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Shailene Woodley was on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. That show is such a comfort watch for me now. She was so cute with him and they kept excitedly talking over each other. Shailene is in quarantine by herself and said she’s gone through several phases she called “chapters” where she was so lonely at first, then lazy and now she’s being productive. She’s studying Spanish and has an online talent show planned with her friends’ kids. She did this to keep the kids busy so her friends have more time to talk to her when she calls. She got the idea from Tina Fey! At one point Shailene and Jimmy did handstands against the wall. I wanted to talk about how Shailene is studying with real schoolbooks she ordered instead of using a website or app.
When it first went down, what was it like?
I’m alone, so that was a little bit strange to reconcile the fact that I might be spending months and months by myself. I broke it into chapters. The first few weeks [were] a lot of zoom calls, a lot of facetimes, a lot of “what am I doing with my life?” I should do laundry, but I don’t really have to because I don’t leave the house all day. Then it went into vacation mode like ‘oh I’ll just watch a movie every night and stay in my pajamas all day.’ That isn’t healthy for my mental health. Now I’m in a super productive mode. I’m learning all these new things and it just feels like summer now.What are you learning?
I feel like I should streamline, but I’m finally teaching myself Spanish which has been a lifelong dream. I took a few classes in high school and it just didn’t really stick. I ordered all the textbooks from highschool so I’m studying like a 14-year-old. The apps don’t really work for me. I’m writing flash cards and taking notes. I’m tactile I need to touch things.On the charity she started with her mom, AllItTakes.org
The biggest killer in our world is loneliness. The suicide rates are so high and anxiety and depression are through the roof right now. People are stuck at home. They don’t know when they’re going to work again. Kids don’t know if their parents are going to be home or not because they’re trying to find work. The stress rates are very high. [My mom has] created a program with tools on how to cope with anxiety and depression. On May 14th and every Sunday throughout May she’s offering these sessions where she can help people at home learn how to be ok. Everyone’s hurting and no one knows what to do right now.
I like how she broke down her quarantine into phases. It’s true that we go through those, but for me I cycle in and out of them rather than seeing them as distinct periods. As for using textbooks, Shailene is just 28! She’s not too old to study online or with apps (no one is really), but I know what she means, some people just do better with physical books. I’m the type of person who learns by trial and error and I prefer technology, but it really depends on the app or site. I tried the Rosetta Stone CDs to learn German and that was too repetitive so I found a site called Duolingo and used that for a while. Anyway hats off to people who are learning languages, new skills and taking up hobbies at this time. I’m still working every day so I have an excuse. I haven’t felt particularly ambitious other than in the kitchen.
I’m really interested in her mom’s charity. Shailene’s mom is a school counselor. My mom is a retired school counselor too! That’s so cool that she started that charity with her. They’re having a free webinar that Shailene mentioned on May 14th and you can register on their website.
Here’s that interview in two parts! The part where they do handstands is in the first video. She talks about her mom’s charity in the second video.
I didn’t know Shailene was on the OC!
