What is a person to do while cooped up at home for the foreseeable future? Here are 20 ideas to keep you busy and entertain you and your family while social distancing.
1. Document Life.
These are strange times in which we are living. Make a point to document life during this time. You could do a photo project, a video a day, keep an old fashioned written journal, or start a blog.
2. Stick to a schedule or make a list of things to do every day.
While in some ways, I’m a creature of habit, I tend to rebel against a strict schedule. I do however know that there are certain things that make my days better, so I’m making a list of those things and attempting to do each of them for at least a few minutes every day. A schedule or list will help you use this time wisely.
3. Work on projects you’ve been putting off.
If you are anything like me, you have a long mental list of projects that you would like to do…someday. There’s no time like the present. I have three lamps I want to re-wire; artwork to create for some blank walls; some chairs to refinish, and a few sewing projects.
4. Limit your media intake.
I will definitely be doing my share of binge-watching television and scrolling social media; but I know for the sake of my happiness, I need to limit these things and not spend my entire day on Facebook while watching television. I think setting limits is healthy. My goal will be to primarily limit TV watching to the evenings.
5. Stay in touch.
Social distancing doesn’t have to mean social isolation. Text, call, or even FaceTime your friends and family, especially those that live alone. You could play online games like Yahtzee or Monopoly. My sister and I watch The Masked Singer “together” via text every week. You could do that with lots of things.
6. Care for someone or something.
I think we are all feeling a bit of stress; do what you can to add caring and kindness to your corner of the world. Call elderly family, friends, and neighbors to see if you can run an errand for them. Or consider fostering an animal; shelters are likely to be hit hard due to a lack of adoptions during this time. Take extra special care of your plants. If you don’t have one pick one up at the grocery store. I gave my plants a much-needed shower over the weekend (removing any dust that had collected on their leaves).
7. Get some fresh air.
Sunshine and fresh air helped during the Spanish Flu and is just as good for us today. If nothing else, it will help with your mental health. I’ve been keeping up my daily dog walks and have seen more people out walking the neighborhood than I usually do.
8. Make music.
Sing a song. Play an instrument. If you don’t know how to play an instrument, learn. You could try your hand at the harmonica, ukulele, guitar, or even the banjo! YouTube is filled with lessons. If none of this appeals to you, create Spotify playlists for every occasion.
9. Make something.
I plan to pull out my yarn and crochet hooks and work on a baby blanket this month. If you want to try something new, Skillshare and CreativeBug both offer classes in a variety of topics including arts, crafts, illustration, design, photography, and video.
10. Read a book.
If you haven’t touched a book since school, now is a great time to take up reading again. I plan on sharing some of my favorite books in an upcoming post.
11. Watch something outside of your usual genres.
I love British and Australian TV. Watching programs made in other countries adds a hint of the exotic to my television consumption. Acorn and BritBox are great sources for this kind of programming.
12. Learn something new.
Take an afternoon and research something that interests you. Better yet, take an online class. The Great Courses and Coursera have lots of options. Or learn sign language, knife skills, how to tie knots, crochet, draw, or pick locks.
13. Do a puzzle.
Here are some good ones: one, two, three, four, five.
14. Get to inbox-zero.
This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. My goal is to make it happen over the next couple of weeks. I will let you know how I do.
15. Organize your photos.
Clean out the photos on your phone & back them up to your computer. The Gemini Photos App helps find duplicates and makes the process a little easier. You could also scan and organize all your old-school photographs.
16. Take a virtual field trip.
Google Arts & Culture has an amazing collection (over 500 museums and galleries) of art from museums around the world.
17. Explore your city library’s online offerings.
Most libraries offer access to ebooks & audiobooks through OverDrive; magazines through RBDigital, and other media, including videos, through Hoopla & Kanopy. It’s probably easiest to search your library’s website for what they offer in the way of downloading and streaming.
18. Curate your social media.
I’m pretty ruthless when it comes to the accounts I follow. I believe, now more than ever, it’s important to limit the negativity in life. I tend to get a little more anxious after spending time on Facebook because it’s more difficult to curate, but my Instagram feed is full of positivity. In fact, I have lots of saved posts of things that make me happy. When I get anxious, it makes me happy to scroll through those posts.
19. Do a fitness challenge.
Getting out of my mind and into my body is a huge stress reliever for me. Yoga is my number one way to do that. I have done this 30-day challenge in the past and also really like doing Sarah Beth’s videos.
20. Deep clean and organize your home.
There’s probably never been a better time for spring cleaning. When things feel out of control, a great way to feel in control is to be in control of your stuff.
What are you doing to keep yourself busy while social distancing?
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