COVID-19 hasn’t just kept us home—it has denied us in-person contact, leaving entire communities feeling lonely and anxious. Here are six creative ways to catch up with family and friends during a time of social distancing.
Setup Online Dates
Hearing the voices of friends and family over the phone is good, but it’s even more powerful and fulfilling when you see each other’s faces. Just like you would plan to have a coffee date with friends or co-workers on the weekend, you can still meet up online.
Send a Zoom invite or a Google Hangout link that people can open on their smartphones, tablets, or laptops. Everyone can drink whatever they have on hand, and you can all spend time together virtually, safe but connected.
Start A Book Club
Choose a book that you all enjoy reading and meet up to discuss it. A book club not only gives you a reason to meet up online, but it encourages reading to fill up your alone time. If you do not have a particular title, you can always buy it online or borrow it virtually from a digital library.
Use Social Media For Good
During a pandemic, we find ourselves spending more time online. Take the opportunity to communicate with friends and family through social media. Share experiences of your daily life and encourage others to stay safe by prioritising their health.
Social Distance Workouts
Self-quarantine shouldn’t be a justification to ignore your wellbeing. A workout routine can improve your immune system, but solitary exercise can be a lonely affair, and it is often difficult to stay motivated. Thankfully, video chatting and social media make it easier to engage in connected workouts.
You can set up a common workout time with a friend or loved one. The workout could be anything from yoga or weightlifting to cardio and martial arts drills. The most important thing is to do it together with a friend, or five. You can all motivate each other in real-time and hold each other accountable to push harder in those home-based workouts.
Multiplayer Gaming
Online gaming provides a fantastic way to stay connected with friends while you relax. The choice of play-offs is vast enough to keep you going for months (even years), from chilled games, like Minecraft, to cooperative strategy games, like Jackbox.
Online casinos are responding to COVID-19 and self-isolation by offering your favourite sports virtually, like horse racing. You can play with friends and other enthusiasts from across the globe as if you were together in the same room.
Casino online games also offer a great way to pocket some change while stuck at home.
Learn a New Skill
While social distancing and staying healthy are the priorities, you also have a fantastic opportunity to increase your skill set across any digital platform. Consider learning something new, like cooking, sewing, graphic design, or creating music with a loved one or a group.
There are millions of free tutorials on YouTube and other online platforms to keep you interested and connected to friends and family whenever you are stuck at home.