ISO-K? There's a lot to be OK about.

There are a lot of people who are not so OK at the moment. Which, is OK because as we all know, there is a lot that is not OK. And we are told it's OK to not be OK. But as those who know me would know, I have been through a few not so OK moments in my life and the way I deal with it, and am coping now is to focus on the good (and often controllable) and simply ignore or at least not worry about the bad. This is not another piece on “How to cope in lockdown” but more a “How I am actually enjoying it” - yes, I think my coping mechanism has taken me too far!

I’ll give you a past example. When I was facing a pretty serious surgery on my heart a couple of years back, I focussed on the joy I get from general anesthetic (those 5 seconds are just glorious!) rather than the 100 other things that could take me out. They literally wheeled me into the operating theatre with a huge grin on my face. (I feel for those of you out there that react badly to general, it’s amazing)

I'm using the same strategy here - it’s more than coping. Call it #melbournesydrome (or #isosyndrome or whatever other lame hashtags I can come up with) but I’m actually starting to dig life at the moment. This is of course helped by the fact that I live in a pad with a bit of space, still have a job and am confident that none of this is permanent. So if you want a bit of #isosyndrome, try and find the good in whatever shitty situation you think you are in. Here’s a few of mine.

I'm stuck in ISO

It’s OK to do nothing.

This has delivered me a heap more time which is more than OK. Time I would have spent commuting, going for a surf, windsurfing and just doing the things I would generally be doing. A rough guess has me at maybe two extra days a week of usable time. Time I would have relished a month ago. Time to do the things I never had time for. Reading, guitar or just sitting on my lazy arse and binging Ozark. And that’s another good thing. I would normally feel some sense of guilt doing nothing much. My binge-watching is saving the planet!

I don’t know what tomorrow will bring

Uncertainty is OK

I am lucky to live in a city, in a country where a lot of things are certain. That said, many live in fire or drought-affected areas and have faced uncertainty their whole lives. A job, security and safety is a privilege, not an entitlement and a lot of people are possibly experiencing this for the first time. I’m Xgen - we didn’t plan, have kids or buy houses early etc. We enjoyed the moment because there was always tomorrow. Maybe that makes me better adjusted to ‘uncertain times’

I can't see friends and family in person?

It’s OK to call & chat

We’ve spent the last 10 years convincing ourselves how connected we really are. I’m just hanging onto that belief. On video chat, Facebook, Instagram, text….. And I can do it all in my underpants and even better, can end it with the click of a button. I’ve used this time to reconnect with a few old mates, chat to other mates on the phone for hours, something us blokes generally don’t do a lot. I’ve definitely spoken to mum more than I ever have (long story)

Can’t do what I love doing.

It’s OK to chill out

I would usually spend most of my time doing things I can’t currently do. I’m banned from cycling in groups, can’t windsurf and not allowed to drive to the coast for a surf. Whatever. I can take the dog for a walk, run and ride or just hang out.

I’m seeing friends and families hanging out and doing things too. Cooking together, walking together, playing games, making stuff. People are dusting off old bikes and rediscovering parks and pathways. And the St Kilda footy oval has never looked better since no one has been playing footy on it!

Can’t go anywhere.

It’s OK to stay local.

I’m lucky to live in St Kilda, a great part of town but every suburb has its nuances. I’ve lived in the same area for a long time and by walking and riding everywhere, I have discovered so many new places, people and dogs. Sure there is a heap of other places I’m missing, but they will still be there tomorrow.

I have to homeschool the kids.

That is more than OK

Having teenagers, I usually get a smelly grunt, when I ask what is going on at school. For the first time in a while, I am getting to see what they are doing, how my offspring learn, and am having the opportunity to help and guide them with relatively minor resistance. The next parent-teacher interview is bound to be a lot more interesting and two-way!

Can’t go to a bar or see live music.

I’ve seen some pretty OK things lately.

I have John Course playing house in my living room every Saturday night, The Stones did an acoustic version of one of my favourite songs and I've done it all drunk at non-barprices. And I have seen a different side to humanity. We have all seen the ugly panic buying side, but we have also seen the creative genius that is born from unusual situations.?

Employment and the economy is f*cked

We will be OK and creative thinking WILL be the answer.

Right now, I am lucky to have a job. Today. And it really is just luck, determined by the industry I am in more than anything else. Some industries are firing and some have screamed to a halt and a lot of people are doing it tough. But I have been on the other side, a place where a lot of my creative industry people are right now. Either way, it will be a bump like many others. The Government are throwing money at the problem like never before and we live in faster-paced, agile world that will not sit around waiting for things to happen. More exciting is we are far more creative in finding solutions to big problems. And I don’t mean ads. As an example of this thinking, Sicily will pay half of your airfare if you choose to holiday there in an attempt to give their tourism a boost. That’s how our new world acts. Companies will find new ways and create new markets and they will do this by thinking sideways and I can't wait to see what they do.

So ISO is ok for me and strangely enough, when things shift back there are a lot of things I am going to miss. Finally, I also discovered JoJo Rabbit, another really #ISOK moment, which ended on a brilliant quote by Rainer Maria Rilke from a time when people were going through some pretty bad stuff.