Hey! It’s Violet. I’m going to show you what a typical day in my life during the school week looks like. My schedule does vary, but here is a glimpse into my typical tuesday. Full disclosure I am more of a morning person, and am way more productive when I get up early and go to bed late, so don’t be surprised at my bed time. As a senior, my biggest goal is get as much done during the day so I can enjoy my evenings. I treat school almost like a 9-5. It has really helped balance fun and school this semester.
7:40am My alarm goes off
7:45am Time for coffee and breakfast
Today I made buttered toast. It’s super simple and a go to on days I only have about an hour to get ready. My roomates and I love the medium roast k-cups from costco, they’re definitely the best deal out there. My favorite creamer is the sweet cream from International Delight. Coffee and breakfast are the most important part of the day to relax and having a cup I enjoy makes it even better.
8am Brush teeth and wash face
If I’m feeling fancy, I’ll put on mascara, some earrings and a necklace but that is not an everyday thing. Another tip for early classes is setting out your outfit the night before. I find this really helpful because as a chemist, I’m in lab every day but if I don’t set out a lab-appropriate outfit the night before, there’s a chance I won’t dress myself correctly.
8:40-45am Time to head out the door
I pack up my iPad, notebook, lunch, and water bottle into my backpack. Also being completely honest, I almost always bring a fun drink with me to help me get through the day. My favorites are sparkling water, diet coke and redbull.
8:45-9am Walk to Class
I try to use this time to listen to my favorite music, a podcast or just remind myself of the things I’m grateful for. It’s a bit of time before I have to start the day and use my brain so I like to use it for myself in one of these ways.
9-11:40am Lab Time (Chemistry 417)
Today I’m working on a lab called the Critical Micelle concentration. In this picture you can see my stock solutions. After this, my lab partner and I made dilutions with different mixes of A +B and C+D to determine what concentration of a saline solution of Nile Red dye vs water solution of Nile Red dye begins to form micelles (a formation of molecules into a sphere with their long hydrocarbon chains also hydrophobic in the center and the water soluble heads on the outside so the least amount of repulsive interactions occur).
11:40am to 12:30pm Lunch Break
I sit either in the 24/7 section of the library or come home for a little bit. I eat some lunch, watch a shower or do homework depending on the day’s workload. This helps me reset for my next class.
12:30 to 1:45 Inorganic 2 Lecture
1:45 to 2:45pm Rest Up
I spend a little time hydrating, eating a snack, even watching some tiktok. During this time, I don’t usually do homework. My brain is definitely tired after inorganic chemistry.
2:45 to 4pm Gym!
I rotate between push, pull, legs and cardio days. If it’s been a rough day and I have no motivation to go to the gym, I just go and do cardio while listening to a fun podcast, good music or a show. This ensure I’m still moving my body to relieve stress and for overall good health but it’s just not quite as intense as lifting. I have also been loving taking pilates classes on Mondays at 5pm as well as hot yoga on Thursdays at 8pm.
4-4:45pm Shower and Skin Care
I love listening to music in the shower. I usually make up a queue before I hop in. Post shower skincare is a great way to feel good and take care of yourself as a stem major. We’re always busy and running around.
4:45-6pm Cook and Eat Dinner
Usually I have a few days a week where I cook a nice big meal and eat that for atleast 3 different meals. It’s not quite meal prepping because I do it more often that once a week, but it’s a similar idea. Tonight I made pesto pasta. It’s one of my favorites and it keeps well in the fridge.
6-9:30pm Productivity Time
This is the time I do homework, laundry, change my sheets and all those random tasks that need to get done. Heres a snapshot of the study tunes for tonight!
9:30 to 10:30pm Relax!
During this time, I lay in bed in my pajamas and watch tiktok or a show. My current favorite show is Desperate Housewives.