My alarm goes off... Ugh.
I guess this means it's a weekday.
Snooze.
Second alarm goes off...
Snooze.
Third alarm goes off... UGH.
Ok, time for some caffeine and food. Wait, when did I go shopping last? I know it was Tuesday but which one? Is it Tuesday today? Friday?
I have a bagel left but no cream cheese. Ok, buttered bagel and tea it is.
Look at that, it's actually Wednesday. I have a meeting in half an hour. Time to dig up a clean looking shirt. No one can see my bottom half so my sweats are great. I'm officially dressed.
Wash my face and slap my cheeks. I can feel my brain ramping up again. I open my blinds. It's already warm outside. I'm not used to it being warm again. It feels like we should still be expecting a snow storm at any minute.
Now I'm ready to go. I've got my slippers on, my sweat pants, my button up shirt, and a mug of green tea.
These are my days now. I meet new people through demos, catch up with my favorite clients through zoom calls, chat with my friends/co-workers through teams.
I can recognize everyone's favorite room to work in. Some have a dedicated office, some work from the kitchen, others use their couch. I switch back and forth from my couch and my desk. There's not much space in a small downtown apartment but that 6ft difference provides a nice little commute and a slight change of scenery.
Once I get going it doesn't matter where I am. The barriers start to dissolve. I get involved in a conversation trying to solve a difficult issue and we're in the same room. I start working on complicated client data and I'm engrossed in the puzzle. It doesn't matter that I'm still in my 715 sq ft apartment. I'm right back to life before quarantine. Even when I furrow my brow during a meeting it brings me back to a more normal time.
My life has been drastically different these past few months but there are still moments of normality. We still have meetings every week that are half business, half Dad jokes. We still talk about good places to get lunch. We still catch up on each others lives. We still care about each other.
Each day gets a little bit easier.
The mornings are still a struggle, but even they are starting to get easier.
Chris Roth
Data Analyst