Week 10: We're Safe?

Everything is fine

Going outside is in many ways inevitable. I venture outside regularly in order to get my groceries done for the week. It's been two months since the lockdown was first announced. Cafés, restaurants and pubs, and the vast majority of shops are still closed. The few that are open have limits on how many people are allowed inside which causes queues to form outside with people spaced out about two metres between themselves. If not for this, you'd think the pandemic is over.

The moment you enter a store, social distancing becomes a thing of the past. The lack of crowds is the only thing that may remind you there's a crisis going on outside if you keep it in your mind this is not a slow day at the store.

At this point it doesn't feel like this situation will get better any time soon. I suppose this thought it part of why I'm feeling so down these days. Two months of unemployment coupled with low prospects of re-employment during this crisis is not doing me any good. I think it's starting to dawn on me that before the virus hit, I was doing very well working on improving my living conditions and now everything is stagnant bordering on falling apart.

Week 9: Books!

The address to the nation that the Prime Minister provided us with was a sham. A vague notion of staying alert like you could spot a microscopic virus creeping up on you in a dark alley if you could only keep your wits sharp was presented as the next stage of facing the current crisis. The government's message was so confusing that throughout the week, they kept changing the meaning of what has been said. It's a mess... the result of which is that people are now acting as if the lockdown is over. It's fairly likely that the way this is being handled will cause another rise in deaths which is already highest in Europe. As bad as it was, it now feels a lot worse.

BOOKS!

However, there were some good news this week. I have received Jobseeker Allowance which should help me manage my financial situation slightly better and I have received a gift in the post. My good friend Matias got me two books as a gift to get through these harsh times. I haven't opened either up yet because I was going re-reading the newly released Sentinel Comics RPG in pdf. I say re-read but that's not entirely true. Some of the chapters have been released to Kickstarter backers previously, which I have gone through, but that was a pre-production copy so now I'm reading the actual game even if the material in some places is unchaged.

I must admit, I have read very little this year. My reading habits are normally very sporadic but I still manage to go through a decent number of books. This year, however, I only finished one book. It's been hard sitting down to do anything recently and when I had the energy, I tried to channel it into housework and looking for employment. Which did not stop me from picking up the Hunger Games trilogy off the street on my weekly walk to the store.

Week 8: Queue

There's very little to be said about this week.
It's another one of those where I'm simply waiting for things.

I've spoken with my landlady and she has reduced my rent for this month so I won't have to worry about running out of money. I'll have to repay her the difference when I'm provided with financial support through Universal Credit though.

A Kickstarter I backed a few years ago has announced that they will be releasing a pdf for their roleplaying game by the end of this week or start of the next one. Clearly, at this point it'll be at the start of next week. There's something good to look forward to, at least.

We're also waiting for the Prime Minister to address the nation at the end of this week. Word is that the lockdown restrictions are to be relaxed which, of course, means people are already ignoring it more than they should. What the address will actually say is still anyone's guess but knowing this government I highly doubt it'll be any good.

Week 7: Disappointment

I wasn't expecting to be receiving much in terms of financial support from the government through Universal Credit but I was still shocked to learn that I will be getting nothing at all. Apparently, every pound I've earned with my last paycheck has reduced my claim for this month by 63p which, in total, reduced it to a zero.

I've still got enough to see me through this month and I hope I'll be receiving some financial support in the following month because with the lockdown going strong, it's unlikely I'll find employment until it's lifted.

I've been really hitting the films this week. Nearly every evening I spent watching a film of some sort. I haven't done this in ages. Usually I just sit down to watch an episode of a TV show because it's a smaller time commitment than a film but now we're all finding ourselves with more time to spare on our hands. I really should do something more productive with my time.

I had a horrible headache over the weekend so to keep myself occupied, I made a Steam Workshop Item for Tabletop Simulator. Green Ronin released a Print to Play version of their upcoming Sentinels of Earth Prime card game so I took the files and converted them to import into Tabletop Simulator. I'm looking forward to testing the game out with my RP mates tomorrow.

I'm trying not to have naps in the late afternoon as they mess up my sleep schedule too much.