While the circumstances aren’t ideal, nine weeks of quarantine (and counting) have changed me for the better.
Pink Striped Short Sleeve Shirt (XS) / High Waisted Ripped Skinny Jeans (26S) / White Straw Circle Bag / Ivory Snakeskin Embossed Pointed Loafers / Pink & White Striped Face Mask
It’s been an interesting two months to say the least and I’m incredibly grateful to have my health, the health of my family and friends, my job and my home (even if it’s in the epicenter of the epicenter!). And while there are plenty of times when I find myself longing for the good ol’ days, I have been able to slow down and do things I normally wouldn’t get to do. Here’s how the quarantine has changed me:
1. Focused on fitness
Before the pandemic, I was really sporadic about working out. I have memberships to both ClassPass and a local gym, but always seemed to make excuses for why it was okay to skip exercise for the day – the main reason being the commute between the studio and home was such a time suck, and I always had a reason to get home like walking my dog or having to cook dinner that night. Now that I’m not commuting, there really is no excuse.
At the beginning of the quarantine, I signed up for Peleton’s 90-day free trial and I have to say, I’m hooked! I bought a large workout mat and any dumbells I could get my hands out (we’ve had some luck with Target) and have been exercising more consistently than I ever have before. There are so many different classes (strength, bodyweight, HIIT cardio, yoga) – you don’t need a Peleton bike to work out. I highly recommend giving the app a try!
2. More homecookin’
The world is your oyster when you live in New York City, and we probably indulged a little too much on restaurants – especially during the work week when we were too tired to cook. But now that we have a little extra time and energy on our hands, we’ve been getting a lot of use out of our Instant Pot. I recently purchased this colorful baking dish set for casseroles and a rolling pin to try my hand at baking!
My current favorite recipes: Instant Pot chicken adobo, Instant Pot ramen and Caitlin Covington’s fajita chicken bake.
3. DIY craft cocktails
Okay, this is a terrible habit for my liver, but great for my wallet! As you can imagine, cocktails are crazy expensive in NYC ($15 – $18 for a nicely made craft cocktail). Thanks to our local wine and spirits shop (who is an amazing neighborhood business that we’re proud to support!), we’re stocked up on all the essential liquors (Tito’s Vodka, Botanist Gin, Woodford Reserve Bourbon, Casamigos Tequila and Alipus Mezcal), aromatic bitters and large ice cube molds.
My current favorite cocktail recipes: red bell pepper margaritas, mezcal old fashioned and White Claw slushies. What can I say? We have eclectic taste.
4. Saying no to FOMO
I suffer from a major case of wanderlust and spend most of my days dreaming of some place I’d rather be. Part of me is driving by the desire of experience something different, but I know the other part is fueled by FOMO. Like I had to go somewhere fun and new and show it off on Instagram. And I know how shallow that sounds and how unhealthy it can be. This pandemic has forced me to slow down and really enjoy what’s in front of us and that includes long walks around our beautiful neighborhood (in fact, I snapped these photos a few blocks from our apartment!). In a way, it comforts me to know that everyone is in the same situation right now and I hope that once life gets up and running that I’ll remember this feeling of satisfaction.
5. Long distance friendships
I’ll be honest: I’m the worst at keeping in touch with friends – whether we live across the country or just in different neighborhoods. If schedules (and stars) don’t align so that we can see each other, our catch up session will have to wait. But I’ve remembered the joy of a phone call, a text message and getting face time through FaceTime. I’ve had more virtual happy hours and late game nights than I can count, with friends who I “never had time” to connect with before the pandemic. And for that, I’m forever grateful to be together, even when we’re alone.
It’s been a wild ride and I think we have a long way to go before it starts to feel “normal” again. But instead of wanting to get back to the old days, I can’t wait to move forward.
Stay healthy and safe!
As a fellow NYer, thank you for this post! Being forced to slow down is something we are not accustomed to, but we are lucky to be in a position to be able to appreciate some of the things it has brought us.
Agreed with all of these! It’s a weird and terrible time for sure but there have been so many unexpected benefits to self-isolation!