A Day in the Life During Covid-19Waking up in November of 2020 feels like waking up in a prison cell that you only get to leave for small portions of time, and have those actions very restricted. I awoke today with no intention of leaving my room, my space, my prison. While my movement is limited, I am still a university student, and I'm responsible for finishing my homework. For me, that means sitting down at my desk, booting up the computer. Today's agenda includes me remaining in my room and writing down what happens between now and when I go back to sleep. So if you would join me for a retelling of a day in my life during the Covid-19 pandemic.
I awake on a Saturday in my little home in Guelph, Ontario. Unlike my first year of university, my weekend has no social activities planned besides being around my roommates, my small bubble. I have zero intention of leaving my home, and my laziness has reached a new high, with most of my meals consisting of what I can find on Uber eats. While I await my breakfast's arrival, I work out in my room, its arm day so I do pushups till I'm bored or my food arrives; whatever happens first.
My breakfast finally arrives at my front door; I look to ensure that the delivery person is no longer in the immediate area, thus avoiding unwanted social interaction. My roommates by this time are up and about the house. Instead of eating my food in the kitchen, I take it to my room and eat on my desk. Weird? Yes. The average person would not do this, but I ran out of topics to speak with them about two weeks ago. The same environment every day does not breed something new or exciting to talk about. I finish my breakfast, brush my teeth, and take a shower.
After my morning rituals have been completed, and my hunger has been satiated, I've arrived at the daily choice. What do I do until dinner at 5 o'clock and it is currently 11. I can either get started on my work from school or play videogames and procrastinate. Today I decide to get started on my assignments, not only because this day is being documented. I choose to do my work because, along with my weekly quizzes, the school year is almost over, and I have several large assignments due the following week. This way, to avoid unneeded stress, I will start now and not leave it to the day before.
Sitting down at my computer, typing away, hours pass. Daydreaming, I reflect on my memories of the first days of the pandemic and the first hours this event became real for me. The news was talking about the death of Koby Bryant for what seemed like years, suddenly it all changed, and talk about a pandemic that I thought was a world away suddenly took the forefront of the news. I was being told not only was it in North America, it was in Ontario. The following day, schools across the province had begun to close and move to an online format. My school hadn't released any new information yet. With my anxiety building, I decided to take a very memorable walk. I don't remember this walk very any crazy or exciting events happening on campus, but precisely the opposite. The school was dead silent; unlike my daily walkabout, everyone around me was quiet, not knowing what would happen next.
I come out from my daydream, realizing that it is dinner time and already dark outside. As before, I order my meal off my phone, typically from Subway. My hunger satiated, I take a nap for around an hour and a half. I awake from my sleep to the sounds of my roommates hanging out in the living room. I join them to maintain appearances around the house. After I have fulfilled my daily social needs, I return to my room to play videogames before I start my nightly routine.
Preparing for sleep, I take a second shower, brush my teeth, and clean my skin. After finishing that, I retire to my room and climb into bed. I gently drift to sleep, well aware that I am likely going to repeat the same routine the next day. What would tomorrow bring, I wonder. The only variation to my day seemingly comes from me deciding what meal to order in or having a different class lecture.
Thank you for reading my day in life! The main struggle with living in self-imposed seclusion is both from the claustrophobia and the boredom from the repetition of the exact same day. Though the times are hard emotionally speaking, there is hope that someday soon we will be freed from our prisons, to rejoin the world and return to our old lives. |