The COVID-19 pandemic has brought surprises and difficulties for many of us. Adjusting to the new rules and regulations which guide our daily routines has taken some getting used to. Dealing with all of this has thrown a spanner in the works that nobody imagined we would be contending with at all, never mind still wrestling with as we progress through the beginning months of 2021. It has for me however, also provided a new job and with it a unique opportunity to train and grow as a scientist amid the pandemic.