To find the early COVID era nostalgic?

[Acco]

I’m mostly talking about the pre-lockdown and lockdown 1 era mostly but just 2020 in general to a lesser extent (but not 2021, I still hate it and it doesn’t seem that long ago). I haven’t thought about COVID for ages but I was taking about the toilet roll hysteria with my in laws tonight and then I saw a TikTok throwback to all the 2020 trends and sounds and it gave me a warm feeling inside. It’s an era I’d never want back but I remember the lovely sunny days in the garden in April and May 2020.
Anybody else feel this?

Exactly that. If you want to WFH all the time then make it happen, there are plenty of remote jobs nowadays. Refuse all social invitations. You have that choice. To be happy that other people had that choice taken away from them is gross.

Oh it wasnt not lovely. We lived there for 4 years all in all. But that period is marked in my mind. Likely because it was an unusual time, lovely weather and everoyone was there at the same time, rather than me dashing in at 7pm after work and not noticing all the life around me, maybe. (I did work through covid outside the home, but not as much as I would have normally)

No. And honestly I think this post is in pretty bad taste. I thought we'd knocked this sort of nonsense on the head in 2020 and good riddance to it.

Lockdown was unmitigated hell for me and I was lucky enough to be able to wfh in safety and financial security. But trying to "home school" my daughter when she was close to emotional breakdown, with me in one room and her in another, listening to her crying because I couldn't spend time with her because my employer had mandated me to work ten hours a day or lose my job. Being unable to see my boyfriend for 12 weeks, no access to friends and family, scared out of my wits. No thank you.

And honestly one of the worst things about lockdown was the people like you who posted stuff with no self-awareness whatsoever about the nightmares other people were experiencing. People banging on about crafting and growing vegetables with their kids and how much they enjoyed spending time with their "little families". Self-indulgent and tasteless then and I can't believe its being dragged up now. COVID nostalgia can get in the bin and stay there.

Thank you. I'm OK, just lonely at times. But it was strange that it prompted something serious like that to make people check in; I guess there was enough in the news to prompt them, and they realised lockdown would be hard for people who were totally alone. I think most people don't realise that for some people, that's the reality much of the time! I'm kind of used to it now. But I do still remember it as being a bit of a positive amidst all the awful times during the lockdowns.

happylittlesloth "I hated the record breaking sunshine"

Me too. I was accused of lying here when I talked about police presence un the park, but then it was closed, as were many London parks, and reported in the Evening Standard.

My sister's local park stayed open but a copper shouted at her for stopping to smell a flower. Later on, in a gathering that might have been illegal, I met a copper who walked off the job after being asked to question two ladies hugging on a park bench, one was crying. So his superior thought it was an easy win to check if they were a mixed household.

But lockdown lovers have gardens! I don't suppose they talks to plebs living in flats. Loved lockdown 1 so much, they started a thread. It's like a Taylor Swift to concert to them, equal joy, probably more.

god, I want to believe in karma.

I miss the three months of gorgeous weather, the rest because I was burnt out, and had had covid in March, the slowness, fewer cars, that kind of thing.

I don't miss having covid and being really ill, or the toilet roll and pasta mania, the death toll, the government, the ridiculous clapping.

Then it became endless and horrible.

I really do understand.

I was working right through (schools weren’t actually closed). Only able to see our adult daughter by video call. Unable to see friends. Unable to do our hobbies. I hadn’t had a formal diagnosis but was suspected of condition that would now put me on the CEV list. We followed the rules whilst watching the surrounding houses break them. Having Christmas with our daughter over video left me in tears when we finished. A dear friend got ill, was told she was worrying over nothing, finally diagnosed and then died just in time for us to be able to attend her funeral. We hadn’t been able to visit her during her illness, she’d had to go to diagnosis and treatments leaving her husband in the car park.
There were some good moments and it’s made me value my friends even more but overall it was a shit time that I would never want to repeat.

This. One of the many things I found so monstrous about lockdown was the people who were willing to go along with it.

Oddly enough I don’t miss no one being prepared to see my dangerously prem baby for essential follow ups which resulted in serious condition being missed. Or being terrified of her catching an illness with an unpredictable death rate and no treatment. Or being a first time parent in complete isolation. Or hearing about thousands upon thousands of people dying alone or not knowing if I would ever see my elderly parents again.

Glad you enjoyed it though. Good for you.

Some day, some history enthusiasts will re-enact and speak fondly of the big lock-down in their childhoods in the same way that some people re-enact WW2 Britain.

No, no and no again. In fact when I think about it now all I recall is how lonely and scared I was, I live alone and coped ok up until November 2020 when I recall sitting alone on my stairs and sobbing thinking it would never end, thinking I would never see any of my family ever again (we all live scattered around the country). I worked for the NHS and got redeployed and all my work was related to Covid so I never got any peace from thinking about it. I have never known such loneliness and in a sense I don't think I have ever got into the swing of socialising the way I used to pre-Covid. I am following the not very well publicised Covid Enquiry and feel such rage at the revelations about the utter chaos in Downing Street. Of course no government knew what they were dealing with and how it might unfold, but the lot we were saddled with defy belief

Why didn't you? I hugged my parents all through Covid. They saw my kids all the time and hugged them too.
I'm shocked that anyone thinks it was a lovely time. My DS was depressed - he hated being so isolated. It was a horrible time.

@Thepeopleversuswork

👏👏👏

Yes - I felt so low at times because of the utter lack of understanding of how others felt or what they might be going through.

It was heightened in Covid, for sure.

You could take your annual leave together in the summer holidays and stay at home all day every day with your children if you find that fun.

It still wouldn't be the same. Of course it's possible to slow the pace of life to some extent through the choices we make, but the
lockdown was unique utterly because absolutely nothing at all was happening to miss out on. There were no invitations to have to turn down, no events or opportunities we might not want to miss. No routine things like dentist, haircuts, etc to think about. It was unique because apart from remembering to order a food shop there was literally nothing we had to think about. We didn't have to decide to opt out of a hectic lifestyle, the decision was made for us. It was a unique break from modern life which I doubt we'll ever see again. Its surreal looking back.

WTAF? You're talking about how "TikTok trends" make you feel?

I give up.

Thepeopleversuswork "And honestly one of the worst things about lockdown was the people like you who posted stuff with no self-awareness whatsoever about the nightmares other people were experiencing"

yes. I winder if they give any thought to how food is produced, or how streets are cleaned...well, they don't, do they.

Oh and what about that ridiculous tier system in the autumn? I live right on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border and Derbyshire was in tier 2 but I could walk 10 minutes down the road and be in tier 3. So ridiculous.

Worrying about catching it and worrying if someone I cared about might die? No.

I agree, just the very beginning when we didn’t know what was happening and thought we would be back at work in a week or two. It was really beautiful weather and calm and quiet and our village high street really pivoted immediately to cocktail stands etc, there was a strong community vibe. Later on we lost a grandparent and I couldn’t attend my dads funeral, but even so I do understand the slight feeling of nostalgia for the very start of the pandemic.

I think a lot of people feel they won't be the same person again. Was just such a significant and life changing experience for so many of us.

My grandmother wouldn't hug me, even once we could meet inside, for about two years.

In fairness to OP, that came in a bit later than the period she's reminiscing about. It was phonemenally stupid though, obviously.

If you had a really shit time from start to finish perhaps you can just realise this thread isn’t for you rather than contribute to a pile on to the OP for committing “wrong think” in eyes. People are allowed to have different experiences of life events.

This too!
Social media was full of curtain twitching and finger pointing little jumped up pricks.
And even now... "oh, we are sorry but Covid....."
I had a lot of abuse for not being able to wear a mask, not able to get the vaccine... and now the same people who gave me shit are all "oh, Covid made me scared etc". Just fuck off.