What It's Like to be Alone While on Lockdown

We're almost two months now since the "enhanced community quarantine" or ECQ has been implemented in the whole area of Luzon because of COVID-19. It's basically a lockdown where all non-essential everything (work, services, etc.) has been suspended until the ECQ will be lifted.

While a lot of people were able to go home to their families before the lockdown started, I wasn't. It was actually my choice to just stay in BGC instead of going back home to Cebu, seeing that I had to go through the airport, which had become jam-packed at that time.

Considering how crowded it was, I didn' want risk it because my parents are both senior citizens and my brother had respiratory issues. However, I also didn't expect the ECQ to last this long and just a day ago, it was announced that it will be extended until May 15.

So here I am blogging about what it's like to be completely alone while on lockdown. What has it been like? Am I going crazy already? Did I learn anything new? Did I reflect on my life and had life-changing realizations?

LOL. Well, no, thank god. I'm still sane (and sober) and kinda just winging it day by day. I know I'm pretty lucky considering how a lot of people are having a hard time right now but not gonna lie, being alone, like literally alone for an extended period of time, while the world goes on shutdown mode is not a walk in the park.

Thankful for my Tribe

Around when the lockdown started, I got back together with my ex to give our relationship another chance. It's LDR, and it was still LDR no matter how much we both wished we were quaranteining together.

Anyway, it was good to have someone ask how you are every day, even if he's like on the side of the world. Knowing that someone out there was actually looking out for you, even if they're not around physically, helped a lot when you're alone while on lockdown and there were still a lot of confusion going. There were many times when I was scared or when I just needed someone to talk to and I'm grateful that he was around.

I'm handling the ECQ and the loneliness better now, I think. It still sucks, and I wouldn't wish it on anybody. I guess I'm just kinda getting used to it (although if given the chance, I wish I could go home), which is good because my ex and I actually broke up for good.

So aside from my ex, I'm also grateful for my friends. It's funny how when almost the whole world went on lockdown, communication with old friends got revived and even those with current ones have become more open. This is why I'm thankful for my friends who bear with me and my memes and pointless jokes on social media.

I have also been talking to my mom more often and actually send her a picture of my food every time I eat - whether it's an awful-looking scrambled egg or a veggie dish that actually look edible. LOL. I also got to videocall my dog via my brother (thank you!). I know it sounds silly but it's really nice to see all of them okay.

Learning to Cook

I've never been a good cook. I mean I do cook all the time but it's never been real home-cooked food like local dishes. However, because I was so paranoid at the start of the ECQ and would not order anything from outside, I decided to just cook whatever I felt like having.

The first home-cooked dish that I wished I had was ginataang gulay and that's what I did. It turned good, which actually surprised me. I then tried making tortang-talong, which is my favorite and which I can confidently say now that I can cook very well. I also made lumpiang Shanghai from scratch, as well as stir-fried beans with ground pork. They both turned out really good too (no joke, even I was surprised) and I can't wait to cook them for my fam when I go home. 

Of course, my culinary journey would not be complete if I didn't have any epic kitchen fails as well. That goes to my Samgyupsal attempt. As I have the grill and the stove for it (I won it during our office Christmas party), I decided to experiment and bough some pork belly and beef sukiyaki.

BIGGEST LESSON LEARNED: NOT ALL PORK BELLY ARE CREATED EQUAL 😭😫 I actually messaged my mom what all those weird white toothy-looking spots that appeared when the pork belly was cooking and my mom was laughing as she told me that I should have gone for those with lesser fats. Urgh. It honestly looked disgusting.

Anyway, that aside, I'm thriving well on the kitchen. There are times when I get super bored with what I cooked (I usually cook a single dish and it will last me several days) so I sneak in a Foodpanda order here and there.

Cleaning, Cleaning, and Cleaning

OMG I've been cleaning the condo a lot. Like seriously. At this rate, it's like I'm doing it for fun because that's how bored I am. LOL.

Of all the household chores, I hate washing the dishes. I absolutely hate it, but this time, I even look forward to washing them and keeping everything spic-and-span. What's happening? 😰😰😰

Earlier Bedtime

I never thought I would ever come to this point, but I'm usually in bed now by 8:30 PM. That doesn't mean I'll be sleeping already, but just the fact that there's nothing else to do by this time is crazy. It's also super quiet too, except for the annoying super loud leaf blower thing, which they always do at my area around midnight.

Work Routine

I love going to the office and seeing people. I love dressing up and having something to look forward to during the day. I love routine and there's no better way to stick to that than getting up and going to the office every day.

However, desperate times call for desperate measures and I'm very grateful that my job lets me work from home easily. These days, my routine consists of waking up at 9:30 AM, making breakfast, going through my tasks, lunch, back to work, a little break at around 3 PM, and all done at 7:00 or 7:30 PM. With a schedule like that, you'll understand why I'm already in bed by 8:30 PM LOL.

Netflix / Books / Indoor Gardening

I have not finished a single movie or a single series. Nope. I haven't even finished reading a single book since the lookdown started. It's awful and it's even more awful hearing how all these other people have finished online courses or read several books already and whatnots.

I try not to dwell on those too much because I do believe to each his own. So what I have in my sleeves instead is I decided I'm gonna try my hand at indoor gardening. Nothing intense, just some pretty little succulents that I hope I could keep alive. Of course, I would have preferred having a dog but since I can't, I'll settle for this non-moving living thing instead. Wish me luck.

So I guess that's it for me. I hope someone out there manages to find a vaccine and cure for COVID-19 soon and things will alright again with the world. Be safe.