COVID-19, also known as Coronavirus, has left most of us with a lot of time indoors and isolated from our family, friends, and community. The uncertainty and stress can overwhelm the best of us so consider taking a break from endlessly scrolling the news feeds and social media. If you’re healthy and able, we’ve compiled a list of things to help pass the time and keep spirits high.
1. Netflix and Chill
The obvious first. You don’t always have to be productive and going-going-going. Sometimes it’s better to just be. Why not binge every show you’ve ever wanted to watch and more? Pop some popcorn and get comfy on the couch.
Pro-tip: Enjoy some Venice Cookie Company Churro cookies while you binge.
2. Puzzles and chill
Smoke some weed and get started on a puzzle. Choose one that features something that makes you happy – puppies, the outdoors, sci-fi, cityscapes, or whatever floats your boat. If you don’t have a physical puzzle, there are plenty of online free ones to keep you entertained for days and days.
Pro tip: Try a good hybrid flower like Ervana. It’ll keep you upbeat and focused to work on the puzzle while also relaxed.
3. Watch Cat and Doggo Videos
According to a new study by an Indiana University Media School researcher, watching cat videos on the internet boosts viewers’ energy and positive emotions and decreases negative feelings. If you’re feeling down, try searching youtube, Instagram, or tiktok for cat videos.
Pro-tip: Share the videos you find with loved ones. Spread the joy of furry friends. Here’s a starter.
4. Get Artsy and Craftsy
Have you always wanted to try watercolor? Drawing with charcoal can be very cathartic. What about collaging? Origami? Knitting? Tie dying? Candle making? The options are endless. Hit up Pinterest if you need some inspiration and most supplies can be ordered online for delivery right to your door.
Pro tip: Add a Sunday Goods Spark pen to spark your creativity.
5. Curate the soundtrack to your life
Update and create some new playlists. Music is something we can enjoy from home and has the power to change our emotions. Do you need some inspiration to get going on the home workout routine? Make a playlist or check out ours. Looking for some calming music to relax, meditate, and do yoga or are you searching for something a little more upbeat? Take some time and craft the soundtrack to your life.
Pro-tip: Check out our Spotify playlists and let us know how they make you feel!
6. Get un-bored with boardgames
If you live with other people, now is the time to break out all the old board games – Scrabble, Chess, Checkers, Bananagrams, Uno, and more. It’s a fun way to connect with others, inspire some friendly competition, engage your brain, and pass the time! If you live alone, download one of the many board game apps or play online with friends (or strangers).
Pro-tip: Most games can be turned into smoking games if you’re creative enough.
7. Indoor Glamping
If you’re missing the outdoors, move your furniture and try camping indoors. It’ll bring back old fort-building memories and your inner child. Best part? It’s camping but with running water and a bathroom…and a real roof over your head.
Pro-tip: Make s’mores on your stove or microwave. Extra points for using Kiva chocolate bars for the s’mores.
8. Teach your old dog new tricks
Now is as a good a time as ever to teach your dog some new tricks. Give your favorite pet some added attention, treats, and walk away with some new tricks. If your furry friend knows sit, stay, and heel, step it up with high five, roll over, and fetch.
Pro-Tip: Teach your dog to fetch your smoking piece.
9. Practice photography
Whether you’re shooting with a professional camera or just the one on your phone, there are a lot of simple tricks to make you a better photographer. Youtube is a treasure trove of tips and tricks videos. Photography can help you look at your surroundings in a new light…through a new lens, pun intended.
Pro-tip: Puff on a nice hybrid vape, like Amigo’s Pina Colada cartridges. It tastes great and it’ll help get you in the zone.
10. Exercise
Just because gyms are closed, doesn’t mean you can’t get your workout in. Youtube has tons of free exercise videos. Many apps are offering free trials like Peloton. HIIT, Yoga, Zumba, strength training, cardio, whatever your fancy, it’s probably online and most of the time you can find it for free.
Pro-Tip: Try a 7 day challenge video series and stick to it. Check out our article on cannabis and working out.
11. Distance Parties
Dancing is something that helps us connect with our bodies, our minds, and releases tension. Many dance instructors, DJ’s, brands, and dance fans are doing virtual dance parties and dance classes. The best part is you don’t have to worry about other people watching you, unless you want them to that is. Join one and let loose.
Pro-Tip: Ryan Heffington, owner of the local and beloved Sweatshop, hosts free dance classes on Instagram live most days of the week. Join thousands of others around the world and get into the groove from the comfort of your living room. #Disdance
12. Try doing everything with your non-dominant hand
Here’s something small you can do at any time of day, no equipment necessary. Boost your brain fitness by using your non-dominant hand for every-day tasks like brushing your teeth, controlling your computer mouse, talking on the phone, or sweeping the floor. It will help strengthen neural connections and definitely keep you entertained while doing mundane activities.
Pro-tip: Try lighting a joint with your non-dominant hand.
13. Sleep
Many Americans don’t get enough sleep and it can be detrimental to your immune system and overall health. Take this time to get some rest. Go to sleep earlier and sleep in if you feel like it. Enjoy your bed.
Pro-tips:
- Increase bright light exposure during the day. Get outside or sit by a window.
- Reduce blue light exposure in the evening which can trick your body into thinking it’s daytime – cut down on screen time or use blue light blockers
- Don’t consume caffeine later in the day
- Try to set a sleep schedule and stick to it
- Avoid alcohol
- Optimize your bedroom environment – keep it quiet, dark, and cool when it’s time to sleep.
- Try a white noise app or playlist
- Pick up some Trokie CBD + Melatonin from our stores and take some before bed.
14. Meditate
There are a lot of reasons to be stressed right now but stress can lower your immune system among other negative consequences. Meditation is an easy way to relieve stress and help improve your mood. You can do it on your own or use the help of an app or guided meditation video. New to meditation? Sitting silently still is deceivingly hard. We suggest doing an online search for “introduction to meditation” and check out some great videos and resources to help get you started.
Pro-tip: Try a Nano tincture 10-15 minutes before starting. You may find it easier to relax and ease into the meditation.
15. Practice your joint rolling skill
There is an art to the process of rolling a joint and it takes practice to get it right. Not staying lit, canoeing, burning too fast, not being able to get a good pull…all of these can be avoided with proper joint rolling and practice. Now is the time to brush up on your joint rolling skills.
Pro-Tip: Check out Leafly’s article and video on how to roll the perfect joint
16. Explore with edibles
If you’ve never experimented with edibles, now is a great time to do it. The effects of edibles can take up to two hours to hit and it’s best to experiment in the comfort and safety of your own home. Start slow and build from there. Figure out what edibles you like and what your ideal dose is.
Pro-tip: Start with a low dose edible like Plus Balance Cucumber Lime gummies.
17. Try dabbing
NOT FOR THE NOVICE. Dabbing is another activity that is best tried for the first time from the comfort of your home. It can be an intense experience with the effects coming on strong. If you’ve always been curious, give it go.
Pro-tip: Don’t try this if you’re a novice cannabis user.
18. Take up cooking or baking
There is no shortage of great recipe outlets online. With the added time, you can invest some of it into preparing homemade dishes. Like most things these days, you can find great ideas for free online. Find a chef (or blogger) you like and give a couple of their recipes a try.
Have some ingredients you need to use up before they go bad? Try https://fridgetotable.com/ to find recipes built around the ingredients you select.
Pro-tip: Try cannabis infused cooking. The easiest way to infuse your cooking/baking is to first make cannabutter. Then you can just substitute that for butter in your recipes, just be careful with the dosing! Check out this great Leafly article on making cannabutter.
19. Find your green thumb
Having a home garden can be a really rewarding (and delicious!) experience. Spend some time planning out what you want to grow and then get to work. Besides edible plants, flowers are another great option for a home garden. Give the local bees a habitat while adding some color and sweet aromas to your surroundings. Gardening can be a great way to relieve stress and connect with nature, even in LA!
Pro-tip: Check out this LA times article on getting started with gardening in LA
20. Craft cannabis cocktails
Planning a happy hour video chat or maybe just wanting to savor a delicious drink on your porch after a long day inside? Try a craft cannabis cocktail. Mixology can take a little time to perfect but just imagine how impressed your friends will be when this is all over and you can make them fancy cocktails.
Pro-tip: Pick a tincture and experiment with different mixers. Papa & Barkley tinctures have a really great earthy flavor that can play well in cannabis cocktails. If you’re feeling a little more on the lazy side, pick up a Cannabis Quencher, pour over ice and call it a day. As always, if you’re fairly new to cannabis beverages, start with high CBD and low THC ingredients first.
21. Learn to make fancy coffee
Now that we don’t have to rush out the door in the morning with our thermos of coffee or stand in line at our local coffee shop with the other caffeine-deprived people of the world, why not enjoy the ritual of making coffee? Try making a pour over if you’re a coffee purist or a homemade latte if you like things creamer.
Pro-tip: add some CBD or THC. Try Select’s 1:1 Peppermint or unflavored tinctures. It’s a great way to kickstart your day and the CBD/THC plays nicely with the caffeine. If you’re not a coffee drinker, try Kikoko tea.
22. Marie Kondo your closet and medicine cabinets
Clean out your medicine cabinets and make up drawers. Get rid of expired products and organize yourself. Go through your closet and pull out anything you can sell, donate, or throw away. Now is a great time for cleaning and cleansing all around.
Pro-tip: Try the LucidMood Lively pen to stay motivated.
23. Dye your hair (Why not?)
If you’ve always wanted to know what you would look like with blue hair, now is the time to test run a color from the comfort of your home.
Pro-tip: Try a temporary hair dye in case you don’t like the result.
24. Paint your nails
Doesn’t matter your age or gender, painting nails is a pretty fun activity. Turn your home into a nail salon and try new colors and designs. If you don’t like it, you can always remove it with nail polish remover.
Pro-Tip: Give yourself a hand massage with a THC and CBD infused topical, like one from Mary’s Medicinals.
25. Treat yo’ self
Now is the time to treat yo’ self and do what you can to lower stress. Facemasks, deep moisturizing treatments, and bath balms are some of the easiest ways to pamper yourself and take a moment to relax. Create a spa experience from the comfort of your home. Extra points for making cucumber water.
Pro-tip: Try a Kush Queen bath balm with CBD and THC to up your relaxation level.
25. Virtual meet ups and video chats
Social distancing can be really hard on most people. Nothing beats physical company but video conferencing allows you to get pretty close. Set appointments with friends and family to have video chats via Facetime, Whatsapp, Zoom, Skype, Google Hangouts, and more.
Pro-tip: Do a video weed smoking sesh. Since we can’t pass joints, we can at least enjoy the experience of being high with other humans via video.
27. Clean out your photos
Go through your photos on your phone. Delete the blurry, duplicate, bad, unneeded photos and videos. Take a moment to cherish the great memories and send any good ones you find to friends and family so they can share in the great memories as well.
Pro-tip: This works especially well with parents and grandparents.
28. Be social on social media
Use social media to be…social. Message friends you haven’t talked to in a while. Check in on past roommates. Leave positive comments on others posts and spread the love. You’ll be surprised how far a nice note from a friend goes in these times.
Check out live streams from bands, brands, celebrities, and places you love. A lot of great community building is happening digitally on social media right now. So go get social.
Pro-tip: Follow the High Note on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
29. Learn a new language
Why not use this time to learn a new language? Duolingo is a free app that makes learning a new language fun. Have you always wanted to learn Spanish or German or Japanese? Do you live with someone who knows a language you don’t? Practice with them.
Pro-tip: Start learning a new language and practice with others via online video chats.
30. Journal/blog
It can be really helpful mentally to start a journal. Write down your feelings and express yourself. Write all the crazy things you may be too embarrassed to say out loud…or just write down what you ate that day. Either way, give it a try and see if it makes you feel better.
Pro-tip: Smoke some weed, put on some music, then get to writing. You may find the words flow
31. Quarantine cleaning
Like Spring cleaning, just a little earlier. Clean all the crevices that may get ignored normally – behind the fridge, under the TV console, in the back of cabinets, the refrigerator and freezer. Get at it.
Pro-tip: Add a sativa to keep you motivated and don’t just clean your house, clean your smoking accessories too. Try PlugPlay’s Jack Herer vape.
32. Get handy
The lightbulbs that need to be replaced, the holes in drywall, the loose door knobs, the leaky faucet – now is great time to get handy. There are a lot of DIY videos online to help with your handyman skills.
Pro-tip: Be careful not to hurt yourself. It’s important not to overwhelm our healthcare system so if you’ve never swung a hammer before, now is not the time to start.
33. Practice gratefulness
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the stress and anxiety of the day. Taking a moment to be thankful for what you have, no matter how small it may seem to you, can help reframe your mindset.
Pro-tip: Work this into your meditation.
34. Read
The common excuse, “I just don’t have time,” may not apply anymore. Pick up a book and get comfortable. You can enjoy books in printed form, digitally, or even just listen to the audio. Mix up your TV binging with a good book and engage your imagination. Many digital book subscription services offer free trials. Take advantage and give it a test run.
Pro-tip: Try a nice topical to ease any muscle tension before hunkering down to read. We recommend Mary’s Medicinals or Papa and Barkley.
35. Get started on income taxes
We don’t know anyone that enjoys doing their taxes which is probably why so many of us put it off to the last minute. Why not use this time to get your taxes done so when it does come closer to the deadline, you can use that time for something else? Hopefully by then, we’ll be back to normal.
Pro-tip: Start with a cup of coffee and a CBD tincture like Plus Tart Cherry CBD gummies.
36. Support frontline workers
Send someone you know who is working in any public facing capacity a thank you message. Be extra nice and thank your budtender, grocery store clerk, garbage man, postal worker, and anyone else who is risking their health to keep this country going. Health care workers are on the frontlines and deserve all the gratitude, love, and positivity we can share. Now is the time to show your gratitude.
37. Donate
Many non-profits are facing financial hardship due to cancelations of fundraising events, increased demand, and many other factors. If you’re able, consider donating money to nonprofits working to help those affected by this pandemic and donating blood to local bloodbanks.
Pro-tip: Use this link to find a local blood bank
38. Make a list of all the places you’ll go
As the length of this pandemic remains uncertain, it can be very uplifting to create a list of all the places you want to visit as soon as doors reopen. Visualizing experiences can put a smile on your face and create hope. Make a list of all the things you have to look forward to once this is over.
Pro-tip: Get your friends and family involved in the list and make it a community thing. Need some inspo? Check out our list of places to visit in LA here.
We realize this is a very hard time on everyone. From financial hardships brought on by unemployment and under employment to the additional stress parents face homeschooling their children. Not everyone has the luxury of trying these 38 things and for many, this pandemic may result in even less free time than before. We hope everyone remains safe and we will continue to support our communities and provide safe access to cannabis. We’ll get through this together.
Please head to the CDC’s website for information on the pandemic and what you can do to stay safe. We are taking additional precautions to keep our customers, our staff, and our communities safe. Please take a look at our statement on Covid-19 for more information on the steps we’re taking.
Ready to kick off one of these 38 activities? Start an online order for some cannabis products to enhance your experience. Order from East LA here and order from Culver City here.
An additional article we think you will enjoy reading is – How to Make Cannabutter at Home.