Virtual Stress Relief: Guilty Pleasures
Embrace Your Guilty Pleasures
Shira Gabriel, associate professor of psychology spoke with Bert Gambini for this UBNow article where she outlines how embracing your guilty pleasures can help relieve the stresses of social distancing.
Below find a collection of guilty pleasures to spend some time on!
Cooking
Backyard Bird Watching
BuzzFeed Quizzes
BuzzFeed Quizzes: There isn't much more distracting than a good BuzzFeed quiz. Or a not-so-great BuzzFeed quiz. They can even help you figure out whether you are a Sim or not.
Don't miss out on BuzzFeed Quiz Party to take quizzes with friends! Perhaps you have a group of K-pop loving friends who are in desperate need of knowing which member of BTS you are. Have a quiz party to find out!
Try this collection of 17 relaxing quizzes for a start. They can even help you with the hard decisions in life like which throwback TV show to watch! (I got Boy Meets World)
Distract yourself with a quick round of trivia, have a quiz pick your next movie to watch based on holiday foods or test your fast food fry identification skills! This librarian is no expert in fast food fries and only got a 6/16 thanks to some lucky guesses.
Listen to a Book
Storytime
Humans of all ages enjoy a good story!
Roald Dahl fan? Us too! Filmmaker Taika Waititi and a rotating cast of celebrity friends have partnered with Roald Dalh HQ to read James & the Giant Peach to raise funds for Partners In Health.
LeVar Burton of Roots, Star Trek: The Next Generation and Reading Rainbow fame delights listeners of his podcast: LeVar Burton Reads
Storyline Online has quite a few children's books read aloud by actors. Check out Wanda Sykes, Betty White or David Harbour just to name a few!
The University at Buffalo Libraries now has their own podcast! Libraries Out Loud is a series where the producers engage with UB faculty, students and staff through in-depth conversations to discover the connections between the Libraries and current research, learning, teaching and creative activities underway at the university. Take a listen for a new episode every month!
eBooks and Audiobooks
Public libraries like Buffalo & Erie County Public Library (BECPL) and New York Public Library (NYPL) have great collections of ebooks and audiobooks to choose from.
Don't have a library card? Don't worry, you can signup online: BECPL and NYPL (note: NYPL applications are currently not being processed; however, you can still access materials through the SimplyE App)
Binging Together
Streaming TV and Movies
Looking for a free streaming service? Crackle and Tubi are just two options for you. There's also Pluto TV and IMDb TV!
Anime fan or at the point where you're ready to try something different? Try a free-level Crunchyroll account.
This Rotten Tomatoes' editorial offers a variety of highly-rated films that are available for free from different streaming options--film classics, documentaries, horror and more.
Look below for some of the video databases available through the UB Libraries!
- Kanopy Streaming Service This link opens in a new windowVideos from major educational film producers. More InfoStreaming Media UB ONLY
- Swank Digital Campus This link opens in a new windowSwank Motion Pictures is the nontheatrical distributor for the majority of the major Hollywood studios. More InfoStreaming Media UB ONLY
Acknowledgement
Special Thanks to our partners in Stress Relief: UB Health Promotion, Whispers Café and the SPCA's Paws for Love program
We look forward to working with you again soon!
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.