#WFH Diaries: Julia Deshayes and Léna Monceau of TBWA\Paris

We're far from pandemic-free. And while that's still the case, we'll be checking in with creative industry folks to learn how they're adapting. Here's an update from Julia Deshayes and Léna Monceau.

Give us one-line bios of yourselves.

Julia Deshayes, 31 years old, and Léna Monceau, 32 years old, a creative team at TBWA\Paris.

Where are you living right now, and who's with you?

We both live in Paris with our humans, pets and neighbors.

What's your work situation like at the moment?

Working at home is like working at the office, except colleagues don't knock at the door offering sweets and gossip.

Describe your socializing strategy.

Speaking loud and clear, so the neighbors understand what we're saying. Also, we both decided to re-download Instagram. We tried to detox months ago, but ...  Covid.

How are you dealing with childcare?

Julia: Is a cat a child? 

Léna: Never get too close to a child.

What are you reading?

Léna: Into the Forest by Jean Hegland, a must-read when you're cut off from the rest of the world.

Julia: I'm taking advantage of confinement to nourish my vocation as a repressed astrophysicist. I just finished The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene, an exploration of superstring theory that aims to unify all the theories of physics. Fascinating and very useful in everyday life.

What are you watching?

Léna: The Martian, Cast Away and I Am Legend. For obvious reasons.

Julia: I watch TV reruns of legendary moments from Tour de France in 2000, including the ascent of Mont Ventoux with Marco Pantani, and the victory of Lance Armstrong (oops! spoiler).

What are you listening to?

Silent Paris. First album.

How are you staying fit?

We run together three times a week, maintaining a safe distance of about 7 km (4 miles) between us.

Have you taken up a hobby?

Julia: I decided to learn to play the violin again; I take lessons via Skype. The goal is to form a violin/bass duo with my boyfriend on Beyoncé's Halo. My neighbors love me.

Léna: I decided to listen to Julia learning to play the violin.

Any tips for getting necessities?

Wash your hands. And don't forget the rest of your body.

An awkward moment since all this started.

Julia: At the supermarket, an old lady took out a tape measure to ensure I was keeping a good distance from her.

Léna: The drug cartel that moved in next door.

Best work email you got since all this started.

Probably the one saying we "remote-won" a pitch, meaning we're gonna "remote-produce"! And also the email reminding us to fill out our timesheets.

An aha! moment since all this started.

The risks of screen-sharing, with conversation windows popping up at very unexpected moments.

What's your theory on how this is going to play out?

Léna: It feels like we're going to have to get used to wearing masks and learn to like it.

Julia: The only theory I'm trying to master is that of superstrings.

See the full #WFH Diaries series here.

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