OYSTERHOOD is reclusiveness or solitude, or an overwhelming desire to stay at home.

— @HaggardHawks

Harbinger of death. I did not watch Wild Earth for long this morning, and this is what I got.

Much sweeter was the Bing.com image today, and another ridiculous bird name. Hoary redpoll? Really? Very cosy-looking nest though, perfect for oysterhood.

A stranger with the most wonderful voice phoned today and inquired – very kindly – whether I would be interested in reading the Bible together with him. He was quite intrigued when I – very kindly – explained that I did not believe in God but read the Bible occasionally, on my own. We spoke briefly about my favourite passage from the holy book. He asked whether he could give me a reference to another passage I might find inspiring during these difficult times. Yes, of course, I said. I made a note, thanked him, but declined when asked whether he could phone again. I am almost sorry; he sounded so nice. But I absolutely hate talking on the phone to people I don’t know – it’s pure torture, no matter how lovely they sound. I did look up the passage, though. The first verse did nothing for me, but the second did move me. The kind stranger’s number did register on my phone… But, sadly perhaps, the depth of my religion is limited to following The Tweet of God on Twitter. True belief would mean following the one person God follows on Twitter, and my faith is not strong enough for such a challenge.

Other reading material arrived just as surprisingly on my doorstep this morning – the first thing in my postbox for a month, I think.

I loved reading the article about how the newly established Baxter Radio is assisting with education and entertainment during the pandemic. And these words by Lara Foot captured my love for the medium and made me understand why the whole streaming things is not intuitively my cup of tea:

I’m not a fan of live-streaming because I believe that theatre doesn’t exist without the special connection between actor and audience. To distil theatre through a screen is what I call anti-theatre. However, the old and trusted medium of radio asks the audience to listen and engage, which is comparable to the form of theatre.

But the Baxter is my cup of coffee!

A different kind of reading all together today was the Western Cape’s Covid-19 dashboard:

The Cats and I live in one of the heart of the pandemic in South Africa. No wonder I am seeing vultures and people are trying to save my soul before it’s too late.

Most challenging read of the day? Glinka and I decided to face and study the Regulation Gazette No. 43258, 29 April 2020, Vol. 658 No. 11098. ‘Risk Adjustment’. These two words are the ones that stick with me. This particular risk is not going anywhere soon. But to survive financially we need to adjust. Between a rock and a hard place. Or, between a pandemic and financial ruin. Impossible choices.

The last day of the lockdown, level five. Maybe.

I am monstrual and my back pain got to the stage where I can no longer move a millimeter without pain, so my judgement is clouded. No decisions should be taken in such a state. The body speaks a simple language; it makes its own demands. ‘Listen to your body, it never lies.’

It helped to do my garden loop walk today (no rewards, just my favourite Austrian radio station for company for half an hour), hopefully the last garden loop walk for a while… Although a return to level five in the Western Cape, or at least Cape Town, is probably imminent. Please, please! let me be wrong…

What keeps me going? My potatoes! They are growing. And my coriander. And lemons. I now just have to convince the Cats that the feline gods of ancient Egypt ate potatoes sprinkled with fresh coriander and drank lemon water – and we will live happily ever after while the world continues to find a balance between greed and kindness…

Be kind to yourself. Be kind to others. Stay at home.

“Physical distancing remains one of the key strategies to curb this pandemic.”

— NICD

PS Did you know that YouTube can play your favourite song of the moment on repeat for an hour? Oh, joy! Blinded by the Lights.

PPS If you want to read a beautiful plea for book deliveries (all books) to readers, click here: Helen Moffett. Thank you, Dr M.

PPPS: Do you know what ‘MACS J1149+2223 Lensed Star 1’ is? If not, ask Ms Google. All I will say is that it comes in my favourite colour.