Circuit Breaker: 6 Ways to Beat Boredom

Social Distancing? Circuit-Breaker? These seem to have become the most popular words of 2020 so far.

Every good citizen is staying home and refraining from going out to crowded places in a bid to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. As much as we do our part, staying home all the time can get a little boring and borderline depressing. That’s exactly why we need to find things to do that keep us occupied and entertained.

  • Television Shows

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Netflix and Chill has never been more relevant.  Televisions have been a thing since the end of World War II and almost everyone has a TV at home. But the difference now is, you are not limited to the free-to-air national TV channels or the standard Cable TV operators. Multiple streaming services with a variety of programming options are now available at extremely affordable subscription rates, leaving you spoilt for choices. 

TV Streaming Services and what they offer:

  • Netflix – Great selection of movies, TV shows & documentaries & quality originals
  • Amazon Prime Video – One of the most affordable platforms for older movies and shows
  • Viu Free and Premium – Your go-to for Korean dramas and variety shows
  • HOOQ – Popular US TV shows & new movies
  • meWATCH Prime – Binge-watch local TV Series before they even air
  • HBO Go – Original shows like the popular Game of Thrones series
  • Singtel TV Go – More than 160 Live and catch-up channels
  • StarHub Go – Over 80 channels to choose from
  • Family Time

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Interaction with the family is obsolete in this digital age but there is hope! What happened to good old conversations? Having a good, open conversation could give you an incredible insight into the lives of the people who are a big part of your life. The weird thing about us people is that, when tasked to do such sessions professionally, at work, we are able to do it more freely than with our own families.

Not much of a talker? Then spend the time at home with some interactive games that are fun, engaging and maybe even educational? It’s time to try out everything from the classics to modern favourites. If you have a gaming console, well even better! That should occupy enough of your weekend.

Monopolythe classic fast-dealing property trading board game

Jengaa game of “perfect balance” skill and probably one of the most nerve-wracking games around

Uno – the “friendship-ending” game that is modelled after Mau-Mau, the traditional European game 

Heads-Up a simple word guessing game where one player keeps the phone on his head, and the rest of his friends help him guess the words that appear on screen made famous by Ellen Degeneress on the Ellen show

Taboo!a wacky word-guessing party game that tests your communication skills, now with a Local edition, which is even more fun

Console games – Popular PS4 and X-box games are being offered at discounted prices and some are even free-to-play during this period. With countless sports, action-adventure, strategy, simulation and role-playing games available, you would be spoilt for choice

  • Cook Up a Storm!

Image credit Jason Briscoe

Whether you Eat to Live or Live to Eat, you cannot deny the importance of food. Food usually takes centre stage in most social gatherings so why not make it the focus of your weekend at home with your family? You have a whole lot of time to experiment to your heart’s content and take everyone on a gastronomical adventure!  

Popular celebrity chefs like Jamie Oliver & Gordon Ramsay have YouTube channels full of delicious yet simple recipes to try at home. Some of these restaurant-style dishes take no longer than 30 minutes to prepare!

  • Organise Your Home

Image credit Alexandra Gorn

There’s no place like home! The one place that welcomes us with open arms at the end of each day. We’ve spent so much time away from home in the name of work or social life that many times, we haven’t given it the attention it truly deserves. 

“ Tidying your physical space allows you to tend to your psychological space.” 

– Marie Kondo

Cleaning your home regularly is one thing, but re-organising is taking it to a completely different level. Shifting furniture around, organising stuff in the drawers, cupboards or bookshelves differently can be therapeutic while also giving you a fresh perspective on things. 

  • Self Reflect

Image credit Noah Silliman

We spend more time with ourselves than with anyone else. But how do we use that time? By talking to ourselves, of course. Yes it may sound crazy but it is far from that. In fact, it is a very important practice. Of course, having a very audible dialogue session with yourself or cracking yourself up with a joke is taking it too far! But having a mental conversation with yourself about your feelings, achievements, goals & desires, is more beneficial than you may think. You can even pen down whatever is in your mind and reflect on it. You’d be surprised at how much you would be able to discover about yourself.

  • Party the Safe Way

Image credit Venuerific

We humans are Social Beings. That is just how nature has designed us. We want to share our joy, our achievements and our milestones with the people around us. That is why group celebrations and gatherings have been in existence for millennia. With the current state of the world however, social gatherings have come to a complete standstill….physically. Virtually, you can still party!

We at Venuerific just hosted our very own Virtual 7th Anniversary Party on Zoom and we had lots of fun doing it. Virtual parties have become the recent trend and there are so many platforms to do it. 

  • Zoom – In recent times, Zoom has become the go-to platform for personal and professional meetings. With the virtual background feature and virtual sharing of music, you would be able to experience the party, full-on
  • Google Hangouts – The classic version is still available for up to 10 participants on video call and 150 participants on voice only. The hassle-free share-screen and text chat options make this a simple solution for virtual events
  • Skype MeetNow – Skype has been around for ages and started off as a 1:1 video call platform. It’s new MeetNow feature allows conferencing between multiple participants, without even having to sign up for the service
  • StarLeaf – Previously only used by major corporations, StarLeaf now has a free version that allows 20 participants to meet over a 46-min period
  • Jitsi Meet – open source platform that allows up to 75 participants, with public or private chat options

Every Cloud has a Silver Lining and this Covid-19 situation is no different. We can take this time to reflect and change our perspectives on the things that we have taken for granted thus far. We all have a part to play in being responsible and staying home to protect ourselves and our society so let’s do it with a positive attitude! Also checkout our blog on Why Working From Home Isn’t All That Bad:Venuerific

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