stuck in perpetual sundays
Manila, 21 March—Six days after the lockdown. Where are you? In our neck of the woods, where it is normally busy, it feels like a perpetual Sunday: Empty, quiet streets.
It’s been a bizarre past few days. Earlier this week, I’d been part of the ‘skeleton force’ for my unit, so I reported for work. But ever since the enhanced community quarantine was imposed, we eventually shifted into being purely work from home (WFH).
My workmates and I have been trying to put some semblance of order in our workdays—daily morning check-ins and video cons, asking about our days, cooped up in our respective rooms and houses with our families. In my almost fifteen years of working, this experience has so far been truly one of a kind—it’s like working while swept up in some sort of shell-shocked fever.
All considered, I’m lucky—we are thankfully well, and our employers are supportive throughout this emergency. But though I’m physically inside my room, my mind is elsewhere all the time: With my parents in our house; with my sister at the hospital; with my brother at the lab; with my journalist-friends in the field. This week, I let myself get immersed in social media. Next week, I’ll try to get better at limiting my engagement; maybe we’ll all be healthier that way, stepping back.
The first few days of the lockdown, I kept having anxiety dreams. In one, I missed all my hypothetical video calls because I’d been so swept up in the monotony of it—in my dream, it was already 5pm when I realized I hadn’t gone on a single call. I remember thinking about how my manager would kill me for being out of reach for an entire day. I remember reaching for my phone, and then promptly waking up—it was only 7. The day has yet to begin; my first call wasn’t due in two hours. Talk about anxiety.
Anyway, some co-working hacks:
With C and I both trying to get work done from home, it’s been quite the experiment.
The primary challenge has been trying to get tasks done without getting in each other’s way, given how small our 'operating center’ is, LOL. I try to keep out of her scheduled conferences; she tries to stay out of mine. We tell each other ahead of time what time our video cons are so we can arrange ourselves accordingly.
We try to observe a proper lunch time. We turn our laptops off at end of shift. We try not to keep working through dinner.
Because of the size of the flat, it’s impossible to not work on the bed. We take turns on the table, depending on who needs it for a videocon. We also prioritize based on back ache, LOL (the bed situation is better for the back)
Every night before sleeping, we tell each other, See you tomorrow. Try niyo siya sa mga kasama niyo sa bahay! It releases a positive vibe haha. In the morning, over breakfast before proceeding to fire up our respective laptops, we try to engage in ordinary workmate small talk: O, kamusta commute mo? Natraffic ka ba? Ano baon mo? It helps to start your day with a laugh. I assure you.
I’m glad I’m with someone I truly enjoy hanging out with, even through the silence and the boredom. I can’t imagine how it’s like for roommates who are strangers (…AU).
Anyway, apparently it’s World Poetry Day today. My offering would be this poem from Jack Gilbert, A Brief for the Defense. Apt for the times.
Resources for creatives: Why I’m Giving Myself Permission to Keep Writing at this Time. This round-up on Longreads has a list of prompts, free webinars, online courses, etc. Mostly foreign, though—are there any Filipino initiatives out there? Would love to also take them/talk about them.
Gamer updates (what): I’ve been playing Mobile Legends more dutifully than usual, and I am happy to report that I have managed to retain my Grandmaster status despite the requisite rollback at the start of the season. (C reminded me to add this). Also, I am now official an Animal Crossing New Horizons widow. Any support groups out there?
Anyway, opening this thread for anything and everything quarantine-related:
Let me know.
Stay indoors, stay safe.
Xo,
K