Being from Russia, while staying in the UK and having some of the closest friends being in the US, Brazil and Italy has definitely been "very fun"… I live in London, but currently staying with my partner in Bolton. Situation in the UK is a bit absurd – the Health Minister here has recently been caught while driving to his second home during the lockdown, and now this seems to be the main topic for discussion in the media rather than any useful information about the progress of medical research… "facepalm"

The biggest change have been moving out of my house in London to my partner, who we had an extended 'long-distance' relationship with before. So, having all this time to spend with each other have been new, revealing and very good for both of us. I keep on hearing horror stories about couples stuck in quarantine together and thinking how lucky I am!

My work hasn't changed much, except all my teaching transferred online; for my freelance gigs I work from home anyway. A couple of projects got cancelled, but work started to get busy again these last few weeks. I feel much more centred, inspired and productive now compared to the first month – I think my mind and body are getting used to the situation and are cooling off the panic. Although I feel that I only have two states of mind – either I am loving the situation or absolutely hating it and feeling trapped… So, I guess, recently I have been in the positive state.

The hardest part was not having a chance to be with my family – I tried to leave London before the borders closed but couldn't make it. Also, I usually travel a lot for work and fun, and being stuck in Bolton definitely wasn't my ideal version of summer…

This time helped me realise that I have been living in a pretty crazy rhythm for a few years without the opportunity to slow down. That has been good – being able to enjoy small things like taking walks, cooking, reading, etc. Also, the time spent with my partner is invaluable – and now that we have a chance we started exploring practices like shibari and slowly turning the bedroom into a dungeon :)