Cozying Through Covid

Ways to make the new 'Safe At Home' order less depressing:

*Homemade facial masks. The ones that keep the stress away from your pores and the dryness of your heat in your home off your face!
*Music. Turn on Spotify and dance in your kitchen, or sing out loud or fall asleep with the sounds of meditation music. Music softens our ears and tends to the heart. 
*Have fun cooking. Maybe sign up to a delivery meal kit that will introduce you to new ways of cooking, or make something new and inventive once a week that you find a recipe for on Pinterest. Or get into baking like the rest of the world has during quarantine! Now is the time to become the chef you always knew you were meant to be. 
*Support local businesses. But if you want to chill and have food be made for you - support your community businesses by supporting a local spot for take-out. Or the next time you need to make a purchase that you doesn't need to be delivered in a day or two - consider ordering NOT from Amazon for a change. Amazon doesn't, but like REALLY DOESN'T, need your business. But many independent brands do.
*Work out. If you are a jogger - go get that fresh air (um through your face mask, duh) and let the endorphins run wild. Or if you bike - go to a long sunset ride. Or if you do your workout, yoga, high intensity interval training, pilates, etc. at home - then make yourself a little area and a bit of a ritual and try to get to your mat every day. Not just to work the body - but also for the mind and soul. 
*Puzzles! Craft! Board games! Movies! Video Games! Whatever hobby you have - enjoy it. It will help reduce stress and keep you younger :-)
*Self Care. Is it meditation for you? Great! Is it bubble baths? Awesome? Is it therapy? Excellent. Whatever it is - this is a good time to do some self-care.
*Organize/Decorate. Having a project around the house is a great way to keep busy and also invest in the space you are spending so much time in. So go in that storage and fix it like you've been saying you will for YEARS. Marie Kondo the heck out of it! Or go paint one wall in your bedroom in a fun color. Or hang some new art. Or build some new shelves. You get the point.
*FaceTime friends/family. Phone calls are cool. But video chats are smokin' hot. What a fantastic way to feel connected to your loved ones. Since most of my family is overseas - I've been using video chats for years (remember Skype?) and it's an absolute gift of technology.
*Nature. Do you live near a beach or a lake? Go there. Do you live by a park? GO there. Or if you want to venture off and drive to some glorious hike through nature somewhere. DO IT.
*Holiday spirit. If you are celebrating a holiday right now... Christmas, Hanukkah, etc. Get in the spirit. Maybe decorate a bit, or send cards, or make a holiday meal. It's different this year, away from so many of our loved ones that we cannot see in person. But you can still make a holiday special for you, in whatever way your choose to. 

Listen darlings, the limitation we are facing in so many parts of the US right now, and in other parts of the world... doesn't have to be totally depressing. We can find freedom WITHIN the limitation. Who knows? Maybe we'd find out we are chefs in disguise, or will drop some pounds we've been wanting to, or play a board game like we did when we were little, or become zen masters, or just.... will keep ourselves safe at home and build up our patience muscles. A vaccine will come, and so will life with more closeness to our communities. In a little while. Just a little while. Be safe and well. This too shall pass.