Lockdowns and quarantines due to COVID-19 spread are a drastic change in lifestyle for many people who are not used to spending time in isolation at homes. On the other hand, introverts like me who like to stay home all day had to make zero changes to their lifestyles. Each group of people that previously shared different routines and day to day activities is now standing in the same pool of boredom, switching between their social apps at least 20 times per day.
How to spend time during quarantine
I’ve had a somewhat similar experience with quarantine and eventually made a routine out of revisiting my frequent social sites and procrastinating 80% of my time, much like all of you do. Here’s how I have been trying to, and so can you, spend quarantine days on the Internet.
Facebook used to be a once-in-a-day app for most of us when taking breaks in between work or studying. The platform is now limited to memes and video sharing for almost everyone. Due to “memers” staying at home in quarantine – our Facebook home pages are packed with new content 24/7. This alone is enough to keep users hooked to the app all day long, by sharing videos and scrolling through hundreds of memes each day to keep us preoccupied. Surely, when we look back to our Facebook memories each year, these meme routines will be the single best part about quarantine.
If you are unable to access content, videos can be streamed on the app through the Watch tab. I also recommend you to join groups relating to your interests so that you can enjoy the time you spend on the app while scrolling daily through posts shared by people.
Netflix
Our favorite place these days has got to be Netflix. Many users, including me, add several titles to their List on Netflix all year and are now saving the time to look for interesting titles to binge. You can also catch up on all your favorite shows and host Netflix Watch parties on the platform with your friends.
Here’s what I’m planning on watching this week: Elite.
Here are my favorite titles that recommend to people:
Movies: Birdbox, Passengers, El Camino (if you’ve watched Breaking Bad), The Silence, Gravity.
TV Shows: The Crown, The Haunting of Hill House, Money Heist, Locke & Key, The Witcher.
The app is never out of shows to binge and offers several recommendations for all types of genre out there. If you’re out of shows you want to watch (which is probably not possible), you can rewatch classics like F.R.I.E.N.D.S, Breaking Bad, Sherlock and so on. My personal favorites are standup comedies by Trevor Noah, Kevin Hart, and Jimmy Carr. Netflix is always rolling out new content for its viewers. Check out the thread below to see what’s new this month.
OUTER BANKS
What do you get when you cross Dawson’s Creek with The Goonies? This sun-soaked, breezy binge about buried treasure where a bunch of hot dudes rarely wear shirts. pic.twitter.com/kNjrs78aHf— Netflix (@netflix) April 17, 2020
Instagram was made to be “anti-boredom” by its creators because of how it keeps you hooked no matter how long you keep scrolling. There are thousands of makeup, music, art, culinary, dance, and other content available that you can browse through at any time.
Instagram is also experiencing a rapid increase in live videos being hosted as celebrities are connecting to their fans worldwide through the app. Browse through your IGTV videos to watch content from all over the globe as Instagram suggests you more of these videos for a better experience.
Music
Lastly, but most importantly, stream all the music you want. Try discovering new tracks being released along with catching up on your old playlists from the past. There are several apps like Apple Music, JioSaavn, Spotify, and Soundcloud, which offer an unlimited amount of songs and playlists for you to listen to and download (in some cases).
Discover new playlists like Viral Hits, Chartbusters, Top 100’s, and New Music This Week for streaming music nonstop. This is the best time to discover new music. Just hit play and keep working.
Conclusion
Everyone is trying to get comfortable with this new quarantine routine and is getting to spend much more quality time with family and talking to friends. Be productive in this time, and don’t leave any unfinished work lying around just for the sake of “one more episode”. As we all know, once we go down that road, it eventually ends with pushed deadlines and tons of unfinished work. Remember to stay safe in quarantine no matter what you do – you’re indoors for a good reason.
