Yesterday on Outside the Box, I did a post on writerly things you can do during this chaotic time. But hey, there are other things we can do, too.
- Read. Well, duh.
- Clean. I expect this whole thing is going to go one of two ways - either your house will be sparkling or it'll be a total mess by the end of this.
- Organize your closets. You know you've been thinking about it for months.
- Go outside. Like I said yesterday, this whole 'stay inside' thing is to keep people away from each other to keep the disease from spreading. Find a place outside where you're at least 6 feet away from people and soak up some outdoors. Unfortunately, with all these governors issuing 'stay at home' orders, it makes it hard to get in a car and go to an open space. I worry for my friend in CA who likes to take her dog for a walk and whether she'll be nailed for being away from her house.
- Organize your books. If you haven't already, I mean.
- Go online and look at art, listen to music, watch an opera or a play, learn a new skill, teach yourself something. There is a wealth of information on the internet and some of it is pretty awesome.
- Email a friend you haven't talked to in a while.
- Better yet, call.
- Bake stuff. Well, as much as you can if you're low on supplies and can't get out to get more.
- Play games. I found an online mahjong site that's kind of fun and distracting. (Note: wait until the green Play Now button comes up. Do not click the blue Play Now button.)
- Draw stuff.
- Be active. Exercise. Dance. Walk, if you can get out anywhere.
And if you need to, reach out to someone. Forced isolation sucks and it can be hard on your mental health. We all get it. If you don't have anyone you can reach out to, there are mental health supports out there. I hope none of you are in that scary place, but the Suicide Hotline is available for those who need it.
Hang in there and stay safe. :HUGS:
Saw where MI was going on shut-down. Did the Kid get out in time?
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If you live in an apartment building, organize a sing-along through your open windows. It started in Italy. Chicago, Dallas, and likely other places took up the "challenge."
If you have grandchildren or nieces and/nephews, offer to teach an on-line class or host a story hour over Skype, Zoom, or some other on-line "meeting" app.
Lots of zoos and museums are offering virtual tours and/or behind the scenes looks.
If it's warm enough, open your windows. Let fresh air in.
Check out the on-line capabilities of your local library, since most libraries are closed. Many offer movies, newspapers, magazines, books and audio books.
Make a list of all the things you've meant to do, or want to do, to your living space. Figure out a way to do some of them and mark things off the list.
Just a few more ideas. Of course, those of us used to the isolation need to get our butts in our chairs and churn out some words or fix the words we've already written.
We'll get through this, and hopefully come out better for it on the other side!
Ohhhh-kayyyy... I hope that comment went through. Normally I get a message about mmoderation. This time, nothing. *sigh* 🤞 it didn't get swallowed by the vast cosmic void...
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