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| A variety of "home made things" in a shop window in Lund. The shop was closed, so could not explore the inside! |
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"A Day in the Life of..."
It's been a rather ordinary week, except that on Wednesday, I woke up and decided that, for once, I'd make an attempt to answer the FAQ (frequently asked question) "what do you do all day". (Actually I think it's been a while since anyone specifically requested to know; but I do sometimes still ask myself...)
So, for one day, I decided to stop to reflect and take notes every hour or so. The result goes something like this:
7 a.m. - Waking up to a sunny day and feeling connected to the world.
7.15 - Making sure I really am connected (by WiFi). My morning checkup (sometimes before breakfast, sometimes after) normally includes Email, Facebook, Words With Friends (crossword game), and Duolingo (at least one lesson to keep up my streak; usually starting with Spanish).
8.15 - Getting dressed etc, having breakfast and glancing through the newspaper. (Yes I still have a daily printed morning newspaper - delivered through a slot in my door, so no need to go outside to fetch it.)
9 - Listening (on my tablet) to a lecture on the Indo-European Languages of Europe; whilst making the bed, washing up, watering plants and sorting yesterday's laundry. (The lecture is part of an Audible course on languages around the world which is keeping me spellbound just now... Did you know there are 7000 languages???)
9.30 - Preparations to go out, and then a walk into town for various minor errands (including pharmacy + a grocery shop); also walking back home, and then unpacking my purchases etc.
11.25 - Quick check that I'm still connected to the world...
11.35-12.00 - Resting while listening to the radio. Every weekday (Monday-Friday) since the Dawn of Time (i.e. as long as I can remember), at 11.35, there is a chapter from a novel read aloud on the radio. (This has been going on since way before other access to audio books.) I often listen while preparing lunch, if I am home. (Nowadays there is of course also the possibility to catch up online.) (Just now: Nutshell by Ian McEwan - in Swedish. I've not heard every episode but enough to follow the basic story.)
12 - Preparing lunch (salmon and salad, already pre-prepared) and then eating in front of the TV to A Place in the Sun - home or away. (British TV show: People not sure whether they want to just move to the English countryside or to a warmer climate, like Spain or France. Most seem to decide on the latter; which these days makes me wonder every time how Brexit will affect them all...) (The programs I watch are reruns so that question does not come up.)
13 - More Home or away, while going to and fro and doing some washing up and dusting etc during the commercial breaks.
14 - American Fixer Uppers demolish and refurbish a whole house while I'm exercising my vacuum cleaner. (phew)
15 - Resting (?) while playing Words with Friends and doing some Russian Duolingo lessons and other whatnots on my phone.
16 - Out for a short walk, and then a cup of tea and something.
17 - A mix of resting, reading and connecting with the world again; including a couple of Turkish Duolingo lessons.
18 - Preparing my biweekly online shopping list; and the TV on with a mix of News, British Antiques Road Trip, and Escape to the Country (people who know they want to stay in Britain, but not sure whether they want a thatched roof, next-door neighbours, or a barn conversion miles away from anywhere). (I like the various British house-and-antiques-hunting shows for all the glimpses of lovely scenery and interesting architecture and history - but at the same time they don't require my full attention...)
20 - Ordering groceries online for delivery on Friday.
21 - Late supper and watching a Swedish history documentary on Women Viking Warriors (based on finds in old graves). Reflecting that even history is constantly changing... (or at least how we perceive it, from the perspective of our own time)...
22 - Getting ready for bed. Reading on my Kindle for a bit, then switching to the same book on Audible (on timer): Daniel Deronda English classic by George Eliot (alias Mary Ann Evans), first published in 1876. A very long novel; and I have to confess I feel like I keep losing the thread of the plot whether I'm awake or asleep, reading or listening with this one... (But around 70% through now, so don't want to give up.)
Follow-up question: Is every day the same?
Answer: No! (Not exactly, anyway...)
and now we know what you do with your day, you keep busy and enjoy your life is what is sounds like to me... I could go through one day and then write ditto for all other days. I am a creature of habits
ReplyDeleteSandra I suspect that the different climates in which we live come into it as well. I tend to adjust a lot of my routines to the season and weather.
DeleteInteresting, and I did not know this. Things need to change just a little from time to time!
ReplyDeleteGinny, life in general does keep changing and at least to some degree we do need to try to keep up... ;)
DeleteYou read and watch and listen to a lot in the course of a day. Languages are endlessly fascinating, aren't they! I also like 'Escape to the country', especially the episodes ser in Yorkshire :-)
ReplyDeleteMy days differ quite a bit depending on the day of the week, wether I am working from home or at a client's office.
Meike, as long as we still have a job, people don't usually even ask silly questions like what we do "all day" (as in 24/7) :)
DeleteIt says something about my days that I read this and started a comment (I distinctly recall typing that I had no idea there were so many languages) but got sidetracked (probably by my brother or sister-in-law coming into the kitchen for breakfast) but never finished it. We used to have a programme on the radio called "Book at Bedtime" which was, I think, chosen books red over a period. I've just looked it up and it still exists. Amazing. The only thing that is structured in my days is the medical routine I go through when I get up. The rest of my days, however well planned beforehand, are usually chaotic. Especially when I have visitors and my own routines disappear. It's well over a month since I went for my daily walk in the woods, for example. Mind you, I've drunk plenty of coffee in The Woodlands.
ReplyDeleteI have medical stuff in my morning routine as well - above, mentally included in the "etc" between getting dressed and breakfast! I also understand about getting sidetracked while writing (or thinking about writing) comments - it happens a lot to me too.
DeleteI find history fascinating like you especially discovering part of my viking ancestry.
ReplyDelete