We get it: you’re bored as heck alone with this whole social distancing thing. I mean, who even came up with that sugar-coated name? We all know that in reality, it’s physical distancing. Which means no real hang-outs, out and abouts, or anything in between.

But humans are social animals and nothing can stop us from making friends. Especially when the neighbor across the street seems like you’d have a lot in common. This is what happened to a computer science student named Steve. He’d had enough of that eye contact and decided to make friends the quarantine way. After Steve, known as u/Rustycougarmama on Reddit, glued a couple of “want 2 be friends” sheets on a window, the neighbor took it right from there and the chat began. Bored Panda contacted Steve for an interview and found out what he had to say about making friends in self-isolation.

Curious about the neighbor in the opposite building, Steve decided to make friends the quarantine way

Image credits: Rustycougarmama

And it worked!

Bored Panda contacted Steve, the guy behind this quarantine friendship story. It turns out Steve is from Canada, but recently moved to Aalborg in Denmark for computer science studies. He told us that the idea to put up a note for his neighbor friend came after thinking “I kind of want to say hi and see what he’s up to.”

Steve would see the neighbor every day, as they’d “both just sit at our computers and work for days on end.” He had massive windows and some scrap paper at hand. “Maybe Taylor Swift inspired me subconsciously,” he laughed.

Steve was honest to say that the current crisis hasn’t changed his routine too much. “Being a computer science student that has an online part-time job anyways, this whole Covid-19 hasn’t affected my life that much.” His life goes on as usual. The only good thing is that “after working till 17:00, I’m off duty, which has really helped me mentally. No emails or nothing after that!”

It turned out the two neighbors have a lot in common!

Image credits: Rustycougarmama

The computer science student is blown away by how well the people of Denmark have dealt with everything. “Of course we all still need to go shopping for groceries and such, but all the people you meet on the street give a smile, a nod of acknowledgment, and then a wide berth when walking past,” he said.

But staying home alone isn’t always easy. Luckily, Steve stays connected through Discord, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Reddit, and other social media. “This is how the world stays connected and battles loneliness now.”

And for those who’re wondering—yes, Steve and his new friend are still writing to each other! But the quarantine is nowhere near the end, and paper supplies are running fast. “Because of this, once I run out, I’ll finally pop the big question…”Do you wanna be Discord friends?” To be continued!

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