The only option for all of us right now is to stay inside. Working from home and attending school from home may come with some extra time none of us expected so here’s what the Culture Desk is doing to keep busy.
The first two days of quarantine were by far the roughest. With no plan of action, I was left to my own devices to pass time, and I ended up binging “Love Island USA” (which is nowhere near as good as “Love Island UK”), and could literally feel my brain rotting. It was apparent that I could not go about my life this way for the next … well, who knows how long. Luckily, I received an email from CorePower Yoga, where I work, the next day. To preface, I had just started my job at CorePower Yoga, and had worked exactly two shifts before having to return home to California for the semester. So when CorePower Yoga emailed its employees offering free access to CorePower Yoga On Demand videos, I felt undeserving of this gift and also sensed that this was a sign for me to break what was quickly becoming a vicious cycle of mindless idleness. Since then, I am still very much guilty of accomplishing remarkably little in each passing 24-hour period, and my screen time has indeed increased by an embarrassing amount — but at the very least, I have enjoyed breaking up my day with my daily hour of yoga. Namaste, baby. – Divya Nelakonda, Beauty & Style Editor
After the first couple days of quarantine, my sister and I had already cleaned every crevice of our room and closet. Our room has stayed clean for almost two weeks straight, because we haven’t been getting ready to go anywhere. We’ve baked cookies, cupcakes and cooked random recipes after everyone’s gone to bed. We were starting to get worried that we were running through our all quarantine plans just about a week in. That’s when Animal Crossing New Horizons came in. Wake up? Play Animal Crossing. An email from Andy Hamilton telling you that you have to move out of your dorm in a week even though you just barely escaped from New York City? Animal Crossing. Read too much of the news and don’t know when or how things are going to get better? Animal Crossing. The best distraction and the simple reality I long for, catching bugs on my little island and hitting the villagers with my net, Animal Crossing is what keeps me calm when I start getting too anxious. Now all I have left to worry about (in the game at least) is paying off my loans to Tom Nook and not getting stung by wasps. – Bella Gil, Culture Editor
I could lie and say that I’ve been using all this free time to dedicate myself to working out every day or finishing all those books I bought from The Strand, but honestly my favorite quarantine activity has been getting to walk my dog. I don’t get to see her very often while I’m away at college, and since our dog walker can’t come anymore, it’s been my responsibility to take her out while my parents are still at work. I love getting to spend more time outside in a town with actual trees and grass (no offense, New York), and it’s a nice way to free myself from the confines of my house without putting myself at risk. I miss my dog terribly when I’m at school, and getting to spend more time with her has been a silver lining in this crisis. – Lauren Gruber, Dining Editor
Email the Culture Desk at [email protected].
