Image credit: donegalweatherchannel, @tanwen0
If you’re still reeling from the fact that social gatherings both in public and in the privacy of your home are now against the law thanks to a newly minted COVID-19 bill, we’re with you. The coronavirus wave has turned our lives topsy turvy and we’re still trying to cope with it all.
And while the social butterflies inside us all are screaming to be set free, there are still many reasons to smile every day. Here are 8 unexpected things to be grateful for during this circuit breaker month.
Read our other coronavirus-related articles here:
Merely uttering the phrase “Can I work from home?” might’ve labelled you bratty and entitled pre-coronavirus but with all non-essential businesses now made to operate remotely, your productivity levels this month will be the key to unlocking the “Work From Home” free pass once this whole virus situation blows over.
It might not be a permanent arrangement but you can probably try your luck to score 1-2 days of WFH if your job allows you to work independently. And while we wait for CB to end, here are some resources on how you can ace your KPIs from your bedroom:
Image credit: donegalweatherchannel
The coronavirus spread across the globe has brought human traffic to a near standstill and turned factories into ghost towns. The result: muddy to crystal clear waters in the canals of Venice, blue skies reemerging over some of the most polluted cities in the world, and animals taking over the streets Jumanji-style. Almost as if it was nature’s way of rebelling against mankind.
Image credit: Guardian News
Sadly, Singapore’s latest runaway stallion doesn’t count.
Image adapted from: Bebe Joelle
With no insight as to how long the pandemic will last, we can only take comfort in the fact that us staying home is allowing mother nature to heal herself one socially distant day at a time.
Image credit: Sustainability Times
We now all know that the “coronavirus came from bat soup” rumour is a whole load of BS. And even though it birthed an entire chain of fake news on Whatsapp and Telegram, it also forced scientists and the nation’s leaders to take a closer look at the otherwise rampant wild animal food trade that was going on in the nooks and crannies of the world.
And though it’s sad that it took a pandemic for China to finally put a ban on wild animal consumption, millions of animal lovers – alongside snakes, civet cats, bats and pangolins – can now heave a huge sigh of relief.
If you’ve got yourself subscribed to Gov.sg on Telegram, then you’ll know that migrant worker dormitories have been virus hotspots. The sudden eruption in COVID-19 cases shone the light on the non-existent social distancing in common areas and less than unsanitary living conditions thousands of workers are subjected to.
While MOM hasn’t implemented any life-changing laws to improve the living situation in dormitories just yet, it’s heartening to know that the government is addressing this issue. We can hopefully look forward to better living spaces and isolation meals for all migrant workers in the weeks to come.
In the interim, here’s how you can donate 20% of your weekly seafood grocery haul to provide migrant workers in need with care packs comprising hand sanitisers, masks and toiletries.
Image credit: @tanwen0
Nobody expected that our long work days and weekends out with friends would evolve into mornings, afternoons and nights with family for days on end. Social gatherings have been shelved until early May, but this surplus of family facetime and home cooked meals are creating a stockpile of fond memories through these tough times.
At the very least, you won’t have to feel guilty about not spending time with the fam when the coronavirus social gathering ban lifts. Get the entire fambam together for an indoor workout sesh to sweat off the calories or spice things up with a weekly game night. You just might find the CB period flying by.
In these coronavirus times, good hygiene takes top priority. Pressing lift buttons with our elbows, washing our hands and disinfecting our homes on the regular is the new norm now, and I’ll bet that none of us want to think of the times pre-virus where we’d touch surfaces – even the germiest ones – without a care then proceed to eat KFC right after.
From sneezing into our elbows when we’re not wearing masks to swiftly disposing our used tissues, even after we bid this virus goodbye, we’ll have good hygiene habits to last us a lifetime.
Image credit:@sharingplates
With outdoor weekend shenanigans with friends now against the law and many a lunch and dinner time spent in the confines of our homes, it’s probably an opportune moment for us to pick up a new skill or take our culinary skill to new heights.
Whether it’s beefing up your resume to ensure you stay relevant or taking every meal as a learning opportunity to whip up a new fangled recipe that will wow the folks at home, we’ve got one whole month to dabble in crafts, tech or anything we set our sights on before life as we know it resumes.
This list of things to do will get you started:
Thank the heavens PM Lee’s new measures didn’t take precious outdoor time away from us. And while we all can’t congregate at Singapore Botanic Gardens or MacRitchie Reservoir, the new CB measures have definitely helped foster a new appreciation for the parks and gardens around our hood.
Maybe the grass does get greener when you’re not allowed to leave to the other side.
We might’ve about 99 things to be unhappy about with all the new circuit breaker measures in place such as bidding leisurely shopping and restaurant dinners farewell for the next couple of weeks, but here are 8 things we’re not complaining about during this COVID-19 period.
Just an hour away from KL!
Taichung is only an hour by High Speed Rail from Taipei or Taoyuan station.
No more stressing over what to get your loved ones for Christmas.
Gone are the days when family photoshoots used to be boring and extra formal.
Here are all the best things to do this weekend in Singapore.
Meet new-to-Singapore species as well.