How I am coping with COVID

How I am coping with COVID
Photo by Emile Guillemot / Unsplash

Hi guys, nice to see you again. Well, to be blunt, it's nice to think that someone is seeing this. But that doesn't deny the fact that something about this is nice. For me. And for you. Hopefully. Anyways.

During this time with COVID, a lot has been said about how this is the year that you have the time to do whatever you didn't have time to do before. And while I think that's true, there are certain aspects of what's happening in the world that can't be accounted for; to give you an example, I always wanted to road trip across the US or visit certain cities and it's not possible because the border between Mexico and the US is closed. Or something as simple as motivation, do you think people have the motivation to do stuff with what's going on? I believe there's a certain type of people that is exhausted just to think about our situation, or depressed, or paranoic. And that obstacle is not allowing them to make what they want. Heck, even mentioning "but now you have the time" may be a burden to some people.

So, lots of us are coping with this "now you can do whaterever you always wanted to do" mantra in different ways and I wanted to share what's been keeping me sane for the last year. Maybe you'll find that what works for me is working for you too, or maybe this will help you or inspire you to find something, or maybe just reading this might help you get distracted from what's happening. And all of that is okay. Let's start!

Not reading about COVID

This may be a really basic one, but it's what's working the best for me. At the beginning, I used to be on top of whatever was happening in China, Italy and all that stuff that felt really far, far away. As soon as it reached Mexico, I pulled the plug and stopped getting information COVID related. Why? Well, basically everything was a load of crap. Made up, straight up fake, assumptions, misunderstood data; all that was around us and it was really easy to get lost in the sea of info. How not to get overwhelmed? Just disconnect. Get your sources right to understand how to avoid infection and live by those rules. Everything outside of that will only make you feel more paranoic.

Find something to be passionate about. Me? Cars

I have always liked cars. I consider myself to be knowledgeable about them, like, I'm the kind of guy that can name every car on the road and maybe tell you what's good and what's not about most of them, yet I've never worked on cars. I don't know anything about engines, transmissions, suspension and that stuff that makes a car a car. I can change a tire, check the engine oil... And I guess that's it. So, this past year I tried to change that and, interestingly, it got me somewhere else. I started to learn about detailing and how to make and maintain your car looking the best possible. Weird. How come it's not common knowledge that there's a science and techniques to washing a car? No dish soap? I'm usign the wrong type of towel? Two buckets? And I was hooked. Now I'm way too deep into the rabbit hole of "how to" videos and spending money on chemicals and lots of hours working on the aesthetics of it, but my car is looking better than ever. Its paint really shines now and I catch myself glanzing more ofter at my car and it makes me smile to see what I have accomplished by working on it.

It's not what I had in mind, but it led me to find a new passion. This is the video that got me into all this craziness:

Other channels I love about detailing:

  • Chromatic Auto Detailing: ASMR style videos. Love this guy's cinematographic style and aesthetic of the videos. And man, he's got cool sneakers.
  • Vermijl Car Detail: ASMR style videos. Really professional videos, utilitarian (?) style and really nice cars.
  • Chicago Auto Pros: Vlogs, detailing tips, product reviews... This channel has it all.

Now, I'm not giving up on my goal of working on cars, but let's just say I've found that the car I own right now is not as workable as I need it to be, but I'm looking to get one, hopefully soon. Anyway, other car related channels I like:

  • Donut Media: All around best car content with humor.
  • The Straight Pipes: Best car review channel, directly from the Great White North.
  • Gears and Gasoline: Best car cinematography and edition, epic roadtrips, K swap everything.
  • TJ Hunt, Dustin Williams, Throtl - These guys made me realize I don't have to be a mechanic to work on my cars and after some time and efforts I may be able to get where I want to.

I hope it helps, at least to entertain yourself.

Get busy. Write a blog, wash your car

At first, that was the main goal of this blog. I guess I expected getting a blog from the ground up would also provide me the motivation to maintain it and write in it a lot... but it didn't. It doesn't have anything to do with my disposition to find something to write about but rather the fact that I spend my days working on a computer for a living and moving to another one to write a blog as a hobby isn't something I look forward to. Trust me, I'm at the point where I don't even want to see computers at all.

But, having found a new passion in detailing cars, that's where I get busy now. I wash my car every weekend now and depending on how dirty my car is, I can spend more time on it. I think I once spent 5 hours, which in the grand scheme of detailing may not be so much, but it's too much for someone who is not a professional. Just tell someone you spend 5 hours washing your car and they may think you're crazy or dumb. But that's 5 hours I am completely zoned out, working with my hands, focused on getting something done and trying to improve. It's something I'm looking forward every weekend and gives me a sense of accomplishment I don't even get from my daily job.

So find something simple to do and get your hands dirty.

And lastly...

Look forward to more on this blog. In the same sick way we all wait for our Amazon packages. And you know, if you don't find anything here soon, you can always complain on Twitter! Send me a tweet @scaarg to let me know you want more content.

See you on the next one.