Staying Apart, Together: Let's get together, yeah yeah yeah (virtually)
Welcome to the inaugural issue of Staying Apart, Together, Paste BN's newsletter focused on coping with the massive change caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
I hope that it can bring some comfort to all of you in these troubling times. Just writing it is helping me feel better.
Many of these newsletters will come from me, Kelly Lawler. I'm Paste BN's TV Critic, and like many of you, I'm just doing whatever I can to help others and get through each day right now. I'm writing to you from my kitchen/new home office in Vienna, Virginia, where I'm social distancing with my husband and my dog. So far, we have eaten a lot of rice and pasta, and we still like each other. We're doing OK.
What can you expect from me and Staying Apart, Together? We will offer you: self care and mental health resources, recipes, inspirational stories, funny videos, movie/TV/book recommendations for distraction, childcare and distance learning tips, at home workouts, cute animals, activities to do in isolation and anything else that will help us all hunker down and get through it.
So let's jump in! We made it to another weekend. Everybody gets a congrats for that. The days are running together but taking the time to relax and take care of ourselves is so important. This weekend I want to: Bake Italian Easter bread (my grandma's recipe), clean a little bit, give my dog a bath and attempt to cut my husband's hair. He wants to continue our quest to watch all of the James Bond movies (they are all streaming right now, it's wonderful) with "Goldfinger."
Will any of that happen? Maybe, maybe not. I'm trying to be gentle with myself and my husband, set achievable goals and take any tiny win I can. And mostly, I want to rest. I highly recommend that for each of you.
Today's entertainment
As a TV critic, the shows that I spend my personal time on vary wildly depending on what I'm watching for work and what mood I'm in during my downtime. Food shows are high on this list, and for the past week I've been re-watching old seasons of Bravo's "Top Chef." One of the things I love about the series is that its seasons travel around the country, everywhere from Louisville, Kentucky to Denver, Colorado to Los Angeles, and embrace the uniquely American cuisines of these locations.
Right now I'm watching the Denver season (Season 15), and the sweeping shots of the Rocky Mountains are gorgeous and scratching my itch to travel when I absolutely cannot leave my apartment. Plus, since I'm cooking with pantry ingredients to try to minimize trips to the grocery store, I find the chef's creations inspiring, even if what I make at home is a pale imitator. If you've never watched "Chef" you can start at any season (skip Season 2) and bounce around, many are streaming on Hulu. And if it's not your thing, I have 99 other recommendations for shows to watch here.
Today's self care
Dr. Russ Harris, author of “The Happiness Trap,” has published a digital pamphlet on facing coronavirus, using principles from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). My sister, a child psychology professor at Eastern Michigan University, shared it with me. There are great tools here, including focusing on what you can control and acknowledging your thoughts and feelings. See the full pamphlet here.
Today's workout
Entertainment and lifestyle reporter Carly Mallenbaum, who also doubles as my personal fitness guru, has written about 10 Instagram Live workouts you can join for free. I'm personally most interested in the yoga/meditative one on the list. I'll leave bootcamp for after quarantine. See the full list here.
Today's reads
- Tomorrow is Easter, and if you need ideas about how to celebrate and keep your distance, we have plenty (and they're not just limited to Easter).
- Since you are all going to get to know me really well every Saturday and Tuesday, you should read this essay I wrote about why staying inside with nothing to do but binge-watch my favorite shows is not all that new to my life.
- Celebrities, they're just like us: in quarantine. We have been interviewing big stars about what their days are like now. Here's how Jimmy Fallon has been social distancing.
Today's giggle
Carly, ever the resourceful reporter, also recently rounded up 50 funny videos for quick hits of humor, whenever the mood strikes. My personal favorite is the "Saturday Night Live" sketch below, still funny after all these years.
Today's very good boy
Meet my dog, Apollo! He is named after a “Battlestar Galactica” character and is just delighted he is never alone anymore (although you couldn't tell from how much he's pouting in this picture). More dogs here. (Send me pictures of your pets and I'll make them newsletter famous!)
From a reader
We are asking for feedback/personal coping strategies from all of you in a survey (link below) and already have some responses. So thanks! Here is our first tip from a reader:
"Focus on the positives each day and be thankful for every little thing." - Lynn in Oxnard, California
That’s it for this Saturday. Stay safe, stay well, and we’ll be back in your inboxes on Tuesday. If you want to have your pet featured, a question answered, or have anything to share, email me at klawler@usatoday.com. Know someone who should be getting this newsletter? Forward this email, and they can sign up here. And feel free to fill out our survey at any point to help shape the direction of this newsletter. We want to do whatever will help you the most.