I’ve had a lot going on in the last couple of weeks in my life just like most people in the world I would imagine.
I got the word two weeks ago today that my company wanted us working from home during the Health crisis.
Fortunately as a journalist who works for a newspaper this isn’t a major inconvenience for me although it has been difficult at sometimes. I’ve learned to adjust.
The first day was the most stressful because everybody knew we weren’t going to have access to our usual tools or resources or any of our sources for that matter and we still had to get a paper out. Based on my conversations with colleagues and co-workers we came to the decision that the first week went really smooth.
The second week however not as smooth so far. One of the reasons for that is things continue to get complicated elsewhere everyday towns and counties that surround us go in the lockdown and even our own cities in our own County have started to take measures towards that end.
The upside for the most part has been spending time with my cat and also getting to hang out with my sister and her kids more. I’ve also been getting a lot of housework done a lot of cleaning things of that nature I’ve even made small repairs to the house that were necessary.
Before I went to college I always had this fantasy this Daydream this wish that I could have an opportunity to work from home. I don’t like people I don’t like being out in the public so I thought it would be amazing great fantastic perfect all things good. And for the most part it’s not been that bad.
I feel there’s an economic trade-off that I’ve not prepared myself for mentally. The office where I work is about 20 miles from my house in the city that I cover is an additional give or take ten miles depending on what I’m covering or where I’m going so it’s saving me a lot of gas money by not having to drive anywhere.
The downside at least in terms of economics is I’m home all the time which means I’m always burning electricity I’ve always been cautious with the electricity I turn every Appliance in my house off when I leave. I make sure that there’s no lights on and I even turned the switch off my amplifier to my antenna while I’m at work as well as all the power strips to my electronics devices.
Sitting at home even with the lights off and most appliances still unplugged her to say I have to have my hat minimum my phone plugged in and charging because I’m using it for the hotspot to get to the internet on my laptop which is also plugged in and charging so I can work. I have to keep the TV on at least around the times that the television news cast come on because part of my responsibility as a news reporters to keep an eye on my competition which is also a gateway to sources and stories that I may have missed.
So that’s at least three or four appliances or devices that are constantly plugged in and burning electricity that have usually been turned off during the day I fear my power bill is going to be outrageous next month and I’m already delayed this one’s power bill into next month because of financial reasons.
The only good news out of all of the money situation is I got a better job offer and I will start my new job presumably at the end of the time. That my current job is going to and it’s work-from-home status although that’s not been determined yet.
My current job of course is news reporter for publication a daily newspaper North Central Texas community. My new job will be evening news producer for television newscast in the same Market.
I’m excited for the new job and the opportunity although I have reservations not about the job but about the status the world is in. And our current county has cases that have been confirmed and is making Necessary steps to do its part to contains the disease to prevent further spread.
We’ve been encouraged to get out of the house every once in a while to take a walk and get some fresh air. The problem is this has become difficult as it is constantly raining and so opportunities to be outside have been fairly limited although the last couple of days have been dry and warm the downside to that is I don’t have an air conditioner right now so I’ve been sweating quite a bit and have a rash places I’d rather not have a rash.
On a personal note it’s been nice to have a little freedom from the norm getting away from the crowds social anxiety has been on the decline these days I haven’t been socializing but other stressors have popped up I hadn’t taken into account. For example I live in a small camper with a cat who poops a lot which means I have to scoop the Box more frequently than I’m used to because I’m home sitting on my couch smelling it all the time versus coming home at the end of the day and just going to bed. Also Care Credit the cat is handled the stress of me being home better than I thought she would but she’s been getting outside more so maybe she that’s how she’s coping.
Even now is I Pace my property writing this article on my cell phone using voice to text as that is all I have access to she sits and stares at me making noises in my direction I don’t know if she’s trying to get my attention or what.
the first week I did spend some time playing video games and after I clocked out having completed my work for the day watching movies and TV shows. Second week I’ve been doing house chores cleaning and making minor repairs to my house every chance I get.
I have another week of work from home before I end my employment at the newspaper and start working for the TV station. I’m optimistic about the change. I imagine by that time I’ll be ready to get back out into the world hopefully things will have mellowed a little bit by then.
as a precaution communities all around us have been going into lockdown or shelter in place the community I cover has issued a stay-at-home but not quite shelter in place yet. as such my employer has provided us with credentials and documentation allowing us to be out in such cases as we are deemed essential.
all in all what I can say is if this was my permanent status but it is not the dream I thought it would be.
By the end of week 2 will see how I’m feeling I got one more day to go and I’m already starting to feel the anxiety starting to get stir crazy twice I’ve gone over to my sister’s house and harassed her to hang out with me just to get up just to have somebody besides my cat to talk to. I’ve also spent more time making phone calls to family members who are at a distance to me both of my parents live across the country as do two of my sisters that’s an unfortunate way of wording at my parents live together they just live on the other side of the country I should say.
And throughout all of this I’ve been fighting off a cough that just won’t go away. it’s not the virus and I’ve been quarantined enough at home away from the public to know that I would have had the virus by now but I have been to the doctor. it’s just seasonal allergies with all the rain the plants in my yard or growing exponentially so I do need to get that under control if it never dries up enough for me to cut the grass.
we’re supposed to have clear skies and a dry sunny day today so today might be the day. I get Amusement watching my cat chase the Wasps around my yard until she manages to chase one into my house before she attempts to eat it. I have successfully seen her eat to wasps so far so she seems to enjoy them. I did watch her eat a honey bee that must have stung her while she was in the process of doing so based on her reaction.
another somewhat negative is because I’m working on my computer and phone constantly I haven’t been checking Facebook or Twitter or other social media is much so I’m out of touch with my online community.
as I check in from time to time I noticed that most of their comments are long sign same lines as I’m feeling which I don’t fault them for that.
I’ve also noticed at least in a casual setting sitting on my couch I become somewhat complacent my work has not begun to suffer but I’ve been in a rush at times overlooking things that I probably wouldn’t for shouldn’t overlook under normal circumstances.
it’s excusable on my blog I’m My Own editor therefore I make the decisions anything I didn’t catch anything I missed oh well that’s on me. But that doesn’t work for the newspaper I do have editors looking over my work but I have to do a better job cross-checking the things that I write I’m trying to be aware of that. but that’s the thing from working from home you kind of get comfortable and it’s hard to switch your brain back to work mode.
I’d rather write about a comic book I read recently on a video game I just discovered or a new YouTube video or channel that I’m watching that’s not the way the world is right now I have to write about what’s happening when I seen what I’m feeling what I’m experiencing. I don’t have advice for others I haven’t found the trick yet myself unfortunately.
what I can say is this be careful what you wish for because sometimes when you get it it’s not what you expected. I have social anxiety and despised professional sports with a passion so I first seen the world shut down and all sports being destroyed for all intents and purposes I found it amusing it first aside from the fact that people were getting sick and or dying. but then I had a need to venture to a grocery store to pick up some Necessities for my own house and that’s when the reality sunk in people are losing their minds right now. I don’t think we need everybody on the planet in the middle State I operate in, it’s my Norm I’ve adjusted I know how to deal with it but it’s not healthy for everyone else and that makes me worried for the people who don’t know how to self isolate the people who don’t know how to distance themselves from social Gatherings as I have learned to do I desire and crave social contact as much as everyone else but I limitit to small doses but other people who aren’t used to that can’t adjust as easily. And that’s what worries me what will they do how will they react when they snap when the stir crazy becomes other kinds of crazy.
I said on my podcast recently I thrive in chaos which is a tagline to my show this is the spider’s Lair where chaos resides. and while that does ring true most of the time I can honestly say I’m at a point where I just want a little normalcy.
I do believe the upside to all of this is once things get moving again people will be relieved to get their lives back to normal and therefore activity will be more active than it was before I suppose that could be a good thing.
I’ll end this by saying that the most difficult part has been not having access to church as a Christian that has been important to me and so I have to evaluate my own values. I’ll save the effects of that for another article imagine I’ll have plenty to say. in the meantime stay home and stay safe and as always stay cool.
Stephanie Bri 