We Are Here For You : Be Safe and Stay Strong

Here at Urban Designer, we understand that things are stressful, concerning, and frightening due to the recent COVID-19 outbreak. However, we want you to know that the health and well-being of our customers and our communities is our top priority. We are here for you in this uncertain time. We will be doing our part to help flatten the curve, and we want to help you do the same. Here are just a few tips to help you (and those around you) stay safe, strong, and healthy in the coming days. Remember, we’re all in this together – and we will beat this together.

1. Embrace Social Distancing

COVID-19, or the coronavirus, is spread person to person. On top of this, it is most commonly spread through close contact, so social distancing is absolutely critical to lowering your chances of infection as well as your chances of infecting others. Try to reduce exposure to others as much as possible and maintain a distance of 6 feet or more from those you actually are around. Want an easier way to stick to this? Just stay in and stay home. It may seem tedious, but it’s one of the most responsible things you can do right now. Don’t forget, though that doesn’t mean you have to just sit around doing nothing! Use your time for good. Plan for future goals, do some spring cleaning, learn a new skill, develop a new hobby, or something else entirely. There’s a lot more to do at home than people realize.

2. Stay Home if You’re Sick

It should go without saying, but if you’re sick, don’t go out! The coronavirus has a high-infection rate and can have devastating consequences for others, even if it has been relatively mild for you. Older adults, those with chronic health conditions, and those who are immunocompromised are the most vulnerable, and they can easily develop severe respiratory symptoms that could lead to hospitalization or even death. However, we’re also seeing a rise in complications in other demographics, assuring us that this is a threat for everyone, both young and old, healthy and ill. Take this seriously and stay home should you develop symptoms.

3. Wash Your Hands Often

You probably don’t realize how germy your hands can get just after a typical day, and you probably don’t realize just how often we touch our faces, eyes, and nose with those hands. The answer is a lot – and that is a huge risk with the COVID-19 pandemic. So, make sure to thoroughly wash your hands and often. At least 20 seconds of good scrubbing with warm water and soap is what you’re looking for. If you’re bad with time and left your UD watch at home, singing happy birthday will ensure you wash for long enough. Feel weird singing happy birthday to yourself multiple times a day? A quick Google search will yield plenty of songs to hum along to while keeping your hands squeaky clean.

4. Keep Surfaces Clean

Just like keeping your hands clean, keeping your surfaces clean should be high on your priority list in the coming days and weeks. The coronavirus can survive on various surfaces for quite some time, making disinfecting an absolute must. Doorknobs, phones, cabinet doors, countertops, keyboards, toilets, and anything else you often touch should be cleaned daily and rubbed down with a good disinfecting spray. Should you find yourself unable to get your hands on a typical cleaner, you can always dilute a small amount of bleach with water to make your own. Also, don’t forget that jewelry can harbor nasty germs just as easily as any countertop or faucet. Luckily our wood watches are easy to clean. Just a few swipes of a disinfecting wipe and you’re good to go.

5. Cover Coughs and Sneezes

COVID-19 takes up residence in our noses and throats, which makes it incredibly easy for the virus to spread with sneezing and coughing. As such, always cough or sneeze into your elbow or a tissue. This will keep the droplets out of the air and off of others, drastically reducing the likelihood of transmission should you actually be sick. Just make sure to wash your hands afterwards!

6. Get Some Fresh Air

With Stay at Home orders and social distancing directives increasing daily, it’s easy to feel like you’re chained to your living room couch, but you’re not! As long as you can maintain distance between others, you can still go outside and enjoy nature. Not only can you, you should. This will keep your spirits up, help you avoid that inevitable stir-crazy feeling, and provide some distance between you and any germs you may have missed during your cleaning. For those who don’t have the ability or space to walk around outside, even opening the window will do you a world of good.

7. Don’t Panic Buy

One of the biggest dangers posed by COVID-19 isn’t the virus itself – it’s all the scarcity that has come along with panic buying. And if you’ve gone to a store recently for food, toilet paper, or bottles of water, you’ve witnessed this firsthand. Panic buying is taking the essentials away from the people who really need them, so whatever you do, don’t engage in it. Stores are staying open and are re-stocking. Follow CDC recommendations and feel free to have 2 weeks’ worth of groceries and household items on hand should you need to self-quarantine, but please don’t hoard beyond that. There really is enough for us all.

8. Help Out Others When Possible

Don’t make any mistake. The coronavirus is dangerous for us all, however, some populations are at a statistically greater risk of serious complications if they fall ill. If you know someone who falls into this camp, try to help out however you can. Buy groceries for your elderly neighbor, avoid close contact, help find safe ways to entertain quarantined friends, donate to help those in need, or get creative and do something else. Just try to assist others when possible and be careful to still keep your distance. As tragic as the coronavirus is, it has proven we are more interconnected than we thought. Our actions affect others. Embrace that message and use it for good. There’s never been a better time to support your friends, your family, your local communities, and our global community at large.

9. Practice Self-Care

While you’re busy taking care of others by social distancing, washing your hands, covering your sneezes, etcetera, don’t forget to take care of yourself as well. Of course, this includes physically, but mentally as well. COVID-19 has and will continue to be an extremely taxing and harmful worldwide pandemic – not just because of the illness itself but because of its impact on our daily lives and our sense of normalcy. It has disrupted our working lives, our personal lives, and our social lives. It has caused thousands upon thousands to lose work and/or income, it has caused increased food insecurity, it has put our loves ones in harm’s way, it has exacerbated many mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, and PTSD, and it has closed down everything from schools to concerts to businesses and sports events. Those are huge, negative changes and it’s okay if it has personally affected you. Do your best to take care of yourself in this scary time. Take the time to engage in important self-care routines and practice self-compassion. Meditate, journal, work out, chat with friends, create art. Do whatever you can to stay happy and strong.

We hope these tips can provide a little guidance on how to keep yourselves healthy and strong with all that is happening. Beyond anything, remember to stay away from others and remember to stay positive when you can. It may seem like a long way away, but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. This too shall pass. Be safe everyone, and best wishes!


– For more information about COVID-19 and how you can prevent its spread, visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/guidance.html

– Have any questions or comments? Please comment below.