Chapter 253: Wrong spot

Strawberries grow in boxes in our driveway.

Other plants randomly appear in the boxes.

I say to Bruce and Kay: Its a beautiful day. Time for us to weed the strawberries. If you see a weed pull it out. Like this.

Kay: How do we know what is a weed?

I say: A weed is a plant in the wrong spot. A plant that we don’t want growing in these boxes. A weed takes all the space away from the strawberries. It eats all the food and drinks all the water meant for the strawberries.

Would you like someone to eat all your food, sleep in your bed? You would ask that person to go.

Bruce: My sister is a weed.

I say: Your sister is not a weed.   

Bruce: She lies in my bed. She eats my food.

I say: Your sister is not a weed.

Bruce: She’s different. She must be a weed. She looks different. Look at her hair.

I say:  We are not getting rid of your sister. Your sister may be different from you. She looks different. Her hair is longer but I love the differences. And I love those plants over there. See different colours. See how they blend and look better together. Its good to be different.

Kay is pushing aside leaves and says: Is that a weed?

I say: Well done. It is a weed. What do we do?

Kay: Pull it out.

We are winning. So are the strawberries. The losers are the plants in the wrong spot. They finish up in a pile in the driveway which is the right spot for them.

Chapter 252: Cough cough cough

A few days ago one of my grandkids had a cough. A very annoying sound. Not a sweet, melodic sound.  A rasping sound full of sputum or phlegm. Hell must be full of people screaming and coughing.

Because of the cough my grandkid had a test. Involved pushing a soft swab up her nose. Hope she suffered. Hope she didn’t enjoy it. She deserves to pay for all her irritating coughing.

The test is for the presence of a virus called Covid 19.

She has to isolate until she knows the result of the test. This is when I get confused.

If the result is positive she will be told within 24 hours.  Because it is important to know as soon as possible.   Any other result (not as important) and she will be told 3 / 4 days later.

At the moment she has not been told she has a positive result.

Because she has not been given her result she has to continue to isolate and must not go to school.

Until she gets her result (which must be negative) she has to stay home. Not go to school. She has stopped coughing.

Chapter 251: Hug my grandchildren

I wake. Grab my phone and start clicking. Click, click, click. I see a number of posts that say: What people most want post corona is to hug their grandchildren.

I then shuffle towards the kitchen to tell a machine to make me coffee.

I put a scoop of coffee in here, place a cup here, press this button, listen to gurgling hissing sounds, and watch a stream of dark drips. I know have the smell of freshly brewed coffee. I carefully balance the cup and return to my bedroom.

In my bed has appeared a row of grandchildren siting supported by pillows.

I stand and look.

I then try and balance my cup and shuffle back into bed.

Immediately one grandkid says: Don’t do that. You are pushing me.

Another grandkid says: No room for you.

I then say: So there is no room in my bed for me.

They all think this is funny. They all sing in unison:  No room for you. No room for you.  

I then stand looking at my phone. I must be able to find a post somewhere that says that grandparents are allowed to sit in their own bed.

Chapter 250 : How was work yesterday?

I often ask people how their day of work was.

Yesterday restrictions were eased slightly and a nurse told me: It was absolute chaos. We couldn’t run the place properly. All the visitors came back. The hospital was full of visitors. They don’t know what to do. They never listen. They didn’t behave. They are going to spread the virus. All us nurses did the right thing. We behaved.

I nod my head and say: So you could run the hospital much better without all the visitors stuffing everything up.

Nurse: Yes. They are so selfish. One was even meant to be in quarantine. And she is wandering around.

Time for me to say: If you could get rid of all the patients as well you could get the place running even better.

From memory it was around about then the nurse walked away with a look that said. I am wasting my time talking to some people. This is serious. This virus can kill people.