Illustration courtesy of Angele Latham
Story by Brandon Black/Lifestyles Editor
Howdy everyone, Lifestyles editor Brandon here.
I am currently in a form of semi-quarantine with my family at a house in what feels like the middle of nowhere. There is a serious lack of reliable wi-fi, the house contains more stink bugs and wasps than I would prefer and I’ve been starting to feel just a tad stir-crazy. However, that aforementioned family is in no way sick, we have plenty of groceries (Besides toilet paper, but I’m fairly certain we’re all in that one together), a rather nice screened-in porch and a very good dog who has no semblance of a clue what’s going on. I would say we are doing pretty well, considering the circumstances.
As your local Lifestyles editor, I will say that I feel rather strapped considering my entire job is to let the campus community know about the cool and exciting goings on in middle Tennessee. At the moment, there is one thing, and it’s the Coronavirus. That is the thing that’s going on. Makayla, our incredible Assistant Lifestyles editor, did an excellent St. Patrick’s Day article (you can read that here, it’s still pretty awesome even if the day has passed), and after day three of sitting in front of the wall, criss-cross applesauce and talking to myself (don’t judge), it seemed as though I had nothing real to contribute. I don’t have enough internet to stream anything, so goodbye to any new movie and TV recommendations or reviews, I guess. I am also tending to other jobs I have outside of the paper, so my brain does not feel as free to brainstorm as it normally would.
And reader, that’s when it hit me.
Not an idea, but my sister tripping over me because I had, in fact, chosen a very poor place to do my criss-cross applesauce wall-talking, directly in front of the coffee maker.
After a swift apology for my location-based insolence, it hit me again. This time it was an idea. I like my sister and think she and my parents are very interesting humans. They do and say wonderfully hilarious things all the time. I’m sure our dog does too, it’s just that he has yet to actually speak in his lifetime, but now is no time to give up hope in that department.
So we, as a family unit, have decided to start a podcast during these strange times, to not only help us stay sane, but to provide some sanity for you all as well. My dad gives daily updates on the state of the virus, my beautiful mother is a licensed therapist and gives tips on how to handle your mental health, my sister is a ray of positivity who provides just that every episode and I do my best to give entertainment options and recommendations based off what I can remember from the real world. Within that, we just have a conversation about how we’re doing that ranges from consistently stupid puns to our fears and hopes during this unprecedented period.
The show is called “Quarantime!” and it’s currently available on Spotify, but not Apple Podcasts because I locked myself out of my account on every single one of my devices to a point where I will never be able to use “Find my iPhone” again without fear of intense government suspicion.
The current plan is to record and post an episode every day, just in case people need it. I hope it’s just as helpful and happy for you all as it is for us. We’ve got this everyone. Just one day at a time, right? Be on the lookout for other cool and creative things people are making during this crazy lockdown, too, because they very much exist.
For those of you who don’t have Spotify, the podcast can be found at https://api.spreaker.com/v2/episodes/24004888/download.mp3.
To contact Lifestyles Editor Brandon Black, email lifestyles@mtsusidelines.com.
For more updates, follow us at www.mtsusidelines.com, on Facebook at MTSU Sidelines and on Twitter at @Sidelines_Life.
