I am a huge believer of the power of putting pen to paper, mostly because it has manifested to me in a lot of ways! The most recent proof happened just yesterday, literally one day after I wrote it down on my planner, and I am crossing my fingers it pushes through. Something about the Universe conspiring to help you achieve it when you really want something ;) J also got to see its powers in action, so now writing our goals together have been one of our bonding activities. We revisit them every six months and adjust if needed. When they succeed, we evaluate and move on to another bigger goal. There's something inherently satisfying about this, like we're leveling up after overcoming obstacles and challenges.

And so I have been harping on to my friends about writing down their goals, and what better vessel to contain them than a new planner for the new year? 

Halfway through the longest lockdown in the world, some posts online said the most useless thing they bought pre-pandemic are planners. Well, to them maybe, but to me my planners and journals gave me a safe space to vent away from social media's prying eyes and organized my millions of to-dos. I wouldn't have survived my long hours of work + overtime without my to do lists.

Here are the planners I will be using this year:

Aquamarine Medium Quest Journal, Rouge Everyday Planner, and Disc Bound Belle de Jour Power Planner

There are a lot of resources available online with photos of the Belle de Jour Power Planner so unlike in previous years I will not be doing a flip-through of this anymore. You may check description and photos here. 

As I mentioned on my previous post, The 5 Year-Journal I wanted to get ran out of stocks and I didn't want to wait until the middle part of January to write in one, so I made a DIY version using my Quest Journal and then just buy refills when needed.

I actually didn't know what to use it for at first, I just liked the color of the cover so I got it, and now I will be writing on it every day for the next five years! I am turning 35 this year so I figured this would be a nice way to chronicle my being 35 to 40 years old. 

For my work planner and to do lists, I chose the Everyday Planner in Rouge. This line of products is by Winnie Wong, and I love how minimalist and no-frills it is. Perfect for my barrage of to-dos come January 5.

Here are more photos.

I love this idea of dreaming Big Goals and breaking them down into smaller, more manageable goals that you can easily work on.

The artworks are so pretty and calming.

I used the inclusive Monthly stickers in the spaces provided.

Look at how clean and spacious it is! I am excited to write and cross off my lists!

I do not think I will be decorating this planner that much as I intend to use it solely for work, but we'll see, maybe I can stick one or two stickers every couple of pages. I even included Neil Gaiman's 2021 Wish on the first page to serve as my guide and inspiration throughout the year.

Planners and pretty pages can never compensate for the government's poor planning, but I am starting with myself, planning for myself, and hopefully the Universe conspires.

Happy New Year, my friends! 2020 took so much out of us, so I hope you welcomed 2021 with happy and hopeful hearts. As for me, I am feeling somber but hopeful. Neil Gaiman said it best:

There's nobody in 2020 who hasn't been hurt by something in it. Our stories may be unique to us, but none of us is unique in our misery or our pain.

I only got to read two books last year. Unbelievable and pitiful. I do not want to be too hard on myself yet I am hoping to break that record so I set a mere three book-goal in Goodreads this time. 

New reads for the New Year: Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh, Becoming Better Grownups by Brad Montague, and Someone Who Will Love You in All Your Damaged Glory by Raphael Bob-Waksberg (I liked this so much that I also got it in trade paperback even though I already have it in both hardback and Kindle editions)

Aside from a proverbial clean slate, I am excited for new years because it means new planners. This year, I am using a Disc-bound Belle de Jour Power Planner for my daily planner, a medium Quest Journal as my DIY 5 Year-Journal, and a Rouge Everyday Planner (that it still on its way to me) as my everyday work to-do list tracker.

Buying notebooks and using them are two different hobbies, so I am extra proud of myself for utilizing my Quest Journal as my 5 Year-Journal. The 5 Year-Journal I wanted to get ran out of stocks, and I didn't want to wait until the middle part of January to write in one. I actually didn't know what use it for at first, I just liked the color of the cover so I got it, and now I will be writing on it every day for the next five years! I am turning 35 this year so I figured this would be a nice way to chronicle my being 35 to 40 years old.

I can't believe I am turning 35 this year @_@

Ending this blog post with Neil Gaiman's wishes for this year.

For this year... I hope we all get to walk freely in the world once more. To see our loved ones, and hold them once again.

I hope the year ahead is kind to us, and that we will be kind to each other, even if the year isn't.

Small acts of generosity, of speech, of reaching out, can mean more to those receiving them than the people doing them can ever know. Do what you can. Receive the kindnesses of others with grace.

Hold on. Hang on, by the skin of your teeth if you have to. Make art -- or whatever you make -- if you can make it. But if all you can manage is to get out of bed in the morning, then do that and be proud of what you've managed, not frustrated by what you haven't.

Remember, you aren't alone, no matter how much it feels like it some times.

And never forget that, sometimes, it's only when it gets really dark that we can see the stars.

Every time a year ends, I choose a word that encapsulates what that year meant for me. Last year, I wrote about how we were saying goodbye to a decade and welcoming a new one, but 2020 felt like a decade in itself.

I do not have a comprehensive blog post prepared with this year's highlights, and I can no longer write a long and winding soliloquy. The only word I can apply for 2020 is The Year of Adapting. We were dealt bad cards this year, but we adapted. This year was filled with adjusting to various changes and learning/ unlearning things. My job entails being surrounded by and meeting people, and working from home made me feel like a fish out of water at first. But we did it, self. Our country is being run by thieving clowns, and the situation does not look like it's going to improve any time soon, but I can only be thankful to still be here.

Other highlights of 2020 include: learning to bake and actually being good at it, Animal Crossing and the friends I made in the game + friendships it strengthened, supporting local and small businesses, spending more time with family, and celebrating five years of being with My Love. Fortune doesn't recognize calendars, but I'm really hoping 2021 has better things in store for us. Cheers and Happy New Year to you and yours.

Happy, safe, and healthy 2021, friends.

Best of the Best Manila is a Facebook Group I am a part of where people can ask, well, best of anything. I like browsing through the group as questions can range from best place to get cakes in Manila to best Shopee/ Lazada finds, et cetera, and other members have been generous with answers and recommendations so far. I also try to contribute every once in a while. 

One question asked yesterday was Best material gift you received this Christmas and why you consider them the best. I answered this:

Yes, friends! I finally have my own typewriter after including it in my Christmas wish lists since I started this blog back in 2008!!!

It's a cherry red typewriter and it has its own case, and it is GORGEOUS. My boyfriend gave it to me for Christmas, and you best believe I promptly burst into tears the moment I saw what was inside the heavy bag he handed me. I have wanted my own typewriter again ever since I lost my old cursive one along with our house in a fire back in 2001, and now I FINALLY HAVE ONE!

I used it straightaway and my fingers and ears reveled at the clack-clack-clack of the typewriter keys no computer keyboard can ever emulate. My brain is teeming with crafting and writing ideas, and I already dug through my pile of stationery to look for beautiful paper to type on. 

I spent quite a bit of time tonight looking for the typewriter model, and I believe it's a vintage Brother Deluxe 220 made in 1980. It's even older than me! What stories can you tell me, dear typewriter?

I have also decided my typewriter's a she. I need a name for her. What do you think of Ruby? I think I am going with Ruby.

Together with Ruby, J also got me a new kimono for Frances Alcott, a Little Prince vinyl figure, a Sailor Mercury mini figure, and a Sailor Moon necklace, all sporadically given all Christmas week. It felt like Christmas every day!

When the Philippines was first put in lockdown back in March, December seemed so far away. I was so sad when I had to spend my birthday at home instead of in another country (or city, even), and now it even reached J's birthday a week before Christmas. We were hopeful that the pandemic would be a distant memory by May, but months passed, and now 2020 is almost over. 

Merry Christmas from my Animal Crossing family to yours

I spent Christmas eve with my boyfriend's family. It was my first time to spend Christmas eve away from home, but we still got to exchange gifts albeit virtually. J's family and I exchanged gifts (but I got mine last week because I was supposed to go home prior so they gave me my gifts early), ate good food, and played games. I also made blueberry cheesecakes that quickly became a favorite.

Hello, friend. How are you? I hope you are well and safe and healthy and strong.

Contrary to what I believed during the beginning of quarantine that I would have more time at my disposal since I would no longer be commuting to and from work nor taking coffee or fast food runs, I actually have less time for myself these days. I attend at least three meetings per day, and work sometimes extends way past 6 PM. I also work on weekends. I am exhausted, but Christmas break looms in the horizon.

Yes, hours have blended into days into weeks into months, and now it's December. Can you believe??

On my last post, I told you about PMDD and how I think I may have it. Well I had some tests done, and yes, I do have it. I also have myomas again, which is shocking to me considering I've already had 11 myomas taken out back in 2018. It appears these nasty, needless, useless nuisances are really intent on bugging me, and now I really do not know how else to deal with them. I am scared of taking pills again because of their effect on my emotions, skin, and weight, so right now I am just ignoring them as long as I can. It's not that difficult to do seeing as how work keeps me so busy.

So, yes, back to the original point of this post. It has been my longstanding tradition in this blog to post my Christmas wish list every first day of December complete with fancy collages. I thought of not doing it this year, but I do not actually want to throw this tradition away and at the same time I figured it could be a good time to revisit this blog and show signs of life.

However, I am not really in the mood to be jolly and festive right now. Sure I still want a typewriter (this has been in my annual Wish Lists since I started this blog) and sure I still want a Silhouette Cameo but I actually do not have the space for them at the moment. (I can't wait to move out again.) It would be great to wish for the vaccine to be readily available soon and for this pandemic to end but I am not eight years old. My Wish Lists are all tangible things, bonus points if they are nicely wrapped under the Christmas tree. 

I want a Wish List but I do not know what to put on it (and believe me I have been racking my brain for about two weeks now. So I have decided to go ahead with My Christmas 2020 Wish List that is Not a Wish List.

Instead of a wish list, I am writing down Things I Wanted and Got and Now You Should Consider Them as Gifts to Your Family and Friends. A gift guide of sorts, if you will.

Things I Wanted and Got and Now You Should Consider Them as Gifts to Your Family and Friends

• My Starbucks mug for honey citron tea. It is such a happy color and I love the tiny spoon. Thanks to Ashley for enabling me!
• My Kindle Paperwhite is one of my favorite gifts given to me by J. I had a "where have you been all my life?" moment with my first Kindle, and this Paperwhite was such an upgrade! There are a lot of cute cases available now in Shopee.
• Silk Slumber set from Posh Flip. I have been wanting to switch to using silk pillow cases because they're more gentle for the hair and skin, and this set comes with a pillow case, a scrunchie, a hair tie, and an elastic hairband. They're all handmade by the shop owner, and they smelled so luxurious when they arrived to me. 
• This Blythe factory doll is my newest doll, and she is also J's gift to me. Depending on your interests and preferences, there are a lot of doll options available online together with clothes and accessories. You will definitely be spoilt for choice!
• Outlook Calendar is easy and convenient especially when you are jumping from one Teams meeting to another, but there's really something inherently satisfying with listing down your to-dos for the day and ticking them off throughout the day. They should bottle this feeling, I will definitely buy. Anyway, this aquamarine Quest Journal will fulfill this purpose for me next year.

• These coasters are resin works of art handmade by my twinnie Kristel. Check out her shop Handcrafted By Tellie and prepare your wallets.