To feel a bit of nostalgia for “lockdown version 1”

[Covidchameleon]

This is lighthearted and I’m not making light of the shitty situation we all find ourselves in.
However this lockdown seems to be missing some of the elements that made the first one bearable

Tiger King, great memes, queuing outside Sainsbury’s etc.

This feels instead like and endless slog - so Aibu to ask say the sequel is not as good as the original?

I know what you mean. The weather was much nicer then as well, so we spent a lot of time sitting in parks. It was actually a really beautiful summer. It's much more dismal this time.

Also, banana bread.

Personally I found lockdown 1 unbearable. I was very ill with Covid, on my own with two kids for much of it, then trying to work from home in a not easy job, homeschooling my six year old and helping the 11 yo. Providing all meals and trying to keep everyone happy in a smallish house with small garden. Bloody nightmare. Watching kids mental health deteriorate while they couldn’t see any friends or anyone their own age. People being smug because they lived in the countryside or had no kids to worry about so had quite a pleasant experience.

This lockdown has been fine - kids are at school which means they have something of a normal life. Autumn walks are lovely. We know a lot more about the virus so it’s less scary.

this sequel is not living up to the original.

@tectonicplates you freaked me out then as was literally biting into some banana bread as I read your post!

I miss the quiet of no traffic, building work or planes. Also the weather was amazing. But working from home with a toddler was so utterly shit it outweighed all the good stuff - it's so much better now he's still in nursery. Despite the worry of him getting Covid.

Hmm. There was much more of a spirit of "we're all in this together" in March, imo. People now are much wearier and many have also been financially hit very hard. However, I feel like there's much less panic about the virus now - our approach to it feels much more measured (for example, not banning people from sitting on park benches as they go about their daily exercise).

My hand was hovering over a bunch of mouldy looking bananas in the shop earlier.

I've enjoyed The Vow on Sky. It's no Tiger King but it's not bad lockdown viewing. I also feel vaguely nostalgic for watching the daily 5pm press conferences with a glass of wine.

I am very disappointed they haven't released Tiger King 2 to see us through until December.

YANBU. I absolutely loved the first lockdown.

No way. This is much better. Most important is that Ds is still at school.That means I have a happy sunny little boy rather than a miserable one whose behaviour is deteriorating. No home schooling needs doing around work so I can concentrate on work when I need to.
I can go out to take recreation rather than only for exercise, so I can sit in the park. I can even meet 1 friend to sit in the park with. Loads of places are open to get a takeaway coffee if I do this. I've also had covid already so I'm not scared this time round.

@EssentialHummus I agree, and can probably if I’m honest I was far more community minded during the first one. I volunteered, I did a few things through my work to help others out etc -I’ve not even considered it this time.
I am glad to see posters saying they’re finding this one easier though.

There was a sense of surrealness about the whole thing. But we also had Captain Tom, rainbows on windows, clapping for our carers etc. Also, nice weather and increasingly longer days. Now, it just seems grim with not even the prospect of a 'proper' Christmas to cheer us up. I'm hopeful the vaccine will make a real difference quite soon but still, we've got 3 months and more of restrictions to 'look forward to'.

Well the Crown Season 4 is out today.

But also, however shit the day had been first time around I could have a cup of tea in the garden in the sun and everything seemed ok. I have a headache inside now. The children are being loud. They’ve already been outside today but it’s awful weather and now there’s mud I need to clean off the floors.

No but we have got The Crown!

@IcedPurple I miss the NHS clapping. While of course if it had carried on it wouldn’t have any impact by now - it made me sort of happy/sad cry every time.

Omg is the Crown today?! That’s my Sunday sorted then.

We have schools and childcare back, and there’s an end in sight with vaccines, so for me this is an absolute doddle compared to spring.

My dd is missing lockdown 1. She missed her GCSEs at first she was disappointed and missed her friends but soon she got into the relaxed side of it, watching TV and lazing in the sun and quite enjoyed herself. This time round she is still at school and doing her A levels so it's hard work and she knows even if schools close she must carry on studying.

I will always have really good memories of Lockdown 1. Some parts of it were really crap, but over all it was an amazing, once in a life time experience for me.

This lockdown in no different to our new every day life.

I think as well that for the first lockdown I was all “I’m finally going to write that book, take up knitting and get things done”.
I now realise that I will never do them. Lockdown or not.

@Covidchameleon

Omg is the Crown today?! That’s my Sunday sorted then.

Apparently this afternoon or something?

I’ve tried watching season 3 again in preparation but if really wasn’t that good..

I was furloughed for 6 weeks in lockdown 1, basically while my boss came up with a plan / bought tech so we could wfh. It was bloody glorious, long enough to feel like a really good holiday with no real threat of losing my job etc. I was very lucky first time round.

I work in the NHS. The first lockdown was fine - lovely weather, no traffic, birdsong and cycling. We had hardly any patients (combination of being afraid to come in/not wanting to bother us/ low levels of infectious diseases), and levels of Covid locally were low.
Now, apart from gloomy weather, the local hospitals are getting overwhelmed with rising numbers of cases and staffing problems due to Covid related absence, and patient needs and expectations are rising.

I would have loved lockdown one if I hadn't had children. Reading, Netflix, gaming, getting to grips with WFH.

As it happened I had a baby in the last week of March and a 2 year old used to a varied diet of nursery, grandparents, soft play, woodland and beaches so that was, in a word; CHALLENGING.

Personally I prefer this lockdown because my son goes to nursery, we can drive to more varied places for walks and I'm back at work at the end of the month. Plus, I've acclimatised to bring a recluse.