Quarantine diaries

Ask not what you can do for your country. Ask what’s for lunch.

Orson Welles

The first few days of the quarantine,  we could agree that people were insecure about the future,  And that we grabbed everything we thought we needed. we were told to stay at home  so we stock up on essentials- food even all the  sanitizers , face mask and toilet paper.  hoarding which is entirely a different topic of its own. But let me just focus on food. 

If you’re like me who is food motivated then the lockdown provided opportunity to hone skills in cooking and making food for ones consumption, to share with the neighbors and more importantly to post in social media. Almost all of the fashion bloggers confined in their homes  turned to cooking to maintain the gram. We have seen the influx of new hashtags such as #quarantini for drinks and the highly popular #dalgona - (look it up) replacing milk tea as the trend and #lockdownmeals and what not. My office chat groups has been filled with food creations shared by everyone everyday and nobody took offense or get annoyed. It was just a coping mechanism everyone understood.  Although as weeks went on people on social media became more conscious about food posting because some people especially the marginalized and poor comprising the majority of the population in my country were just depending on government aid and relief it became not cool and insensitive to post your lockdown meals and gourmet cooking, so I’ve posted on stories instead. 

While food provided by relief and of course we have all this canned goods. People also got creative with their way of cooking item such as canned sardines. 

 Food indeed provides comfort and maybe have us a sense of security at this most confusing times. 

The first 2 weeks of quarantine parents were complaining how a week food supply were consumed in a few days. How we are only allowed to go out to the grocery and that’s the only time we can get out wear a bra and put on something that won’t let us look homeless. 

Who would have thought that in staying inside your home you are actually contributing to a greater good. So we turned to cooking and learning some new ways of making food and just enjoy and recreate food from scratch, oftentimes depending on the internet to learn the recipes. 

Another challenge for me was controlling my oldies not to go out. they like to go on the markets to buy food for themselves, my father likes to cook himself . I have to seek the help of my eldest brother who is based in China  to call my father and tell him about staying in the house and wearing a mask.  My father likes to socialize and play chess with his friends in the town plaza he is the president of his chess club aside from going into the public market to meet some friends 

 So going back to food : I have since learned how to make , chicken Machboos, deviled eggs, I’ve made lots of coffee drinks in different ways. 

Observed how to make bread and cake by seeing my cousin do it.  She was able to make pan Desal to give out to our towns frontliners and baked a cake for our niece who celebrated her birthday on day during the quarantine. 

 Kudos to concerned organizations and individuals who made food for hospital personnels  and other frontliners.  Most cities created kitchens where food donated were being cooked to be distributed to the frontliners.   

Indeed the first week we dealt with the quarantine by becoming  cooks or bakers and turn to food for comfort. I’ve gone all out and just eat and make food not caring about the weight gain. 

On the third week, I’ve begin to see how my face bloated on zoom video calls with my colleagues . Haven’t had an exercise regimen so I tried to avoid snacking and just stick to breakfast, lunch and early dinner...  and the occasional drinks in between. A girl needs not feel deprived especially of this unprecedented times.  Next on the list of food to make - pain au Chocolat... I kinda miss breakfast in Paris.