Hong Kong 3rd wave: how a typical day looks like after over hundred daily new Covid-19 cases
Updated: Aug 3, 2020
Flats in Hong Kong are smaller. So when most of your life is mostly limited to your flat your life becomes smaller, too. All entertainment, fitness, wellness, sports venues remain closed. Public gatherings have been limited from four to two people. Dining inside restaurants is no prohibited. And we all must wear masks outdoors as well.
5:45 I wake up and try sneak out of the room in the hope that my co-sleeping toddler sleeps another half hour.
6:00 After having been to the loo, washed my face, and brushed my teeths I settle on the sofa to meditate for 10 minutes.
6:10 The toddler is awake and tries to open the bedroom door.
6:45 The toddler has been playing with his trains in the living room while sneaked into the kitchen, closed the baby gate, and sat down in front of the fridge to meditate. It's just 10 minutes. He can play by himself for just 10 minutes. After 5 minutes he stands at the gate calling for mommy and asking for oatmilk. I try to meditate for another 5 minutes reassured in the thought that as long as the toddler is at the gate he cannot chew on cables or get his hands on anything breakable.
7:00 I make breakfast for him and coffee for me. It takes me 5 minutes to prep his breakfast (heat up frozen lamb-sweet-potato-broccoli-mash and greek yoghurt) and 7 minutes to make my coffee. I'm one of those sad muppets who hand-grind their coffee beans. My grinder is as fast as a baby working on a teething biscuit.
7:30 My helper E. gets ready and chats with the toddler a bit while I check the news, Facebook and drink my work-intensive coffee.
8:00 E. leaves to go shopping. We asked her to avoid the wet market. She bought a face shield for additional protection. I attempt to homeschool the child. I get frustrated because he keeps forgetting fourteen and seventeen when he counts until twenty. We end up watching Elmo/ Peppa Pig/ Daniel Tiger in German on Youtube.
9:00 E. returns home and starts cooking. I brought out the watercolours but pack them away after 15 minutes because the toddler keeps forgetting to dunk the paint brush into water before he uses another colour. The yellow pan now looks it has been digested. I cannot stand it.
9:15 The daddy steps out of the bedroom. He had a conference call until 2 am. I hope his colleagues in the US get an intense bout of diarrhea . Toddler hones in on his sire and takes one paternal leg hostage until said papa agrees to play with him for a bit.
9:30 After the daddy has sent me some pleading looks I intervened and daddy can finally escape into the bathroom and the toddler focuses on me again.
10:00 Daddy goes to work, E. finished cooking, and she is on toddler duty while I get to write emails and articles
11:00 Lunchtime for me and the toddler
11:30 We read books, chill and see if the toddler needs a nap.
12:00 Toddler is still awake and asks for snacks. He gets oatmilk. I let him roam in the flat and mop up the small puddles of oatmilk he leaves at his wake. I'm listening to podcasts in the meantime.
13:10 Daddy comes back home for lunch.
13:15 Toddler climbs on daddy's lap and begs for bits of food.
13:30 Daddy and toddler play
14:00 Daddy needs to go back to work. E. and the toddler go out for a walk in the area. I have to bribe the toddler with a small toy to even get dressed for outside. I remind E. not to use any public transport and just stay close by.
14:30 I do a home workout for one hour and then meditate a second time for 20 minutes.
16:00 The husband keeps sending covid updates on our household Whatsapp chat. Some of them are pdf documents. Why does he not just send screenshots? I use the remaining time to write workout programs for clients, catch up with my reading or get on with my online studies.
17:15 E. and the toddler return. The latter starts asking me random stuff. He's in his why-phase.
17:30 Dinner time
18:30 Toddler's bath time and E. can catch up with her social media while she is watching him in the tub.
19:00 Toddler's bedtime. E. is putting him to bed.
19:30 Daddy is home. Toddler has fallen asleep and E. gets out of the bedroom. The parents talk over dinner.
20:00 Daddy is at his home office and I winding down.
21:00 My bedtime.