Spending your time in the midst of a pandemic can be extremely boring. Luckily, there are many hobbies you can start or try to cure this quarantine boredom. Getting your creative juices flowing can help the long days go by faster.
Investing your time into a hobby can also help you destress if the virus is ruminating in the back of your mind. Not only will hobbies help with your mental health, but once you start hanging out with other people again, you will have something to talk about and show off. Hobbies can make you more interesting as a person. Some ideas may include:
- Cooking
Nothing beats learning how to make a gourmet dish, or just some mac and cheese. Share your homemade meals with family members or keep leftovers for lunches. It’s also a great opportunity to learn what goes into your food. This creates space for making healthier choices. Learning how to cook can be a therapeutic activity with creative aspects if you’re willing to experiment in the kitchen.
- Gardening
Growing your own plants or food is self rewarding. It’s nice being able to see something that came from a tiny seed grow into a beautiful plant. Gardening can reduce stress and improve mood by reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety.
- Woodworking
For the creative type that prefers more of a hands on approach, you might enjoy building and putting projects together. Woodwork increases focus and concentration, while improving hand-eye coordination. Some good projects for a starter could be a small table, shelves, coasters, or a cutting board.
- Hiking
Take advantage of a sunny day and explore the great outdoors. Living in Oregon can be tough during the rainy months, but once the weather clears up, it’s worth it. There are trails and waterfalls nearly all over Oregon. This is a great hobby for those who love moving around and want to stay active while social distancing. An alternate option to hiking if it’s unavailable is going to the park for a walk or bike ride.
- Learning a New Language
Always wanted to learn Japanese? Or how about German? Knowing a second or third language is an amazing tool to have in the workforce. It can also improve memory and listening skills to keep your mind sharp. The most common languages spoken in the world today, beside English, are Mandarin Chinese, Hindustani, Spanish, and Arabic.
