Coronavirus marks end of an era

There I was, thinking like an optimist (it doesn't come easy) in thinking 2020 was shaping up to be a better year. After more than 10 years of struggle and disappointment I was looking forward to finally turning 65. That magic number that would mean I would no longer be considered a useless dole bludger by a large sector of NZ society. And I would be entitled, after 50 years of paying taxes in NZ, to something a little better than the poverty income I am currently on. End of an era and the start of something new. A metamorphosis for me.

With such an important birthday coming up I decided to invite some friends to share it with me and I've been doing quite a bit of prep for that. In addition, to try to ensure I can pay my future rates and insurances I have been preparing to launch a little self-employed business for when the big 65 hits. I took out advertising I could scarcely afford.

Within days the Covid 19 situation really kicked in. Goodbye little business, goodbye milestone party and goodbye seeing my daughter Laura. We've all been looking forward to things this year and now, in most cases, they are not going to happen. We don't know what will occur but it is certain life will never be quite as it was a couple of weeks ago. Global effects ensure the entire world will never function as it did last year. Yet, here we are, living through it.

Some folks will lose their jobs and will never get another one. Some will lose partners through poor circumstances and stress. Some will lose all possibility of every having their own home. The reality is, it's truly frightening. We have little control over the main events.

It's times like this we need to find some way to exert a bit of control over our day to day lives. Really concrete control. For me it is harvesting fruit and veges from my garden. Sure, gardening is hard work but it's working to better my situation. My reward is organic produce no one else has touched, no eco footprint for it. Quiches, tarts, fritters, soups are all being prepared and popped into my little fridge freezer. Though they won't last long they certainly insulate me from supermarket price rip-offs and provide a sense of accomplishment.

Develop some skills while in lockdown. I've resurrected my mending skills, I'll be doing a spot of painting (not the artistic sort). I've gone back to practising music in a modest way. Every second day I bring a few perfumed roses into the house, along with sweet peas, to add the sense of smell to my enjoyment of each day. We are forced to live in the now. What is tomorrow? More lockdown, and it could last a while. I do miss having someone I care about inside my lonely bubble. I was lonely before but it's worse now. At least I can learn to chill out more. There are no arguments at my house. My sleep pattern is totally disrupted. I want to sleep during the day and can't sleep at night.

I have a list of things to do but I don't beat myself up if I am not as driven as I once was. Longterm unemployment has totally disrupted my past frenetic pace. I wasn't looking to retire but right now it is being forced on me. I am being obliged to slow down, put my habitual thought patterns on new tracks where possible, change expectations and just appreciate recent contacts, hoping to re-establish them later or at least maintain them at a modest level. 

Most of us will be able to look back and say "I remember the great pandemic of 2020"; we'll have plenty of anecdotes to share. It's OUR war story. I hope the world can ease off the other sort of wars to fight this new common enemy. Will this encourage nationalistic fervour? Will we start to live more sustainably? Will we take more personal responsibility for your daily lives?

Later next month I will become cushioned from the worst effects, I hope, but I know what forced massive change is like. Unless we are well-off, we are going to struggle and there will be a lot of anxiety and depression kicking in.

Not wishing to be morbid, practical rather, I have circulated contact details to those nearest and dearest in case anything happens to either Laura, JC or me. It's important that folks know if someone gets stricken or dies. No-one should be left wondering why they no longer hear from those special people. Your nearest need to know your last wishes in case there are no funerals or burials or gatherings of any kind. 

I am fortunate to have developed good reciprocal relationships with my immediate neighbours. We know we can count on each other if shit hits the fan. One set of neighbours left a plate of roast meat and vegetables on my doorstep just before the lockdown started.

Those sorts of kindnesses are part of our social glue. We really need that glue now to stick together a new way of living and thinking. Out with the old, in with the new. We don't get to deal the cards but we do decide how we play them. 

Maybe we can be like the monarch caterpillars - turn from greedy consumers to something new and beautiful via a complicated and dangerous coronavirus process. We truly are all in this together as we navigate our way through daily adventures.

Natural History and Fine Arts - Châteaudun

Châteaudun is known for its fortified chateau but tucked in the town you'll find a little museum with some surprising contents.

The museum was created in 1899. It is in two parts: fine arts from France and China; and a taxidermied collection of 3000 birds and mammals from around the world from the Marquis de Tarragon, (a large part of the animals having been taxidermied by the Marquis himself and presented in displays which have been preserved til now); the other part brings together archeological collections, and paintings donated by the State.

There is also a separate room dedicated to Egyptian art. This room contains art and artefacts from royal tombs from 3100-2700 BC. There are two mummies, along with vases, arms, tools, jewellery.

In  addition, there is a local history room covering the Franco-Prussian war of 1870 which had a devastating effect on Châteaudun. It contains uniform pieces and paintings. To learn more about this war it's best to visit the Musée de la Guerre 1970 just a few kilometres away. https://francesbigadventure.blogspot.com/2019/07/franco-prussian-war-1870-museum.html

Another room shows a family home interior of the 19th century, while outside you will find a collection of merovingian sarcophagi, chimney plaques from the 18th century and a collection of mill stones.

The oriental art room contains porcelaines from the India Company, as well as No theatre masques, daggers, Chinese jewellery and also islamic arts such as chandeliers, vases, miniatures.

I was amazed at the taxidermied collection. It says it contains birds from all around the world, so I looked to see if there were any birds from New Zealand (originally a land of birds). Not a solitary one, which was disappointing but at the same time I was relieved that precious birds from NZ hadn't been killed to add to this amazing collection.

I found the taxidermied mammals very sad. They gazed mournfully out of their glass display cases: the sloth, the chimps and monkeys looked almost demonic.

What was particularly successful were the dioramas depicting local wildlife - the hares, rabbits, birds in thier natural environment. Even hunters would be hard-pressed to see these animals like that now. Many have virtually disappeared.

 The Egyptian exhibits were interesting in that the mummies were a little different to the ones we see in major museums or on TV. These ones were of lesser royalty. There was a lot of painted ornamentation rather than gold and precious stones. Precious little objects found in the tombs were not the flashy ones we've come to expect. They had a modest and intimate aspect. Perfume containers and combs were on display.

As you can see, for a small local museum there is surprising variety with some important pieces you would not expect to find. It really deserves a visit. Check ahead for opening times because these change depending on the season. www.ville-chateaudun.fr