​Mindful Quarantine: How to Find Some Quiet, Make Friends With Boredom & Give Yourself a Break by Ruby Walker

We don't have to be busy all the time. Here are some tips that will help take the edge off so we don’t go completely crazy during the “corona” break.

1. Learn How “Too Much” Feels

I have invented a word for the opposite of lonely. This is something I think we, as a society, have made a mistake in forgetting to name. It’s a bit silly, but my word is “crowdy.” See, just as you can feel lonely in a room full of people, you can feel crowdy when there’s no one else around. Whatever you choose to call it, just recognizing that this feeling exists is a step in the right direction.

2. Find Time for a Bit of Solitude Throughout the Day

• Pick a household task you usually do while listening to music or the radio. Do it quietly.

• Do you take public transit, drive or carpool? Try taking your trips in quiet, just in your own company for a while. Notice the people, plants and animals outside.

• Take yourself out on a date – go to a nice restaurant by yourself.

• Watch the sun rise or set – just sit outside and see the world slowly turning.
  

3. Consider Using the Internet Less

I don’t mean to complain about technology like a stodgy old person who hates electric light – I like the internet. I just distrust the idea that always together is better. I distrust the way so many of us seem to use the internet not to be together, but to avoid ever being alone. Really consider whether your current use of the internet is enjoyable and useful, or if it’s simply a distraction.

4. Take a Day Off

24 hours. Don’t work, don’t study. Unplug your phone. Some religions call it the Sabbath. I think that traditions – whether religious or not – can make a day very special. It all depends on what feeling and activities you find relaxing. Here are a few of my favorite things to do when I can get a day off:

• lighting candles
• warm baths
• tending my cactus garden
• reading a trashy romance novel
• making hibiscus tea
• eating fruit all day
• lying in the sun
• walking at sunset
• watching the sun come out
  

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