After lockdowns this spring and a very cautious summer, my university has spent the past few weeks in another quarantine. While it’s been tough spending all my time working, sleeping, and learning in the same room, I’ve managed to keep myself busy and balanced.
I think it’s become easy to spend all day and all night “on” and working on homework or real work, trying to be productive. Since I’m home all the time I can sometimes feel like I’m not making any progress and trying to be over-productive has been a way that I can feel like I’m doing “enough”.
Ticking off my To-Watch List
Lately we’ve been having tons of movie nights with a fun cocktail to top off the night. After re-watching all the Harry Potter movies, we began watching some Disney animated ones, and some I’ve been meaning to see for a while. Namely, Before Sunrise (and the two sequels), Crazy Stupid Love, and Dazed and Confused were some of those movies I felt like I should’ve already seen. Now I won’t have to answer, “no, what’s that one about?” when asked if I’ve seen Crazy, Stupid, Love.
I’m also nearing the end of Gilmore Girls which I think has definitely been a great show for me as it’s super comfortable and familiar. It’s a slow burn without too much loud and fast drama. I’ve also been indulging in Love Island while I eat lunch lately as a guilty pleasure.
Cooking
Lately, I don’t mind spending an hour or more making dinner or making a more complete lunch because I know I’ve got no evening plans. My roommate and I cook together about once a week and make a whole night of it with a matching drink and everything. Risotto, spaghetti and meatballs, homemade salsa and fresh pasta have been some of our favorites lately. I mainly get my recipes from Instagram food bloggers like @foodsofjane @whatsgabycookin.
Reading
I’m hoping to do a post soon on some of the books I’ve read in the past few months because I am nearing the end of my 20 books in 2020 goal! I’m currently reading number 14 which is Flow by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi about the optimal experience. So far it’s been a great mix of non-fiction and fiction to keep things interesting. I also just picked up three new books: She Said, A Very Large Expanse of Sea, and Such a Fun Age. I’ve heard great things about all of these so stay tuned for an update soon!
Yoga and Walks!
My home yoga studio has gone fully virtual at least until 2021 so I got their virtual membership and they do about 3-7 classes live on Zoom per day. This summer the studio hosted a 30 classes during the summer challenge (which I completed for the first time!) and this fall is 40 classes before the new year. These challenges keep me super motivated and help me get the most out of my membership. If you are falling off the wagon of your fitness routine, setting a challenge for yourself like this with a reward at the end could be a great motivator!
I’ve also been trying to go on a 1-3 mile walk most days although it’s getting a bit cold for my ears now! I live near the water so walking along the lake has been really nice to tune out midday with a podcast for an hour or so. I think these walks are what has been keeping me going the past few months because I start feeling pretty icky if I don’t go outside every day. Even going out to take out the recycling makes me feel a little better. Getting some fresh air has been really important for me when I feel myself wanting to curl up in bed at 1pm on a Tuesday.
I hope you’re all still doing well!
