3

When life give you limes…. Put them in a Corona(virus)

Hello there, Nic here from the alumni team. I’m currently sitting at my dining table in Brighton working from home and wondering how we got to this point. It’s very odd. Since most events at the university have been postponed or cancelled, the best way of us keeping up with you right now is online so the team and I are going to start to share some of our thoughts, feelings and ideas. We will also share the usual stories, anecdotes and positive things to keep you going wherever you are and hopefully to stop you feeling too isolated.

If, like me, you are spending more time at home than you would normally, I have some suggestions of how to use the time productively or keep you and those around you entertained…..

First and foremost I would suggest staying connected remotely to as many people as you can. Reach out to neighbours, friends and family and video chat with them. Share stories, pictures, funny things…. Laughter really is a great medicine. Maybe it’s a good time to reach out to your old classmates and find out what they’re up to now. Share some memories, pictures of old times and particularly silly things that happened when you were studying at Brighton.

What else? Well, for me, any prolonged periods at home means crafting. I crochet and learnt most of what I know from YouTube. Bella Coco has a wonderful channel where you can learn basic stitches and crochet along with her on projects. Grab yourself a set of hooks and some wool online and get making. You don’t need a lot of kit and it isn’t expensive plus older, more patient kids might like to learn along with you. Ravelry is a great place to find both free and paid for downloadable patterns once you get the hang of it so you shouldn’t need to leave the house.

Are you the kind of person who struggles with silence and needs some background noise? Well, I recommend podcasts. Stuff you should Know

is interesting and educational and there are a huge number of episodes available. You’re Dead to Me is a BBC radio 4 podcast and is described as a ‘history podcast for people who don’t like history’. I would recommend this to both adults and kids. It makes me nostalgic for my school history lessons (if my lessons were taken by an historian, an amusing host and a comedian!). There are plenty more podcasts where they came from which offer hours of entertainment. There’s something for everyone: true crime, music, current affairs, science, comedy. We also have a University of Brighton podcast series which you can find on your favourite podcasting platform where we share academic and staff interviews about the exciting things happening at the university. I’m hoping to bring you alumni stories through this channel soon as well.

Love an internet rabbit hole? If you could spend hours looking at things online then apart from the regular social media sites how about getting lost in Nasa’s image library which they have made publicly available and searchable.

Trying to stay active? Try downloading the couch to 5k app if you are still able to leave the house. Or, better still, download the Zombies, Run app. Sort of appropriate right now? Too soon? If you are cooped up though, Adriene has a huge number of yoga videos you can do without needing any expensive or hard to obtain kit. There are lots of other online work out videos if you are stuck inside and need to let off some steam just be aware of your neighbours if you live in a flat!

Finally, if you’re healthy enough to leave the house and the government haven’t advised against it yet, the National Trust have opened up their gardens and carparks free of charge. So, don’t delay, head out this weekend and get back to nature!

Well, That’s enough from me. Watch out for the next blog by one of my colleagues who will let you know what they suggest you do with your isolation.

Stay safe, stay healthy.

Nic

Follow us on Social media:

Facebook @universityBrightonAlumn

Instagram @brightonalumni

Twitter @brightonalumni

 

Follow my crochet instagram account if you want some inspiration! @niccrochet