A workday morning routine

I have now perfected my routine so that it takes 1 hour and 15 minutes from waking up to leaving the house. That might seem excessive but I would so rather have more than enough time than rush. I have always been an early riser anyway so early mornings aren't a huge problem for me (although I admit it's much easier in the summer than the dark, cold, wet winter).

5:45am

My alarm goes off and my cat Bluebell, also known as Paddles or The Rat, has been Pavlovian-ly conditioned to understand that my alarm = someone is getting up to potentially feed her even though she now gets fed by an automatic feeder, so I get a cat alarm as well as a phone alarm. Double alarm is just what you want in what is basically still the middle of the night.

We didn't used to let Bluebell sleep in our bedroom, as it used to mean constant headbutting and 1,000 decibel purring at 2am. Cute but annoying, which pretty much sums her up. However, if we don't let her sleep in the bedroom, she meows constantly. Her other favourite nocturnal activities include scratching aimlessly in the litter tray to the point where she's scraping just the tray (imagine a noise similar to chalk on a background), chasing a ping pong ball on the laminate flooring, or methodically batting shampoos and shower gels into the bath tub. This is at random, so some nights she does none of these things, some nights she does them all. Cat habit roulette. Having a cat is fun I would recommend it.

So anyway, I pick up my cat and we have a lovely sleepy cuddle where she headbutts me and holds on to my hand with two paws so she can rub her face against it. Sometimes I wrap her inside my dressing gown and, despite having bitched about her for a whole paragraph, it honestly makes me feel so happy I could cry.

5:50am

I wash my face, currently with Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish, then I have a shower with my Lush Scrubee (smells so good - like buttery honey) and a blast of cold at the end (as per this blog post) when I'm feeling brave. Once I'm out the shower I apply body moisturiser, and to my face; La Roche Posay Effaclar Duo and La Roche Posay SPF, whilst Bluebell races round the flat like someone shoved a rocket up her bum for about 3 minutes.

6:10am

I go into the kitchen and put the kettle on. I don't drink coffee but I like to have a cup of warm water with half a lemon squeezed in, sometimes a grating of ginger if I'm feeling fancy. Apparently this is quite bad for your teeth but I like to live in denial. If there are no lemons I have green tea or white tea and my fave is Clipper Green Tea with Lemon or Vanilla because they don't bleach the teabags.

6:15am

After that I do my make up (Origins tinted moisturiser, NYX under eye corrector, Collection concealer, Glossier cheek tint, Collection waterproof mascara, Glossier Boy Brow, sometimes a hint of MAC highlighter) whilst watching the YouTubes. My worst part of this routine is the mascara. I hate doing mascara because it can go so wrong in a single swipe by adding too much or stabbing yourself in the eye, and these mistakes are long to correct.

6:30am

I put a saucepan of water on the hob and when it's bubbling I boil an egg for 7 minutes to take to work for breakfast, which I eat with some wholemeal toast and watercress. I also prep my lunch, usually leftovers or something I've defrosted from the freezer (aka freezer surprise) alongside some chopped veg and fruit. This process can take me a while because I also have about a million snacks and lunch accompaniments (sauces, herbs, cheese, nuts etc.) which I love to decant into various tiny pots and Tupperwares. I love a tiny pot. These are my favourite.

6:40am

I brush my teeth and get dressed. This takes either 2 minutes or 20 minutes because I've planned it in my head the night before as I fell asleep and it either looks great or awful. As Bristol is the city of a thousand hills and I work atop them all, I base most of my outfits on my shoes and the weather. Sometimes I can be arsed to wear heeled boots and sometimes I just need trainers. If it's sunny I allow myself to wear my fave white Adidas trainers, if it's going to rain I wear the only boots I have left whose soles aren't literally ripped in half. Is this me walking incorrectly, or are all shoes just made badly? I'd love to know.

7:00am

Lastly I pack my bag, insert my air pods, grab my keys from the side, kiss my two best ones and walk to the bus stop, wishing with every step that it was summer.