The days have since blended together. In the wake of the mandatory COVID-19 quarantine, there’s little distinction between Tuesday and Saturday. Since spring break has been extended, extended again, and extended indefinitely, not much has changed in my life except a newfound appreciation for routines.

The early days of quarantine were bliss. Wake up, eat, do a whole lot of nothing, eat again, sleep, repeat. The freedom was almost intoxicating. After a week of such a freeform schedule and too much sleep to be healthy, it was suffocating.

Soon I realized that the problem was not only the existence of my own stir craziness, but that the others in my household had it as well. I severely underestimated how quickly and easily you could grow to hate people just by being exposed to them more. Long story short, if this keeps up, there will be a battle to the death, no question about it.

After getting a job out of boredom, taking up fiction writing, creating a new and ridiculously long skincare routine, and reading so much, I’m surprised my eyes haven’t shriveled up. The thing I’ve taken refuge in the most is schoolwork. Doing something that has a definite end and guaranteed results is extremely satisfying for me these days. It keeps me grounded.

With no clear beginning or end to my days and no instant repercussions for ignoring school responsibilities, the most I’ve gotten out of this experience is a newfound respect for college life. And cabin fever.

My hope is that people do their part to stop the spread of the virus. The more we stay home and wash our hands, the easier it’ll be to protect compromised people and go back to regular life.