April update - Stay Inside

The last update I posted was 2 months ago back in February, and as you're all aware, a lot has happened within the world since then, with many being affected. Although the Coronavirus has had a large negative effect on many people, there have been some positive outcomes.

The majority of you would be aware that the Canals in Venice, Italy have become crystal clear with the return of aquatic life.

Along with clean waters, the air pollution that gripped China has dropped significantly, bringing back clean, breathable air since the closure of large clothing factories.

Other positive side effects that have come from this pandemic can be read here.

It is a relief to see some positives shared with the world when media is bombarding us with negative after negative. It's a good time to stay up-to-date with what is happening around the world, not only with the news but with each other.

Social media is a hot spot for sharing what we're all doing, and a lot of people getting creative with the enormous amount of free time we now all have.

So have a scroll through your social media apps and see what people are up to. Now is the best time to keep in touch with everyone as it can get lonely depending on your housing situation. I know a lot of social bugs who are going crazy at home so make sure you check in on them!

With all of that touched on, I suppose I'll share what my current situation has consisted of through March and April.

When this all started in Australia back in the middle of March, I was working at Captain Baxter in St Kilda, the job I managed to score while looking to make the move to Melbourne. At the time I also applied for a job working at the Grand Prix that was to be held March 15th. A few days leading up to the race there was some talk about potentially cancelling the event but no official word. On the day of the event, while catching the train to the city from Lara, it was announced that the race was cancelled. I called the bar hiring company for the event and they confirmed it and said if I wanted 2 hours of work packing down the equipment and loading all the beverages back into the shipping containers, to make my way there to the meeting point.

I was in the city already so I went there and did my 2 hours of work. I took off the whole weekend so I could work the Grand Prix and in the end made $57 for the 2 hours, instead of the $800 plus I was looking forward to receiving.

This was the first impact the Corona Virus had on me.

When I arrived at the meeting point, I saw how many people this announcement inconvenienced. Hundreds of people were waiting around the gate entrance to get the official word of being cancelled and what was to be done with their ticket refund. This was just at one gate entrance. So with all the other entrance points, thousands would have been in the area. It didn't just affect the patrons who had bought tickets, but the staff in all fields of work. The racers, police, medics, organizers, etc, etc. All out of work for the weekend. One of the biggest weekend events that are held in Melbourne, cancelled at the last minute.

Going back to work the following week, a lot was changed and fine-tuned at the bar. High standard hygiene protocols were introduced, seating arrangements changed for the new social distancing rule. Patron capacity updated. It had such a harsh effect on business that on Sunday 22nd March, the managers said this is the last day they'll be open until the government says they can re-open.

I had my last knockoff drink at 6:30 pm and said goodbye to the beachfront for the last time. I haven't been back in Melbourne since then.

It's so crazy to see how quickly things can change in one week. The introduction to all these new protocols to being shut down for an unknown period of time.

All for the best though, and that's what counts in the end. I don't think I would have felt any better if the bar would have stayed open and then we became the reason that a patron or staff member ended up becoming sick with the coronavirus.

This was the second impact Corona Virus had on me. This leads straight into the third one; no job in the city, no home in the city. I was unable to move out of home again. The plan was to be in the city by April and here I am, still at home. But also for the best thankfully.

If I had taken the leap onto one of the places I was looking at and signed a lease, I'd be stuck in the city with no job and paying for rent I wouldn't be able to afford.

It also just occurred to me that I haven't been on a train since March 22nd. I always took trains to where I had to go, whether it was Melbourne, or Geelong, to work or to a gig. I would be on a train at least three times a week.

When I came back from Europe in September, I went back and worked at Country Link, the job that I call my second home. My first job. I have worked there since 2014, on and off over the years.

While working between bars, I always had them there as a safety net. And now with everything going on, they took me back in three days a week which is perfect for me.

Now that I have a stable income again, I have been able to put money into my savings and it's looking pretty healthy at the moment since I'm not going out and spending money for no reason.

I don't feel trapped at home as some others do, I tend to spend quite a bit of my time at home casually anyway. Always trying to do some form of film or media work on my computer. And now that I am home more often, I have made sure to write goals to complete, and start projects to keep me creative.

I have, of course, been playing Xbox more often with my mates, and watching movies and anime. But also making sure to balance that out with exercise and being outside. I have ended up tending to a pumpkin patch that started growing out of nowhere in the garden. I'm pretty sure it's from the scraps we used to throw out to the chickens and guinea pigs we kept there. That's been occupying some of my time tending to it. I've never been much of a green thumb but hey, it hasn't died yet. Actually it's been producing some fruits so I'll update you guys when I have one ready to cut off.

As for media projects I'm working on, I've dedicated a lot of time to this website since paying for a subscription, as well as editing heaps of photos and planning a few photo-zines which I'll make a blog post about.

This website has taken a large change in style and layout that I hope you all like. You're more than welcome to send your opinions and feedback through on what could be changed to benefit the style and overall smoothness of the web-page. This is all still new to me, being the first website I've owned.

The shop is also up and running, ready to take purchases. I'll make sure to keep updating it so it runs smoothly. I'm still yet to fine tune everything so if anything goes wrong just shoot me a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

I've got quite a few blog posts to be put up so make sure you're following to keep up to date.

I will try and get a bit of a schedule going, two posts a week, or something like that.

If there's anything you recommend for me to check out, publish, talk about, alter, or anything at all, let me know! Would love to make this place a hub to socialise, collaborate and talk with you all.

Enjoy the rest of your day!