Category: Pandemic

Categories
Pandemic

Coronacoaster

The pandemic has taken a huge emotional toll on everyone from lockdowns to quarantine and all the travel restrictions imposed upon us. Our emotions have gone up and down like a rollercoaster. One minute we’re loving lockdown and the ability to work remotely, the next we’re crying with anxiety wondering if the world will ever go back to normal. We get excited about breathing fresh air without having to wear a mask, then some new variant comes along and mask mandates get reintroduced. Hence the term “coronacoaster” – because that’s what it feels like to ride the pandemic rollercoaster.

Coronacoaster is found in the Collins Dictionary, albeit it as a new word suggestion, and is defined as “the severe mood swings experienced during the coronavirus

– every day is a ride on the emotional Coronacoaster” (AustinAllegro).


The Urban Dictionary entry for coronacoaster is “when your emotions are on a rollercoaster due to all of the news each day about the Corona virus.

– I wake up and I’m in a good mood, then I watch the news and I start crying – Wow, you’re on a Coronacoaster!” (Plan-z).


The term coronacoaster has appeared in several online articles. During Christmas 2021, an article was published for the UK edition of Glamour Magazine entitled “The Coronacoaster is back.” It discussed the feelings of being on the crazy coronacoaster:

The emotional ups and downs of lockdown. One minute you’re baking banana bread, and loving the simple life, the next you’re weeping and missing people you used to actively avoid down the pub. Cast your mind back to two years ago, when lockdown was brand spanking new and we all said things like “it’ll be over by summer”. The first month was a whirlwind of Houseparty, banana bread, and drinking gin at 3PM just because we could. That was the first coronacoaster high…But the coronacoaster was a trickster, it fooled us all into thinking the high was actually the low, and that it was much shorter – instead, we’ve had endless loops, highs, and crashing lows…With the new Omicron variant cancelling Christmas parties and triggering yet another work from home order from the government, it feels like there’s a dark tunnel ahead that no one’s sure holds light at the end (hello, booster shots), or another twist and turn.


Several YouTube channels provided content about the Coronacoaster. The video below was produced by South Tees Medical Psychology and gives advice on how to survive your journey on the coronacoaster and recover from the physical and emotional stresses caused by the pandemic.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by being on the coronacoaster you’re not alone. We’re all on this ride together and trying to do our best to “stay safe, sane and sanitized” (Songbird).

Social Media Trends as of June 8, 2022

Facebook #coronacoaster: 5,300 people are posting about this
Instagram #coronacoaster: 12,591 posts
TikTok #coronacoaster: 249,900 views
YouTube #coronacoaster: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: coronacoaster appeared as a blip in early March 2020 just as lockdowns were underway. The term peaked during the week of July 5, 2020, no doubt because most people were stuck indoors during the summer and unable to travel because of the different restrictions imposed by states and countries.

coronacoaster search term


Sources:

AustinAllegro. “Coronacoaster.” Collins Dictionary. October 1, 2020. URL: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/submission/22899/coronacoaster.

Laws, Chloe. “The Coronacoaster is back. Thanks to Omicron and yet another WFH order, we’re back on the emotional Covid rollercoaster.” Glamor Magazine. 13 December 2021. URL: https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/article/coronacoaster-experience.

Plan-z. “Coronacoaster.” Urban Dictionary. April 8, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Coronacoaster.

South Tees Medical Psychology. “Introducing The Coronacoaster.” YouTube. November 18, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcyZ-qerZPs.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Covidy

Covidy is an adjective that describes anything pertaining to Covid 19 and the pandemic. Wiktionary’s definition is as follows:

– Infected with or containing the COVID-19 virus.
– Relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Urban dictionary has a few definitions of Covidy and I’ve listed two of them below:

Definition #1: “an adjective or adverb applied to any and all items and/or behaviors related to the germy world of Covid 19 brought into a quarantined household by the outside world.

–Keep that covidy grocery bag out of my kitchen! And while you’re at it, stop walking around the touching everything without washing your hands first and acting all covidy like that. Ugghh” (Dallasjeni).

Definition #2: “Related to, suffering from, or seeming to suffer from COVID-19 or the ill-effects of the quarantine.

–‘Damn, John, that’s a pretty covidy haircut you’ve got there.’ Or: ‘That sweaty covidy cougher in the grocery store was freaking me out’” (Dictionnaire Diabolique).


Covidy has appeared in a few news articles. As recently as May 30, 2022, the New Zealand Herald reported that the plane Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and her delegation were traveling in, broke down in Washington DC and her press secretary, Andrew Campbell, tested positive for Covid-19 in San Francisco. Political editor Claire Trevett wrote that “Ardern arranged her own press conference with [the] media – a job usually done by Campbell. Ardern said she was ‘cutting out the middle man’ since Campbell was ‘a bit Covidy at the moment’ and it was still very early in San Francisco” (Trevett).

American stand-up comedian DeRay Davis recently tweeted “new word: Covidy” on January 4, 2022:

Covidy also found its way into designer clothing as illustrated below by an Etsy sweatshirt with an “It’s too Covidy Outside” design.

TLPChoodies sold on Etsy

Social Media Trends as of June 6, 2022

Facebook #covidy: people are posting about this
Instagram #covidy: 236 posts
TikTok #covidy: 2.5 million views
YouTube #covidy: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: covidy first appeared during the week of March 15, 2020 around the time of lockdown. The popularity of this search term peaked in July 2021 and then tailed off as the pandemic waned.

covidy search term

Sources:

“Covidy.” Wiktionary. December 2020. URL: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/covidy.

Dallasjeni. “Covidy.” Urban Dictionary. April 13, 2020. URL: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/covidy.

DeRay Davis: Hood Hero. “new word: COVIDY.” Twitter. Jan 4, 2022. URL: https://twitter.com/deraydavis/status/1478508318201102352?lang=en.

Dictionnaire Diabolique. “Covidy.” Urban Dictionary. April 15, 2020. URL: https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/covidy.

TLPChoodies. “It’s Too COVIDY Outside – Sweatshirt JH030 funny sweater jumper self isolation lockdown.” Etsy. URL: https://www.etsy.com/listing/940346973/its-too-covidy-outside-sweatshirt-jh030.

Trevett, Claire. “PM’s US trip: Jacinda Ardern’s plane breaks down in Washington, third Covid case among entourage.” New Zealand Herald. 30 May 2022. URL: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/pms-us-trip-jacinda-arderns-plane-breaks-down-in-washington-third-covid-case-among-entourage/M5RGMZFFCGKPIBNXXH7LOOW6IM/.

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Art

Body mullet

This term refers to a person video conferencing over Zoom who wears business attire on top and casual attire on the bottom which cannot be seen. This trend seems to have started during the pandemic when most office workers were working remotely. It’s sheer laziness to wear a jacket and tie for a Zoom business meeting and tracksuit bottoms below the waist which are not visible to the camera.

An article entitled “Lexicon for a Pandemic” published on July 20, 2020 describes a body mullet as “what most people wear on Zoom calls: a nice top and, below the waist, underwear or less” (Martel).

The Urban Dictionary defines “body mullet” as “Business on top, party on the bottom. When working from home from waist up you appear professional but from the waist down you are wearing, pajama bottoms, shorts, underwear, nothing, etc” (Bolow399).

Check out this funny “Body Mullet” music video by Mike Begra.

Social Media Trends as of June 3, 2022

Facebook #bodymullet: people are posting about this
Instagram #bodymullet: 49 posts
TikTok #bodymullet: 3,899 views

Google Trends: “Body mullet” peaked during the week of July 26, 2020. At this time many office workers were working remotely.

body mullet search term

Sources:

Begra, Mike. “Body Mullet.” YouTube. May 21, 2020. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1C3PqbdMY4.

Bolow399. “Body mullet.” Urban Dictionary. June 15, 2021. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Body%20Mullet.

Martel, Jay. “Lexicon For a Pandemic.” The New Yorker. July 20, 2020. URL: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/07/20/lexicon-for-a-pandem.

Martel, Jay. “Lexicon For a Pandemic.” Twitter (The New Yorker). July 16, 2020. URL: https://twitter.com/newyorker/status/1283960319270944773?lang=en.

Categories
Pandemic

Covid-15

Covid-15 refers to the amount of weight gained during lockdown and quarantine when physical activity was at its lowest and the temptation to visit the fridge was always there. The ’15’ is measured pounds.

The earliest reference I could find for Covid-15 were two entries in the Urban Dictionary for March and June 2020:

Definition #1: “The 15 lbs of weight gain caused by nervously binge eating your COVID-19 food stockpile.

-Oh man, I shouldn’t have eaten the Costco box of ramen, I’m one step closer to hitting my COVID-15″ (one of many).

Definition #2: “Much like the Freshman 15 when a student starts college he gains 15 pounds, the Covid 15 is when people start to gain weight due to inactivity during the Coronavirus pandemic.

–The gym has been closed for so long I think I gained the Covid 15” (newyy1).

To resist the urge to snack while remote working or binge watching Netflix, eat at normal meal times and in moderation. Have healthy snacks on hand like fruit and vegetables instead of chocolate and candy. Don’t over eat or under eat. An article published for The Elliot Hospital website has these tips for staying healthy when you’re home:

“Keeping a food journal is a great way to be aware of ‘mindless’ eating that comes with stress or boredom. Be sure to keep tempting foods out of the house, like chips or bite size chocolates (they add up!).

If you must grab an unhealthy snack, be sure to read the label for serving size and stick to one serving.

Get out of the kitchen! Go for a walk, pick up a book, or make a phone call to a friend to keep your mind off of food.”

Here is a video from News Channel 3-15 featuring helpful advice from Dr. Derek Alessi on how to reverse the weight gain accrued during lockdown. Even though the video is almost two years old, the tips are still relevant, particularly for remote workers!

Social Media Trends as of May 31, 2022

Facebook #covid15: people are posting about this
Instagram #covid15: 10,350 posts
TikTok #covid15: 4.4 million views
YouTube #covid15: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: Covid 15 reached its peak in popularity during the week of March 22, 2020 when everyone was in lockdown.

covid 15 search term

Sources:

“Confronting the COVID-15: Tips for staying healthy while staying home.” The Elliot Hospital. URL: https://www.elliothospital.org/website/pr-Confronting-the-COVID-15-Tips-for-staying-healthy-while-staying-home.php#:~:text=Lack%20of%20routine%20and%20unlimited,%2Dcalled%20%E2%80%9CCOVID%2015.%E2%80%9D.

News Channel 3-12. “Reversing the COVID-15 weight gain with Dr Derek Alessi.” YouTube. Sep 2, 2020. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-q4dL3mXjPM.

newyy1. “Covid-15.” Urban Dictionary. June 8, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=COVID-15.

One of Many. “Covid-15.” Urban Dictionary. March 13, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=COVID-15.

Winnie the Pooh weight gain meme. MamasGeeky.com. April 2020. URL: https://mamasgeeky.com/2020/04/quarantine-weight-gain-memes.html.

Categories
Pandemic

Zoomer(s)

Every generation has its nickname from Boomer to Zoomer, the latter is currently known as Gen Z, the cohort born between 1997 and 2012. During lockdown and quarantine, Gen Z attended virtual school and used Zoom to communicate with their teachers and classmates.

The Seattle Times published an article on February 26, 2021 that discusses certain words and phrases that have become part of the pandemic vocabulary including new words that uniquely describe the experience of living through the Covid era. The author acknowledges that some terms are a “couple of tongue-in-cheek additions that maybe aren’t used daily quite yet – but that certainly should be.”

Zoomer, n. | Definition: 1 Kids who’ve grown up in this age where every social interaction takes place over the video app Zoom. (See also “quaranteen”).  2 Historical/archaic: Adults from the baby boomer generation who think they’re cooler than they are. Example: “Sorry I’ve been MIA at work lately, I’ve got two Zoomers at home and they’re using up all the bandwidth on group Zoom calls with their friends.”

Seattle Times

This isn’t the earliest article where the word zoomer is discussed in a pandemic context. That credit goes to Megan Gerhardt, a Miami University professor who published an opinion piece for NBC News on June 7, 2020 entitled “Coronavirus and Zoom have marked a generation. Let’s call them Zoomers.” Gerhardt discusses how life changing events can influence the naming of generations and some have suggested labeling Gen Z “Coronas” or “Gen P” for Generation Pandemic.

Gerhardt makes the argument that generations should not be named for “tragic disasters” because that label “saddles them with that burden of negativity for life. We didn’t call those who grew up in the late 1920s and early 1930s the ‘Depression Generation,’ nor was Gen X the ‘AIDS Generation’ or Millennials the ‘9/11s’ – those were things they survived, but not how they were defined.” She proposes using a name that honors what a generation has lived through and which captures the positive aspects, as she says “the best name is the one that captures the resiliency this generation will need to bounce back from the impact of the pandemic: The Zoomers. It’s a nod to the former moniker of ‘Z,’ a play on the ‘Boomers’ and an acknowledgment of the dramatic shift to remote communication that will shape the interactions of this generation.”

I decided not to include social media trends for “zoomer” since it has been used as early as 2016 and won’t accurately reflect a pandemic context.

Courtesy of Tarikvision

Sources:

Gerhardt, Megan. “Coronavirus and Zoom have marked a generation. Let’s call them Zoomers.” NCB News. June 10, 2020. URL: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/coronavirus-zoom-have-marked-generation-let-s-call-them-zoomers-ncna1226241.

Seattle Times Staff. “From ‘anti-masker’ to ‘Zooming’: Words and phrases that have become part of our COVID-19 vocabulary.” The Seattle Times. February 26, 2021. URL: https://www.seattletimes.com/life/from-anti-masker-to-zooming-words-and-phrases-that-have-become-part-of-our-covid-19-vocabulary/.

Tarikvision. “3D Isometric Flat Vector Conceptual Illustration of Generation Z, Zoomers.” image. Adobe.com. File no: 415433300.

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Art Vaccine

Vaxed and Waxed

Now I’m vaxxed and I’m waxed
And I’m looking for trouble
Got the Johnson Johnson but I made it a double
Got double meds ’cause my body resist

Country Grits and the Dicks

Vaxed and waxed found its way into the Covid lexicon in the spring of 2021. Escape.com defines it as “the process of getting the Covid vaccine then popping over to the beautician to rid oneself of the bikini line that’s accumulated after a year of hibernation on the couch” (Smiedt).

The phrase became so popular that on April 19, 2021 Mashable.com declared “The people have spoken: ‘Vaxed and waxed’ is the summer 2021 motto.” After more than a year of being cooped up indoors under lockdown and quarantine, whilst practicing social distancing, people are finally ready to go out and party now they’ve been vaccinated. The relief at finally being able to reconnect with friends and family and meeting new people has us “all but screaming ‘vaxed and waxed’ from the rooftops” (Gallucci).

“That’s right, people. It’s only April, but “vaxed and waxed” has already emerged as *the* saying of the summer. People are tweeting the phrase, sharing the news with group chats, and adding the disclaimer to their dating app bios to let everyone know that not only are they fully vaccinated and ready to have a “Shot Girl Summer,” but they’re also waxed and ready to return to the dating scene.”

Galluci, Nicole

For the ladies especially, no “Hot Vax Summer” would be complete without being “Vaxed and Waxed” but according to writer Sam Reed, this “doesn’t have to be literal – it’s an energy. A feeling. It’s the confidence that overcomes you as you’re leaving your Brazilian appointment and everything is, for lack of a better word, sensitive. It’s Hot Girl Summer but for a post-Covid world, where the stakes for a good time are higher than a Project Runway catwalk. It is new, it is fresh, is ready for whatever” (‘Vaxxed and Waxed’ Is the New Hot Girl Summer).

The phrase has found its way into merchandise and apparel. Etsy has a line of “vaxed and waxed” T-shirts, socks, caps and tumblers. The Staying Alive Brand sells a line of T-shirts on Amazon featuring this motif and the description reads “this Vaxed and Waxed apparel is the perfect design for anyone person ready to tell the world you’re vaccinated and ready for action.”

Etsy: Vaxxed and Waxed Unisex T-Shirt

Country rock band Country Grits and the Dicks released the song “Vaxed and Waxed” on July 16, 2021.

courtesy of Pixs:sell

Social Media Trends as of May 25, 2022

Facebook #vaxedandwaxed: 1,100 people are posting about this
Instagram #vaxedandwaxed: 3,156 posts
TikTok #vaxedandwaxed: 1.5 million views

Google Trends: “vaxed and waxed” first appeared in April 2021 just as the phrase started to become mainstream. It reached its peak during the week of May 16, 2021 when people were planning their summer vacations.

vaxed and waxed search term

Sources:

Country Grits and the Dicks. “Vaxed and Waxed.” YouTube. July 16, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8kRYCFKBro.

Country Grits and the Dicks. “Vaxed and Waxed” lyrics. Musixmatch. July 16, 2021. URL: https://www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Country-Grits-the-Dicks/Vaxxed-and-Waxed.

Galluci, Nicole. “The people have spoken: ‘Vaxed and waxed’ is the summer 2021 motto.” Mashable.com. April 19, 2021. URL: https://mashable.com/article/vaxed-waxed-hot-girl-summer-meme.

pixs:sell. “Vaxxed Waxed Ready to Party drink drunk drinking” image. Adobe.com. File no: 437297156.

Reed, Sam. “Vaxxed and Waxed” Is the New Hot Girl Summer.” InStyle.com. May 7, 2021. URL: https://www.instyle.com/beauty/vaxxed-and-waxed-hot-girl-summer.

Smiedt, David. “Vaxxed and waxed: 2021’s sexiest travel trend.” Escape.com. May 13, 2021. URL: https://www.escape.com.au/news/2021s-sexiest-travel-trend/news-story/ce8a486ce139942608526295d52ff5d5.

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Art Pandemic Relationships

Hot Vax Summer

Get that shot, make it hot
Everybody get your card out
Take your mask off
Stick your tongue out
Get your taste back
Shake that ass
It’s a Hot Vax Summer

Wallet Jackson (2021)


It’s been almost a year since vaccinated Americans were ready to go outside once more and celebrate the summer after months of being cooped up indoors, under lockdown, quarantined and fear of catching Covid-19 – hence the phrase “Hot Vax Summer.”

The earliest reference to this phrase is an article published on March 25, 2021 for Scary Mommy: “Adults both partnered and single reported little desire to get it on, whether due to a lack of dating options in quarantine or increased stress thanks to trying to manage work, family, and everything else on top of, you know, worrying about you and your loved ones contracting a deadly virus – but it seems the tides, they are a-changin’, because “hot vax summer” is upon us” (Tschinkel). The article describes the challenges caused by lockdown and quarantine and how people can’t wait to “abandon Zoom and socially distanced meet-ups” so they can actually hang out with people in person and connect with them. Many people were stuck indoors, afraid to go out for fear of catching Covid-19 and some put their dating life on the back burner for over a year. With the freedom that vaccines brought, many felt it was time to go out and let their hair down to enjoy a hot vax summer.

An article published on May 29, 2021 for CNN said “This weekend kicks off ‘Hot Vax Summer,’ an unofficial term meaning that vaccinated Americans are ready to go wild and make up for lost time. We’re going on vacation again, drinking heavily (still), dressing up and eating out” (Valinsky). Dating, happy hour, wining and dining and music concerts were some of the activities people were looking forward to.

The phrase “Hot Vax Summer” is the name of a popular song released in 2021 featuring artists Wallet Jackson and Avocado Banks. They have a website of the same name here where you can download a free “Hot Vax Summer” wallpaper for your cellphone and buy a “Hot Vax Summer” T-shirt with some of the proceeds going to UNICEF to assist with procuring vaccines for countries that can’t afford them.

Social Media Trends as of May 24, 2022

Facebook #hotvaxsummer: 2,500 people are posting about this
Instagram #hotvaxsummer: 8,130 posts
TikTok #hotvaxsummer: 2.5 million views
YouTube #hotvaxsummer: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: “hot vax summer” first appeared during the week of March 21, 2021 and reached its peak that summer before leveling off.

Hot Vax Summer search term

Sources:

Content Discontent. “Hot Vax Summer (official lyric video).” YouTube. April 23, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkbrHMPxKLY.”

HOT VAX SUMMER (feat. Wallet Jackson & Avocado Banks) Lyrics.” Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2022. URL: https://www.lyrics.com/lyric-lf/6015759/Wallet+Jackson/HOT+VAX+SUMMER+%28feat.+Wallet+Jackson+%26+Avocado+Banks%29.

Tschinkel, Arielle. “‘Hot Vax Summer’ Is Coming, Because We All Deserve Human Touch After 2020.” Scary Mommy. March 25, 2021. URL: https://www.scary
mommy.com/covid-vaccine-hot-vax-summer.

Valinksy, Jordan. “7 signs that summer is about to be lit.” CNN. May 29, 2021. URL: https://www.cnn.com/2021/05/29/business/summer-2021-back-to-normal/index.html.

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Art Remote Working

Zoom & Zooming

When office workers were allowed to work from home during lockdown, Zoom became the #1 app for communicating with coworkers but it wasn’t just employees that benefited. Quarantined families could use Zoom to stay in touch with each other and for some events like funerals, Zoom was the only way to say goodbye to our loved ones. This situation was something I experienced when my grandmother died abroad and I could not travel out of the country to attend her funeral due to lockdown and quarantine restrictions in both countries.

An article published on April 29, 2020 for the Philadelphia Inquirer, by the Angry Grammarian, discusses how the pandemic has changed our language and how zoom, a video conferencing app, has become a verb (Barg).

Zooming appears in the Urban Dictionary as “the act of holding a conference call using the Zoom app during the Coronavirus pandemic.

-Mom: Son, go outside, it’s warm.
Son: I can’t, Mom. I’m Zooming with my physics class” (Licensed_nerd).


Some turned Zoom into an art form. Rosetta, a painter who lives in Ontario, Canada, used her Zoom calls to paint portraits of her friends who also happened to be artists themselves. Check out the interview below:

courtesy of KnowYourMeme

Social Media Trends as of May 23, 2022

Because the Zoom app existed prior to the pandemic, I won’t get any meaningful social media results using the #zoom hashtag, despite its use as a verb. Google Trends showed negligible interest in the zoom search term until the second week of March 2020 when it started to go vertical and reached its peak during the first week of April that year. It’s no coincidence that lockdown was in progress then and people and employers were looking for video conferencing apps to stay in touch with family and coworkers. Zoom also happens to be free to use and requires little setup.

Sources:

Barg, Jeffrey. The Angry Grammarian. “How coronavirus made ‘zoom’ a verb and other ways the pandemic has changed our language.” The Philadelphia Inquirer. April 29, 2020. URL: https://www.inquirer.com/opinion/coronavirus-covid-zoom-pandemic-words-linguistic-20200429.html.

CBC News. “Painter turns pandemic Zoom calls into art.” YouTube. March 11, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlwyjEz5U2M.

“Finally understood what Zoom meetings remind me of. ” Know Your Meme. May 14, 2020. URL: https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1850422-zoom.

Licensed_nerd. “Zooming.” Urban Dictionary. March 25, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Zooming.

Categories
Employment Pandemic Remote Working

T.W.A.T (Tuesdays, Wednesdays & Thursdays)

What do you call an employee who only goes into the office on Tuesdays, Wednesdays And Thursdays? The clue is in the first sentence. The original meaning of the term is a derogatory word used often in the United Kingdom.

An article published for SmartCompany.com on February 24, 2022 asks “are you a T.W.A.T?…Before you type me an angry complaint, know that it stands for Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday – it’s an acronym to describe the hybrid workforce who only come into the office three days a week” (Elsworthy).

The Huffington Post published an article on the new meaning of this expression saying that “City workers have reportedly been using the term [T.W.A.T] to describe their cheeky colleagues taking advantage of the new ways of working…one person defended the employees, saying: ‘Perhaps better described as hypertwats. They are generally super efficient in the 3-day work period'” (Bakar).

There are no social media reports for this term (I get everything but the pandemic meaning).

Depending on context, and if you’re not in the office Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, then don’t be a T.W.A.T.


Sources:

Bakar, Fatima. “There’s A New Nickname For Hybrid Workers – And It Sounds A Bit Rude.” Huffington Post. August 10, 2021. URL: https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/amp/
entry/theres-a-new-name-for-remote-workers-and-its-raising-a-lot-of-eyebrows_uk_616005cce4b0196444237826/.

Elsworthy, Emma. “Are you a T.W.A.T? How the pandemic created a new cohort of hybrid workers.” SmartCompany.com. February 24, 2022. URL: https://www.smart
company.com.au/people-human-resources/remote-work/are-you-a-t-w-a-t-hybrid-workers/.

The Age. “Here come the office TWaTs to ruin our city’s buzz.” Twitter. March 4, 2022. URL: https://twitter.com/theage/status/1499709073993969665.

Categories
Employment Pandemic Remote Working

Return to Office

“My experience of working from home is you spend an awful lot of time making another cup of coffee and then, you know, getting up, walking very slowly to the fridge, hacking off a small piece of cheese, then walking very slowly back to your laptop and then forgetting what it was you’re doing” – Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister.

The pandemic arrived in the United States in March 2020 which was quickly followed by a two week quarantine lockdown. State and local governments passed emergency mandates that required non-essential businesses to close. Establishments such as restaurants, gyms, salons and movie theaters were shut down and those who worked for them were out of a job. Knowledge workers such as those working in finance and IT were generally allowed to work from home and apps like Zoom became popular as a way for employees to stay in touch with management and coworkers. My office closed for two weeks till the pandemic had passed. We were instructed to take what we needed to do our jobs remotely. Two weeks became two months and then two years and I am still working from home.

For many, this “new normal” afforded them the opportunity to spend more time with their loved including their pets. No longer having to deal with office commutes, expensive lunches and difficult employees, the work life balance and quality of life improved for those working from home. There are many advantages as a remote worker. All those chores that may have waited till the weekend could be squeezed in between Zoom conferences. You could take the dog for a walk and do a virtual workout in your lunch hour.

After most people had been vaccinated and the pandemic had passed its peak and became endemic, there was a push to get people back to the office. Some who’d gone a long time without human contact looked forward to being back in the office but the majority of virtual workers wanted to keep remote working.

In some industries such as the financial sector, senior management felt their employees worked better in the office collaboratively. David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs, said “I do think for a business like ours which is an innovative, collaborative apprenticeship culture, this is not ideal for us and it’s not a new normal. It’s an aberration that we’re going to correct as quickly as possible” (McKeever). The British prime minister Boris Johnson said “We need to get back into the habit of getting into the office. There will be lots of people who disagree with me, but I believe people are more productive, more energetic, more full of ideas, when they are surrounded by other people.” Boris felt that workers were unproductive while working remotely and were more likely to spend their working hours drinking slow brewed coffee and hacking off pieces of cheese (Taylor).

Some employees threatened to quit if their company forced them to come back to the office and in the age of the Great Resignation there were plenty of remote working jobs out there. A few few were scared to come back to the office for fear of catching Covid-19 but most wanted to keep their work/life balance.

Not every company was so demanding. Many CEOs recognized the benefits of remote working and employees found they were more productive working from home. In order to meet remote workers half way, some companies proposed a hybrid working environment whereby employees would come into the office a few days a week and work from home the rest of the week. Apple Corp created “return to office plans” that allowed employees to work a hybrid schedule with some days in the office and the rest working from home.

@1corporatemillennial

have fun tho 🤣 #YerAWizard #FritoLayRickRoll #StepandFlex #corporatemillennial #9to5 #wfh #millennialsoftiktok #workfromhome #workfromhomehumor #relatable #corporateamerica #corporatetiktok #corporatehumor #officehumor #returntooffice

♬ original sound – Elly | Corporate Millennial


Check out this funny YouTube video on “when meetings are no longer virtual” (Foil Arms and Hog).


The pandemic has changed the lives of office workers forever. Working Monday to Friday in the office from 9-5 is over. Hybrid and remote working schedules are here to stay.

pooiekoo

Social Media Trends as of May 20, 2022

Facebook #returntooffice: 5,500 people are posting about this
Instagram #returntooffice: 9,494 posts
TikTok #returntooffice: 34 million views
YouTube #returntooffice: 153 videos and 108 channels

Google Trends: “return to office” as a search term has been around for a while but its popularity peaked in August 2021 as vaccines became widely available and state and local governments decided that it was safe to come back to the office.

return to office search term

Sources:

Elly | Corporate Millennial. “When they announce the ‘return to office’ plan.” TikTok. December 30, 2021. URL: https://www.tiktok.com/@1corporatemillennial/
video/7047542286145834287?is_copy_url=1&is_from_webapp=v1&lang=en.

Foil Arms and Hog. “Back to the Office: When Meetings are No Longer Virtual.” YouTube. September 2, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mU9VYcQWSOc.

McKeever, Vicky. “Goldman Sachs CEO Solomon calls working from home an ‘aberration’.” CNBC.com. February 25, 2021. URL: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/
25/goldman-sachs-ceo-solomon-calls-working-from-home-an-aberration-.html.

pooiekoo. “Welcome Note with Hand Sanitizer and Mask on Work Keyboard, Return to Workplace Pandemic” image. Adobe.com. File no: 359144776.

Taylor, Harry. “Boris Johnson says cheese and coffee can distract when working from home.” The Guardian. 14 May 2022. URL: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/
2022/may/14/boris-johnson-urges-more-people-to-return-to-office-working.