More than Quarantine

History of Plague

When novel corona virus started infecting Chinese in the later part of 2019, I was reminded of the Black Death in the earliest century (1350). I remember how it was described in a historical fiction book series of Ken Follet, the Pillars of the Earth. There were recorded pandemics in 1817 (Cholera) and 1918 (Spanish Flue). Even in ancient history, plagues were recorded in the Bible and in various accounts of human history (https://www.history.com/topics/middle-ages/pandemics-timeline).

Then Covid19 was finally declared a pandemic in the first quarter of 2020 when it spread around the world, forcing governments to quarantine their citizenry. The Philippine Government commenced its hard lockdown on March 16, 2020.

Work from Home (WFH)

With traffic situation in Philippine's Metro Manila, where I spent at least 4 hours on the road to and from the office, I always wished for a work from home employment arrangement. With the lockdown due to health crisis, I was working from home.

I accomplished plenty of stuffs; completed several jobs at hand; written several manuscripts and project proposals. I was productive! I worked overtime unmindful of the clock. I mean, I have no choice but to keep on working because I did not have to leave my post to catch the bus, to worry about the heavy traffic, to get home after several hours. My "home office" which utilized our bamboo cottage was just a few steps away, so most of the time was spent on working.

It was enjoyable at first, for the 40-day enhanced community quarantine (ECQ). Then the lockdown order dragged on for another 30 days.

Cancelled Trips

Having obtained an approved Visitor's Visa for Australia, I have pre-booked all my travel essentials. I was scheduled to travel from Melbourne to Uluru to Sydney on April 3-13, 2020. Since both Australia and Philippines grounded all domestic and international flights for non-essential travels, I was forced to cancel my trip.

Every month of May, since the death of our father, the whole family travel home to Anao-aon, Surigao del Norte to reunite with the Gastardo Clan to celebrate Papa Tantong's death anniversary on May 15th. All flight bookings were reserved and paid. Since ECQ was extended, this too was canceled.

June was supposedly the Surigaonon Friends' second group tour of the year (the first was in January at Bantayan Island). A friend from US would be flying in, and friends from Surigao would travel to Manila to reunite with us here in Luzon, then head to Sagada in the Mountain Province. Despite the easing of quarantine orders, international and domestic flights for non-essential travels were yet suspended. And Sagada's local government was not accepting guests. So this reunion was postponed.

My dear mother Dulcing celebrated her 75th birthday this July. As planned, I would show her to Phuket, Thailand, her supposed second country during her birthday. Last year, I brought her to Hanoi, Vietnam. All were arranged both flights and hotel. And since Thailand and Philippines were not yet open for tourist travels, although at relaxed quarantine status already, we canceled the trip and celebrated Mama's diamond jubilee at home.

New Normal to Commute

When Philippine government started reopening its economy from June 1, select transport resumed operation with strict health measures. I tried going out and commuting with an airconditioned public utility bus. Well, it was an experience of the new normal in commuting, where thermal scan is present (people with more than 37.5 body temp were denied entry), alcohol spray over hands, and some adjacent seats are marked X (to observe social distancing). Although my fellow commuters seemed at ease, I was feeling unsafe.

My way from San Jose del Monte in Bulacan to my apartment in Manggahan, Quezon City was okay. On my way back, however, a passenger from the back of the bus sneezed so loudly that everyone turned, eyes widened. Funny, that most laughed, but deep inside most of us were scared, knowing that virus could be spread by sneezing. I took a bath outside when I arrived home.

I did not try commuting again after that.

Home Fitness Challenge

I am an active person. I go to the gym almost everyday. I join fun runs during weekends. I climb mountains with friends every now and then. But the home quarantine psychologically constrained me from physical activities.

My sister and I tried workout routines and aerobics during nighttime but it was interrupted by nightly meetings and family movies. I accepted daily push-up challenge for 25 days, but nothing else. We tried walking either in the morning or afternoon, but intermittent. So getting physical has become very challenging here.

My Anxiety

I don't know how to define my anxiety level. Or I don't know if I have anxiety and how it manifests. Although, I have family and relatives who experienced anxiety.

What I observed however during the first 40-day WFH was that I drank hot coffee or tea many times a day. Then I slept late at night. It was not because I stayed late or worked until wee hours in the evening, but that I couldn't just earn sleep early; even if I lied on bed early.

Then lately, I easily got irritated with anything. Or it was hard to wake up and move. I have this feeling of entanglement; like being tied to daily routine within the confines of my home. I dreamt of going out, travel to somewhere. At the same time, there is fear of catching the virus. I could not just go anywhere without stringent precaution because I have elderly and children at home.

I realized that it is hard to stay put like forever. WFH for me is enjoyable if I am moving around, from place to place. Not just home...