6 p.m. — Spend most of the day painting. It's a hobby I picked up right before I came to NYC and was initially terrible at it, but I forced myself to designate some time each week to paint. While there's still much to improve, I'm pretty proud of how far I've come, considering that YouTube and Instagram are my teachers.

6.10 p.m. — Not super hungry, so I end up eating my strawberries (almost forgot about them!!! Would have been such a waste!) and ice cream. I retreat back to my room for some silent meditation time. I do it during the weekends because my mind gets so caught up with work on weekdays. I sound like I have a toxic relationship with work — I love it, I swear. I'm just learning how to find the right balance, but I'm more inclined to hustle at this point because I'm still young and have the energy to do so.

6:30 p.m. — Find myself feeling a little peckish, so I decide on instant oatmeal to make up for the lack of a proper dinner. The trick is to replace water with any kind of milk, and pop the bowl into the microwave. Jazzes up boring old oatmeal.

7 p.m. — Skype my parents again. It's a little early their time, but they joke about how old people don't sleep much. Today is one of those days where I find myself missing home. I feel bad that I'm not physically around to take care of my parents. It's complicated though... I've never planned on staying here forever. The plan has always been to go home, be a productive citizen and a caretaker to the folks who have paved the way for my dream — it's only right. But it also means leaving the city I've grown to love and where I've built a second life...

7:30 p.m. — I indulge in Netflix's Someone Great. I like it because it reminds me so much of NYC, even though I'm still here. Anyone get this?

8:45 p.m. — Post-movie dance party! R. heard me watching the movie and joined in halfway through. We play the movie playlist on Spotify (the songs are great!) and start grooving to it. Quick glance at the mirror shows how stupid we look, but I'm all for it. I pour us some shots!! Usually, the night progresses to us heading to a bar around the block, but we're trying to avoid crowds so indoor drinking it is.

9:20 p.m. — R. friends ring him up on FaceTime and I join in. Talking to them brings me some sense of normalcy and I'm once again reminded of how much an extrovert I am. I thrive off people's energies.

10 p.m. — I go wash up, do my skincare, and listen to a podcast, Armchair Expert by Dax Shepard. It's one of my favorites because I enjoy the breadth of topics they talk about.