Deutsch, Ja Ja
During this time of extreme disruption caused by COVID-19, there is huge, imminent change occurring affecting everyone across the world. But despite the panic surrounding our health and safety, a different panic has arisen; boredom in isolation.
Alas, I have shifted my mindset from doom and gloom to “damn, now I can get all those things done”, and not have the guilt of cancelling on people to do them. One of those things is learn a language; after studying German during school and University, I’ll admit I miss it. But it was a commitment.
As a society, we are so programmed in our lives, busily managing our daily activities and the need to be “somewhere”. Our work, families, hobbies, friends and travel define our days, weeks and months, and there has been a sudden “panic” that this has now ceased.
Yes, these are extremely frustrating times, however it is also an opportunity. For those that are fortunate enough, it can be a time to recharge, re-focus our energy and to take a step back. We are reminded daily that our health is the main priority, and self-care is a huge component of this.
For me, I have shifted my mindset to view this as a time to be able to dive into tasks I have been thinking about for months, to prioritise and to rediscover old hobbies. It’s an opportunity to slow down, appreciate what we have, what we’ve achieved, and what is important.
The time frames surrounding isolation are unknown. And do we really want to look back and remember watching Netflix and snacking on M&M’s for months straight? It ain’t good for the mind or the waistline.
So, these are my top tips for boredom:
keep a routine; this will prevent falling into a slump, staring at the wall thinking “what will I do next”
go for a daily walk/free online workout to earn those extra snacks
read a book, maybe 30…and outdoors if you can
clean out your cupboards! this includes all that expired pasta in the pantry.
I just found my childhood pencil and texta collection…yep I bought a colouring book to match
Heck, I even found my old Gameboy, PlayStation and original SIMS collection. Do not disturb
Google new recipes, using ingredients you’ve already got
Write letters to your friends or family…something a little bit different to the Zoom chat
Change up your look; I was googling wash out pink hair dye the other night
Sift through and organise your photos (and computer folders)
Create a mood board of places you want to travel to
Study a free online course (there are surprisingly A LOT)
Learn a new language!
So back to German. I love languages not to just throw them on a CV, but sometimes I frankly get sick of speaking English. And considering I am useless at maths, German is the next best thing. It’s just great. And the people are great. Not into German food, but that is a separate story.
Anyway, the purpose of this post is whilst the world is anxious, it is important to not let the fear take over. Keep busy, keep active both mentally and physically. Even if you’re not in a position to work from home, there are unlimited boredom-busters to distract from the self isolation.