Lockdown things into perspective

[racebuddy]

What lockdown has made u think ? of life in general and things that u take for granted

during lockdown ive continued to work through lockdown and been fortunate that we all have stayed in work as
keyworkers , ive done long days some 14 hour shifts/ on call ect

Ive missed shows /
competing ect but on reflection they dodnt earn us our wages well some do but most of us they are our hobby

so its more important we have money coming in to pay our bills And food on the table . Its actually quite scary how much we spend on competing ???

I was
Looking for a second horse before lockdown but think i am going to wait for 12 months before look at getting a second one making sure we still have jobs and a bit more normal life .

My current horse is due to have surgery and although hes insured hes not covered for current surgery as already claimed so we are paying but makes me think could easily be a different scenerio
If hadnt been working through lockdown ??

i love competing he loves going out and about and thrives off the work but i dodnr think its done him any harm what so ever no 2 am starts going feom one ens of the country to another ??

what has everyone thoughts ?
Horses have shot up
Ridiculous prices ??

 

[myheartinahoofbeat]

Our business has been closed all through lockdown and only just started opening back up again. Our bank has been really unhelpful through out and the whole experience has been pretty stressful even though thankfully, none of us have actually suffered from Covid. However, it's really made us think about what's important in our lives. We've decided to have a fresh start and have found a property with land and are going to 'do' horses and take a step back from the business. We're moving to a new area, getting my retired horse back from retirement livery and my loaned out horse back to us and just have some fun. My competition horse has had a quite few months but we'll be out competing again soon but it doesn't seem as important as exploring all the new hacking tracks around our new house. Lockdown has really crystalised all this for us.

 

[Michen]

I have an immense loyalty for my company that could have furloughed the lot of us but didn’t. They treated us brilliantly.

I love taking life slower, no more rushing for a train.

 

[racebuddy]

We had a few days off after long shifts which gave us a much better work life balance work in veterinary so lockdown has proven very challenging but weve kept going providing 24 hour care 7 days a week , but I agree the last 4 months have been slower pace especially on my days off hAd time go catch up eat meals at proper times ect xx

 

[splashgirl45]

i thought i didnt really need people, i live on my own with 2 dogs, but have really missed seeing my friends. its true you dont realise what you have got until its not there. i have really missed going to events with my friends and helping them with their horses and i hope i can soon get back to normal and go to some events....

 

[ester]

splashgirl for me it wasn't just seeing people per se but the fact that dec-march is usually a post christmas quiet time for seeing people. But once spring is here that means doing horsey stuff and seeing horsey friends, neither of which then happened so life was very much no horsey for a good while (other than here!)

 

[Cortez]

Lockdown here has come slap bang on top of another huge life event for me, and has given me the impetus to just say "buggrit, I'm retired now". So in a way easier than for a lot of people, I would imagine, but also completely disorientating. My world has tilted so out of it's normal orbit that nothing will ever be the same again, but then I suppose it was always going to be that way anyway. The struggle will be to find a new way forward.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

Apart from missing a couple of friends and family I literally have barely noticed the lockdown....I'm clearly far more antisocial than I thought..!!! ???

 

[View]

In many ways, lockdown passed me by.

I'm a keyworker, and we have been fighting to keep this business viable, trying to treat our staff fairly and reasonably, and ensure that we have a business and jobs for our hardworking staff. On top of this, some of the rail companies have forgotten to organise rail replacement services for long planned works, so we've had to put these together at very short notice. Covering for colleagues who are shielding, dealing with the ever changing "guidance" from the government ...

Basically, three of us have been working 12 hour days, 13 days a fortnight since March 20th. Now that we can implement normal school holiday schedules, we can take things a little bit easier (each of us taking one week off) but there is still a huge amount to do to get staff back to work subject to individual risk assessment and the ever changing situation before schools restart.

So, while physically I haven't missed a social life, mentally I have missed the downtime.

Daughter was furloughed, but recalled to work last week, and OH is vulnerable.

 

[Bernster]

Apart from missing a couple of friends and family I literally have barely noticed the lockdown....I'm clearly far more antisocial than I thought..!!! ???

Hah I’m a bit the same. I think once I get back out more (still not mingling much) I’ll realise what I’ve been missing. Glad to have a steady job which I’ve continued to do at home (actually been busier), not missed the commute, enjoying more lie ins and time with the cat and the other half. Have missed horses outings and thats what I’m looking forward to doing again the most.

i think it’s shown me that I’m actually pretty content, or Im just oblivious and don’t reflect on anything and just go with it!

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Life hasn't changed much for us. My husband is missing his bowls (indoor) and my sister and I are desperately missing our dog agility training and competitions. Otherwise for me nothing has changed much. My sister and her husband would normally be going to various Historic Boat shows with their canal boat, an Icebreaker but that is being repaired anyway so pressure off there.

 

[Cloball]

I have had a week off this week and am feeling a weird mix of not knowing what to do with myself now I could feasibly go further than 5 miles and crippling anxiety about pretty much everything.
I have worked through lockdown and been so lucky to have a garden to overhaul which doesn't need much doing now so I have been pretty content having only one option.

I have been missing people terribly though as we moved at the end of last summer far from our friends and out of the city so lockdown is on the back of a very quiet social period anyway. I feel like I haven't been able to make any new friends either due to lockdown.

I have also gotten terribly unfit. I have learned I rely on yoga classes, riding and group hill walking to motivate me if I don't have that I freeze up and don't leave the house. I am quite disappointed in myself really a few years ago I was hiking around the foothills of Nepal on a solo trip and now I can't bring myself to drive into the national park.

 

[milliepops]

more or less nothing changed day to day. I realised what a fabulous life the horses give me, speaking to colleagues every day who were going stir crazy with nothing to do, and I'm busy at both ends of the day as normal with my funny bunch of steeds.

The thing I missed more than anything is my lessons, they really are the thing I look forward to more than anything and we went a bit off the rails without them (me more so than horse, top horse is REALLY challenging and I had not fully appreciated what a mental boost I get from having a good ride with structure and progress and someone to talk through issues with in between the difficult days at home).

 

[meleeka]

Apart from missing a couple of friends and family I literally have barely noticed the lockdown....I'm clearly far more antisocial than I thought..!!! ???

Same here although I can’t really say I’ve missed anyone as I talk to those I want to frequently on the phone. The only thing I’ve missed is the ease of getting things. Buying a bedroom door and a couple of fence panels was a real challenge.

 

[scats]

It affected me massively from a business point of view. New business had been open for just 6 weeks when I had to shut for 7. Opened again mid-May but it’s been very up and down.

Horse wise not much has changed. I’d normally be out competing by now but apart from that everything has stayed the same.

I miss my friends though. My best friends family are like an extension of my family and I see them all the time as her they live over the road from me. Her nan has very severe COPD so is shielding for the forseeable so I haven’t seen them properly for months, although we speak regularly. For the last 32 years I have been in and out of their house several times a week, so it’s been quite tough. I can’t wait to be able to nip over there again for a cuppa.

 

[Polos Mum]

I have an immense loyalty for my company that could have furloughed the lot of us but didn’t. They treated us brilliantly.

I love taking life slower, no more rushing for a train.

Genuine question - why would you be unhappy with them furloughing you? I'd have to furlough all my staff - it's that or make them redundant - we haven't earned a 1p since early March. I think (hope) I've treated them brilliantly by keeping them on - I'd be really interested to hear the other perspective.

 

[Michen]

Genuine question - why would you be unhappy with them furloughing you? I'd have to furlough all my staff - it's that or make them redundant - we haven't earned a 1p since early March. I think (hope) I've treated them brilliantly by keeping them on - I'd be really interested to hear the other perspective.

Because the government salary is up to a max of £2500 a month (approx £1900 after tax) and that would cover my rent and house bills and the cost of one of my (two) horses. Nothing else. So I’d have had a big gap between my outgoings and my salary. Of course it would have been doable but obviously not ideal!

Plenty of my colleagues were in same boat with mortgages etc.

We did still have money coming in though, although as a company we lost millions. So completely different scenario to yours which is completely understandable to furlough staff!

 

[Polos Mum]

Because the government salary is up to a max of £2500 a month (approx £1900 after tax) and that would cover my rent and house bills and the cost of one of my (two) horses. Nothing else.

Ahh - so I have topped up my staff to their normal salary out of my own pocket. They have had no reduction in take home pay.

As I understand it many employers have done that, the government grant just gave the employer a little of the cash to help a bit.

 

[Dyllymoo]

I've been at work (in the office throughout) so nothing has majorly changed or been too different for me. I have missed being able to go out for lunch somewhere (I know technically we can now, but its not as care free as it once was!), I guess its the freedom to just go somewhere at the drop of a hat.

I have realised that having J has been a massive factor in me being able to look after my mental health. He gives me routine and stability and I am really enjoying my rides with him now. It really is my down time the few hours a day I spend with him. Even this morning I went up a few minutes earlier than normal and gave him a brush off and just stood with him before heading off to work.

 

[BallyRoanBaubles]

Luckily I stayed working, albeit some days from home. I actually like the structure of going into work everyday, but I didn't miss the commute when I worked from home.

I quite enjoyed the rest from taking Bobby out, it was nice to just ride and not think about aiming for anything other than having a good time.

Glad cafes and restaurants are open again

 

[dorsetladette]

I feel lucky that both me and HO were kept in work even though work was quiet for me.
We actually get on quite well. We have done so much together through lockdown. We have actually started up our little smallholding rather than just getting the paperwork sorted and making excuses. We have sheep (hand reared orphan lambs) now and a few turkeys to go with the chickens. All the housing etc has been hand built by us and actually I'm really proud of what we have achieved.

I know a lot of people are in a totally different boat and have struggled over the last few months, And I do consider us very lucky to be in the position we are in. Money hasn't been tight as we haven't been out spending or commuting for work. So all in all we have been better off all round.

 

[zandp]

I've missed my family, they live 3 hours away, I've missed both my niece and nephew's birthday, I would have gone up to see them normally. I've missed my dad who's been alone since Mum died, although have been talking to him regularly. I've been classed as a key worker and have worked throughout but have been in the office and working from home -this would have been easier if we had broadband at work so we could access the server remotely but they did buy us all hard drives and it's been ok. i've done some stupidly long hours and am now battling exhaustion and stress but am allowing myself some time not working quite as hard.

I've missed just being able to pop into places but the town I live in went into immediate independent business survival mode and we've been able to get everything and anything you can think of food and drink wise delivered so have actually discovered a few different places to eat now.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I have been wfh. Normally I would go into the office one day per week and if I need to visit a school on a different day, adjust the hours in the office, or simply change my working day. During lockdown, I needed to be available to answer the phone/emails as the came in. That meant that I worked throughout the week. Then there were the Zoom meetings!

I have missed meeting friends for lunch and most of all I have missed going to all the shows etc that I normally consider to be my holiday. It should have been the Great Yorkshire Show this week, we had relatives booked to come down from Scotland to dog sit and would have arranged to meet another friend whom we only see once per year on the showground. Obviously none of that has happened.

This time has confirmed that I will retire completely sometime during this Academic year, depending on what the team needs. I am perfectly happy doing stuff at home, with the animals. And I don't actually need to spend as much as I thought I did.

 

[Chinchilla]

Lockdown here has come slap bang on top of another huge life event for me, and has given me the impetus to just say "buggrit, I'm retired now". So in a way easier than for a lot of people, I would imagine, but also completely disorientating. My world has tilted so out of it's normal orbit that nothing will ever be the same again, but then I suppose it was always going to be that way anyway. The struggle will be to find a new way forward.

No idea what's going on in your life but just want to say I hope you're alright

 

[Lintel]

Lockdown has made me think of killing my OH.

?

 

[FinnBobs]

I'm really appreciating my Husband and all my family and all my wonderful animals. Really counting my blessings at the moment x

 

[Nicnac]

Deleted - sorry thought this was in club house. Tack room is public so I don't put personal stuff on this part of the forum.