The homebody’s guide
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Stay in touch: pick up the phone or tap out an email to elderly relatives, distant cousins, friends you’ve been meaning to call but haven’t had the time.
Bust a move: for the fitness nuts among us, there are plenty of online workouts designed for the comfort of your lounge room - Zumba, yoga, dance, interval training and even CrossFit. Gyms around the world are offering online classes for their patrons – including The Hubb Health Club in Masterton, and pilates and yoga specialist Love&Core who will be posting daily workouts on Facebook. Bring out the hula hoop, and do a daily workout with Lucy Cooper at Coops Hoops. For those with theatrical tendencies, have a go at Joseph Corella’s Broadway-inspired dance classes, here’s his take on Flashdance
Revert to childhood: grab all the blankets and pillows off your bed and make a fort. Burrow inside with some colouring books, some podcasts, a hot drink, and a large plate of snacks and forget about the world for a couple of hours.
If you’ve got a sweet tooth, you’re in luck - Schoc Chocolate in Greytown will deliver to your letterbox.
If you’re working from home...
I’ve been self-employed for the past four years, and it’s... not as easy as it looks. If you find yourself working from home during the lockdown, here are some tips, courtesy of the talented members of the Wairarapa Women In Business Facebook community.
Stick to a routine. Wake up at the same time each morning, eat and drink at regular intervals and, if possible, pick a time to clock off in the evening and keep to it.
Get dressed – a small detail, but it brings a sense of normality and helps you feel ready for the day.
Don’t answer non-work related emails or phone calls during work hours.
If possible, keep your workspace tidy to help you focus.
Make appointments with clients or colleagues via Skype, Zoom or FaceTime.
Have a deadline for everything. If you don’t have a deadline, make one – it helps you stay on top of your workload.
If you’ve got kids at home, make a schedule the whole family can stick to. See the RIVAL WEALTH Facebook page for more details.
If you find yourself overwhelmed, put some coffee in the thermos, plug in the headphones and go for a walk around the block. But remember the 2 metre rule!
For Wairarapa folk in need of inspiration while they hunker down, Erin Kavanagh-Hall, lifestyle writer and self-confessed homebody, has a few suggestions…
Become a student: ever wanted to learn how to decorate a cake, Extreme Cake Makers-style? Knit a fair isle jumper? Make your own drywall? Now might be the time. YouTube alone has thousands of tutorial videos: everything from tap dance, to calligraphy, to landscape painting, to patching up old clothes and furniture, to balloon artistry and stand-up comedy. Closer to home, Wairarapa REAP and Ventana Art Collective will be running online courses. Click a link and expand your mind.
Get around to it: Virginia Woolf famously said “a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction”. In our frantic modern society, it can be difficult to find a “room” for us to focus on our own creative projects. Well, there’s still time to devote to those projects we’ve kept putting off. I plan to write the musical theatre scripts I’ve been planning for about a year and finish hanging up the rest of our artwork that’s sat in boxes since we moved house almost a year ago. For the local writers needing guidance, check out Catherine Cooper, Carterton-based author and writing coach. For arty folk, King St Artworks is doing daily art prompts on its Facebook page..
