At Home, Quarantine Style
Home. One of my favorite places to be. While life is centered even more at home these days, I wanted to resume this series of home features with creatives I love.
Being at home is usually my release and my sanctuary, but the requirement to be home with no end in sight has been stressful. Though, I’m absolutely sure I don’t need to tell any of you that.
I consider myself to be a professional homebody. I thrive at home. I live alone with my dog and I love laying on the couch surrounded by my piles of magazines and art supplies with music on blast enjoying a morning coffee. My dog, Roze, also loves laying on the couch surrounded by fuzzy pillows and blankets and a pile of toys. This is us at our best, usually.
Transitioning from using home as a place to reset to using home as a place to stay all the time is challenging. How do we not just sleep and rest, but work, exercise, and socialize from these spaces that seem to be shrinking by the day?
These are the topics of life we’ll explore in this series with friends. I’m excited, are you? But today, here are my top quarantine tips for thriving in uncertainty.
ON SHARING SPACE:
For me and my dog, we fight over the couch on THE REGULAR, so division of space is important. I know this doesn’t really compare to sharing a space with a partner, kids, roommates, or even more than one pet, but what I’ve come to learn about myself this year is that physical space of my own is important. I bought Roze a little dog bed for the living room with a big pillow just for her to lounge on all day which gives me free range over the couch when I need it. It’s a small thing for sure, but it’s important, as she can sit underneath me and trip me up all day. Having my own space has become very important in life. I need the space to stretch physically, mentally, and creatively. Find a space that’s just yours if you can, and don’t share it. Even if it’s for a few hours a day- have a space that’s your own.
ON WORKING FROM HOME:
Defining work hours and space doesn’t work for me. I have an office for keeping work things in and I still venture out to my studio to make candles once or twice a week, but at home I like to work from wherever has the best light and view during the day. I work by feel. Ideally, I wake up, I do my morning routine, plus a pup walk and a little work out, and then I work for a few hours from the morning sun office. Then it’s lunch time, another pup walk, and a few hours of lazing about doing some work from the couch. Then dinner and work if I need to either on the couch or in the office.
Sometimes though, that just doesn’t work. Some days I wake up, do my morning journaling pages, and then have a mini break down about the world, lay around and drink coffee and eat chips until it goes away. Then maybe I’ll find a better mental space to work accompanied by good afternoon lighting from the couch. It’s less of a traditional work day, and more of a lifestyle, but I find that it works well for me, especially while life feels heavy. Being hard on yourself to be as productive as a non-pandemic world is unrealistic, and sometimes we need to indulge the wants and let go of the shoulds.
ON THE EXTENSION OF HOME
Outdoors has become an extension of home for Roze and myself. While we have always taken daily walks around the neighborhood, it’s now an even more important way to shake things up during the day. I live in an apartment and don’t have the luxury of lounging around in a beautiful yard and garden of my design, so soaking up the beauty of our neighbors’ gardens and going for long safe walks in different parks are one of our current life’s greatest thrills. I’ve always loved watching the changing of the seasons, and often I feel sad that it passes by so quickly. Now that life has slowed down, the seasons feel as if they’ve slowed down, too. And I’m fully ready to enjoy an extended peony season.
How are you living during quarantine? Share your tips with us!
