Stop whining and do something useful.

Yes, everyone get’s it. Life is hard right now. We all miss something from before. Human interactions, drinking in a pub, traveling, dancing at parties, just mingling with people or speaking to strangers… mundane things that were part of our before lives and that were just normal human interactions.

Now? It’s all gone. Deal with it. Reinvent yourself and do something useful instead of whining.

Sorry, not talking to you directly… just ranting… skip to the end for more interesting things to read!

Forewords

OK, I’ve said it before but let me state it again: I’m a white privileged woman who has a comfortable apartment to work from, I’m child free which I think has been a great bonus, but I do have a decent partner. I’ve been able to continue to work and take care of my dad. I have plenty of projects to keep me occupied, too many really. Life hasn’t been horrible for me, these last months.

With this post I do not mean to be insensitive to the people who are really suffering. The front line workers who have had plenty of reasons to be scared, desperate and exhausted and still do their jobs… The ones who lost their jobs, their homes or were in dire situations even before and which the pandemic and the pandemic response has made worse… The many more who are suffering, not just of boredom… If you have time to read this, you are probably not one of these people.

Where is this coming from?

This post was triggered by an article I read about students complaining of their situation. Specifically, their online schedule which didn’t take into account the current curfew, how they missed their buddies and cherry on top of the cake, how too exhausted they were in the evening, to post stories on Instagram (poor you! really). They were also complaining that their youth was sacrificed by the lockdown (the actual lockdown where these students are, lasted 2 months! so hum) and how they were blamed for killing grandmas and grandpas (well, you did go to that illegal rave, didn’t you?). They might as well have complained about wearing masks.

It pissed me off. Really did, enough to write this.

And no, we didn’t go into lockdown just to protect old people. When we went into lockdown, we pretty much had no idea how deadly the virus was. And by now, you should have heard about the long term effects of covid. These can affect anyone and some are pretty serious ones you don’t want to get, especially if you are young, I would add.

To be honest, I don’t know how I would have reacted to this whole thing, if I was 20. I’m not 20 anymore and maybe, the privilege that comes with being slightly older, is, maybe again, to have different views on things. Who knows.

And I’ll easily agree that whining and complaining may not be these students’ primary activity. Maybe they are also secret makers, doers and thinkers… Maybe they will be the ones to come up with genius ideas. Fingers crossed really!

Yet here I was, in front of my computer, ranting about people who complaint too much! Ironic and maybe hypocritical, I suppose.

So instead…

Praise to the people who are re-inventing themselves

So instead of ranting, I want to give praise to the people who are re-inventing themselves.

Instead of complaining, these humans are taking the opportunity of these lockdowns and restrictions, to do something new, to learn new things, to build something, or ‘just’ come out of the tunnel, a better human.

Cheers to them again and again! And some more!

And I know there are a lot of them out there. I know, or at least I want to believe, there is a silent force out there building up and growing. People who are making the most of these times. People who may have started this whole thing scared, bored and depressed but decided to change things around. People who have not only adapted to the new norms and uncertainty, but have taken the reins and choose to thrive, despite it all.

Those are the people I cheer to.

Yes, there might be a bit of wishful thinking here. I am dreaming of a magically new & improved post-COVID World, yet I don’t really know how we’ll get there. It will probably be hard to achieve.

Nether the less, I cheer to the people who have taken this as an opportunity to reset, reformat and regain control of their lives.

I cheer to the people who are brainstorming for new ways to be, new ways to handle things and else, even if they haven’t found a clear path yet.

And yes, I cheer to the visionaries, the ones who are working on the next revolutionary things that may solve the environmental crisis we are in, that may heal the planet, one issue at a time. The ones who dedicate themselves to others, to helping them. Cheers to them!

Random things that gave me hope recently

Just a few things that are more interesting to read than me ranting…

This French company that created a biodegradable mask. A Canadian company is doing one as well.

The Jeans reDesign project and the growing circular economy.

The Reddit / GameStop story was a powerful reminder that together people can accomplish the unthinkable.

Apparently there was no pandemic baby boom! Yes, that makes me hopeful because life is probably going to become terribly hard in the next decade or 2. #ClimateChangeisReal!

Ideas on how to build a better post Covid World seems to be emerging. Maybe, maybe…

The LSE (London School of Economics and Political Science) is having a week of virtual event on how to shape a post-Covid World. No one has all the answers, but these types of event will surely lead to innovations.

Meanwhile, the Ocean CleanUp continues.

Plant based eating isn’t for crazy people anymore! I’ve certainly noticed in my supermarket, these last couple months. And I just found out there are datings apps for vegans! 🙂

And plastic free vegan leather is becoming a reality! Hooray.