38 things lockdown has enabled the BlueSKY team to do

What have you been doing during your weeks in lockdown? With millions of us at home, many have been learning a musical instrument, tending their garden and honing their cooking skills.

As a nation, during lockdown we are:

  • Spending more time on social media (47% of us say we’re on social media more)
  • Buying more tequila – Waitrose say sales increased by more than 175% between 24 March and the end of April
  • Watching more TV together – shared viewing is up by 37% year-on-year since restrictions began
  • Baking – 40% of us say we are home baking more.

To find out exactly what has been going on over the last few weeks, we asked the BlueSKY team to share the things lockdown has enabled them to do…

  1. Baked sourdough bread (Rob)
  2. Made my first frangipane and raspberry tart (Lesley L)
  3. Spending lots of ‘bonus time’ with my nine-month-old son, Laurence. A real privilege to be able to see him grow and develop on a daily basis and time spent with him that I never anticipated – and his mum of course! (Jeremy)
  4. Cycled 445km including a total elevation of 6,491 metres, in my lounge! (Rob)
  5. Got hooked on Line of Duty having never binge-watched anything before! (Liz)
  6. I have spent a lot more time running and being out on the bike, I find this helps to clear my head and to get an injection of fresh countryside air (Jack)
  7. Made bunting for the garden (Lesley H)
  8. I’ve been busy in the kitchen making cakes and baking fresh bread every day (Jeremy)
  9. I’ve taken the time in the evenings to pick up the phone and call some of my friends and family just for a chat on a fairly regular basis, especially the ones that live alone (Anthony)
  10. I can add ‘knows how to make hand sanitiser’ to my list of skills (Anthony)
  11. My daughters are still going to Scouts; virtually, of course (Rob)
  12. Jet washed my patio and driveway for the first time (Lesley L)
  13. Written to our grandchildren, with a couple of photographs of people who have visited us (including Thomas the Tank Engine, and Barbie!) I’d forgotten how enjoyable writing a non-work letter was (Phil)
  14. I’ve done more exercise than ever before. Running has always been a passion of mine, but I’ve now added additional walking, cycling and three online workouts a week (Mark)
  15. Brought my ironing up to date (Mark)
  16. We met the local gamekeeper while out on our bikes, and he showed us his Harris hawks! (Lesley H)
  17. I’ve been busy in the garden, planting lots of seeds and growing herbs, flowers and tomatoes (Jeremy)
  18. I’ve picked up the guitar – but put it back again – I don’t think lockdown is going to make me into a musician (Rob)
  19. With the reduction of traffic on the roads, I have rekindled my interest in cycling. I have had some lovely rides through the local country lanes, exploring further than I can walking, and really enjoyed the exercise (Jan)
  20. Attended to my garden, including painting fences and doors, and making up hanging baskets (Lesley L)
  21. I have spent more time with Joshua, and we have been cooking together and going out for walks which we would not have done if he had been at school (Julie)
  22. Sending cream teas by post to my family – jam first, of course (Phil)
  23. Finished watching Killing Eve and After Life (Mark)
  24. Took part in a wine tasting night. The wine was sent through the post along with cheese and salami ahead of the event, which was done via a closed Facebook video session (Rob)
  25. Spending more time with my friends than I would normally do as we’re meeting ‘virtually’ every week (Liz)
  26. Growing chilli plants. I was given a seed kit over Christmas and until recently it had been collecting dust. They’ve made quite a bit of progress since March, and I’m looking forward to cooking with them over the summer! (Jack)
  27. Dusted off the trainers and partaken in some light runs after 18 months out of action with a bad back (Jeremy)
  28. Cycling around the local area looking at birds and butterflies. Last weekend we saw two little egrets and a kingfisher, as well as dingy and grizzled skippers, green hairstreaks, small heaths and small coppers (Lesley H)
  29. I have also spent time in the kitchen baking, which I find calming and relaxing. Of course, this has meant that I have had to eat the end result, so it’s probably a good job that I’m cycling (Jan)
  30. Used Zoom for non-work purposes. It has reconnected me with local friends and Uni mates I haven’t seen for over 20 years as far away as Australia, Canada and America (Mark)
  31. Growing vegetables from seed, including courgettes, sweetcorn and cucumbers (Lesley H)
  32. Going sailing and racing – virtually (Rob)
  33. Getting to grips with technology and having online meetups with friends and family (Jeremy)
  34. Read The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni (Mark)
  35. I’ve found myself with the time on my hands to carry out some digital decluttering: deleting documents and programs that I no longer need, organising my music and photos, making sure that I actually carry out a back-up rather than telling myself that I will do so (Anthony)
  36. I have enjoyed getting to know the neighbours a bit more when we go out to ‘clap for our carers’ (Julie)
  37. Enjoyed ‘virtual’ family dinners which have been fun (Liz)
  38. On Sundays, the rest of the family set up a garden circuit training session, medicine balls, weights and netball shooting practice (Rob)

Get in touch

Despite all these activities, we’re still open for business and helping clients with all their financial planning requirements. If you’d benefit from advice at this time, please get in touch. Contact us by email at info@blueskyifas.co.uk or call us on 01189 876655.