Isolation Diaries #1: Online Events to Keep up Your Social Life
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It’s been almost one month now since I spoke to someone other than my dog in real life. One month since I laughed with friends face to face, one month since I walked past people in the street without distancing myself from them, and one month since I ate khinkali.
We’ve never experienced so much collective change in such a short time span before, and it can be a challenge to keep yourself busy, happy, and healthy at home. The past weeks have seen me reach new levels to keep myself entertained at home. Some days, isolation ages me by fifty years as I pickle vegetables, make jams, and knit on my sofa. Other days, I throw myself into cleaning or do a YouTube exercise video in the garden. And sometimes, I lie in bed and watch Netflix the whole day.
From now on, I’ll be sharing my weekly tips on how to stay calm and busy during isolation in this column. You can expect to find everything from online events to recipes, and mindful techniques to craft ideas.
So, welcome to the isolation diaries. This week, to help avoid becoming a total social recluse and couch potato, I’ve found the best events in the coming days being held online in Tbilisi and around the world.
Online Events Calendar
10 April, 7PM – 11PM: Stay Home Brew Day
Lokal Tbilisi, a co-working space, and Tbilisi-based craft beer Megobrebi Brewery are holding a brewing session to teach you how to make your own homebrew beer in four hours. Crack a few beers open as you watch and consider it your Friday night happy hour.
11 April, 10PM: Nakadi Track Release Live
Georgian-American artist Nakadi is releasing a new track during a live performance on Saturday. If you are missing the Tbilisi club scene, you can enjoy Nakadi’s dub minimal, breaks, and house beats from your living room dancefloor. The performance will be streamed on YouTube.
14 April, 8PM: Tbilisi Virtual Pub Quiz
The popular pub quiz held at Wooland’s Speakeasy on Tuesday nights has gone online during lockdown. There are no teams, instead you log into an online trivia platform and compete as yourself. There’s a Zoom room running simultaneously so you can heckle the other contestants.
14 April, 4PM: The Economics of Covid-19
Perhaps not the most relaxing choice of event, but it’s important to keep up-to-date with the news and understand the economic impacts of the virus. The New Economics School is running a series of online lectures where speakers from around the world address economic issues surrounding the pandemic. This session will be presented by Rainer Heufers, Founder and Executive Director of the Center for Indeonesian Policy Studies.
Monday to Friday, 9PM: the Great British Home Chorus
British choir conductor Gareth Malone is organizing a home choir which you can join from your sofa. Despite the name, anyone, anywhere, can take part. Taking on classics such as “You are my Sunshine”, Gareth has a knack for making singing fun. The rehearsals are live on YouTube.
17 April, 12AM: ‘Closer in Crisis’ Benefit Concert
Musicians are coming together (figuratively, not literally – stay home, folks), to perform a benefit concert to raise money and awareness for COVID-19 mental health programs and services. Organized by Sound Mind, Chadwick Stokes of Dispatch, Taylor Goldsmith from Dawes, Foy Vance, Jade Bird, Langhorne Slim, Ballroom Thieves, and Alex the Astronaut will perform. The concert will be streamed on YouTube.
Every Thursday, 10 PM: National Theater at Home
For the next eight weeks, the British National Theater will show one of its most popular productions on Thursday nights. The performances are available online for one week, so you can make every night a theater night if you want. Shows include One Man, Two Guvnors with James Corden, Jane Eyre, Twelfth Night, and Treasure Island. You can find them on YouTube.
By AMY JONES