Well, well, well, here we are again, on the morning of yet another ‘Tier Announcement’. How are we feeling? Nervous? Excited? Like we’re in The Hunger Games finding out what district we’re placed in?
Gone are the days we wake up excited for what good news may come our way, and now we wake up hoping for the least terrible situation for ourselves. It’s funny really isn’t it, how we adapt. For those non-UK based readers, earlier this week we received the news of what will happen when England exits the national lockdown next Wednesday 2nd December. The result was that the country will, once again, be placed into tiers, not too dissimilar from the situation before lockdown 2.0. Except this time, the tiers are much more severe. If you’re interested, you can sieve through the information on the government website here.
These announcements really annoy me, I can’t lie. The drip-feeding of information, when they’ve known full-well what their intentions are for weeks, if not months, is like some sort of sadistic control technique and I’m tired of it. It’s still difficult to find out what time the announcement is going to be today (it’s 11.30am by the way), and there’s a rumour that it’ll be reviewed in 2 weeks’ time anyway. Once again, millions of people are left not knowing if they’re coming or going and whether they’ll work again before the year’s out. I can live with whatever rules are put in place to be honest, I fully understand we’re living through a pandemic, but I can’t fathom the whole dragging-it-out-as-long-as-possible game.
From a purely selfish point of view, I just want to know if I can work. If we are in Tier 1 or 2, I can earn some money, but if it’s Tier 3, it’s a no go once again, just like the last four weeks. Of course, I’m still pitching for writing work daily, and hoping something comes of it, but it’s worrying nonetheless. Alas – things have figured out up to now job-wise, so I just have to trust the universe, I suppose. There’s always a bigger plan, or so I like to tell myself anyway!
Anyway, things aren’t all doom and gloom. The sun is trying to break through the clouds today leaving a lovely, glistening hue over everything, there’s been a 5-day relaxation period so people can see their families over the holidays, and there’s hint of a vaccine next year. And I’m sharing some lovely, heartwarming and hilarious things for you to enjoy this week. Things are looking up!
Reading
Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
I’m about halfway through this book and am generally enjoying it so far. My interest is piqued which is always a good thing and I have strong opinions about some of the characters which is also a good thing. I’ll report back on whether I’d recommend it or not next week, it’s still a little early to say.
13 Social Experiments That Didn’t Go According to Plan and Revealed a Lot About Us
I stumbled across this post recently and found myself really enjoying reading it. In case the title didn’t give it away, it’s about 13 social experiments that produced somewhat surprising and positive results. I found it so interesting to read about human behaviour and tendencies, and I definitely think it’s worth a read!
Random Acts Of Kindness We Found On The Internet This Week
There’s some lovely, fulfilling stuff in here – if you’re feeling particularly jaded or annoyed right now, make sure you check it out. It’ll restore your faith in humanity and also just give you a little respite!
Watching
I started watching this about three weeks ago, but James has hogged the tele to watch the world’s most awful, violent programme ever (Sons of Anarchy) so I’ve not had chance to finish it until the weekend just gone. I have to say, I absolutely loved this show.
I don’t want to give anything at all away, but if you’re one of the few people that haven’t seen it yet – go watch it! I absolutely loved watching Anya Taylor-Joy playing the lead of a strong, amazing woman and I was surprised by how much I loved what is essentially a series about Chess. Also, the research that must have gone into that show was so interesting, I really, really recommend it!
It’s not what I’ve been watching, as such, but I’ve been scrolling through it ever since I discovered it. This Facebook page is so daft, but so so funny. I cried laughing the other night at some of the memes on there. Anybody that knows me knows my passionate appreciation for memes and the people who create them, and this page is like a heaven filled with hilarious memes. Check it out if you need a laugh – it’s so stupid but so so funny.
Listening
I love Moby, and I’ve been listening to a lot more of his stuff lately. I’m not sure how I’ve never heard this song, but I’ve been listening to it lately and think it’s lovely. It’s also very apt for the current circumstances, and quite beautifully sums up how I feel about this year. These lyrics, particularly:
Open to everything, happy and sad Seeing the good when it's all going bad Seeing the sun when I can't really see Hoping the sun will at least look at me Focus on everything better today All that I needed I never could say Hold on to people, they're slipping away Hold on to this while it's slipping away
Before You Go…
Again, there’s no category for these (though I’m contemplating creating one!) but here’s two things I saw this week that were both heartwarming and hilarious:
This one is just so lovely, and is exactly the type of thing my gorgeous grandparents would do. So gorgeous.
This one made me laugh so much because it is so true. Though nights like this feel like a distant memory, I can’t wait for the day to arrive when going out with friends will be the norm, and having to ingest the rest of your drink at the speed of light as the taxi arrives will be ever prominent in our lives once again!
I hope that the looming tier announcement doesn’t cause you too much stress, and I hope you have a lovely week ahead!
See you next Wednesday!
Reflect and Introspect 