Now Online: The Great Escape

As heading out of the house has been curtailed save for essential exceptions, the virtual world has increasingly become our escape, allowing our eyes and mind to wander in a new version of freedom. But what does it mean for reality hereafter?

- Andrea Sim

Two weeks into quarantine, I woke up one morning feeling like Natasha Lyonne in Netflix’s Russian Doll. Over eight episodes, the actress’ protagonist Nadia Vulvokov finds herself stuck in an endless time loop, reliving the same events — beginning with her birthday party, and repeating itself upon her death — over and over and over again. Except for myself (and many others, I’m sure), it’s a loop that consists of waking up, working and… [insert new quarantine-honed skill here]. Wash, rinse and repeat. Giving in to #LockdownFashion was my way of trying to get over the sinking feeling of this new reality. I had put my first work-from-home outfit together rather clumsily: a bodysuit, trousers that were now slightly too tight at the waistband and a necklace that just didn’t sit right. Aside from the unpleasant discovery of circuit breaker weight gain, I felt great. I had a new routine: wake up, get dressed and get to work.