. With some deaths.

Still, you just do what you can, don’t you? I can’t stop the entire population of Rustenburg thronging in the High Street coughing and sneezing on one another, like ten dirty power stations, can I?

And so we just sit here making sure our Marmite jars are nice and clean for the glass people, because really it’s all we can do.

Day 6 – I want a dog

When it gets dark, my dog will bark
At any passers-by

So sang and remastered the Pet Shop Boys, thus:

Barking at passers-by was one of the beagle’s most very favourite things to do, and absolutely its most favourite thing to do that didn’t involve food. We spend most of our outdoor time at home in the back garden, but if we have cause to go out to the front, the beagle will scoot out and take up a position overlooking the pavement and… well… will bark at any passers-by.

You must please understand that the gate is some distance from the actual passers-by. The passers-by are in no danger here, although if they were to actually get into the front garden, they may be licked to death.

I went out into the front garden this morning to wash the front windows, because that’s the kind of thing you do when you have nothing else to do and nowhere else to go. And when the windows are dirty.

The beagle eagerly ran out and took up position and waited… and waited… and waited. And gradually, it sat and then sank to its tummy, resting its head upon the bottom rung of the fence, as absolutely no-one passed by.

Eventually, it gave up and returned inside to do some sleeping. This is absolutely unheard of (the returning inside bit, I mean: the sleeping is entirely normal).

This is great news as far as the adherence to lockdown regulations go, but not so wonderful if you are the beagle. The beagle is clearly very unhappy.

So, if you are planning to pass by my house, please could you…well, actually, just please could you? Literally, please could you pass by my house?
It would make someone I know ever so happy.

Thanks.