Ye Olde Inn

What kind of changes has COVID impacted on your life/work? You pick up any new projects or hobbies being home more? If so, what are they? Or you affected the opposite where it increased your work life?

As for me it increased the work load. I haven’t been on here much as a result, but I do try to keep current on reading the Inn. Just not posting a lot. All my HeroQuest projects have been put on hold for what feels like years. More people being home working on their outdoor projects makes more work for me. I locate underground utilities for when people are digging. Our normal load of contractors are still working/digging as usual plus all the extra homeowners added on. Our company projects a 25% increase from year to year, but this year we are 40% higher than last year. Basically all work and no play. We work a minimum required 58 hours a week. They will gladly let you work as many more hours as you wish though. Sometimes I take advantage because the overtime money is nice but all the hours wear on you though. Winter is supposed to be our slow season for about 2 months of 40 hour weeks. The new normal for the last couple of years has only been 2 weeks though. I still plan on some day wrapping up my open projects. I usually have more in the works mulling in the back of my mind I would like to eventually get out.

First thing my company did was ban me and everyone in our 700 people department home. Same for my wife and kid. So I had to work while it was difficult to concentrate at all with all the girls in the apartment.
Also, tho only place I have for myself is the painting table. That's where I work currently. Bad for the concentration indeed.

Nothing special for me... I worked as always in my office. As the Company I work for offers what is called "a public service" we weren't subject to special restrictions.
Just less customers coming inside so I worked less than usual.

Anderas wrote: So I had to work while it was difficult to concentrate at all with all the girls in the apartment.

Um, did you say it was just your wife and kid? Are those "all the girls" in the apartment. HAHAHAHA. On man, try having
an 8 year old daughter and 5 year old daughter running around 24/7, both of whom are highly emotional and take turns
liking and not liking the 10 year old son. Add that on top of the wife....then you'll know about "all the girls" around hehehehe.

At least there are minutes when yours are playing with each other. Mine comes all 5 minutes either because she has written one line of homework and wants it controlled or because daddy is in videoconf so she wants to be in the picture, too. Preferably between me and the cam.

But yes, I have a colleague who is at home with three kids, too. It's a French guy so they weren't even allowed to go playing outside during the French lockdown. Yes he was complaining, too. And with good reason. I feel you!

Oh, now we definitely know about the homework thing. We homeschool our two oldest, and my 10 year old son has
been pretty bad at doing his work unless you sit there and stare at him the entire time. Good luck with that, if things
don't open back up when school starts again.

torilen wrote:my 10 year old son has been pretty bad at doing his work unless you sit there and stare at him the entire time.

Yes.
That's what I am talking about.
Either we sit her in her room, result, games were played but no homework done.
Or she's sitting with me, result, I spend as much time as she does on her homework.

I was going to parental leave now for the next four months. That's exactly like unpaid holiday, except that your employer can't fire you while you're away. I think with the current situation that's not the worst choice.

My wife is stuck at home trying to teach 3 kids all while taking care of a baby plus the normal chores of cooking, cleaning, and laundry. I don’t envy her, you turn around to help one and the rest vanish. She at least has a break from school work right now for summer. Hopefully kids go back to school in the fall. That’s still up in the air at this point.

I'm at home, occasionally doing a little work from home and/or going into the office where necessary.

As a result, I've done a LOT of painting. Even created an Instagram for it (@slevgenius for those interested).

Defiantly not missing going into work!

The company I work for made me take a week vacation. Then brought me back to work with reduced hours, but I'm salaried. So I got paid the same no matter how many hours I worked. However during that time, I spend three months sitting at my desk not doing anything because our state was completely shut down. I work in the construction field, we were the last to be shut down and the first to reopen.

This also made my side work boom though with everyone home and not allowed to take vacations. I have had more extra work in the past three months then I have had in the past twelve months.

HQ has been completely put on the back burner beside for the Facebook page Anderas and I started. Lately though that as been hard to manage sense production has started back up. I don't have much time for anything at the moment.