The holidays are a great time of the year, but it’s no secret that they can also be particularly stressful. All the shopping, cooking, and planning can really take their toll over the course of the season. Lucky for you, I know just the thing to help you unwind, find your Zen, and be able to enjoy all the good things the holidays have to offer, at no cost: the Library’s Databases.
Here are some hidden and not-so-hidden ways they can help you get through the season, from the comfort of your own home.
Learn to relax with Lynda.com
Lynda.com is a great place to learn how to use software or develop your business skills, but did you know it can also teach you to chillax? Lynda has several excellent full-length video courses on mindfulness meditation, a method for focusing one’s attention on the here-and-now rather than stressors in the future or the past. In short, it’s a way to “get out of your head”, reduce anxiety, and lead a more fulfilling life—all you need is your library card.
The video courses on Lynda show you how to direct your breathing, body, and thoughts to break free from your stressors, be they holiday-related or otherwise. The videos are great both for people new to the practice and for the more experienced. To get started, just log in to Lynda through our Databases page and search for “mindfulness”. And if you see some courses that might help you advance your professional life, add it to a playlist and check it out after making it through the holidays unscathed.
Kick-start your streaming with Kanopy
Do you ever finish bingeing a TV show on a streaming service and feel kind of… empty? Though entertaining, Netflix and other streaming services can be a little heavy on mindless and bland content. My prescription to this streaming woe is Kanopy. On Kanopy you can stream critically acclaimed films from the Criterion Collection, heady documentaries, indie flicks, and even college-level courses in the form of The Great Courses. Kanopy’s collection of 30,000 films will make sure your brain is as stuffed as your stomach on Turkey Day. This is probably my favorite resource in our digital collection and I really cannot recommend it enough.
Get crafty with Creativebug
While I am by no means a crafty person, it’s not hard to see the positive, even therapeutic, effect crafting has for people. Creativebug, a resource that's brand-new to the Library, is a super neat source of ideas and guidance for crafty people and makers of all stripes. It provides access to more than 1,000 award-winning DIY video classes, along with patterns, templates, recipes, and everything you’ll need to get your creative juices flowing. Try out some of the holiday crafts to get in the spirit of the season and get your de-stressing and holiday décor needs out of the way in one fell swoop. Need some help getting started? Check out Creativebug’s 2019 Holiday Guide.
No matter the holidays you celebrate, I hope you have a happy and healthy holiday season. The Library is here to help you get through it in one piece.
Mark Knox is an Adult Services Librarian at the Morton Grove Public Library.
