Staying Home

Beat quarantine boredom with virtual classes and at-home activities from these Dallas pros

From offering quarantine kits to streaming workout classes and movie screenings, local businesses have proven their ingenuity in the face of the COVID-19 crisis. Similarly, as North Texans grapple with their new normal — and an unprecedented amount of together time — they’re searching for creative ways to beat quarantine boredom and even learn a new skill or two.

Whether you’re looking for a new hobby or ways to decompress, here are seven ways to fill your time over the next few weeks.

Make a mask with Kathy Fielder
Dallas designer Kathy Fielder has joined efforts to supply those in need with non-medical face masks. She created a unique pattern designed to be fitted, functional, and washable. Visit her blog for step-by-step instructions and a video how-to, so you can create your own masks with materials found around the home.

Touch up your roots
Your hair color doesn’t have to suffer just because you’re homebound. Stylists have gotten creative with at-home emergency hair coloring kits featuring specific formulas mixed for you and step-by-step instructions for how to apply. Dear Clark, The Songbird Society, and Figueroa are just a few of the salons offering this service. Kits start at $40.

Take a cheese class
Scardello Artisan Cheese is offering virtual classes with themes ranging from “Chocolate and Cheese” to “Old World vs New World.” Experts will share their knowledge on the night’s theme and walk you through various pairings via Facebook Live. To participate, reserve your seat online — there are a limited number — and pick up your cheese plate and accompaniments from Scardello on the day of the event. Classes start at $30 with the option to add a bottle of wine.

Build your own terrarium
East Dallas’ Jade & Clover has created DIY Terrarium Kits to help locals stay busy while social distancing. Pre-made kits are $25 and include one mini glass terrarium, one succulent, sand, and gravel. For a one-of-a-kind creation, you can build your own kit with your choice of terrarium, succulents, and up to three sand colors. Kits are currently available for pickup only, but local delivery will be added soon.

Master meditation
If there were ever a time to give meditation a try, it’s now. Breathe Mind and Body opened its ultrachic Highland Park meditation studio last year and has been popular with mindful Dallasites since. Typically, the studio offers guided meditation classes for $26 each. Now, Breathe is hosting free guided meditations multiple times a day via Instagram Live. Daily schedules are posted to the website.

Learn a new skill
From Intro to Comedy Writing to Photography 101 and The Art of Super Smash Bros., North Texas Performing Arts truly has something for everyone. Classes are taught online through ZOOM by performing arts instructors across Dallas and offered a la carte, starting at $9.99 for open classes and $14.99 for exclusive classes (limited to 10 participants). Recordings are available to registered participants after each session.

Experience Dallas Blooms
It’s peak season for the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden. And though you can’t enjoy the garden’s annual Dallas Blooms festival in person, you can experience it virtually, with informative video tours led by Dave Forehand, Vice President of Gardens. Video tours are free, but donations are welcome.

Kathy Fielder is teaching everyone how to make face masks.

Photo Courtesy of Kathy Fielder

Kathy Fielder is teaching everyone how to make face masks.

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Drive time

Tesla’s driverless Cybercabs are preparing to hit the roads in Dallas

X/Tesla

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Tesla’s self-driving Cybercabs, already on the roads of Austin, will be roaming the streets of Dallas in the near future.

In an October 10 post on the X social media platform, Tesla’s vice president of AI software, Ashok Elluswamy, said Cybercabs are coming “soon” to Dallas. He offered no timeline.

The futuristic Cybercab differs significantly from Tesla’s more laidback Model Y Robotaxi, which cruised into the Dallas area this spring.

Both autonomous electric vehicles are manufactured in Austin, where Tesla is based. The Robotaxi Tracker website shows 319 Cybercabs and 420 Robotaxis are registered in Texas today.

Perhaps the most striking difference between the Cybercab and Robotaxi is the absence or presence of driving controls.

The Cybercab — made especially for driverless ride-hailing trips — lacks a steering wheel, gas pedal, and brake pedal, among other typical fixtures. The vehicle uses camera vision and sensors to navigate streets, highways, parking lots, and more. The Robotaxi features a traditional steering wheel and pedals.

Another difference: The Cybercab’s bench-style seating accommodates only two passengers. Depending on the configuration, a Robotaxi can carry up to four or five passengers in the front row and rear row. Touchscreens are installed in both rows. The Cybercab comes with a single touchscreen.

A Cybercab’s exterior color stands out — either a matte or glossy golden shade — and comes with two butterfly doors. The Robotaxi has a less-flashy paint scheme and a more conventional four-door setup.

Also unlike the Robotaxi, the Cybercab isn’t equipped with side mirrors, a rearview mirror, or a back window.

Inside the Cybercab, you’ll find a large interactive touchscreen, and enough cargo room for large items like luggage, golf clubs, and scooters.

Elluswamy’s comment about Dallas came in response to an X post saying Austin had more than 300 Cybercabs. The cars, which launched in Austin last month, were spotted throughout the city during the just-concluded ACL Music Festival.

In Tesla’s July call with Wall Street analysts, Elluswamy praised the Cybercab as “a phenomenal product.”

“Anyone who rides in it instantly falls in love with the experience,” he said.

The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) may not be in love with the Cybercab, though. It has launched two investigations into them.

In September, NHTSA opened an investigation into data that Tesla supplied to obtain federal certification of the Cybercab. Investigation paperwork notes their lack of a steering wheel, gas pedal, brake pedal, and mirrors.

This month, the federal agency opened an investigation into reports that Cybercabs and Robotaxis had exceeded posted speed limits in active school zones.

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