Corona Diaries

Chloe

“The front garden has now permanently been formed into a beer garden and the neighbours have started

joking that we should open up a lockdown pub”

Background Information

Female, 18-24, Postgraduate Student in Swansea, White, Single, Heterosexual.

Week 1 - 23.03.2020-29.03.2020

Lockdown day 1 – 23.03.2020

After Boris Johnson announced that the UK would be going into lockdown, most of our friends made the

decision to go home or were asked to go home by their families. This means Only 2/5 of us from our uni

house are left in South Wales. (I live with my grandparents, and she lives with an NHS frontline worker

outside of term time and we both decided we don’t want to risk passing the virus onto them as they are

considered to be in the ‘high risk’/key worker category). After a lot of discussions about logistics etc, we

have decided to temporarily move into our friends’ house where 3/5 of those remain. We decided we might

as well all be together if we’re going to be stuck inside for a number of weeks. We’ll be moving some of our

things over in the morning.

Today my step-mum was taken into hospital because she was struggling to catch her breath in the

morning. My dad wasn’t allowed to go the hospital with her because there are currently no visitors allowed.

She sat in an ambulance outside the hospital for 2 hours with a paramedic where they took her blood and

she saw a nurse and a doctor. She was then taken into an A&E red room which is a makeshift ward for

people with suspected corona virus. There were 11 people in the room in total and 3 people in this room

tested positive for corona virus whilst she was in there. They said they wouldn’t test her for corona virus

unless she was admitted overnight but they didn’t really have the space to keep her in. At 10pm Dad got a

call saying he had to go and pick her up.

Lockdown day 2 – 24.03.2020

Moving in day! Today we packed up all of our fridge food, some clothes and a few personal belongings we

think we may need over the next few weeks. It currently feels like one big sleepover.

The girls and I usually do a weekly food shop and cook and eat our evening meals together (we have been

doing this for 3 years) and decided it would be beneficial to adopt this approach in our “new house”. We

made a meal plan for the rest of the week and three of us went on our “family shop” to Lidl. Thankfully most

of the shelves were fully stocked and aside from us, there were only about 5 other people in the whole

shop, so we managed to get everything we needed. The man at the till was clearly fed up and explained

that he’d spent the past few days arguing with customers who were adamant they needed more than the 3

essential items per customer allowance. The total shop came to £25 for the 5 of us.

We made curry for dinner and watched a film in the living room – a pretty normal evening considering

everything that’s going on.

Lockdown day 3 – 25.03.2020

I managed to get some uni work done today but none of us really have any motivation to do work at all. We

made chocolate fudge and played board games. I sat on the doorstep for some fresh air and watched a

Sainsbury’s delivery unfold over the road – probably the most exciting thing I have seen for a few days! It

was very stop start and the delivery man kept making jokes about how long every delivery now takes,

because he has to wait for the person accepting the delivery to shut the door before he can drop the food

baskets off, the person then has to take the baskets into the house and unload them and the delivery man

has to wait at the end of the path until they’re done and they have to shut the door before he can pick them

back up. We made a huge lasagne for dinner and sat chatting at the dinner table for a few hours.

Lockdown day 4 – 26.03.2020

Today was a bit of a down day, everyone woke up late and the lack of routine is getting the better of us.

Today I learned how to perfect boiled eggs. We’ve started doing daily work outs (that’s how bored we are)

and we have all decided that showering is currently the most exciting part of our day! I spent an hour on

face time to my dad, who is so bored that he’s bought a chipping net to play golf in the garden and has dug

the old Wii console out from under the bed. We had fish, rice and veg for dinner. At 8pm we all stood on the

doorstep and participated in the Clap For our Carers. The whole street joined in, and we all got a bit

emotional.

Lockdown day 5 – 27.03.2020

We made our own beer garden (sat in the front garden and drank beer) and sunbathed for a few hours and

had lunch outside. One of the girls rang work (She works every other weekend in a supermarket) and they

advised her not to go into work as she would be returning from work to a house full of us. They reassured

her that she would still get paid.

Lockdown day 6 – 28.03.2020

Me and one of the girls walked to pick up some essentials that we had run out of from Tuesday’s shop as

part of our once-a-day government approved daily walk. It was one in one out in the shop and was like a

ghost town. We watched the Lion King 1 + 1/2.

Lockdown day 7 – 29.03.2020

I did my hair and make-up to go absolutely nowhere other than the living room. We had spaghetti

carbonara for dinner. One of the girls made a quiz and eight of us participated in the home-made quiz on

‘House Party’ (a video calling app) and we sat chatting for a few hours. Our friends who have gone home

all said how fed up they are of lockdown already.

Week 2 - 30.03.2020-06.04.2020

Lockdown day 8 – 30.03.2020

We’ve been in lockdown for a full week. We did our second “family shop” today. We had to queue to get in

and there were loads of people inside, but the shops have really strict and effective social distancing

measures in place now. There aren’t any eggs anywhere. We made white chocolate fudge today. I caught

up on the soaps today but there weren’t many to catch up on because they’ve had to restrict how many

episodes they show per week because production has completely stopped. We had fajitas for dinner and

sat chatting around the table for ages. We made an executive decision to stop watching the news as it was

making some of us anxious about the length of time we’ll be in lockdown and away from our families.

Lockdown day 9 – 31.03.2020

The weather was so nice today, so we all sat out in the front garden and sunbathed and did a quiz where

we had to guess the underground tube stations which were described using just emojis. Hardly anyone was

out and about today. I facetimed Dad and my step-mum today and Dads bought a golf pitching mat for the

garden because for obvious reasons he hasn’t played golf for weeks. He’s still having to self-isolate

because although my step-mum is getting back to her old self, she is still extremely ill and struggling to

catch her breath throughout the day. He’s worried about going back to work on Thursday because he still

doesn’t know if either of them has the virus or not. A random cat appeared in the house today and we were

all so excited to see something different that anyone would think none of us had ever seen a cat before!

Lockdown day 10 – 01.04.2020

I spoke to Nan and grandad on the phone today, they are bored out of their minds. At this time of year,

they’re usually at the caravan but the park is shut until further notice so they’re not sure what to do with

themselves. This will be the first Easter holidays in 20 years that we haven’t been at the caravan. One of

Dad’s friends from work who lives in the same village has been picking up bits and bobs from the shop for

them and delivering it to the garden path. We made a roast dinner today and it was actually impressive! We

drank wine and played card games afterwards. We are all desperate for a night out or even just a trip to the

pub. This is probably the longest we’ve been without going out since we started uni.

Lockdown day 11 – 02.04.2020

Today we didn’t really do much. The weather wasn’t great, and everyone felt a bit flat. I binge watched

Netflix all day and we made homemade mini pizzas using breakfast muffins for dinner. We stood out on the

doorstep at 8pm again to clap for the NHS.

Lockdown day 12 – 03.04.2020

We made a group decision to try and get back into some form of routine today so we all decided to try and

get some work done in the hope that we would feel slightly more productive. We have two birthdays in the

house next week so we went to the shop today to get cakes and banners to make sure we can still

celebrate their birthdays as much as possible.

Lockdown day 13 – 04.04.2020

We spent the whole day making TikTok videos in the car. We also video called our friends for a few hours.

We did our weekly shop today and the shops are much stricter, with less people being allowed in the shop

at one time, meaning the queues are much longer.

Lockdown day 14 – 05.04.2020

Today was my boyfriend’s birthday so we decorated the house a little bit, lit candles on the cake for him

and made him a huge birthday breakfast. Thankfully I managed to order him a few things online which

arrived in time, and he had a few cards from his family but some of the cards that were expected didn’t turn

up. He had lots of phone calls with his family. Some of the boys came over and dropped some beers off for

him on the garden path. We ordered a Chinese and watched films in the evening.

Week 3 – 06.04.2020 – 12.04.2020

Lockdown day 15 – 06.04.2020

I recorded a birthday message for a family friend because his granddaughter is making a big video full of

birthday messages as he can’t see anyone. One of my friends got news today that she needs an operation

on her pancreas, but with everything going on they’re trying to hold off as long as possible as they don’t

want to put her at risk of catching coronavirus if she goes into hospital as it would increase the morbidity

rate of her operation greatly. The problem with this is that she’s not only having to deal with the struggles of

isolation, but she has the added problem of being ill and being in a lot of pain, with not much to do to take

her mind off it.

Lockdown day 16 – 07.04.2020

It was boiling outside today so we spent the whole day in the front garden sunbathing. We had a few drinks

and ate lunch outside too. It’s fair to say we’re all rather red after completely losing track of time in the sun.

One of our neighbours works at Sainsburys and has offered to pick us up anything we might need if we

can’t get to the shop for any reason. We watched another home delivery unfold today, the delivery man

recognises us now, waves and laughs at how ridiculous the stop starting is. Though he did agree it’s better

than getting or spreading the virus

Lockdown day 17 – 08.04.2020

Today is my brother’s 27th Birthday so we did a family group facetime call to surprise him and sing happy

birthday whilst his fiancée lit the candles on his cake. Watching some of our elder relatives figuring out how

to master video calls was much more entertaining than I had anticipated. It took 5 minutes after most

people had left the call for some of them to figure out how to hang up! My Dad had to call out the

paramedics for my step-mum again this morning. They’re still unsure of whether she has the virus or not,

but she didn’t want to be taken into hospital because of the number of increasing cases in hospitals. The

paramedics managed to stabilise her and were happy for her to stay at home as long as she promised to

call straight away if needed.

Lockdown day 18 – 09.04.2020

It’s one of the girls’ birthdays tomorrow but she has work Saturday, so we had to celebrate tonight. We

made a pub (house crawl) for her. We named every room in the house after a different pub and set up a

different drink in each including cocktails, beer, prosecco and a concoction of whatever alcohol we could

find in the house. We also carried a speaker through the house. We started in the front garden and ended

in the living room where we had a disco light set up. We also had some karaoke and some party dances

going on.

Lockdown day 19 – 10.04.2020

As anticipated, we were all very hungover today. We arranged for all of her family and friends to send us

birthday messages and I put it all together in one long video and set it up on the tv in the living room for her

to watch. She was extremely emotional watching it, but said it was so nice to be able to see everyone on

her birthday, even if it was through a tv screen. We sunbathed a bit more today and I hosted the weekly

pub quiz as I won the last one!

Lockdown day 20 – 11.04.2020

The weather was lush again today, so we spent of the day in the front garden. We went to the shop and the

atmosphere in there was horrible. There’s tape on the floor to ensure you’re two metres apart for other

people at all times but it means a sort of one-way system has been implemented so that if you’ve forgotten

something you have to back to the start and queue again. It’s also a lot more difficult to concentrate on

what you want and ensuring you’re two metres apart at the same time than I thought it would be. I used the

self-checkout and because bought some Ibuprofen I had to show my ID and the man in the shop was

unsure of what to do because it’s hard to check someone’s ID from 2 metres away!

Lockdown day 21 – 12.04.2020

Today is Easter Sunday so we did an Easter Egg hunt in the house and one of the girls came by and

dropped off some crème eggs for us on the path. I managed to get some uni work done for the first time

since lockdown started, but it’s still difficult to concentrate with everyone going on. My Dad Facetime’d me

today and he was sat in my grandparent’s front garden (on the other side to them) after dropping some

food off the them as they can’t do their own shopping. We’re all starting to get a bit homesick now as we

would usually all be at home at this time.

Week 4 - 13.04.2020-19.04.2020

Lockdown day 22 – 13.04.2020

The initial lockdown period was meant to be over today, but the number of deaths caused by coronavirus

aren’t going down enough to lift the lockdown. We have no idea now how much longer this will go on for

and are waiting for the Government to announce their plans. Every news article is saying something

different, varying from saying that it could be lifted in May, to having to wait until the end of summer. We did

the weekly shop today and they let two of us go in together.

Lockdown day 23 – 14.04.2020

I spoke to the Postman today and he is extremely stressed. He said that The Royal Mail is extremely busy

because posting things is currently some people’s only form of contact, especially where things such as

birthday cards and important documents are involved. There were two home deliveries over the road today,

which means we now have a new delivery driver to wave at whilst we sit in the garden and people watch

(Which is not as fun when only roughly 5 people a day walk past). I spoke to BBC Radio Cymru about

Corona Diaries today and how I think they will be useful in the future, and they aired it on their evening

post!

Lockdown day 24 – 15.04.2020

I ordered clothes yesterday afternoon and they arrived this morning! Today we made chocolate

strawberries and rice krispies with a combination of our melted Easter eggs. My step-Mum was really ill

again today and had to go back into hospital. They confirmed that she does have the virus but because

she’s been ill for almost a month, she’s no longer contagious so they sent her home after stabilising her. My

Dad has been told he’s safe to go back to work because he self-isolated with her for over two weeks when

she first had symptoms.

Lockdown day 25 – 16.04.2020

We all spoke about how we are struggling to find any motivation to do uni work today, so for every hour of

uni work we did, we sat outside for half an hour. We made a full roast dinner again today. We also did

another quiz, this time on Zoom. We’ve settled on two group virtual quizzes every week now with our oth er

friends who are all at home.

Lockdown day 26 – 17.04.2020

It rained today for the first time in weeks, so not sunbathing for us today. We did a big group quiz on Zoom

again, 16 of us participated today. The girls and I binged The Nest on BBC iPlayer and did a very intense

HIIT workout to make us feel better for doing no uni work whatsoever.

Lockdown day 27 – 18.04.2020

Today was the first time I left the house in over a week, and I felt much better for it. There are lots of

different challenges going around on social media to keep people entertained. This week I participated in 5

‘neck and nominates’ where you down a pint and then nominate a few people to do the same – not a clue

why this has become a trend, but everyone has been more than willing to participate, even my dad! I’ve

also been nominated to do a 5k run, in which I have to run 5K, donate £5 to charity (most people are

donating to the NHS) and then nominate 5 people to do the same.

Lockdown day 28 – 19.04.2020

It was boiling again today so we spent the whole day sunbathing and I got extremely sunburnt. We made

home-made wedges today for dinner. We did our weekly group Zoom quiz tonight & I missed out on first

place by one point!

Week 5 - 20.04.2020-26.04.2020

Lockdown day 29 – 20.04.2020

We sunbathed again today but managed to not get burnt this time. We ate lunch in the front garden and

chatted to the neighbours across the fence. Their children are extremely bored of not being in school and

keep asking them when they can go back. We did the weekly shops today and everything felt slightly more

‘normal’ than it has for weeks.

Lockdown day 30 – 21.04.2020

Me and one of the girls did our 5K we were nominated for today & it’s safe to say we were exhausted after

it! There were loads of people out exercising and it was quite difficult to social distance as in order to avoid

other runners on the pedestrian path, we had to run into the cycle path and then vice versa. Every person I

ran past smiled and there was a sense of ‘we’re all in this together’. I ran past a group of 3 men having a

catch up and they were stood on the grass in a socially distant triangle. We sunbathed again after our run.

We also did another group quiz on Zoom

Lockdown day 31 – 22.04.2020

Today was probably my most productive day of lockdown so far as I managed to get a decent amount of

work done. The post man said that he’s currently busier than any Christmas he’s ever worked and that the

delivery drivers are now having to queue to collect their parcels from the pickup points. Also, it took the

postman two trips of the street to deliver everything because people are ordering so much online.

Lockdown day 32 – 23.04.2020

Today was a house ‘lazy day’, so we watched telly all day and just chilled. We clapped for the NHS at 8pm.

We also made homemade pizzas again for tea. We did another quiz on Zoom.

Lockdown day 33 – 24.04.2020

Today my boyfriend decided it was time for a haircut, so he let me shave his head! It actually went

surprisingly well, and he doesn’t look awful or bald thankfully! We sat in the garden for most of the day as

the weather is supposed to be rubbish after today.

Lockdown day 34 – 25.04.2020

We made home-made wedges again today and I’m actually quite enjoying all this cooking malarkey, maybe

it’s just because there isn’t really much else to do! Finally finished a uni essay today but it just seems as

though the work is never ending + most of the other students I have spoken to are struggling with

motivation too.

Lockdown day 35 – 26.04.2020

Student loan came in yesterday, so I slipped and bought a Nintendo Switch games console. I decided that

this is the perfect time to invest in one as I have plenty of spare time on my hands and it will be a welcome

break from essay writing. I ordered it at 1:30pm this afternoon and it arrived at 7:15pm!

Week 6 - 27.04.2020-03.05.2020

Lockdown day 36 – 27.04.2020

I spent most of the day playing on my Nintendo Switch. The weather wasn’t great so we’ve been struggling

with what to do now that we can’t sunbathe. We did the weekly shop today and the bakery in the

supermarket was open and full for the first time since lockdown began. The shops were extremely busy,

and we had to queue to get inside.

Lockdown day 37 – 28.04.2020

It poured down with rain all day today, so everyone was a bit down in the dumps. Everyone’s getting slightly

more stressed now that deadlines are quickly approaching. I played on my Nintendo switch again and I’m

starting to think purchasing it before completing my essays was a bad idea…

We gave a card and box of heroes to our postman as we came to a group decision that postmen and

delivery drivers have been particularly underappreciated during this whole pandemic! We did a group quiz

on Zoom, and I won!

Lockdown day 38 – 29.04.2020

The weather was rubbish again today and lockdown is proving to be much more difficult without being able

to sit outside at all (without getting drenched). None of us have been for our daily exercise for roughly three

days and it’s starting to take its toll as we are all getting fed up and irritated.

Lockdown day 39 – 30.04.2020

I went for a walk along the beach today, it was so busy! The paths and the roads are the busiest they have

been for weeks. We did a girl’s quiz on Zoom, and I was rubbish, but I was chosen to write next week’s so it

has given me something to do. We clapped for the carers at 8pm and there were more people out tonight

than any other week and everyone used pots and pans to be as loud as possible, there were even

fireworks coming from somewhere!

Lockdown day 40 – 01.05.2020

I spent most of my day thinking of ideas for the quiz I have to host next week. I have decided to do a

“whose knees are these?” round and get our friends to all send me photos of their knees. We ordered a

Chinese tonight and the delivery driver told us how grateful he was as they are really struggling at the

minute.

Lockdown day 41 – 02.05.2020

Today we had a group facetime and one of the boys has recently come back from New Zealand as a result

of Coronavirus. One of the boys shaved his hair today and now the majority of them are half bored because

they got fed up with not being able to get their hair cut. One of our uni friends who lives around the corner

came over for a catch up, so we all sat in the garden for a while (2m apart).

Lockdown day 42 – 03.05.2020

We made a whole lasagne today only to reach the conclusion that the mince smelt off, so we decided not to

risk it and binned it all before it even made it to the oven, so we had pasta with sauce instead! We spent a

lot of today discussing the current lockdown situation and trying to figure out what will happen on Thursday

(the end of the second 3-week period). Everyone is getting frustrated now and we all just want to be able to

see our families.

Week 7 - 04.05.2020-10.05.2020

Lockdown day 43 – 04.05.2020

We did the weekly shop today and it was packed! We had to queue to get a trolley, to get in and then had

to queue for ages at the till. Most people in the shop had masks, gloves or both on and it was quite

intimidating. The roads were extremely busy today and there was almost a sense of almost normality to

being out and about with so many other people. I attempted to go to the post office, but the queue was

outside and around the corner, so I gave up.

Lockdown day 44 – 05.05.2020

We made a group decision to make today a day of uni work to make sure we can all stay on top of it. I went

to the post office, and it was much quieter than yesterday and there were only 2 people in front of me in the

queue. One of the girls’ sisters is a nurse on a Coronavirus ward and has tested positive for corona virus,

as well as her Mum. We did another group quiz on Zoom.

Lockdown day 45 – 06.05.2020

I spent the day doing uni work, but it is getting harder to concentrate as lockdown goes on. It seems as

though there is so much to think about with not very much to do. I also had to ring the bank as there was an

issue with my tuition fees being taken out twice. I was on hold for 45 minutes before I spoke to anyone and

the lady on the phone said that they have been inundated with calls about all sorts of things.

Lockdown day 46 – 07.05.2020

I hosted the quiz tonight and I think it went down well! We all had a drink and were chatting on Zoom for

hours just catching up on how everyone is feeling. Everyone is getting extremely fed up and feels as

though our final few months have uni have been stolen from us in a way. It was my Grandads birthday

today and it was really difficult not being able to see him. I sent a moonpig card in the post, but it just isn’t

the same. My cousins who live closer surprised him and set up a cake and some banners in the garden

and sang happy birthday to him from the bottom of the garden. My grandparents are extremely fed up as

they haven’t been able to do their activities that keep them active and in contact with their friends. My

grandad is missing going to choir and having a pint with his friends. We clapped for the carers at 8pm and

it’s become a very neighbourly activity and we all wave at each other and have a quick chat afterwards.

Lockdown day 47 – 08.05.2020

Some of our friends stopped by and stood on the pavement and we chatted to them from the front door.

They are struggling as there are only two of them in the house and they don’t know what to do with

themselves. KFC reopened today so we ordered a takeaway and had some drinks in the evening. The First

Minister for Wales revealed that Wales remains in lockdown for at least 3 weeks regardless of what Boris

Johnson decides on Sunday. Whilst it was expected I think we were all slightly hopeful for some form of

ease on the restriction, other than being able to go out and exercise more than once a day. Who wants to

voluntarily go out and exercise more than once a day??

Lockdown day 48 – 09.05.2020

We sunbathed for a few hours today as it was the hottest it’s been for a while but out of nowhere there was

thunder and lightning which brought it to an abrupt end. We watched the first food delivery for a while over

the road and it’s just not as exciting after almost 7 weeks. One of the girls from the house had work again

today and the shop she works in wasn’t busy at all

Lockdown day 49 – 10.05.2020

I watched Netflix all day today as I couldn’t motivate myself to do any work whatsoever. Boris Johnson

revealed that the UK is to remain in lockdown for at least another 3 weeks and everyone is feeling

particularly disheartened. Social media is full of arguments about whether or not it was the right decision.

Week 8 - 11.05.2020-17.05.2020

Lockdown day 50 – 11.05.2020

We did the weekly shop, and it was much quieter than last week, but the shop bouncer was much stricter

with regards to who could go in with who etc. I finished another uni essay, so I am feeling slightly more

motivated to get the final one over and done with. I went to the post office today and it was the quietest it’s

been for weeks but the queue for the shop opposite was huge, so we didn’t even attempt to go in.

Lockdown day 51 – 12.05.2020

I am really not sure how I have survived 50 days in lockdown. It’s one of those instances where it feels like

time has gone really fast, but it feels like we’ve been in lockdown for ages at the same time (somehow). We

did our weekly big group zoom quiz. It was announced that golf courses can open in Wales, so my dad and

brother are extremely pleased as they are both desperate for a change of scenery.

Lockdown day 52 – 13.05.2020

We went for a walk to Mumbles today. The beach and the path were extremely busy and there were people

in groups sat on the grass. It made such a difference to us all to get some fresh air and a change of

scenery. It felt bizarre to have to stop and allow people to walk around you to avoid getting too close, and

everyone we encountered gave the same half smile as if they were acknowledging that we felt strange

about it and so did they (we may have imagined this).

Lockdown day 53 – 14.05.2020

We went to the shop to pick up some extra bits today. We had to queue for about 20 minutes before going

in. One of our friends is feeling particularly fed up so we made her a little care package of alcohol.

Chocolate and face masks etc and left it on her doorstep. We clapped for the carers at 8pm and all the

neighbours were waving at us from across the street again. Every week we end with a “see you the same

time next week”. We did our weekly girls quiz on Zoom and the quizzes are getting more bizarre and

creative every week because we’re running out of ideas for generic quiz rounds.

Lockdown day 54 – 15.05.2020

The weather was nice today, so we sunbathed for the first time in a while, but we were all stressing about

our deadlines, so we gave up on sunbathing to try and be productive. I really struggled to concentrate as

I’ve been really missing my family today, which just made me more stressed, so I watched tv instead and

decided I’ll try and do work again tomorrow. I went to Tesco today and there’s a one-way system, so you

have to go up and down every isle and everyone kept going the wrong way to the extent that the man with

a sign saying “keep 2m apart” gave up and left his sign on the floor.

Lockdown day 55 – 16.05.2020

We’ve all been feeling a bit down in the dumps this week and are all getting extremely fed up with

lockdown, so we decided to have a mini party. We cooked all the picky foods from the freezer, had some

drinks and played games to take our minds off everything that’s going on around us and it really lifted the

mood in the house.

Lockdown day 56 – 17.05.2020

We were all feeling slightly worse for wear after last night’s drinks, so we ordered a takeaway and sat in the

living room watching films all day.

Week 9 - 18.05.2020-24.05.2020

Lockdown day 57 – 18.05.2020

We did the weekly shop today and it was the worst it’s been for a while. We queued for approximately half

an hour before we got in and then we queued for roughly 20 minutes at the till. There was lots of stuff on

the list we could not get so we ended up having to go to 3 different shops in total.

Lockdown day 58 – 19.05.2020

I spent the whole day doing uni work and even though I only have one more deadline, it feels almo st

impossible to stay motivated, especially as some of my housemates have finished now. We spoke to our

regular post man today and he told us that one of his friends took over for him last week and posted a

missed parcel card through our door and he told him he couldn’t do that as we are regulars, so we ended

up with the parcel even though we weren’t in when he originally tried! We’ve got into the habit of waving at

him through the window if he’s not delivering anything to us or stopping for a quick chat if he is. We did our

weekly Zoom quiz and we’re starting to run out of ideas for them now.

Lockdown day 59 – 20.05.2020

We were all really struggling today, and the mood of the whole house was really low. We sat outside to eat

our lunch to get some sun before starting another day of uni work, but we decided we needed a change of

scenery so ended up going for a stroll to the beach for an hour and it made a big difference! The beach was

very busy, but everyone appeared to be social distancing. There’s a ‘connectivi-tree’ at the beach where

people can write nice messages on tags and tie them to the tree. Lots of the tags mentioned NHS and key

workers and some were from secret admirers who were writing about people they had seen on the beach.

Lockdown day 60 – 21.05.2020

There was a huge thunder and lightning storm that kept us all up until 3am this morning so we were all

pretty sluggish today. We all sat in our own rooms and did uni work for most of the day and then did a girls

group zoom quiz in the evening. We stayed on the call after the quiz, and everyone is extremely fed up with

lockdown now. We realised this is the longest we have spent apart as a group since we met in Freshers of

first year. We went out and clapped for the carers and the neighbours said that they enjoy seeing us every

week and promised they’d be out at the same time next week.

Day 61 – 22. 05. 2020

I have one week left until my final deadline and I can’t decide if I want time to speed up or slow down –

which is not something I ever thought I’d consider during lockdown. I spent the day doing uni work but it’s

just so hard to concentrate with everything going on. Usually when I’m doing uni work I’m at home and my

grandparents make sure I stay calm, take regular breaks and help me to make sure my essays even make

sense, which is proving to be a lot more difficult from a distance.

Day 62 – 23. 05. 2020

I can’t believe it’s been two whole months of lockdown. I haven’t seen my family for roughly 10 weeks and

it’s getting harder and harder, especially as it means I haven’t been able to check in on any of my

grandparents or see my dog! I ordered an exercise mat from eBay a few weeks ago, it arrived today, and it

honestly looks like it belongs to the Borrowers!! My feet don’t even fit on it properly. If lockdown has taught

me anything, it’s to check the reviews before you buy stuff!

Day 63 – 24.05.2020

I spent the whole day doing uni work and I think this is the most stressed I’ve been during lockdown. It is so

hard to concentrate and there’s nowhere quiet I can go to whilst doing work. I facetimed my parents as a

break, and they’re so fed up. I’m the only child they haven’t managed to see (at a distance) because I’m the

furthest away and all of my other siblings have been able to go and visit them from across the garden.

Week 10 - 25.05.2020-31.05.2020

Lockdown day 64 – 25.05.2020

It was boiling today so we sunbathed all day. We chatted to the neighbours two doors down and all 4 of

their children are fed up and want to go back to school. We made a homemade lasagne for dinner. We did

the weekly shop today and the shop was much better stocked than last week. I never thought the food shop

would be the highlight of my week, but I feel much better after I do it, just because it’s a chance to get out of

the house and see different people.

Lockdown day 65 – 26.05.2020

I spent the day doing uni work again, luckily, I do not have much left to do! I went for a run, and I was

surprised at how quiet the footpath was considering how busy it has been recently. Every person I ran past

gave a friendly nod or smile which was nice. I got poo’d on by a pigeon and a nice lady offered me her

tissue and we were both unsure of whether I could take it from her or not, so she used her sleeve to pull

one out of the packet and threw it towards me to use, so I did because at this point, I was more stressed

about the poo than social distancing! We had a week off from quizzes this week because we were getting

fed up and everyone’s deadlines are coming to an end.

Lockdown day 66 – 27.05.2020

I finally finished all of my uni essays! I popped some prosecco in the front garden to celebrate and got a

round of applause from the neighbours. I also ordered some clothes to celebrate, not that I currently have

anywhere to wear them other than on the weekly food shop.

Lockdown day 67 – 28.05.2020

We spent the day sunbathing again today and we had lunch and a few drinks outside in the sun. The front

garden has now permanently been formed into a beer garden and the neighbours have started joking that

we should open up a lockdown pub. Tonight was the last clap for the carers, and we were actually all quite

sad as it’s the only time we’re all out together. Some of our neighbours are quite elderly so it’s been a good

opportunity to check on them without prying too.

Lockdown day 68 – 29.05.2020

It was announced today that as of Monday, people in wales will be able to meet up with one other

household outside, if they live within 5 miles. My grandparents needed some shopping picking up today

and because my dad’s work shifts have changed, one of the girls very kindly offered to take me to do their

shopping and then drop it off to them. We sat on separate ends of the garden, but it was still so nice to see

them. They were very emotional to see me as this is the longest amount of time, we’ve ever gone without

seeing each other. I had to keep reminding them that there’s only a month of my tenancy left on my student

house so I will be home soon. This worries me though because there has been absolutely no guidance

from the government on how to go about isolating and moving back home from a uni house. Hopefully by

then, the lockdown rules will have been eased slightly more than they were today.

Lockdown day 69 – 30.05.2020

We went for a walk along the beach today and it was quite busy. Although there were lots of groups of

people, each group was sat quite far from each other. It was nice to feel some sense of normality for a

change, even if it was only briefly. We sunbathed and all came to the conclusion that sitting in the sun

makes us far more tired than actually doing stuff so we are going to try and attempt to be more active,

despite being limited to what we can do.

Lockdown day 70 – 31.05.2020

It was boiling again today, so we went and sat on the beach and went in the sea. As of tomorrow, we can

meet up with another household outside, so we’ve been trying to arrange who of our friends to see from a

distance on which days as we are spread across a number of student houses, and everyone’s slowly

started coming back to uni from being at home since the start of lockdown.

Week 11 - 01.06.2020-07.06.2020

Lockdown day 71 – 01.06.2020

We went to the beach and went in the sea again today. The beach was packed and there were loads of

people in the sea, it was so much busier than yesterday. The seafront café was also busy all day, but they

made sure social distancing measures were in place all day. It was very easy to forget everything going on

in the world because this is what we would have been doing regardless of coronavirus.

Lockdown day 72 – 02.06.2020

We spent the day at the beach again and I got very sunburnt! It was the last really hot day we’re meant to

have for a while, so we tried to make the most of it and didn’t leave the beach until about 9pm. The beach

has been getting busier and busier every day which is nice, but also concerning considering the possibility

of a second wave. The police were patrolling the promenade.

Lockdown day 73 – 03.06.2020

The weather was a bit cooler today so I could finally go for a run. The foot path was extremely busy and

there were lots of big groups of 10-20 people on the beach. There were also people playing footgolf.

Lockdown day 74 – 04.06.2020

Everyone finally finished their assignments, so we had a socially distanced mini garden party with our

friends who live in a different house! It was hard to make sure we all kept two metres apart and we

assigned a bathroom to each household to make sure we touched as little of the same things as possible.

Lockdown day 75 – 05.06.2020

There were a few sore heads today, so we didn’t really do much. I went for a run this evening and it started

pouring down about 10 minutes in, so I got absolutely drenched & then got splashed by a car on my way

home! There were still a few people out and about and there were lots of dog walkers on the beach. I spoke

to my grandparents today and they’ve been shielding for almost 3 months and are getting extremely fed up

with being stuck at home, especially because the wet weather means they can’t sit outside and chat with

the neighbours.

Lockdown day 76 – 06.06.2020

Everyone from my house has moved back now because we only have until the 30th of June until we have to

move out of our house. This means that our little lockdown family that we made up of the stragglers left at

uni has been disbanded! It also means I will now only be able to see my boyfriend outside from a 2metre

distance. It’s nice to be back in my own house with my own room though!

Lockdown day 77 – 07.06.2020

The weather was a bit nicer today, so we walked down to the beach for an ice cream and sat on the wall for

a little bit. We did a little tour of all our friends’ houses and chatted to them from our front gardens. The

reality of the fact that we only have 3 weeks left at uni is starting to hit and everyone’s feeling a bit uneasy.

Week 12 - 08.06.2020-14.06.2020

Lockdown day 78 – 08.06.2020

I went for another run today and got drenched again! We had our first McDonalds since lockdown began

which was quite strange. It’s weird how things that we didn’t used to think twice about have now become

such a luxury. I went for a walk with my boyfriend today, it’s weird having to be two steps apart after

spending almost 11 weeks together in lockdown.

Lockdown day 79 – 09.06.2020

The weather eased off a bit today, so we went for drinks at our friend’s garden. We were armed with coats

and blankets though because it really wasn’t that warm. Despite the guidelines allowing two households to

meet up in gardens, we all still feel quite on edge having so many of us in one place at one time, because

we’ve all been isolating in such small groups.

Lockdown day 80 -10.06.2020

Some of us went for a walk with our friends from another house as walking is one of the only things we can

do when the weather is rubbish, unless we want to sit on wet grass or sand! We did 23,000 steps in total

because we just didn’t know what else to do with ourselves, so we kept walking and ended up at the

lighthouse. We did a food shop for the first time in ages because the weathers been so hot none of us

could be bothered. The shops we the busiest they’ve been for weeks!

Lockdown day 81 – 11.06.2020

We’re running out of ideas of things to do so we went for a walk again today and got an ice cream at the

beach. The beach was quite busy considering it wasn’t that hot. In the evening we played board games and

drinking games.

Lockdown day 82 – 12.06.2020

I went for a run today and there were cyclists everywhere. The busier the paths get the harder it is to stay

2metres away from everyone. We hosted garden drinks with our friends from another house which was

nice. It was another instance where we almost forgot about everything for a while.

Lockdown day 83 – 13.06.2020

We were all very hungover today and feeling very sorry for ourselves. Our local bakery is open, so we went

there to get some lunch and then all sat in the garden for a few hours whilst it was sunny. We spent the

afternoon reminiscing over our time at uni and discussing how much we’re all dreading leaving at the end of

the month. We each chose our pit and our peak (worst and best) memories of each year of uni and spent

the entire evening laughing at some our most embarrassing moments of uni so far.

Lockdown day 84 – 14.06.2020

It was boiling today so we spent the whole day at the beach. It was so busy, and we queued for over half

an hour just for an ice cream! We played ball games and went in the sea. We also attempted numerous

versions of the dirty dancing lift, which all ended very badly, and everyone ended up covered in bruises!

Corona Diaries – Final entry

After all of our friends finally came back and we all started to move back to our own houses we started get

more of a sense of normality, especially once separate houses were allowed to meet up outside. This d id

mean however, that I couldn’t observe the deliveries from over the road anymore, and I actually missed it

more than I thought, which is not anything I ever thought I would say! My uni house faces a junction and it

appears most of the students near us have gone home so there is not much going on. Luckily, we do have

the same postman though and he was very confused when I answered the door to him in my house for the

first time, but he said he thought he recognised my name on the parcel but thought he was going mad

because he associated my name with the other house. We all moved out of our uni house on the 30 th of

June, and we were all absolutely devasted to be leaving after living together for 4 years. The night before

we moved out, we had a last supper which included steak and lots and lots of wine. We each wrote a little

speech about our time at uni and its fair to say it got very emotional.

I stopped writing Corona Diary entries after the 12th week because we had done pretty much all we could

find to do with everything being shut. We spent every day possible of our last two weeks of uni at the beach

and in the sea, even in the rain! It’s been adjusting to being at home, knowing that I won’t ever be going

back to uni. I think me and my friends could probably have shares in facetime with how long we spend

video calling each other! I had to quarantine myself for a week when I left uni to make sure I wasn’t a risk to

anyone in my family, so I stayed at my brother’s house in their guest room where him and his fiancée have

been working from home. They’re very fed up with not being able to separate workspace from home space

and are beyond ready to go back to the office as soon as possible. Since then, I have managed to see my

grandparents twice and after quarantining I finally got to hug them after 4 months of not being able to,

which made me realise how much we used to take simple things like that for granted before Coronavirus. I

am planning to spend the rest of my summer completing my dissertation and looking for jobs.