When I chose “Here” as my word for 2020, I wasn’t intending it to be so literal. I just wanted to be more present mentally. Ibang level na plot twist ‘to. From a calendar full of trips ’til the end of the year, it now says “nothing planned” on most days. This is the longest I’ve been home since 2009. Sometimes, the stability is comforting. Sometimes, it gives me anxiety. Most of the time, I look at it as opportunity.
Here’s what most of my days look like. The timing is loose, but the pattern is the same.
430-600 Wake up - no an alarm clock needed
Since when did I become a morning person!?!? Since this fucking ECQ, that’s when. I used to snooze at least twice every morning, but now I just lie in bed for a few minutes to check my messages and emails. Then I get up and dress up for a workout.
600-800 Breakfast + read / write
This bears the most similarity to pre-ECQ life (though pre-ECQ, this usually took 30 minutes). I’ve always prepared my breakfasts the night before so I don’t have to think about it in the morning. Today it was a spinach omelette and boiled kamote. I always drink black coffee with two shots of espresso, regardless of what breakfast I prepare. I always leave my phone in the bedroom, away from my first meal of the day, so I use this time to read and/or journal. This week I’m reading The Ride of A Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of The Walt Disney Company by Robert Iger.
800-930 Workout (45 to 60 minutes)
I’ve been working out with Nica (trainer/good friend) on Mondays and Wednesdays. On Fridays, I have a group workout with Nica, Anya, Jamie, and we take turns leading the workouts. We’ve become creative, coming up with themes like striptease and J. Lo. On TThS, I do yoga, barre, and a volume workout (thank you Chels for Alo Moves!). Every few days, I play a guided meditation from Headspace.
0930-1200 Work / “work”
I shower, put on shorts and a tank top/loose shirt, reply to emails, read newsletters, or attend an online meeting if I have to. This morning, I watched Becoming on Netflix.
1200-1245 Lunch
When I was in quarantine alone, I had nightmares of dying alone and being looted, prompting me to move to my parents’ house before March ended. During lunch, my parents, brother, and I discuss current events and interesting articles/videos we’ve read.
1245-1830 Work
For SPS, we’ve been developing content for our social media platforms or working on stuff we’ve been procrastinating on, like monitoring and evaluation reports. May is the Philippines’ Month of the Ocean, and it really sucks to be spending it indoors in this hellish heat. Usually we’d be out, running workshops or attending events. Outside SPS, there’s ADB and UNDP work, which usually involves research, reading, writing, and online meetings.
1830-1915 Dinner
Another round of updates on our respective reads, reflections and questions on current events, and memes with my family. Every week, Kiano and I think of new dishes to prepare. Over the last month we’ve done Cyma’s Roka Salata, Cibo’s Penne al Telefono, buttermilk chicken, katsudon, and samgyeopsal.
1915-2200 ???
For the last three weeks of April, I worked every day until about 9 or 10PM to finish a thesis-like report on waste management and circular economy for UNDP. I had a self-imposed deadline of May 1. Working long hours and during the weekends has caused my days to blur and my mental health to wax and wane. Now that that’s submitted, I try to spend this time talking to friends, watching videos (now it’s Big Little Lies), and reading a book or random articles.
2200-
I take melatonin or Benadryl and hope I get a little over six hours of sleep.