Desperate times call for desperate measures. But let’s not get carried away with the drinking, okay?

Earlier this week, I started a binary system of drinking each day: either I have zero or one. It tricks me into thinking that I have a choice, even if that choice is drinking nothing at all. So far, it’s helped me not to go overboard.

In the absence of pub crawls, brewery tours, and stool warming, what else is one to do? Here are a few things I’ve been doing this week that you can try, too.

Cut Out Images from the News.

My husband is working from home, and we both have a wicked sense of gallows humor, so I’ve been pasting various photos of the times around the house for him to find. There’s the stock market guy who’s wigging out, the other stock market guy who’s also wigging out, another stock market guy who’s now working from home.

Create Your Own Film Festival.

We normally go to see movies and shorts in the international film festival that’s held every spring in our town. We hesitated to buy tickets when we caught wind of the coronavirus, but they ended up cancelling the whole thing anyway. There were several other movies lined up in our mental to-watch lists, so we sat down and came up with a plan.

I’ve been reading a book on the craft of writing dialogue, and I heard about a few of these movies that way. Then, of course, there was the latest disease movie, Contagion. We saw Outbreak with Dustin Hoffman a few weeks ago, and I happened to read The Plague by Albert Camus before this whole thing took off.

Each movie costs much less to rent online than to see in person, so we figure we’re saving ourselves a few bucks and still seeing some good cinema. The film festival also just sent out an email with suggestions, too. (Subscribe here.)

Get Active.

Man, have you read the news lately? More than one expert has encouraged us to exercise, particularly outside if we can.

I’ve had a bum pinky toe this week (which I ran into a pile of books, yay), but other than not being able to walk right for a couple days, it didn’t change my usual routine.

My sister turned me on to Yoga with Adriene a couple years ago. I was in need of some movement after beating up my body & shins with running and weight lifting. Yoga changed my life. It’s not only good for the body — and wow, can you get a good workout without it even seeming like one — it’s also good for the mind. I feel much calmer after listening to Adriene, and if you can’t stretch very far, it’s all good. It’s all about doing what YOU can do. “Find what feels good” is her slogan. Most videos are free on Youtube, and members on the Find What Feels Good app can get extra videos, too.

Clean House while Singing with the Windows Open.

I’m pretty shy when it comes to singing in front of people, but I plugged in my earbuds and belted out 80’s classics from Whitney Houston, Taylor Dayne, Janet Jackson, and so much more. My baseboards have never been so shiny.

Do Other Things.

My friend the Derelict Debutante has a whole bunch of suggestions on her latest blog post. (NSFW, people, but if you’re working from home, then never mind.)

Another friend told me about Broadway shows streaming on various outlets.

If club music is your thing, Berlin DJs are keeping the party going online for free.

Kids and parents can make floating paintings and foldable monsters. (Thanks to SECCA for the suggestions!)

It’s pretty incredible how much the internet can keep us busy and keep us connected, and the coronovirus lockdown is amplifying the significance of that.

Stay sane, stay safe, and stay put!