Another one, I went back to work after mat leave in February, and we were skint. Properly broke. I saw all the panic buying and broke down wondering what would happen if there was no formula left when I got paid. We had enough until pay day, but not enough to last much longer. When I took Nan to Tesco that week, she went off and did her shopping while I wandered around the clothing and home bit to pass the time. I met her at the other side of the checkouts and she’d bought 4 tins of formula, a load of food pouches, baby snacks, nappies and wipes. I didn’t desperately need them but I just remember feeling such relief that I wouldn’t have to worry about not being able to get hold of it all. A couple of weeks later I was buying more formula and overheard someone buying formula so they could put it in their coffee if there was no normal milk. There was already very little on the shelf and I just lost my mind. They put the formula back, but I couldn’t believe how selfish they were.
And then the day after lockdown, I went to work to help close the bar down and stopped at Tesco on the way home for some shopping for my Mum. She’d given me her NHS card and I walked in, and I’m not kidding, the queue snaked around the entire superstore. I just left. It was absolute madness.