Coffee by the Window

I feel a little guilty admitting it, but I’m really loving lockdown.

I’m just getting so much done! I never feel rushed. I don’t have to carry my heavy laptop around all day. And I don’t have to wear real clothes. (But I do in the video, don’t worry).

The first week of lockdown here, I assumed I would get depressed being inside all day and without human interaction. But I actually feel even more motivated and productive than usual. I’ve actually been quite busy.

Not every day is the same. On weekends I teach my online academic writing and literature seminars, for example. Some days I go to the grocery store down the street. Most days I go to the little store in the lobby and buy myself a diet coke and refill my water bottles. But here’s a breakdown of my “average” day.

7:00 a.m.-7:30 a.m: Wake Up with a Coffee

Coffee by the Window

Mornings are my favorite part of the day. Typically, I wake up a little after 7 a.m., make a coffee, and take things slow by checking the news or watching all the traffic line up at the roadblock outside my window

7:30 a.m.-9:00 a.m.: Writing

Writer

Still sipping coffee, I check the news and do a bit of journaling about current events, exploring ideas for novels/short stories, or reading.

9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.: Work

I take a few hours to work. Depending on how busy I am, some days I grade papers for my weekend academic writing seminars, some days I work on other writing projects.

12:00 p.m.-12:30 p.m.: Change and Get Ready to Exercise

Working Out
I miss having a real gym

12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m.: Work Out

I joined an F45 here in Kuala Lumpur back in January. When the country locked down, they moved their training sessions online through Zoom. While I can’t say I prefer the online classes to the real thing, the daily dose of weights and cardio keeps my mental and physical health in check. Having a class to go to every day holds me accountable, and being on Zoom in front of the trainers pushes me.

1:30 p.m.- 2:30 p.m.: Cardio

The Zoom classes are good, but they don’t give me all the cardio I crave. I usually do an hour of light cardio while watching something on Netflix with the ultimate goal of hitting 10,000 steps and 5 miles.

2:30 p.m.-3 p.m.: Shower

Shower, change, etc…

3 p.m. -7 p.m.: Work

Reading

During this time I finish any remaining essays or writing projects. If I had free time, I work on one of the numerous projects I have on the backburner including:

  • Working on my online courses [both free through Coursera]
    • Introduction to Classical Music  (Yale)
    • Memoir the Personal Essay: Writing About Yourself Specialization (Wesleyan)
  • Researching agents, publishing companies, query letters, and other parts of getting published
  • Chipping Away at my Ever-Expanding Reading List
  • Prepping Discussion Questions for my Online Literature Classes (Where I’m the Teacher)
  • Responding to Friend’s Messages
  • Brainstorming a New International Literature/Film Project
  • Reading Harry Potter in French (in a very pathetic attempt to revamp my French)
  • Video Editing
  • Blogging

4 p.m.-5 p.m.: Spanish Class

Usually, around 4 p.m., I have an online Spanish class with a teacher from Argentina (who lives in Switzerland). I also have a teacher from Peru (who lives in Australia). I found both teachers on italki.com. 

As much as I considered my first two Spanish teachers, it’s been a bit easier connecting with native speakers in my timezone. For anyone interested in Spanish, I know two other teachers taking students in the U.S. timezones.

During these classes we just have conversations and they help me add in any vocabulary I’m lacking. It’s pretty casual, but it’s been a fun way to keep up both my human contact and my Spanish. For two weeks, I had a Spanish class every day but no calls with anyone in English and started thinking everything in Spanish. Weird side effects of the pandemic…

7 p.m. – 11 p.m.: Dinner and Relax

Dinner

Usually, this is when I eat dinner (I switch off between cooking and delivery). Sometimes I walk up and down the stairs listening to my messages and go to the roof to see the sunset. Usually, I watch Netflix, play on my phone, clean, etc…

Sunsets

11 p.m. Sleep!

 

 

 

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