We're living in interesting times, wouldn't you say? But even though I'm going through major library withdrawals, I don't have much to complain about. My family is staying safe and healthy. My husband and I still have our jobs, and we have a comfortable supply of toilet paper. I don't know what your situation is. I don't know if you've lost your job, have had to be tested or have had a loved one tested for CORVID-19, if you have restless kiddos in the house, or if you're eating Raman noodles as a family for the third week in a row. I sincerely hope you are well and pray for you and yours! These are tough times, but we will get through it. With that introduction in mind, I wanted to share what I'm doing to find my new rhythm. I'm not suggesting that if you do these things you'll suddenly feel better about what's happening or that your personal struggles will go away. But maybe as you read about the habits I'm building as I stay home, you might be able to brainstorm your own and find your new rhythm.
I have one, specifically, for an hour and half between jobs. I give myself a choice: take a nap, go for a bike ride, read a book, or play drums. (All things I love!) Sometimes I go wild and do two of these! This me-time has helped me emotionally, mentally, and physically! It's a life-saver for me... literally. Eating out... locally My husband and I don't normally eat out. (Maybe once a month?) But since the stay-home initiative, we've been eating out once a week. It started because when we budgeted our finances that first week, we noticed that my income had increased-- having triple the work it better have!--- and we weren't spending money on gas or groceries. Also, we were concerned about our community and the economy in general. Each Friday, then, we eat out at an independently owned, local restaurant. We take turns researching and choosing, and picking up the food. Then we either watch a movie or play boardgames together. It's a great reward for my long week of work and makes for a great date night, but more importantly, we're doing our part. It's a small part. But we're helping these local businesses so they have a better chance at coming back when our life finally normalizes again. Buying books... from independently owned bookstores I know Amazon is "convenient" and "quick," but it is the beast in the book selling business, oftentimes gobbling up our homey locally owned bookstores. I decided (for me!) that Amazon doesn't need my help. If you buy from Amazon, no judging, I promise! But my eating out locally had inspired me. So instead of jumping onto Amazon for my book needs, I've been doing my book searches a little differently.
They're doing a cool promo right now: if you buy a $25 gift card, you'll get a second one free! So if you live in Arizona, for sure check that out. I'm not saying you should get me one of these for my birthday, but I will tell you that I have a summer birthday coming up. It's in June. (wink; wink) Doing yoga For me, this means I get to do yoga whenever I want. In fact, even when I'm working, I wear yoga pants so I'm ready to do a down-dog or butterfly in-between tutoring sessions if I wish. I've been doing morning yoga at home for about three years (probably longer!), so I have a collection of great videos. I've found the ones for neck and shoulders essential. I do exercises from those videos almost daily! I shared them with my tutoring team and other coworkers. I don't know if they're doing them, but that's okay! Trying something new... like essential oils! My experience with essential oils was tied to yoga. I knew about lavender and peppermint, but I didn't realize that essential oils was a "thing," until my best friend started selling them. Also, my husband and I were given a crazy amount of oils when a family friend died two years ago and gave us a part of her collection of oils. I was given a diffuser but hadn't really used it. But with this stay-home initiative and with the help of my best friend, I started experimenting with essential oils. They smell great, and have energizing and/or calming properties, so they've been really great to work with as I am stay-home extrovert or feeling overworked or just need something to help me relax before bed. They've also been really helpful to my writing process! Moving forward
I thought this post would be a quicky, but as I started drafting, I realized that my rhythm during COVID-19 is a lot more complex than I realized. I haven't finished sharing all of the things I do to help me cope with my new lifestyle! But these are the best ones, I think. They're the ones that are making the most difference right now... for me. Again, I hope you are well and safe wherever you are! We got this, y'all.
1 Comment
Lacey Ellsworth
5/2/2020 09:15:52 pm
You are living COVID right! I've been wanting to read and get into naps. Naps. Oh, and what's been your favorite local restaurant? We got Worth Takeaway last week! So good!
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I'm what you'd call a "hobbyist" drummer.
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