After reading many articles about the positivity of lockdown I was wondering if I should voice the reality for my family. I can’t be alone here!
Seriously, we are three weeks into lockdown in the UK and the rumblings of discontent are building to a crescendo in our house.
Out of enormous respect for our key workers we wanted to do our bit to support them by facing lockdown with incredible optimism. However, the challenges are even getting to me, an introvert who likes their own company.
It started on a positive note, but it is the first time in 30 years, outside of holidays, that my husband and I have been at home together for any significant period.
We were certain that we could find things to do to occupy our time. Some of these endeavours positive and some just plain irritating!
Mission number 1: Decluttering Campaign – mission accomplished
The reality – clutter now cluttering up the garden as the recycling centre is on lock down.
Mission number 2: Build a fitness plan – mission accomplished
The reality – A new stationary bike with indoor cycling apps connected now graces the living room!
Mission number 3: More practice time on instruments – Mission accomplished
The reality – the walls that suit my minimalistic taste are now adorned with various guitars!
As the weeks wear on, the house (aside from the the new wall art) being neat and pristine only seems to accentuate the enormous gap that needs filling without a daily routine. The mood is coming down and the only escape is the daily outdoor exercise which I choose to do alone for the peace and my own well-being.
Things haven’t been so bad for me as I had launched a business on the morning of the evening, we received lockdown, so I have been mad busy trying to create awareness and build material for my portfolio. For my husband, after the scheduled guitar practice and fitness hour the pacing starts.
A steady pace is unknown territory to my husband who is self reportedly hyperactive. He is like a tornado blowing through every minute of every day. This is not a criticism, just a fact. Staying static for someone extrovert and hyperactive is tough.
He was ok to begin with when we had all the jobs around the house to do but now, no pace at all, is becoming unbearable for him and me!! Minor tiffs and niggles are for us, part and parcel of the times we are living through and I make no excuse for them.
This pandemic has thrown a spotlight on the challenges of us as an introvert and an extrovert living together. After spending so much time together, I have perfected the art of breathing through it but I am beginning to think that he doesn’t like the way I breath! I am of course being flippant, but who knows by the end of the next 3-week period there may be an element of truth to that as we head into the next declared chapter of lockdown!
This article was written tongue in cheek about an unusual time in our lives and to be honest after 30 years and lots of uphill battles together, I will be surprised if Covid-19 alone can break us!