A Day in the Life #4

I learned about hygge in late 2016 when it literally took over the Internet. I initially only watched a couple of YouTube videos on the topic, but the concept immediately clicked with me. I felt like it was one of the missing pieces to my puzzle of life. That was the first year I felt a twinge of excitement about the upcoming winter in Toronto. This was surprising to me because I've historically dreaded winter and would do anything I could to get away. Last year, hubby and I decided to go to a wintery vacation destination, forgoing our usual preference for a tropical locale. We went to Banff, Alberta and had a hyggelig-good time. This year, I'm rather excited that hubby and I decided to stay in Toronto for the entire winter.

Since embracing hygge, I've started associating winter with hyggelig things. I think a few of you could see how passionate I was about the concept and how it changed me. I received a request to do a YouTube video on hygge, but truth be told, I don't know much about the concept beyond those two YouTube videos I watched, some articles I skimmed, and some cute books I read. So when I remembered that Finding Hygge was playing at the Hot Docs theatre tonight, I thought I would check it out to do some more research before I shared my own take on the Danish concept. I'm happy to report that while I learned so much at the film, none of it contradicted with my initial thoughts. My own video on hygge will be coming soon, but in the meantime, here's how I spent my day:

7am: woke up, cleaned up after truffle, fed lulu, and did half my morning routine
7:30am: meditated
8:35am: made tea, finished getting ready, washed my makeup brushes, completed my language lessons, posted on Lulu's Instagram, did some personal development stuff, and listened to podcasts while doing most of these things
10:40am: ate breakfast
10:55am: wrote in my manifestation journal
11:20am: listened to my friend's podcast
12pm: signed up for a workshop
12:05pm: responded to emails
1:15pm: recorded and edited a YouTube video
3pm: fed Lulu, got lettuce for Truffle, cooked dinner, prepared our evening teas, and listened to podcasts in the meantime
3:30pm: chatted with hubby when he came home from work
4:15pm: ate an early dinner
5:15pm: left the condo
5:50pm: joined the rush line at Hot Docs theatre
6:30pm: watched Finding Hygge
8:40pm: left the Hot Docs theatre
9:15pm: got home, chatted with hubby, greeted Truffle and Lulu, and ate some fruit
9:40pm: started this blog post
10pm: brushed my teeth, took off my makeup, and put on my skincare
10:15pm: continued with this blog post

And that brings me to right now! Part of the reason I wanted to blog on this topic today is because I've been feeling like the days are flying by. I'm not sure why, but I feel like I have less time now than when I was working full-time. I thought I would look at my day to see where I spend my hours. I thought about creating a fancy pie chart showing how I spent my day, with different categories for chores, YouTube, personal development, exercise, leisure, etc., but all these categories kind of melt into one another. The more I thought about it, the less the categories mattered. I suddenly realized I spent today doing approximately 95% hyggelig things. And that to me is A-OK. Good night, my friends! x

A Day in the Life #3 - Vipassana Silent Meditation Course

The schedule at the Vipassana 10-day silent meditation course was very organized and rather intense. I spent the first couple of days trying to find ways to optimize my routine within the confines of the daily timetable. Here's what worked for me:

3:45am: woke up and got ready
4:30am: meditated in the meditation hall
6:30am: ate breakfast in the dining hall
7:15am: napped, walked, and/or did laundry
8am: meditated in the meditation hall (mandatory morning session for all participants)
9am: received instructions in the meditation hall and then meditated in my room
11am: ate lunch in the dining hall
11:45am: met with the assistant teacher (AT), walked, and/or napped
1pm: meditated in my room
2:30pm: meditated in the meditation hall (mandatory afternoon session for all participants)
3:30pm: received instructions in the meditation hall and then meditated in my room
5pm: went for tea time and ate fruit in the dining hall (my shower time was 5:10pm to 5:30pm so I only attended tea time every other day)
6pm: meditated in the meditation hall (mandatory evening session for all participants)
7pm: watched the evening discourse (video lecture series)
8:30pm: meditated with all participants in the meditation hall
9pm: returned to my room and got ready for bed
9:15pm: turned off lights and slept

My sleeping pattern had gotten very erratic since quitting my job, so I made sure to wake up early at around 6am for a couple of mornings before leaving for the course. This helped immensely! I was able to adjust to the above daily timetable with no issues. I'm happy to report I've maintained a reasonable sleep schedule since coming home. I've been sleeping at around 10pm or 11pm, and I wake up at around 5:30am or 6am.

I've also been trying to keep up with the recommended two hours of daily meditation, and I've been successful so far. I meditate for an hour in the morning before hubby wakes up and an hour in the afternoon before he comes home from work. I'll be posting more about the entire 10-day experience very soon, but suffice it to say that I learned what I believe are some very valuable life tools--valuable enough to spend two hours a day meditating for the foreseeable future. Despite looking hella creepy while doing it.

A Day in the Life #2

Today was one of those days, when my friend asked me what I did, and I drew a blank. The hours flew by, but I have no idea how, so I thought I would document it in a blog post. I felt very happy and relaxed throughout the day, so I'll take that as a win. Here's how my day went down:

9:30am: woke up, kissed hubby goodbye as he left for work, and made a tea
9:45am: did my language lessons and read 10% Happier while taking an Epsom salt bath
11am: rinsed off in the shower and finished getting ready for the day while listening to a podcast
12pm: swept the floor and cleaned the bathtub
12:30pm: ate my first meal of the day, also known as breakfast, except I ate it at lunch time
1:30pm: finished recording/editing my Makeup Inventory video and responded to YouTube comments
3pm: fed Lulu, made a lasagna for tomorrow's dinner, and prepared our evening teas
4:30pm: ate leftover lentil soup, smashed potatoes, and pickled carrots for dinner
5:30pm: left the condo
6:15pm: met my friend at the Hot Docs Cinema for the Dal Puri Diaspora event
9:15pm: got back to the condo to find Lulu in the hallway (she accompanied hubby to throw out the garbage), took our daily photo, said hello to Truffle, and chatted with hubby
9:30pm: took off my makeup, continued chatting with hubby, went through my skincare routine, did a whole bunch of research on West Indian roti recipes (I'll be making this soon), responded to an email, and scheduled my Walmart grocery delivery

That brings me to this blog post! I don't have much planned for the rest of the evening. Hubby just left for the gym so I may try to do an hour or so of work. One of my other friends inspired me to do the 30-day plank challenge so I'll be doing a minute of plank at some point--I've been doing this daily since October 31st, and I think it has made a difference in my core strength and stomach definition. It's strange how the day can fill up with such ordinary things, yet feel so fulfilling. The night is still young (I've been sleeping at around 1am lately!), so off I go to do a few more ordinary things before bedtime.

See you tomorrow! x

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A Day in the Life #1

A lot of people ask me what I do all day now that I don't work. It's hard to say because every day is so different. Today was particularly hectic, but I tend to get more done when I'm "busy," which makes me feel productive and efficient. I plan to do a few post like this throughout my gap year. Today went like this:

6:30am: woke up and got ready
7:30am: ate breakfast
8:10am: left the condo
8:30am: arrived at the Design Exchange to volunteer at the Oliver El-Khatib talk
12pm: left the Design Exchange
12:30pm: came home, played with Lulu, started doing the laundry, and responded to some emails
1:10pm: went to Chinatown to pick up some groceries
2:10pm: came home, had a snack, fed Lulu, got lettuce for Truffle, vacuumed, cleaned the kitchen and bathroom, listened to a podcast, finished doing the laundry, did plank, updated my finances spreadsheet, had some email/social media time, and did some research/planning/organization
5:30pm: took a nap (I actually haven't been napping much during my time off, but I was exhausted today!)
6:30pm: woke up and listened to a podcast while cooking dinner
7:40pm: chatted with hubby when he got home and finished cooking
8pm: ate dinner with hubby
9pm: edited/exported a YouTube video, pet Truffle, and wrote this blog post

The rest of the evening will likely be spent as follows:
- Reply to one more email
- Complete one more French lesson on Duolingo
- Continue editing my vlog
- Read one chapter of my book
- Watch an episode of Salt Fat Acid Heat with hubby (such a good show--I highly recommend it!

The days have been passing by unbelievably quickly! I feel like I've been in a time warp for the last two months. Let's just say, I'm extra excited to be getting an extra hour this weekend. I hope you have a good one!!