I am sitting here looking out the window and it is pouring with rain and we have a howling gale and I am beginning to wonder if life will ever get back to normal again. Well, the answer is, it won't. Not the normal we were used to and took for granted, but just some kind of "normal".
My normal would be going out for a potter around the shops (I very rarely do this but would like to now!), and when I have finished pottering going and finding a nice caff to sit and have a coffee and watch the world go by. The best shopping of course would be in a bookshop or two and if they have a tea room attached then even better.
I have fretted over the lockdown and want it to end but, and I am surprised at this, I agree with the Government over the snail's pace in which it is being done. While we are getting fed up with being over cautious, we simply cannot rush it and risk another huge outbreak as another lockdown is out of the question. Not sure anybody would survive quite frankly.
We will get there.
So what have I been doing? I had a week last week I would rather forget where the main excitement was being chased by a debt recovery company for money I had no idea I owed and, in fact, I didn't. It turned out that this mighty sum – £57.50 – was due to an insurance company who I no longer use. I managed to track down my correspondence with them in which they apologised and said this was all a mistake blah blah. This email from them was dated July 2016 and nearly five years later they start all over again.
I spent three days on the phone and trying to get someone to help and finally found an incredibly helpful lady who sorted it all out and actually called me back which is a first for most companies.
I can cope, I always do but last week when this was finally done I sat down and cried. Then I got really angry and tracked down the CEO of the company and fired off an Elaine Special (sent by recorded delivery) telling her what I thought of the whole kit and caboodle. I have yet to hear back….
Reading wise I am wading through the diaries of Henry 'Chips' Channon which are rousing me to fury, so unpleasant and snobbish and vile is he and if I could throw the book across the room I would. However, it is nearly 900 pages and weighs heavy so I am unable to do do. I will be reviewing in due course.
One aspect that I dislike is his atttitude to his parents. Loathes them, despises them, and yet complains when his dad does not send him money. Mmmm where have I heard that this week…..
I have also discovered some books by an author called William Shaw featuring DS Alexandra Cupidi and set in Kent. These were recommended by a fellow blogger and I am enjoying them very much.
And in between I am wading through a biog of the Kaiser which I mentioned earlier. It is a condensed edition as the original runs to three volumes and pretty sure I would never have got through that.
I have also watched the cricket England v India test match series which was very good exercise wise as I spent most of my time leaping out of my chair and hurling insults at the 
screen. I will leave you to make an educated guess which team I was cursing.
TV – On recommendation from various sources I have been watching The Bureau. A series, in French and made by the same production team which gave us Spiral, it tells the story of the members of the French Intelligance – spooks if you will – and is totally riveting. I bought the first two series on Amazon Prime, not madly expensive and way cheaper than DVDs, but then found that in order to watch the final three series I had to take out a subscription to Sundance TV whatever that is. I was quite annoyed but then noticed that I could have a SEVEN DAY FREE TRIAL. Yes gentle reader, you are correct in your surmise. I did so and spent the week lapping up the 30 hours left and finished just in time to cancel my sub.
I have to say that The Bureau is, without doubt, the best series I have watched on TV. And I am a veteran of eight series of Spiral, three seasons of the Bridge, two seasons of The Killing, all of The Wire, and various other superbly made Nordic/French tv productions. The Bureau is Simply the Best.
Now this week England play India in a series of T20 matches which I like watching and are fun, but not to be taken seriously. They are on Sky and I have cancelled my sports sub as I barely use it any more but I would rather like to see these so I have done a bit of googling and have discovered that Now TV is showing them. Once again I really do not want to take out yet another sub but guess what? Yes, they have a SEVEN DAY FREE TRIAL so if I time it right I can watch all the matches and then cancel the sub.
I am sure that somewhere in the bowels of the Deep Internet I am being flagged up…..
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