A lot of joy can be found in the little things in life
The staffers in the Life section came up with a list of 100 everyday pleasures.
“My eyes are getting watery because I found hand soap,” my friend Raven Cooper shared in the group chat. She followed up with a voice memo celebrating the momentous occasion that captured the hope, joy and excitement in her voice.
Pre-coronavirus, watery eyes and happy cries were reserved for promotions, birthday surprises and graduations, but now the simplest things are making us happy.
Cooper had been on the hunt for soap for the past two weeks as her supply was slowly dwindling down to its last few drops. With the widespread COVID-19 outbreak, commonplace and essential items like hand soap, toilet paper and disinfectant wipes have turned into luxury items.
Finding them is a cause for celebration, especially when it doesn’t seem like there’s much to celebrate.
For when you’re feeling down or just need a reminder of the little joys in life, we at USA TODAY Life are sharing 100 things that bring us happiness during the pandemic.
A homemade charcuterie board paired with your favorite wine.
100 things that bring us joy during the coronavirus pandemic:
1. Nabbing a pack of toilet paper at the grocery store.
2. DJ D-Nice’s epic Instagram Live parties.
3. A White Claw hidden in the back of your fridge.
4. A toy that keeps your kid entertained for longer than five minutes.
5. A toy that occupies your dog for longer than five minutes.
6. Dua Lipa releasing her album a week early.
7. Because it’s time to go back to Hogwarts: A “Harry Potter” movie marathon.
8. Walking my dog went from sometimes a chore to unbridled joy.
9. Lowkey enjoying wearing pajamas almost every day.
10. My teenager has to hang out with me.
11. Cooking something new.
12. Going fishing and pimping out your house in Animal Crossing.
13. Watching Ina Garten make a supersized Quarantine Cosmo.
14. Finding a great new show to binge on Netflix (or your preferred streaming service).
15. Being able to do one more rep in an exercise during your workout.
16. A sunny day!
17. Watching music producers battle over who has the best hits on Instagram Live.
18. A homemade charcuterie board paired with your favorite wine.
19. Virtual game nights playing Cards Against Humanity – sorry, Remote Insensitivity – with the other delightfully horrible friends you used to play in person with.
20. Video chat happy hours with friends, family or colleagues.
21. Seeing how happy your dog is to have you home 24/7.
22. Ordering takeout from your favorite restaurant and it’s still just as delicious.
23. Finally watching all those hot TV shows that came and went … and you somehow never saw. (Hello, “Mad Men” and “Game of Thrones”!)
24. Discovering you actually really like the expensive lotion/cute socks/exotic coffee beans you got for Christmas but hadn’t tried yet.
25. Making pour-over coffee. Putting frothed milk on top of it. Sipping with eyes closed.
26. Drinking said coffee in bed.
27. Realizing you don’t need to stress about your messy house because no one is coming over anyway.
28. Creating a happy family on “The Sims” who aren’t afraid of being near each other.
29. Exploring local neighborhoods and checking out all the beautiful spring flowers.
30. Two words (one word?): TikTok.
31. Watching your kid do something creative to combat boredom and realizing just how special they are.
32. The feeling of accomplishment when you see a seed sprout from the garden you finally started.
33. Having dinner at a normal time because everyone is already home when work is over.
34. Finding a meme that speaks to you and sending it to everyone you know.
35. Stress baking even though you’re not good at baking and having it turn out amazingly tasty.
36. Teaching your grandparents how to FaceTime and seeing them smile when they see you.
37. Finally hanging that wall art that’s been sitting in the closet since forever.
38. Catching up on sleep.
39. Re-reading your favorite book.
40. Watching ’80s movies and cringing at/rejoicing in all the jelly bracelets, neon tees and crimped hair.
41. Not having to put on makeup every day.
42. Not having to shave.
43. All the money you’re saving on gas.
44. Taking guitar lessons from James Bay.
45. The shortened commute, because from bed to computer is a much easier daily trek.
46. When your kid’s nap is at the same time as your work conference call.
47. Finding an ingredient you need for a new recipe at the back of your pantry, meaning you don’t have to go outside and can still chef it up.
48. When everyone’s technology works on the Zoom call.
49. Debating “Tiger King” theories with your friends.
50. Trisha Yearwood and Garth Brooks performing “Amazing Grace.”
51. Your boss admitting the whole work-from-home thing isn’t so bad and would be an option when the world is back to “normal.”
52. Making the perfect playlist of cheerful songs.
53. Finishing a 1,000-piece puzzle!
54. Movies going to streaming services early such as “Onward” and “Trolls World Tour.”
55. Extra time with your kids. (It’s bittersweet.)
56. Restaurants offering takeout wine, beer and margaritas with your meal.
57. Seeing any other human outside of your family, even from a distance *waves way too enthusiastically at neighbors.*
58. Getting literally any time slot for grocery pickup or delivery.
59. Seeing your co-workers’ cute kids and pets.
60. Mowing the lawn. (When did this become fun?)
61. Washing your car. (Really, when’s the last time you did that?)
62. Kicking your spouse’s butt in Skip Bo, Uno or Yahtzee.
63. Excessive cleaning leads to a freshsmelling house.
64. Taking your laptop outside and working on the patio.
65. Watching a toddler play with bubbles. Oh, the pure delight.
66. Walking by cute chalk art on the sidewalk.
67. Tumblers that keep coffee hot for hours.
68. Going on a teddy bear hunt in your neighborhood.
69. Putting the kids to bed.
70. John Krasinski’s “Some Good News” YouTube show.
71. Rewatching old stand-up comedy and SNL skits.
72. Seeing posts about people getting engaged and having babies. Good things are still happening every day.
73. Browsing eBay but having the discipline (fear) to not buy anything; paying down my PayPal account.
74. Finishing a long book, at last.
75. Everyone’s sourdough bread on Instagram.
76. Putting moisturizer on your dry, well-washed hands.
77. Making a donation to a mutual aid fund.
78. Watching my dogs dream while I’m on a conference call.
79. Listening to (eavesdropping on?) my husband while he’s on Zoom meetings.
80. Andrew Cuomo’s rock star pandemic press conferences.
81. Getting to the bottom of the laundry basket.
82. Businesses sharing their secret recipes so we can make them at home. I see you, Disneyland Dole Whip, DoubleTree chocolate chip cookies and Cheesecake Factory Cajun jambalaya pasta.
83. Kicking a soccer ball with your friends in the street like you’re back in middle school.
84. Going old school and mailing letters to family (with cute stamps).
85. Putting together your own at-home paint-and-sip class.
86. Spending an immense amount of time to make a video game avatar and then celebrating the fact that it looks just like you. Look at the mouth shape!
87. Getting just a bit better at painting the nails on your dominant hand.
88. Wearing fuzzy socks all day and never worrying that they won’t fit into your shoes, because you don’t put on shoes.
89. Walking through my neighborhood and giving my friends real estate tours on Marco Polo.
90. Bluetooth headphones that connect to my kid’s tablet. The Wiggles are great but I just. can’t. anymore.
91. Warm crusty bread (that I didn’t bake but you know, still warm).
92. Putting wine in a to-go cup as part of my evening stroll.
93. My always-smiling grocery store star Michael’s joyful YouTube channel, Michael’s Best Life Ever.
94. Waking up and realizing that feeling healthy is the greatest gift.
95. Getting a working thermometer delivered.
96. Finding peanut M&M’s in the back of my cupboard that survived past snack patrols.
97. When my grandmother calls! And tells me what she’s watching on Netflix. (The latest is “Unorthodox.”)
98. Planning a surprise Zoom birthday party for my mom with relatives around the globe.
99. Remembering “Insecure” is back.
100. Hugging your kid, your spouse, your roommate – whoever you’re quarantined with.