Wednesday, November 04, 2020

DAY FIVE QUARANTINE - AUCKLAND

 Thirteen and a half years ago Stew, Brylee, Griffin and I went over to Australia to visit Mum for her 70th Birthday.

I gave her a sweet little ring to mark her birthday.

I now wear it, and it gives me a sense of connection with Mum.  I know she loved this ring, and wore it every day.

ABOVE:  From her hand to mine... and one day I too will pass it on to a girl in my family.

It's the little things that get to you eh? 

AND before anyone goes off the deep end... My Mum and I discussed who got this ring before she died.  I GOT IT.  Just like I got the two old wedding rings she kept for me, after the 'ring debacle' years ago. 

ABOVE:  So happy that Mum thought to give these BACK to me before she slipped away on us.  I probably would have never got them otherwise, even though she named them.

POSSESSIONS don't mean much when you have lost such a precious family member, but these old rings?  SO Special.  Mum's ORIGINAL Wedding ring, and her Mother's too.  


After yesterdays bloody horrible meals, I'm feeling really down again.
It sure doesn't take much to reduce me to tears at the moment.

I'm going to see what sort of SHIT meal turns up at my door, and if it's horrible I shall put it BACK out me door, and order in.

You are only allowed ONE UBER delivery a day, so I shall 'save' it for dinner time.
Lunches can be crackers/cheese/ham/hummus/carrot sticks etc.

I'm NOT going to let this get me down every day... I will just 'fix' it myself.

It just SADDENS me that this 5 STAR HOTEL is no better than the one I stayed at in Sydney. 

I HAVE 9 MORE NIGHTS AND DAYS HERE.... I almost 'get' why some people try to escape.
I want to.

Got this under my door last night:

ABOVE: One down, one to go!

ABOVE:  Griffin took this cool photo downtown yesterday.

ONWARD...

ABOVE:  The waffle was bloody nice!
That ring shaped thing?  You can bounce it on the floor and it comes right back up at ya!  Revolting.  
This meal gets a semi-ok  6/10.

ABOVE: The bread with lettuce, tomato and bacon on it was OK.  
But tell me, how many ADULTS want Popcorn or Chips, and orange juice EVERY FUKING DAY for 'afternoon tea'?
SERIOUSLY.

This meal gets a 5/10.

And I just lost the plot.  And rang 'Customer Services'  and this is what I said:

" This is Room 401.  I am not a child.  I do not want POPCORN OR CHIPS.  OK?"

And that poor woman just said "OK" ... so I hung up.  LOUDLY.

God I feel so UNGRATEFUL.  BUT CRABBY AS FUCK TOO.

ABOVE:  Thanks Tania.  I got them out of the bin!

5.28 pm:  Still binge watching Coronation Street.
Got TWO MORE EPISODES and I will be all caught up!
8 weeks worth watched in 2.5 days, which is 41 Episodes.
Phew.  

Wonder what I will do tomorrow?

*sigh*

ABOVE:  well... tonight's dinner is another super hot and spicy chicken slop on rice.  Some rubbery naan bread and a piece of cake.

Can't eat the chicken obviously, choose not to eat the rubbery naan bread and the cake?  Yeah gunna give that a miss too.

So far I've been given something ON RICE four nights out of five.  Wow.  Must be the cheapest food they can use eh?

I'm not going to do Uber tonight, as I can just make myself another sandwich.  I don't want my bread to go to waste.
Plus I have carrots and hummus too.  Yummo.

9.55 pm, and I've spent a good two hours on the phone or video chatting to family this evening.
It is keeping me sane.
Thank god for being able to keep in touch, and talking 'face to face' with everyone.
Well... not much going on now.

I have FINISHED watching all 43 episodes of Coronation Street!  Tomorrow I will make a start on catching up on Home and Away!

Catch ya tomorrow.

29 comments:

  1. Anonymous8:28 AM

    Two things to focus on rather than the meals: negative result for Covid (you knew it would be but good to see it in writing) and you said the hotel room was bigger and nicer than Sydney so perhaps still 5 star?? I am fairly sure that the hotel doesn't control the meals, they are controlled by Govt and the first priority for them is probably the cost. Audrey

    ReplyDelete
  2. OK so for the next 9 days I shall sit here in this room and tell myself this is a lovely room. That should cheer me up no end. My niece Maxine was in Quarantine at The Rydges and got AMAZING meals ... like really lovely. So to get HERE and get shit meals is UPSETTING, particularly as it's as bad as the meals in Sydney! I'm already fucking depressed without this shit going on. Excuse me for being so BLUNT... but I'm over it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous8:45 AM

    Chris, I didn't mean to make you feel worse - I was trying to get you to concentrate on other things than the reasons you are so upset (and it probably isn't so much the meals as the loss of your Mother, which I understand. At least here you can get out of the room (not far admittedly but at least OUT!!). I'll go back to not commenting as I don't want to upset you again. Audrey BTW, try and think of it as only 9 days!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Audrey please keep commenting! I'm gunna be pissed over just about anything right now, it's NOT YOU. It's me. I'm just ... ???? TRAPPED. DEPRESSED. ANGRY. FRUSTRATED. YOU name it, I'm all over the place.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous9:03 AM

      Are you able to go for a walk more than once a day or do you have to always book it in advance? Try and leave the room as much as possible and have those baths more often (free hot water!!) and perhaps try to have a sleep during the day. You can't feel all those negatives if you are asleep. Perhaps see you in Rotorua on the other side?? Audrey

      Delete
    3. There is a small outdoor area you can go to whenever you want. The larger, Level 4 walking area you can only go to once a day. I would love to meet up in Rotorua one day! Stew goes over there once a week ... I could catch a ride over with him and meet you.

      Delete
  4. the ring shaped thing is a bagel. Yummy toasted with butter and cream cheese, or with bacon, lettuce and tomato. Very nice actually.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous10:26 AM

    omg anyone who even wants to try have a dam go at you about grannys rings will seriously need their head checked....
    It's no one else's business but yours and granny's and and any other immediate family who may of been considered, and that's private.

    #Lacy 💙

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous10:41 AM

    It's a bagel, so delicious toasted. It's meant to be dense and chewy. Not sure if you are having a laugh but how can you not know what some of the foods you get are?
    It's not like ya live in a cave lol

    I'm just surprised that food that is very common you have no idea about.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 1. I do know what a bagel is.
      2. That thing was way, way smaller than a traditional BAGEL.
      3. TOASTED? Yeah they are supposed to be toasted. This one wasn't... and fuck me, there is NO TOASTER in this room.

      4. I'm not that stupid that I don't know what common foods are... unless they are presented like THAT.

      I was being sarcastic when I called it 'a ring shaped thing', because to call it a BAGEL would have been an insult to NICE BAGELS.

      Delete
    2. Anonymous10:53 AM

      *mic drop* hehe
      💯 👌

      #Lacy 💙

      Delete
    3. I toasted a bagel with an iron before lol, works pretty good ;)

      Delete
  7. Anonymous11:24 AM

    I agree about the bagels but I havent been able to eat any because they're always tough. Waffle looks yummy. I love your write ups and I understand you. Dont change anything.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Good start to the day, an edible waffle. I understand that you are feeling down. Anybody would be. You are really going through a lot. And all by yourself. Nothing is normal. And 9 more days, I fear, will drag.......

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think you are feeling crabby :) I for one would love popcorn or chips for a snack. I don't find that odd at all. I don't drink juice but most people do - also, most people would be making tea or coffee in their room (I presume they provide milk for that). You are best to just order in what you'd like I think. Not long now, you'll be over the hump soon and counting down to leave.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I cannot even imagine what you’re going through right now. Pure hell is all I can come up with.
    Losing the person who loved you first is the hardest thing ever. EVER.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous1:53 PM

      💙💙💙 thanks caroline for your heart felt message for our Ma.

      She's amazing our Mum is 💙💜
      #Lacy 💙

      Delete
  11. Anonymous1:27 PM

    Just wanted to send a comment of support. You have lost your Mum and you have to grieve alone in a hotel room... Your allowed to be disappointed in the food. It's average food at the best of times and this isn't the best. Take care of yourself and good idea to order some food you will enjoy. Surrey.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi chris, you are completely entitled to feel disappointed in the food. I would say just one thing for you though with the food being so crap and you sometimes not being nourished as well as you should that juice would come in handy for low blood sugar moments (Juice is my go to when i have a hypo) Take care, Tania xx

    ReplyDelete
  13. I am glad i could help with my juice tip! I always carry one of those in my handbag!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Anonymous3:27 PM

    Yes juice is absorbed quicker than lollies

    ReplyDelete
  15. Gosh Chris ... great dedication there with the Coronation Street catch-ups. I am a loyal Coronation Street watcher, but I think I'd struggle to watch that many episodes in such a short space of time - well done you!! Great idea by Tania above ... you might as well keep the snacks too even if you don't want to eat them - whatever you have left at the end of your stay, take home to feed to grandkids etc when visiting. It's a shame the food has been so inconsistent and not so much to your liking. We had one of the Wellbeing Advisors from the Managed Isolation Team here in Christchurch talk at our work's AGM on Monday - was very interesting, and there have been some incredibly sad situations faced by many. I think there is so much more going on behind the scenes than we sometimes realise - it was certainly an eye opener for me, even after hearing quite a lot from yours and a couple of friends' experiences. I didn't get a chance last night to comment, but watching that wee video of you interacting with Lacy and Griffin almost had me in tears - it must have been so nice for you to see immediate family so close after weeks of not seeing them in person. Silly sook, aren't I?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh Chris you poor thing. What a nightmare! I was hoping the food would be better this time considering you get to order in advance but then if the choice isn’t great it doesn’t really help! Hang in there. I live in Sydney, Australia and feel very lucky that I don’t have to travel countries or states as I’m palliatively caring for my mother in her final days. Very draining. I can only imagine what you have and are growing through. You are an amazing woman Rhonda

    ReplyDelete
  17. I do wish people wouldn't assume all "foreign" cuisine is good cuisine. You don't need curries and middle eastern food and rice and naan. You need snags and spuds and peas and sauce. Or the kiwi equivalent. And if the food is halal how the hell did you end up with bacon? Just as well you're not Muslim or Jewish assuming all food can be eaten. Unless it wasn't real bacon. Messing with your head now!!!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Anonymous9:03 PM

    So sorry you're having to put up with awful food, again. I thought the food you were offered in Australia was bad, but the food you're getting in your home country is even worse. Don't understand why you are being offered so much "junk" - ie, chips and cakes. If I recall correctly, you spoke to a dietician in the Australian hotel, is there one available for you here in your NZ hotel? But looking at the positive side, you are nearly at the end of your first week, you "passed" your Covid test, and you are able to leave your room, even if only for short periods.

    You are one tough cookie (that's a compliment!), and you will get through this.

    A Fan in Canada

    ReplyDelete
  19. We have a hospital discharge check at Auckland tomorrow. If baby is cooperating we will come for a walk past and give you a wave tomorrow xx

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous10:28 PM

    Night Night Ma 💙 we love you so so much xx 💙 💜
    #Lacy 💙

    ReplyDelete
  21. TG you can at least order in! No microwave at this one either I assume? So weird since most hotels here have microwaves.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Sorry to hear that the food is yet again a huge disappointment. Nice to see you don't have to stay 100% locked in your room. Thank goodness for your delivery angels. Take care.

    ReplyDelete

Comments will be published once approved by a blog admin. Thank You.