Helpful distractions.
I’ve been feeling sad and anxious lately. Not anything extraordinary, I think just a pretty regular reaction to all of the strange things happening in our world right now. Even with all of the privileges I have, and there are SO many things that I am grateful for, but that still doesn’t change the fact that sometimes this all just makes me feel…. a little sad. A little worried. A lot anxious. Grateful for al the privileges I have, and yet still on edge. Being a human with feelings is hard sometimes.
Anyway, I’ve been finding pleasant distractions to be useful during this time. Here are a few things that have been helping me:
Familiar TV series. I don’t watch a ton of TV, so it actually took until this past week of quarantine for me to start actually watching anything. I would recommend picking a show you like but haven’t watched for years. My family used to be super into Monk, the relatively sweet detective show, back when I was in high school. I haven’t watched it since, but it’s all on Prime Video, and it’s made for some soothing background viewing these past few days. It’s not too emotional, every mystery is neatly solved by the end of each episode, and it’s been a nice companion for these days.
Cozy audiobooks. I listen to audiobooks a lot in regular life too, but I’ve found them to be particularly useful right now. I’ve almost completely stopped listening to my regular lineup of podcasts, since many of them are news and/or politics heavy. I just don’t need that kind of stress in my ears as I’m unloading the dishwashe, ya know? Right now, calm is the goal. In that vein, I’ve recently listened to The Bookshop on The Corner, Murder in Black Tie (the latest in the High Society Lady Detective series - delightful cozy mysteries), and the Penelope Kite Mystery series (listened to the first one, starting the second one now). They were all lovely in the audiobook format.
Baking. I know I’m not the only one to find comfort from baking, but I couldn’t leave it off this list. It’s soothing to have to follow a recipe exactly, to add one thing to another and watch it turn into something delightful. Plus, of course, then you get to eat the final product, which doesn’t hurt. These crinkle top brownies are pictured up above. Wow, they were delicious.
Coloring. I’ve been doing a little bit of random organizing and stumbled across a box of craft supplies! I haven’t broken into the watercolors or embroidery projects just yet, but I have been finding it soothing to color a little bit as I watch an episode of Monk or listen to an audiobook. It gives me something to do with my hands that doesn’t involve technology, and it’s also just… dare I say, fun.
Puzzles. Now, let me say, I am NOT a puzzle person. Not at all. I’ve never been particularly good at them. I have vivid childhood memories of my sister being a whiz at putting puzzles together… and my brain just doesn’t work as fast with spatial reasoning things like this. But, my mom included not one but two puzzles in a recent care package, and I have to say, I was surprised by how fun it was. Again, another great activity to pair with a cozy audiobook to keep your hands busy.
What useful distractions have been keeping you sane during quarantine? I’d love to hear!