Social Distancing & Social Media

It is a weird and anxiety ridden time at the moment and we are all feeling apprehensive of what is unfolding and what is still to come. I had remarked earlier last week that I wasn’t overly concerned and that lack of concern was concerning to me. As I went to depleted grocery stores and attended media events at half capacity I wonder if I was ignorant to what was really happening.

While I don’t think I was dumb or foolish, I do think that details about COVID-19 are being made public at a rapid pace and with that my concern grew with it. It got to the point where as of mid-day Saturday I opted to do one top-up grocery run and cancel all of the plans for this upcoming week.

Let me preface this post by saying that this is just me rambling my own thoughts. I encourage y’all to do your own research and make informed decisions about how you choose to react. There are WAY too many influencers sharing DIY hand sanitizer formulas – just stop. You’re embarrassing yourself.

So I’m practicing social distancing, as anyone who has the option should be doing. Listen, I am not a medical professional and I don’t need to tell you how social distancing is an effective practice since we’ve all seen it a ton of times online. This infographic from the Washington Post makes it easy to understand.

I’m young and I’m healthy and I have the upmost confidence that if I got sick I would be one of the many who would recover but social distancing is not about me. It’s about everyone else. Social distancing is about public health. You don’t know how many people you’re saving by staying home but you’re not meant to – that’s how public health works.

My social life is more social than most. I workout daily with upwards of two dozen people, I attend media events of up to hundreds of people and I take public transit. Before COVID-19 I didn’t realize how much of my social life included hugging strangers as I introduce myself. I am not suggesting we all have a huge make-out fest once we get through this but I’m not not suggesting it either.

Like I said in the intro, too many influencers are coming out with DIY hand sanitizer recipes and trying to push you to buy their wellness products. I think it’s important to still have some sense of normalcy but now is not the time to tell people how to quarantine themselves.

Yes, it’s an opportune time to be productive but productivity looks different on everyone and you don’t have to feel guilty if you’re not what social media deems productive. Influencers will have you think that you should be able to redecorate your home, read 100 books and bake a 6-tiered cake. Productivity might be just responding to emails that day or feeding your kids.

Also, don’t be a dick and shame people for having to work. Some people have to work so the rest of society can somewhat function (healthcare and grocery stores, etc.) and some people have to work because they cannot afford to take the time off. Working from home is a luxury.

And for the love of God don’t share photos of empty grocery store shelves. It incites panic. Instead use your platform to be helpful and share when you notice certain grocery stores have a fresh stock up on certain items.

While we’re on it, I also recognize that being bored is also a luxury. I’m bored because I don’t have to run after kids. I’m bored because I am financial secure and don’t have to stress about money. I’m bored because I live alone and only have to worry about my own health and spending time alone is something I’m used to.

Let’s address the elephant in the room: why the fuck am I writing this at all? For myself I couldn’t continue to produce content without address the pandemic first. It felt a bit heartless to proceed as if it were business as usual when it is definitely not business as usual. That being said, I don’t think it should be all gloom and doom. I wanted to address the pandemic and then continued to share shit I find interesting because it’s how I like to spend my time and I don’t believe in wallowing in fear.

I have some posts backlogged based around beauty and fashion that I will post in the upcoming days but please know that I am not ignoring what is happening in the world at the moment. A lot of what I do is test and recommend products but I have always maintained that my recommendations are for those who have the means to try out new products and if you are on a limited income (especially now), that face mask can fucking wait.

Is it strange to be producing content during this fucked up time? Maybe – but it’s literally all I know and I am doing my best to stay productive. That being said, I personally pledge that all of the money I make through affiliate links until the end of May to Red Cross COVID-19 efforts. It’s not a lot of money, but it’s the best I can do.

What now is that I am staying the fuck home. Today is day one and I’m already bored, but I recognize that being bored is a luxury we’re not all awarded. Whether to maintain job security or needing the funds there are a lot of people who still have to go to work. Being primarily unemployed has allowed me to go long periods of time on my own and thanks to social media we can all stay connected. I am also lucky that my income does not rely that heavily on me leaving my apartment. I can still work on a variety of projects from the comfort of my own home. Plus I don’t have any dependants.

I am opting to continue posting because it gives me some sense of normal in these fucked up times. I am also going to try and make myself more available to those who feel isolated whether it’s posting more, checking in on my friends more often and just recharging in general.

I’m on three streaming services (Netflix, Crave and Disney+), am in the middle of more than one podcast (Potterless and My Favourite Murderer) and have an abundance of books I can read. I am also always purging my closet and am going to use this opportunity to pack up my winter gear and swap out for spring.

Oh. And I can use this time to try and figure out Tik Tok.

​Stay healthy & stay home!