I should be at the theatre tonight.

Right now as I publish this post I should be chuckling so hard that my face hurts, as Ross Noble tells his surreal ponders in that excitable Geordie accent. Instead I've got my heated blanket on my lap, and the rubbish that is Saturday night entertainment is on the telly.

You 'Generation Z-ers' don't know what you're missing. Saturday night telly was epic back in the day. The 90's, when anything goes, there were people bashing each other with giant cotton buds while others tried to recollect a long list of items running past them on the most random conveyer belt you've ever seen. Those were the days.

But back to today.

Back when 2019 wasn't appreciated nearly enough, I purchased tickets to see Ross Noble. I used to be quite the theatre goer, would you believe?! I even wrote about it a few times.

Covid then struck, and well, lingered, so much longer than even me and my pessimism expected. Ross Noble was postponed multiple times, until today.

And I have decided not to attend.

Those that know me will know that this is a big deal. I'm all about the live entertainment, it is what my year is planned around.

It is absolutely my choice to miss out, my choice to still be extremely cautious, my choice to be a downer. But it's not my choice to have a condition that makes me high risk. I want to be out, I want to get on with life, but I also want that life to be a longer and relatively healthy one.

I recently received another letter in the post from The Government (I really need to figure out how to unsubscribe, they pop up almost as frequently as those irritating emails wanting to sell me some junk). This one officially announced that shielding has ended rather than just being on pause, at the same time as it suggested I still be extra careful, only mix with the double jabbed, get people to take a lateral flow before meeting me, and consider asking visitors to wear masks in my home.

This letter was written by the same government in England that have decided not to make Covid Passports compulsory, made mask wearing optional, and allow those living with a Covid positive household member to roam the streets.

Yet I should be vigilant.

Either they're sending mixed messages, think I'm unlikely to have a life anyway, or they've opted out of responsibility to the apparently 'vulnerable'.

Not trusting the general public to use their common sense or have the consideration to wear a mask inside the auditorium, I decided to give Ross Noble a miss. It's the first time throughout this pandemic lark that I've felt I'm kind of missing out.

I have been out though. And not just to a graveyard this time.

I quite enjoyed this summer and making the most of the outdoors.

I finally visited my local zoo (by local I mean a 10 minute drive away) for the first time in maybe twenty years.

We arrived early hoping for a chilled day, and it went as planned. We could easily get up close to all the animals as there weren't many people around.

We timed it perfectly for feeding time with the tigers.

A tiger standing up on its back legs to reach lunch, that is raw meat on the end of a stick poked through a fence.

And the giraffe enclosure was ramped at different heights, so that we could be face to face with the this handsome thing. Look at those lashes!

A giraffe head looking at the camera. He has grass hanging out of his mouth. There is a large expanse of grass in the background.

A time slot had to be booked for arrival, which limited the queues. And masks were to be worn inside, even though I'm not sure the reading capabilities of the general public were of a good standard as most seemed to go maskless.

A flock of pink flamingoes by a large pond. Some are laying curled up and some are standing.

We also recommenced the tradition of a family day out at Pleasurewood Hills.

I got that sea view back with a trip to Walcott. Although rather inaccessible for the wheels, with no ramp down towards the beach, no pathway across the sand and very limited dropped curbs, the fish and chips alone would be worth a return visit.

A deserted sandy beach, dull blue green sea and blue sky with small fluffy white clouds.

Life's not all bad.

My 2022 currently has an epic lineup of rescheduled shows and gigs. So please Covid do one. And please humans be kind.