As in-person classes at Binghamton University are on pause for two weeks, it’s important to stay at home and limit our travel as much as possible to stop the surge of coronavirus cases in Broome County. Here are some things the Arts & Culture section is doing to keep ourselves occupied during this time.

Lakhsmi Chatterjee, Arts & Culture Editor

Over the next two weeks, I am going to try to remaster an instrument I haven’t played in about two years — the bass guitar. Whenever I’m in a musical mood, I usually pick up my guitar or ukulele and look up the chords of a tune I want to learn. This, however, has led to me neglecting the beauty of the bass guitar that I bought the summer before starting high school after playing it a few times in middle school. Part of why I stopped playing is because my bass amp stopped working, but I recently bought a new one. The bass is also harder to play in general because the strings are thicker than a guitar’s and the frets are wider, which makes it more difficult to reach notes. But, I am determined. I’m going to train my fingers by playing scales on the bass first. Then, I’ll look up tutorials on how to properly pluck the strings. I already figured out the bass riffs to “Day Tripper” and “Hey Bulldog” by the Beatles and “Come As You Are” by Nirvana. Once I figure out how to play “Ramble On” by Led Zeppelin or that bass solo on “My Generation” by The Who, I’ll know I have succeeded.

Caroline Doherty, Arts & Culture

I recently learned how to crochet! I’ll be practicing new patterns and working on a sweater over the next couple of weeks. I’ve found crocheting to be a great way to take a break from school and focus on something new. Hopefully by the time campus opens back up, I’ll be able to wear the sweater I made to class!

Isabella Cavallo, Arts & Culture

Throughout the next two weeks, I will be beating the quarantine boredom by spending the majority of my free time learning new recipes. This year, I moved off campus to live in an apartment. I also recently decided to go vegetarian. I am not the greatest chef, but having extra time on my hands while staying inside during the upcoming weeks is the perfect opportunity to learn how to cook vegetarian meals. Some meals I’ve had my eye on are black bean burgers, vegetable chili, sweet potato with apple casserole and crispy baked tofu. I decided to learn how to cook homemade vegetarian meals so that I have a few recipes under my belt, I can include more environmentally conscious meals into my diet … and to stop me from ordering so much takeout!

Lorena Maggiore, Arts & Culture

I have been getting through these quarantine weeks by making Japanese bracelets and sewing. I learned to stitch while attending a Binghamton University Japanese Association (BUJA) event, and I have since purchased new strings to continue making bracelets for fun. I began with a four-string stitch and my next goal is to learn the eight-string stitch. I have also worked on improving my sewing skills. I found a broken canvas and decided to purchase it and sew it back together. Afterward, I painted over the canvas and added new stitches to the canvas. It came out looking really interesting and different from most painted canvases. The final work was given as a gift to my significant other who asked me to make another for him. It was super fun and easy to do!

May Braaten, Arts & Culture

During quarantine, I discovered my new favorite show: the Emmy-nominated Netflix original, “Bojack Horseman.” Forgive me if this feels overly euphemistic, but I honestly love Bojack so much. The show originally premiered back in 2014, so I’m admittedly a tad late to the party, but you know how the old saying goes — better late than never! With “Bojack Horseman,” this is definitely the case. The show follows titular anti-hero Bojack Horseman, a washed-up celebrity whose career peaked in the ’90s with his starring role in the sitcom “Horsin’ Around.” It’s animated, which sort of feels like a concession because American pop culture often seems to have an (arguably unfair) inclination to associate animated shows solely with children. However, once you get used to the animated, anthropomorphic world of Bojack’s Hollywood (or should I say, Hollywoo), you’ll grow to appreciate the show’s very adult, borderline philosophical character. Its masterfully crafted layers of complexities and its acute attention to detail truly make it special — “Bojack Horseman” explores all sorts of thought-provoking and even dark themes, including generational trauma, our search for self-discovery and death, though not at the expense of heaps of witty humor — including many clever animal puns. If that still doesn’t have you convinced, I haven’t gotten through a TV show since middle school, but I binged all six seasons of “Bojack Horseman” in less than two months — and now I’m rewatching them!