I don’t think you’ll find many, if anyone, who will say that social distancing, staying at home or flattening the curve, is easy. Some of my friends are natural introverts, and they are certainly taking this easier than my more outgoing, social friends. However, when it comes down to it, humans are by nature social people. We revel in our holiday get-togethers with family and put dinners with friends on our calendars. So this is hard. However, if we can slow the spread, reduce the suffering and return to a somewhat normal existence, it will all be worth it. 

In the meantime, students are trying to keep up with online schoolwork, friends are hosting virtual cocktail hours and oh my goodness, so many grandparents missing their grandchildren. So how do you stay in touch, when you can’t ….touch?

For most of these you’ll need a computer or smart phone, but #1 is a good old-fashioned stand-by.

1) Write a Letter – grab the cute note cards your mom gave you, that you never thought you’d use. Or a notebook paper or a page of copy paper from your printer. Doesn’t really matter what you use. Write down your thoughts and feelings to that someone you love, or share a recipe, describe something funny that happened or have your kids draw a picture. Put it in an envelope with a stamp and send it along through the USPS. You will brighten someone’s day!

2) Facetime – If you have an iPhone, you have Facetime. It’s as simple as a phone call, but with video. Use it individually or use the Group Face Time feature. Find a tutorial here.

3) Zoom Video Conferencing – Originally intended mostly for business use, this app has exploded with groups of friends and family users. You can download for any smart phone or PC or MAC computer. Learn more here. 

4) Google Hangouts – Similar to Zoom, Google Hangouts allows you to video conference co-workers, family and friends and is very user friendly. Find more info here. 

5) Skype – One of the original teleconferencing apps, Skype is still a relatively easy way to keep in touch with those far (or near). For more information click here. 

There are others for sure, but if you are new to the video chat game, any of the above will help you share your love and friendship from afar, until that time we can meet again! Stay healthy and safe my friends.