From March to May, with professors scrambling to pivot to online classes and no campus jobs to keep me busy, I found myself with time on my hands (like many other people). To cope with all the uncertainty of our quarantined world, I took on new hobbies and tried to learn new skills—here are my experiences.
- Baking Bread
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This one was pretty short lived, but I was lucky to have had yeast in my house before shelter-in-place guidance went into effect and yeast was flying off the shelves. I made Italian bread, Irish soda bread, and a buttermilk loaf before I got bored of kneading away all the time. They all were delicious! My tip for breadmakers is to test your bread with a thermometer to know when it’s ready to come out of the oven. Often, the color looks right on the outside, but there’s still some cooking to do inside. Save yourself the trouble of raw bread by taking its temperature!
- Sewing Masks
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In my home of New York, March and April were extremely dark months; hospitals were overwhelmed by patients and running dangerously low on protective equipment. The bright spot in quarantine for me was seeing my community come together to protect healthcare workers, first responders, and other essential workers by sewing masks. I had never sewn before, but I consider myself pretty crafty (I can crochet, embroider, needle felt, and more), so I sat down behind the sewing machine without hesitation. Although the first days of sewing were super frustrating, I eventually learned what to do. I donated 200 masks to groups in need in New York and in the Navajo Nation.
- Chess
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I know many people got into puzzles during their months of isolation. I don’t have any puzzles at home and have never really been a fan of them. My aunt and I, however, did try to play chess online. We both had never played before and watched a few tutorials before playing against each other. The problem was that neither of us was good enough to really strategize, so we just played not to lose rather than win. But, we Facetimed while we played, and it was nice to talk to her often, check-in about her day, and connect with her in a new way.
- Foster/Adopt an Animal
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In March and April, shelters around the country reported that they no longer housed any animals (yay!). When Bryn Mawr sent the final word in later March that we would be home for the rest of the semester (and summer), I convinced my mom and sister to foster a cat from our local animal shelter. While we faced challenges getting my dog to accept the cat, I am so happy that we welcomed Piper into our family. Having someone new at home made the unexpected experience of being there feel more exciting, and there’s nothing like waking up to a sweet cat face when you know you’ll face a difficult and uncertain day ahead.
- Compost
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I’m not sure if composting was a widely known quarantine trend, but I think many people decided to start a home compost pile this past spring because I couldn’t find any compost bins to buy online. I made one by turning an old garbage can and cutting an opening in the top. I can’t say yet if my compost worked since it hasn’t fully broken down yet, but I felt good about reducing the amount of waste from my kitchen.
Now, it’s important to note that I wasn’t always productively filling my time. If you were overwhelmed during the early months of COVID-19—or still are—please know that you and your experiences are valid! We’re all just trying to do what we need to do to get through these times. Mask up and take care!