“People are trying to navigate this collective challenge by reimagining what fun is while being clear about the serious nature of this,” said Tracy Sturdivant, 43, who runs a social impact firm in Brooklyn and spent much of last week crowdsourcing safe things to do with her family.

Her husband, Victor Hamilton, has rediscovered an activity from his childhood that helps fill the hours: coloring in sketchbooks.

“From the people at the bars who are like, ‘whatever,’ to people behind drawn curtains and everyone in between, we are just trying to figure out what it means to practice social distancing,” Ms. Sturdivant said, ticking off a list of events canceled by the outbreak, including her son’s soccer practice, a birthday party and a gala.

As the virus marched into every state, cities and towns across the country shelved crowd-drawing pastimes to enforce social distancing, the single best way to break the chain of transmission, according to health experts.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has urged people to stay away from crowds of 50 or more. President Trump slashed that number to 10 and asked Americans to avoid bars and restaurants altogether. The message was loud and clear: stay home, stay away from your favorite places.

And yet, the crowds still gathered.

Chicago’s huge annual St. Patrick’s Day parade was canceled but that did not stop partyers from chugging green beer at neighborhood bars and pubs. The white sand beaches of Florida have remained packed. A former Nevada beauty queen and political candidate defiantly wrote on Twitter about her recent adventure to a hamburger joint.