As I penned the opening bit to my last piece, I was dwelling on the fact that 2020 was the start of a new decade and one that was often romanticized about as “the future”. I lightly touched upon “…a virus spreading…” just as a casual reference to something that has clearly blown up since I originally mentioned it. Never would I think the next couple days would play out the way they have. With the cancellation of all and any events and asking people to gather in groups no larger than 10, it seems like a quarantined world is looming eerily upon us and for our own good there isn’t much we can do about it. With how rapidly this virus has spread and the media hyping it up more and more, it seems like following the “social distancing” protocol isn’t a terrible idea. Many things will take hits while others might be able to blossom. I think the outlook we need to have on this situation is one of untapped potential rather than forced confinement. Some of the things that might take a toll: social life, sanity lost due to being confined to your house for both work and leisure, and much, much, more. While many will view this confinement as extremely negative (in reality, it is, as no one should shield themselves from the outside world and not engage in social norms [also, the situation with the actual virus is extremely negative]). But let’s shine light on some of the positives we can establish from this. This is a great time to work on yourself. Whether that is expanding your taste in certain areas, gaining more knowledge (from any outlet you may find), picking up things you don’t do nearly as often or have never done before, or just critical thinking about your past, present, or future. Now is a great time for reflection. Try not to dwell on the negative too much. Keep it positive and inspirational, rather than dismal and down. Also try not to be down thinking about the things you could be doing if you were not on quarantine. There is no way around it, and disregarding what is seen as best policy puts you and also others at an extreme risk. And you should be thinking about others more than yourself. Most of the people reading this are not the ones worrying. As age grows, so does concern and wariness. While improving on yourself, you should stimulate your mind and social skills while reaching out to people you might not speak to as much. Your social circle is going to be small and repetitive for quite some time, so reaching out to friendly faces far and wide will help cope with the stress and current state of affairs. Talk more with your roommates. Learn more about the people you care about. With technology, we have communication at our fingertips. Use it (just not in over abundance, and if you need tips on how to reduce screen time, check this out [TLDR: read, write, practice something analog, exercise])! Although we will be inside a lot more than typical, get outside. Sit on a deck (if you have one), go for a morning or sunset walk, surf (which cannot be stopped, and I am pretty stoked to just surf a shit ton while on quarantine), or even just sitting outdoors and in the sun will feel a lot better than inside walls. Take this post as just tips and tricks to stay sane in this wild and erratic time. People will spin it many ways, some truthful and others far from it. Thinking in a positive and rational mindset will give you the most success and clarity. It is a strange time in all of our lives, young and old. But it will all work out. It always does.
Category: Life Happenings
Detaching from the Screen
It’s 2020. Can you believe that? Twenty Twenty. Shouldn’t cars be flying by now? Or AI initiating a hostile takeover on our lives? Or maybe the world should have ended on doomsday of 2012 and we are eight years further than we ever thought we would be. It’s 2020, and while some predictions are accurate, the world we live in is constantly changing. With a virus spreading, an interesting presidential race, and the evolution of modern technology happening all right under our noses, it is interesting to see how the start of the new decade will end. One thing that has been very prevalent the last 5 years and only getting more and more of the norm, is how much time we (as in just about everyone that is on socials or owns a smartphone) are glued to the small screen we carry with us everywhere we go. It isn’t necessarily a terrible problem, but sometimes time away from the screen is definitely needed. Here are 3 ways to kick the screen away (even if it is only for 30 minutes).
Pick up something tangible.
This is kind of another way of saying read a book, but that’ll come in a few sentences. Essentially, we are on our phone searching for content or chatting with friends. We all love to text and Facetime, but this requires staring at our screen or staring at it every minute between responses. A good alternative to this is picking up a cup of coffee (or a beer, or any preferred beverage or even snack) and to meet up with someone face to face. Sure it requires getting out of bed, leaving your house and looking presentable, and then spending money. Okay, so it is a lot more work then a push of a button. But someone’s literal presence is just different. On another note, for the content quest, pick up a book or a magazine. Whether you just like looking at photos or reading, there is something for everyone. Sure, you definitely will get judged more for reading a playboy magazine than getting stuck in the vortex of Instagram models, but at least you aren’t straining your eyes. Books are rad because they are pretty much videos. Except they require effort and imagination, which makes them worse than videos.
Make it a part of work.
If you have the ability to, maybe make checking socials a part of your job. Whether it’s freelance or even just helping someone out, there is a limit to how much you can look at your phone. If you are looking at it all the time for a paycheck or under a different account, it definitely will wear down your time for personal use. Same goes with computers. If you find yourself grinding in an excel doc or constantly surfing the web for work, you probably will get home and just want to disconnect. Both me and my roommate feel this way, but occasionally I overindulged in both my phone and laptop. It’s all relative, as sometimes you might binge and other times go completely analog for the day. This is realistically the least useful way to step away from the screen. This assumes you have a job that requires avid screen time, which isn’t the case all the time. And most who don’t have a line of work like this probably aren’t looking to get into the screen sector. All good, theres at least one other recommendation you can try above and below.
Do something and vow not to check it.
Hobbies are things you really like doing. If you didn’t, you probably wouldn’t put aside so much time to do them. A hobby could be designated time to not look at your phone and really enjoy what you are putting your focus into. Some hobbies are much easier to do this than others. Any sport will make you put your phone down. Especially surfing, which makes you most of the time leave your phone in the car and go bob up and down unbothered by other humans via technology. You definitely will still get bothered by either that annoying talkative guy in the lineup or the dude who you almost hit on that screamer of a wave as he just sat in the middle of the wave like a deer in headlights. Aside from activities that require exercise, there are plenty of other things you can do and just leave the phone far away. Drawing, learning to play an instrument, cooking, or just doing chores around the house are all great ways to avoid the screen. Just put it very far away and forget about it. If there is a reason you need to be by your phone (ie emergency or awaiting a certain call/notificaiton) so be it. Even 20 minutes with no screen is better than 20 minutes on the screen.
Seasons Change
I really have been hammering home the idea of change. When things stay too constant, it tends to turn real dry. We love to get ourselves into routines, but every once in a while we start to dislike the order of operations or even the certain practices we jam into an already crowded schedule. While routines and change can definitely be spearheaded by us, as we are in control of our life, many changes are out of our hands. Sometimes they might be in other peoples hands. Hopefully those peoples hands are tender and loving. Wishful thinking. There are also changes that neither us nor anyone can control. These changes usually are depicted by our ecosystem or are constructed by a set of norms that have been in places for centuries.
If you happen to also live in California, you have noticed something the past couple of weeks. Right after we passed groundhog day and Phil didn’t see his shadow, it was predicted that an early spring is upon us. With this, the past couple of weeks have been nothing short of beauty. Warm weather. Sunshine from sunup to sun down. Strong sun, heating up the climate and what felt like the ocean water climbing backup. Sunsets that have been beautiful, and that are also getting later and later by the minutes. South swell has poked it’s little head out from hibernation, but only to show us it’s still there. It seems like people have just had more pep in their step. Just because a slight change in weather (in comparison to my home state, NJ, which features severe weather changes that actually do lead to people going from insanely grumpy to happy).
You can start to tan again. You don’t need to layer up for the office or a work commute. You can go out to the bars in a T-shirt again. The boots are almost nocked off, and the neoprene is only getting thinner and thinnerYou don’t need to sit in your car with the heat blasting before a dawnie. Soon enough beach days will be upon us. For those that don’t indulge in the coast, you will leave work at five, six, even seven, and still have at least an hour of sunshine left. This is maybe one of the greatest feelings yet. While you don’t need sunshine for everything, it sure gives you a little bit more enthusiasm, especially if what you are trying to do is based outside. As adults, most of our days are spent confined inside. Getting out of work with the sun still high in the sky is a great feeling.
With Spring and Summer, we have a lot more to look forward to (especially in California). Easter. Coachella. The Del Mar Racetrack. Memorial Day weekend. The Fourth of July. Labor Day weekend. The month span of April to September just seems so much more eventful than that of October to March. While this is totally personal, I feel as though most would agree with what I am saying. Unless you like cold weather, or really just love Christmas and New Years. To each his own. We are ushering back in the months of sunshine and fun times. The months where every second we have we want to spend it outside. The months were the days reach their maximum length. When the beach sounds like a great idea no matter what the time is. Oh, what a time it is.
Lovers Day
Valentines day. A day to dedicate to your significant other for putting up with your shit. Whether it’s spending too much time with your friends, you bailing on plans because the waves look fun, or just about anything, Valentine’s day is a great way to reset for the year and show your partner how much you love them. It doesn’t need to be a flashy gift or extravagant date (although most probably wish for one or the other, or both). It’s a day to celebrate new love, old love, and love that has been up and down like the waves.
But Valentines day doesn’t just need to be for those in a committed relationship. Tell the girl you might be talking to happy valentines day, even if you met her a week ago (note: this might be a little much to some, so tread lightly). Say happy valentines day to your parents. Say Happy valentines day to your close friends (more of a girl thing, but fuck it). Say happy valentines day to your dog. Or cat. Or any pet. Post on social media about valentines day and your valentines (so far I’ve seen friends, family, and pets on my feed). Or don’t post, that’s fine too.
Do something you love. Whether that is as easy as going on a bike ride, playing video games, eating junk food, or all of those things at once. Go for a swim in the ocean (for my west coasters, but people in NJ are welcome to take a polar plunge). Read. Write. Draw. Take a nap. Do nothing. Scroll Instagram for an hour. It doesn’t matter to me. Or to the person next to me. If you don’t have anyone to share the day with, share it with yourself. Share it with nature. Share it with someone over the internet. Share it with someone new. Share it with someone old.
If there’s one thing to do on Valentines day, it is to love. Person, place, thing, it does not matter. Maybe you are some weirdo and you don’t love ANYTHING. If in that case you are, how about you spread and show love. Talk positively. Compliment people you wouldn’t normally. Smile at people when you walk past them. Hold the door open. Buy someone their coffee. Give someone a set wave (unless you really want it, then you are expressing self love and they will get that). The 14th of February is a day mostly associated with love for a single person, but let’s change that. Love everyone. Try it just for one day. Then maybe next year the whole week of Valentines day. Then the month. Then just do it.
Essential for Development
It is often inevitable. If we thought of a world or a life without change, we would envision something incredibly dismal. Stuck in a rut of familiarity and also stagnant in growth. From physical, to mental, to perspective. Change in all of the above is necessary for survival. It is survival of the fittest, and we would all go down to natural selection if we do not adapt and change. Some loath it while others love it. Some remain impartial to change, and just ride the waves of ups and downs that come along with life. No matter who you are, what status you have, rich or poor, healthy or sick, change will be coming down the pipeline at some point. Sometimes you are blindsided, sometimes you can know about it for months in advance.
On one hand, change can implement a fear. You will very quickly be thrown out of your routine and into a new one. Familiar faces will be replaced with first encounters, and things you can count on will no longer be reliable. A learning curve will be implemented with change. Sometimes steep, other times meager. The best way to meet the challenge head on is changing yourself. While change often occurs outside of you, adapting on the inside is how you will conquer it. Whether it is changing your perspective and looking at the glass half full, or looking for the positives underneath all of the negatives, a perspective change helps conquer the biggest changes.
On the opposite hand, some meet change head on and love the challenge. Change breeds unfamiliarity and discomfort, which can lead to a person’s biggest growth and understanding of themselves. Instead of looking at a loss of your old routine, embrace a new and different routine. Maybe the best routine is a mix of the old and the new. Instead of looking at the loss of familiar faces, relish in the new relationships you will build and never forget about the old ones. If you think about it, you will just double your relationships and connections. Look at the learning curve as a helpful challenge. While you may be tackling unfamiliar tasks or daily activities, look to them for the lessons and knowledge packed inside of them rather than something you just have to do or deal with.
The craziest thing about change is in which the speed it can take place. Things can change in the blink of an eye. In this world we live in, you never really know what can be around the corner. Good or bad. For better or worse. Large or small. Change will happen. Like stated earlier, sometimes you can see it coming while other times you are blindsided. In anticipation of the random and erratic occurrence in which change takes place, the best we can do is have an open mind. While this helps in all aspects of life, it is especially essential in the face of change and adversity. Going into every day with open arms mentally (and physically [not in a touchy way] to friends, family, and even strangers) can help enhance day to day life and help you adapt to any challenge or change thrown your way.
James Giordano 