7 out-of-the-box ways to stay social remotely

You can still (virtually) do things with your friends during lockdown

By Features & Lists

With lockdown in place across the province, it can be tough to find ways to stay social from the comfort of your own home.

FaceTimes and Zoom calls can get exhausted pretty quickly, so we’ve put together some creative ways that you can (virtually) connect with friends and find that social time you’ve been craving!

Check out 7 out-of-the-box ways to stay social while social distancing below.
 

Watch a virtual concert together


In lieu of concerts, tons of artists are hosting virtual performances online that you can watch with friends. Start a FaceTime or Zoom call with some pals and tune into one of your favourite performers’ shows! Or, you can check out Bandsintown PLUS, a new subscription streaming service that is set to put up 25 livestreams per month from artists like Phoebe Bridgers, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker, and more.
 

Try to find each other on Club Quarantine

If you’re craving a dance party, you should head to Zoom’s ever-growing, extremely popular queer night club, Club Quarantine! Club Q has boasted huge DJs, performers, and celebrities, including Laverne Cox, Charli XCX, Caroline Polachek, Kim Petras, and more! Message your pals, turn a look, and flip through the pages of participants to try to find each other and dance along to some energetic tunes.
 

Have a zoom dinner party with food from a local restaurant

Have you been missing having your friends over for dinner? Try out a Zoom dinner party! Book a time to meet up with your closest pals on Zoom, and you can all order from your favourite Toronto restaurant like Sugo or Banjara.
 

Have an art night

Get in touch with your creative side by meeting up with some friends on Zoom or Facetime and making some art together. If you’re unsure of where to start, you could check out an art lesson on YouTube, like the beginner water colour lesson above!
 

Get a pen pal


With lockdown in place, many people have turned to writing letters to connect with people in new ways! On Twitter, many users have been taking part in #Penpalooza, a pen pal exchange that began in Spring of 2020 to connect people around the world throughout the pandemic. If you want a pen pal, you can sign up here to be matched up with another person looking for someone to write to.
 

Join a virtual book club

With all this extra time on your hands, you might as well start reading more, and what better way to do so than with friends? In fact, Florence + the Machine has her own book club called Between Two Books, where she shares recommendations. So, if you’re unsure of where to start, check out @betweentwobooks on Instagram!
 

Play Jackbox

Jackbox is a great way to play games with friends over Zoom or Facetime. Jackbox Games is a video game developer from Chicago that is known for making interactive party games that participants can play from their smartphones, tablets, or browsers. Jackbox describes itself as the child of classic games, but “the child who dropped out of college, then earned the family’s respect by founding a jam company.”
 

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