More than 2 months ago when my colleagues and I were told we have to work from home, most of us were happy, not gonna lie.
‘We will work comfortably and meet each other occasionally’, that’s what we thought.
Things were going to get back to normal in April anyway.
No points for guessing what happened next.
The government imposed a lockdown. And then another one, and another one and ANOTHER one.
To be precise, it has been more than 60 days since I have been to office and I swear I miss it.
I miss the adrenaline of entering the bay, not knowing what the day is going to throw at us.
I miss my morning chai and omelette from canteen waale bhaiya.
Hell, I even miss the never-ending meetings.
However, if I had to choose a winner, it would probably be my colleagues.
No Zoom call, WhatsApp chat or E-mail thread can replace seeing their faces IRL.
Believe it or not, it does pinch a lot and makes me wonder when we will be allowed to go back.
The fight for the ‘right chair’.
The gossip.
And the sutta sessions.
These things make work what it is, as much as one’s actual job. And with them taken away nothing is the same.
At this point, even the rangoli-making competition and cake-cutting don’t seem so bad.
If they come at the cost of being able to work in office again, I’ll do it.
And while we are at it, let me just say that I miss my chair too.
Yes, the bed is comfortable and so are the pyjamas.
But that’s the thing. They are too comfortable.
You get the real vibe of working only when you’re sitting on your office chair, sipping your coffee, looking at your psuedo-motivational quotes and listening to music that drowns all the noise.
That’s when work actually happens.
And the joy of work comes from rants of paisa kam mil raha hai.
The restarting of laptop for any malfunction under the sun.
The tip-toeing when occasionally late.
And getting coffee for one tired colleague-cum-friend.
These are all things I miss dearly and I hope we get to return soon.