Zone of Solitude

If I could let you see my online shopping cart, next to stickers for my bullet journal, the other thing you'll notice that I frequently purchase nowadays would be my favorite item: brain food, or in the simplest word: books! Most titles are written by homegrown authors.

I got my copy of Dear Doctor Joey by Ayris Alcachupas days after Ash Wednesday, which makes this one of those long overdue posts. Anyway, I was enticed to get a copy of this book weeks after it was launched online on Valentine's Day. At that time, I had just finished reading her other book, My BFF's BF. I was prompted to order the second book online to follow the story of two of its characters, Blue and Joey Nikki.

A social serye I encountered from a Facebook page, Dear Doctor Joey chronicles the story of Blue and Joey Nikki post-breakup after being a couple for five years. Despite she's already successful in her career as a pediatrician, Joey Nikki still longs to find answers to the questions surrounding their breakup and why Blue suddenly left her without a trace except for a breakup letter.

Next to its two main characters, the other people who are important in their story are also present in Dear Doctor Joey, as the book is not just focused on romance but on long-term friendships too. Ayris Alcachupas was able to narrate the installment of Joey and Blue's story well. While I confess that I rarely read books by local authors, hers was one of the works that left me engaged and literally up all night for some days. This book revived my wanderlust and made me want to carry out my plan to travel to Cebu, which is a must-visit place on my bucket list. While others might see a 12-chapter book as time-consuming to read, it wasn't the case for me. Reading this book left me entertained and interested, I didn't care if it was way past my bedtime because I was curious to find out what happens one scene after another. In some way, I was just like Joey, searching for many answers. From the reason for the breakup, if Joey gets the closure she needs; the link of the story's villain to Joey's admirer colleague (this is something I consider as one of the book's "plot twists"), to whether or not Blue and Joey Nikki will be entitled to a second chance and a happy ending.

If someone asks me for Wattpad authors with worth-reading stories, this book is something that I will not hesitate to recommend especially for those who are at the point and situation of wanting to let some things go -- because sometimes circumstances have their way of saying things are over yet until Fate intervenes to say so.

The past few months have been crazy, making this blog a quiet space. I planned to write this entry two weeks ago, but for some reason, my brain cells weren't cooperating that much; it made me postpone doing any updates.

I am currently part of an internship program at a local real estate marketplace. Despite an unpaid stint, I decided to take the plunge to get some experience. Having been forced to go on a career break due to the pandemic, I knew I should gain some skill than just being idle. For the last two months, logging in to Discord for 2-3 hours during weekdays to do random HR duties have been part of my daily routine. I know you're curious about how do I manage to do it. Well, part of the reasons why I opted to give this internship a try is for me to find out if I can run things on a work-from-home setup. Anyway, I am not alone in the team as I work with other women (most of them are moms) who I get to communicate with remotely because they reside in different provinces in the Philippines. I expect to finish the internship in the first week of July and hopefully receive my certificate of completion around the same month.

Health-wise, I will not deny that I wasn't 100% in the pink of health months ago. Blame it on some personal and career-related issues I have been dealing with; I experienced episodes of erratic blood pressure that I had to consult a general practitioner. My BP still surges occasionally. But I can manage it now with medicines which I take when needed.

Career-wise, getting a new job is still a struggle for me. Call it maturity or part of the experience, but I've learned and got used to receiving and shrugging off rejection emails from various HR departments. While there would be nights I'd find myself worrying and filled with uncertainty, I still try and apply for jobs whenever I see one where I think my experience and credentials would fit. With the hope that I will eventually be accepted in that one job that will offer me something better (if not best) and replace that job that I abruptly lost due to the ongoing circumstance.

On the positive side, I decided to explore my creativity further by creating another Instagram account last March. But unlike my personal IG account, The Chinita Reader is my other channel dedicated only to books that I have read or currently reading, regardless of their author or if it's an old book or a recently published one. I'm in the process of trying to finish reading another book I purchased recently and will also appear on that account.

Between job hunting, pondering about life at the moment, and being a bookworm, I find time to go outside and check out events. I went to SM Center Angono yesterday to check out the exhibit Arte de las Flores. It's been a habit for me to see what's exhibited whenever I drop by the Art Walk, and the current ones on display are worth the visit.

Should I go MIA again, just try to think I am busy exploring new things and going to places that can be worth writing! And before I forget, we only have around two weeks and half of they year is about to be end. I would love to hear what you've been up to and how the last six months have been for you so far. Share any life update in the comments. I would love to read them.

Lee Seon-joo, a supporting character from one of my favorite Korean dramas entitled Her Private Life said in one episode that art is the product of desire. And while I admit that arts (especially visual ones) aren't my cup of tea, I just found myself unexpectedly giving it a shot recently.

I started using bullet planners at the height of the pandemic in 2020 because I just wanted to try it for a change. But for someone who has always been a user of ruled daily planners, shifting to bullet journals entailed a lot of challenges especially for a neophyte like me. I'm a bit obsessive when it comes to writing along straight lines and wide spaces; something which became hard for me to do at first given that next to dates, the pages of a bullet journal (or bujo, as others call it) has nothing else but dots.

It took a few tries and maybe a few months for me to get used to it. And aside from learning how to use a bulleted system of planning my day-to-day agenda, another thing that fascinated me with bujos are in those monthly spreads. The pages of a bullet journal tend to become boring especially for those who have never tried using one. I've always been intrigued about how my friend, Beth G., who is a bullet journaling enthusiast, creates her monthly spreads, which she either writes on her blog or posts on her Instagram account. The past few months, I've been spending minutes of my day watching Instagram reels on creating and designing bujo page spreads. And despite the lack of skill in the arts and design department, I ended up giving it a shot.

For someone with limited skill in arts, creating one can be a bit daunting. But just like what I read in one online article, a bujo doesn't need to look too artrsy, or else it will deplete its real purpose. In the case of my bullet journal, while I also have the habit of designing some of its pages, I still keep it to a minimum. Most of its pages are adorned by die cut stickers which I bought from either online sellers or the ones I found at bookstores, and recently from Mr. DIY located in SM Center Angono.

Beth was right when she said that customizing a blank page of a bullet journal can be mentally satisfying. But at the same time, I maintain its purpose when I bought it at the beginning of the year; that its to help me unwind and clear my mind by writing anything and everything in it -- from my daily tasks, errands to what I think of about what's happening around me.

In the end, I may be a bit lacking with skills to prettify my bullet journal, but then, the contents and notes written in every page still represents the writer, and lover of words that I truly am.

It's the last day of March. As I flip through the pages of my bullet journal this afternoon, I'm asking subconsciously how swift could time go? We were just starting to plan our year weeks back, and now, it's the end of the first quarter of 2022.

How had you been in the last three months?

While I was looking forward to welcoming the new year with a bang, the Universe gave us a surprising version of it. While the ordeal that we went through at the beginning of the year scared the hell out of us, it proved to be something that came with purpose. For together with the struggles and fears associated with COVID-19 were significant realizations that I never thought I would ponder on for the longest time.

I also decided to revive my love for reading after putting in on hold for months. Since the beginning of the year, I took advantage of the convenience of online shopping (plus the free shipping, and discounts), buying books on different topics and genres and spending a good amount of time daily immersing in its pages. Next to occasionally taking time off from social media, reading is an activity that never failed to give my mind the kind of healing it deserves.

The first three months of 2022 was filled with plot twists. I was able to spend a good amount of time making new friends, and catching up with long-time ones. Just weeks after Valentine's Day, I found myself going on an unplanned road trip around Rizal, and the nearby province of Laguna. The experience proved to be liberating. Indeed, one really has to go somewhere that she's never been. For the discoveries we get from the experience contributes something to enrich our being.

But the first 90 days was not all pure sunshine. There were also days filled with things that gave me a rollercoaster of emotions. I won't hide it. There were days filled with worry, tears, disappointment, and even anger. I just chose to accept the fact that there are situations I really have no control of, either I'll have to live with it, ignore it, or do something to somehow change it. Careerwise, I received numerous rejections. But then, I just chose to shrug my shoulders on those rather than questioning what is missing or why can't I fit in.

Tomorrow, another month begins as it marks the second quarter of the year. I am about to begin with new endeavors too. And while I am not sure as to what will happen next, I guess I'll just try to walk by faith. Regardless if it's make or break, I know I won't be left with nothing in whatever undertaking or adventure that I'll try to pursue.

A few weeks ago, I browsed through my posts in this blog, and after reading the first entry I wrote and published from 2008, I realized, I have been keeping this blog and writing my thoughts for 14 years.

It was not Blogger that served as my original platform. I was introduced to blogging through Friendster in 2005, and I must say that during that time, I just wanted to try it, and have an idea of what the hype back then was about. When Friendster was at the brink of losing its popularity, I started looking for another platform, and found Blogger in February 2008.

I still have my entries from my old Friendster blog from 2005 which I salvaged and transferred manually in Blogger and set to private mode. Those were stories related to my life after I graduated from college, first job blues, a few unpublished literary work, and my thoughts about my first relationship and what I felt when that boyfriend (now an ex) and I broke up years later.

Now back to this blog, the real purpose of this blog was just to be a place to share my discoveries, and as a way for me to continue to practice and improve my writing skills. My blog may be that old, but I only did three design revamps, two of which were generic designs available on the platform, while this recent design was created with the recommendation and help of my techie author-friend, Beth G.

While this was a space to spill out my thoughts and ideas about a lot of things, to gain readership wasn't really one of my aims when I started blogging. But in the years that I was writing and publishing posts about various topics, I also had the chance to virtually interact with some readers who happen to find my blog by accident. Some of them even became my friends which I get to bond with every now and then when our schedules permit. And it's something I consider to be a bonus.

14 years and more than 600 stories. I am aware that I don't post entries often these days compared to the time I was starting in 2008. But that's because I am also busy discovering new things when I am offline and away from my keyboard. I can attest to writing as a therapeutic activity, but since I decided to maintain this as a "lifestyle blog", I made a separate blog that housed the emotions and words that the introvert nerd that I am couldn't openly express or communicate to people. That's because I would like to maintain the purpose of this space as its title suggests.

To make this a place where I can find some peace and quiet that can somehow tone down the noise of a chaotic world.

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Despite my penchant for Korean TV shows and programs, zombie-themed series aren't really my thing. I haven't even watched Train to Busan, so it came as a surprise how I got into watching the recent Netflix hit, All of Us Are Dead. If you haven't seen it and have plans of doing so, I highly suggest that you stop reading from here, or else you won't get much of the adrenaline rush which is best felt by watching the show.

High school feels and some...zombies!

Okay, so that subheading gives it away ( a bit!). Just like my previously-loved shows, Crash Landing on You and Hospital Playlist, All of Us Are Dead is also a Netflix original series. The story revolves around a group of students from the fictional Hyosan High School, and how their normal lives become deranged when a seemingly harmless bite from a specimen in their school's science lab creates chaos on campus because each individual transforms into creepy Halloween creatures! While I am a neophyte viewer of the zombie-apocalypse horror genre, I cannot say that watching (and even finishing the whole 12 episodes in 3 days) events unfold with blood, gore, and heart-racing scenes from this show was bad at all. One of my friends told me that variety is the spice of life. If this could be considered a form of putting variety in my usual Kdrama viewing habit, I must say that for once, my decision to give it a try was worth it.

Survival skills, strategies, and sacrifices

I will not sugarcoat it. This show left my heart exhausted; because like the characters, I also felt like I was among those running for precious life from start to finish. Those scenes involving zombies are intense; they always kept me at the edge of my seat. On the other hand, as the plot suggests, given that it involves the element of high school student life, what made the show interesting in a way, was how lessons taught in school were utilized in the group's strategy for survival. So, yes guys, I highly advise you not to ignore what you learned from your teachers in physics, chemistry, and even PE! Trust me, they can help you survive when you get attacked by a zombie (and if you do, you'll get to thank your teachers later!)

But the show is not all blood, gore, and horror. The creators also included scenes that tackle the importance of making your time and existence count, and the unconditional love of parents -- scenes that can melt the hearts of viewers.

All of Us Are Dead is reportedly due for a second season. There are some cliffhanging questions from season 1 that were left in my head so if you were to ask me if I will give it another shot, well, probably. But for now, I will give my brain and my heart the rest and recovery time it deserves. After all, it's not easy watching and feeling as if I am also chased by those flesh-eating monsters too.

During our last coffee bonding session last December, my friend Beth G. asked for the gifts that I, and my other friend, Kim would like for Christmas. At that moment, Beth had mentioned that the book Every Moment Was You would be available in the Philippines. Blame it on being a bibliophile, and a Kdrama fan, I did not hesitate anymore and told her that the said book is what's on my wishlist.

Written by Tae-wan Ha, Every Moment Was You contains essays and poems on the subject of love and its seasons. The prose and essays were divided based on different stages, from the process of waiting and looking for it, finding love, falling out, and moving forward. Originally penned in Korean, it was translated to English by Ma. Kristina Carla Rico and Kyung Min-bae.

photo from Twitter

If you are a fan of Korean dramas, the book surely is a familiar sight as it appeared on some episodes of the rom-com drama What's Wrong With Secretary Kim? And since Beth considers me as someone with the (career) resemblance to Park Min Young's character as Kim Mi-so, I believe that this book is an essential item in my reading list.

While this was something Beth originally planned to hand me for Christmas, I had to wait for a month to get hold of this book. This was after the COVID restrictions were heightened due to the rise of infections after the holidays, which made us decide to postpone the meetup temporarily. But it was still worth the wait. I received the gift when we met for coffee during Chinese New Year, February 1. While it may be long-overdue for Christmas, the book is still appropriate just in time for Valentine's Day.

When I asked Beth for her feedback about the book (having read it first), she said it was like reading unsent letters and speaking to your TOTGA (the one that got away) given that its theme is about love and its stages. But as I immersed into its pages, more than just the imaginary conversations with a lover, and reminiscing about one's own romantic relationships, this literary work provided comforting words for those who are dealing with your their personal circumstances. Reading some of the essays and poems, there are pieces that spoke words of advice. It's as if I am speaking to a friend and asking her two cents worth, and nuggets of wisdom as I try to navigate through a different point of my life, if not questioning a lot of things and decisions related to it.

More than just the eye-candy pastel book cover, I would recommend this if you are looking for a relaxing book to read as part of your nighttime ritual.

Every Moment Was You is published in the Philippines by Adarna House, Inc. and is available on Lazada and Shopee.