During this global pandemic it may be hard, but staying inside is incredibly important. So aside from doing homework and spending countless hours on your phone, why not try new things to try and cure your boredom other than cleaning and most importantly cutting and dying your hair (trust me I’ve seen it all– even people shaving their eyebrows)!  

As of now we have been in quarantine for about a month and it seems to be never-ending. We spend all day in PJ’s and don’t really do much. One thing that I find really fun is to get dressed up and have a photo-shoot. I have tried this myself and it was really fun. You can go outside in your yard or on the steps of your apartment complex or even a in front of a blank wall and take really nice photos. This (1) allows you to get dressed up and gives you the feeling of going somewhere even if it’s just a few steps outside your door, and (2) gives you an opportunity to update your Insta. 

This might sound boring for all of my couch potatoes out there, but try exercising. This is proven to help you sleep at night and for the ladies it can help calm and relieve menstruation cramps. You have so much time on your hands, so why not try to achieve that goal that you always kept putting off and work out a little! Even if it’s just stretching, at least you’d be improving your flexibility. Hot-Girl-Summer may be cancelled, but  at least you can be one in the comfort of your own home.  

Another thing you can do is paint your nails/learn to design them. Personally, this is a great activity as I have a habit of biting my nails. Painting them allows me to stop that habit, and since I’m really uncoordinated it takes a while, so it ends up killing time too.

Creating a bomb playlist is another great way to kill time. I’m listening to one I created as we speak while writing this article. This allows you to get rid of songs you don’t really listen to anymore and/or add songs that you have been vibing with. You can make a different playlist depending on your feelings like a happy, pumped-up one or a sad playlist, or even songs that are in different languages for all my bilingual or trilingual people out there. I personally have them separated, but that’s the beauty of creating your own. You can customize them to your liking. 

Make future plans instead of just imagining things you could be doing. Write down those ideas for when you are actually able to go out. Plan out where you would go, places to go and eat, activities to do, and the people to do them with, whether it’s family or friends. Or you could even make a bucket list of things you want to complete this summer, and just like the playlist, you can customize them to your personal liking. 

One thing you could do instead of going to a party is to  have a dance party in your living room or your bedroom. You could get turnt with your dog or siblings and if they don’t want to just have fun on their own let out all of the frustration on your own. For my Grey’s Anatomy watchers, just think of it as a 30-second dance party (or longer if you want to). 

Have a “treat yo self day” (from the show Parks and Recreation). Have a day dedicated to yourself. Pamper yourself. You deserve it. Put on a face mask, draw yourself a bath, eat your favorite snacks, and just enjoy.

One thing I love to do to pass the time is bake. It doesn’t have to be something you see on the Food Network or made from scratch, it could even be straight out of a box. You could not only take the time to make your baked goods, but you could also decorate them.

Go outside! If you play a sport or just enjoy playing outside you can go outside into your front yard and play soccer or basketball or whatever sport you enjoy (as long as it’s not with a group of people!) You could also take some chalk and draw on the sidewalk. Bring yourself back to the old days when you were younger and make up games that let your imagination take control. I promise you will experience a great sense of nostalgia. 

And for the final thing, try making a vision board. This will take a lot of time as it involves you thinking about how you envision yourself in the future, where you want to be, the kind of life you want, your profession, and even places you would like to travel or things you would like to do. I know some people don’t know what they want to do, but that’s what this is for, to help you try to map out your future.  

I hope these things are helpful and help to take your mind off of this pandemic. Hope to see you soon when we go back to school!