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Grand Cayman: 9 Days in Paradise, PART 1

19th March 2020 No Comments

I started planning this spring break trip more than 8 months in advance. I knew I wanted to go somewhere in the Caribbean, but I didn’t know where exactly…

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Kertu

Kertu Tenso

Estonian-born former Parisian living in Boston, United States. 💕 Feel free to follow me on my quest for infinite travelling. ✌🏻️

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KERTU TENSO | Boston Blogger
How to achieve work/life balance as a PhD student? How to achieve work/life balance as a PhD student? ⁣ ⁣ As some of you may have noticed (watching my stories), I’ve been quite overwhelmed this past week with the workload that I’m under. Weekends aren’t a thing and even late evenings are spent studying and working. ⁣ ⁣ When I do take a break, I get these guilty thoughts that say: “Start working on that paper! How come you don’t have a thesis topic in mind yet? Did you even read the latest research?” etc. ⁣ ⁣ It’s not uncommon that many PhD students develop different health problems due to overworking. For example, I’ve noticed that I have started getting painful headaches and my mental health is suffering as well.⁣ ⁣ So, I did a quick search on the internet and gathered some recommendations that people have given for achieving work-life balance as a PhD student. These are my favorites:⁣ ⁣ 💛 BE SELECTIVE. You don’t need to read every new paper out there. You don’t need to get an A in every class. You don’t need to say yes to every research opportunity. ⁣ ⁣ 💛 MAKE PLANS. Because being in academia can be quite unstructured, it is best to make concrete plans for the day, for the week, etc. If something isn’t done, move it to the next day and don’t worry about it.⁣ ⁣ 💛 BE PRODUCTIVE DURING YOUR WORK HOURS. It helps to structure your time and really stick to trying to be productive during those work hours. The same goes for leisure time. Try to not deal with work issues when you’re with family and friends. ⁣ ⁣ 💛 REST. Working non-stop is just not sustainable. Carve out some time in the week to just rest and do nothing. It will be difficult to switch off your brain at first, but it’s a habit worth developing. ⁣ ⁣ ❓What are some of the habits that you have developed to achieve a good work-life balance?
Is there a city where you’d love to live one day Is there a city where you’d love to live one day? For me it’s NYC, specifically Manhattan. 🏙⁣ ⁣ As I’ve mentioned before, I just adore high-rise buildings, glass and concrete, having tons of people around, the noise and energy, the opportunities - I love all of it. There’s just so much to see and do. NYC is an epitome of a big city and I hope I’ll get the chance to live there one day. ⁣ ⁣ Scroll to see some pics from my past adventures in NYC.
Thinking of having a movie night tonight. 📽I’ Thinking of having a movie night tonight. 📽I’m into science fiction, fantasy, thrillers, mystery movies, and dramas. Recommendations are welcome. 🙏🏻⁣ ⁣ What’s your all-time favorite movie? ⁣ ⁣ PS. Been feeling this Ariana Grade-esque high pony recently. 💁🏼‍♀️And how gorgeous are these Oscar de la Renta flower earrings?
You wanted more Boston, I’m giving you more Bost You wanted more Boston, I’m giving you more Boston! ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ This pic is taken next to the Christian Science Building in Back Bay. Back Bay is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Boston. It’s a perfect mix of quintessential Boston brownstones and modern skyscrapers. ⁣Behind me is the most iconic of them - the Prudential tower.⁣ ⁣⁣ If you know me, you know I’m a big city girl and I’ll always opt for more urban and high-rise areas. I just love the hustle and bustle. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ What’s your fav place in Boston or in your own city/town? Do you prefer more suburban/rural settings or big noisy cities? 🏡 🏙
Long walks and warm May evenings. 💜 Any fun wee Long walks and warm May evenings. 💜 Any fun weekend plans?
Ambitious, shrewd, cunning, and self-preserving. 🐍🐍🐍 ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ These are some classic Slytherin characteristics. However, Slytherins are commonly misunderstood and get a lot of bad rap, just like our symbol, the snake. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ Gryffindors are seen as the brave ones. Hufflepuffs are the nice kids. Ravenclaws are the nerdy ones. What about Slytherins? Evil blonde self-absorbed opportunists? Even J.K Rowling doesn’t seem to like us (some of her tweets have been brutal). ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ What about the fact that Slytherins are loyal? Not heroic and extroverted like Gryffindors but loyal to their selected people and ideals. Just look at Snape and his loyalty to Lily and Dumbledore. He gave his life for the greater good.💚 If that wasn’t the perfect example of being loyal and brave, then I don’t know what is. ⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ And I mean, ambition, determination, cleverness and resourcefulness are all great characteristics to have! It’s not a coincidence that some of the most famous wizards are Slytherins, such as Merlin himself. So, let’s celebrate Slytherins! 🐍⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ But perhaps most importantly, all wizards and muggles have light and dark in them. Not all Slytherins went bad just as not every Gryffindor was a hero *cough Peter Pettigrew cough*.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ What Hogwarts house would you be in? Are you a Gryffindor ❤️, Hufflepuff 💛, or Ravenclaw 💙?
That weird hand in hair pose that you make to cont That weird hand in hair pose that you make to control your freshly cut bangs 😂🤦🏼‍♀️⁣ ⁣ Hair update: My bangs have been driving me insane haha, but I have been trying to wear them down a bit so I could at least see if I like them (current verdict is no - too much work). ⁣ ⁣ Boston corona update: Still no idea about when we will start opening up. Currently, everyone has to wear masks by law (I only took mine off for the photo when there was no one around), shops are closed, hairdressers are closed, schools are closed, etc. We might get some news tomorrow, though. ⁣ ⁣ Weather update: We had beautiful warm weather yesterday! Felt like summer. I went for a long walk around Boston, swipe for some more pics. 😊⁣ ⁣ What’s the corona and weather situation like where you’re at?
Quarantine made me do it 🙈💇🏼‍♀️⁣⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ Since all the hair salons have been closed for two months and we don’t even have clue about their opening time, I took matters (aka my hair) to my own hands. ⁣ ⁣ So, I did everything scary: removed my hair extensions, highlighted and toned my hair, and cut bangs. All at home. 🙈 I think I’ll start growing out the bangs immediately (I feel weird with them) but at least I got to try it. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Last time I had bangs was when I was a kid, haha. *swipe for pics*⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣ Have you done (or wanted to do) something crazy to your hair during quarantine?
FIRST YEAR OF PHD DONE! ✅ Swipe for photos of th FIRST YEAR OF PHD DONE! ✅ Swipe for photos of this journey. ➡️⁣ ⁣ This first year was a wild ride: adjusting to a new research position, learning new methods (econometric methods such as DID) and skills (such as learning to code in SQL), taking some of the most challenging classes I have ever taken (college math I see you), working nonstop (even on the weekends), dealing with the impostor syndrome etc. ⁣ ⁣ Since a lot of you have asked me questions about my studies, I thought I will answer a few basic ones below (I get these ones a lot): ⬇️⁣ ⁣ 👩🏼‍🏫What do I study? My PhD program is called Health Services Research and my concentration is in health economics and quantitative data analysis. I haven’t decided on my dissertation topic yet.⁣ ⁣ 🏥What’s Health Services Research? It’s difficult to define it, as it’s a truly multidisciplinary scientific field. But essentially, we study how people get access to health care, how much care costs, and what happens to patients as a result of this care.⁣ ⁣ ⌛️How long does it take to finish my PhD? If everything goes according to plan, it should take 5 years total (4 more to go). How it works in the U.S. is that we start off as PhD students. Once we complete two years of coursework, we take comprehensive exams. If we pass, we’ll officially transition from a PhD student to a PhD candidate and focus the next 3 years or so on our research and doctoral dissertation.
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