A timeline of Covid-19 as the number of confirmed cases increases around the world.
THIS SIDE OF TOWN
And just like that, we shut our doors on summer. Yet, from our windows, the sun is still shining and birds fly freely amid a now unblemished landscape, which is surely healing itself from humankind.
It has been likened to Mother Nature sending us all to our rooms to thinkabout what we've done.
But you're always going to get the rebels who don't, aren't you?
Over the past two weeks, there's been a pattern; amid the frantic buying was a flurry of memes circulating on social media. They were light and funny. Then came the spousal dig memes as couples were given foresight into what retirement looked like with someone who, it turned out, they weren't so compatible.
But a week into lockdown as the warm glow of home-making merriment waned, the mood began to change and the memes petered out as the greener pastures of home life began to resemble a drought.
Shoppers stocking up on food before lockdown, the chocolate shelf was pillaged, along with all the best flavours in the Peckish crackers range. Photo / File
With too much chocolate consumed from the panic buy (at my supermarket the Tuesday before lockdown, the chocolate shelf was pillaged, along with all the best flavours in the Peckish crackers range) people started getting restless and the constant sunshine lured them out.
They're exercising because it's allowed and they're giving each other a wide berth where possible but, the trouble is, everybody's doing it at once and popular places like the Hātea Loop have become a mass of humanity – and potentially invisible virus – spreading around a circuit in both directions.
We're lucky we have insight from the countries that are weeks ahead of us in this crisis but we also need to learn from them. They are telling us that they had the same carefree attitude and now the virus is rampant.
We need to listen to the warnings and exercise willpower.
It makes many of us mad that others think they're above the law and are flouting the rules, making a mockery of it and, unfortunately, some people it seems have swapped their full-time jobs for full-time online trolling.
There's no need for that. Just keep to your bubble and make it as pleasant as possible. And for those finding it hard to stay put, as much as we're all probably sick of the news being dominated by the "C" word and "unprecedented", as much as we'd probably like to escape it, we all need to tune into Jacinda's daily updates at 3pm and take her advice to stay home.
And if you still think it's all over the top, watch the news reports about what is happening in other countries for some sobering reality.
This is uncharted territory being navigated by Jacinda's crew and we follow – from our homes, where we can run our own ships.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern during one of her press briefings last week. Photo / File
So, let's all listen to Jacinda or Mother Nature and hunker down with our chocolate and Peckish crackers - and I'll try to acquire a taste for the sweet carrot and green kale flavours that you left me with - and relish in the slower pace within as our beautiful Northland rejuvenates itself around us.
And perhaps think about this latest quote to do the rounds: "In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to."
