How to live like a Homebody

I’ve been a proud Homebody (or I like to call myself a hermit) since early 2000. There was some point in my life my mom calls me the couch captain because my daily routine involves the computer desk to couch to computer desk (cycle goes on a for a while) until I go to bed and then I go to bed. Other than travelling, I spend 90% of time at home during my time off (like a true introvert).

Since many of us experiencing social distancing, here are some suggestions for you to do at home if you feel like you watched everything on Netflix.

1. Reconnect with an old passion

   One of things I decided to reconnect with is drawing which I went on hiatus for the last two years. It took sometimes to pick this hobby back up, and the first few drawings took a lot time to finish. But with practice, I can now finish something decent in 2 hours. I generally have a Netflix show or a podcast running in the background as busy noice.

2. Reconnect with old friends

   I think during this social isolation, I have chatted with more friends on zoom than I have during my entire Masters. People around the world are “off” the same time and what great opportunity to catch up with friends. Some of my friends do at home workouts together, some of my friends play (online) games together, and some of my friends “party” together. It absolutely sucks for not being able to hug them but let’s keep chatting until we can hug again!

3. Finish that Personal Project

   No more excuses on finishing that personal project. It can be anything from an arts and craft to building something, or something you want to write a book or a story. A friend and I are working on a story now that we came up with almost a year ago but now we finally have time to work on it.

4. Pick up that dusty book and finish it.

   Since January, I have finished 12 books and I’m a slow reader. If I can do it, so can you. Since you can’t go out anyways, try to finish that book. My tip is I generally start 2-3 books at the a time, and for each book each day I put a 40 min timer on my phone and read as much as I can in that time. In a way it’s like you creating miniature goals for yourself to accomplish with a small allotted time. Some days I do great because that part of the book is super interesting and there are days I have dozed off because the author needs to rethink how much description needs to go into setting up the setting of where the characters at. I do find my self becoming a lot faster reader, especially in traditional Chinese than I was a few months ago.

5. Learn Meditation

   If going to gym is training for physical health, then meditate once a day is training for mental health. Start off with some brief exercises like spend 5 minutes just counting your breathes (in and outs) and try not to fall asleep or have your mind wander and each day add an additional minute to it. There are also other meditation like walking meditation and movement meditation. Using some apps to help you practice meditation is also great. If you’re beginner, like myself, having a guided meditation can really help you achieve results.

   Without trying to sound too hippie, think of it as your brain to learn to focus. When you do a really hard workout, that’s what you brain does - you don’t think about anything else except trying to not fall. Another example is swimming or running long distance, after the first 10-20 mins my body goes into an “automated” mode and I don’t think about much (not muscle fatigue or that my lungs want to escape my body) but tune into what I’m doing and keep going. Meditation is a less physically taxing way to help you reach focus. It has scientifically proven benefits to your mental health (similar to exercising). It helps me reduce anxiety and stress - and enhances my mood by 209417%.

6. Play some video games

   I still remember I can spend all day playing Roller Coaster Tycoon or Pokemon on Gameboy. Recently, I got a new addiction: Animal Crossing (on my iPhone). My friends uses game to release stress from their work and I know to leave them alone when they’re gaming. There is nothing wrong with occupying some of your life with games - as long as they negatively affect other aspect of your life.

7. Learn Something New

   Here is a list of things I keep myself busy with while at home:

   • New language - for me it is French (trying to keep up at my intermediate level) or Japanese (pick up something I haven’t seriously studied since I was 18). Honestly, it’s not any one expect you to be fluent, but learning a few words in a new language can help you out when you travel next time.

   • Code - this is something that might make you tear at your hair but it’s similar to learning a new language. I find myself troubleshooting like 90% of the time, but that’s the best for learning.

   • Drawing/ Arts & Crafts - There are so many youtube channels (such as my friend’s WithWendy channel) that teaches you arts and craft, home decor, or drawings

   • Technical skills - Tons of free online courses are available on Coursera or Future Learning. Learning something new about a different industry than what you normally do can be very interesting.

   • Yoga/ Pilates - One thing I love about Yoga and Pilates is that you can do these relatively easily. You don’t even really need a yoga mat, the real hardcore yogis use a towel and can do yoga everywhere.

   • Homework Outs - Many HIIT workouts does not require additional equipment and one of my favourite ones (also completed kills me) is Insanity. Shaun T means real business - I used to ran 10-12km a workout and after the first day of workout my heart was pounding in my ears. I can say I tried a few times and I actually followed the two months workout - the result was amazing.

8. Listen to Podcasts

   One of my favourite thing when I’m eating alone/ commuting/ cooking/ or doing something mundane for work - I listen to some podcasts. Here are some of the ones I listen to the most:

   • Freakonomics

   • The Economist

   • My Favorite Murderer

   • This American Life

   • Ted Radio Hour

   • Revisionist History

   A new one pop into my radar lately: the Tablo Podcast. Tablo, one of my favourite Korean musicians, is a Korean rapper who grew up in Canada and went to Stanford for college and now is one of the most well known musicians in Korea, he performs with the group Epik High. I have always like his music but recent I started to listen to his podcast (he has short highlight video versions on YouTube) and he is really funny.

9. Watch foreign Netflix shows with Subtitles

   I think the movie Parasite has opened the door for many that foreign films can be so intriguing - Netflix has invested very heavily on local content for many of the countries it operates in so start searching, turn the English dub off and subtitle on in your setting and start watch. I have learned many Korean and Japanese words over the years through this method, but more importantly it opens up a door for incredible TV shows and series from around the world.