Making the most of the peace and quiet

Thursday was my only day physically at work this week, as primarily I’ve been following government advice and working from home.  You can achieve quite a lot working remotely, but every now and then it still requires someone in authority to be present to sign off completed batch sheets and move things on to the next stage of the manufacturing process. 

I was quite happy to be that person, and to provide the necessary QC cover; after all other members of my team had done their share earlier in the week. So, despite the diminished output at present, there was still a large pile of paperwork for me to sort out. Quality management systems rely on carefully specified checks at each stage of the process, especially where accountability and lot traceability are concerned.

I had one of the quietest journeys into work I’ve ever experienced. There were almost more cyclists than motorists on the road; a situation that’s unheard in normal times. We have taken advantage of the government’s furlough scheme by laying off our production and packing operatives, leaving just a skeleton crew to keep the place ticking over. This meant there were only nine of us in the building, rather than the usual 30 plus. So, with little to distract me in the way of phones or other colleagues, I was able to get plenty done, whilst alternating between my desk upstairs and the QC laboratory downstairs.  

I even did some product testing, not just to keep my hand in, but because production were looking to fill the two batches I passed today. Demand for normal dental restorative materials may have plummeted, (put bluntly drilling a patient’s teeth with all those tiny droplets being aspirated, is a risky procedure, particularly when Corona virus is an ever present threat), so with many dentists dealing with emergencies only, there’s been a huge demand for over-the-counter, temporary filling materials and other DIY remedies.

The time passed quickly and at lunchtime I headed off for a short,  30-minute walk – making full use of my government prescribed exercise period and the fact the roads were practically deserted. It made a real change not having to throw myself into the nearest hedge to avoid being mown down by a speeding motorist. In addition, silence reigned. With few cars, and no aircraft overhead, birdsong and lambs bleating were the order of the day. 

The village where the company is based, is on the flightpath into Gatwick and normally there are planes flying over at two-minute intervals.  You get used to the whine of jet engines overhead, so it’s only when they’re not flying (as at present), that you start to miss them. It’s likely to be some time though before any of us are flying off to foreign parts, so in the meantime it’s nice to make the most of the peace and quiet.

It was also nice to make the most of the fine weather, on what must have been the warmest day of the year so far. Having worn my usual thick coat to work that morning – it was chilly when I left home, shirtsleeves were the order of the day by lunchtime!

I noticed a few changes since I last walked that route – the best part of a week ago. For a start there were the odd clump of bluebells poking their heads up in shady areas at the side of the road. Also, the lambs which, just a few weeks earlier were skipping about, seem to have bulked  up and are now looking remarkably mature in comparison.

Apart from a couple of dog walkers and the occasional cyclist, I saw few other people out and about. A new-build barn-conversion was still being worked on, and there were others out tending their gardens on the outskirts of the village., but all things considered it was one of the most enjoyable walks I’ve had in a long time, even though it’s one of my regular lunchtime walking routes. 

We’re into Easter now, and normally I would have been heading off on the annual Good Friday Ramble. This year’s event has been cancelled for obvious reasons; the first time in over 40 years, but needs must and all that. I’ll be taking a walk out later, as I’ve got a letter to drop off for a work colleague, but on what looks like being one of the most glorious Good Fridays we’ve had for a long time, in terms of weather, it seems a real shame not to be heading out to somewhere more exciting.

I’ll leave it at that, and wish everyone a happy and relaxing Easter under the current circumstances, and here’s to a return to some semblance of normality in the years to come.