The evening news finished and he closed his back door with a thud.
The news had been appallingly depressing and he wanted to be as far away from it as he could.
Another three hundred infections and ten more deaths were added to the ever-growing list of deceased.
It was now a case of stay at home and don’t go out unless you had to and when you did to wear a mask. The authorities were getting more and more concerned about the deteriorating situation.
Staying at home wasn’t such a dreadful circumstance for him as he spent most days alone as it was.
It was having it imposed on him that was the biggest issue. He liked to shop on-line, he went to the shop in the early morning and he had all the TV he could possibly watch plus a stack of new novels to read.
He felt a sense of negativism overcome him. What if I catch it he asked himself? Who would care for me? Where would I go for help?
He had relatives but they lived out of town and he didn’t care much for them anyway. They tended to look down their collective noses at him and returned his lack of interest in them upon himself.
There were always plenty of things to do around the house. The spare room needed a good clean up. The back shed hadn’t been sorted out in years and his yard could do with a did more attention than the cursory mow every so often.
Each morning he watched the morning news, shook his head at the rising number of cases and wondered how the state premier managed so sleep at night when the death toll was rising and he seemed unable to quell it despite his best efforts.
It was obvious fear was building within the community, the lockdown was proving taxing on everyone, people out of work and confined to their homes. He was starting to hear more and more the sound of raised voices coming from the couple next door. It seemed inevitable that domestic violence would escalate in the coming weeks.
He checked his cupboards, he had plenty of food, his book supply was well stocked and he knew he could stay at home for as long as it took.
A knock on his door alerted him to a policeman announcing a neighbor had tested positive and it was now more important to observe the rules of the lockdown to stop the spread of the virus.
He shut his door and turned on the television.
With a cup of tea in hand he settled into his favourite chair to watch the grim reality.
Written for: https://mindlovemiserysmenagerie.wordpress.com/2020/07/26/sunday-writing-prompt-lockdown-july-26th/
Morpethroad 
I would not want to be the Premier (of any state) for all the money in the world. How anyone can point the finger and blame them for increases in cases and deaths is beyond me. They aren’t the ones who refuse to socially distance, or refuse to wear a mask, or worse still, deny the existence of Covid-19. The problem doesn’t lie with the premiers, it lies with the selfish bastards who think only of themselves and the supposed impinging on their “personal liberty.”
I agree with you
I really hope the small minority of people who seem hell bent on defying all reason, don’t spoil all our best efforts to beat this thing…
Its something we can’t let happen.
A reality for thousands of people now.
Very much so.
👍
I like the differentiation between ‘staying home’, and ‘being forced to stay home’. Being forced weighs heavy on the psyche.
I confess, during lockdown I didn’t catch up with my chores; the accumulated housework now shouts to be done
Well you could look at it as something to do now….though I tend to be slack with housework on a regular basis.
I’m good at a blitz once in a while, but apart from the essentials, nothing else gets done. There are always photos to process, things to write, promos on Twitter, posts for WP, walks (for my health!)… always something better to do
I tend to look at it that way too though in recent times I’d add naps to take. I can’t get the hang of Twitter I’m afraid.
Tend not to need naps… unless my night has been badly disturbed.
As to Twitter… when I first opened the a/c 2 yrs ago… no, not my scene, But this time the intention is to promote the books, which means promoting me, which means networking. But having that aim in mind, it makes more sence. Though it is very quickfire, and traps and quagmires are everywhere. You do have to be careful how you tread.
And what you might tread in…I understand the twitter for networking thing, good luck with that….are your books available in hard copy? We have a “Starts at 60 bookclub here which has been great in terms of getting recommendations of books to read. I’m currently reading Rachel Joyce’s new novel and its wonderful.
My books are available in paperback from Amazon. I did the text layout, with special thought given to clarity of text. Tends to be the older folk who prefer paperback over kindle. Unfortunately it does bump the price up. With The Spinner’s Child Amazon wouldn’t let me publish at the low price I wanted, even though their costs were covered
Everybody’s worst nightmare Michael. We’ve had two near misses in our road as both had their tests come back negative. We keep our distance anyway, but others don’t and we are stay in now rather than run the risk of the alternative. Keep safe.
Thanks Di, so far I have been lucky, I’m not living in a ‘hotspot’ area though I suspect that could change anytime soon.
Our county had one of the least number of cases, but since the tourists have started to arrive, we believe this has gone up. I appreciate the town need the money from tourism, but I just wish people were more considerate in their actions in the current situation. It affects us all, but they could be INfecting us all. Worrying times.
Depending on who you talk to disasters… are cyclical. Covid 19 could be 1/3 to 1/2 of its possible 3 year course. Keeping positive thoughts for a vaccine.
And for all who are shut in to think good thoughts of healing for all.