Week 2: Socially Distant

That would be me in a nutshell

This week has brought in some significant changes. I was having a sneezing fit over the weekened which iritated my throat enough that I also started coughing so in the midst of this plague, I decided to call in sick and give myself a day more to recover. I mainly wanted to avoid scaring people, especially after senior management told me I shouldn't be in the office if I sneeze last week.

It wasn't long until I received an email informing me of being made redundant due to the decrease in cases caused by countries around Europe closing their borders. I wasn't the only one as I was soon added to a WhatsApp group among others to discuss this matter and further steps. I had to sadly explain that the government scheme to cover 80% of employee wages wasn't paid directly to individuals but to companies who would decide to keep their staff and pay them as normal, thus reducing employee costs to 20% for the corporate body. The only real remedy here is Universal Credit but as many people are finding out, it's hard to get through to them because their workload has suddenly sky-rocketed amid many companies closing.

The main thing is that this is the same week we were being paid this month so I still got a decent paycheck and my unspent holiday allowance. My landlady also said she's flexible with rent because this pandemic is hitting everyone. For the time being, I'm doing well financially so I hope I'll weather this storm somewhat. There's even possibility of re-employment if the situation changes.

All in all, it has been an odd week. The government suggested people stay at home and practice social distancing in order to inhibit the spread of this disease. Apparently that means going out only once a week for grocery shopping, avoiding close proximity with other people and using self-checkouts... so my usual way of life, I guess.

When I heard all this, my first thought was surprise at learning people buy groceries more than once a week. I though I do it too often because I've got a small fridge so I can't store much in it. To be fair, I am spending more time indoors now as the places I regularly go to are closed until further notice. Brighton Dancing has cancelled all their events, the dojo and gym closed their doors and my violin teacher is not giving lessons until the quarantine is lifted. Judging from the internet memes, I am taking this isolation a lot better than most people.

A sense of humour, these people have

It feels like this week truly sped by. I wasn't doing anything out of the ordinary as my routine has been suddenly changed and that throws me out of whack significantly. I ventured outside only to pick up my book from the office and to buy some groceries. When I reached the main Tesco, I saw they were implementing social distancing measures in the form of limiting the number of shoppers inside and keeping the rest in a queue with people spaced out. It was an enormous queue. I couldn't get myself to stand there and wait until it moved so I went to a smaller store in a different area.

Last week our roleplaying decided to move online. There was a drive to get me a new headset because my current webcam was giving people too much static so I couldn't join in. I rejected offers for it and for a software called Tabletop Simulator. Eventually though, it was gifted to me by a member and upon deliberations, I ordered a headset. I didn't want to get one initially as I didn't think it was essential and with loss of income, spending money has to be tight but as schools are now providing lessons online, I would need better equipment to do cover work.

The horror! The Arkham!

I kept checking on my friends, to see how they're doing in these difficult times. Many have had their work hours reduced to 0 so their income has also suffered but some managed to work from home while keeping their jobs. It's the roleplay community that I'm truly in awe though. We're apart and yet, we couldn't be closer. We hang out online as we did offline, even creating channels within our Discord server to maintain the feeling of the pub we met at. On my part I tried to entertain my fellow gamers by playing a game of Arkham Horror 3rd Edition and providing a commentary on what happened each turn in a story format. I probably won't be doing it again as I doubt it had the desired effect.

In other news, Artemis has caught one of my miniatures and utterly destroyed it so I'll be now keeping them in a box instead of on my work desk. Sadly, I haven't really managed to disconnect myself from the current situation to paint or play. Better luck next time...

Battle-damaged miniature

Week 1: Interesting Times

The Plague is upon us

These are truly exceptional times we're living in.

Countries around the world are closing borders so a lot of people are now stranded even though repatriation flights are being negotiated. Over in the UK people have gone crazy with shopping. When I've been to the shop last week, the shelves were empty of toilet paper, rice and pasta. Fortunately, I reguarly make sure I've got enough to not run out of any so that has hardly affected me.

In general, I think this situation is affecting me the least. My routine barely changed since the population has been recommended to cut social contact. This is the time when being an introvert aids you significantly. Even the gym is much more comfortable since they implemented measures for social distancing. Every other machine had a sign not to use it and the number of gym-goers saw a drastic reduction. I have to say, I enjoyed not having many people around me for once.

Sadly, this couldn't have lasted. The government ordered gyms to be closed so no more working out for me. This follows a string of cancellations this week. I've been getting emails from the various venues I visit informing us of closures until further notice. The Brighton Roleplay Club moved its meetings online for the time being with regular games being suspended. I know they're setting up online gaming but I don't feel like participating.

With so many people struggling, I'm trying to keep up with my friends and see if they're in need. Some had their hours reduced to zero so are struggling financially. I'm worried about work myself as with people not travelling, it will affect the company I work at. I hope it won't come to that but these are uncertain times. I'm told shops and supermarkets are overwhelmed and are now looking for additional staff so in the event I lose a job, I might get something to make ends meet for a while.

My current situation at work is that, as many other workplaces, the office is moving people to work from home, albeit in waves. For the time being, I'm still going to the office to work. I can't say I mind. Somehow I prefer to work in a different environment than my own home.

Shopping this week has been even more difficult. I noticed meat in low supply at the local supermarket, which is worrying, but I managed to snag the last pack of chicken breasts so I will be fine for next week. They have now implemented members of staff to control queues and direct them to appropriate ones so people with shopping trolleys don't use basket checkouts. They also move people out so as to create a break in a queue so people aren't blocking each other. I think they should also implement some traffic control in the ailes as I've had to avoid being slammed into twice while there.

They have removed the donation basket for charities as people were taking stuff out of it. I did not manage to get any fresh eggs and, most surpring of all, they nearly run out of kitten food. I only got one box of kitten wet food and had to buy some adult dry food for Artemis. It's not ideal but we'll persevere.