Items
topic_interest is exactly
hobbies
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2020-04-04
Family Quarantine
When I think of COVID-19, I think of all the wonderful quality time I got to spend with my family. I was lucky enough to have moved back in with my parents at the beginning of the pandemic for what I thought was going to be a short time, but turned into a year and a half long party. My family and I would spend our days doing homework, working, and driving each other crazy. Coming from an Italian family, we tend to all be loud and annoy one another easily (with love of course). At night, we would have themed dinners, dressing up like we were going to the Grammys, making fresh pina coladas and hanging out by the pool. At the time, I was annoyed. Annoyed to be finally 21 and have to spend the whole summer stuck at home with my parents and younger siblings. Annoyed that I was unable to go back to school, or see any of my friends. Looking back now, I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to drive my family nuts. Now, in 2023, life is returning to “normal.” I see my parents once a week, my brother lives outside of LA, and my sister is busy with her own life. I miss them. I miss waking up to my dads new hobby of the week, or playing cards with my mom till midnight. COVID brought us together and allowed us to forge a different kind of bond and make positive memories that I will cherish forever. -
2020-08-22
HIST30060: Lockdown Knitting
(HIST30060) Like the people that learnt to bake sourdough, completed dozens of puzzles or took up running; I decided that learning to knit would serve to occupy the time between work and study that didn't involve Netflix. This represents how I benefitted in part from Melbourne's lengthy lockdowns, as opposed to people who may have struggled with added responsibilities like guiding children through schooling on zoom or working in healthcare on the frontlines of the pandemic. Knitting also acted as something I could mark my time with; this picture was taken on my birthday when I decided to make my first jumper. Instead of remembering this time as purely disheartening, with the news of a re instating of lockdown in late August 2020, I also remember it as an exciting period where I really honed in on my new craft. -
02/23/2021
Bonnie Brainard Oral History, 2021/02/23
I recorded a mini oral history with my former professor Dr. Beverly Van Note. -
02/19/2021
Janice Simone Simon Oral History, 2021/02/19
Silver Linings Oral History with Janice Simone Simon -
2021-01-16
Falling Back On My Escapism
As the title suggests, this is a description of my favorite things that helped me through the pandemic. I think it's important to capture the pleasures we've fallen back on despite all the negatives. -
2021-01-04
A present
This is a drawing of my friend and her favorite Genshin Impact character. I made this right before Christmas for an early Christmas present. It made them so happy they started to cry. It just shows how much a small gift can change someone's day. -
2020-04-02
COVID-19 isolation spurs Canadians to read, exercise, call loved ones
This article provides a report on how Canadians across the provinces spent their time at the start of the pandemic. The report includes how often citizens dined out, ordered food, and what types of entertainment they engaged in under lockdown. -
2020-04-03
It's Time to Consider a New Hobby
This article shares how one Canadian passed the time under lockdown with a variety of hobbies other than baking bread. The author includes several activities which don't require much material such as knitting, calligraphy, colouring, and puzzles. -
2020-03-26
Stay Home
The photo includes a pie with the caption "stay the f*ck home" and therefore provides an insight into the mentality of many Canadians during the long months under lockdown. The pie also includes flowers and leaves which contrast to the firm caption. -
2020-08-06
Getting really excited that I'm actually growing edible food in the garden!
This post about a Canadian nutritionist reveals an individual's experience gardening this past summer during the pandemic. The caption includes how this person picked up gardening as a new hobby during lockdown and found how rewarding it was. This post will serve as a valuable story in how gardening became a popular activity for Canadians and offer one person's journey, including challenges, in starting a garden. -
2020-05-11
Will interests in puzzles, crafts continue post-COVID?
The maritimes remained isolated largely from the rest of Canada during lockdown, and Nova Scotians pre-occupied their time with not only gardening, but crafts and puzzles, much like the rest of Canada. This article enquires into the sudden obsession with puzzles and wonders if this trend will remain popular post-COVID-19 or become a one-time event? -
2020-08-27
Is Covid baking still a thing?
Canadians jumped on the baking bandwagon in the spring with both new bakers and expert cooks experimenting more in their kitchens. The photo caption states how baking was viewed as one of the most popular hobbies early on in lockdown and later became a mainstay in homes throughout the summer, although it became less popular as the summer progressed. This Instagram influencer's husband asks her if the COVID-19 baking trend is still popular as of August, 2020. The photo depicts a coffee cake loaf. -
2020-11-25
New Covid restrictions announced today in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
This photo includes two plants, and the caption describe the new restrictions enforced for Albertan residents. This post offers an individual view into how Canadians, particularly city dwellers, grew plants in the midst of COVID-19. -
2020-04-03
Some Canadians are turning to their yards to grow their food during the COVID-19 pandemic
Canada's garden industry exploded during lockdown as citizens searched for new ways to remain productive. This article explores one woman's experiences gardening in Ontario and how she extended her garden's life throughout lockdown. This article will provide additional context to the role gardening had in Canada and the many benefits people reaped from a socially distanced activity. -
2020-10-08
Over half of Canadians embracing the joy of pandemic gardening
One study from Dalhousie University reported that "pandemic gardens" became a thing this past summer as thousands of Canadians across the country spent more time outside growing their own food. This article also reveals the reasoning behind why people took to gardening as one of their main sources of entertainment during lockdown and even afterwards. The study shows that Canadians gardened for a multitude of purposes. Not only did they want to spend more time outside, but some were also concerned about food affordability due to the shortage of produce. This article will further illuminate how Canadians viewed gardening as one of their favourite pastimes during COVID-19 through an informative survey. -
2020-04-15
Painting In Quarantine
During quarantine, we were all very bored and going a little stir crazy. I really wanted to get into painting because it is relaxing for me, and it takes up a lot of time. This is important to me because it was something during lockdown that made me feel relaxed and calm. It was a stressful time for everyone, and we all had to find hobbies that would keep us busy, which is important to understanding 2020 and the lockdown. I think that is what this says about the pandemic, we had to find these little things to keep us going throughout the long days stuck inside, and painting really helped me do that. -
2020-11-16
item: Learning to Play Piano
My roommate Vanessa decided to take advantage of the online classes available at our university and decided this was the year that she would learn piano. She had always wanted to learn how to play piano, but had never had the time to drive out to lessons. St. Mary's University this year was offering all music classes online and she decided to take advantage of this opportunity. Piano has become her new hobby, her new way to relax. As her roommate, I have had the unique opportunity to listen to her skills grow from the beginning of August to now. She said if it hadn't been for Covid-19, she would have never thought to have taken piano or had the opportunity to learn a new skill. There are some silver linings in this pandemic and some of them have come in the form of new hobbies and talents. -
2020-08
Isolation bakes - HIST30060
During isolation, myself and many others turned to baking as a way to pass time and enjoy a treat that didn't require anyone to leave the house. Perhaps more than this though, I felt that whatever I was baking was something that I had complete control over, so long as I followed the recipe, and in 'these unprecedented times' as the tag-line goes, this little bit of certainty was precious. -
2020-11-06
Gardening During Quarantine
I, like most people, took up new hobbies to help pass the time. I built this raised garden from random pieces of wood laying around my backyard and even began to compost. I planted two tomato plants that have since grown very well and all of a sudden there were these plants growing from my compost. It's been nice having this small project to help pass the time. When I need a break from online school/work I come to my backyard and check up on it. It's essentially a source of calmness and relief in the world right now. -
2020-04-15
Painting in Quarantine
During quarantine, we were all very bored and going a little stir crazy. One day, I really wanted to get into painting because it is relaxing for me, and it takes up a lot of time. This is important to me because it was something during lockdown that made me feel relaxed and calm. It was a stressful time for everyone, and we all had to find hobbies that would keep us busy. I think that is what this says about the pandemic, we had to find these little things to keep us going throughout the long days stuck inside, and painting really helped me do that. -
2020-10-10
Learning to Disc Golf
A theme that I have been focusing on is how people have coped with the affects of the pandemic. Many people have picked up new hobbies, ways to spend their time, but safely. A lot of my friends have picked up disc golf. Disc golf is something that people of all ages can do, as it is not taxing on the body. Additionally, it is something that you can either do with others or alone. And, it is something that people can do safely, while facing Covid-19. I had never heard of disk golfing before this, so it was interesting to see so many of my friends pick it up in an effort to safely pass time. We all have found new ways to cope. -
2020-03-01
Escaping From Our Daily Despair
Like most people living through these difficult times, I've found it exhausting to endure months without being able to see close friends and not being able to enjoy activities that I once took for granted. A lot of people have coped with these new, debilitating circumstances by adopting new hobbies such as baking breading and making pottery, but I've chosen to dig deeper into my favorite pre-pandemic hobby: reading. Before the pandemic hit my radar back in March (Like it did with most people), I had already amassed a collection of books that I had gathered from thrift shops or borrowed from the Phoenix Public Library. These books, whose topics ranged from Chinese science fiction (The Three-Body Problem by Liu Cixin) to 20th century European history (Reappraisals by Tony Judt), have helped me partially escape from the daily despair that came from watching the national death count tick up toward 200,000 people and the anxiety that comes with having friends and family who work in the vulnerable service industry. I feel guilty about escaping from our deadly reality into the pages of fiction, but it's necessary to prevent oneself from giving in to darkness and corroding your mental health. Besides, it's not like I have anything better to do with all of this time. Sometimes, I'd rather think about how it would be like to live in Ceres Station (The Expanse series) or to be constantly reincarnated (The Years of Rice and Salt) than to see the cold, hard reality around me (We're on the road to 300,000 dead by winter's end). Sometimes, you just have to drink the soma to get through this brave new world of ours. I just wish it didn't have to be this way. I just wish we had done better as a society. -
2020-10-12
Life of a Homeshcooler
- In times of covid I am not as social in person but have switched my social online with friends playing games and D&D through, discord, zoom and text. -Before covid I had a schedule of when I went to classes, co-ops and saw my friends. Social is now more erratic because everyone is home and schedules are so varied. This makes it hard to talk to friends. So now I have to adapt more to others schedules in order to spend time online with friends. -Because of the way we socialize I spend more time than normal online. -My homeschool life however has not changed that much, probably do more academics than before. I have been taking multiple online class over the years so when covid happened things didn’t change that much for me academically. -Another positive is that my personal library has expanded because getting to the library and picking out books is limited since they aren’t open and only allow curbside pick up. -Got more chickens, since we are home all the time. -Since I don’t leave the house very often, I have been able to get more schoolwork done. -Since I am home more, I have more time for hobbies and have taken up learning blacksmithing. -
2020-10-08
Life Indoors
Taking classes at a university online for the 7-8 months has been a new experience that is new for a lot of people. Both professors and students alike are learning how to switch over to an online environment, and I think it is hard on everyone. But I am personally trying to make the most of it, even if I end up sleeping through my first lecture sometimes. I think it is important to document what the schooling or work life is like during this time because it is something we have not seen before. Spending the majority of my time at home, I have begun to rekindle past hobbies that I have had. I chose to submit a picture of the things I have crocheted because they were challenging in that I hadn't ever tried to make little characters or animals before this pandemic. I took the picture while on a video call with my friends because ever since this summer, we have chatted or video called to keep in touch with each other and "hangout," even if we have to be physically apart. This times online have been very meaningful to me and crucial in my survival of these times, because I tend to get very lonely and I know many people are struggling with mental health. My mental health is doing pretty okay despite everything going on, and I thank my friends for being there to talk and just have fun and take my mind off of everything challenging going on. -
2020-03
Finding Me.
I know people have mostly negative stories that correlate to Covid-19 but I am choosing to write about one of the positive things that happened to me during these harsh times. Before Covid-19 I never really had time for myself, it was always wake up, go to work and then go to school, then go home, then homework, shower and finally sleep (eating multiple times throughout the day). But I never really had time to do anything I liked. Back then when someone asked what my hobbies were, I had none. But Covid-19 was low-key a blessing in disguise for me, with all this free time with work and school being closed, I found myself. I started watching tv, picking up new hobbies and finding things that I loved but never really had time for. And now of course that everything is opened again, I gained some time management skills and am able to manage everything that I love in life. -
2020-05-05
Finally Taking a Step Back
As a college student who treasures every bit of time he can with friends at school, getting sent home two months early sounded like the worst thing in the world. Not only would I not be able to see any of my friends as often due to being far apart, we had a global pandemic preventing us and everyone else from feeling a sense of companionship for the better part of 2020. School work kept me busy for the first couple months and that was very clearly my number one focus until May. Once finals were done though, I had absolutely no plans for the next three months of my life. With work being near impossible to find and no school to worry about, I contemplated what I should do with this newfound free time. The solution was a lot simpler than I thought it was, with three months of time on my hands, why worry about what you can do and instead focus on doing things you enjoy? And that was my mindset throughout the summer, which actually helped pass the time incredibly well. I spent a lot of my time making improvements in my various hobbies and eventually, this mind set landed me two jobs for the summer. I got back into running, started learning how to arrange music, and had a large list of projects around the house that I wanted to do. I had a lot of passion projects that I was working on and by the time I was ready to go back to school, I had accomplished the vast majority of these goals. By having this free flowing mind set and no pressure on me to do things I didn't want to do, it kept me happy throughout my time at home, but at the same time I was feeling productive and like I was doing things that were making me a better version of me. At the beginning of the year, I told myself that 2020 was going to be my year and initially, the pandemic scared me away from accomplishing many of the goals I wanted to accomplish. What I found instead is that with the right mindset, your goals are still achievable and while the circumstances may not be ideal, I’m still doing everything I set out to do. -
2020-07-26
New Hobbies
One I heard we were going to be stuck at home for a while I thought “This gives me the chance to do something I’ve always wanted to do.” That thing is working out. I was never one to be active before, much less working out, but I pushed myself. I looked up some good workouts and I eventually got an app that helps me out with everything. Me doing that made me sleep better and even feel better. This really gave me something to do instead of being bored all day. -
2020-05-18
Pandemic Boredom Killer: Squirrels star in Ontario couple's elaborate backyard photo shoots
"As people across Canada find creative ways to pass the extra hours at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an Ontario couple has found a new hobby that has both humans and critters going nuts. "Daryl Granger and his wife Karen are both photographers who own and operate RoseLe Studio in Simcoe, Ont. "'We spend a lot of time in the backyard and we noticed, "gosh there's a lot of squirrels" so we thought "why not set up a photo shoot,"' Granger told CBC News on Monday."