Fat Bloke on a Bike

I'm a rather skittish unhappy puppy.  For sure this coronavirus thingy has put the wind up me.  Yet again the legacy that is my exit from BT has re-introduced the mild trembling.  That bastard last manager of mine - Julian - has left me a broken puppy, especially whenever I'm feeling stressed. Today I dropped some workwear masks off at my brothers house at about 0630am as irrespective of what I or anyone else says to him he will not say no when someone asks him to do a shop delivery or house move.  He continues to have a 'no consequence' attitude to life - something that has become a strong feature in him after his brain aneurysm in 2000.  He knows we all need to socially distance ourselves from others so I don't quite understand why he continues to be in and out of other folks properties delivering and moving stuff for them.  I fear for him, for his son who works with him and for his partner Elaine, a long time smoker.  None of us are safe. I've a...

I've stopped watching TV.  I find the repetitive Coronavirus news just plain scary.  News of the growing figures of those infected and the growing death rates. There's too much light conversation about this disease.  Radio shows chatting with folk about how they are doing.  Images on TV of Italian folk singing across balconies whilst in lockdown.  I'm expecting loads of folk to sleepwalk into this pandemic.  Eyes wide shut. Ignore it and it might go away. But also thinking of the critical care nurse from York tearfully pleading on social media for people to stop bulk buying and clearing supermarket shelves leaving her with nothing after a hard 48hour shift in an intensive care unit.  The strain on her and other hospital folk must be huge.  I'm heartbroken watching her cry and plead for people to stop doing it whilst she's sat in her car.  I'm crying as I write this.  It's painful to watch.  What about the folks with kids?  It...

I awoke this morning at about 3am after 6hrs or so of sleep.  I'm losing interest in everything except for one thing.  It's on my mind 24x7.  It has been on my mind for the last 2 months ever since it was reported early January in China. Covid-19 is a dangerously contagious virus which has spread out of China around the globe.  The World Health Organisation have declared it a major pandemic.  It's not only highly infectious, the death rate is running at somewhere between 1 to 10 percent depending on country location.  It's persistent and long lasting in those infected.  Fevers with breathing difficulties possibly needing hospitalisation and the real risk that ICU's will be over run.  A vaccine is a year away.  And I'm scared.  No not worried.  I'm proper scared. I'm watching this site like a hawk.   https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/   It's early doors, yet the pandemic is wreaking havoc in Italy, Iran and Spai...

For many years and a lot more than I'd like to say I've had a second house, nay a money pit, unused and sat gathering value whilst I pottered and fannied about on it with new electrics, central heating, bathrooms etc. You name it and it's probably been done to it. Work life always consumed me.  In the priority of things the second house was somewhat lower than a racing snakes belly.  I was happy to pay the small gas and electric bill, some empty property insurance and the council tax.  A substantial sum of money every year but I didn't have the worry of managing a house with tenants on top of everything and anyway its at least doubled in value over the last 10 years... it's my retirement plan I always said.  I'll start to rent it when I retire and one day perhaps convert it into a yacht and sail the world!  That was the dream anyway. Well that day did come, in fact that was 2 years ago when work finally relinquished its grasp on my soul and in doing so signi...