‘Team meetings that took just 5 mins now take over one hour’

Antony Clement Rubin (35), Entrepreneur/animal activist

I am more comfortable on the field to do my job. This is both in business and in animal activism. Meeting people virtually doesn’t match the feeling of meeting them in person. I feel frustrated that I’m sitting at home. There are so many things we can do, but on a virtual call, showing the slides is not the same. Actually, today is my father’s second death anniversary. It’s just my mom and I at home and I was looking forward to going and lighting a candle for him on Sunday morning. But the government has enforced this complete shutdown for our own safety, and so it’s for the best that I stay at home. We were watching sermons on TV instead. I work in social media marketing. Although it’s all digital, some of my clients are old school and don’t get it immediately. If I meet them in person, I can show them the design quickly. Even team meetings take one hour now, when earlier they took just five minutes. There’s also no signal in my place, so I’m struggling to keep up. Animals do get fed on a normal basis and day to day operations are taking place. The animals used to scavenge from the garbage bins, but now everyone, activists and locals alike, have taken to the field to feed them. One discipline that people need to understand is that they have to stay within their zones and stay safe when doing this. Feeding the animals is a good sentiment, but please be careful while doing so. My concern is what is going to happen after the shutdown is over. We can’t be lazy and lethargic like this forever. I’m excited to get back to work. We need the money to survive, and we need to be busy again once this is all over.