I wrote last month about the solitary rediscovery of long-unused audio components and long-unplayed albums in various formats - it's unfortunate that the necessary isolation rules have kept us from one-to-one proselytising of the joys of music in the home. If my paranoia is justified, for decades based on a belief that non-audiophiles really have it in for us, then it's the advertising and feature articles in the mainstream press, prevalent over the last couple of months, that keep me suspicious. When I and all of my audiophile buddies have been over-indulging in tweaking, cleaning contacts and plugs, reinstalling cartridges and other pursuits we enjoy, it seems that every other form of home entertainment except for hi-fi and music has been championed. First it was the news in the financial pages that Netflix subscriptions were booming. Box-sets, streamed and physical, were all experiencing binge viewing on a mass scale, coming with the odd press warning about overdoing it. Then came the knowledge that jigsaw puzzles were selling out on amazon.co.uk. Numerous LEGO items were on back-order too. (And try getting the new Star Wars or Harry Potter sets.) Cookery books were enjoying a boost, especially for home-baking. Novels have been selling in increased numbers, and not just downloads for Kindle - even print books are back in demand. As for health-related matters, home exercising has become a necessity, not a diversion, so home-gym products were on the up, too.
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