Dear Inmates, I refuse to commence this lockdown update with a countdown! We are ALL still ”agter slot en grendel.” However, stage 4 is around the corner, and we are slowly getting there, so please don’t lose heart. The abundance of jokes, whale-tales, and funny videos have entertained us endlessly, and thank goodness for that.
Another world opened up as our natural world closed in on us due to the big bad wolf. We found out how to connect through cyberspace. Employees in corporate businesses feel they are working harder from home than being at the office. Online companies like the fitness industry, ballet lessons, etc., are growing steadily. Even churches leapt into cyberspace with their weekly meetings, streaming it via the Internet, and together with the local flock, participates in a meaningful service safely at home. Sadly, I know there’s also a devastating economic meltdown and financial ruin for a significant number of small & medium-sized businesses, and that is heartbreaking!
On a more positive note, the new Zoom-Bistro that popped up during this lockdown period here in Hermanus and elsewhere became a lifesaver for us. You set an evening aside, invite some friends, send them the Zoom-Bistro ID meeting code. At the arranged time, you all connect via your Zoom App in front of your TV. Ladies dress up for the occasion complete with lipstick and perfume, the lights are low, and jazz melodies find a way to your ear. You prepare your favourite meal and pour your best glass of ‘Merloo.’ Sit back, and with your guests, you enjoy a night of fun and laughter. What’s interesting is the wide variety of dishes on the Zoom-Bistro menu! They serve anything from Cordon Bleu to Bangers and Mash. Their dessert menu is out of the ordinary! And the best part, you can bring your own wyn. If you don’t have any, you are in trouble. Nobody can help you. There’s also no corkage fee. Unbelievable! No need to order an Uber for safe passage home either. Genuinely it is the most inexpensive yet enjoyable evening spent together with precious friends and family! If you have never experienced a Zoom-Bistro outing, I urge you to go ahead and do it!
Our neighbours behind us were so hungry for conversation that they invited us for a braai the other night. Their braai area is close to our back wall. We gladly excepted the invitation as we were hungry too. They proposed to prepare the meal if Carlo played his guitar. We carried our heavy patio table to the back wall. I placed two chairs on top of the table. We climbed up with the doggies, the guitar, and our eating utensils. These are the kind of moments that we will remember forever! From there, we enjoyed a pleasant meal and conversation with our neighbours from a safe distance accompanied by guitar music.
A simple act of sitting next to a fire with friends under the stars are being denied us due to unseen components we are not familiar with. And I cannot help to wonder if these uninvited hidden factors will become part of our daily existences!
27/4/2020
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