Off the top of my head, in no particular order:
(Some of these items may overlap with my "small pleasures" posts.)
- Sunshine. We don't get NEARLY enough of it at this time of year -- but whenever we do, it makes such a HUGE difference in my mood!
- Downton Abbey reruns. For whatever reason, I'm still an old-fashioned "appointment TV" kind of person. It's almost five years since we moved in here, and we still haven't hooked up our DVD player (!). And my Netflix subscription, which allows me to watch all sorts of movies and programs whenever I want, is sadly under-used (to the point that I actually had to confirm to them that yes, I still wanted to keep my subscription -- like, they emailed me because they were actually wondering whether they should be taking my money anymore??!). But every weekday at 4 p.m., dh & I settle in on the couch for another episode of "Downton Abbey" on CBC. We're now on our second run through the series, in season 5. Dh has said that if they start re-running the series all over again for a third time, we can find something else to watch, lol. But for now, I am enjoying basking in the trials and tribulations of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in early 20th century England (again) -- those dresses! That HOUSE!! That LIBRARY!!
- Photos & videos of Little Great-Nephew on social media. I don't know if his parents realize just how much we enjoy seeing photos of the little guy (now 15 months old), at a time when our contact with him is necessarily limited. We stalk Facebook & Instagram daily, hoping to find something new in our feeds. Too often, there's not... but whenever there is, we watch the heck out of it while it's up. ;) In one of the more recent videos, his mom kept the camera still while he ran back & forth, in & out of the frame, babbling away to himself. It was hilarious. Dh & I probably watched it about two dozen times each before it disappeared from our feeds. (She posts almost exclusively on Instagram and Facebook Stories, which expire after 24 hours. Why do people do that??! It's so annoying!! -- especially when it's the adorable great-nephew you can't get enough of, lol. I try to grab a few screenshots of each offering, with varying success.)
- The Internet. I can Skype or Zoom with my parents & friends, stay in touch with my friends and relatives on Facebook & Instagram and other online forums, read and comment on blogs (and write/vent on my own), shop online (and have things delivered right to my door), download books and discuss them in book forums with other readers... This pandemic would be a whole lot harder to navigate without it!
- My Kobo e-reader/Kindle phone app. See above. Yes, I have a ton of paper books on my shelves to read -- we will never lack reading material in this house...! -- but it's SO nice to be able to download that interesting book I just heard about, or the latest pick for one of my online book groups, while bookstores are closed. No need to wait for pickup or delivery. (Plus, e-books are generally cheaper, and don't take up room on my already-overcrowded bookshelves!)
- Takeout on Saturday nights. I'll admit, dh does most of the cooking, so it's not like I need a break. ;) But Saturday nights were always dinner out nights, pre-pandemic, and it's nice to hold onto that bit of normalcy, to keep Saturday night a little bit special/different -- even if we're not actually eating out, just bringing food home from local restaurants to eat here. Often the portions are large enough that we can refrigerate leftovers for another lunch or dinner too. :)
- Knowing that this month/winter (and this pandemic) WILL eventually end! :)
What's saving your life right now?
Great list! Sunshine and internet are big factors here too.
ReplyDeleteYou'd probably like Bridgerton (on Netflix). You could watch it at 4 p.m. once you were through the Downton reruns!
I can't really answer this, because my life doesn't need saving in the same way. Though knowing we'll have finished FIL's house in two weeks keeps me going.
ReplyDeleteI echo the Bridgerton recommendation. Don't expect historial accuracy or Jane Austen authenticity, but it is entertaining!
And I'm glad you have a special occasion meal on Saturdays. It's good to do something different.
Thank you for this post. I enjoyed reading it, and I enjoyed thinking about what was saving me right now. It was a nice change of pace from thinking about negative stuff. <3
ReplyDeleteI wish it were easier to send video directly! The files are always too big to email. You should have a tech talk with them to see if they have a cloud share option, so you can see all the photos and videos. (Like the iCloud or Google photos or something - then you could send her a text or comment to share the best photos or videos directly with you and DH.)
ReplyDeleteThis is such a great post, I may borrow! I'm with you on the sunshine. Although I also don't mind when it's not sunshiny but it's snowing -- that brightness is lovely. The internet is a social oasis right now, isn't it? And takeout. Yes, takeout. Supporting local restaurants and saving dishes, yes yes! And kindle-type things are lovely for the immediacy. And the space saving!
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