Friday, August 21 marked my first official day back at work--at least, my first in-person day as I've certainly been getting a lot done working from home for five months. It was only for four hours and my son slept almost the entire time, so I don't know if even had time to miss me! We did, however, celebrate, by giving him his first haircut (at home, by me, after several YouTube videos). And it didn't turn out half bad.
The next week I returned to work for two days--eight hours on Thursday and four hours again on Friday. This was where I really felt the change. Eight hours was a full day without my son. And it was an evening shift, so I wouldn't even get to see him until after dinnertime. I worried about using a public restroom and about snacking without a mask as I grew more and more hungry with a late lunch. My lunch break in my car was in triple-digit heat, and my "treating myself" trip through Starbucks drive-thru didn't even help since I forgot to order my coffee iced.
Baby, however, had a great time with his grandparents and uncles entertaining him. While I packed frozen breast milk and a pillowcase that smelled like me into his activity bag in case he had trouble napping, it turns out he didn't need either of them and was able to fall asleep on his own. In fact, he fell asleep during my lunch break so I couldn't even video chat to check in. But the text updates from my mom assured me that all went well.
Work itself was different, but not that different. The campus I was on had always been more quiet than the rest, so we didn't see a lot of student traffic and I was able to get a lot of work done on my computer without a little one tracking me down (though I definitely missed that). Everyone wore masks and conversations with coworkers were behind plexiglass, but that at least made me feel safe enough to spend time chatting with someone besides my family. When the day was over, I had enough time to shower before uniting with my son, and that itself felt pretty good.
The next week went even better. I ordered iced coffee on my break this time and parked in the shade so my car wouldn't heat up as much. My Starbucks barista gave me a free cake pop as apology for not having chicken protein boxes for lunch. And I got to sit in the shade and listen to my favorite pop music as my husband texted me (Baby was asleep again). It almost reminded me of the "good old days" before the pandemic, when I could pick up coffee before work and drive in to a place outside the house to do work that I loved. I mean, that's basically what I was doing, except with a little more anxiety and a little less practice.
I still prefer the days I can work from home and be with my baby. A part of my heart hurts when I have to pack up his lunch, applesauce dessert, favorite books, and a familiar toy to help keep him occupied for a day without Mom or Dad. But I have to admit, after 5 months of going practically nowhere, having a day or two in person (safely) each week is also a nice change of pace. My coworkers are also super sweet and awesome, remembering my birthday and making sure I have everything I need while I'm there.
Speaking of my birthday, I did in fact celebrate a "quarantined" milestone of turning 34 during a pandemic. The morning was spent at my parents' house for breakfast, cake, and a couple of presents. For dinner, my husband picked up takeout from a Brazilian steakhouse. I got to take pictures of my family, and drink coffee, which was all I really wanted. But I also bought myself an early birthday gift--a Nespresso pod coffee maker so I can make my own lattes at home on days when I can't treat myself and need access to my coffee while working remote.
I don't know when I'll be back to work in person full-time, or if I'll ever even be able to go back to that kind of setup now in this new world and with my definite ability to work at a distant. But I'll continue to post when I can if things change. Either way, hopefully those changes will eventually be for the better. Until then I remain, remotely yours.
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