• I've been working at home for about three weeks and have no complaints.
• I'm busy, but I can also work on plants on my balcony, watch the birds. I even make my own bed, wash up and do the cooking and laundry.
I hear about people suffering under partial lockdown as though it's the worst thing in the world.
There's a deluge of advice on what to do to keep healthy, handle stress and loneliness - deep breathing, not overeating, exercising, taking up crocheting, trying new recipes, cracking the books one has been meaning to read, keeping in touch with friends and so on.
For me, I don't have sad tales to tell. I rather like working at home. I'm a workaholic anyhow and I've always lived alone, except during university and a brief marriage.
If I didn't have work, it would be quite boring. Right now I'm on leave but there's nowhere to go. I had wanted to go on a safari.
I spend most of my day editing stories. I call up correspondents who've left out key elements, suggesting how to improve their work, suggesting non-corona stories.
I work for about eight hours a day. Sometimes it's tedious but I get a lot done.
I especially liked the story about Lamu women cutting up old brassieres and using them for face masks for their families. How many men or teenage boys would be caught dead -- an unfortunate expression -- rather than wear mum's discarded bras?
We finish early so people can get home before curfew but I'm already home. So I can read books I've downloaded on Kindle, watch movies.
I do miss the buzz in my office but it's practically empty now, so we communicate twice a day by Zoom and WhatsApp.
Still, I wish I had someone to talk to in person, a real person. Yes, I occasionally call, email or get calls and emails.
I'm planning to resume my Kiswahili lessons with my teacher over Zoom.
Maybe I need a cat.
Occasionally I go to the chemist or the supermarket. I exercise.
I walk out on my balcony, look at the trees. My laptop is set up next to my balcony so I can look outside and see birds fluttering about. I work on my plants on the balcony and at the end of my outdoor hallway-breezeway. I wish I had a garden.
Occasionally I see my housekeeper. I can even make my own bed, cook for myself and do the laundry. I always used to do these things. We're spoiled here. Doing this work makes me appreciate my housekeeper.
As for Easter, which used to be a huge deal in my family, I listened to Bach and Gregorian chants, hoping for a new beginning, which Easter is supposed to symbolise.
Supper was scrambled eggs.