Nehal Tenany
Lifestyle

Nehal’s Quarantine Survival Guide

Who would have thought that in a million years something like this pandemic would occur confining us to our homes and making social distancing the new norm? Yeah, definitely not me. As the number of quarantine days continue to increase, I struggle more and more about what I should do with my time. I created this to-do list during week one of quarantine and I’ve pretty much completed everything on it….rebuild my website? Check. Write a few podcast scripts? Done. Take an online course? In the process. Create TikToks? Ashamed, but yes. The only thing keeping me going is that I still have a list of shows to binge, books to read, recipes to make and workouts to attempt. For those of you struggling to figure out what those may be for you, here’s my list of quarantine cravings to get you started – remember, we all got to #STAYHOME so let’s make the most of  it. 

1. What to Watch

Self-quarantine means you finally get time to binge watch all the shows that you’ve had on your list. You can work from home while watching tv, right? I think that’s allowed. Choosing a show can be so time-consuming given the plethora of streaming services. Here are some of my favorite shows to binge: 

  • Family Karma on Bravo: Think Keeping Up with The Kardashians but all brown peoples – I started watching this with my mom on YouTube (episodes can be found there) and we’re hooked. The characters are hilarious, the brown community drama gives me life, and the marriage pressures are so real.
  • Love is Blind on Netflix: When Desi people have an arranged marriage, it’s shocking to other races to think that we married someone after only meeting them one time. Enter, Love is Blind. A reality show where couples date in pods and develop emotional connections all while not seeing how the other person looks. The series ends with proposals, heartbreaks and marriages. 
  • Younger on Hulu: Calling all Hillary Duff fans! This cute and quirky show follows the journey of an a single-mom aspiring to make it into the publishing industry. She finally manages to get her dream job, but faked her identity as a younger woman to get it. Younger is a timeless show about adulting, life as a millennial, career choices and friendships.
  • McMillions on HBO: Did you ever play McDonald’s Monopoly growing up? What if I told you that back in the days, someone turned the game promotion into a scam – a scam that allowed them to steal millions of dollars and build a vast network of co-conspirators without getting caught for years. MUST WATCH to see how this conspiracy unfolds.

CURRENTLY WATCHING:

2. What to Read

It’s really easy to get wrapped up into the tv addict life when you have so much time on your hands. But, it’s important to give yourself that screen break and do something different, perhaps reading. There’s so many good books out right now but here are some of my must-reads: 

  • Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal: I’ve been trying to read more books by South Asian authors and this book did not disappoint (also a part of Reese Witherspoon’s book club). This book is sexy, mysterious and relatable to all my South Asian women as it follows themes of sexual oppression, culture clash, gender disparity and more with a murderous twist. 
  • The Women in the Window by AJ Finn:  A psychological thriller that just got made into a movie (releasing soon) that follows the journey of woman who gazed out of her window one night and saw something she shouldn’t have. SO many secrets. SO many lies. Absolutely dark and twisted.
  • Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng: Absolutely loved this book and hooked onto the show airing on Hulu starring my favorite, Reese Witherspoon. This book is a deep psychological mystery about the power of motherhood, intensity of teenage love and the danger of perfection.
  • Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens: One of my all-time favorite books. It’s a heart-breaking coming of age story and a surprising tale of a possible murder. It’s painfully beautiful. I didn’t want this story to end, I was so connected to the characters and emotions I felt. 
  • Before I Go To Sleep by SJ Watson: Reminds me of Ghajini. Another psychological thriller featuring a woman who wakes up every day forgetting her entire memory. She has to figure out who she is and who she can trust before the day ends, or the restart button hits all over again.

CURRENTLY READING:

3. What to Cook:

I’ve always loved cooking, but when I lived on my own, I never used to because we just didn’t have the ingredients. That’s one of the perks of being home! I’ve been trying out new recipes everyday from some of my favorite Instagram chefs and I seriously look forward to eating after every meal because I know I’m about to whip some bomb ass shit up. Here are my favorite easy-to-make quarantine recipes: 

4. What Workouts To Do:

I think the hardest part of this whole shelter in place thing for me is that gyms are closed. As a valued member at Equinox, I miss my resort-like experience filled with lavender-scented hand towels, HIIT workout classes, bougie locker rooms and the friendliest staff members. Since that’s all gone now, here are some workout session I like doing from YouTube – luckily I have bands and a medicine ball so I like to mix them into these routines:

5. What To Listen To:

Although my podcast consumption has decreased significantly due to being quarantined (I only listen during my commute), some people just love listening to things while they work or when they’re relaxing. For those who are podcast obsessed, here are my favorites:

  • Crime Junkie: Ashley & Brit cover new unsolved murders and missing people every week – the storytelling format of this podcast is amazing. I even bought patron for a month so I can listen to the unreleased episodes, #crimejunkie for life. 
  • The Woke Desi (shameless plug): Join co-hosts Annika & myself as we explore topics only whispered about in the South Asian community. There’s an array of guests that share their stories in an interview style podcast that is both conversational and engaging. 
  • Dying for Sex by Wondery: This podcast is hosted by two women who are best friends but one is dying from stage 5 cancer. With only a few months to live, she wants to live her life to fullest, which means indulging in all the sexual experiences she can. Follow her sexcapades in Dying for Sex.
  • Blood Ties by Wondery: A fictional podcast that explores a sibling duo who lose their parents in an airplane crash followed by secrets, murder, and a lot of mystery. What happened to the parents? Are they still alive? How will the siblings get past the secrets? 
  • Straight Up With Stassi by Stassi Schroeder: I LOVE TRASH REALITY TV. Obsessed with Vanderpump Rules and Stassi Schroeder is my idol, that is all. 

6. What Courses to Take:

And. lastly, for those people who love learning new skills and expanding their horizons, here are some awesome courses to take during shutdown:

Happy Quarantining!

Love, Nehal

1 Comment

  1. Nav
    March 27, 2020 / 2:04 am

    This is dope! Thank you for the TV and podcast reccs!