During such unprecedented times, many daily occurrences seem to have a lot fewer positives and a lot more negatives. From not being able to eat at your favorite restaurants to your favorite events such as professional sports and concerts being either postponed or canceled, it seems that a lot of things just straight up suck right now. I mean, you can't even consistently find toilet paper in grocery stores. If that isn't saying something, then I don't know what is.
Though things can seem so gloomy, there are still some upsides that may be able to give you some hope of getting through this without being completely miserable the whole time. Here are five positives to pandemic life.
1. Saving gas money
For many people during times like these, working from home and staying in as much as possible is the safest bet. This often means that the only place you need to drive is to the local grocery store. Gas prices plummeted and have stayed cheap across the country as people drive less and less, which is music to the ears of everyone who drives.
2. Significant drop in air pollution
According to multiple sources including National Geographic, there has been a large decrease in air pollution during this pandemic. So, if you want to get outside and enjoy the air (while being safe and following social distancing guidelines, of course), it will be fresher than normal.
3. If you have pets, being able to see them more
If you have a pet, then this is the perfect opportunity to spend more time with them! Play fetch with your dog, bring out the laser pointer with your cat, give your lizard some more crickets, etc. Another plus on the pet side of things is the number of animals that were adopted over the course of quarantine. According to NBC, shelters that normally see a lot of traffic with incoming animals have had mostly empty cages during the pandemic.
4. Personal projects
I know I caught up with a couple of things that I had been meaning to work on during the past several months. Arts, crafts, yard work, home improvement and the like were all on to do lists for Americans.
5. More time to clean
Being stuck at home gives people the perfect opportunity to clean out their closets. Old coats, socks, shoes, sweatshirts, etc. are perfect to donate with colder weather coming up. According to the Bellingham Herald and other reputable sites, there has been a large increase in material donations to Goodwill and Salvation Army; though Salvation Army has started their holiday "Red Kettle" campaign early due to the incessant need for donations during such an odd time.
These are just some positives- I'm sure if you keep living through pandemic life that you, and many other people in lockdown around the world, will find more upsides during such an odd time in our history.
