Location: New York
Life at home is very different from life aboard Ocean Star. Safe to say I am not operating on the same sleep schedule I was before. Here at home, life is just overall completely different. Where I’m in New York, there is an abundance of Covid-19 cases. Therefore everyone has been quarantined at home for about three weeks. But I and my family members have been trying to make the best out of the situation. We are now walking my dog almost every day, having family movie nights, and are actually eating dinner together for the first time in a while. I appreciate this because it reminds me of when I was on OC, and we would always eat together. It’s nice being able to share a good meal with lots of people where we can talk to each other and see what everyone’s up to. But being at home has made me realize how I miss being on a schedule like I was on OC. It was nice waking up early and doing a variety of different activities every day. Now I’m going to bed on average around 4 am and waking up around 1 pm every day. There’s really not much to do, and I find myself doing the same thing every day. It really comes down to the situation we are all in, and I know I’m not the only one who feels bored and doing the same things every day. The silver lining in all of this is still being able to be in contact with everyone from Ocean Star and taking classes. I am very grateful that we are still getting our credits and have classes on zoom. It’s nice to hear everyone’s voices and sometimes feel like we are all back on the boat having a good time. Something I have learned during my time aboard that has changed me and how I operate now is to not be afraid to be myself and that I am now capable of cooking. For the first time in a while, I was truly myself, and I really owe that to OC because I felt very comfortable there and was able to open up and make lots of friends. I am also very happy that I can now cook. I’ll never forget how nervous I was when Sash told me I was going to be the first student head chef. I was not looking forward to cooking for twenty people, but after actually being in the galley with my sous chefs and going through this experience together. I found that being the head chef was actually my favorite job. It was always challenging, and we would always try and mix up what we were cooking. But just being in the galley while listening to music and sweating non-stop is a memory I’ll never forget and truly appreciate. I have really become more independent and feel like I can be way more useful around my house. I owe this to Ocean Star for really challenging me and making me feel comfortable in being uncomfortable.
Squeeze Question: What is everyone’s biggest pet peeve?