In most cases when there’s a tragedy or a crisis in the world, we’re left feeling pretty helpless because there’s not much we can do. We’re far away, we lack expertise, and all we can do is watch and send positive thoughts. With the coronavirus, there’s something every single one of us can do to help.
We can stay at home.
For some people, this may seem like it’s nowhere near enough. After all, we’re not at the frontlines fighting for people’s lives like our healthcare workers or working against the clock in a lab trying to make a vaccine like our scientists.
Wrong mindset. The importance of staying at home cannot be stressed enough. This is the only way we can protect the vulnerable members of our society, slow down the pandemic, and thus save our health care system from collapsing under the stress of too many patients.
For me, this is an empowering thought. I feel like I’m helping a little, I’m doing my part to protect my mother who has just turned 70, my brother who’s a doctor working at the hospital, other family members, friends, and millions of strangers as well.
(Note: I’m not forgetting that for a lot of people staying at home is either not a possibility or dangerous to their mental or physical health. This post is for us, the privileged ones.)
So, I’m trying to make the most of the situation. These are the things and simple rituals I’m doing at home to keep me busy, balanced, and positive.
Cozy up the apartment
I’ve always been a big proponent of wellness-focused interior design but it’s never been more important to create a mindful environment at home. I’ve started day 1 of the self-isolation with a thorough cleaning and organizing session. I have a huge bouquet of flowers on my kitchen counter. I burn energizing essential oils in my diffuser (like blood orange, tangerine, lemongrass, mint, rosemary, ginger, bergamot, lime, and grapefruit). I also have the humidifier on all day – the room can get dry so quickly when the heat is on, so it helps a lot. Natural light, sunshine, and some fresh air are also essential.
If you wanna listen to some podcast while organizing your home, here are all my recommendations:
- 5 inspiring podcasts about sustainable and ethical living
- The best wellness podcasts
- Podcasts for creative entrepreneurs
- Podcasts for bloggers
- 7 podcasts for binge-listening
- 5 beauty podcasts
Have a schedule
Take it from someone who has been working from home for more than 2 years now – having a schedule is essential. It can seem like you have all the time in the world, but without some rules it can quickly disappear. So I start my day with a to-do list, divide work sessions, schedule in breakfast, lunch, and dinner, workouts, walks, phone calls, and leisure time as well to be productive as much as I can. My Pomodoro scheduling and productivity app is also a huge help.
Read, read, read
I’m on a 70 books a year mission this year and have towers of unread books next to my bed to keep me going. I usually alternate between fiction and non-fiction books, but nowadays I read mostly fiction, and choose books from my page-turners list (yeah, I have a bunch of thematic book lists:)). I think that’s one of the best ways to forget about what’s going on outside for a short time and recharge my mind in a way. Here are some books that I can recommend if you’re looking for a hard-to-put-down read.
+ American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins: Loved this book. It tells the story of Lydia and her small son who have to flee Mexico because of cartel violence and try to get over to the US. It’s a real thriller but also a quite eye-opening account of what migrants have to go through on their journeys.
+ Daisy Jones & The Six and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid: Both of them are highly entertaining, light books with lots of glamour. Daisy Jones is about the rise and fall of a fictional rock star band in the 70s, it’s like a book version of the movie Almost Famous. Seven Husbands is about the life and love stories of one of the biggest movie stars in the world.
+ The Seven Lives of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton: Similar title, but totally different genre. This murder mystery is like a modern version of an Agatha Christie novel – with very unexpected twists.
+ Any books by Donna Tartt: The thing about Donna Tartt is that she’s an incredibly gifted storyteller but her books are gigantically long so you kinda have to commit the time – but they are so worth it. I’ve already read The Secret History, which is a mystery novel, set in an elite college and The Goldfinch, which is the coming-of-age novel of a 13-year old boy. He survives a terrible terrorist attack in a museum, and amidst the chaos and because he’s in a shock steals one of the most famous and valuable paintings in history and this draws him into the underworld of art. I’m currently on her 3rd novel, The Little Friend, another mystery adventure about a girl whose brother was found dead 10 years prior and now she wants to investigate what happened.
On my Netflix watchlist
I’m painfully behind the hit shows of the time, which is a good thing now I guess as I have lots of options to choose from. Currently on my watchlist:
+ Narcos and Narcos Mexico (Netflix): Just started watching Narcos, which tells the rise of Pablo Escobar and the Columbian drug cartels.
+ Westworld season 3 (HBO): Season 3 came just in time. I loved the first season, like the second one, and can’t wait to see where they take the story this time.
+ Killing Eve season 3 (coming soon to HBO): In a way, I have mixed views about this one. Some of the storylines are utterly ridiculous, borderline annoying, and yet, it’s so addictive. This is largely due to the highly entertaining character of the psychopath assassin (and the actress who plays her, Jodie Comer).
+ Succession (HBO): A critically acclaimed satirical-comedy drama about the dysfunctional owners of a global media empire who are fighting for control of the company when the patriarch begins to step down.
+ Russian Doll (Netflix): Came across this when browsing Netflix, it’s about a woman who repeatedly dies on her 36th birthday and relives the same night in an ongoing surreal time loop while she tries to solve it.
+ The Sopranos (HBO): Been meaning to watch this classic series about an American mafia family for so long.
+ Explained (Netflix): I have a bunch of documentaries on my watchlist but trying to be mindful of what I’m consuming now so I postponed watching Pandemic and The Pharmacist at the moment. Explained seems like a safer bet (though pretty serious still) – it investigates a different global issue in each episode providing a short history and explanations. Topics include the future of meat, the gender pay gap, the rise of K-pop, cults, animal intelligence, tattoos, and much more.
+ Rotten (Netflix): I’ve seen a couple of episodes of this already, it’s a super interesting documentary series of various global food issues. It investigates things like honey adulteration, the rising occurrence of peanut allergies, avocado cartels, problems in the global fish industry, and so on.
Declutter and organize my wardrobe
Another thing that has been on my to-do list for some time – so much so that some of my clothes have been living on my couch for 2 weeks waiting to be ironed before I donate them. I haven’t done a wardrobe decluttering for some time and I want to be ruthless. I also have some items I want to sell, which means I need to take some time to photograph and describe them.
At this point, I think I might as well take away the winter clothes.
Working out at home
I have this love-hate relationship with exercising. I envy all those people who love working out so passionately that it becomes such a natural thing for them like eating or breathing. I’m so not that type of person. I could easily go months without much moving and it takes at least 30 minutes of mental preparation for me to get myself over to the gym.
However, I also love the feeling of a good workout. I’m incredibly competitive (mostly with myself but with others as well), so once I’m there or I start a workout routine I can commit to it. But a couple of missed sessions and I’m back on the couch.
I’ve just started working out regularly again a couple of weeks ago, but the gym is of course out of the question now. But for once, I don’t wanna lose momentum so I schedule some kind of exercise for every single day. Some days it’s a longer YouTube workout, on others a pilates session, a run, or even just a 10 minutes stretching, but I’m committed to doing something every single day.
Make some progress with the apartment
It’s been almost a year since we’ve moved into our new home but it’s still soo far from being finished. I don’t wanna be unfair with ourselves, we did make a lot of progress, but there are also a lot of things we keep postponing. Now it’s time for leapfrogging instead of slow baby steps. I’m collecting inspiration (here’s a list of some of my favorite minimalist design blogs), making lists of stuff to do or buy (later, of course), and wandering around the apartment with a sketchbook trying to design the remaining empty areas (like my office space which is right now basically a tiny bunker made from cardboard boxes).
Drink lots of tea
My daily tea ritual is one of my favorite self-care activities. Making fresh tea (always loose leaf) is good for hydration, packed with antioxidants, and it’s a great way to find a moment of calm. Currently hooked on Japanese green tea with dried cherry, genmaicha, and yellow tea.
Have virtual parties with friends
Instead of personal meetings or group chats, now we’re organizing conference calls – with a cup of tea (morning talk) or glass of wine (night session).
Plan my travels
Traveling is out of the question for the foreseeable future, but I keep my wanderlust satisfied by planning all the awesome trips we’re going to be making once it’s over. We’ve already canceled (rebooked) a family trip we were supposed to go on in March and I also made my travel plan at the beginning of the year – now I will use this time to research sights and plan activities to be ready when we get the green light of safety.
How do you pass the time at home? Any book, podcast, TV show recommendations?
