By Emma Terry 

Co-Features Editor

Being stuck at home during the COVID-19 outbreak has brought a lot of stress upon our whole country for a various number of reasons. Although this is a hard time for everyone, it is important to stay productive and occupied. Many Hammond High School students have found different activities, other than watching Netflix or playing video games, that have made their quarantine more enjoyable. If fighting the urge to stay in bed and binge-watch a show has been hard, try a few of these fun activities to make quarantine less overwhelming and bothersome.

Other than making sure schoolwork is finished, staying active is a top priority. For example, taking a walk along local trails is an easy and fun way to stay in shape along with getting fresh air. Additionally, with sports programs being canceled, many travel and club teams have sent out at-home workouts. Even Hammond High School coaches have been ensuring that their teams are just as ready as they would be for their next season. Anne Corey, the Hammond High School varsity volleyball coach, has been emailing at-home conditioning routines weekly for all three of the volleyball teams to use to stay in shape. Brenna Reilly, who is a part of the Hammond volleyball team, has used the workouts to continue to be prepared for their fall season. Brenna states that “they are really helpful and some of them are things that we have done in practice.” Other than what coaches are sending out, YouTube has a wide variety of at-home workout videos ranging in skill level. It is highly encouraged to keep your body moving and healthy at this time, so find something active to keep yourself busy!

Most people have become bored with activities they normally use to fill the time, so it’s become popular to find a new hobby or activity to explore. Painting, baking, or finding a new board/card game are fun examples that some of the Hammond High School students have tried out. Connor Walls, a sophomore at Hammond High School says, “my family and I have a dartboard in our basement and have picked up using it again since we finally have the time.” His family has spent some of their time together having fun playing a new game that they have had for a while. Georgia Briggs, a junior at Hammond, says that her family has been playing a wide variety of games such as Scrabble, Yahtzee, and a lot of puzzles. If you want to try games with some friends,  Zoom, FaceTime, and HouseParty are great ways to keep in touch and pass the time by talking or playing a game. Keeping in touch is important to make sure that friends and family are staying healthy and safe during this time. A lot of students at Hammond have used social media to stay in touch as well as using a video chat system.

Lastly, writing down your thoughts and feelings about the quarantine experience is a great way to keep track and use it as a time capsule. This generation is going through an important part of history right now, so having something to look back at is special. Keeping a journal/diary is also another hobby or something to use to fill up spare time. Georgia Briggs has been using a journal too,” reflect on what I’ve done and to kind of just brain dump,” she says. All of these ideas for an enjoyable quarantine experience are being used in the Hammond High School community to help spread hope and positivity during this hard time.