AUC Press staff are also working from home these days, trying to adjust to a new routine, holding meetings online, carving out work spaces, and improvising coffee breaks. Books seem to be helping in more ways than one. Here, some colleagues share their thoughts on what it is like to work from home, how they relax, and how they get inspired.
“I started a virtual Shakespeare Reading Group with friends of mine. We meet on Sundays at 3:00 and read our assigned parts for about two hours. We started with Hamlet and will finish it up next week. Then it’s onto King Lear.”—Anne Routon, senior acquisitions editor (NY office)
“Taking a coffee break from my living room window, overlooking Alexandria’s Corniche.”—Cherif Samaan, operation manager, distribution center (originally from Alexandria).
“I am very sociable, so working from home is not always fun. For me, the highlight of the day is usually a Zoom meeting with my colleagues. I miss our office meetings a lot and the morning coffee on my desk. At the moment, I am reading ”Never Let Me Go” by Kazuo Ishiguro and another history book about kings and queens of England.”—Ester Nader, AUC Bookstores senior officer
“Exploring Shourouk’s ‘Happiness Jar,’ bought during the Cairo International Book Fair in January.”—Ingrid Wassmann, senior web editor
“I normally work at home anyway, so my work routine hasn’t changed at all. The biggest drawback is that I miss dropping into the AUC Press office once in a while just to see everyone. When my nose isn’t to the editorial grindstone, I’m binge-reading Dorothy L. Sayers’s Lord Peter Wimsey mysteries, including the four more recent additions to the series by Jill Paton Walsh.”—Jody Baboukis, freelance editor
“Actually working from home with cats is very challenging! I have two Persians—mother and daughter. They are so curious about my laptop! Once I turn it on the little one keeps jumping on the keyboard and sometimes she insists on sleeping on it”—Noor al-Beiruti, senior specialist, production
“Working in self-isolation has been challenging! It made me realize how much I enjoy going to my office and seeing my colleagues every day. But it also has put us under the adaptability test as we continue to find new ways to be productive bringing books to our readers. Daydreaming about the first-day back in the office and how wonderful it will feel!”—Suzan Kenawy, marketing manager
