The last Saturday before lockdown

[Joan0fSarc]

What were you doing?

I had a lovely afternoon in town with DH looking at guitars in music shops, buying some wine and bits for dinner. Really mundane stuff by usual standards but I'd give anything to do that now. We came home on a crowded bus - I had no idea it'd be the last time I'd use public transport for months!

[SpnBaby1967]

We were already primarily staying home by this point anyway, my work had started wfh 3 weeks prior.

My DH went and collected a tv I ordered from Argos as ours died and lockdown without one did not sound fun! We had a roast dinner one day & that is the kind of level of excitement we have continued with.

[Sanch1]

The very last weekend before lockdown nothing but the weekend before that we got married! Big do with 150 people! And feel very fortunate that early in planning we'd had to change our date from 28th March to two weeks earlier

[RunningNinja79]

The last saturday before lockdown was 21st March. Didn't do a lot that weekend, just stayed at home. Was avoiding going anywhere as everywhere was packed according to SM.

The weekend before (which I think a lot of people are thinking of being the last weekend before lockdown as things started closing that week) we went to visit family in York. Me and DH left our DCs with my parents while we went to the cinema on the Fri night. I did my fastest parkrun time since 2018 and had a few beers on the Sat night still staying at my parents. Discussed with DH that my parents thinking they were going to go to Portugal later that week was delusional.

[JemimaPuddleCat]

We were at home isolating as one of my DC had a cough.

[Joan0fSarc]

@TeaForTara when I asked myself what I was doing on that last Saturday I thought I'd been out for cocktails with DH, but of course that was the previous Saturday. We definitely remarked that it was probably the last time we'd be going for a drink for a good while but we had no clue it would end up being months - or that the bar we went to, our favourite haunt for about 10 years, would permanently close, and it would be the last time we'd ever go there

[juglover2008]

We when for a quite walk locally. Even before lockdown/schools closed we had been avoiding public palces when ever we could.

[juglover2008]

Went

[Joan0fSarc]

But yes, I think by the Saturday before lockdown we were all in lockdown mode anyway, just waiting for the announcement. Social distancing had begun and I'd started noticing 2m markings on the floor in shop queues which I thought was completely bonkers. Town was very quiet and the shelves in supermarkets and M&S foodhall were pretty bare.

Perhaps I should've asked what people were doing the previous Saturday, which was the last really normal weekend! Loads of people I know went to various huge gigs that Saturday (Stereophonics in Cardiff, Morrissey at Wembley). I remember thinking it was a bit risky but if they hadn't been cancelled it was probably ok. The thought that thousands of people were crammed together in hot, sweaty arenas days after a pandemic was announced and just over a week before a lockdown gives me the shivers now.

[MinesaPinot]

On the 20th me and DH both went for dental appointments, did some shopping and then we went to friends in the evening. We'd booked our local Indian and they said they we're still open. We had a lovely time for our friend's birthday. We'd already seen my mum the weekend before so didn't go over for Mothers Day. My brother and SIL went instead and took mum a load of shopping so she was stocked up. We had a strange quiet weekend in many ways.

[Joan0fSarc]

My friend took this photo of the crowd at the Morrissey show at Wembley on Saturday 14th (two days after the pandemic was declared). It's like a picture from another world.

[Heaviestdirtyestsoul]

We part climbed roseberry topping- took a walk across to the shooting box instead, took a picnic and talked about how much we would miss the freedom. We havnt been up since, but the road along the main path has been cluttered with cars every time we have driven past since. It was lovely 😁

[MayFayre]

We went to a school concert held in the theatre of our nearest city. It was a fantastic evening on its own merits, but now seems like a particularly special evening. We were amazed that it went ahead and expected it to be cancelled at the last minute.

[PumpkinPie2016]

Caring for my dying Nana She died on the Monday lockdown started.

The two weeks prior was largely spent in hospital and me desperately trying to make the arrangements so she could come home which is what she wanted.

She came home 4 days before she died. I will be eternally grateful for that.

I feel like my life has been upside down for ages.

[nightimebrowser]

I went out with my friends to a packed pub to see a band 😅 can't believe we were so stupid!

[BasinHaircut]

I think of the weekend of the 14/15th as the last weekend before lockdown, and that’s when we were out. Mother’s Day weekend things had already started to close down (including schools) and we weren’t supposed to be visiting people etc so I thought it had already started?

[Joan0fSarc]

@PumpkinPie2016 I'm so sorry

[Comefromaway]

I had a haircut. The salon was doing one customer at a time, disinfecting between customers and using hand held plastic screens to cover client’s faces.

I can’t remember whether it was that day or the Monday lunchtime I queued up at McDonald’s Drive through for ds to have his last one.

[NameChange84]

I went into lockdown early! We are very vulnerable as a family with shielding members. I was arranging shopping deliveries and preparing to work and run the family business from home.

[whatisforteamum]

The Saturday before lockdown was announced I worked the daytime at the pub.Met my DS who works in boots and laughed about the customers asking for hand gel the last few weeks as people were becoming panicked.
Said goodbye to Dr who lives 200 miles away knowing I wouldn't see her for !any !months.
The 21st Saturday we packed away our kitchen at work.and colleagues thought I was overreacting when I said I would take my knives home.Very surreal tbh.

[Elzbells]

Sat in hospital holding my mums hand waiting for my dad to die of cancer. He did, 3 days later, so pleased I was there that day as after lockdown they would only let my mum in (he had a private room).

The rest of lockdown so far has been trying to support my grieving mother who can't have a hug or see her grandchildren or start moving forward and get on with life.

Lockdown is shit for many reasons but only having 10 people at the funeral, sitting 2 metre apart and not being able to comfort a devastated family member is just cruel and there are so many other families like mine having to deal with the same thing.

[Aposterhasnoname]

The last Saturday before lockdown we stayed at home because they’d already started to suggest that’s what we should do. The week before though, just one week earlier, which seems incredible now, we went into the city, had lunch in the tiniest, most jam packed cafe ever, then went and bought sunglasses for the holiday we were supposed to go on two weeks later.

[whatisforteamum]

Sorry for your loss Elzbells.My df died of cancer what you are going through must be very painful.😥

[Thirtyrock39]

The actual weekend before lockdown was when panic buying was in full swing and the schools had just closed so was really weird and I was having a huge anxiety attack. It felt like the apocalypse in many ways and I was hugely in worst case scenario mode.
Saying that we did go into town and had chips in the park and went round the (emptying) shops.
I remember physically shaking all day and could hardly eat
Watched a lot of this country to try and take my mind off it
Dh couldn't get his head round the pubs being closed
The Sunday was hellish as the kids played up all day and I felt like a caged animal
Ironically by the Monday of lockdown I'd started to adjust and adapt to the new normal and felt much more optimistic and calm - we are resilient beings !

[Whitewinetonight]

DD came home from uni in the week. She wanted to spend some book vouchers in Waterstones. I went in with her to I could choose some books myself and also get a particular shampoo for my Mum which isn't in our local supermarket.

[darkforceofexcesszeal]

Spent the weekend in a ski in/ski out hotel for dh’s birthday. dd2 was race training so we got to ski on our own for the first time in ages (we don’t usually go to the hill, we send her on the team transport.) It snowed and it was so blooming pretty. Chatted to one of the waitresses in the hotel restaurant. Listened to the dude playing guitar.
A week later and everything was cancelled. Nationals cancelled. Training program cancelled. Hill closed. International staff trying desperately to get home. Their on-hill accommodation shut down and emergency accommodations opened off hill. Town under state of emergency and both dh and I wfh.
We had no idea.