For two long years, every single day became a staring contest with our screens. Working from home and attending online classes – not gonna lie, can be a pain in the ass eyes, so we can’t really judge anyone for skipping a meeting or missing a class or two. A good, solid, and legit-sounding reason is the key to getting a day off without guilt.

But now that everything is slowly reverting to normal, it’s time to bid goodbye to our dirty little secrets to skip work and/or school. But first, a quick disclaimer: we’re not saying that these excuses aren’t ever legitimate. Working and studying from home was/is a struggle, after all. But without these excuses to fall back on when we’re just not in the mood, we’ll have to get more creative or, you know, actually get some work done for a change.

1. Intermittent wifi when it rains

This was one of the most believable reasons to ditch a Zoom session because it does happen a lot, especially during the rainy season. Your supervisor/teacher couldn’t force you to fix your wifi router or stop the rain. You’re not a technician nor a god. And they couldn’t just invalidate this without knowing the weather in your area at that very moment. It might not be raining in Manila but it might be flooding in Zamboanga. Wifi could be fast in Palawan but very slow in Cebu… who will know? (They’ll never know.)

2. Internet problems/repairs around the area

Internet providers are quick in handing you your monthly bill but are almost always delayed in restoring service no matter how many times you call. This situation was beyond your control, and so during lockdown, it was a good excuse to free up your day from deadlines. Because what were they going to do? Call the telco and get it fixed before your 8 a.m. meeting? If only things were that easy.

3. Broken microphone/camera

There were times when you were just not in the mood to talk and wear a fake smile. Or maybe you just weren’t camera-ready — you were in the middle of a hearty snack or the house was a mess. So when asked to turn on your mic and cam, it was so easy to just say that they weren’t working. . Easy peasy.

4. Sudden brownout

Well, there are some areas all over the country where power interruptions are the norm. A scattering of rain or just a truck hitting some wires could cause these unwanted disruptions. So this was a 100% reasonable excuse because you could not do anything about it. You are not Electro!

5. Sharing devices with my siblings/parents

Filipinos love being thrifty and generous at the same time. Providing a device for each member of the family is not the most practical thing to do especially if the budget is tight. Hence, many of us had to share devices with siblings/parents for work and/or school. Of course, schedule overlaps were bound to happen, which is why this was one great excuse to miss class. Professors understand this scenario and what could they do about it? Barge into your house to see if your sibling is really using the family’s laptop?

6. Device crashed

Whose device would not crash if it is used 24/7 and shared with other family members? What are they gonna say? Buy a new one? No, that’s not how it works! Everyone knows that phones and laptops are prone to issues especially if they are overused. You could slip off a little note saying: ‘I will be going to a technician to get this fixed ASAP,’ and voila, a delightful rest day.

7. Vaccination appointment/feeling sick