I've already gone through countless random listicle-style articles supposedly telling me fun, artistic and creative ways to keep myself occupied while staying indoors.
Most of them haven't been catered to practicing social distancing due to the coronavirus, understandably. In fact, a surprisingly large number of them are for rainy day activities to keep toddlers from destroying the house.
While making color-coded sensory bins and taping out indoor hopscotch sounds tempting, I thought making a grown-up edition might be better.
So, here are 20 activities I've come up with to occupy my own time away from UNC, and each can be done while also adhering to social distancing and quarantine guidelines.
1. Make a scrapbook, whether it’s with photos from UNC, studying abroad, furry friends, college life or long-neglected photos from years ago that you've been meaning to sort into some type of aesthetically pleasing display. I've gotten about a third of the way through my own scrapbook cataloging photos from my time abroad in London and I can attest to the fact that cutting out photos and writing captions is, in fact, time-consuming but enjoyable.
2. Pick up that musical instrument from middle school or, better yet, learn how to play one you have no experience with! Tons of YouTube videos and free services are at your disposal, but you didn't need me to tell you that.
3. Make DIY or handmade graduation announcements, the personal touch will be fun for your family (and may even result in some graduation cash down the line). Not graduating any time soon? Handmade thank-you cards, thinking-of-you or just-because cards are also very sweet and fun to work on.
4. Try your hand at a family recipe or replicate a Tasty video you’ve had saved on your Instagram for months. Bonus points if you swap out ingredients since grocery stores have limited supplies in some places!
5. Make a motivational playlist on your streaming service of choice to prepare for classes starting up remotely. You'll thank yourself this time next week.