The best things to do at home right now

With more time on your hands at home these days, you can finally catch up on all those books you've been meaning to read. Social distancing, though, may make it impossible to head to your local bookstore, but you can still borrow books from the library simply by being a New York City resident. Despite closing its physical locations, the New York Public Library has more than 300,000 titles you can read digitally. To gain access, NYPL's free e-reader app, SimplyE, can be downloaded for iPhone or Android. There is a limit of three books that you can borrow because there has been a surge in the app's usage now that we're all at home, according to the library. You can also search the library's collection of 800,000 digitized items, including historic prints, photographs, maps, and manuscripts and check out Mango Languages and Career Cruising with your library card. And if you don't have a library card, now's the time to sign up. You can do that on the SimplyE app, too! The Brooklyn Public Library also has titles you can borrow on its website if you have a card, and the Queens Library system, which is purchasing substantially more eBooks, audiobooks, and streaming films for this occasion, uses a number of e-reader apps. You can get a Queens Library eCard here. Happy reading!

Like many of you over the last few weeks, editors at Time Out New York (or should we say Time In) have been turning to books, movies and TV for some comfort in these rapidly changing times. Looking for something to engage your mind while you’re stuck at home or just provide a little distraction from all the craziness? Read on for some recommendations of the things we’re loving right now.  Will Gleason, Time Out New York editor“I’ve been going the escapist route with a super lighthearted read, Casey McQuiston’s Red, White & Royal Blue, a novel that depicts the absolutely possible romance between the president’s son and the Prince of Wales. I’ve so far found exactly zero holes in the plot. I’m also practicing for our pod dating present by watching Netflix’s Love Is Blind and furiously taking notes on how to emotionally connect with someone while sitting on a couch, draped in a cashmere blanket, and talking at a screen. All of Dua Lipa’s new music has been on repeat.”Anna Ben Yehuda, Global content editor"I finally found the time to sit down and finish Lisa Taddeo's Three Women, the nonfiction book chronicling the sex and love lives of, well, three women from different backgrounds. Although I'm planning on starting Little Fires Everywhere tonight (Reese Witherspoon. Kerry Washington. Joshua Jackson. Hulu.), I've started re-watching my very favorite TV show: Dawson's Creek. There's just something about watching a familiar show in times of stress that soothes me. Needless to say,

Though shuttered by the coronavirus pandemic, many of New York's museums and galleries are allowing viewers to commune with art through virtual tours and web-only viewing rooms. But what if street art is more your thing? As it happens, you're covered there, too, thanks to Google Arts & Culture, which offers an online experience called 9 Amazing Street Art Murals in New York, featuring work by the genre's heaviest hitters. The tour utilizes Google street view to take you to see NYC's most vivid murals with a full 360-degree line of sight. Prolific Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra, for instance, is represented by three murals: A double portrait of Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera in Crown Heights; another in Bushwick pairing Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat wearing boxing gloves; and a rendering of David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust, which climbs up the side of a condo tower in Jersey City. Photograph: Ali Garber A street art tour wouldn't be complete without Banksy, and his Hammer Boy on the Upper West Side (a spray-painted silhouette of a kid wielding a sledgehammer against an actual FDNY standpipe) is here, as is Keith Haring's famous Crack Is Wack mural at Harlem River Drive and 128th Street. Other notable street art destinations include the Big Pun Memorial Mural by Tats Cru in the Bronx, the Bowery Graffiti Wall on Houston Street, Freeman's Alley on the Lower East Side and the Graffiti Hall of Fame in Harlem. So if you're jonesing for street art murals, look no further.

Amid government mandates and social distancing, bars and restaurants have had to decide whether to temporarily shutter or shift their business model toward delivery and to-go options while putting their health at risk (let alone the financial stakes). But there may be a silver lining for the city's beer nerds, who might’ve panic-shopped with fears that the only options left to ride out this coronavirus pandemic meant they'd be drinking Budweiser and other mass-market brands (for what it’s worth, we really do love Coronas and have them stocked up in our fridge, never mind the misinformed widespread panic that there is somehow any connection to the virus). Now, some of the city’s best craft breweries have come to the rescue by adding delivery options for beers in packs or, in some cases, loosies (aka individually sold cans).  If you love the craft beer movement and its breweries as much as us, and want to continue supporting (and imbibing) throughout the current crisis, you’ll be excited to learn that some of the city’s most celebrated breweries, such as Grimm Taproom, Other Half Brewing, Threes Brewery, Evil Twin Brewery and Rockaway Brewing Co. have adapted to offer to-go, pick-up and, in some cases, beer via Caviar and Grubhub, among other delivery services.  Our very own Time Out Director of Digital Content for North America (and self-proclaimed “beer nerd,”) is excited about the development: “Special releases and fancy brews should now be more accessible, because you no lo

Last Friday, in an attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus, Governor Cuomo mandated that 100 percent of nonessential employees must stay at home and that all nonessential gatherings of any size, for any reason, were banned. However, there are still some things that New Yorkers are able to do while the state is on "pause," including grocery shopping, ordering take-out and delivery from restaurants, walking dogs and solitary exercise. We've rounded up some questions that you may still have on the order, to clear up any confusion beyond those everyday basics.  Is public transportation in NYC going to shut down? No, though you should still be staying home as much as possible. Services are still running, mainly for those on the frontline (healthcare providers and pharmacists). The MTA did announce a suspension of some service this week, which includes a reduction of overall subway service by 25 percent.  Buses will still be operating at 75 percent across the city with a few changes in protocol. Starting last Monday, New York City buses running locally require all riders to board through the rear door only in a bid to keep bus drivers safe. (This doesn't apply to those with limited mobility who may need to use other entrances.) Riders on express buses, which usually bring riders from the edge of NYC into Manhattan's center, can enter through either the front or rear, but are required to sit at least three rows behind the driver. You can find the full rundown of any other service

Musicheads: The New York City music scene is surely in trouble. Since the state forced all NYC venues to shut their doors last week for safe social distancing, countless staff members who keep each nightlife venue afloat, including bar backs, security guards, resident DJs, late-night cooks, cleaners, talent bookers, general managers, are finding themselves without work right now. From epic dance clubs to indie venues known for breaking out baby bands, New York has it all. Virtual concerts are fun in the meantime from home, but if you’ve made memories at any of the following music havens and want to help ensure they’ll be able to open their doors again, we’ve compiled a tidy list of where to donate funds for each. Alphaville You can buy a gift certificate to redeem for future drinks, and 70% of proceeds will go to their out-of-work staff, you can also donate directly to their team where 100% of sales will go to staff. Arlene's Grocery Send donations to their Arlene’s Grocery Staff Relief Fund GoFundMe. Baby's All Right  All funds from Baby's season pass  "Baby Chain" for $200, will go towards their staff relief fund. On their Instagram, Baby's stated that the season pass is also "good forever".  Bossa Nova Civic Club You can directly support the staff via their Venmo account (bossanovacivicclub). Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge Send donations to their Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge Staff GoFundMe.  Bowery Electric Send donations to their The Bowery Electric Staff Fund