1. Get Your Groove on With Club Quarantine
What started off on March 17 as DJ D-Nice’s (Derrick Jones) spinning a few of his favorite records for a couple of hundred friends on his live Instagram feed turned into a nine-hour set just four days later, and then ballooned into the nearly nightly “Club Quarantine” sets of soul, disco, rhythm-and-blues, and hip-hop classics, attracting tens of thousands of listeners at a time, including A-listers like Michelle Obama, Stevie Wonder, and Lenny Kravitz.
4. Enjoy Nature
Animals haven’t gotten the memo on self-isolating during the coronavirus pandemic. Both The San Diego Zoo in California and the Houston Zoo in Texas are among several across the country with live feeds. If you’d rather see them in the wild, the Golden Gate Audubon Society sponsors an osprey cam, or you can view nearly 100 other live streams at Explore. And the National Wildlife Federation’s new nature guides will teach you everything you wanted to know about plants and wildlife that you will one day see in person.
2. See Elephant Orphans Being Fed in Kenya
The Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Nairobi, Kenya, works to protect endangered species across the country, including the African elephant and black and white rhinoceroses. One of its best-known programs is its orphan project, where staff rescue and raise young elephants and rhinos, many of whose parents were killed by poachers. Visitors to the nursery in Nairobi can normally see the elephants taking mud baths or being fed milk, but since the nursery is currently closed, the trust will be livestreaming baths and feedings on its website Mondays at 11 a.m. Nairobi time (4 a.m. EDT) and Wednesdays and Saturdays at 3 p.m. Nairobi time (8 a.m. EDT). If you miss one or don’t want to wake up predawn, don’t fret: The latest livestream will stay up as videos on the website.
3. Let’s Go Crazy With a Concert From Prince and the Revolution’s Purple Rain Tour
In partnership with YouTube, the Prince Estate is for one weekend only streaming a concert filmed on March 30, 1985 in Syracuse, New York from the groundbreaking Purple Rain tour. The live footage, as well as a Q&A with Revolution drummer Bobby Z, moderated by Minnesota Public Radio’s Andrea Swensson, will be up through 11:59 p.m. CDT on Sunday, May 17. The event is streaming in support of the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund for the World Health Organization (WHO), powered by the United Nations Foundation and the Swiss Philanthropy Foundation.
5. #museumfromhome
See the collection at New York City’s Guggenheim, tour the Louvre in Paris, roam the Uffizi Gallery in Italy or explore the National Museum of Natural History from the comforts of home! Google Arts & Culture has curated an extensive list of museums, along with the 10 top museums of the country. The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a daily digital digest of videos, articles, and online resources, as does the Museum of Modern Art, two more NYC staples.
6. Brush Up on Your Puccini
The Metropolitan Opera in NYC is hosting free — free! — streams on its website Every. Single. Night. These are encores of performances from the Met’s renowned Live in HD series, and begin at 7:30 p.m. EST nightly. They’ll be available for 20 hours following the stream, and also on the Met Opera on demand apps.
7. Listen Up
As part of the #TogetherAtHome series sponsored by Global Citizen and the World Health Organization, various musicians are lending their voices online. To wit: Ben Gibbard, John Legend, Common, and Chris Martin have done free shows, as has Hozier. Stage It is also hosting concerts that aren’t free, but some are pay what you wish. And musicians who’ve had to cancel shows and tours need any help they can get right now. RELATED: Top 20 Self-Care Tips for Being Stuck at Home During the Coronavirus Pandemic
8. Host a Distant Movie Party
Netflix is hosting a free party for you and your besties. All you have to do is install the Netflix Party extension and choose a movie. After, you click on the “NP” button in your browser. Then you copy and paste a URL to all of your friends.
9. Flex a Muscle
Who needs a gym when you can break a sweat in private? YMCA360.org is offering free exercise videos on demand, including bootcamp, barre, and tai chi classes. Or check out one of the fitness apps mentioned in this New York Post story to create an at-home workout for you. They have small monthly fees, but your body will thank you.
10. Chill
These are scary times, so what better way to deal with them than to practice some mindfulness? Meditation apps like Calm, Insight Timer, Headspace, or the MINDFL Video app will guide you, relax you, and help you get a good night’s sleep. Virus anxiety provides “resources for anxiety and your mental health in a global climate of uncertainty.” Especially fun is the “take a break” section. Click on the cat photo and you’ll be taken to the Bodega Cats of Instagram page. Bodega cats for the win!
11. ¿Habla Español?
By the time the self-quarantine ends, most everyone will be aching to travel. What better time to learn a new language to accompany you on your sojourn? Duolingo and Rosetta Stone can help you learn French, High Valyrian, Hawaiian, Swahili, or a host of other options.
12. Draw
The Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence and kids author Mo Willems (Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, Knuffle Bunny, and the Elephant and Piggy series) is livestreaming a “Lunch Doodle” every day at 1 p.m EST. And no, this isn’t just for kids: “Learners of all ages” are welcome to join him in his virtual studio to write and draw.
13. Make Something
Keeping your hands busy is a great way to deal with, well, pretty much everything —especially if you have kids. Check out these 10 Instagram accounts assembled by Insider, including thedadlab and iheartcraftythings, for ideas on art projects and science experiments to do with your children or by yourself. If you’re a holiday crafts person, you’ll enjoy these 60 DIY Easter craft ideas assembled by Country Living. RELATED: Your Work From Home Survival Guide for Self-Care
