Its early in the morning and I am waking up to a fog of thoughts, trying to assemble them into some kind of structure for another day in Lockdown UK. I know the current restrictions are for the good of  us all, that’s  a no brainer as far as I’m concerned, but It’s a been a tough year for so many people and its only February!  Since the onset of Covid -19 in 2020 (The merger of Dystopian Futures and Medieval Hells) matters of life and death have been incredibly difficult to handle. Some have managed to make the best of a bad situation or simply just scrape through the days, whilst others have fared far less well.  Spare them a thought.

As I write this vaccines are being approved and distributed to the elderly, the most vulnerable and to frontline workers. Thats  within the UK, reassuring for those of living here.  With the onset of spring, a post Covid-19  future may well be on the horizon, even if there are moments of debate as to the 100%  effectiveness of some treatments . Globally that may be a long way off . So wear a Mask !

Webinars

In the meantime, it’s a period of webinars, forgotten passwords and usernames. Trying to improve or maintain one’s wellbeing online can feel more like 25 ways to increase your feelings of futility without leaving your house or even getting dressed.  That said, those regular 8am workouts and 7pm workshops or what ever it is that’s happening  for you, add up to some kind of structure for the day and  so much better than the  banal monotony of day time TV . I suspect that one major factor in the reasons for the recent  increase in people facing depression  is  due to  watching mind numbingly  minor celebs endlessly boasting about their perfect/imprefect lives  and lifestyles. Read a book instead. 

 As for Deviation Street….

The value of creativity in such times really comes to the fore be it through Image Sound or Words.  Its a way of coping ,expressing and being elsewhere . Of course there are thousand of sites telling us this all the time, its a bit of a trope. Art ,creativity,call it what you will, isnt easy even after placing the financial aspect to one side.  Yes, it can be playful but that doesn’t mean to say that its fun and games all the time. On the one hand I can understand contempt and distain afforded to the struggling artist raking their brains for days on end  for the right word ,colour or note when there is so much else to do . But on the other hand, there are songs that make you weep or dance with joy, words that linger and resonate deep within and images which open are eyes and our minds.  Or as Funkadelic put it Free Your Mind and Your Ass Will Follow .

Ps. We continue to develop our online store, simply visit.  https://deviationstreetmagazine.com/shop/

Brian Gibson 

Deviation Street Magazine Founder