It's Been Three Years Since the World Changed

Celebrating the third anniversary of having a decent work/life balance!

It’s incredibly weird to think we’ve been living in a pandemic for three years. Yet, here we are!

Today (I’m writing this on March 12) is the anniversary of when I started working from home five days a week. I was used to one or two days at home. I lived for those days — it was an opportunity for me to be heads down, cut down on distractions, and increase my productivity. These things were lost when I was physically in an office.

Then, on the afternoon of March 12, 2020, I received an email saying our offices would be closing and all non-essential in-person personnel would be working remotely for a few weeks. At the time, my company kept saying things like we’ll be doing this for three to six weeks, max, just to let things settle, then we’ll come back…

And on Friday March 13, 2020, the outside world began shutting down. Fitting: on Friday the 13th, in the beginning stages of a scary, unknown situation we began navigating what would be a “new normal” for many of us.

Exactly three years later, I am permanently working from home. And I couldn’t be happier with the arrangement! I have a great balance between attending meetings and having enough time to be heads-down when necessary. I can still socialize with co-workers, setting aside time to connect with people either through virtual happy hours or one-on-ones. I am so much more productive than ever, too. It’s absolutely a win for me.

While the pandemic has certainly ruined a lot, it’s also provided me some pretty positive things… like how I no longer have to commute to work. I can get up early and have an hour or two to myself to gently roll into the work day, and I can spend that by making breakfast, hanging out with my husband, writing, reading, or getting a jump start on my work day. Or, I can sleep in and start the workday right after having a quick breakfast and coffee. I adjust my schedule freely and so long as my work is complete and my teams’ needs are met, I’m golden! Working this way makes it much easier to accept the occasional evening or weekend work that happens when you’re in the IT world.

Aside from providing the opportunity to create a much healthier work/life balance, it’s done wonders for my writing. That’s twofold, really. Working remotely has immensely cut down on the work burnout, and eliminating the commute gave me more time back. Now, I use that time to write. I no longer feel as exhausted as I used to by going into an office — when I got home, I just wanted to fade into the couch and lose myself in hours of reality television. Now, I sign off, have dinner or do things around the house/run errands, write, play games, or just have the freedom to do whatever I want.

And let me tell you — it’s a great feeling.

What isn’t a great feeling though, is reflecting on how we got here and how we are still very much in a pandemic. (I know, I know, I don’t mean to bring down the mood but we have to acknowledge it.) I’m not sure where you’re reading this post from, but where I live, it feels like the general public gave up being careful or taking basic precautions a long time ago. Like people have forgotten that, to date, millions of people have died and we are approaching nearly 1 billion cases worldwide. Wild.

I don’t miss the days of wondering if we’ll be able to get to the store and purchase necessities because people hoarded supplies for themselves (hello, the great toilet paper shortage!). I won’t miss feeling like I was on an emotional roller coaster, watching the numbers rise… and rise… and rise… If I’m being honest, it made me lose some (read: a lot) of my faith in humanity. However, I am kind of glad it helped us see the true colors of some people in our lives, as sad as it may be. At least we know that without a doubt, a lot of people are extremely selfish, I guess?

Arguments are still happening about the importance of masking in public (they work, stop arguing about it) and how vaccinations are essential to cutting down the risk of transferring a virus to the immunocompromised/for the greater good (they are, stop arguing about it). In fact, because of these two things, I have successfully avoided getting the virus. I plan to keep it that way by taking every precaution I can!

I’ve found ways to stay safe while traveling and feel a tiny bit better about going to concerts again — Dave Matthews Band, Taylor Swift, and Metallica are on the docket this year, so far. I doubt I ever do either of those things without wearing a mask, but I truly don’t mind. In fact, I’m thrilled I won’t have to smell the beer farts from frat bros standing in front of me at DMB shows. (If only I could find the photo of my best friend and I holding our noses upon witnessing the foulest smell at one of the shows back in the day, you all would really enjoy it, lol.) Or undesirable food smells on an airplane. To me, these benefits far outweigh any negatives associated with masking. For some, taking basic precautions can keep you and your loved ones as safe as possible. For others, it’s much harder, so why not do the bare minimum to help them feel and stay as safe as they can, too?

We can’t deny that the world as we once knew it has changed, which is something we will always be able to say with certainty as the years go by. I feel very lucky I work for a company and on a team that embraced working remotely (and we are very successful doing so). I am grateful for the opportunity I received to better focus on my writing. I am comforted by knowing that I spend every day with my soulmate and that we’re truly on the same page about this matter, among other things.

Because of these things, I’m celebrating. In the end, I hope the good outweighs the bad for you, too. ✌️