Curfew
22 February 2021
Three days ago, with rising numbers of Covid cases and deaths, the government announced a weekend curfew. Apart from key workers the population was to be confined to their homes and no cars were to be allowed on the roads. Supermarkets and food outlets would, as normal under the present lock down, be closed over the weekend.
We had planned to move to a new apartment over the weekend so had to readjust our plans and ensure we were in situ at the new place by 7pm on Friday evening.
Our new abode is near the Ragged Point light house on the Atlantic coast. It’s much quieter here and we can see and hear the sea. The light house is also visible on the cliff top nearby.
The locale is more urban so there are no goats, chickens and ducks running around and no barking dogs either. There are also no mosquitoes. At the previous property we bore our daily bites with increasing stoicism but it’s a relief not to have to spray our exposed limbs with ‘Jungle Juice’, ‘Go’ or one of any number of other propriety products that are meant to repel the little blood suckers.
We do have a house guest though, a green lizard (Anolis Extremus), which, unlike the mice in our house in England which gnaw at everything, appears harmless.
Today we have finished our weekend curfew but the Health Minister, a Lieutenant Colonel Bostic, is not a happy bunny as the younger generation were still out on the streets, hanging out, asymptomatic, then returning home where maybe three generations of the family live and so passing on the virus to their elderly relatives.
There was a great comment on a local news site: ‘When Bostic locked down the weekend that was a superb move. He snared all those barbers, beauticians, home bakers, hair dressers, nail techs, artisans, gardeners, car washers and home delivery persons selling from weed to sex. They could not go on the road. Bostic should clamp down like that each weekend and he will reap real good rewards in this fight. Go ahead Lt. Col you seem to know who is disobeying and spreading Covid.’
We are still in lock down so everyone should still be at home but under the guise of visiting the supermarket I think independent business people have been carrying on as normal. But it was a relief to get out between 6 and 9am to go for a long walk along the cliff top.
Unusually, we had a very overcast and still day yesterday which lasted all day. Like a grey UK winter’s day though warm. It turns out it was a plume of sand from the Sahara that has blown across the Atlantic and sat over us until the breeze freshened over-night and dispersed it westwards. Amazing how that sand can reach the UK and the Caribbean.
