Quarantine: new hobbies, new concerns, new beliefs

Entry 1:

These past three months have been full of new things

New concerns, new worries, new hobbies, new beliefs

But within these past three months I’ve also come to learn new things 

New lessons, new values, new skills

I began quarantine earlier than the March 14th call for closure of school and my third day home I decided to finally pick up the ukulele I’ve owned for the past four years and finally teach myself the instrument.

Since then I’ve been playing as often as I can

Taking lessons on YouTube and following play along YouTube videos

I only know so many chords at the moment so my reach is limited

But it’s fun to practice the same songs over and over, recording my growth on voice memos

Another favorite thing I can share of this time is being able to discover new music

My good friend and I have made habit of sharing playlists with each other every once in a while and it’s fun to listen to new artists and broaden your listening reach

On my own I tend to explore on Spotify, recently finding four artists I like a lot

Jae Stephens, Jessie Ware, Lilac and Ayoni

My favorite thing about discovering new artists is how they always seem to blend well into the genres I already love to listen to

My third favorite thing of this time has been all the new things I’m learning

Though right now is stressful and a lot of dirty hidden secrets are being revealed, it’s been a trip learning new things everyday 

New things from skin care products and routines, to myths about the past, to functionalities of the government, it’s all been interesting to learn about 

I hope to continue developing new interests and expanding on my three new favorite things 

‍

Entry 2:

I take my time and make a cup of hot tea everyday 

Never adding milk because dairy isn’t the best thing to consume when feeling anxious

But honey is forever and always my go-to additive when fixing myself a cup every night

I’ve finished all the green tea and the pineapple ginger 

The lemon, ginger and chamomile tea too

Now I’ve resorted to “Sleepytime Herbal Tea” and linden leaves tea which do wonders in relaxing my body and mind when I’m not feeling at my best

Night time tea’s ingredients include chamomile and orange leaves

And In addition to drinking tea nightly, I make sure to drink cold water and keep my stress ball near me to squeeze when I need it

I at first thought my anxiety would subside with not being in school and working everyday, as I no longer have a schedule that directly tasks my health 

And I’ve found that not being in school and working everyday have, but I do find myself anxious and as per recommendation of my friend, tea has been helping immensely 

My sister often questions why it is I’m drinking tea so often

Asking me whether I’m sick

But I enjoy drinking tea, even if not for my anxiety

Because it really is delicious

Entry 3:

Meeting someone new is always an interesting experience because the results are never the same. It’s not like picking up a bottle of water and knowing exactly what it will taste like. It’s not like biting into your usual order at the food joint you frequent where you have the flavors memorized already. It’s not like listening to your favorite album where you already know what to expect, you already know every beat, rhythm and lyric. No. Meeting someone new is like cutting into an orange. They don’t all taste the same, some sweet some sour but you always like one more than the other. It’s like biting into an apple, you’ll either get lucky and the apple is nice, sweet and crisp, or unlucky in which case the apple is soft and not at all sweet. Or meeting someone new can be described as looking up at the sky at night. The moon isn’t always in the same phase, always changing, always moving, always shining a little differently. When you meet someone new, you’re being introduced to a new mind, a new soul you’ve never met before. This person isn’t familiar like your room you envision on the way home or like that meal that’s cooked ever so often at home. Meeting someone new is special and unique like the snow that falls during winter.