Last week, I reached out to a friend of mine. She lives in Minneapolis and we have been friends since 3rd grade. I reached out to her regarding wedding information, however, we ended up talking for much longer. The next week she called me again and I found we were talking for almost an hour. Whether our conversation was about wedding stuff, anime, or playing the Sims, it was refreshing to hear what was going on in her life. It’s sad because my thought that went through my head originally was “she’s probably busy, and she won’t answer”. My assumption was incorrect. This post is a reminder to me and others during this time to check in on your friends during the pandemic.

I was watching the news with my fiance this week and I saw a news story that made me sad. Mental illness is skyrocketing in the pandemic. This is unsurprising, to say the least. It’s a stressful time of trying to stay quarantined, not seeing older family members and avoiding events or big groups of people. I find myself longing to attend conventions again. I miss being around like-minded people and cosplay! I haven’t planned any cosplays in a while because I have no place to go to wear them. I’m an introvert to a certain degree and even I find myself feeling lonely or missing old aspects of my life.

Me and my friend are set to hang out sometime today and I can’t wait. I’m hoping we will play Sims, watch anime, and play with her new puppy. This is my reminder to you to reach out to anyone you haven’t seen in a while. Send them a text, Facebook message, call, or DM them on Twitter. It doesn’t matter if it’s been 6+ months since you last reached out. It feels good to receive a message from someone I haven’t spoken to in a while. If you’re struggling during this time, feel free to DM me on Twitter @bizzarebrunette My DM’s are open.