How I Kept Myself Busy During the Pandemic at Home

Being unemployed from last year until now didn’t really bother nor bore me. I used that free time to work on myself and improve some skills. So here are the things that kept me busy during the pandemic at home.

1. Attending online classes

When the world started to lockdown, a lot of online classes started to spring. Thus, I decided to learn Digital Marketing and SEO, which I think will greatly help me in making my website.

I looked for legit classes and that will fit my budget and schedule. After countless hours on Google, I found Certified Digital Marketer. It’s a school in the Philippines that offers different classes regarding E-commerce.

I spent around 60,000 yen for the lessons, which is a bit pricey but it was worth it for me. I learned a lot of new stuff, got out of my comfort zone, and did something with my free time.

2. Managing my website

I always wanted to have my website to showcase my articles, illustrations, and photos. Moreover, it also serves as my online portfolio, so if I could find a writing opportunity, I could just show my website.

My website is also where I could practice the things I learned from my online classes. Please visit my website! https://saunteringboots.com/

3. Studying Japanese

Despite living in Japan for 7 years, my Japanese level is still very bad. Hence, I try my best to study it from Monday to Friday. I also have Japanese classes in ITALKI to practice my conversation skills, because it’s the one that I’m really bad at.

I don’t have many opportunities to speak Japanese, so discovering ITALKI saved me.

4. Going back to digital art

I briefly worked as an illustrator in the Philippines. When I moved to Japan, I stopped doing digital art because I didn’t have the equipment for it anymore. I mostly did traditional drawing.

However, when I was planning on making my website, I realized that I might need a lot of illustrations for my articles to make them more colorful and interesting. So, my husband bought me an IPAD to be able to make digital art using Procreate (a drawing app) and to be able to write articles wherever I go. We travel a lot, so I needed something light.

5. Keeping the house tidy

Since I’m always at home, I need my space to be neat.

Every day, I try my best to clean and organize our home. The only thing that I don’t clean in our home is the windows. I don’t like cleaning them, hence my wonderful and handsome husband does it for me.

6. DIY (Do-it-Yourself)

I like creating something out of nothing.

Thus, I do a lot of DIY projects, which makes me a number one fan of 100-yen shops and DIY shops in Japan--- which are fantastic! It’s very convenient to look for materials and they are also affordable.

I extended this shelf, so we could put our new printer on top.

One of the most difficult projects that I’ve ever done was an extension shelf. I bought the wood at a hardware store and the rest of the material is from Daiso.

7. Gardening

My husband and I like growing our food. So, when it’s late spring we start to plant tomatoes, string beans, flowers, and different kinds of herbs.

It’s a wonderful feeling to be able to grow them.

8. Editing photos and videos

I like sharing my travel experiences, so I want to take as many beautiful photos as much as I can. However, sometimes, it needs a little bit of editing to make the colors pop or remove some photobombers.

Recently, I’ve been doing some video editing as well, because it was one of the things I like to do when I was younger. I stopped doing it when I focused on writing and digital illustration. Now, I’m re-learning it and practicing new techniques.

9. Blogging

Besides writing articles for my new website, I still blog.

My previous set-up in our old apartment

Whenever I blog, I just write freely. I don’t think about SEO or the perfect content for my website, I just write and express myself when I blog.

10. Making Bento (lunchbox)

Every day I make my husband his bento. Because I don’t want to keep packing the same food, I’ve learned a lot of new dishes and how to make them look presentable.

My husband looks very happy whenever he sees me preparing his bento, and it makes me happy that I’m able to put a smile on his face early in the morning. So, I usually watch Youtube or read recipes online during my free time.

The bento I made for my husband.

How about you? How did you keep yourself busy during the pandemic, especially in the first state of emergency? Comment it down below.

Follow me:

TRAVEL: @saunteringboots

ARTS & CRAFT: @lykishbella