Month: May 2020

Quarantine: May 2020

Quarantine: May 2020

by Kasia x ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hi all,

Quarantine has been driving me crazy, I am used to going out with friends and my boyfriend all the time, so since been at home and not having the ability to do that, I have decided to redirect my energy on some other things. Pick up some old hobbies and have some me time, anyone else?

Trying to see this as more of a “holiday” rather than a bad situation has been helpful, focusing on time with my animals and self-care has been nice to do as normally I would not have time for this. Below are some images of what I have been up to these past few weeks!

(Again as mentioned in the last photo story, images are unedited and out of theme but thats to keep their quality top noch!)

Pet Obsession:

Like I said, I have been focusing more on my pets, taking care of them and playing. Makes you forget some worries.

Cancelling Plans:

Like many, the virus has ruined many plans for me and my boyfriend. As I mentioned in my other quarantine post, we both lost our placements and our anniversary holiday. Also had a lot of problems with money for university and online teaching, but slowly getting through it!

Self Care:

I have been taking extra time to have some time to myself, I have anxiety and difficulty with over organisation and planning so during a time like this when nothing is certain, it’s hard for me. Taking some time to relax is needed. Plants and E-Girl hair galore.

Socialisation:

I have been staying with my boyfriend over this period of time, so having his company is making this better. Although I miss having privacy and seeing my friends, having him by my side has been keeping me sane. Enjoy some videos below.

Let me know if your quarantine has looked similar or even message me for a chat on how you are, would love to hear.

Love, Kasia x

How I Keep Organised

How I Keep Organised

by Kasia x ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hi everyone,

I thought it would be a good idea to lay out some ways I keep organised during my university semester and also just in general, I think during this crazy time it’s a good way to show people how to stay on track and not worry about being forgetful. I am always overly organised, as my friends and family say, but that’s because without this I would forget to do basic things such as finishing up bits of my assignments or replying to emails, I don’t know why but that’s just the way my brain functions. Also, I see organisation to allow me to breath more and let me concentrate on relaxing instead of always thinking about what I have to do, responsibility wise. I always feel confident in the fact that I will always get everything done because of my organisation so again, it keeps me calmer and allows me to enjoy more free time instead of worrying about a million things I might have to do daily.

Here are the 4 main ways I keep organised and how it helps me be more “on time” and not forgetful!

  • Keep notes everywhere: I either keep notes on anything I have to do using the sticky notes app on my windows pc or on a pinboard above my desk. It just lets me keep all my important and short term “to-dos” in one place and I don’t have the think about them all the time as they appear on my screen as soon as I turn on my pc. For example, on my pc sticky notes right now I have a note that breaks down my assignment due in July, how many hours I have left to take off work and my blog ideas. It is just simple things that I would not usually remember but are stored on my pc and always there when I do any personal admin or university work.

 

  • Put small notes on your desktop calendar: in addition to using sticky notes, if I have a simple yet small one-time thing to do, I add it to my calendar on my pc. If I use sticky notes, its usually for a “to do” that’s really long, like I mentioned my assignment break down, whereas on the calendar its simple things. This is also synced with my iPhone so I can add or delete these small to-dos from either pc or phone. For example, I have a small reminder that this post is going up on the 26th as I am writing it on the 24th, just to make sure I don’t forget the things I need to do for its release. I have my calendar open on startup when I open my pc so as soon as I need to do something, the calendar pops up and I know exactly the small things I have to do for the day, the sticky notes pop up on startup too. Additionally, using the calendar lets me plan my short term to-dos more into the future, for example, I need to call my bills company on 2 weeks for something, I can put that 2 weeks ahead and have it pop up as a reminder closer to the date, and again I will always have it on startup as the calendar opens! If you want to know how to sync your Outlook calendar to your iPhone or how to get your calendar to open on startup on pc then I have these links here and here, this is what I used to do this.

 

  • Layouts: as mentioned before for my assignments and other long notes, I do layouts to make things simpler for myself to understand. It also makes things easier to write and do as if you do something in smaller parts it’s always easier, make things more basic for yourself, why struggle!

 

  • Keep a diary: I keep a small note pad with some long term to-dos, also as a back up to my sticky notes just in case I lose them. It includes things like what I need to pack for holiday or wish lists, people’s birthdays and stuff like that. I know you can use the calendar for this too but sometimes I do find it helpful to have some personal stuff like the mentioned above in a secure paper format as it’s not something I really need to have on-screen or on my calendar when I am in a lesson or at work.

 

I hope you have enjoyed reading through some of the things I do to keep organised, and I hope they help you too, let me know if they have or which ones you used. Keep safe and see you in the next post!

Love, Kasia x

Germany: March 2020

Germany: March 2020

by Kasia x ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Here are some images of my time in Germany. I went to visit my boyfriend who was doing a semester abroad and during that time we spent some time exploring Cologne and nearby cities. Enjoy!

(Apologies the images are not in the usual theme, in the photo stories I like to keep them unedited!)

Arriving:

IMG_8410

Arriving in Cologne, 1st March 18:10

Very excited as this was the first time I have seen him since the end of January, which is long for us. We didn’t get to spend our birthdays or Valentines together so this was exciting for us as we would get to make up for the lost time.

Our First Day Out:

After arriving, he took me out to explore the nearby town to his flat, safe to say I enjoyed my time and my views, but soon to be sick and lay in bed for half my time there, but at least we were together.

After Sickness:

After I got better, Dawid then shortly became sick and we sat like that for a whole week out of the 2 weeks I was there but like I said, at least we were together. When we got better I had to take some photos for an assignment around Cologne Cathedral, it was gorgeous and very historical in terms of that we learnt a lot. See for your self!

Chocolate Factory:

After meeting some of his new friends and getting all lessons and assignments finished, we took a sweet trip to the Lindor chocolate factory to further explore and take advantage of the little time we have together.

Small Town:

To round of our trip, we and his friends went to a small nearby town, Monschau, it looked fairytale-like and I could not stop taking pictures. We had dinner, go to know each other and visited some ruins on the hillside that gave us a view of the whole town.

Time To Go:

Before I knew it my time was up and I had to leave to go back to the UK, one last drink though! Corona was just around the corner so I was a bit stressed making my way home but I made it safely. We were sad that I had to leave but I was happy for him experiencing something new in a different country.

Hope you enjoyed this photo story and let me know if you want me to make more.

Love, Kasia x

2020: The Year From Hell: An Update

2020: The Year From Hell: An Update

by Kasia x ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Hi everyone,

(Enjoy some pictures throughout of my quarantine)

I know the world is in shambles right now and I have been gone for a while. I guess a lot just happened as soon as we started the new year and I needed time to process.

As you all know, we are currently in a pandemic, which is not great. I have no words to currently describe how saddening the situation is all around the world and how I wish we could just pass this year without ever thinking of it ever again. I’m not going to reprimand you all on the situation as that’s all that has been on the news for the past 4 months, so; wash your hands, social distance and take some time off. This is all hard on everyone right now, so I want you to take some time to work on yourselves and prioritise. Many of us now have lost jobs, can’t see loved ones or have many other things ruined due to the current climate so just take some time to breathe, I know it’s not great and won’t solve all your problems but just being in the moment right now might be a little helpful. Being in the moment is hard for me, I am always the kind of person to plan ahead and currently I can’t do that so that strikes me a lot too.

Personally wise, I have been okay. I’m doing a lot of private work to deal with current issues. Most will be posted here. I am trying to get some photo stories together on quarantine and my time in Germany so that has been keeping me busy. Also artwork, I do like to paint and draw so I might create a section here to show you guys some of that, let me know.

I have had a hard time this year as many. Firstly, as you know if you have read my last post, I lost my dog at the end of January so that has been really hard on me. I decided to get my first tattoo in his honour (image below) I really like it, it kind of felt right to do so and made my grieving a little easier as he will now always be with me and by my side.

tat

Also, in one of my past posts, I mentioned my year-long placement ventures, which I finally found one and it was great but unfortunately, that will not be happening due to Corona. I was devastated but tried to look on the bright side, I get to do my final year and graduate with all my friends so that’s what got me out through the issue best, and of course, their support and my boyfriends help. This placement was also going to help us move in together when we graduated but I guess we will just do it differently and it might take a little longer, but that’s okay we have to take things as they come this year I guess.

Talking about academics, I know some of you reading this might have found out not long ago your GCSE and A-Level grades will be based on predicted grades, which is not right. A lot of people are having to close businesses and losing jobs which is also not right. This whole craziness is ruining so many opportunities it’s actually mind-blowing and I cannot believe how strong you have all been through this. If I was in this situation I would have blown up but I see a lot of you working on the government’s decisions, which I applaud you for doing so.

I just thought to check in, I am taking it slow as most but will try to get stuff on here now as all of my university stuff is online and nearly finished. I was supposed to go on holiday but that has been cancelled too so I now have some time on my hands. I am currently writing a short story as an assignment and thinking of posting it here too but I will have to see copyright permissions first so I will update you on this too. My pets have been keeping me busy and entertained so that is a plus of being home all the time.

dohhhh

I know its easier said than done but try and process this situation slowly, the whole world is panicking right now and we just need to try and keep calm as hopefully, this will blow over. Check-in with family and friends, do something creative, keep entertained, make a difference. The world is standstill right now, so this is your opportunity to get out there and try something new or something you already love, don’t waste this time “off”.

Stay safe, Love Kasia x