Chronicles of COVID-19

Title

Warren, Cork City

Contributor

Warren

Subject

COVID-19 (Disease)

Coverage

Ireland; Cork; 2020s:

Date

16 April 2020

Language

English

Creator

Cork Folklore Project

Rights

Cork Folklore Project

Description

GENERAL PHYSICAL LOCATION RIGHT NOW

Gurranabraher, Cork

USUAL LOCATION

Same

Q. 1 STAGES

I was aware of the situation in Wuhan before Christmas. At that stage I viewed it much like I viewed SARS and MERS, tragic but unlikely to affect me. Next stage of awareness it suddenly took over Italy, then other European countries. At that stage it was clear it was coming. There were a few days of "what's going to happen here?", then we started the lock down.

Q. 2 EVERYDAY ROUTINE

I'm able to do my work quite effectively at home. Leisure activities were centred around hiking and the local climbing gym, so those are no more. Taken up walking locally for 1 to 2 hours each day, more at weekends. It's surprising how much scope there is in the 2km; we've found pleasant walks we did not know were there.
Social life like everyone else moved to social media plus occasionally meeting outdoors at safe distance. Some musicians / performers do live gigs in the internet; my friends and I sometimes watch these "together" by sharing chat on social media. We call this activity a "Covideo" - a term I made up that somehow has failed to go viral. That's become an important social interaction for me. As has a weekly family group chat - something we never did before.

Q. 3 GROUPS

Difficult question to answer because the lock down has curtailed my interactions so much. I'm most concerned about my parents in their late seventies, although they actually seem to be coping quite well. It must be very hard for anyone living alone. I think it's a challenge for those in heavily populated cities, because you are more exposed and the services have become more stressed more quickly. The one family member we have based in London got out before the lock down there; very relieved about that.
As a population we are divided into three groups: those who have found they don't have very much to do, those who have found they are working flat out, and those like me whose jobs transfer to the home environment easily.

Q. 4 WAYS WE TALK

Jokes and stories: too many to note! Facebook etc. full of them. Humour is a coping mechanism. One of my favourites: The rule that limits walking to 2km from your house must be awkward for the Proclaimers: "I would walk two thousand meters and I would walk two thousand more".
Covid is the default conversational currency, replacing the weather in that function. The past is referred to as the "before times" or "before all this"; the future as "the other side" or "when all this is over". New terms / terms used much more frequently: social distancing, flatten the curve, front-line worker, cocooning, PPE. Verbal greetings haven't changed, at least not the initial hello etc. But handshakes and all other physical greetings are gone. I'm lucky to be in a relationship, which provides me with regular physical and personal contact.

Q. 5 COMMUNITY RESPONSE

I have heard first-hand reports from family of the UK Thursday hand clap. It's uplifting and I wish we had something like that here. In our local community there isn't anything specific beyond a sense that we are vaguely looking out for each other. It pleases me when people respect the social distance rules, and it annoys me when they don't.
Queuing! That's completely changed, and it seemed to change overnight. Maybe queuing sums up the new reality: it was an institution with a well-formed etiquette that suddenly had to radically adapt to pressing need.

Q. 6 THOUGHTS AND PREOCCUPATIONS

Well I want my loved ones to survive this, and I want to survive it myself. That's the main preoccupation. Also how long before we start to see light at the end of the tunnel. At the moment I honestly have no idea how long it's going to last. I'm a bit concerned about food security, given the current restrictions, surely productivity will be affected.

Q. 7 SIMILARITY TO PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE

No Response.

Q. 8 CHALLENGES AND COPING

No Response.

Q. 9 THE FUTURE

No-one alive now will ever forget this, bar the very young. It's the most profound global event since the second world war. It will of course inform how we organize society in the future; with a bit of luck we will be wise enough to use the opportunity to work out what we really value in society, what are the good things from the before times, and what good things came out of the covid experience.
One aspect of society whose future is uncertain is mass gatherings. It could be many years before we get back to festivals, sporting events with live audiences, etc.

Q. 10 IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT SPRINGS TO MIND?

If alien visitors got here today, they would conclude that most of our infrastructure is completely inappropriate for a species whose individuals seem to require so much personal space.

Q. 11 IN A NUTSHELL

There's a sense of optimism that we will get through this, tempered with a growing acceptance that it will be a rough ride.

age

51-69

gender

Male