Isolation {for grown-ups}

Looking for some things to do in isolation?Whether isolation is because of Covid19, or because of some other reason, there are a million things you can do… In case you’re feeling low on ideas, I always have plenty. In fact, as each day comes to a close I am a little bummed that my to-do list was longer than my day. I am going to love retirement. Just saying.

1. Send a card or postcard. I’ve always sent cards and notes to friends and family. I love getting mail. I can’t imagine there’s anyone who doesn’t. (Of course, I’m not talking about boring bills or junk mail!). Say hi, check-in, share a smile, tell someone you love them. I am doing a journal course at the moment, Sketchbook Revival, and one of the artists does blob drawings, which she then turns into animals, so this was totally her idea, but I painted random blobs on cards and sent them to everyone in my family with the instructions to turn them into an animal and then send me a photo. I’m hoping they all play along, I’ll be sure to let you know!!! edit: So far I have 9 back and 7 still out… And oh man do I love the ones everyone is making, more on that to come. I’ll give the slow pokes just a wee bit longer… (If you want a blob, leave me a comment).
2. Try a new recipe. I am unlikely to do this one, ha! I am so not a cook. I prefer my creations to include art supplies. The one thing I made was fresh pea soup, but it was unattractive. Delicious. Healthy. But ugly as hell. My daughter, however, has made chocolate chip cookies and a cake since she’s been studying from home!
3. Go outside and search for signs of spring (or fall). There are so many signs of a new season, it’s fun to see how many you can find. Of course, there are the huge (and fabulous) ones like for us on Cape Cod, the return of the Ospreys. But there are little ones too, crocuses, little buds on the ends of branches, in the dunes there are tiny bright spots of green in among the dry, yellow grasses.
4. Clean or organize something. My very first day of isolation, before it was even really that, I emptied out the hall cupboard and got it completely sorted. And cleaned. There’s this table we use for school photos that used to live in it, but it got evicted because there was not enough room for it. It’s back home again, so that’s exciting. Even if you’re crazy organized and tidy (which I so am not), I’m sure you can find something that could use a little love.
5. Mend something that you’ve been meaning to. The squeaky chair. The jeans with the tiny hole that you’ve been dying to practice visible mending on. The socks that need to be darned. After you learn how to darn, of course.
6. Write a poem. Use an old book and highlight words to create a poem. Create a box with random words in it, and pull out a few (or a lot) for inspiration. Compose a haiku. Pen a love letter to your fave person. Or pick a word or theme and just start writing.
7. Grab some gloves and pick up litter for 5 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour… Be very careful in these Corona virus days. Do not put yourself at any risk. You can add this to your to-do list for another day if you can’t safely do it now. 
8. Do a little gardening. Outside… inside… prune, water, re-pot, weed, design, plant… 
9. Organize your photos. This may surprise you, but I am terrible at my personal photos. I take a bazillion, but I never want to work on the computer or deal with them when I’m not working on studio images, so they often just sit, and sit, and sit… Create a folder to make an album with or to order prints of. Delete images that are just taking up space. Find photos that you love but had forgotten about. Make folders of your pets, or your kids, or your cacti so you can easily show them off. Finally make that scrapbook or album of your last vacation. (Norway is in process… hurrah!!! The Iceland/Germany/Sweden book may be next depending on how long isolation lasts…)
10. Clean out your inbox. Storing thousands of emails requires energy, and adds to your carbon footprint. Did you know that? Having an over-abundance of emails taxes the resources of the planet. Plus it’s just annoying to always have to wade through emails to get to the ones you want. So it’s a win-win to cull your inbox. While you’re at it, unsubscribe to some of those newsletters that you don’t open month after month after month. Chances are you won’t miss them!
11. Plan an adventure or vacation. Things we write down often become a reality, so what’s the harm in dreaming? I love planning vacations. I pretty much always am. Except while I’m vacationing of course!!! There is so much joy to be found in the excitement of planning something. If you’re like me, isolation is hitting the wallet hard, but there’s nothing that says that we can dream big.
12. Read. A book you’ve been wanting to. Your friend’s blog posts. The first chapter of the book you’re writing… And while you’re at it, write. A journal. A comment on a blog or social media post. (No, not the political kind, unless that’s your gig) Write me a comment and tell me if you’ve done any of these ideas, or have any ideas to recommend to me! A book, or at least the first chapter.
13. Learn a new skill. To crochet or knit or something else you’ve been wanting to do. I took a beginner crochet class a while back, I learned a bunch of stitches. I even made a scarf. Mostly though, I just make dishcloths. They make me happy and help save the planet because I don’t waste resources when I’m cleaning the dishes and my table. I make them for our house. I make them for my friends. I make them for my family. Who doesn’t need a dishcloth? Classes aren’t available at the moment, but you can learn to do just about anything on YouTube.
14. Make something. A rag rug or a macrame plant holder or a drawing of something you found outside (or something on your shelf) or a pocket flower press or a wish jar or a pincushion or a produce bag with your new mad crochet skills…These are my braided stair rugs. They took me a decade to finish. Ha! Isolation better not last that long!! Though of course if I’d had nothing else to do, they may have only taken half that time. Lol. Maybe I’ll finally get around to writing my blog post about them.

So those are some ideas for things you can do to keep yourself entertained during these crazy times. Please share with me if you do any of them. Or if you have other ideas. Or if you just want to comment. I love comments. Stay happy and healthy, and be kind to one another. xo