7 April 2020

Tuesday · Day 12 of lockdown

The UK government reported that Boris Johnson was in a stable condition. Switzerland experienced a rise in cases, making it one of the countries in Europe with the highest incidences of coronavirus per capita. The US reported a total of more than 10 000 coronavirus deaths. Almost half of these were in New York, where funeral homes were overwhelmed because of the increase in demand for funeral facilities. China, by contrast, reported no new deaths from the coronavirus for the first time since January. In New Zealand, the health minister was demoted after breaking lockdown rules by driving his family to the beach.

Lockdown has proved irrefutably that modern living is too privileged and without struggle. I wondered at first if this was a generational thing (i.e. that our generation has gone soft), but then changed my mind as it seems to be result of exogenous factors.

My point being: I, along with many of my friends have found lockdown to be a terrible bore. A waste of time. A lesser punishment of sorts.

I am only a few weeks into lockdown, yet I seem to complain as if my father was Josef Fritzl himself.

I would hate to be insensitive by comparing my mild inconvenience to the situation of Anne Frank but shall for the sake of argument [do so]; Anne lived in an attic for two years, without luxuries such as Netflix or YouTube. Modern middle-class living, though, has evolved to include constant entertainment.

I guess what I am trying to say is the consumer standards have resonance beyond simply making us sufficient in our own homes. I feel like the government has put me in time out.

* * *

Today is my grandmother’s 77th birthday. She lives in Durban, and we would have gone down to see her for this weekend (and for Easter). She is incredibly upset that we can’t be with her, and I think it’s a perfectly valid feeling to have on one’s birthday. I would be upset too. I’m just glad that her and my grandfather (who will be 84 in June) are actually taking this virus seriously and not leaving their home unless it’s for essential business (which, today, warranted buying a cake).

* * *

Today was such a good day. I finally learnt to bake something. I made Hertzoggies [a South African desert], some with jam and some with caramel. They turned out pretty well, but I had no idea baking something from scratch could take so long. I now understand why my mother doesn’t bake as much anymore. I took me nearly the entire day to make 54 Hertzoggies. In a family of five that means around ten each. […] I put each person’s share in their own container. I’m not sure about other households, or whether this has anything to do with us being coloured, but whenever anyone makes anything, there’s always one person who doesn’t get enough. So, in our household we divide everything equally so no one can complain, and when your share is finished, it’s finished. My mom also made soup and bread, which is my absolute favourite in this rainy weather.

* * *

I cannot believe it has been 22 days of not seeing the outside world! I don’t know; it feels like it has been forever already, but on the other hand it also doesn’t feel like almost a month has already gone by. Today is also my 20th birthday – I have no doubt that this will be an unforgettable birthday, even if it’s not necessarily the most exciting. […] My mother made me spaghetti bolognaise (which is one of my favourite dishes) and my sister baked me a cake. They didn’t have any gifts for me because they didn’t expect me to still be here on my birthday and they couldn’t go to the shops after finding out, which is totally fine – I really had an amazing day and everyone made me feel special which was more than enough for me!

* * *

I happened to watch a report by a journalist on Sky News today that pertained to South Africa. Cape Town gangs have called a temporary truce and are spending their time taking meals to households that need them the most. Many of these poverty-stricken families are unable to obtain food items because of the nationwide lockdown. These neighbourhoods are regarded as some of the most dangerous in the world due to the constant gang-related violence. Both civilians and gang members are killed during gunfights daily. Despite their good deeds, there is no justification for portraying such gangsters in a positive light, no matter the circumstances. They may have stopped shooting at each other, but just this morning there was an attempted hit on prominent Cape Town lawyer, William Booth.

Around 240 fewer murders than is usual have occurred in South Africa during this two-week period. The lockdown is certainly saving lives, but maybe not in the way it was intended to.

* * *

I did not manage to get any work done today and I felt very demotivated. […] The only confirmation that we have received from the university is that online classes will start from 20 April. We do not know when or in what form our first assessments will take place. All this uncertainty is driving me crazy.

Next year’s plans also feel very up in the air. The current third year BCom (International Business) students will not be going on their exchange semesters this year, which means that they will have to go during the second semester next year (when we are supposed to go). I wonder if this will influence our options (only a certain number of students per university are allowed). I am also very worried about how the semester will be funded – financially my family is not functioning optimally, and I do not know if a year will be enough time to turn that around.

* * *

I expected myself to feel greater fear of missing out on ‘life’ during lockdown. However, I almost feel peaceful knowing that the rest of the world and the country are in the same situation as me. Nothing much is happening within these four walls, but beyond these gates, there is a subdued but bubbling world.

I have taken to driving as a means of respite. Lone, windy afternoon drives around the Cape Peninsula. During my meander through Hout Bay, I noticed that the inhabitants of Imizamo Yethu informal settlement are not adhering very strictly to the lockdown regulations (although, who am I to judge as I drive past?). It was interesting, nonetheless, to see children going about their normal lives – many were skateboarding in the streets and a large group had occupied themselves with a game of pavement football.

* * *

We are heading towards the end of the nationwide lockdown. The number of coronavirus deaths has increased to 13 nationally. The number of confirmed cases in the country has reached 1 749.

The talk of the town at the moment is the Minister of Communications, Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams. She is said to be in trouble for breaching the lockdown regulations. A picture of her and the Higher Education Deputy Minister, Mduduzi Manana, and his family, was taken and posted on social media during lockdown.

It makes it extra difficult to enforce the regulations and encourage South Africans to respect them when an elected minister fails to do so [themself ].

* * *

Today was a day filled with work as we decided to buy large beef rumps and to cut up pieces for biltong to snack on for the rest of lockdown. I think this is an essential on most South Africans’ shopping lists. At the start of this lockdown, I really thought food might be scarcer due to panic buying and a possible lack of supply from very badly affected areas and countries, but it seems most food items are still found quite easily as farms and other businesses in the food sector have been allowed to carry on meeting demand. Finding medicines and immune boosters is still difficult though, as many people are hoarding these products.

* * *

When I woke up there was no electricity. My phone and laptop were dead and it [was] pouring rain outside, so I really had to think hard to come up with alternative activities. I decided to make pancakes on our gas stove for breakfast. Not only were they delicious but making them was also so much fun. I then went down to the stream to do some morning yoga. Once I was all stretched out from the yoga, I decided to start a puzzle. This puzzle was 1 500 pieces and had been in our house for about ten years. However, it has never been finished. I decided this was a prime time to change that. Having no electricity and nowhere to go really encouraged me to get up and do something productive and this made me realise how distracted we usually get by social media.