Fun in 2020?

This year has been pretty shit. We don’t have the horrific death toll from Covid-19 that other countries have, but we still spent what felt like years in lockdown (decades, if you’re Victorian) Businesses closed and some haven’t and won’t open their doors again. Unemployment is huge, the economy has taken a massive hit and we’re still living under a cloud of anxiety. It’s not exactly a recipe for fun times, is it? 

But it is possible, IMPORTANT EVEN, to find fun in 2020!

I reckon we have to wring every last drop of enjoyment and pleasure out of life that we can. Picture life like a tube of toothpaste that the kids have been at. You know what I mean; the little buggers have been squeezing from the top of the tube. It’s up to you to grab it and squeeze like a mofo from the bottom up to get those last bits. Yes, there’s fun in 2020 to be had, but you might have to work for it!

Important rule:

Part of squeezing the absolute hell out of the toothpaste tube of life joy is not bitching and whinging about other people’s joy. Let them have their fun and happiness WITHOUT making it known that you, personally, don’t think their fun and enjoyable thing is fun and enjoyable. YES, this may mean a small sacrifice on your part. BUT, you will feel good and magnanimous and shit, so it’s actually a win for you!

You might have already been doing the things and that is GREAT

I speak to the knitters, the crafters, the sourdough makers, the veggie gardeners, the kombucha brewers etc. Yes, you were doing it before it became a lockdown craze. I recognise your awesomeness and that you were doing it before it was cool. You have my genuine admiration, truly. That is not sarcasm. Your energy and creativity and knowledge is priceless.

I have heard and seen that a few of you were bothered that others took up your hobby or passion while locked down, but I hope you now can see that it’s actually lovely that, given more spare time, your community grew! No need to gatekeep- the activity you already knew was awesome is helping even more people find enjoyment and satisfaction during what can only be described as a pretty fucking difficult time. They found fun in 2020! A new skill- what could be better?!

Getting festive

Joy isn’t just in new interests though. It’s in celebrations and festivity. As we know, Halloween is coming. You can let it happen WITHOUT:

• Complaining about commercialised holidays
• Complaining about Australians adopting USA practices
• Bitching about trick or treating (as it’s not likely to happen this year, anyway)
• Moaning about decorations for sale

Keep in mind, all holidays are commercialised. Where there is demand, there’s gonna be supply. Welcome to economics, right? As for the USA, if Halloween is what we adopt and enjoy from their culture, we gotta be happy with that. At least it’s not rabid gun enthusiasm, or worse. I don’t think anyone will be trick or treating this year like they would in previous years. And decorations? We can and do reuse, just like we do at Christmas etc.

Speaking of Christmas, mince pies and puddings have been on supermarket shelves for WEEKS. Even the non-traditional flavours. Outraged by salted caramel Christmas pudding and apple cinnamon mince pies? Cannot fathom that they were available in September? There was a time I might have agreed, pals, truly. But not this year.

I’ve even seen photos of people’s Christmas trees, up and gloriously bedecked, in the last couple of weeks. My only comments have been how nice they looked. I’ve heard Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas in a department store and I didn’t say a fucking word because a few people were singing along happily and looking at Christmas trees.

My husband even walked through a giant Christmas warehouse with me yesterday while I looked at light displays and inflatable lawn decorations, with MINIMAL complaining.

We can do this!

We survived the Toilet Paper War of 2020. We lived through the great Non-Perishable Carbs stockpiling. Many of us stayed at home for EONS. We have adjusted to masks, sanitising, temp checks the dreaded nasal and throat swab when needed. I, personally, have survived being a sinusitis sufferer in public (the LOOKS I got!).

We can definitely silence our inner curmudgeons for a bit and let people enjoy things this year. We can definitely find bright spots of fun and joy ourselves.

If you’ve been eating mince pies since September, if your home is festooned with plastic skeletons, if you’re living on homemade bread and wearing a hat you crocheted yourself, I say GO YOU. It’s been shit and we have to latch on to every bit of joy and fun to keep ourselves going.

If you’re struggling, there are resources available. Lifeline has text and chat services as well as the phone line and your GP can help with a mental health care plan.