Sundaze 110
When I accepted a new, freelance contract that’d see me working 9-5 Monday to Friday hours until May, I was incredibly worried that I’d lose my sense of self.
I had already planned to go back to full-time work this year, if only for a while, but when the time came to do so — even temporarily — I was terrified.
Thankfully now that I’m five days in to this new routine, I feel fairly able and somewhat confident in my decision. Long may it continue. After all, the reasoning behind this serious shake-up is so that I can precariously hop onto that property ladder! I’m planning to share a post all about my move, what I do and why I’ve changed my working style, so if you have any questions, do pop me a comment or an email.
The long and short of it is: yes, I’m still freelancing! Hit me up. And no, nothing is changing regarding my blog — I’ve never been a full-time blogger (yet)!
New contract
After my mini meltdown in mid-January, an amazing opportunity came up for me to do some contract work with Molton Brown, a pinch-me client if I ever did see one.
I’d begun to feel very uncertain in myself and especially in my finances: I’m hoping to buy a house this year but essentially had been told by my mortgage advisor that my clients, who rarely pay me on time if at all, were really letting me down.
Now, I’m joining the masses again for the Monday to Friday grind, squeezing on to commuter trains and racing the person next to me for the good spot on the Tube. I’m surrounded by good food and better friends, and it’s slowly but surely beginning to feel like things are tying together again. And if nothing else, it’ll teach me some lessons in what I’d like to be doing next.
Chinese New Year
It was Chinese New Year on Tuesday! Happy Year of the Pig! 新年快樂, 恭禧發財!
And technically the celebrations continue for another two weeks, but we’re in England and there isn’t all that much we can do. We popped out for a family dinner (although Dad was working because everyone seemed to be celebrating by ordering a takeaway, and my brother was away), and went to a restaurant in the Old Town that once belonged to my Grandad.
I mean, it’s now a Turkish restaurant but the sentiment was there, eh?
Aside from that, we’ve celebrated with some of the usual traditions: a pomelo bath on CNY eve, cleaning the house before the day itself, wearing new clothes and shoes. Ah, it’s totally my fave time of the year!
Blogger coffee dates!
I’ve also indulged in plenty of blogger dates this week!
I love nothing more than hanging out with Internet friends, so it was a joy not only to hang with Kaye and catch up during our latest shoot, but also to grab coffee with Fern and Sian.
There truly isn’t much better than some time with people from inside a screen to get you back on track, is there? We gossiped, traded tips and raged about algorithms before deciding that, actually, maybe the algorithms ain’t all that bad. Plus, I discovered that Sian lives pretty damn close to me, which is more than ideal for when you just need someone to chat all things online with.
Currently coveting:
Links I’ve Loved:
- Rebecca shared a post packed with easy eco-friendly living tips. It’s perfect if you also want to begin living a more sustainable life but aren’t sure where to start.
- I have instantly bookmarked these healthy lunch meal prep ideas. I’m so ready to nail my lunch box life!
- This post on The New Yorker blew my mind. There’s an audio version available too; it took me an entire hour to read properly!
- Trying to cut down on your expenses? This post on Stylist is so eye-opening and I’m excited to try and take some of the author’s tips and tricks on board.
- Hannah shared an update about why freelancing didn’t work out, and why she’s fine with it.
Posts This Week:
- Representation and Me
- Is My Slow Living Slow Enough?
- Petite joys
- + the Daisybutter Coffee Club newsletter was sent out on Wednesday! Sign up here.