For many, two weeks at home looks like a long stretch of time to fill with something interesting to do.
For those who are already feeling bored in the midst of social distancing, here’s a list of ideas to add to the schedule in the next two weeks — to fill some time, or take your mind off the cabin fever.
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This could be a good time for picking up a new hobby, but don’t feel too pressured. Look through Youtube for musical tutorials, for that guitar gathering dust in your closet, or pick up something crafty and join the growing trend of hand makers.
The Moose Jaw Public Library offers library cardholders access to the online website Creative Bug, which is filled with craft ideas and how-tos for projects of all kinds.
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Take a virtual tour. The Moose Jaw Museum & Art Gallery has shared a number of links on their Facebook page to virtual tours of famous art exhibits and museums around the world. Visit places like the Van Gogh Museum through a tour on Facebook, the British Museum through its virtual timeline of humanity, or attend a virtual tour of the Louvre in Paris and virtually wander the Guggenheim Museum in New York — all from the comfort of your couch.
You can also visit the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame’s gallery dedicated to the Saskatchewan players in the All American Girls Professional Baseball League, available here.
Or maybe take a look at the live cam feeds from the San Diego Zoo, where you can check in on the tigers, elephant, penguins, and more. The National Aquarium in Baltimore also offers a virtual tour of every floor of its aquarium.
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Although it may not feel like that way, it is spring and now would be a great time to get a head start on all that spring cleaning or yard cleanup — you could get a head start on the garden. Picking up a seed starter kit and your vegetable of choice to incubate some baby plants now could mean avoiding the crowds at the greenhouse in May.
Your backyard isn’t off-limits during isolation and the fresh air could be, well, refreshing. There’s also the added bonus of wiping down all the surfaces in the house for some peace of mind. -
If you’re seriously considering doing a marathon of spring cleaning, it wouldn’t hurt to consider finding a podcast to listen to while you get your hands dirty. Whatever topic sparks your interest, there is guaranteed to be a podcast about it — history, mythology, cooking, true crime, comedy, you name it.
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Join the rest of the city and make some homemade hearts to put in your windows. Spend the afternoon decorating hearts with the kids, and consider sending them to local care homes or the hospital as an easy pick-me-up for patients and health care workers, or to the workplaces of other frontline workers like grocery stores.
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Learn to bake something new. Although some supplies have been running low as of late, something simple like this four-ingredient bread doesn’t call for too much effort, and this two-minute chocolate mug cake is well worth the very short wait.
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Take a course on a topic you’ve always been interested in. The MJPL offers members access to Lynda.com, which features plenty of instructors in almost every industry giving online classes, as well as to Mango Language for those looking to learn a new language.
You can also get into some university classes for free from the website Class Central, which offers over 450 courses from institutions all over the world.
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Tune in to CBC’s Movie Night in Canada, which will be showing a double feature of Canadian films every Saturday night for those at home during the COVID-19 situation. CBC is keeping the schedule updated online here, with details about each movie.
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Jump into the literary scene. Maybe that means picking up a new book to fill an afternoon or two — here’s a list of interesting titles to consider, or take a look at the Festival of Words past and upcoming book club titles.
MJPL members have access to the online e-book library on Overdrive using their library membership and can request titles on any computer, smartphone, or e-reader device. The library also offers access to hundreds of newspaper and magazine titles from PressReader.
Or maybe, being literary means picking up a pen and creating some literature of your own. The Moose Jaw Night Writers are a group of local writers who share monthly writing prompts that could be a great place to start tapping into your creativity. They can be found on Facebook
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Tired of Netflix? Switch up what your binge-watching and take advantage of some streaming services now offering various Broadway musicals to watch — like Rent, Newsies, She Loves Me, and more.
BroadwayHD is the main portal to find productions, but there are also some available on Amazone Prime, Youtube, and iTunes.
