• Loud music from neighbours, constant hunger pangs and a wobbly internet connection is the norm.
• There are many distractions and holding a Skype meeting with the bosses has become difficult.
Silvia Mungai, a communications officer with a local NGO, had for a long time craved a vacation at a place with sandy beaches, palm trees and cool breeze.
Work was taking a mental toll on her and up every morning exasperated that a long day awaited her.
The 27-year-old thought she had finally got the break she craved when her company announced on March 20 that employees could work from home to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
“At first I thought of it as the break I so much needed. However, working from home has become tiresome and monotonous contrary to what I thought it would be,” Silvia says.
Loud music from neighbours, constant hunger pangs and a wobbly internet connection has become the norm for her.
“There are so many distractions and I cannot work in peace. Holding a Skype meeting with the bosses has become difficult because of the loud music and people shouting.”
For Leonard, a second-year Bachelor of Commerce student, a rescheduled continuous assessment test was a welcome distraction from the boredom created by the stay home government directive.
“When the CAT was postponed for three weeks, most of us were really happy because of the fear of exams. However, now that I think about it, I think the sooner we go back to classes, the better for us,” Leonard says.
Netflix and his phone have been his companions as the directive enters its third week.
Nonetheless, the thrill with which he bonded with his ‘companions’ at the start of the quarantine has waned.
“I have watched all the movies. Even keeping in touch with my friends through WhatsApp and Twitter cannot replace hanging out with friends over the weekends,” the 22-year-old student says.
For James, another student and upcoming DJ, weekends were spent at the club shoulder-to-shoulder with different people and getting free drinks.
“Since December, this is the first month that I’ve slept regularly over the weekend. Although the sources of revenue have somehow reduced, the peace and tranquillity is welcome,” James acknowledges.
He is using the corona-imposed homestay to rejig his knowledge and skills as a DJ in addition to catching up on the lessons he had missed.
Janet Wangui is a self-confessed extrovert and to her, the stay home has jolted her back to reality regarding her socialisation patterns.
“The quarantine has literally opened my eyes to the people who claim to be friends around me. Very few people even check on you to know how you are coping with the harsh times,” Janet says.
Her days are spent on reading novels that she had been bought but never had time to read.
According to the 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census, 75 per cent of Kenyans are under 30, students and unemployed.
As the most vibrant and physically active, they are the most affected by the stay home restriction as a way of stopping the transmission of Covid-19.
They have also been the most active Kenyans on social media platforms, often poking holes on some of the Covid-19 prevention measures and engaging in banter to release some steam.
The group was up in arms yesterday after Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe called on the youths to be prominent in the fight against the virus.
Most of them castigated the CS, noting that the youth have historically been secluded from public appointments.