I was browsing around on social media yesterday and learned a new word: workcation. In some ways it fits my way of life nicely. I also read an article that made me start giving away some money for a good cause. Also, I have now paid the fine that has been hanging over my head for more than a year.
Workcation – My daily routine
I’m working, but I’m doing it from a place where the environment is very vacation like. It’s by no means a real vacation, but especially since my work schedule is from 6 AM to 2 PM it does give me a lot of possibilities to do other stuff too. That word somehow sounds fitting and I might start using it.
My routine for the work days here is quite set. I get up at 5.40 and meditate for some minutes. (I use an app called Atom that has worked nicely for me, but I will write more about that on a separate post later at some point.) Next I have a quick morning wash, put water on for coffee and start making breakfast. At six I start working and I usually eat my breakfast while already working. Normally during the lunch break I have time to do my morning Portuguese lesson after a quick lunch.
After I stop working at two depending on the tide and the surf conditions I either go surfing or wait until the tide gets more favorable. I usually surf for up to two hours and then have a quick shower either on the beach or on board Naranja. Then it’s time for something to eat. I’ve been cooking more now than I did last fall, but I have gone out to eat some too. Normally I use the evening for reading or watch sports. Now that I have unlimited data on my local sim, I got the Finnish hockey league streams and I’m also considering getting another streaming service.
I go to bed around nine and do another Duolingo session and my daily five minutes of Drops. Then if I’m not ready to sleep, I usually read a bit. In most cases I’m already sleeping by ten o’clock.
A pledge for good
I read a book review about a book written by William MacAskill and it mentioned a community of effective givers: Giving what we can. It does a lot of research into effective charities and works as a community to encourage people to pledge some amount of their yearly income for a good cause. I did the pledge yesterday, because I’m now saving some money in my living costs compared to earlier. I also know I can afford it and I have been looking for a cause that would make a difference. This organization had plenty of good options and they list pros and cons for every option. All the chosen charities have been and are continuously being evaluated.
I’m not writing this here to morally pose. I’m doing it for two reasons mainly. First of all, maybe this will inspire someone else to follow suit. I know that I’m in a very privileged position to be able to do this and I don’t expect this of everyone. Second reason is that writing it down publicly gives a little extra motivation to stay on track. I have said it out loud now and now it’s harder to back out. I pledged for a year and hope that I have the moral backbone to continue it then.
Other news
I went back to the city hall on Friday and paid the fine for illegal camping. It worked out as they promised, but it still took some waiting before I finally could go to the treasury to pay it. That’s one thing less to worry about now. I just need to be careful not to get another one.
Surfing has been really nice the past week. I have not been able to leave Baleal. I also met a Finnish surfer here who will be starting his drive back home tomorrow. He has surfed a lot in Finland too and yesterday he encouraged me to have a look at the Finnish surf scene when I get back. He showed me some videos and it did look better than I expected, but I would have to get a thicker wetsuit at least. We’ll see.
I’ve also had two wonderful beach runs here so far. Even though the sand makes running a bit slower and more strenuous, the view and the barefoot feeling more than make up for it. Somehow it feels like I have more energy too. I can’t explain it, but it feels that way.
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