This time two years ago

[thinking123]

So it's been pretty much two years since covid started. Just discussing with friends tonight how everyone is compared to spring 2020

One friend is much better off, she's full time working from home, saving a fortune on travel, but she lost her mum to covid

Another friend is much worse off, their business went to the wall, she and her dh are both working now but they do not know if they will ever be in the financial position that they where, but they didn't lose anyone to covid

We are pretty much the same,dh working from home three days as week which is better for family life and saves money on travel but that's been eaten up in the cost of living rises

Just thought it was interesting to see how people have fared financially

Obviously the human cost has been high and many have lost loved ones, thankfully we didn't loose anyone

Financially the same. Business boomed in my sector - furniture manufacturing. No one was allowed to go on holiday so were buying furniture instead. The people who buy our pieces aren't struggling for money.

Financially better off, both had promotions and pay rises. Have moved house too. Both WFH 80% of the time which is a huge change for us.
Neither of us have had Covid (that we are aware of, both triple jabbed).
We’ve become social recluses though, don’t see many people now. Have not lost any family or close friends to Covid, but I know if my Mum had been alive 2 years ago it would probably have been very different (she had COPD).
I realise we’ve been very fortunate in many ways.

Slightly better off.

Had a job change.

We had also gotten our first dog just about two years ago.

House has changed a lot! We built a gazebo with a roof in some dead space from Our kitchen into the back garden. This doubles up as a drying area for the clothes maidens and we also built a separate room in the back garden which is a bar in and a hot tub.

We are better off as we stay in now far more whereas before we were out a lot.

I prefer it.

Eldest had long Covid until January this year, from March 2020. That's felt awful.

DH now works from home with only occasional travel which has its benefits but has been challenging for me having to share space at home all the time, as I was very used to WFH and had an order and routine...

We lost 2 elderly relatives (one in horrible circumstances, if you've seen Sharon Horgan's 'Together' that was our family's story) and some local community acquaintances.

We know 2 families divorcing off the back of fall outs over lock downs / home schooling / lack of being able to adjust.

Financially things have been just 'ok'.

I had handed my notice in at my job at the end of 2019, planning to have a few months off and think about changing career in 2020

After a worrying time with redundancies at DH's work (related to air travel) he thankfully retained his job. I'm now in first year of a degree course. DC are young teens and DS has managed to stay on top of school work and has GCSEs this year. Other DC has some issues with anxiety but we're working through it, first lockdown hit very hard in terms of isolation from friends.

No different. Just got on with our jobs, teen ds's didn't seem to care. No change to MH. Whole thing had been a shame and wierd, but we've just got on with what we needed to do.

Financially worse off.
Lost MIL to Covid, didn't have a proper funeral etc.
Barely seen my side of the family since then as they are Covid averse.
Learnt a lot of skills I didn't know I had though, being a TA in charge of a lockdown class though which was quite fun.

Harder for my DC though, Covid has effectively robbed them of all their proper grandparent relationships through death or anxiety which is rubbish.

I worked for weeks/months without a contract in 2020.

Net financially we are about the same now as then.

We don't know anyone who has been harmed by a covid infection. I heard that one person at work felt quite rough with C19 (fully recovered since AFAIK).

I’m WFH which I love & saving money & time on commute. No pay rises for last couple of years though so it balances out.

I’ve got involved in a couple of sports groups which has been made possible by WFH & not wasting ages commuting. That’s been a massive boost for my MH.

DD young enough not to have been massively affected.

I have been incredibly lucky.

I already WFH most of the time, so that didn't change much.

We were able to move house as the market went mental. We've had some issues with the new house but overall I love it, and it's nothing that can't be overcome.

Financially - yes bills have gone up but my salary has also increased pretty significantly and I was awarded large bonuses that cleared a lot of debt.

Personally - both mine and DH's only living grandparents were admitted to hospital where they got covid, they both recovered which was amazing to be honest. Neither of us have lost anyone.

The worst thing that has happened was we had a family holiday which had to be cancelled and my kids missed out on the end of primary school stuff. So, in the grand scheme of things, nothing of note.

I feel very lucky.

I delayed starting a professional doctorate and don’t regret it. The nature of the work involves going in to schools and I always wanted to do it the ‘proper’ face to face way.. although interesting hybrid meetings with families still happening.
My biggest change is with a friend I talked to all the time in 2019.. I feel so sad that for me as someone who prides themselves on relationships I just haven’t been been able to be there for her in the way she needed .. it’s so rubbish.

Financially better off, promotion & pay rise, still fully remote but will go to hybrid eventually, DH key worker all the way through. For us it’s about our DC education, DS did not fair well, needed to be at school, sociable boy, making up for lost time now, just hope he has found the right course for him. DD preferred on line school, was being bullied at school, had lockdown not happened though bullying issues would have come to a head sooner and we would have moved schools sooner but she’s settled & happy now, just got some catching up to do.