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Lockdown... cons and pros


Tranquility of Solitude
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Lockdown is just terrible, and the cancellation of a second festival yet another kick in the teeth. I was thinking, what do I miss the most? Well, obviously, for me and most on here, that may be Glastonbury, so that’s excluded, but here’s three of mine..... but also, there are some plus points to lockdown, so I’ve added three of the things I’ve enjoyed about it. What are yours?

Miss Most

  1. Going to the pub for a pint
  2. Holidays abroad
  3. Live music

Unexpected bonuses

  1. Not shaking hands (I hope this practise has gone forever)
  2. Reading more books
  3. New hobbies... for me, car mechanics
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I’m saving plenty of cash at the moment. In the last year I’ve been able to clear all my debts mainly because I’m not spending my cash on regular nights out. It’s quite surprising how much money you spend on being social. 
 

£5+ for a pint in the city centre compared to a fraction of that cost when drinking at home has certainly made a difference. 

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Miss most:

1. Going out for tea / drinks

2. Holidays / gigs

3. Booking an appointment that i can actually keep!!

4. Seeing my friends irl

 

Unexpected bonuses:

1. Meeting (virtually) new friends 

2. 

3.

(cant fill up my bonuses - cos i've still been going into the office for work since this all started, my life's pretty much the same as before but shitter lol)

Edited by Wellyboot
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Bonuses are, saving tons of money, I used to buy clothes weekly, didn’t buy a thing throughout 2020.

Also no fomo, which is also linked to saving money. Obviously I like going out and socialising, but I’m rarely a planner, I’ll go with the flow. So whenever anyone would organise a night out I’d always go, it would often be in London so would cost a fortune every time. I’d never say no to it because of the fomo aspect, and because I’m not a planner it would represent my opportunity to actually go out and socialise. Now there is nothing to miss out on.

More time to focus on fitness, I exercise every day religiously, before Covid it was always a struggle to fit in and would often get sacrificed.

Also spending more time with my dog, at the start of the pandemic working from home he got so attached to me compared to before I got another dog for him to keep him company for when things returned to normal, a year later they haven’t though. So nice to be with them all day, compared to working crazy hours. 

Downsides are obvious but my alcohol consumption shot up massively, self medicating against boredom. I’ve knocked that in the head in 2022, though. Strictly drinking on the weekend only.

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Miss most:

1. Gigs/Festivals
2. Nights out with friends - house parties/clubs/pubs
3. Seeing my family
4. Seeing anyone other than my girlfriend
5. Seeing other cities. As a regular gig-goer in an city which rarely has any live music, we spend a lot of time travelling elsewhere and I miss those places.

Unexpected bonuses:

1. Completing a lot more house/DIY projects 
2.Reading more than I have in a long time
3. Listening to more music as can now do this when WFH
4. No commute - used to spend 3 hours or more a day commuting back and forth to work.
5. Getting through a lot of TV shows that I may otherwise have missed.

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12 minutes ago, Deaf Nobby Burton said:

Bonuses are, saving tons of money, I used to buy clothes weekly, didn’t buy a thing throughout 2020.

 

Do you think that will continue

13 minutes ago, Deaf Nobby Burton said:

Downsides are obvious but my alcohol consumption shot up massively, self medicating against boredom. I’ve knocked that in the head in 2022, though. Strictly drinking on the weekend only.

That is impressive that you know in advance 🙂 

I have done the same, had a few on Saturday and have regretted it since so may try for only occasionally in 2021 and see how that goes

My misses are

  • People and gigs

The things that are good

  • No commuting
  • More time on my garden 
  • My vinyl collection. Money saved has been spent on Vinyl, going to cut that down a bit this year though
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Miss most:

1) Seeing friends and family.

2) Leisure activities (gigs, cinema, playing football).

3) The excitement of having things like holidays to look forward to.

Unexpected bonuses

1) More flexible working arrangements.

2) Having that time to read more and take in your surroundings (daily walks down my local canal were a huge part of last spring for me) and get better exercise.

3) Saving money.

Edited by Ryan1984
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23 minutes ago, Tranquility of Solitude said:

Lockdown is just terrible, and the cancellation of a second festival yet another kick in the teeth. I was thinking, what do I miss the most? Well, obviously, for me and most on here, that may be Glastonbury, so that’s excluded, but here’s three of mine..... but also, there are some plus points to lockdown, so I’ve added three of the things I’ve enjoyed about it. What are yours?

Miss Most

  1. Going to the pub for a pint
  2. Holidays abroad
  3. Live music

Unexpected bonuses

  1. Not shaking hands (I hope this practise has gone forever)
  2. Reading more books
  3. New hobbies... for me, car mechanics

Miss Most:

  • Real Ale afternoons  with mates and missing out on new pubs
  • Holidays ( worked most days since lockdown ) 
  • Bands & Festivals 

Unexpected bonuses

  • We now have a super cool allotment
  • Workplace dress code has disappeared so I go to  work feral in whatever i want
  • Getting home from work on a night is a doddle 
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Biggest misses:

- Seeing family
- Gigs/Festivals
- Pubs (and my career relying on them being open)
- Live sport
- The wedding being postponed from Sept 2020 to Sept 2021 🤞


Positives:

- I’ve found it easier to lose weight. Daily walks combined with eating healthier (too easy to eat fast food/meal deals whilst working on the road)
- Saved money
- Less hangovers
- More Xbox time

Edited by DareToDibble
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13 minutes ago, fred quimby said:

Do you think that will continue

That is impressive that you know in advance 🙂 

I have done the same, had a few on Saturday and have regretted it since so may try for only occasionally in 2021 and see how that goes

My misses are

  • People and gigs

The things that are good

  • No commuting
  • More time on my garden 
  • My vinyl collection. Money saved has been spent on Vinyl, going to cut that down a bit this year though

2021, sorry getting ahead of myself!

I’ve felt similarly this year when I’ve actually had a drink as well. Last year was a bit of a vicious circle, having a drink was something to look forward to and there is that nice feeling you get 3-4 drinks in which is the bit I used to look forward to. The problem is it makes you feel ropey and worse the next day and you end up repeating the cycle to get that feeling back.

Although it was a bit tricky initially, I’ve found this year cutting back, the longer you go without, the more you don’t really want that hangover feeling and value waking up with a clear head a lot more.

As for the clothes, I think I’ll certainly cut back significantly. Covid had taught me to place a lot less value in material things (no pun Intended) they really don’t matter and don’t make you happy. 

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58 minutes ago, Tranquility of Solitude said:

Lockdown is just terrible, and the cancellation of a second festival yet another kick in the teeth. I was thinking, what do I miss the most? Well, obviously, for me and most on here, that may be Glastonbury, so that’s excluded, but here’s three of mine..... but also, there are some plus points to lockdown, so I’ve added three of the things I’ve enjoyed about it. What are yours?

Miss Most

  1. Going to the pub for a pint
  2. Holidays abroad
  3. Live music

Unexpected bonuses

  1. Not shaking hands (I hope this practise has gone forever)
  2. Reading more books
  3. New hobbies... for me, car mechanics

What festival has also been cancelled

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Aware that am very lucky in all of this so can't complain.

Positives:
1) Although she seems to find me more annoying than I find her, I think my wife and I have dealt with being locked up together better than I thought we would (I still hide her passport overnight just in case, though)

2) Been on various furloughs for a lot of it, so filled some of that time with reading stuff I'd always put off, plus no one-hour each way commute to work

3) Saved money (turns out I was spending all my cash on enjoying myself - what was I even thinking?!)

Maybe I've become institutionalised by all this, but at the moment, bigger picture stuff like festivals and holidays and going back to Bristol all seem so far away, I'm just craving a few small lower tier things that get me out and about:

1) Being able to go to the gym/play crap football with my mates

2) Being able to pop out for dinner/to the cinema with my wife

3) Being able to pop to a comedy club to mark that it's actually Sat night with one other person

(I'm evidently at the 'grief' stage commonly known as 'bargaining'!)

Edited by Homer
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Miss Most:

  1. Physically meeting with, and hugging friends and family.
  2. The freedom to do anything without needing specific equipment, carrying out numerous health and safety checks, queuing or following a one-way system.
  3. Travel is my biggest passion so to have this curtailed has been frustrating.
  4. Live events. That first "normal" event back is going to feel really strange.
  5. The cinema. The one place I can go to unwind.

Unexpected bonuses:

  1. Learning Spanish. Started a college course (which was halted in December) and the Duolingo app has been really useful.
  2. Saving money. It's also made me appreciate how much I waste!
  3. Improving DJ skills. Done half a dozen live streams. Nothing major but loads of fun.
  4. Enjoyment of a simpler, more relaxed life. Not rushing around everywhere.
  5. An even greater appreciation for nature.
  6. I'm fitter now than last year thanks to walking over 1000km and cycling 500km since lockdown 1.
  7. Work mileage is practically zero where it used to be upwards of 500 miles a week. And I'm probably more productive as a result.
Edited by Supernintendo Chalmers
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Missing most

1 Live music

2 seeing friends and family

3 Festivals and gigs

4 Travelling

5 going out for meal/drinks/just a coffee

 

Unexpected bonuses

1 the house is looking better 

Nope can;t find any ,,,,, I wish I could say I have saved a ton of money, but I;m still in the office so still parking every day, and money that would have gone into gigs and trips has gone into decorating and overhauling the ski slope of a garden I have. 

Things I wish I would have done in lockdown

1 Gone out for loads more walks

2 managed to iron out my work/ life balance but if anything its worse than ever

 

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Mine is similar to a lot of people, but:

Things I miss the most:

1. Gigs and festivals, and having those to look forward to

2. Seeing my friends and family (mainly friends though!). And actually miss colleagues now too! 

3. Travel 

4. Doing real-life gym classes, although I did get this back for a little bit

Unexpected bonuses:

1. I've saved loads of money 

2. No more commute (I used to work from home half the time anyway due to this reason)

3. Have forced myself to occupy myself at home better with reading, board games etc.

4. Got over my video chat fears and actually quite enjoy the odd one too. Will definitely keep that up with a couple of friends in particular, as I have several close friends who aren't nearby 

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15 minutes ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

Mine is similar to a lot of people, but:

Things I miss the most:

1. Gigs and festivals, and having those to look forward to

2. Seeing my friends and family (mainly friends though!). And actually miss colleagues now too! 

3. Travel 

4. Doing real-life gym classes, although I did get this back for a little bit

Unexpected bonuses:

1. I've saved loads of money 

2. No more commute (I used to work from home half the time anyway due to this reason)

3. Have forced myself to occupy myself at home better with reading, board games etc.

4. Got over my video chat fears and actually quite enjoy the odd one too. Will definitely keep that up with a couple of friends in particular, as I have several close friends who aren't nearby 

Agreed re four. I've got a couple of good mates who live in Cardiff (I'm in London) and we now do fairly regular zoom calls. This is quite silly really, as pre-pandemic we'd prob only see each other twice a year anyway! Am sure we will keep it up.

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25 minutes ago, Zoo Music Girl said:

Got over my video chat fears and actually quite enjoy the odd one too. Will definitely keep that up with a couple of friends in particular, as I have several close friends who aren't nearby

You should join in with the virtual meet sessions now and again. You won’t be afraid of showing yourself up once you see some of the craziness that goes on with those. 

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54 minutes ago, Homer said:

Agreed re four. I've got a couple of good mates who live in Cardiff (I'm in London) and we now do fairly regular zoom calls. This is quite silly really, as pre-pandemic we'd prob only see each other twice a year anyway! Am sure we will keep it up.

That's exactly what we were like. I never called people to chat so we would stay in touch via WhatsApp and see other a few times a year. One set of friends in particular we now chat with on video for a good few hours every month. It's really nice.

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9 hours ago, Tranquility of Solitude said:

Lockdown is just terrible, and the cancellation of a second festival yet another kick in the teeth. I was thinking, what do I miss the most? Well, obviously, for me and most on here, that may be Glastonbury, so that’s excluded, but here’s three of mine..... but also, there are some plus points to lockdown, so I’ve added three of the things I’ve enjoyed about it. What are yours?

Miss Most

  1. Going to the pub for a pint
  2. Holidays abroad
  3. Live music

Unexpected bonuses

  1. Not shaking hands (I hope this practise has gone forever)
  2. Reading more books
  3. New hobbies... for me, car mechanics

So instead of shaking hands what would you prefer old son .. Bowing,, nothing wrong with a polite friendly handshake unless the person you're shaking hands with trys to show how strong he or she is by crushing your hand... 

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