It was interesting to think about what Norwich will look like over the next month. Picked up one of the value newspaper packs in the city centre. These feature copies of the Eastern Daily Press and Norwich Evening News newspapers along with a packet of crisps, some popcorn and some water for just £1.
The people running the stall - it was really a gazebo - said they would be there during lockdown for as long as people bought the bags. The coffee shop we went to will be doing a takeaway service during lockdown so a takeaway coffee and a wander round Norwich could be on the cards in a week or so.
In the meantime I think it's a good idea to set some kind of target during lockdown which, by my calculation, will last 27 days including today. So I will be looking to walk over 100 miles in that time. That's 100 miles of actual walking and not counting steps around the house.
Back to the art of reminiscing. This is one of those did you have anything like this scenarios. How many people remember a relative with a front room that was never used? My aunt lived in Links Avenue in Hellesdon and I often visited her. Her, her husband and a dog lived in this tiny room with a television set, a couple of chairs, a dresser and a table that dominated. They had a pristine front room with new furniture but it was never used. Kept for special days that I don't think ever existed.
The same thing applied to my wife's ancestral home in West Yorkshire. The room where everyone lived was dominated by a massive round table. There were a couple of chairs and a television set but a front room that was never used. Does this resonate with anyone else?
I didn't have this in my early years as I lived in a shop and so the potential front room was the shop. Another thought was that all sitting rooms in the 1950s and early 1960s were all set-up in the same way. A few years ago I went to a museum - it might have been in Great Yarmouth or York or even Duxford. They had a reproduction of a 1950s house and the living room was identical to mine at home. The chairs were either side of the fireplace and the television was in exactly the same place.
Coming soon in my reminiscences - wrestling (who remembers Kent Walton and wrestling on a Saturday afternoon?) and Coronation Street (memories on December 8th in recognition of the 60th anniversary of the first ever episode on December 9th, 1960).