Sunday mornings might be about lie-ins or hangovers for some people, but for me they’re all about outdoor swimming. That’s not to say that I don’t have a hangover some Sunday mornings, but there’s no quicker way to shift the fuzzy feeling of, “Yeah I shouldn’t have had that third gin and tonic. Or the fourth one”, than jumping into a huge body of water.
So, while most people I know are either lying in bed and regretting their Saturday night excesses, or pretending to their kids that they’re still asleep at 7.30am every Sunday, I’m hauling myself out of bed and driving to Hampton pool, west London. The heated pool opens at 8am, and it’s incredible first thing in the morning: the steam rising off the water, and on very cold days it’s sometimes so steamy, you can’t see to the other end. It’s magical, apart from the bit where you have to walk (no running by the pool!) from the changing rooms to the water. It feels less magical on cold days, when you’re in bare feet and a swimming costume.
I try to swim 40 lengths, which takes about 40 minutes, and really helps to clear my mind, so I’m focused for the week ahead. Because it’s literally impossible to distract myself by scrolling through Instagram or putting on Netflix while swimming (believe me, if I could, I’d be doing it), it’s also a good time to be creative: thinking up ideas for work or planning where I want to travel in 2019. That said, sometimes I just think way too deeply about the last series of Love Island or what I’m having for lunch. It’s not all big ideas.
Regardless of where my mind wanders to in my swim, it’s so nice to come back to a warm, cosy house. In the past, my perfect Sunday would feature a roast lunch in a pub. After selflessly spending long afternoons conducting extensive research, I can recommend at least five pubs in the south London area that have absolutely nailed the roast potato to gravy ratio with their roasts. But, as my boyfriend and I have just bought our first flat together, and it actually has space for a table, and chairs, and other people, I’m currently obsessed with having friends round for lunch.
My secret ingredient for a Sunday lunch is a roast beetroot – it doesn’t matter if you’re cooking chicken, beef or lamb: it goes with everything. Try it next time you make a roast, and feel free to pass it off as your own idea. I won’t tell.
Actually owning a flat, after years and years of renting, is a whole new level of being an adult. There have been so many surprises. For example: a two-hour hunt for the stopcock (which is apparently quite important when you’re having plumbing work done), Googling how to bleed radiators, realising that painting is actually quite difficult and having to spend money on very boring and very un-Instagrammable things such as an extractor fan for the bathroom.
For the first time ever, I’m making big decisions like choosing my own energy tariff (our previous landlord, for mysterious reasons he refused to explain, would only allow us to use one energy supplier) and that’s where Compare the Market’s EnergyCheck was incredibly useful. Simply putting in my postcode and the amount I normally spend on energy per month helped me check I was getting a great deal on gas and electricity with my supplier – saving me valuable money to spend on extractor fans, or beetroot. After the move, with so much paperwork and life admin to wade through, it was refreshingly simple to use. Unlike a radiator that needs bleeding.
After lunch, I might call my family and catch up. My sister has just got engaged and is now planning her festival-themed wedding. My job is to talk her down from attempting to hire “unicorns” to pull a coach made out of a giant pumpkin, or build something called a doughnut wall, or try and recreate Kim Kardashian’s (third) wedding in a French chateau. Instead, I’m encouraging her to book the more important things: a marquee or caterers, for example. I’m very worried the big day will arrive and she’ll have decided on the wedding hashtag, but forgotten to hire any chairs.
If you’re not wearing pyjamas and sitting cosily on the sofa at 6pm on a Sunday, you need to question your life choices. My perfect Sunday would end on the aforementioned sofa, reading a book. And when I say “reading”, like most people if they’re being honest, I mean watching telly. Right now, I’m very into the Netflix show Tidying Up With Marie Kondo. Having just moved house, the idea of a very polite Japanese lady coming to my home and throwing out all of my junk is my dream scenario.
To spend more time relaxing and less time searching for better energy deals, download the Meerkat app and set up EnergyCheck. Customers of Compare the Market who purchase a qualifying product can also use the app to get two-for-one at restaurants and cinemas for a whole year. T&Cs apply.
