All the news and social media posts about coronavirus, or COVID-19, feel a little overwhelming. I think we could all use some super fun coronavirus distractions right now.
I don’t want to detract from the serious nature of the coronavirus situation. But I do want to acknowledge the importance of mental well-being during this incredibly stressful time.
I’m hoping the super fun coronavirus distractions below will give you an opportunity to have some fun, laugh, and relax for just a moment or two. Enjoy!
Related:
- 32 Quarantine Playlist Songs That Will Have You Dancing
- 10 Items That Will Help You Stay Sane During Quarantine
- Best YouTube Workouts to Get in Shape While At Home
Create a playlist of ridiculous songs
Many of us have song playlists. A dance party playlist. An inspirational playlist. Maybe a workout playlist.
But do you have a playlist of the most ridiculous and fun songs of all time?
I’m going to get to work on my playlist today. (I use Amazon Music, but you can use any music service that lets you create playlists.) Some of my songs will include:
- A Whale of Tale – Sung in all its glory by Kirk Douglas
- The Lion Sleeps Tonight – Please record yourself singing this and send it to me
- Gangnam Style – Recreate this video for added fun
- Cotton Eye Joe – I would have been married a long time ago, if not for the siren call of Cotton Eye Joe
- Kung Fu Fighting – You’re welcome
Just writing down the songs above was a super fun coronavirus distraction for me. Check out my full playlist here.
Rick Roll your friends and family
Rick Rolling is when you send a link to Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” video to someone and pretend that it relates to a different topic. You can use Bitly to shorten or disguise the link.
For example, I just sent the link to my brother James, telling him it was for a blog post I was writing and asked him to tell me his opinion. Since it was pretty closely related to the truth, he took the bait!
Because the YouTube video link was just a series of numbers and letters, I didn’t even need to disguise the link.
While my brother didn’t have any problems with being Rick Rolled, not everyone is going to enjoy this trick. Be selective with your recipients.
Recreate famous movie scenes
Who doesn’t love sliding across the floor to recreate Tom Cruise’s famous “Risky Business” dance scene?
Let your creative juices flow by recreating famous movie scenes just like Risky Business. Bonus points if you record it and share it with the world (or just your friends and family) to increase everyone’s joy.
Here are some famous movie scenes to get your creative juices following:
- Rocky – Recreate a training scene, complete with “Gonna Fly Now” as the background music (see my awesome photo attempt below)
- Say Anything – John Cusack’s character holding up the boom box
- Titanic – The scene where Jack and Rose float on the door (maybe you can create an alternative ending!)
- Princess Bride – You can recreate anything in the movie, it’s all awesome
If you’re looking for more inspiration, check out the Jonas Brothers’ “What a Man Gotta Do” video – they’re pros at recreating famous movie scenes. Just watching their video is a super fun coronavirus distraction!
Find a painting of your doppelganger
Google’s Arts & Culture app (for Android and for iPhone) is another super fun coronavirus distraction. The app will compare your selfie to historical paintings. The app will then tell you which historical paintings look the most like you.
Even if you’ve done this before, I recommend doing it again now. It’s such a great distraction and a way to discover interesting art. Plus, you can distract your friends and family by sending them the worst results.
I retook my picture approximately 27 times. My historical doppelgangers seem to really like bonnets. Something I’ll have to consider for my future wardrobe.
Use Instagram effects to discover your innermost self
Okay, so maybe the Disney character effect won’t help you discover your innermost self, but it will tell you which Disney character you are! (And isn’t that basically the same thing?)
Instagram has a number of effects that act like a visual Rolodex. Once you start the effect, it will slide through a number of pictures before landing on one.
For example, the Disney character effect said that I was one of the mice in Cinderella. (I take issue with this and will be retaking this about 500 times.)
Here’s how you find effects in Instagram:
- Go to the Stories section of Instagram (on my Android device, I get to it by swiping left from the Home screen)
- Once in the Stories section, scroll to the “Normal” text on the bottom of the screen
- Then scroll through the circles to get to the very last circle on the far right – it’ll say “Browse Effects”
- Click on the “Browse Effects” circle
- Start searching! There are lots of different effects to choose from – all of which are super fun coronavirus distractions!
Here are some of the search terms I used that got the best results:
- Which Disney
- Which Harry Potter
- Which Star Wars
Most effects start working when you tap and hold the circle at the bottom, which will also record the process.
While the coronavirus situation is serious, we could all use a little laughter in our lives to help us cope with our current reality. I hope these super fun coronavirus distractions bring a little laughter to your life.
Shop my quarantine survival favorites
Comments or Questions?
Have a comment or a question? I’d love to hear from you! Visit me on Instagram @eastbymidwest and leave a comment or DM, or send me an email at pam@eastbymidwest.com.
