People are confusing. Picture this: It’s Sunday, around lunchtime. I’m heading into town on the bus, so I can go to the gym. I have on leggings, a tshirt, my rucksack, and the stuff in the below image – sunglasses, face mask, earphones. Scruffy. Aside from the music in my ears, the journey is quiet, and we soon reach the point where I need to get off. I walk to the front, and as we move to go around a corner, the bus driver decides to try and chat me up. Aside, from not being able to hear him (earphones), my replies being mumbled (mask), and my lack of interest (hidden only by my glasses), I’m genuinely concerned that we’re going at a fair speed around the corner, and would like to make it in one piece, thank you.
This is what makes me confused. I appreciate, sure he had to wait til I get off to talk to me, and make his interest apparent. But why wait til we’re going around the corner? What about the above face makes it seem like my peaceful trundle to the gym needs interrupting? He could have quite easily stopped me before I left the bus and chatted to me and I could have said no ta then? Lads, I’m not saying don’t try, I mean I could have been someone else, happily unattached and willing to chat. But time and place. And preferably not at speed around the corner on a busy junction ta.
Right whinge over, let’s have a little look back over last week.
The biggest thing for all of us in Manchester (Yorkshire and Lancashire) was our additional lockdown. There’s no doubt there was an element of concern around Eid (not that they’d actually say that) – though my own area of Trafford it’s more around an increase in cases in the under 30s. All that said, the Government as usual handled it badly. Sent out the details in a Tweet, with no elements of accessibility to it (it featured an image with no alt information, meaning those with readers, who are partially sighted couldn’t read it), two hours before it went into effect.
It’s almost as if they want to enable us to blame each other, rather than actually the people in charge of the country who are failing on PPE (still), having spent millions trying to source it through impossible channels (including a sweet company wtaf?), locked us down too late, caused the death of thousands in care homes, ensure that people in care home and those with disabilities are DNR (do not resuscitate), create an app that was a security nightmare and failed, track and trace implemented too late, and tests that if self administered are inaccurate.
Sorry. Another whinge it seems.
Away from all the negatives, there were some lovely positives. Manchester Whisky Club attended a Zoom tasting with Elixir Distillers, featuring some unusual drams. I got to meet (via Zoom again) the creator of Agora Vermouth, an absolutely delicious English vermouth I’ll talk more about later this week. It’s so good I’m making a decent dent in the bottle already, so I think you can tell what’s coming in that review!
I’ve also been published elsewhere again! Nrth Lass is a print magazine featuring women from all across the north, covering a wide range of topics – there’s something in it for everyone. And my face is in it! It’s a conversation around body positivity and perhaps more pertinently body acceptance. You can buy it direct from their website if you’re interested (I can definitely recommend snaffling a copy, I’m waiting on mine to arrive – so the image is via Cheryl Hill).
Cider Women also had a get together, which brings me nicely to this week. Tonight, I’ll be going live on Instagram with the three gents behind Temperance St Cider. Temperance is Manchester’s newest Cidery, taking up where Moss Cider left off.
I’m looking forward to chatting and drinking – because they’ve kindly handed me some of their first ciders, including two single variety ciders and two more unusual ones – rhubarb and elderflower. I usually do the live before I eat my tea, so I’m hoping I don’t get too wobbly!
So if you’re not indulging in Eat Out to Help Out (which also kicks off today), I’ll see you at 7pm?