Hi everyone! Wishing you all a happy 2021 🙂
2020 has been one of the most challenging and stressful year of my life. With everything related to COVID-19, the travel restrictions and uncertainties of my visa application; the whole year was just a giant, anxiety-filled blur. Naively so, I was under the impression that 2021 would be much better in comparison, especially in terms of the pandemic. But to be completely honest, it’s rather the same, and in some countries, even worse. After some thinking I realized I shouldn’t be so surprised, the year has changed, people haven’t! Despite being advised against social gatherings and travelling unnecessarily, many people did just that. Lest I make this entire blog into a frustrated rant, I’ll just get on with other life updates.
You might have noticed, this blog is comparatively much shorter than my previous ones, and that is because I just recently underwent a LASIK eye surgery to correct my vision and am still recovering. So for the time being, I’m allowed only a few minutes a day of screen time, which is pretty understandable as it will take a while for my eyes to completely heal. On the plus side however, I can now see more clearly than ever before haha!
This whole surgery thing turned out to be much less scary than I made myself believe it to be. I guess I only have my overactive imagination and the movie Final Destination 5 to blame for lol! (This scene if you’re not familiar with it. Though a fair warning, it’s rather gruesome) I didn’t feel a thing beside a small pressure one time for each eye and there wasn’t a second when the doctor left the room/was reading a magazine haha! In my opinion, the post-op care is much more complex than going through the surgery itself. I wasn’t allowed to open my eyes for an entire day for one! Then there was no using phone, watching TV or reading for the next 3 days. Those three days were the longest days of my life. I’ve never been so bored out of my mind before with nothing else to do other than stare at the ceiling and sleeping. These three days did however give me an opportunity to reflect on some things, such as the amount of time I spend on my phone and computer everyday! One thing I could do was drawing, so I spent few hours everyday painting or drawing something and that was the most fun I had during those days.
There are few other restrictions that will last from about a week to a month; such as I’m not allowed to go outside for a week to prevent any damage by wind, dust and UV rays, I can’t wash my hair for a week, I’m to have very limited exposure to phone/computer and such for at least 15 days after the surgery and I’m not allowed to rub my eyes at all for a month. So, there is a lot of “can’t” and “shouldn’t” involved in the aftercare but to be fair, it’s a small price to pay for at least the next 20 years of my life without glasses.
Aside from the surgery, the end of the year was pretty much lackluster but pleasant for me. I finally managed to get my biometrics done for the visa application, so that makes me one step closer to being physically present in Canada! I celebrated the development by making some egg-less chocolate-glazed donuts following the recipe by Shivesh. I think they turned out really well for my first time, they might not look pretty, but I think I nailed the taste. I accidentally made a lot more than I initially intended, but I don’t see how that could be a bad thing haha!
Usually, with the start of a new year I would at least make one or two resolutions for the year, mostly related to my academic career. In 2021 however, I’ve refrained from doing so until I’m able to be in Canada. I do have a couple of non-academic resolutions however;
- To start keeping a journal as a way of reducing my stress and anxiety, and to implement a form of regularity in my life,
- To work out more often and,
- To live a more eco-friendly life than before.
With that, I’ll take your leave. Hopefully, the next post will be longer and more interesting than this one haha!
To the Moon and Beyond 