So much free time!

Liberty! 

Plenty of free time for myself and my hobbies! 

Before I moved out of my family home, I always envisioned that I will have plenty of time when I'm living alone. Time to sip a cup of hot tea while reading a book, time to watch a movie on Netflix while swigging a bottle of beer, time to paint/crochet/macrame, time to exercise. I thought that living alone I have full control of my time and can do everything and more. 

Now that I've moved into my own place and have tasted the reality of living alone - I discovered that having a lot of time on my hands is an illusion. Perhaps it is a problem of my own making, or perhaps this is the reality. 

When you live alone, you have to do everything alone. No second pair of hands to help you lighten the load of the dreaded HOUSEWORK. So with no significant other to help me with my housework, a huge portion of my time goes into tidying and cleaning the house. Also, I cook almost daily and for two meals a day, so much of my time goes into that and the washing up after. 

Here's my average weekday routine (WFH edition):

1) Wake up - wash up - quiet time with the Lord
2) Start work 
3) Lunch (prep, cook, eat, clean)
4) Back to work
5) Tea/Snack time (prep, eat, clean)
6) Back to work
7) Dinner (prep, cook, eat, clean)
8) Depending on the day, it's either chill time (book, TV, crochet), Bible Study class or cell group
9) Squeezing in a one-hour walk if there's time
10) Bath
11) Chill time or some tidying up around the house (usually the latter wins)
12) Sleep

Here's my average weekend routine:

1) Wake up - wash up - quiet time with the Lord
2) Laundry - load washer to wash
3) Vacuum and light dusting
4) Lunch (prep, cook, eat, clean)
5) Laundry - remove load to dry
6) Chill time (book, TV, crochet) or ironing time (if there's a basketful of clothes waiting to be ironed)
7) Tea/Snack time (prep, eat, clean)
8) Chill time (book, TV, crochet)
9) Dinner (prep, cook, eat, clean)
10) Mop the house
11) One-hour walk 
12) Bath
13) Chill time or some more tidying up around the house (usually the latter wins)
14) Sleep

Don't be fooled by the chill times in between. It seems that I have a lot, but usually, these are just 15-30 minute windows. And while chilling my mind is constantly thinking about what else I have to do around the house. 

Then there are those major clean-up weekends where I change my bedsheets, wash all the floor mats, do proper dusting, wipe down all surfaces in the house, wash the toilets, kill pests, etc. The house-maintenance list never ends. NEVER. 

But at the moment, I'm not complaining. I'm still in the early stages of living alone and am enjoying it. Although most of the time is spent on the house, I still think it's worth it. Come a few more months and I'm sure to be lazier and will procrastinate on the chores to do. Let's wait and see. 

So, folks, this is the reality of living alone. Time is fully under your control, but be sure that the house takes most of it :D 

p/s: It is important that you have the right tools to help you with your chores. I bought a robot vacuum and it is a life and time saver!