Things are, kind’a, almost, sort of, coming round to some kind of ‘normal’. When the pubs open on Saturday that will be a massive boost to normality. Even though it’ll be different. And even though I probably will be no more likely to visit one than I have to any extent for about 20 years. I just like them being there. And seeing people on the pavements outside. Drunk, vomiting, smoking like chimneys, fighting. I’ve missed that. It’s part of what makes Britain great.

But not Leicester, obviously, that’s nothing great at all. Still locked down. Police dogs on the streets, neighbours reporting people who drift less than 2 metres apart, shops closed again, pubs remaining locked on Saturday when ours open. And I feel for the people there, I really do. But when, as one woman did, they imply that Leicester is being ‘persecuted’, I think someone needs to get a grip.

They’ve only ‘closed’ Leicester because it has become the last Coronavirus bastion in the country. With a population of 450,000 people the city has boasted 10% of all new virus cases in the country over the last two weeks. That’s batting way above average. To ignore such a thing would be an error of Donald Trumpian proportions. Even though I’m so happy I don’t live there.

Or Hong Kong. Wouldn’t want to live there either. China yesterday voted in a new law. Apparently the ‘parliament’ in Beijing ‘voted’ for it before they were allowed to know what the law said. That’s proper democracy for you. “JUST VOTE ‘YES’ OR YOU’LL NEVER SEE YOUR FUCKING FAMILY AGAIN. GODDIT???” So it passed!!! And it has turned demonstrations in Hong Kong into ‘acts of subversion’ with penalties of up to life imprisonment. And in typical Chinese style, they’re paying ‘bouties’ of 100,000 Dollars to anyone reporting such acts leading to arrest. It’s the Cultural Revolution all over again.

But not everything Chinese is shit. Tai Chi is a wonderful thing. And, after 3 months of zooming each other every day, we are finally allowed to meet in ‘groups of up to 6, social distance, blah, blah, outside only, obvs’. And of course, no physical contact. But nothing about hitting each other with sticks. So we did. In my garden. And it was wonderful. It may look like a bunch of old men chatting but it was hard fucking ‘training’, let me tell you. Almost normal. Almost.

Happy July (we can hope)

A xxxx