Finding New Ways to Maintain Friendships During Social Distancing

As the world adjusts to the new societal norms of the COIVD-19 pandemic, many of us have faced a drastic change in our day-to-day lives. While those on the front lines work tirelessly to mitigate the impact of this virus within their communities, the most helpful thing the rest of us can do is simple: stay home. This has not only significantly altered the way many of us work, but also changed the way we socialize.

Most of my time spent maintaining and expanding upon my friendships — especially within the LGBTI community — centers around activities. These include LGBTI sporting leagues, crowded brunches and dinners, and a lot of time out enjoying my city’s LGBTI-friendly neighborhood, Boystown. Even though many of these activities are no longer available to us, thanks to technology, there are still plenty of ways for us to maintain these friendships while observing appropriate social distancing measures.

Group Chats

Group chats are nothing new, but they have become a crucial group connectivity tool during this time of social distancing. You can keep in touch with a variety of friend groups in a meaningful way, having conversations about the news, entertainment, or whatever else sparks your interest. Or, you can just sit back and enjoy the conversation and not participate at all.

Sometimes it is nice to take a back seat and enjoy the development of a conversation among friends, just as one might do in-person. While some may find these group conversations irksome (in those instances, I always suggest implementing the “hide notifications” feature rather than leaving) in times like this, they provide a comforting level of support and normalcy to a situation that is anything but.

Binge a Show or Have a Movie Night

Thanks to the ample number of streaming services available to choose from these days, it is essentially impossible to run out of new shows and movies. One way to stay connected to your group of friends during these socially distant times is to binge a new show or watch a movie together and then discuss your thoughts via a group phone or video call; you could even take it to the next level and watch while on these calls.

To keep things interesting, rotate the show and movie selections between each friend or, better yet, randomly select a genre and choose an option from that area as a group. Set a timeline for completion (you could chat about each episode or do a season or series discussion) and you’re setting yourself up for hours of entertainment with your friends.

Virtual Game Night

Personally, game nights are one of my favorite activities to enjoy with both friends and family, so missing out on those gatherings has been a tough adjustment. Luckily, there are several ways to enjoy game nights from the safety of your home. You could keep it simple with a group phone or video call and play trivia, charades, or Pictionary, or go all out and use one of the many group apps that allows people from different locations to play together. These game nights may look different, but the energy and fun can still be the same; it all depends on attitude and enthusiasm.

LGBTI Book Club

With many of us sitting at home with an unprecedented amount of free time, there has never been a better time to slow down and pick up a nice, engaging book to read. For me, one of the best parts about reading is discussing the material with others; it’s very interesting to find how people interpret the same reading material in so many ways. There are many LGBTI books out there to enjoy that would provide community members with the unique opportunity to discuss some more serious issues within our community that they may not have ever had the chance to bring to the table otherwise.

Craft Crew

For some, creativity naturally flourishes during long stretches of downtime; for others, it’s not that easy. Regardless of whichever type of person you are, a group craft night is a great way to get the creative juices flowing. You can paint, draw, sculpt, stitch, or identify whatever medium you want to explore artistically and enjoy that adventure with your friend group. Again, it’s a lot of fun to see how people express themselves artistically and is a fun way to keep your mind and hands active and challenged while at home.

These are some of the ways that I've been staying close to friends as we continue to make our way through these unprecedented times. If there are any group activities that you have found particularly entertaining or engaging during your time in quarantine, please be sure to drop them in the comments.