Coronavirus is really putting a damper on our social lives isn’t it? Plans are canceled, restaurants and bars are closed, vacations postponed or canceled… And on top of all that we’re supposed to be practicing social distancing and being quarantined at home when possible — both for our own health as well as for our community and those we love. When we’re used to going out, we need some ideas of things to do during quarantine!

Saying it’s a tough, surreal time is pretty much an understatement.

So I’ve put together a list of ideas to help you get through. It doesn’t matter if you’re social distancing due to chemo, coronavirus, or both, it’s still staying home (or maybe a lightly traveled local park) for the benefit of all involved.

This list is based on my own experience, both with chemo and working on the fishing boats (imagine quarantine but at sea and without internet), as well as any other suitable ideas I could think of. I’ll be adding more ideas as I think of them, or feel free to reach out to me on social media or leave a comment with other ideas!

Self-Care:

1. Take a bath
2. Practice meditation
3. Work out
4. Focus on your nutrition
5. Make an extensive meal plan
6. Journal
7. Improve your prayer life
8. Do a face mask
9. Give yourself a mani/pedi
10. If you don’t already, make a habit of tracking your water intake
11. Start a gratitude journal and write several things each day that you’re thankful for
12. Create a vision board
13. Take a nap! There’s nothing wrong with getting plenty of rest right now.

Work on a Hobby:

13. Learn a new instrument
14. Learn a fiber art like needlepoint, knitting, crochet, macramé, or embroidery
15. Plant a garden
16. Improve your photography skills
17. Do some coloring
18. Have a movie marathon! Watch all those movies you’ve wanted to see but haven’t had time to.
19. Practice your doodling skills
20. Learn calligraphy
21. Research your family tree
22. Make a scrapbook
23. Research homemade cleaning recipes, like laundry detergent, soap, shampoo, etc.
24. Already a crafty person? Look into items you can donate with your craft, like knitted dishcloths or kennel blankets for the humane society.
25. Experiment with new recipes
26. Plan a future trip or activity for when quarantine is over

Socialize… From a Distance:

27. Make a penpal
28. Send cards to your family members
29. Have a virtual meetup via Zoom, Google Hangouts, Skype, or Facetime
30. Watch a movie together virtually
31. Get together with your neighbors. Pull out the lawn chairs and sit several feet apart.
32. Play tic-tac-toe with a loved one using dry erase markers on a glass door. The door protects you both while letting you visit.
33. Similarly, sit with a window or glass door between you and chat on the phone.
34. Have a tea party with those you live with, or virtually
35. Watch live concerts – many artists and groups are hosting Facebook lives or concerts through other sites.
36. Watch other live programs, like Cincinnati Zoo’s daily Home Safaris

Train Your Brain:

37. Learn a new language
38. Take online classes
39. Read a book. Or twenty.
40. Learn something new with The Great Courses
41. Play puzzles
42. Write poetry, short stories, or your autobiography
43. Research something you always wanted to know more about but never had the time to.
44. Find a new favorite podcast. (By the way, check out this episode from Thriver Talks about tips on thriving during COVID-19. These ladies always do a great job!… Who knows, maybe this will be your new favorite podcast?)

Get Outside:

45. Go for a hike
46. Build a snowman
47. Camp in the backyard
48. Watch the sunrise or sunset
49. Have a backyard picnic
50. Look for four-leaf clovers
51. Make a bird or hummingbird feeder
52. Keep a record of birds you see in your backyard
53. Go for a drive
54. Have a bonfire
55. Go sledding
56. Fly a kite
57. Find shapes in the clouds
58. Listen to the frogs, birds, or crickets
59. Learn the constellations
60. Start a compost pile for your garden or green-thumbed neighbor
61. Watch the lightning bugs
62. Make a mural on the backyard fence with sidewalk chalk

With the Kids (or housemates):

62. Make homemade playdough
63. Build a pillow or blanket fort in the living room
64. Play hide-and-seek
65. Have a scavenger hunt
66. Play board games, chess, or checkers
67. Play videogames
68. Throw a dance party
69. Or a karaoke party
70. Dress up and have a fancy dinner night
71. Make rock candy (unlike this video, I’d use string or the recommended bamboo skewer as opposed to a pipe cleaner)
72. Practice origami
73. Practice spelling with letter magnets on a cookie sheet
74. Bust out the sidewalk chalk
75. Speaking of sidewalk chalk, go play hopscotch on the sidewalk
76. Have a paper airplane competition
77. Have a pillow fight
78. Perform a puppet show
79. Bake and decorate cookies
80. Make pipe cleaner figures
81. Decorate tee-shirts
82. Make a time capsule
83. Have everyone make drawings, paintings, etc., and have an art exhibit around the house
84. Fix dinner together
85. Make friendship bracelets
86. Science fair projects at home, like volcanoes or a jar with liquids of different densities
87. Make homemade ice cream
88. Make homemade butter (did anyone else do this in elementary school?)
89. Tell ghost stories
90. Make a home movie
91. Create melted crayon art

For Your Home:

92. Organize the clutter
93. Go through the house and make a donation pile and trash pile
94. Scan important documents to have a backup file
95. Work on that stack of shredding
96. Read your stash of magazines and recycle any that no longer serve you
97. Or go full-blown Marie Kondo on the place and minimize!
98. Create a coffee corner or your own nook if you don’t have one
99. Go through the spice cabinet and pantry and toss what’s expired
100. Plan a garden. Of course, you can start planting if you have the materials or can get them easily.
101. Do a thorough spring cleaning. I mean washing the walls, cleaning the baseboards – the whole nine yards!
102. Repurpose old tee shirts into dog toys for the humane or floor rugs
103. Have a bunch of plastic grocery bags? Turn them into plarn and make a reusable grocery bag or a sleeping mat for the homeless.

I hope this list has given you some ideas of how to fill your time! Isolating due to chemo or trying to prevent getting sick can be frustrating and difficult (to put it lightly). But with some creativity and adaptability, it can still be a fun or productive time to hold you over.

Wishing you the absolute best, with sanitary high fives and social-distancing-appropriate hugs!!

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