Bay of Plenty Times
  • Bay of Plenty Times home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Sport

Locations

  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Katikati
  • Tauranga
  • Mount Maunganui
  • Pāpāmoa
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Bay of Plenty Times / Opinion

Kristin Macfarlane: Why I'm enjoying the Covid 19 Coronavirus lockdown

Kristin Macfarlane
By Kristin Macfarlane
Bay of Plenty Times·
31 Mar, 2020 08:00 PM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

The benefits of lockdown go beyond health and safety. Photo / Andrew warner

The benefits of lockdown go beyond health and safety. Photo / Andrew warner

Kristin Macfarlane
Opinion by Kristin MacfarlaneLearn more

On Sunday, I taped an old branch to the broken handle of my broom so I could keep using it.

As I was taping I thought about that if the handle snapped the week before, I probably would have driven to Mitre 10 and bought a new one.

But in the coronavirus lockdown, it's not possible.

We're now forced to forget the life of convenience many of us have lived and get back to basics, which can't be a bad thing.

NeedToKnow3
NeedToKnow3
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Instead of buying takeaways because we "ran out of time" to cook, didn't have all the ingredients we needed for a foodie-approved meal or because we just couldn't be bothered, we're now adapting our meals to what we have in pantries, fridges and freezers.

We've been given the chance to remember to eat to live, instead of living to eat.

We've become more aware of being more sustainable, prompting many in our communities to consider growing their vegetables.

Instead of looking at going somewhere, surrounded by people, in our spare time, we're reconnecting with our own families in a more private setting. We're saving money rather than spending it on things that we don't really need. We're getting jobs around the house that we had delayed for so long because we had "other things to do". We're getting creative about how to spend time at home, we're learning new skills and we're re-discovering items we forgot we had and realising we have plenty to keep us entertained at home.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Covid-19 is a serious problem and staying home and in our bubbles is vital for the health and safety of our country. But if you ask me, the benefits go well beyond this.

We're giving nature a break - Mauao included. Fewer cars and planes being used mean fewer emissions polluting our environment.

Discover more

Separating work from home while working from home

26 Mar 10:01 PM

'Most health care workers in the front line are fairly worried'

27 Mar 09:00 PM

'We don't want to get to a place where we have to enforce these restrictions'

01 Apr 10:00 PM

Juliet Rowan: The dark reality of week one in lockdown

27 Mar 08:31 PM

And we're thinking outside the convenience bubble we've become accustomed to – something I'd assume we're struggling with more than our grandparents.

From Massey University's free online te reo Māori and tikanga Māori courses, to one of my favourite artists, James Bay, giving guitar tutorials on Instagram and the multiple group video calls I've had in recent days on top of my normal work, life and family duties, I can't imagine feeling bored over these weeks of lockdown.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

Bay of Plenty Times

'Current hotspot': Back-to-back national titles for Tauranga basketballers

10 Jul 06:13 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

Kaitiaki fight pathogen endangering iconic Mauao pōhutukawa

10 Jul 06:03 AM
Bay of Plenty Times

'Highly venomous': Deadly sea snake washes up on Coromandel beach

10 Jul 05:38 AM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Bay of Plenty Times

'Current hotspot': Back-to-back national titles for Tauranga basketballers

'Current hotspot': Back-to-back national titles for Tauranga basketballers

10 Jul 06:13 AM

The Under-18 and Under-20 women's teams won their championships.

Kaitiaki fight pathogen endangering iconic Mauao pōhutukawa

Kaitiaki fight pathogen endangering iconic Mauao pōhutukawa

10 Jul 06:03 AM
'Highly venomous': Deadly sea snake washes up on Coromandel beach

'Highly venomous': Deadly sea snake washes up on Coromandel beach

10 Jul 05:38 AM
Heavy rain warning likely for BoP – MetService

Heavy rain warning likely for BoP – MetService

10 Jul 12:40 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Bay of Plenty Times e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Bay of Plenty Times
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP