Lock Down, Christians and the B-52's

Well, I set my alarm and managed to force myself out of bed nice and early. Had a decent day. Went for my state allowance of daily exercise by going for a walk. Did some reading. I'm now sitting here typing at 6 pm in the evening with heavy eyelids, feeling half-asleep.

In my last post - well, my last post proper - I explained my thinking behind this c o r o n a v i r u s event. That was about a month ago. We've since had three weeks of "lock down" in the UK. In effect martial law. With no clear end in sight. Very strange times. My views on it all haven't really changed, though I understand the methodology much better now. At the time of posting I felt very much like a lone voice. I saw this coming in technicolor. It wasn't nice to witness it. Since then however we've seen a lot of people coming out, mainly just in the alternative sphere though sadly, offering a counter narrative. Pointing out the madness, and often the dishonesty too.

I'm going to try my best to avoid all that stuff on here and keep it more personal. If anyone wants to follow what I'm following though feel free to visit my Twitter page (see the sidebar) where I'll no doubt be retweeting stuff along with other myriad nonsense.

So what have I been doing these last few weeks, apart from shooting off on Twitter of course. Well, I've actually been cracking on with my work of fiction a little bit (!) - up to chapter 10 now. So that's something. Hopefully I can keep that up. I've also been getting into the B-52's. What a great band. Some brilliant little gems in their back catalogue. I really had no idea they were so good.

I'm quite enjoying this track at the moment.

(B-52's - Ain't It A Shame

- some great images in the video as well)

I've also been tackling a Rubik's Cube that one of my nephews left at the house. I kinda get the feeling that the lock down won't be over until I complete it. I'm still struggling at the moment. My latest technique is to begin with the corners, which is offering some improvement. I'm sure there's a knack to it. Just a case of figuring out what that knack is exactly.

...and Christianity

Finally, I've also found myself becoming more Christian weirdly.

I'm not a literalist Christian by any measure. That's for sure. The linked to book in the sidebar pretty much elucidates all my views on that. In fact, my views on Christianity haven't really changed in the slightest in any real practical sense. It's more of a feeling I guess.

I've always prayed in times of crisis (I feel a little embarrassed saying that - classic Anglo attitude I guess). Mainly for family members in hospital and things of that nature. It's certainly not a frequent thing I do. Nor something I would do with any specific ceremony (if there is a God I very much doubt he's bothered about how I pray). It's more a personal thing.

Anyway, watching the wave of soviet-style chicanery wash over the whole western world. Our liberties disappearing with barely a whimper. I did pray. Quite a lot actually, and very sincerely. I even had a few moments that felt somewhat ordained. Like some sort of spiritual awakening.

In the days leading up to the weekend before the week before the UK lock down - if that makes sense. Trump declared that Sunday, March 15th would be a National Day of Prayer for the American nation.

(Trump's national prayer tweet)

On Twitter I was semi-joking about this, however I also felt a strong resonance with the sentiment on a personal level. Again that Anglo, or British attitude. We see ourselves as too smart to do something as stupid as praying to a god that may not even be there. So even if we do we do it in a way that makes light of the fact. Giving us an excuse to pretend that really we're not doing it at all.

In fact, I actually shared the Trump tweet on Facebook and some of my friends left a laughy face, thinking I'd shared it as a joke. As in "ha, look at these crazy Americans praying XD."

At the time, partly because of this godless British attitude, I had more faith in America than I had in the UK. Again, at the time I felt pretty much on my own out here. Like no one else really saw what was coming. It was very depressing to watch it all unfold. Anyway, on the evening before the 15th I semi-joked on Twitter and fully prayed in private.

The next day I then awoke to see Peter Hitchens stepping up to bat for freedom.

(Peter Hitchens' tweet)

It's quite funny looking back 😂😂 However, he was the first person in the British press to offer any sort of protest or opposition, and seeing him do it gave me a great deal of reassurance at the time. He is of course a God-fearing Christian himself. So it felt very fitting, and the timing was perfect.

I've since watched him patiently defend freedom and liberty on Twitter and elsewhere. It's been like watching a master batsman at the crease, defending the wicket over a long lonely innings. Quite heroic. There are still some very good and honest people out there thank heavens.

(A picture I took on my state sanctioned walk today

- Eston Cemetery, Middlesbrough)

Oh, and finally, on a lighter note. I started this year talking about getting a passport didn't I. That was literally the main thing on my to do list, and I finally got it all sorted in February. So it seems typically ironic that I finally have one now that the country is completely locked down. So much for that. Not that I would've ever went anywhere anyway really.

At least it gives this blog a little bit of pathos though :)