The world is panicking over the Coronavirus. It seems like everything changed in an instant. It was just a few days ago when we were all buzzing around, socializing whenever and with whomever we wanted. Life, as we?ve known it, may never be the same.
Many of us are wondering what we can do during this time to bring some peace to our lives and the lives of those around us. There are some people that seem hellbent on spreading fear and gloom. Others are fighting hard to RESIST being brought down by what I like to term ?The Coronavirus Blues.? I?m one of those people. It?s not easy though. Being confined to our homes can make us feel like prisoners. However, it?s all in how we look at things.
Try using this time to reconnect with yourself and your family. Think of it as a ?staycation? instead of imprisonment. We don?t know how long it will last. There?s nothing that you or I can directly do about it unless you?re working in the White House or for the CDC. Follow the recommended guidelines and start working on some of your long overdue household projects or treat yourself to some relaxation.
If you need some suggestions of things to do, here?s what I?ve been occupying myself with. There are also lots of ideas online to get you started on your own ?staycation.? Make sure you share some of your endeavors and activities online or with family and friends. We all need to support one another during this never-before-seen time.
What To Do (in no particular order)
1. Spa-At-Home. Take long baths and/or showers. In normal circumstances, we are usually rushing, rushing, rushing and don?t take the time to relish a leisurely bath. Paint your nails! Get creative. While you?re at it, you can throw out the old polish. Put on a facial mask. It?s pretty fun to wear this around and scare everyone. Try having a serious conversation with one of these masks on?? It?s also a great way to diffuse tension in your house during this trying time. Haha!
2. Play board games. If you?re like me, you may have thrown a lot away. Thankfully, I kept a few favorites and we?ve been playing them! UNO, Scrabble, Trivia?Ask your teenagers to turn their phones off for 30 minutes while you play. If they moan and groan, bribe them with homemade cookies. If all goes well, they?ll forget the time and you?ll get to laugh together and get an inside scoop on their lives (unbeknownst to them, of course.).
3. Clean. Don?t wake up and tell yourself ?I?m going to clean today!? Yuck. No one wants to hear that. Just let it happen. There are very few time constraints during the present moment. After you shower, sit down and start going through that bathroom drawer, then the cabinet. Before you know it, you?ve eliminated half of the junk in your bathroom and you?re feeling pretty good about your home and yourself.
4. Netflix-without-guilt. This is a great time to invest in a new show. Get sucked in and binge for a day. Allow yourself to lay on your sofa and doze off. That rarely happens during ?normal? life at my home. I?m always on a schedule and have the need to feel productive almost every hour of the day. You can find a family show to watch with your kids or significant other AND find your own special show…something no one else would ever want to watch with you. Perfect.
5. Ramp up your workout routine. Instagram users have had numerous fitness challenges posted periodically. I ?? Instagram. My workouts were getting a little boring and so I decided there was no excuse not to add something new. Thankfully, I completed the first one yesterday! It was a ?100-burpees-a-day? challenge. There have been a few others as well. It was nice to have others from all over the country involved in the same program. We would post our progress and continually encourage one another! If your weather?s nice, get outside and take some hikes or explore some of the relatively close parks.
6. Catch up with friends?actually, call them and speak. Go beyond the text message. This is a great time to reach out to some of the friends or family that you may have lost regular contact with. When was the last time you were able to have a long, uninterrupted phone conversation? Friendly, unhurried phone calls seem almost extinct these days. It?s always nice to receive a call from someone and to be told that you were on someone?s mind, isn?t it? You can light up a person?s day with a phone call.
(pic of beer/pizza)
7. Drink beer at noon. My neighborhood recently had a pizza truck from a local brewery drive up offering pizza and several selections of their local beer. It was 11 am! I happened to be out for a walk and saw them when returning home. It was so unconventional and surprisingly fun! Several people were ordering and walking away with six-packs. Why not? Lunch was served. As I was putting the beer in the fridge, a little voice told me that I could have a beer right then. And I did. It was just a mini celebration. I sat down and worked at my desk with a cold one right next to me. That?s not something we typically allow ourselves. Let?s relax and have a little fun during this mini-break from life!
8. Read a book. Admittedly, for me, books and magazines are typically put to the side because that often seems impractical or an ineffective use of time when prioritizing my schedule. There are always several books that I?m reading here and there. Finally, I?ve taken some time each day to make some progress on several books. I love to read and it?s so nice to have lots of leisure time to entertain and educate myself on other subjects. If you don?t have a huge list of books you?d like to read, I?m sure you can get some suggestions from friends or online. For me, I like to have several different types of books loaded on my iPad. Depending on my mood, I?ll choose what I?m interested in reading each day.
9. Try out something new or something you haven?t done in a very long time. There are so many things I can think of for myself right now. I used to sew. My sewing machine has been collecting dust for years. Hopefully, I?ll get that out and make a little something-currently considering a shower curtain. Pump some air in your bike?s tires and go find some new neighborhoods or riding trails to explore. The more creative and more active, the better. We all need to stay positive and do what we can to keep our mood boosted. Keep your body and brain busy during this time.
10. Dance. As many of you know, dancing is always something enjoyable to me. You can?t dance and not smile. We can always use more smiles! With all of the ways to listen to great tunes these days (hey, I remember scratched up records that would skip endlessly), there?s no excuse to get moving. Your pets and kids may think you?ve lost your mind a little bit but, it?s good to keep everyone on their toes. If they think you?re about to snap, you?ll find everyone much more agreeable. We want that right now. ?
Hopefully, the things that I?ve been doing during the past several days will give you some ideas. There?s no good excuse to lay in bed or on your sofa worrying about things you can?t control. Do everything you can right now to keep your mood boosted. Your actions will motivate others as well to get creative and enjoy this downtime. I hope your family and friends follow the recommendations and stay healthy.
