plague diary · 12. April 2020

One good thing about being home all the time is I can take a bit more time with meal preparation. Also to avoid queuing at the grocery store with my fellow disease vectors, I am trying to make the most of what I have rather than buying fresh stuff. Accordingly, I have invented the extremely filling Pandemic Pumpkin Penne. Ingredients: One emergency pumpkin that was supposed to keep for weeks but developed a rotten sport. Half a pack of pulse penne, given to me in exchange for a surgical mask....

plague diary · 27. March 2020

This morning I somehow managed to snag the trailing cord of my headset with my foot and dragged my work laptop off the desk, snapping my mouse cord. Luckily I could swap out the mouse from my personal laptop, but it drove home one facet of the lockdown - there is literally nowhere in New Zealand I can go to buy a new mouse at the moment. The one PC retailer still selling online is only allowed to supply essential services. I could order from overseas but there would most likely be a hefty...

plague diary · 24. March 2020

Just over a week ago my international employer instructed all employees to work from home. I thought it was a little premature for the New Zealand branch, given we only had 5 Covid-19 cases here. 11 days later the number of positive tests seems to be doubling every day, and total cases are up to 155. Tomorrow at midnight the country goes into lockdown, and so will I. Sure, the supermarkets will still be open, but given the frenzied scenes there lately I think it's best to avoid them for a...