I wonder why we still celebrate the first day of April as Fools’Day or indeed why we ever did. Nobody really seems to know but it might date back to the 1500s and a change in the calendar with the year ending as it does now instead of at the end of March as it did in bygone years. I don’t have any idea but I do know that I was overdue to give birth at the end of March. I was taken into hospital on 1st April to be induced but I politely (I think) declined their offer and said I would prefer to wait until the following day. I didn’t want an April Fool baby. So tomorrow 2nd April is the birthday of my son Peter. I must add that no one in Madrid where he was born knew what I was talking about as it wasn’t a date celebrated there.
I got a phone call at 1 pm today which was to offer me my second Covid jab. The caller apologised saying it was very short notice but could I go at 2.15 pm? Not an April Fools’ joke, luckily, and I said yes, I’ll be there. Yesterday when I spoke to the doctors’ surgery they said there was a shortage of the Pfizer vaccine and they couldn’t tell me when it would become available, they obviously got some in or had less people turn up at the clinic. I’m happy no matter what happened. Someone told me that the second Pfizer dose often causes a bad reaction but so far so good. A newspaper headline today said that it is preventing 91% of cases in the six months after people are immunised. I need to organise plenty of outings, parties and holidays to be taken before October.
Antiques Roadshow often gets a headline in the news and this week was no different. A woman took in a vase which turned out to be a piece of ancient imperial Chinese pottery. Not good enough it seems to have ever made it into the Imperial Household but good enough today to be worth between 30 and 50 thousand pounds. I’ve got a few old vases here, I wonder? I love it when people have valuable items which they have picked up in a charity shop, found in a skip or picked up at a car boot sale for just a couple of quid. Gives me hope that one day I might be lucky. It would help if I actually frequented any of those places.
We are now officially in Easter weekend and can stuff ourselves with hot cross buns and chocolate eggs. I, however, have forgotten to buy any and am wondering if the shops are open tomorrow. If I were a proper old fashioned grandmother I would be up early baking the buns and easter biscuits. Sadly it’s not going to happen and I see myself down the local co-op in the morning to see what’s left on the shelves. Happy Easter everyone, let’s be careful out there. 💤 😴 😴 💤