My friends have been amazing. I don’t know if it’s because my life was 50% virtual prior to this thanks to working from home (so it hasn’t been a huge adjustment) or if I’ve just been lucky enough to choose a great group of people to bunker down with during a global pandemic, but my social calendar has been busy catching up with folks. With virtual game nights, virtual craft nights, and virtual brunches, I’m - in a way - grateful for our current situation because it’s forced us to slow down and connect with people in a way we’ve been too “busy” before to enjoy. Previously, if I wasn’t working on something that initiated income or was perceived as productive, I would opt out. Now that we’re all home, I don’t feel guilty about indulging in hobbies and people that I enjoy.
Also, a friend of mine posted this article about how a lot of us have been returning to “old-fashioned” crafts and it’s seriously worth a read. First of all, it’s from The Atlantic, which is one publication I read regularly (that and Scientific American take up a lot of data storage on my phone and space on my coffee table). Second, it gets into why our crafts seem less frivolous right now because of their mental health benefits:
To spend a pandemic making soft and pretty things may seem silly in certain ways—frivolous or impractical, maybe, and certainly a privilege when my life and livelihood aren’t (yet) directly at stake. Handicrafts such as crochet, knitting, and embroidery—traditionally practiced by women and by the elderly—carry passive associations that defy most American notions of bravery. I think of Jo March, the heroine from Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, lamenting that she can’t fight for the Union Army in the Civil War but must “stay home and knit, like a poky old woman.” And yet that dismissal belies the quiet strengths embedded in every stitch. Counting the movements of hooks and needles, row after row, over the hours or days it takes to complete a project, requires patience, focus, and persistence. And these cognitive skills—to say nothing of the proven mental-health benefits of crafting—are just the ones needed to weather a disaster that’s defined by waiting.
And listen, maybe this is a good segue into mentioning I had a call with my own therapist yesterday, which isn’t something I talk about on my blog but I feel is worth talking about right now. It’s important that if you ever feel isolated - especially considering we are literally isolating ourselves - you know there’s something to talk to. I found Allison (who I typically meet with locally but, ya know) by searching for specific expertise on Psychology Today. She specializes in setting boundaries, which is something I’ve needed to work on for years and the lack of which was doing horrible things to my mental well-being, but you can search for whatever it is you need at this time. Don’t be afraid to reach out; there’s no shame in doing whatever it takes to get you through the next few months - or ever.
Overall, I think we’re faring okay over here. Scott’s moved in since he’s essential and we wanted to cut down our risk, so we’ve been getting by with movies and videos games (HBO has a bunch of free content available, by the way, and re-watching Teen Mom with my MTV subscription from Hulu is probably why I haven’t gone nuclear yet). Work is still going strong so my daytime hours haven’t changed but I have to wonder how long that’ll last as the economy continues to tank. Otherwise, I’m just driving myself insane watching a bunch of people not take this seriously or claim it’s some global conspiracy to postpone the US election. If you’re one of those people, please stop reading my blog immediately; I am ashamed of you and don’t want to share my words with you.
How are you getting by? How are things in your neck of the woods? What are you working on? I want to know!
