Date Archives April 2020

Isolation Diaries: A Millennial Dealing with Quarantine and a Reading Slump | Lockdown Day 25

Books & Reading

I have not only joined an online course, tried my hand at cooking, organised my bookshelves but also gave my baby brother a very questionable haircut; I am a Millennial dealing with isolation during a Pandemic.

#WorkFromHome has not entirely been traumatising even when the business has seen better days. Mom’s health hasn’t been all too well lately but she is holding up like a champion, not to mention my brother has managed to track down many family heirlooms in the last few weeks. As a family, we’ve managed to squeeze our expenses, rid myself of a few mistakes but uncertainty continues to loom as new cases surface with each morning.

In the midst of trying to plank the curve, I’ve been hit with what I am terming as a ‘Reading Slump’ but it could be entirely something different. I’ve been keeping my mood swings, eating habits and exercising patterns in check but have sadly failed when it comes to reading. For someone who looks forward to finding some precious time over the weekend to read, the idea of a lockdown sounded aspiring. Every year I try to read as much as possible; setting up a GoodReads goal; squeezing in a few pages every chance I get; during work commute, during lunch hour, before hitting the hay etc. Reading is not a mere hobby but rather a form of self-expression for me. I’ve was once caught secretly reading at a cousin’s wedding whilst she said “I Do” – so you get the gist right?

I also made use of the first week of lockdown with much success and read around a dozen books but for the past few weeks, I haven’t been able to read, I look onto my shelves, admire my TBR pile, add titles to my wishlist on Amazon but I cannot seem to find myself get lost inside a book. Often I find myself reaching the bottom of the page only to realize I haven’t the foggiest of what I’ve just read.

Given what is happening outside the comfort of my home, is this feeling completely normal? Is the isolation getting to me? I was under the impression that as long as I keep making ends-meet, I will be sane and will not let these uncharted times effect me but was I wrong to think I’ll be immune to a global, mind shift?

The TBR on my nightstand is collecting dust (hypothetically – I dust voraciously) while I scroll through Twitter for the umpteenth time. And I don’t know how to overcome this situation. I guess, we are all struggling to focus right now and surviving a global pandemic is certainly not a cake walk.

If you are reading this, here is a little prayer for you, I know its difficult and what you are struggling  with right now – too shall pass. I hope things will get better for you and your loved ones. Here’s to a better time ahead!

Isolation Diaries: 2 Weeks of Uncertainty, Books & Extremism | Lockdown Day 15

Business, Tech & Workplace People & More

Ladies and gentlemen, I am happy to announce that we’ve made it through 2 whole weeks of lockdown without murder, mayhem and only a few breakdowns.

It’s been over 2 weeks for ‘work from home’ and I am starting to lose it – seriously. I miss my office, my team, my desk and the fact I’ve zero tickets to resolve and zero moves on my Kanban board is driving me crazy.

Last Friday, I had my first, official nervous breakdown and I can no longer feel the ‘positive vibes’. People say, all this will end soon and we will go back to our normal lives. Does nobody realize that things will never be the same again. Hasn’t history taught us nothing? Take both the World Wars for instance, did we not witness a global shift? Or the Bubonic Plague and even the Spanish Flu, such pandemics lead only to far-ranging consequences that we cannot even begin to comprehend.

The COVID-19 outbreak has transformed our lives, disrupted markets, exposed political and economical incompetence. This could also very well mean the end of globalization and clearly a shift in the international power structure; from West to East. We are headed for a future with vulnerability and stiffer purse-strings.

Corporations, companies and even small businesses will rethink their decisions, partners and strategies. We will see lower profits but perhaps with much more stable and domestic backup plans plus reserves.

One thing is for sure, nothing will ever be the same again and in the midst of all this uncertainty, we need to find a way to “adjust” to the new normal. What actually bothers me is that I cannot even start to work to such habituating. This time space between isolation and working towards the adjustment is killing me.

In other news, I packed away over 700 books for sale and donation over the weekend, kept only my favorites (I think 379) and resolved to switch to e-Reading. I guess Quarantine does things to you!  Don’t get me wrong, this was not an impulsive move, my theory is, I will save more and hoard less when I opt for eBooks. According to my family, my decision will vanish once the Pandemic ends.

Moreover, I did catch-up with Manifest, I am not good at following TV shows especially after FRIENDS or Arrow but I just want to know what happened to Montego Air Flight 828!!! Is that too much to ask??? I’ve also tried a couple of recipes, managed to workout 11 days out of 15, and somehow kept my skincare game up. Am I doing isolation right? Haven’t baked or made Dalgona coffee or enrolled in any online course yet though.

I work from 09:00 AM to 06:00 PM, Monday to Friday, adhere to a routine, constantly look for opportunities, workout in the morning, consume healthy-esque meals and worry about sagging. But nothing works; precariousness eats me from the inside.

And just like everyone else in the Bookstagram or BookTube community, I too was thrilled to have all this time to read and I managed to complete a dozen books in about 10 days but for some reason since April walked in, I don’t feel the inclination. And I guess, I’ve nothing more to say.

Here’s hoping you are doing your best to stay indoors and attempting sanity. And its perfectly all right if you don’t walk out of this pandemic with a brand new set of skills. You are doing fine. We are fine. For This Too Shall Pass...

 

 

 

Isolation Diaries: Tough Times, Tougher Decisions | Lockdown Day 12

Business, Tech & Workplace Family & Personal People & More

It has been close to 2 weeks to a lockdown in my province and things are not looking up. New cases surface every day, few people understand the meaning of social distancing and the rest can’t help but grapple with daily existence.

It has been difficult for both ends of the spectrum; tough decisions for employers and tougher realities for resources. I had to take a few unpleasant calls and come to terms with what I like to call “my career choices”. After all who needs a career in a recession right? (I’ve already stocked up on Potatoes and Condensed Milk). The very first step is to obviously tabulate savings against spending habits, followed by some serious but futile thought-process.

The good thing is my panic-attacks don’t dwell for long, I am able to quickly look away and engage in something productive like updating my resume, hunt for opportunities, watch Tutorials on Software Development or most likely open my blog and start writing.

Sweet lime juice, yoga, my TBR pile, YouTube tutorials and the fact that my baby brother and I watch cartoons every night at 07:30 PM continues to soothe my senses. If only reading made you money, am I right? I thought this would be my time to read everything that I had been putting off but turns out, when you are under constant trepidation of a draconian future, reading seems more like cheating on your responsibilities.

I’ve been utterly blessed with a family who is grateful of the fact that I am home, and my Mom constantly tells me to shut-down my laptop and instead read on the couch. But it doesn’t help with noggin and the constant thinking; the overthinking, never-ending planning and freaking out scenarios!

As soon as I am done posting this blog post, I am going to go down, fight over the remote with my baby brother, have a wholesome, home-cooked meal and then read into the afternoon but that constant “Where will the next paycheck come from” feeling doesn’t go away. Do you feel the same way? I am not really expecting an answer but just sending out my thoughts into the universe, is it the same for everyone out there?

No one knows when this pandemic will end and we cannot even begin to comprehand the lasting financial impact. We can only control what can be controlled, like discretionary spending, prioritize and do what’s best for our family. Right Pa?