Loo rolls left: You can find them in Sainsbury’s now.

Day 15 Tuesday 07/04/2020

I am still trying to get my work computer to work. I spent most of the morning talking to various IT *help* desk type people with no success. I also spent quite a while responding to emails that were telling me that they had solved my problem. Passing my problem onto someone else may have solved the problem for you, but it hasn’t solved it for me.

Eventually it was agreed to try the possible solution that I had suggested about a week ago. I would go into one of our offices. Then, I would connect directly to the Local Area Network using a cable. This would check if that would reset the logon. There was only one minor problem to that solution. Due to the current situation, all our offices are closed. It was eventually agreed that I would be given access to the Croydon office and telephone support on Thursday morning.

I sorted out some work that I could do without the computer. This was planned for Wednesday. Then I went to the allotment for the afternoon.

The allotment has been our escape hatch during this period. We often take our lunch up with us and have a picnic. We are set up with all mod cons. A portable gas stove and kettle to make tea. There is usually a packet of biscuits, unless we have eaten them, and a bucket for emergencies. (It is apparently very good for the compost heap).

We planted a few seeds and dug over one of the beds in preparation for planting runner beans later on. We decided we would like a flower bed in front of the table where we have our lunch. So, we made a start on that.

Day 16 Wednesday 08/04/2020

Apart from a couple of emails on my phone, which I don’t like having to do. It is not that I dislike email per-say. I just don’t enjoy answering anything that requires more than a yes or no response using my phone keyboard. Anyway we managed to confirm the access arrangements for Thursday. I was all set to return to full existence. Having sorted that I went out and did some actual work.

When I got back home we decided to go to the allotment to make sure everything was watered. We also finished off our little flower garden.

We found a lot of flower seeds in the shed. I also brought some from my house. Most of the packets were past their use by dates, but we sowed them anyway. Hopefully some will come up. We also planted a pair of roses that Diane found in Poundland. Then we went home for an early night. I had to be up bright and early the next day for my (or my computer’s appointment with destiny).

Day 17 Thursday 09/04/2020

My alarm went of at 06:30. I was already awake. Diane had woken up even earlier. She had kindly brought me a cup of tea up to bed. I was washed dressed and breakfasted by eight o’clock and set off for Croydon. One advantage of this lock-down is, that if you do have to drive anywhere, driving is a doddle. New Malden to Croydon in twenty minutes. Normally it would take at least an hour at eight a.m. Also, when I arrived at our offices there were parking spaces, unheard of.

That was where the smooth sailing ended. Security told me that the office had been unlocked, great, but I needed a swipe card to access it. My ID card does not have swipe access, because I don’t need it. I very rarely need access to our offices. If I do, there is always someone there to give me the access that I need. Provided everyone isn’t working from home. A facilities engineer was sent from central London to let me in. Even with lock-down traffic, he took about two hours to get to Croydon. I called my telephone support person to tell them that there would be a delay. They said fine, they didn’t have all that much to do anyway.

Eventually my engineer arrived, and let me into the office. I plugged my machine in (fortunately I had the foresight to bring my own cable). I switched it on, typed in my password, and it let me log on. Problem solved in less than two seconds. We ran a couple of other checks to make sure that everything was fine, which it was.

I spent the rest of the day typing in the last weeks reports, and doing my expenses. Boring, but I now exist again.