(8.15pm). The Moon doth shine as bright as day.

0700 8 MIST
->0900 FOG
RAIN later
1915 RAIN
2000 3 Moon
Wind N

On Christmas Day mum wants me to mind the dinner while they go for a walk with my brother.

8

Got a text saying I could have a flu vaccine on Tuesday, but only then. Apparently very low incidence of flu this year because of distancing and face coverings, but I don't want to die an ironic death, so will go.

0700 8
FAR MIST
--->Sunny intervals

Beer yeast bread very nice - bitter/sour savoury undertone to it.

0700 0
->->MIST
c.1400 lifts
≤8 Sun-breaks
Wind S

Slept very soundly, up at 4 feeling great. On way to Tescos admired a beautiful pastel blue, grey and yellow sunrise, and thought about how many sunrises I've seen lately, since I started getting up early.

Later made bread experimentally with the beer yeast I acquired during the great shortage in the spring.

≤8 Bright at times
1630 Sun-breaks
->Moon

Spoke to parents on phone, got to think about when I want to arrive at on Dec 24th - mum doesn't want dad driving after dark that day, so the latest would be 4pm and the earliest would be about 1pm, for lunch.

≤8
c.1400 Sun-break
c.1700 SHOWER

Went out in the garden for a few minutes in the afternoon, as I do on days when I'm at home all day. I felt quite sad looking at the overgrown borders, and thinking what a nice house this could have been..

On the other hand I have done some solid good things here: replacing all the fences, putting up the side fence and gate, painting the shed, planting the thuja, putting up the balustrade, painting the stair wall, carpeting the stairs and landing, getting the front repointed.

I'm hoping that those good works have earnt me enough merit to depart in good order.

Some sun

0700 ~4 FROST
->sun
1300->->8

Much sun

0700 8 Sc
1430 Sun-break
Cold

0700 0 FROST
->sun
--->8
1400 RAIN

Tesco quite crowded; it felt a bit ominous and pre-plague, though it might just be that I'm used to how it is at 7am now rather than 11.

Walking home I was watching leaves fall off the trees in Festive Rd and remembering how we used to try and catch them for luck, and I never managed to. One of them planed down past my hand, and I could have caught it if I'd been willing to drop the bag I was carrying. But then it veered sideways and fell across the top of the bag, so I quickly pushed it inside with my other hand.

Some sun Cu, Ci
Much colder
1200 RAIN

Phone conversation with parents in the morning; I said I was planning to see much more of them than before, once the plague abates.

0700 0
->Sun
--->1600 8
->Windy

8 Sc
Bright at times
1445 Sun

A second coronavirus vaccine announced today, and even more effective. Started feeling quite optimistic, though still wary of premature rejoicing.

Much sun
Cold
1700 RAIN

Talked to parents on phone at 8am, it was a good idea they suggested in the week, to phone twice-weekly during this current shutdown.

0600 8 HEAVY RAIN till ~0900
Windy
->
1400 Calmer
Sun\1530 SQUALLY RAIN

Into town early, got ceiling paint for the patches I have to cover up. I would've waited till after this shutdown, and got it from B&Q, but I had rucksack space and took the opportunity.

0700 8
1100-1500 SPELLS OF RAIN
1530 Sun-break
->WINDY

RAIN overnight
Breezy
0700 8
0800 LIGHT RAIN
stops
1100 LIGHT RAIN
stops
->Brighter

Much sun
Cold

Out at 6.45am to the town Sainsburys. Very foggy - atmospheric sunrise through the fog on my way back.

0600 FOG SKY OBSCURED
0715 Sun-through
->8

Vaccine story is still going. I can hardly believe there's an end in sight. It was 8 months ago yesterday that I came back from Scotland that Monday morning and found the shelves emptying at Sainsburys.

If the story stays good, it'll mean my plans are very much back on. There may be a period of boom psychology in the spring which might make selling the house easy.

RAIN in night
0700 <8
--->
1400 3 Cu Sun

Story in the NYT first thing about a 90% effective corona vaccine - shares up 4 or 5%. The BBC made a big deal of it at 1pm. I was watching while doing yoga and the sun was just breaking through the low cloud and fog that had made the morning gloomy.

0600 FOG SKY OBSCURED
--->Lifting
1300 Sun-through
1930 RAIN

Weather very mild, wore my green summer coat into town. On the way home I passed some people who'd all come out of their house to stand in the garden being silent. I looked at them incredulously.

News very watchable today, it feels like we've really dodged a bullet. Dubya of all people has weighed in to point out that Biden won fair and square, and to congratulate him. Doesn't say much for Trump that Dubya's showing him how to behave.
I say 'of all people' but apparently he is the only living Republican ex-president.

RAIN overnight
Ci & haze
Some sun
Very mild
1500 8 S

Just before 5pm all the news outlets 'called it' for Biden, as he was so far ahead in Pennsylvania that none of the recounts and bogus lawsuits could make a difference. That's a relief. Like the bit from LotR where Sauron's shadow fills all the sky, but a great wind blows it away.

This means Kamala Harris will be the first woman VP. The Americans have been comparatively slow in getting there

Since the last election here I've been thinking in terms of overlaying Apr 1992 onto Dec 2019. Not only have we already had our Black Wednesday in the form of the inept COVID response/Brexit handling, but now we've also had a repeat of the Nov 1992 US election, which I remember as equally being a consolation prize.

Typically 4 Ci Sun
Cold

Early today Trump made a load more false claims about fraud, which wasn't surprising in itself, but the media were openly pointing out that they were lies. Why has it taken them 4 years to start calling him out?

0700 FROST
Sun

Still no resolution, though Biden's been on top all day today. I saw that Giuliani making his claims - he's so crooked-looking, even though I had the telly on mute I didn't believe a word he was saying.

0700 ~1 Sun Moon
FROST
Cold

Up at 4, went with trepidation to the New York Times to see what our fate was, only to find an inconclusive outcome I hadn't bargained for. Biden was ahead though, and that's been the position all day, with Trump sometimes seeming likely to overtake him and sometimes not.

When I got back from Tesco Trump had falsely declared victory and I had a strange feeling of there being two alternate futures phasing in and out. All the US networks, even Faux, commented disapprovingly on this utterance of Trump's, and at first I thought 'He'll get them back for that- fake news, liberal media etc'. But then I realised that was only in one future. In the other it's the point where he started to look like a loser.

Later he tried casting suspicion on the absentee ballots, which are mostly Dem because it's they who feared they'd be prevented from voting in person. Once again the Republican politicians are being offered a choice between supporting Trump, and supporting the rule of law. This time though might be the last time there is a choice.

(9pm). Listening to the World Service news now it's 'How will President Biden - if it is President Biden - deal with this' and how many votes Biden needs to win, and Trump's people are reduced to suing and insinuating fraud. This is the most it's gone over to Biden so far. Then again, this is the closest election I've ever followed, it makes us 2016 and UK 2017 look like clear-cut conclusions. I thought it would be we who would be reduced to making legal challenges.

0600 FROST
~1 Cu Sun
Cold

Several people on Twitter described the atmosphere as being like 'negative Christmas Eve'. I know just what they mean. I see from my diary I was pretty brought down by the 2004 election, but this is the first US election I've been so anxious about beforehand.

(2) HEAVY SHOWERS AM
Sun Ac
Cold A

0700 WINDY
0900 <8
some sun
0930 SQUALLY SHOWER
More sun PM

Went out in the morning to B&Q for paint, in case it was difficult to get during the shutdown. It immediately started raining fine rain.

When I got there, it seemed lots of other people had had the same idea, because even though the store had only been open half an hour, there were 42 people queuing outside. I know, because I counted the number of 2m steps I moved forward. Took 15 minutes to get in.

0600 8
1000 RAIN
1115 Sun-break
->->~6
Stops
2000 WINDY