I figured that in life, there’s a lot we can’t obviously change - our DNA, height, penis size etc- but the things we can do change, actually far outnumber the things we can’t.

So change it up!

There’s something satisfying about having the means and the willpower to effect changes no matter how small or shallow. Some didn’t work (doing a uniform for work in a bid to put a cap on expensive clothes-buying); some are a work in progress (cleaning the kitchen every night before going to bed); and some have been a spectacular success (reminding myself that at the end of the day, only my own choices and actions impact me directly- something that is happening a thousand miles away does not).

I’ve been working from home for years before the pandemic happened and was something I negotiated for at work. But I only set up an actual work space upstairs in our house when the lockdowns happened and while I love it, I always felt that the trestle table was too small. And the surface was black- I would see dust on it every day which annoyed me no end.

The universe was probably reading my mind because one day while going through our cat’s social-media feeds, I got thrown a random post from a local Ikea reseller and the desk was nearly perfect. I would have wished it to be a tad longer on both ends, but after two weeks of using it, the length was just right. It also came with drawers to organise an ever-growing collection of electronics.