Time Goes By

OPTIMIZE YOUR Downtime

The COVID-19 pandemic has derailed pretty much all of 2020 so far, but one very minor benefit to this nightmare is an awful lot of newfound free time, thanks to extended social distancing measures. So rather than binge-watching your 157th Netflix series of the year, why not spend your gift of time on a little selfimprovement? By Carla Thomas.

Level Up

Put that grey matter to work by enrolling in an online course.

FUTURELEARN

This UK-based digital education platform offers courses and online degrees from 175 British and international institutions, with an immense scope of subjects such as creative arts, media, literature, law, healthcare, medicine, psychology and STEM, to name just a few.

futurelearn.com

COURSERA

The original MOOC platform offers unlimited access to over 3,000 courses. They also offer a range of online courses and professional certifications.

coursera.org XUETANGX

The first Chinese MOOC [massive open online course] platform, this open learning project created by Tsinghua University in 2013 launched its English interface just this year opening up a world of courses from leading mainland institutions, from Peking University to Fudan University and many more.

next.xuetangx.com

UDACITY

Specialising in technical education, this website offers paid online “nanodegrees” in subjects like data science, programming and business, as well as around 200 free individual courses for budding technologists.

udacity.com

Get Creative

Courses to get those creative juices flowing.

PICK UP A QUIRKY SKILL

An online community and learning platform that caters to creatives. Offers courses in fields like illustration, interior design, architecture and photography, or you can peruse the crafts section for more offbeat interests like “Tattoo for Beginners” or “Pop-up Book Creation.”

domestika.org LEARN TO SIGHT READ

If you’re trying to improve your instrumental ability, why not dedicate some time to learning how to actually read music? Sight reading apps like Solfeador (Android) or Noteworks Lite (iOS) gamify the process of sight reading music notes as you progress through levels under time - much better than listening to yourself struggle through “Wonderwall” for the hundredth time.

LEARN THE UKULELE

OK, so this could easily be substituted for ANY musical SUPPORT LOCAL! instrument, but the ukulele is one of the best options for anyone looking to embrace their untapped musical genius! It’s small, cheap, easy to learn and won’t blister your fingers like guitar strings will. The Ukulele Teacher offers free tutorials via his YouTube account, or take a course IRL at the Hong Kong Ukulele Association.

ukehk.com

START A BLOG

Have your Carrie Bradshaw moment and let your inner monologue spill forth onto the computer screen for the world to read. Blogging platforms like WordPress are free and easy to use, and a great resource for aspiring writers.

wordpress.org

Yoga & Meditation

For the spiritual gangsters.

DO YOUR YOGA TEACHER TRAINING SUPPORT LOCAL!

If you’re already a committed yogi, you don’t need to wait for flights to resume to Bali or Goa to finally do your teacher training. Anahata Yoga is offering their 200-hour YTT certification courses online while COVID restrictions are in place, as well as a variety of other yogic specialisations.

anahatayoga.com.hk

TAKE A MEDITATION COURSE

Insight Timer is one of the biggest meditation apps on the market, with over 55,000 free guided meditations. Upgrade to a paid membership and you can also access a range of 10- and 30-day meditation courses from some of the world’s best teachers. You can take it day by day, or smash out a whole course in an afternoon or evening.

insighttimer.com

BRING SOME WOKENESS TO THE MAT

Rachel Cargle is an American academic and anti-racism activist who’s been at the forefront of the Black Lives Matter movement. Check out her Omstars course, Unpacking Racism, a series of eight short lectures which offer insights on racism, intersectionality and yoga, to bring a little more awareness to both your yoga practice and privilege.

omstars.com/unpacking-racism

Self-Improvement

Unlock the secret of happiness, improve your sex life, and brush up on social justice issues. That’s one heck of an afternoon!

LEARN HOW TO SAY YES, REPEATEDLY

OMGYes is an instructional website dedicated to the science of female sexual pleasure and - as the name implies - it’s all about achieving the big O. A paid one-time subscription gets you access to dozens of online modules with technique tutorials and infographics; opt for Season 1 (all about external stimulation), or Seasons 1 and 2, which includes penetrative techniques as well.

omgyes.com

DISCOVER THE SECRET TO HAPPINESS

Yale University’s “The Science of Wellbeing” has become a global phenomenon ever since it went online on Coursera earlier this year. It offers scientific insights about what drives happiness, as well as exercises for students designed to promote happier habits through small behaviour changes.

coursera.org/learn/the-science-of-well-being

BECOME A BETTER ALLY

If you were moved by the #BLM protests earlier this year, you can start doing the work today to more effectively support BIPOC through an online antiracism course. Racial justice educator Rachel Ricketts offers online courses covering how to get comfortable discussing and addressing race and racism.

rachelricketts.com

Nerds & Words

Join an online book club or learn a new language.

JOIN A BOOK CLUB

Whether you’re a natural bookworm or just looking to get into the habit, a book club gives you the chance to discover new works while meeting other bibliophiles. Emma Watson’s Our Shared Shelf is an online feminist book club that assigns new female-focused reads every two months, with discussion forums on the title held through literary platform Goodreads.

goodreads.com/group/show/179584-our-sharedshelf

LEARN A NEW LANGUAGE

Duolingo is a free (and fun!) app and website that gamifies language learning through short and sweet daily lessons. Choose from 38 different languages and over 95 different courses.

duolingo.com

Home Projects

Make it spark joy.

MAKE YOUR OWN BEAUTY PRODUCTS

Try your hand at making your own toothpaste, deodorant, body butter - you name it! Pinterest is rife with ideas and instructions, or check out some homemade beauty recipes from Liv.

bit.ly/2Y6Vxk1

START A GARDEN

Got a rooftop, balcony, or just an empty patch of windowsill? Start your own SUPPORT LOCAL! horticulture project by planting herbs or some other easy-to-care-for greenery. Urban farming initiative Rooftop Republic offers grow kits and online webinars to get you growing on your gardening journey.

rooftoprepublic.com

DESIGN A CAPSULE WARDROBE

Capsule collections are a minimalist approach to fashion, limiting your entire wardrobe for a season to a select number of mix-and-match items. It takes a bit of time and know-how to plan and execute, but there are ample bloggers and resources online to help you. You’ll end up with a whole six months’ worth of looks once you do, plus tons of leftover closet space and the added knowledge that you’re not supporting fast fashion practices.

ORGANISE YOUR PANTRY

Chuck out your rancid oils and spices spoiled by humidity, and commit to a minimalist “essentials only” larder set-up that will free your mind and shelf space! “Your Kitchen Shelf” is a cookbook and nifty organisational hack that shows you how to Kondo your kitchen by keeping 10 key pantry essentials which can be combined into several easy and budget-friendly recipes.

amzn.to/3kUs9qM

KNIT SOMETHING

Get a head start on the chilly season by making your own beanie or jumper. Pick up a DIY knitting kit from The Knitting Room, which comes with all the materials and instructions you’ll need, even for total beginners.

knittingroomhk.com

SUPPORT LOCAL!

Giving Back

Use your downtime to uplift.

VIRTUAL VOLUNTEERING

Local charities have been hit hard by social distancing restrictions, but you SUPPORT LOCAL! can still help out online! HandsOn Hong Kong offers virtual opportunities for people to safely volunteer from home, doing good deeds like reading to hospitalised children (via Zoom) or providing phone support to the elderly.

handsonhongkong.org

SEND SOME SNAIL MAIL TO SOMEONE IN NEED

There are several charitable organisations that receive and pass on letters, cards and care packages to at-risk groups who could use a little extra kindness. The Braid Mission collects birthday cards for children in foster care, while Stay Gold Society welcomes handwritten letters and cards for senior citizens living in long-term care homes, to name just a few!

braidmission.org, staygoldsociety.org

Hippie Stuff

From astrology to herbalism.

FIND OUT WHAT’S IN YOUR STARS

Mercury retrograde got you down? Try a personalised reading from NYT-best seller author and astrologer Chani Nicholas, who also offers online courses and workshops for the cosmically inclined.

chaninicholas.com

EMBRACE YOUR INNER PROFESSOR SPROUT

If you’ve always been curious about natural remedies, try one of Udemy’s myriad herbalism certificate courses, which cover everything from how to identify and harvest wild medicinal plants to building your own herbal essentials first aid kit.

udemy.com/topic/herbalism/

Food & Booze

Eat, drink and be safely isolated.

FERMENTATION EXPERIMENTATION

Sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, pickled veg, yoghurt, sourdough, beer, cheese… SUPPORT LOCAL! can we agree that all the best things in life are fermented? Get that good gut health while embracing some home fermentation projects. FoodCraft offers online fermenting workshops for recipes like kombucha, kefir and sourdough.

foodcraft.hk

BECOME A SPIRITS CONNOISSEUR

As the founder of the now defunct craft cocktail bar The Woods, Victoria Chow is a SUPPORT LOCAL! library of libational knowledge. Her online Spirits Appreciation Workshop takes you through eight key categories of spirits, with 18ml bottled samples delivered to your home beforehand so you can taste the goods for yourself.

sipstraight.com