Last week, I told you that school was shutting but that we would still have all the after-school meetings with the parents. Well, on Sunday night, they were all cancelled too. As, in general terms, the inhabitants of France still refused to comply with the rules (ie vastly reducing the number of times they leave their houses), further rules were brought in. As from last Wednesday, you need an A4 document every time you go out, copied out or printed, ticking one of four boxes, explaining why you are out : going to work (if essential), going food shopping/to the chemist, visiting elderly people/childcare, dogwalking/sport. The dogwalking/sport thing is supposed to be done sensibly, ie just around the block for a dog walk, 1-2km for jogging, but people STILL refused to do as they're told and think about the bigger picture. So now we have people being fined €138 if they're outside with no valid reason. Apparently, if they are fined several times, they could end up with a prison sentence when coronavirus has finally gone. I really don't understand it. Staying inside is not fun for anyone. I went to Lidl once, because we were running out of food (and toilet roll !), and there were still people in there buying one or two things. Later in the week, it was announced that there were 3 people in Dunkirk hospital with coronavirus, one who had died and 18 who were awaiting confirmation of their diagnosis after tests. Then it was announced that they wouldn't be updating the figures any more. I'm getting sick of people with their holier-than-thou,"we live in a democracy, nobody can take away my basic right to go out" mentality, which is doing nothing but adding greater risks - if they are still going out, they'll end up with it then infect people who really do have to go out, for their weekly shop for example - and it will just make the confinement stage last longer. It's not fun for anyone, but if it's what we need to go through then let's just do it.
Sunday 15th March - Day one of confinement. And the day started off with a beautiful sunrise, slashing the pale blue sky with a vivid streak of pink. It was a lovely day weather-wise, so we'd definitely have gone out for a walk in the country or at the beach, but never mind, we'll stay inside with our TVs, computers and the PS4, which at least gives Pierre the chance to chat to his friends while he's playing.
Monday - This was the day we started trying to sort out lessons online and what a blooming nightmare that was ! I uploaded some work for the kids to do, then created correction sheets. So far so good. But nothing came back. Apparently the on-site function for collecting in work doesn't work, so I gave them my email instead. Next, time for Pierre's "school". He had a load of work to do that had been given out the week before, with lessons in maths, French and reading every day, plus extra things on a daily basis. It took a few hours then he was done. In the afternoon, we emptied out the baking cupboard, made a list of everything that's in there (so that I can figure out what to do with all the weird things, like coconut flour and carob syrup - they must be good for something !) then made some cookies and some Daim chocolate mousse that I had brought back from Norway then never made.
Tuesday - I think this was Wednesday or Thursday actually, but I ended up completely losing track of days and kept checking the computer to see what the date was and what day we were. At one point, I couldn't remember if we were in March or April - and this is just the first week of confinement ! Eeeek ! I spent pretty much the whole day getting more work online for school, then answering oodles of emails and correcting loads of work as it came through from pupils on a constant dribble all day long, even up until about 11.30pm. Who does their homework that late ?! Big win of the day - I headed out to Lidl for supplies and - woohoo ! - I found bog roll ! I decided to grab two packs, as I won't be going shopping very often. It seems to be about once every ten days, judging by this week and what's left in the fridge.
Wednesday - Another bright sunny day - too bad we can't get out and enjoy it ! Pierre wanted to make more cookies (the first lot didn't last long !) and we also made Angel Delight and jelly. The rest of the day was spent answering work emails - I can't believe how long it takes. Then every time I get to the end, a load more emails arrive - aaaggghhh !
Thursday - Back to the new routine : Pierre's school work in the morning, all my marking/lesson posting in the afternoon, some baking or other activities in the afternoon when I'm on a break. I made a lovely dish for dinner - chicken casserole using a tin of chicken soup as a sauce, topped with a crispy coating. I'll share the recipe next week. The kids loved it. Emails were coming in all through the evening, but I decided I needed a night off and settled down to watch some TV with the kids.
Friday - A normal morning, doing Pierre's schoolwork, checking Juliette didn't need any help with hers, then back to lesson planning and marking. I turned to Netflix at the end of the afternoon - I haven't had a chance to watch anything on there for ages, so I have loads to work through. I watched (over three days) the whole of The Stranger, based on a book by Harlan Coben. Loved it.
Saturday - So, no trip to McDonald's this week. The kids asked if we could get some delivered with Just Eats. No ! I'm not paying extra for it ! Absolutely no emails from the kids today - ahhh, so they're sticking to the normal week and not working at the weekend. Well, that's good for me then - at least I still get a break ! A lovely blue sky out there today. I still have some food left so I won't bother going shopping until we run out, which should be in a few days.
My overall sense of the week was that it was boring, but when I read back over last week's photo diary, I realise how hectic life used to be, how much running around feeling knackered there was. This week was pretty full on with all the schoolwork and emails to reply to, but I actually got time to do baking with Pierre on several occasions and watched a whole Netflix series. I can live with this for a while :)
