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

— @HaggardHawks

Loadshedding galore. Before the lights went off this evening, I thought: let me use this time to catch up with my ironing. Duh. Then: maybe I can mow the lawn before it gets dark? Duh. And finally: backwash the pool? Triple duh.

I braaied a simple dinner for us and, when my love went home, I drank a glass of red by candlelight and wrote this post on my fully charged laptop. Will put it up when the power comes back on.

But otherwise, this has been a good day. Lots of work got done and the vet gave me relatively good news: Salieri’s results have improved in two out of three areas. The most important one – the thyroid – is finally within acceptable levels. Still on the high end of the scale, but better than it has been in months. The liver is just lagging behind after the onslaught it has endured. No operation. Raincheck in three months. We continue with the strict diet.

And Mr Mozart also braved his annual visit to the vet today and got all his vaccines, especially his rabis refresher now that there is an outbreak in the Cape. I am a bit worried about his kidneys, but let’s see what the blood results will say in his case. He was very dapper in the car and at the vet’s, but was completely disorientated after our return home. Poor thing. It took him a while to figure out where he was and what was what. And he is staying close to me now – just making sure that he is safe.

It’s Glinka’s turn tomorrow. I am expecting some hissing bravado and a complete refusal to travel in the cage. Whose resolve will be stronger? Well, no points for guessing it right!

For the rest of loadshedding, since I can’t do my ironing, I am getting into a bath with a book that has been begging to be finished for weeks (not much time for reading for pure pleasure these days). Thank goodness that we are not approaching day zero while this eskoming goes on! What would I do during loadshedding evenings without the possibility of getting into the bath …?

Be kind. Wear a mask. Support local. Get vaccinated, please.

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

— NICD