How are you all doing? I hope in good health!

Most likely, you are also staying in for most of your time, and so am I. So, I thought it would be nice to share with you how the past 3 weeks in quarantine have been going on, over here.

Never in my wildest dream, I thought we would be living in such a situation, but that is life; always full of surprises, sometimes good, sometimes not so nice.

But hey, let’s get on to today’s post, shall we?

How are my days going by

As I expected, most of my days remain very similar to before quarantine; I have my regular working hours which I try to keep as productive as possible, and honestly, I think so far I’m going quite well.

It really helps to make a weekly plan of projects I want to work on or get some reports finally done, and combine that with good communication with my team.

Of course, I miss doing experimental work, however, I have more time to focus on programming which is something I get a lot of satisfaction from…

But overall, I try to keep the same routine I had when I was going to the office every day, but instead, I work from the comfort of my home office. 🙂

Ups

Most and foremost, I do not waste time commuting! Guys, this is so great!! Even though I’d normally spend 1h/day driving to/from work, this is time I now allocate for my lunch break.

This brings me to my second favorite thing: having lunch outdoors, instead of my office!

We have been blessed with lovely spring weather during the past 3 weeks; perfect to have lunch in my backyard, together with Mr.A!

And the other plus has to be the fact that I have more time to enjoy our backyard; it’s been great to just be able to sit outdoors, get some much need vitamin D.

Oh and I can’t forget, have the chance to just relax with a nice book! Or ebook, to be more accurate. haha, now it’s the time to get an ebook reader if you haven’t, if you want to know more about it, then check my Kobo reader review.

Downs

I don’t want to focus on the negative side of this situation, however, let me tell you friends: some things are pretty sh*t!

Well, let me start with the obvious:

Portugal trips are canceled

I won’t be able to go visit my family & friends in Portugal until at least…June. And this is my best case scenario option.

Trip to Japan is officially canceled

Let’s take a moment to take this news in…

But yes, the trip is canceled; we have asked a refund voucher for our flights. Those vouchers are in and are now valid for a year and we can use them to our wish. The whole process of asking for these vouchers was relatively simple, and the good news is that most (if not all) airlines have this policy going on.

So if you, like me, had trips planned for this time of the year and are forced to cancel, check with your travel agent/airline how to get your refund voucher so you can it later on when this mess is behind us.

Concerts are canceled

I love going to shows/festivals and was super looking forward to seeing my favorite band live as well as going to a Queen show for the first time, but unfortunately, both have been canceled.

Luckily both shows have already been rescheduled!! Yay!!

10 things I miss the most:

Going out for dinner;

Meet my family;

Hang out with my friends, whether in Portugal or here in the Netherlands;

Go to the cinema;

Go out to have some cocktails;

Go for a walk in the park;

Travel!!!

Go on a stroll in the city center;

Go have a drink at a nice terrace table;

Just be able to go wherever I want!

– – – –

But overall, I have to say: I am not minding so much to spend time at home and keep a plan for my days/weeks.

I hope you are safe and healthy, and if this situation gives you some anxiety, here you have a virtual hug!

This is a temporary situation and we will get out of it!