So, I am on week 6 or maybe it’s week 7? I don’t even know anymore; it feels like week 86 especially with my new fine-line features on my forehead. The days are long, the biscuit tin is empty again and I am slowly but surely losing my mind that I am not able to talk to friends face to face or strangers’ dogs. I think the reason I am losing my mind (I suspect everyone is losing it to) is because we don’t have any idea of when this virus will pass, and we can go back to normality. A good thing is that the alcohol cabinet has not been completed raided…just yet. It’s not all doom and gloom at home, I have been quite busy discovering new independents, developing new skills aka eating quietly and saving & planning for the future.

When the lockdown was first announced and I was told to stay at home, I was pretty pissed about it. I didn’t want to isolate but then I sat down and thought about all the things I could do and didn’t have the time before to do them, for example, a “Sex and the City all-nighter” (INSERT TROLL FACE) thats when I started to get excited and celebrate the isolation…

DAY ONE: LOCKDOWN AKA FREEDOM

DAY FIFTEEN: WELL THATS ALL MY CHORES DONE FOR THE YEAR, THIS SHOULD BE OVER SOON…

DAY TWENTY FIVE: CALLED NAN 50 TIMES TODAY AND THE WALL IS IGNORING ME!!

Of course, I wasn’t speaking to the walls, but I definitely have been speaking to the birds. It does get a little depressing when you can’t see your friends and family but I am grateful that I live with my parents still, In December I was thinking to rent in Birmingham however took the wise decision not to go forward with renting as it’s just dead money and I want to continue to see my savings rise so I can buy not rent, so best deicison I have made because god knows what I would be like on my own. So I have been keeping busy and here are a few thing that I have been doing whilst in lockdown AND a few updates on me!

INDEPENDENT SHOPPING

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So, I have been focusing more on shopping independently whilst in lockdown so buying my essentials independently rather than queue at Asda for half an hour for out of date bread. I have tried out some new fantastic independents in which I have blogged about in My North of Birmingham self-isolating guide and hoping to review in my next blog post. I finally got to visit some well-known favourites such as OnTheBreadLine well known for their tasty bakes and breads, also discovering new businesses such as Silvertree Catering which have become an instant favourite of mine for delivering my essentials.

SUPPORTING BUSINESSES

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Most of you will know that I have been constantly supporting local independent businesses throughout lockdown. I’d put together a self-help guide to help those who are isolating and can’t make it to the lengthy ques of Tesco, why go queue for basic Bitch Warburtons when you can get freshly home-baked bread delivered to your front door? I have been so busy every week researching and updating the blog post, I have been posting quite a lot on my social media to get the word out for businesses and the response has been incredible! Many people use the guide every day and have passed it to those who are vulnerable, what is so heart-warming is receiving messages from people who have said the guide has helped their vulnerable loved ones so much (I cried the other day because a girl messaged me saying she uses the guide every day to help her ill Dad and that it’s literally saved them) I have put a lot of hard work into the guide so it’s really lovely to hear such positive feedback from people. I have mentioned above that I will be putting together a review blog post of all the independents I have used whilst in lockdown so look out for that next!

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HELLO BABY! SAY HELLO TO MY NEPHEW HENRY KIT

There’s a new member of the family, introducing Henry Kit who is absolutely lovely! Well and truly over the moon, I have a nephew! It’s a shame at the moment that we can’t hold him, so frustrating as well when you see him and he just looks like he needs a cuddle! A bit of positivity that the family needed after losing Nasher (our dog) I think as a family it all hit us really hard and it seems that we were all really down so it’s nice to have something new coming in and perking us all up.

IMPROVING AND DEVELOPING NEW SKILLS

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Okay, so I have really got into my cooking lately, I love experimenting with all kinds of things (wink wink) but especially with food. Last weekend I made this pretty dirty burger and I was pretty impressed with myself using Stripclubs Streetfood DIY kit. I have also been experimenting with healthy meals as well, trying to cut out the yeast and cut down on the salt/sugar intake (that burger is definitely not an example of it) but I’ve made meat-free burritos and spicy prawn one pans, that was absolutely delicious! So, I am excited to look forward to having my own kitchen and experimenting more. I have also been topping up my photography skills, street photography/food photography/ and floral photography. It’s always great to keep creative, I have even taken up drawing again which was absolutely bizarre holding a pencil to paper as the last time I did that was in detention at secondary school, God I hate pencils.

I have also been keeping creative in the garden and dabbling with a bit of self-portrait photography, mainly focusing on my editing skills and creating something that people wouldn’t expect has just been taken in someones back garden. My Dad has also shown an interest in photography so I have been teaching him portrait photography where of course MOI as the subject, I think he’s done a pretty good job!

HAD A MELTDOWN AND CHOPPED MY HAIR

So not many people know I wear hair extensions, so It came to many as a bit of a shock when I posted this on my social media. I chopped it myself, I just watched a YouTube video, washed my hair had a swig of beer and chopped it. I defiantly look older because I didn’t get ID’d for a Gin & tonic in Marks and Spencer’s the other day and the old little Lady who lives down the road from me stropped saying “Hello chicken” to me on my daily walks now. I feel pretty free without them although they did give me confidence but I feel like I have changed so much from when I first got them I had no confidence at all and now, I just feel 100% good about myself! It’s always nice to have a change so we shall see how it goes!

DATING ONLINE? NAAAH

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The one thing that kind of sucks about being single is when you are constantly surrounded by people who are not single, it’s almost like you pressured into jumping onto a dating app and speaking to the first guy that you think is a worthy 5/10. Don’t get me wrong I have been on the dating apps, but it has become quite clear that I am just not interested. They say Hi, I say Hi back, they say I have a cute face and I just ghost them, I don’t like talking online, I rather do it face to face but its look like that’s not going to happen for quite some time. So, I’ll just jump on Bumble at like 10 pm at night and talk to someone for 30 minutes, I fall asleep and thenI forget about them the next day. I sound like an absolute fuckwit and I know girls would kill me for doing it because we give guys a hard time doing it to us girls but I can’t help feeling bored and obviously a bit frisky …oh Come on, We have all been there!

When the time is right it will happen and if doesn’t happen, oh well! there is always cute dogs to keep you company!

THAT COFFEE TREND IS BALLZ

I tried that Dalgona whipped coffee trend that everyone is going mad about and well honestly, it was just a bag of balls trying to attempt to whisk the bloody thing. I tried to do it old school using my hands and well, this was the finished product, my “whipped” coffee. Just embarrassing, it’s a coffee alright without the sodding whip! never again.

Daily walks and seeing new places, It’s always good to experience something new once a week. So I like taking my bike (robbing my Dads bike) riding down the country lanes and seeing new spots. I would go through the park but it’s just so packed! full of kids running into you and complete nobs in gangs on bikes, rather go somewhere quiet and on my own and feel like I’m not in Sutton for one day! It’s like a mini-holiday without the fruity cocktails, shit karaoke and GUCCI “lucky lucky” geared up blokes.

So there you have it, a little bit of an update on me in self-isolation! Hope you are all keeping safe and looking after yourselves, also remember to check in on your loved ones now and again!

AMY ELIZA