Staying In 9th July 2020 by Denise Curtin

What We’ve Really Learned About Our Lockdown Inmates

Team STELLAR shares all!

Three months of lockdown can really tell you a lot about your fellow inmates. From the way they eat slightly too loudly, to where they leave the TV remote, and this month, Team STELLAR is reflecting on all they’ve learnt about their roomies during quarantine; the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Vicki – editor in chief 

In lockdown with… her husband Joe, and dogs Dora and Jacko  

 

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I’ve realised that I’m going to find it really difficult to leave my dogs when the time comes, having pretty much been glued to them 24/7 since March 14th. They’re getting older, and I worry about them. I’ve learned that they fart A LOT, sleep more than I thought and are even more intelligent than I gave them credit for. Dora has figured out which shoes are for walkies, which are for exercise at home and which are for the shops. She also has a timetable for treats and rubs. Jacko really, really hates couriers, bless him.

I always knew Joe was very professional and takes his job very seriously, but the day he gave me dagger looks for using a fork too loudly, I realised just how much he likes to be in his own little world for work. He already worked from home a lot, so I am the one encroaching on his territory. I’ve learned his work ticks – he says “ BOM BOM BOM” when thinking on the fly, which I’ve now made him aware of (sorry!) and listens to music while he works, which I cannot bear. Luckily, my office is upstairs and his is downstairs.

I’ve mostly learned how much I utterly adore the three of them, and our little life together. Joe and I don’t want children, so this is the family unit and lifestyle we’ve chosen and lockdown has proved that it’s pretty damn perfect for us – most of the time!

Denise – digital editor 

In lockdown with… her best friends, Ben, Grainne, Gwen and Shauna 

 

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Lockdown with my friends has me feeling like we’re back in college so, I won’t lie, I’m kind of loving it. I’ve lived with the same four people for the past six years. We all met at the University of Limerick and then we all moved to Dublin together so, I know their living habits better than anyone else. But unlike college when we used to spend our days doing anything and everything but work, now we’ve all got adult jobs and so, the 9-5 situation is a little different. Firstly, we all do completely different things – we’ve got a secondary school teacher, a musician, an accountant, a journalist and a customer care specialist so, that has made for an interesting work dynamic. During a normal day in quarantine you can hear everything from Grainne playing her trumpet to the kettle on constant boil, couriers ringing the doorbell to Shauna singing TikTok songs… regardless of what room she’s in.

Yes, lockdown has definitely made us hyperaware of each other’s little WFH traits but thankfully, we’ve always known it was a bit of a mad house.

Surprisingly, the thing I’ve really learnt about my fellow inmates is that we’re actually quite a creative bunch when we put our heads together. From throwing a paint and prosecco party for my 26th birthday to buying a fire pit for weekend “s’mores nights”, I’m certainly impressed with how quarantine has thought us to think outside the box.

Amie Edmonds – staff writer  

In lockdown with… her boyfriend, Craig 

 

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My fellow lockdown inmate is my boyfriend Craig, we’ve been together for six years and moved in together around two months after we first got together (a bit of a long story) so we’re well accustomed to being together! So because of that, there’s not many new things that I’ve learned about him, but I have realised that a couple of his work habits have me doing a double take, sending daggers across the sitting room with my eyes.

The first thing that springs to mind is when he’s on a work call, I hear the phrase ‘if that makes sense?’, what feels like every two seconds. Although, to be fair, once I swiftly pointed it out he’s done well to tone that down a lot, so ten points to him.

The second ‘work thing’ I noticed he does is play air drums along to whatever music he’s listening to with his earphones. So all I see at the corner of my eye when I’m trying to get through my work is a pair of hands flying about, pretending to play imaginary drums. I just had to know if that’s something he would have done in the office, and it turns out that yes, that’s a habit he brought home from the office.

Of course, usually things like that wouldn’t bother a normal person, but in these circumstances everything is heightened, and when you notice one little thing – it’s all you can focus on. But I’ll take this over any awfully bad habits any day. Air drums aren’t the worst thing someone can do during lockdown!

Adele Miner  – staff writer 

In lockdown with… her family and dog, Ringo 

 

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I live at home with my mam, brother, and dog Ringo. So, when lockdown was announced we braced ourselves to spend the next however long as a foursome.

Firstly, I learned that my brother, like most teenagers, does not leave his bedroom for love nor money. Let’s just say there haven’t been too many words of profanity exchanged between us.

I learned that myself and my mam are quite alike, which is sometimes a good thing and other times, bad. I’ve realised that she always needs something to do, and when there’s nothing to do she’ll make something up – did you know walls could be mopped? I learned that she’ll take any opportunity she can to feed the dog treats, he simply has to breathe and he’ll be rewarded with a biscuit. My most shocking discovery however, is that I’ve  learned that she pronounces the word ‘potato’ as ‘bedado’ and I’m unsure how that one went 24 years unnoticed.

Lastly, I learned that my dog, Ringo is the neediest little monkey in all the land. He never ever leaves my side and if I leave him in a room by himself for more than 10 minutes he will scream the house down. I’ve also learned that he stalks my mam for food at any opportunity he gets, which kind of brings us full circle.

Megan Roantree – staff writer 

In lockdown with… her boyfriend, Joe

 

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I’m in lockdown with my boyfriend Joe. Because we already lived together, I didn’t think there was a whole lot to learn about him, but I’ve certainly learned a lot about what his job actually entails. He has what seems like 100 conference calls a day, and while 90 percent of it is business, he loves a good chat with the girls (most of his office is women!) He’ll ask about their dogs and their babies and how their parents are doing while cocooning. It’s very sweet to see how much he cares about everyone. Like I already knew this, but it’s nice to see it crosses over to his work life too.

I’ve also learned that he smiles REALLY LOUDLY which I did not know was possible. But I’ll know he’s starting a call when I hear him smile!!!  Also, he gets distracted easily (I blame TikTok!) and prefers to work with lots of music and noise whereas I’m a fan of near-total silence! I guess opposites really do attract…

Jade Carpenter – intern 

In lockdown with… her family 

 

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So I’m on lockdown with my family and something I’ve realised about my parents is how much they love any type of DIY. There won’t be a surface that hasn’t been repainted after this! So far we’ve had the front door, the kitchen chairs and table all painted and now, I’m sure they’ll find something else to paint white.

The garden is in full bloom, they’ve created a ‘sun spot’ with a sun bed in it which I have been availing of,  and the plants are all being watered within an inch of their life. My mom’s delighted the garden centres are open again, she came home with a small forest today consisting of lavender plants and colourful flowers. Something that seems like a bit of a chore to me brings them so much joy! Although, the house and garden will look fab after all this!

I’ve also learned that online shopping is somewhat of a phobia to them, for a modern pair, ordering a can of paint (necessary for all the DIY duties) online seemed like a task in The Cube. It wasn’t long before I was drafted in to take over for the team and get the task completed. It always gives me a laugh when I come across things like that.

I’ve also realised that my brother has an endless appetite, anything remotely exciting in the food shop is devoured once it’s spotted. Usually we’d both be in school and college and so our only meal shared would be dinner, now I’ve learned to be quick if I want to claim something before it’s gone. There’s been one too many “are they gone ALREADY?” moments so I’ve had to adapt, even my mom has began a second cupboard for items we don’t want to disappear. Oddly I’ve noticed we go through an awful lot of cheese as a family, something I’d have never noticed before, seems we need a new block every food shop. But who doesn’t love cheese? I guess it makes sense with the amount of toasties and omelettes in circulation.

Overall we are doing very well, I’ve learned that we all work as a unit which has been great.

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