It's very odd realising that the world is no longer your oyster. Or that your oyster has become very much smaller. A clam, if you will. A four-walled winkle.
But in the same way that having a child forces you to slow down, spending a protracted spell in the same space and not knowing when that spell will break does help to distil things.
Take breakfast, for example. I've experimented over the last six weeks. I've been through a bircher museli phase (soaked overnight, of course), days of scrambled egg on toast, sometimes even a chopped chive on top, a few nostalgic Coco Pops sessions. But I'm now back where I started, and where I always knew I belonged: two Weetabix, no sugar.
There's also a deep-seated calm which comes with measuring out your life in toothpaste tubes. Current count: 0.75. Expected count by the end of all this: 1.25? 2? We'll see.
And while I like a new swishy dress, a blow-dry and putting on some glitzy earrings as much as the next girl, I have a new respect for comfy, used-to-be flattering jeans and a plain t-shirt. Usually finished with some Snoopy socks. I am way, way back to basics. 1990s basics.
There's something very rooting about focussing on simple things, and being in one's natural state. No nail varnish. No makeup. No jewellery. And this extends to home, too. As humans we're innately attracted to natural materials (Google biophilia...). We're biologically happier when we're around them. A rattan bin sitting quietly in the corner of the room will subconsciously soothe you. So will your salad sitting in a wooden bowl, or the well-worn hide on your bamboo stool.
So if you missed it, lots of our natural classics are back in stock. Usually, I'm all about bright colours, but right now it's time to celebrate these guys:
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