My N-day entry is the last article for my Pandemic Journal that I filled in with a topic because I had no idea what to talk about. Except that No Idea sounds like an excellent discussion.
I intended to write about the N-day entry on the day it was due to be published, but I procrastinated and felt so brain dead. And while I am completing this entry, I still have to finish the articles about Korean Wave, Life Outside My Apartment, and Masked Beijing.
Every writer has their own experience of writer’s block, but I think the pandemic has made the experience worse. That is what I mean about “no idea” — the difficulty that I have faced in the past few weeks. It is still impressive, however, that I have been able to produce 2,000- to 3,000-word articles weekly.
It is draining, considering that such a task requires so much brainpower, careful thought, and time management to pull off. And I am happy for myself for coming up with those articles that mostly detail the service initiatives of our students and explore the distance learning program of our school.
I still don’t know where on earth I get the will to do it, but I think a vision of a good future is helping me continue and move on. I mean, I can only make educated guesses as to what will happen in the next couple of months, based on the general actions of governments.
Still, I have no idea what will happen next. What is clear to me, though, is I am hoping that things will get better, and that the articles that I have written will document the “indomitable human spirit” (as what Jane Goodall says) that has surfaced in times of adversity. Whenever I think of that, I feel proud that I move from being a writer to becoming a chronicler.
Meanwhile, it is not only writing where I have faced the challenge of having “no idea”; it has happened in almost everything during the pandemic. From sourcing grocery items to fixing home stuff, all the way to staying awake and getting sleep — virtually the “no-idea-what-to-do” answers to the question of “How are we going to survive?”
When we are faced with crippling uncertainties, what do we do? Blame each other? Blame the government? Just leave our families dying? Just die?
Almost an hour before I started writing this piece, I browsed my Twitter feed for my usual morning news headline reading. Twitter, as we know it, is rife with noisy opinionated users (and trolls) that pollute the pandemic discourse. It has become so toxic that I tell myself that if I ever feel irritated or livid, or if my eyes begin to roll, I should scroll up to see other tweets. Or leave the app entirely and move on with my life.
This action, thankfully, isn’t a “no-idea” response; rather, it is clear to me what effect Twitter (and social media in general) has on me, so the idea is to minimize usage. Sadly, this does not apply to everyone. There are people who are led to believe that it is their freedom of expression to say whatever idea–or “no idea”–in their mind unabated. Without careful thought. Without so much brainpower. Without managing their emotions. Without thinking about what benefits does doing such action give them. No idea at all.
Photo: Startup Stock Photos from Pexels
I’m frustrated with Twitter too right now, which is a shame. I usually really enjoy Twitter. More so than other social media platforms, at least. But right now, I see too much finger pointing and conspiracy theory talk. I know it’s just a noisy minority of users who are doing that stuff, but still, it’s so disheartening.