How to Keep Entertained or Busy during a Pandemic when you are retired

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The Covid-19 pandemic, apart from its hazardous factor over health and safety, has dampened much
more than that. The lockdowns forced everyone to shut themselves in their homes. Even the world
is steadily opening up, and people are getting back on track, the elderly still have to put up with a
lingering lockdown, so to say, in order to save oneself from the clutches of this notorious virus.
While many people have work to be done from home or online schools to attend to, what do the 60
and retired groups do with so much time? It gets quite on the nerves at times, just how boring life
can be.
There’s always grass on the other side, and with this pandemic as well, there are few things which
you can engage yourself with. Utilize your time in a retrospective and unique way. For it is only now
that you can get the time to do these.

Make a memoir
Sixty years of life is a lot of experience. Write down your learnings, your memorable moments,
anecdotes from difficult times, and notes to yourself and others. You can either make a journal or
write letters to your younger self. Either way, it will be good to indulge in some nostalgia. As you are
going to embrace old age, there may be many a time your mood and attitude might be out of the
place. Reflect back on your writings and cross-examine yourself.

Learn how to use apps and gadgets
If you struggle to book that uber or ordering that food in through an app. All the keys and buttons on
your mobile phone seem like the same, then you must know that you should catch up with the rest
of the world. If you have your children come over, ask them to teach you about your problem areas
with technology. If you can access YouTube, then you don’t even need a person to guide you. It's all
there.

Workout both mind and body
Engage in fun workouts to keep yourself physically fit and active. Being stuck at home might make
you a couch potato. While watching films and reading books may be the apparent activities that
come to your mind during these times, take some time off to work those muscles out. Play some
online memory games like crosswords or scrabble to keep your mind active.

Playing online games
Even though it can be a lot of fun to workout and keep yourself healthy, there is a great way to kill
some time and this involves experiencing the countless online games that are available. One can
head over to destinations like the Casimba Casino where many online games are offered. These
online games would be spanning different categories like slots and poker. Apart from passing time,
you might also end up getting lucky.

Take an online course
Age has nothing to do with learning. You have to be a lifelong learner. That is the best way to live. If
you have always wanted to learn guitar or dance but just couldn’t while you were busy in your
professional life, now is the time. There are plenty of online courses, some free while some paid,
that can get you going.

Connect through social media

Do you wonder what your bench partner from grade fourth is doing now? The world has been
brought closer by social media. Search them up, you might find their trace online. Reconnect with
them and be a part of the alumni groups of your alma mater.

You wouldn’t have possibly been able to do the activities mentioned above before this. Now that
you have the chance, shoot, and enjoy yourself.

How To Cope With Your Care Needs

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If you begin to need help with your day to day activities, this reality can be frightening. Nobody likes feeling vulnerable, and when you’ve been a self-sufficient adult all your life, asking for help is very hard. No matter what your situation is or why you might need care, admitting you need help is challenging for most people. So how can you make coping with your care needs easier?

Firstly, take your time to get your head around it. If you need help with moving around your home, cooking meals, or even something more sensitive like using the bathroom facilities, confide in a friend your age about this. They are likely to understand this feeling of vulnerability too, and will help you come to terms with this change in your life. Try not to see asking for help as a negative thing, but instead as an act of self-care. 

Secondly, explore all your care options. Just because you need a helping hand, it doesn’t mean you should leave your home and move into full time care. You may only need an hour or two of assistance per day, or even less than this. Speak with your doctor about what you are experiencing and they may be able to help you find the best options for your needs. If you have close family to hand, let them know you are exploring different options, and take your time to decide.

Thirdly, get to know the person who begins to care for you. There are even options to hire friends and family through companies such as freedomcare, who will be reliably paid to take care of your needs. This could help your feelings of anxiety, because the person delivering your care will be a familiar face and a trusted individual.

However, if you do decide to hire a nurse or an outside carer, try to be open-minded. These dedicated individuals are there to make you feel comfortable and put your life in an easier position. It is tempting to lash out at such individuals at the beginning, usually due to the stress or fear of having a stranger in your home. However, do try to remain calm and if you are afraid, express this concern to your carer. They will have extensive experience and will try to put your mind at ease. 

If you wish to continue taking care of yourself but have some alterations that need to be made to your space, consider moving to a bungalow or flat for more comfort. This way, you can avoid stairs and live more easily within your space. Similarly, you can invest in a walker or chair which will help you be self sufficient without needing a caregiver. 

No matter what, everyone needs help sometimes. Try to acknowledge this change as the next chapter of your long life, and do not give in to your temptations of being anxious or bitter about your care needs. Life moves in seasons, and you are into your next one. Embrace it.

Tips For Building Your Dream Home From Scratch

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Ever thought about building your own home from the ground up? A lot of people might not achieve it in the time that they’re on this earth, but for those that do, it can be a project that can help bring all your house design dreams to life. Here are some tips for building your dream home from scratch.

Find The Right Plot Of Land

Firstly, it’s important to find the right plot of land, otherwise, it’s going to be difficult to get everything you need in order to build it the right way. There are plenty of auctions and for sale opportunities to just buy a plot of land but you might also want to consider buying a property that you might knock down completely or simply re-design the layout and structure, adding floors or different areas on where you deem suitable. The right plot of land is the first thing you want to consider as this is going to set the scene for your dream property, and you want it to be the right one for you. When looking for plots of land, you also want to make sure that you can do everything needed on that piece of land because there might be certain regulations and restrictions in place that might limit what and where you can build on it.

Have A Budget

A budget is certainly needed for your dream home, and you want to consider what you have available in financial resources as building a home from scratch is going to be pricey. Regardless of the size of your property, there’s still going to be a lot of expense in materials and labour, whether you choose to do it yourself or get the help of professionals. You can certainly save yourself some money when it comes to doing some of the work yourself, but you want to have the skills to do that.

Consider The Design & Layout

When it comes to a house design, you want to get it properly designed and laid out using your own inspirations, wants and needs for the home. It’s also good to get someone who has qualifications in property design to help collaborate in this process. You also want to consider the layout and how you want the home to function inside and out. There might be certain features that you’re after and the ration of bedrooms to bathrooms that you have. All of this needs to be figured out before the building work starts.

Set A Timeline

Setting a timeline is important as there are definitely things that can delay the process and go wrong, which can cause a lot of time lost. If this is your home, then you’re going to want to have a deadline so that you can eventually move in and not have to find temporary accommodation.

Building a dream home from scratch is certainly a challenge, and if you have the opportunity to do so, then it’s one challenge you should take on.