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Greetings from Quarantine: Distractions

Captain’s log, stardate… uhh, March 18th, 2020.

Still stuck at home. The virus rages across the landscape, and all we have remaining are boxes of mac and cheese. And burrito stuff. And rice, and Huy Fong sriracha, and yeah. We’re actually OK.

As much as there may be to do at work, there are still in-between times. And in those in-between times, you have to find a way to keep yourself busy. With limited options for “going out”limited (beyond “DOES TARGET HAVE TOILET PAPER YET WE NEED TO GO NAO RUN RUNRUNRUNRUNRUNRU-“) , you’ve got to make your own fun.

Now then, what to actually do in situations like these…

Sadly, my hug dealing business has dried up as of late.

The easy answers to “what can pass the time” are the expected fare; play video games, fire up a streaming service for a flick or TV show, pick up your favorite book and get lost in the art of storytelling. For me personally, it’s not like that’s hard; I play Tetris to get a tetris while I’m waiting for an Overwatch game to populate and start. I’ve collected more games than I can probably finish in a lifetime, and I’m still buying more every now and again, and I can say that about cheap ebooks. There is not a want for passive nor interactive entertainment.

BUT. This is the perfect time for working on that project you’ve had in the back of your head. Aspiring YouTube star? You’ve got a larger-than-normal audience looking for entertainment. Aspiring writer? That novel won’t write itself, and “outside” isn’t an option for many of us. Always wanted to make your own video game? I found six months to do that m’self when I WASN’T holed up in my apartment, so why not search for tools to get started? Because yes, it’s a good time to kick back and rest a little, but it’s an excellent time for whatever it is that’s nagged at the back of your brain the last few years.

And for anybody content to kick back and be entertained–because, guess what, that’s perfectly OK–there will hopefully be some inspired folks online ready and able to show off their chops, their progress, or begin anew. This is a great time to find that restaurant server to break out into song, or the teacher with a novel to spill onto the page, or the humble janitor with a inspired paintbrush. It’s always a good time to search for one’s passion, but when the 24-hour channels are so full of depressing “insight” masquerading as “news”, why not explore whatever the hell you want?

You could even rediscover and start writing to a blog you’ve had for years, but neglected while building other parts of your life up. The world is kinda-sorta on hold ATM, so I might-… uhh, anyone could start taking advantage of that outlet you’ve been holding back on.

If you have any good ideas, especially anything I haven’t mentioned here, hopefully you’ll share it! You can leave a comment with your ideas, or I’ve started a Taller 8 discord channel so you can chat and swap/build on ideas there. I’m looking forward to whatever you come up with.

Stand Tall friends, and let’s make something awesome!