Remote Work in the Time of Coronavirus [feat. My Grandma]

I have two questions for you - Do you like good books? Of course, you do. One of these extraordinary good books served as an inspiration for this article's title. Yes, I'm obviously referring to Gabriel García Márquez and his heartbreaking novel - Love in the Time of Cholera.

Now, the second question isn't that simple. So, how do you feel about dark comedies? It's inevitable that you'll hurt someone's feelings. But hey, just for the sake of my story, let's say that I'm a heartless advocate of the remote work concept and industry.

If you haven't considered remote work, now it's the right time to do it.

Oh boy, what a dreadful thing to say. I know, this would have been one hell of a tweet, but I'm afraid that I would be executed by the firing squad of comments in a blink of an eye. But, do our personal feelings make this statement be any less true?

The Business As (Un)Usual

Here's the bitter truth about our human nature. We care about our health, of course we do. We care a lot, but we also care about our business. So, how's your business these days?

I dare to say that for remote workers business is as usual. I'm still in my dark comedy mode, should you choose to accept it and continue reading without judgment. Is it politically correct to say that one man's loss in another man's gain in the time of Coronavirus?

The remote work industry is in a relatively safe neutral zone from both business and moral aspects. Why? Well, there's a long line of the industries that are devastated by Coronavirus.

On the other hand, the pharmaceutical industry and manufacturers of face masks are trying to keep up with the high demand, to say the least.

That's the thing with viruses and other unpleasant things in life. They're so unfair that it literally hurts.

Now, just because the remote work industry is (relatively) unaffected by Coronavirus, it doesn't mean that it's totally virus-bulletproof. Yes, I know it's a trivial argument, but what about computer viruses for a change?

My Grandma's Chickens and My Remote Clients

My grandma has had a small chicken farm for as long as I remember. She's a lady of the strong organic food production principles. That's a good thing. She's old-fashioned when it comes to technology. That's not so good, especially for me. She stubbornly refuses to recognize my remote work lifestyle as a legit work.

The price I have to pay for a regular supply of free organic eggs is high. I have to keep listening to her complaining about how I should stop playing with those machines (computers), grow up, accept responsibility, and find a "normal" like other "normal" people.

The last time I went to collect my monthly ration of eggs, we just couldn't ignore the elephant on the chicken farm. We had to talk about Coronavirus. That's my grandma I hate to love so much. She couldn't care less about the fate of humanity as long as their chickens are safe from harm. I can't blame her. As you can guess, the chicken flu took a toll on her both financially and emotionally.

As far as she's concerned, she has no quarrel with Coronavirus. She had a word of advice for me too. I hate to admit it, but there's still something good about your so-called "business." You don't have to worry. Just stay home and mind your own business. Yes, that's my grandma at her finest. Her chickens and my remote clients perfectly coexist in the parallel universe created by Coronavirus.

The Remote Aftermath of Coronavirus

Coronavirus isn't the first and it's not going to be the last virus to turn our personal and business lives upside down. There's no such thing as absolute safety.

I'm done with dark humor jokes for today, so let's get serious. The more we are remote in what we do and how we live, the less "material" will viruses have to work with.

As we speak, the remote team of scientist are working on a solution for Coronavirus, don't they? So, let's give credit to remote work culture. It's well deserved, isn't it?