Street Sounds, Booze, and Yoga: The Survivors’ Guide to Life.

I wonder how many other people out there are listening to the sound of the streets. The roads are soo silent now, every miniscule sound stands out. Which isn’t much, really- sanitation trucks, birds (!!!!), and..sirens. I often think about how many of them are in response to “normal bullshit” and standard medical emergencies versus covid related. It’s surreal and scary and creepy. 

But with all this negative talk, I am trying my hardest to be as healthy as I can- physically, emotionally, mentally..  I realize that things are going to get even worse out there in the hospitals, especially down on the front lines. It’s so important that I- and all of us- are as strong as we possibly can be. And it’s definitely not as easy as it looks. 

So, how do I do that? Eh, I do what I can. I am still human, soooo, yeah! Of course I am consuming more red wine than I usually do at this point.. if you can cope without booze right now, then jeez, I admire you! I am working full time and am also in graduate school (luckily, these classes were able to be moved exclusively online a few weeks ago). I am a typical NYC woman, dealing with her own problems and insecurities and social life and bullshit. But, despite my busy schedule, it still leaves me a ton of time to by myself, chilling in my cozy apartment.  I make an enormous effort to maintain a normal sleep schedule (although, I am writing this when it is way past my bedtime, as I have to work in the morning). I am cramming my body with every superfood shot that I can think of, and take daily multivitamin and vitamin c tablets... I’m about to incorporate daily lemon balm as well. I drink more water. More tea. And I’m really trying to eat more salad! I’m already a vegetarian, and keeping up this lifestyle has not been a problem.

I’ve always found a ton of benefits in yoga, so I’m trying to maintain a normal yoga and pilates routine every day- and really, really keep it a routine this time! I love the way that yoga makes me feel, and after a long, tense day at work, it relieves my spirits and my body. Plus, I love doing yoga in my apartment. I totally dig where I live- because I know my mind runs crazy, it’s always been important for my apartment to have a super zen-like vibe. I’m pretty proud of what I’ve done with my place and think I’ve done pretty well at having a super relaxing energy here. So, I must say I enjoy being home. I think it’d suck to be going through all of this and not truly loving where you go to sleep every night. I’m happy to know that, despite all this bullshit, I can come home to a fantastic queen sized bed with a memory foam mattress and a sherpa blanket. That’s pretty great. 

I think that that’s the point here. Despite how many horrifying and negative things are going on out in the world, we have ourselves. We have our loved ones. We have our homes, our cozy beds, or maybe they’re not so cozy. But we might have those flannel pajamas to put on. Some really yummy flavored coffee. Maybe we have a nice smelling candle to light, or some new music to listen to. Maybe we have some really great conversation with someone close, or a wonderful snuggle session with our pet.

I know it’s hard to stay quarantined. We’re New Yorkers, we’re social beings, and spending this much time by ourselves isn’t what we’re used to. But instead of panicking, sitting in front of the television and watching miserable news story after miserable news story, why don’t we think on what we’re doing. Like, literally, what we are doing. What our environment is like. What’s outside our window? What’s our favorite dish, or what’s something new we haven’t noticed before? How are we feeling? I think they might call it mindfulness.

Also, do more yoga. 

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