Pandemic life

Times are hard right now. People are dying, there are restrictions left and right, we worry about our own health and that of others, we’re quarantined and feeling like we’re prisoners, everyone is so tense and stressed out.

I know lots of people who are not taking it very well. They’re social and active and they thrive when they are around other people. They need the interaction.

I’m not one of those people. I go between extrovert and introvert, but I gravitate way more towards introvert.

And while I share everyone’s feelings of concern and sadness about all that’s happening, I also feel pretty content with my life.

Is it terrible of me? Does that make me a bad person? I hope not.

Here’s what the quarantine has done for me:

I work from home 100% of the time

This has been a long time goal for me. Although I like the people I work with and admit that I’m quite lucky about my job situation, I think that having to be physically present at the office is not only unnecessary (at least most of the time), but also kills time of my day that I could use for other things. I can be just as productive at home as I am at the office – maybe even more. If a work request comes in after work hours, I feel less inclined to ignore it when I’m working from home. That’s better for the company too.

I don’t feel obligated to be social

I actually enjoy hanging out at home. I like the peace and quiet. I like to grab a book, lay down on the couch and read until I pass out. I like being able to do whatever I need/want to do without having to hurry because I need to be somewhere soon. I like having my meals when I feel like it, not when society deems appropriate (aka lunch dates). There are so many benefits to hanging out at home!

Online workouts

My favorite gym and yoga studio have both gone online, and this has 2 great outcomes for me: I’m no longer stuck with their schedule (I take classes at the gym too), and I no longer spend time commuting. On the other hand – and it’s another good hand, many other gyms and studios have gone online as well (basically anyone who wants their business to survive) so I have many more options to choose from. Not a bad thing at all.

I have time to study

Being home all the time allows me to have extra time to study. I do try to do it on a regular basis, but having more free time is a great incentive to do it more often.

I can work more

Not everyone would think that this is a good thing, but having time to do freelance work is great. Especially if I am studying something that I can’t use at work, it’s great to have external projects where I can implement the new knowledge and become more proficient with it. It’s also a great opportunity to learn a new skill that could be more useful in this new world.

I get to sing!

Well, it’s not like anything was stopping me before, but my new home office setup allows me to do karaoke from home in a very comfortable way. Yes, I’m a karaoke person. But the reason why this makes me happy is because it’s a good way to keep my voice active. When I realized I’d be working from home everyday, I decided that having hardware spread out throughout the house just wasn’t going to cut it, so I consolidated everything and organized my office in a way that allows me to switch from work mode to karaoke mode in seconds. Actually, I could do them both at the same time. Would it be productive? Well that’s a different story 😝.

I’m more in contact with people

You might think that this doesn’t make any sense. However, I’ve never really been into the “video conference chat” thing. I’m more of a “let’s meet in person” kind of gal. And because of that, many times when someone is physically distant, or even unable to make a date, we’d just skip it and reschedule to whenever. Now, video conference is *the* option. It’s that or nothing. Well, I guess there’s always the phone, but who even does that anymore? So I’m being a good girl and reaching out to people I miss but don’t normally talk to. And I’ve noticed that others are doing that too. Interestingly, this has reduced the distance barrier. Instead of only hanging out with the people who are physically closer to us, we’re not hanging out with everyone equally. That’s kinda cool.

Our cat is getting friendlier

Yup that’s another weird one. Our cat was incredibly skittish when we rescued him and pretty much spent the first year hiding in the attic. He’s been slowly getting friendlier, but us being at home more is making him even more comfortable (and loving) than before. 😻

I’m less and less interested in social media

This could be temporary, but we’ll see how it goes. Currently, most social media channels are very covid focused. While I get that everyone is trying to help by providing information or looking for it, that’s too much for me. It’s taking the fun out of it and making it pretty stressful. So I find myself with a bit more free time since I’m not spending hours falling down the bottomless pit of anxiety that is facebook right now.

So… does my live have to be crappy because I’m stuck at home? Does it have to be less fulfilling? Does it have to be boring? Unhappy?

F*ck no.

Yes, people are different. What works for me may not work for you.

But I hope it does. Because if that’s the case, then even though we’re all a bit dazed and confused right now, you’re still capable of enjoying life – and maybe even taking this opportunity to make it a little bit better.