Making the Most of it!
As I write this blog post, we are in the beginning stages of the school cancellations and social distancing. We have all read both good and bad posts and articles on this subject, and I will leave the commentary to better writers than me. And I want everyone to know that I absolutely respect the seriousness of what is going on throughout the world. Anything that I write that could be misconstrued as making light of the situation should be taken with a liberal grain of salt. Obviously, any "anxieties" that I write about are not, in any way, shape, or form, legitimate things I think people should be worrying. I myself need a little bit of levity right now, and this is the way my brain works. I apologize if I upset anyone.
What I thought would be fun would be to go through some things I plan on doing during this time away from my classroom, my friends, and my regular life. This introvert is loving the self-quarantine aspect of the fight against COVID-19. You're seriously telling me that I don't have to leave my house or see people? I'm in. I can wear comfy clothes, read books, and watch anything I want? I'm so there! During the time when I am not making myself available to my students and their families for e-learning questions, here is my grand, glorious plan:
I'm going to read!
Oh so much reading! Granted, yesterday I didn't get a chance to do this, but that is because I had to finish a paper for my class. I honestly don't think it was a very good paper, but I turned it in anyway. At this point, not my main concern.
But I am finally going to finish reading The Fiery Cross. And I have stacks and stacks of books to read that I haven't gotten to yet, or that I want to re-read. Seriously, if you find yourself needing reading material during this time, let me know. The libraries are closing, but the Kaitlin Public Library is always open and offers delivery!
And if you're concerned I might not have something for you to read, just know this. I sat staring at my overflowing bookshelf the other day, absolutely frozen with anxiety...because I didn't know where to start! Do I pick up the book that has been hanging around unread the longest? Do I go for the newest title? The next in some series? The first in some series? Funny? Serious? Romance? Kids book? Crippling anxiety here, all over what to read next!
I'm going to clean!
It seems a shame to not use this time when I am cooped up in my house to go through drawers and cabinets and totes and such things. I dusted this morning and took everything off the shelf and rearranged some things. I need to go through my computer files and do the same sort of thing. If you find yourself doing some digital cleaning, might I make a suggestion? Unroll.Me is an amazing app/website that allows you to take all of those subscriptions emails that we all get {sometimes hundreds in one day} and roll them up into ONE email per day. Plus, you can unsubscribe from things through the Unroll.Me site, and you can decide if there are things you want to keep in your inbox, rather than bundling them. It's wonderful!
I'm going to craft!
Take this time to learn a new craft! I learned how to knit via Youtube, and there are tutorials for literally everything! I also saw that Michaels is going to do a Facebook live thing every day at noon that is a family activity or craft {I haven't experienced it myself, but that is what the email I got said...in my rollup for today, as per the item listed above}. I have a knitting project that I haven't finished, and it is a perfect thing to do alongside with the next item on my list.
I'm going to watch stuff!
Movies, shows, whatever. I have not watched Frozen 2 yet, but I'm going to! Although there is a bit of the crippling anxiety as with the reading down here. Should I watch something new? And then what? Or do I watch something I've seen before? North and South is going off Netflix at the end of the month, so that seems like something I should watch again. And I've started Schitt's Creek, though I'm only on episode six. Lots to consider here as well!
I'm going to write!
Maybe I'll finish the NaNoWriMo project I started in November. Or maybe I'll be on top of life and write some general blog posts I can use at any time. One thing I am writing in, and this is something I recommend to all of you, is a journal. Granted, I write in a journal nearly every day and have since 2003, but this seems an especially important time to document. A few people at work have started doing this, and I agree that this will be something worth looking back on in the future. To be honest, we will not know if we did the exact right thing or if we overreacted for quite a long time, but we can be guaranteed that doing nothing is the wrong thing, and we will know right away if we are under-reacting. This is an easy thing everyone can do. Pull up a blank document on your phone or computer, or grab a half-used notebook and start jotting things down: what you did, what you saw on the news or on Facebook, how you are feeling about all of this, everything. We know as much as we do about different events in history because ordinary people wrote about them in their diaries. We are ordinary people. This will be history. And we can document it.
I'm going to call people!
I don't love talking on the phone, usually because I feel like I should be doing something else with that time. But right now, spending an hour on the phone talking about nothing is honestly a good break in the day. And I want to know that everyone I care about is okay! I spent some time on FaceTime with a good friend this morning, and there was no hurry to the conversation. Yes, I had clothes to fold, but there was no rush at all. It was nice to just sit and sip my coffee and chat.
I would love to know what you all are up to during your time away from normal life! If you've got good recommendations for shows and books, pass them along! And stay safe and healthy! Oh, and I have a winner of the adorable notebook from last week's post! Congratulations, Katie Fowler! I'm sure I'll see you soon to deliver your prize!
I'm going to read!
Oh so much reading! Granted, yesterday I didn't get a chance to do this, but that is because I had to finish a paper for my class. I honestly don't think it was a very good paper, but I turned it in anyway. At this point, not my main concern.
But I am finally going to finish reading The Fiery Cross. And I have stacks and stacks of books to read that I haven't gotten to yet, or that I want to re-read. Seriously, if you find yourself needing reading material during this time, let me know. The libraries are closing, but the Kaitlin Public Library is always open and offers delivery!
And if you're concerned I might not have something for you to read, just know this. I sat staring at my overflowing bookshelf the other day, absolutely frozen with anxiety...because I didn't know where to start! Do I pick up the book that has been hanging around unread the longest? Do I go for the newest title? The next in some series? The first in some series? Funny? Serious? Romance? Kids book? Crippling anxiety here, all over what to read next!
I'm going to clean!
It seems a shame to not use this time when I am cooped up in my house to go through drawers and cabinets and totes and such things. I dusted this morning and took everything off the shelf and rearranged some things. I need to go through my computer files and do the same sort of thing. If you find yourself doing some digital cleaning, might I make a suggestion? Unroll.Me is an amazing app/website that allows you to take all of those subscriptions emails that we all get {sometimes hundreds in one day} and roll them up into ONE email per day. Plus, you can unsubscribe from things through the Unroll.Me site, and you can decide if there are things you want to keep in your inbox, rather than bundling them. It's wonderful!
I'm going to craft!
Take this time to learn a new craft! I learned how to knit via Youtube, and there are tutorials for literally everything! I also saw that Michaels is going to do a Facebook live thing every day at noon that is a family activity or craft {I haven't experienced it myself, but that is what the email I got said...in my rollup for today, as per the item listed above}. I have a knitting project that I haven't finished, and it is a perfect thing to do alongside with the next item on my list.
I'm going to watch stuff!
Movies, shows, whatever. I have not watched Frozen 2 yet, but I'm going to! Although there is a bit of the crippling anxiety as with the reading down here. Should I watch something new? And then what? Or do I watch something I've seen before? North and South is going off Netflix at the end of the month, so that seems like something I should watch again. And I've started Schitt's Creek, though I'm only on episode six. Lots to consider here as well!
I'm going to write!
Maybe I'll finish the NaNoWriMo project I started in November. Or maybe I'll be on top of life and write some general blog posts I can use at any time. One thing I am writing in, and this is something I recommend to all of you, is a journal. Granted, I write in a journal nearly every day and have since 2003, but this seems an especially important time to document. A few people at work have started doing this, and I agree that this will be something worth looking back on in the future. To be honest, we will not know if we did the exact right thing or if we overreacted for quite a long time, but we can be guaranteed that doing nothing is the wrong thing, and we will know right away if we are under-reacting. This is an easy thing everyone can do. Pull up a blank document on your phone or computer, or grab a half-used notebook and start jotting things down: what you did, what you saw on the news or on Facebook, how you are feeling about all of this, everything. We know as much as we do about different events in history because ordinary people wrote about them in their diaries. We are ordinary people. This will be history. And we can document it.
I'm going to call people!
I don't love talking on the phone, usually because I feel like I should be doing something else with that time. But right now, spending an hour on the phone talking about nothing is honestly a good break in the day. And I want to know that everyone I care about is okay! I spent some time on FaceTime with a good friend this morning, and there was no hurry to the conversation. Yes, I had clothes to fold, but there was no rush at all. It was nice to just sit and sip my coffee and chat.
I would love to know what you all are up to during your time away from normal life! If you've got good recommendations for shows and books, pass them along! And stay safe and healthy! Oh, and I have a winner of the adorable notebook from last week's post! Congratulations, Katie Fowler! I'm sure I'll see you soon to deliver your prize!
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