Goodbye 2016, Hello 2017!

NOTE: I know, I'm so bad at posting!! But at least I'm not a year too late this time! lol)

The last quarter of 2016 shook up my world. I. am. not. kidding.

GOODBYE, 2016

I couldn't believe it, but a year after writing my New Year's Resolution/what I want 2016 to be, that was exactly what happened without me noticing it!

My life went as expected in the first 9 months. I did well in my work, hung out with friends, traveled, and baked a lot (lol). I lived every moment. But there's nothing extra ordinary. When the third quarter of the year went by, I started to notice that my life was boring. When I went out with friends, they all told interesting stories. But when they asked updates about me, all I could say is "same old, same old".

I lived the life of a paper girl.

Everything was ordinary. I've been comfortable with it, and that's the problem: being comfortable. Because this means that I'm limiting myself. I've built my roots in this society-given pattern already, and now I want to break free.

But in the last quarter of 2016, I took a risk that shook. my. whole. world. This risk is a jump-start to my 2017 towards time & financial freedom, and freedom from a society-driven life.

HELLO, 2017
Remember in the start of 2016 when I said I want to start my own business? Well, I already did!

Starting young presents so much challenges. A major factor is lack of support from family and friends. Everyone thinks I'm too young, and that I should use my education on working for someone else instead.

But being an entrepreneur pushed myself to levels that I never imagined I would ever achieve. This experience surpasses all the learning I've gathered inside and outside the classrooms of UP. I have been (and still am) fighting my comfort zone, my emotions, and my flawed mindset. I've never imagined myself to be in this situation, but I know that this will shape me into a Diamond that I am destined to be.

My mom said I'm too young to be working on my fortune. But that's the point; do I have to wait until I'm 30 and trapped deep in the Rat Race before I work on achieving financial freedom? It's never too early or too late to run for your goal.

This is the year I'll be working on myself and straightening out my life. I expect to meet a lot of people who will help me; and it's my goal to reconnect and to help a lot of people. I am already thankful for the people helping and supporting me, and I know God is with me in my new journey :)

2017 is my #EpicComeback! 

Goodbye 2015, Hello 2016!

EDIT: I *obviously* wrote this last year (January 2016), but never posted it. I don't remember why. But I'm posting this now (a year late) so I have something to look back on!

I know, I know; posts like this are a cliche. But I have different things to tell you.

GOODBYE, 2015
Let me start with the common things:

2015 has been a heck of a roller-coaster ride, but I am thankful for taking that ride! It's the year where:

I went to Bohol with just one companion, no adult supervision, made my own itinerary, and spent my own money on miscellaneous (my parents still funded my airfare and accommodation because I was still a student that time).

I finished my thesis study on my own! Researched, written, and defended it alone. All those sleepless nights and hours spent on the library was worth it! I didn't get best thesis award or anything prestigious, but I am still damn proud for accomplishing it all alone.

I graduated with Latin Honors in the University of the Philippines. It's still not sinking in, but it's a big deal because I wasn't expecting graduating with Latin Honors! Graduating on time alone is a great achievement, so graduating as a Cum Laude was a greater surprise. I wasn't really pressuring myself to graduate top of my class; I was just focusing on doing my best all the time.

I have finally been with my cousin, Colleen, who moved to Canada! After 7 long years, we have finally spent more than a month together. She stayed at my house most the time, and we went out almost every day making up all the lost time since she moved. We talk over Viber or e-mail or Facebook from time to time, but there were still things that I discovered about her. Like how she's a health conscious person now, and how hardworking she became.

I got a job! Okay, even while I was still in college, I have freelance jobs. I continued a freelance writing job while Colleen was here and shortly after she returned to Canada, started an online ESL tutoring job, and worked as the Operations Manager for ONLY MNL, all around the same time. But eventually, due to connection issues, I pursued harder to find an office job, which I did a month after Colleen left :) I am so thankful for the job I got because it's unconventional - I am the E-Commerce Manager of a retail/distributor company which sells branded watches. It's handling an online store and related to fashion - two of the things I (think) am good at!

I (FINALLY) learned how to drive! I'm already 21, so I really wanted to learn before I get too old and too busy to do so. It was my goal since I was 18, and I was finally able to do it :) After Colleen left, my dad enrolled me to driving school. After that, I started on my office job. On my first two months, dad was driving me to work (he's sweet like that, okay?). But last month, he already gave me the wheel so I can practice driving and get used to it. I feel like it's a big achievement given that the car I drive is manual transmission. Plus, I'll be the one to amortize it once dad buys his own car. :) Sure, it will burn a huge chunk of my salary, but at least I got to pay off my own car and not just rely on my parents to pay for it. It's a step closer to financial independence ;)


I met new friends, strengthened important relationships, and found out the different types of friends I have. I think it's important that not every relationship you have is the same. I love that I have work friends that I can hang out with, low-maintenance friends who are always there for you even if you don't talk every day, friends who are like family, and a combination of these.

Reflecting back, I love all of it. I am happy for what 2015 has turned out to be. Honestly, there are regrets. I regret not being more active back in college - if I were, then I might have more friends and more opportunities than I do now. I regret not choosing a better and more challenging topic or working harder on it - if I did, I might have won best thesis. But after graduating, I got a new set of paths to choose from. Right now, I don't know if I chose the best path, but I am happy where I stand.

If you haven't noticed yet, all of my memories listed here are quite common. Using the term in one of the latest book I read, Paper Towns, these are paper achievements for a paper girl. Everyone experienced the same thing - college, graduating, driving, getting a job. Everything was planned. Everything was paper. But just like Q (the male protagonist of the story), I liked the pattern. It's like a safe story line where if I fail, there's a lot of people who know what to say and how to help me handle the situation because everyone has been through it.

Hello, 2016
This 2016, I want the paper girl to be real.

That sounded dramatic, eh?

Seriously though, I don't know (yet) how to make everything real.

I want to take more risks. This 2016, I think what would define my year is my career. You know, being a fresh grad and all. I love my job, but I want to do something more. I am following one of my favorite professors advice back in college: get a job, learn from it, then quit. Okay, the "then quit" part was my edit. The original was "then build a business". That's a possibility, and it's one of my top choices on what to do in the future. But there are more options.

Bottom line is, I want to be different from the common grass. It may not be this year, though, because I still want to experience the paperness of everything. I want to build roots on my job, on this society-given pattern, then break free. Because to truly be different, I must know first what's the deal with being ordinary.

New Year's Resolution? I think it is to be more active online. I recall years back that my resolution was to be more present in the real world than the online world, but things have changed. Owning a baking blog, working in an online start-up business, and handling online accounts in my day job, it pretty much tells that my life is online now. And honestly, I think I express myself better here. Who knows, this online thing might be the thing that makes me a real person.

☀

Book Review: All The Bright Places

Reading Girl Online ignited my love for reading books. So the next time I went to a bookstore (which was less than a week, I bought another book. I was debating over buying All The Bright Places vs Paper Towns vs Looking for Alaska (the last two both by John Green), but I decided to go with this book because it has a pretty interesting story at the back of the book. It didn't give away much, which made it more mysterious and exciting to read.

The title doesn't give much clue about what the story is about, but here's the summary from the back of the book:

Theodore Finch is fascinated by death. Every day he things of ways he might die, but every day he also searches for - and manages to find - something to keep him here, and alive, and awake.Violet Markey lives for the future, counting the days until graduation, when she can escape her small Indiana town and her aching grief in the wake of her sister's death.

When Finch and Violet meet on the ledge of the bell tower at school - six stories above the ground - it's unclear who saves whom. And when the unlikely pair teams up on a class project to discover the "natural wonders" of their state, they go, as Finch says, where the road takes them: the grand, the small, the bizarre, the beautiful, the ugly, the surprising - just like life.Soon it's only with Violet that Finch can be himself - a bold, funny, live-out-loud guy, who's not such a freak after all. And it's only with Finch that Violet forgets to count away the days and starts living them. But as Violet's world grows, Finch's begins to shrink. This is a heart-wrenching, unflinching story of love shared, life lived, and two teens who find one another while standing on the edge.

Why I Bought This Book
They say don't judge a book by its cover, but I totally did that on this one. I mean, the sticky notes is very adorable! And the flower and bird makes me wonder on what these are and how it's related to the story.

What I Think About The Story
Violet is this popular girl who seems to have her life perfectly planned already, but a terrible accident will change things for her. Finch, on the other hand, is this weird kid who is so fascinated about death. He has this quirky character that people don't understand, and he doesn't care what they say. In fact, he keeps up with this image of his and creates a lot of persona. This eventually makes Violet more attracted to him.

Hold up - it's not an average love story! If I haven't told you before, I don't like love stories that follows a formula (boy meets girl, fights, conquers challenges and lives happily ever after). This is a story about finding who you are. It's about understanding how life goes, and how people get along with it. It just so happens that Violet and Finch are both going through something, that this class project has brought them closer, and that they have (unconsciously) been helping one another get through their problems. But again, it's not (entirely) a love story.

It's very unconventional - and I love it. The plot was so twisted, that I couldn't believe it until the end of the book. I was honestly waiting for the author to tell at the last chapter that it was all just a deception or a dream, but it wasn't.

I also love how it is true to life. If you'll read the author's note, you'll understand that it comes from her real life experience.

What I think about the book (construction and more)?
Perfect.

I like how the perspective jumps from the two main characters. Below the name of the character who's narrating that specific chapter, there's also countdown to important things in their life: graduation for Violet, and "being awake" for Finch. This format explains their thoughts better, and it shows what they think of one another. I love how the author built the characters in a way that I became attached to them as I was reading the story. The plot was unexpected, but it was real life.

Would I recommend the book?

Definitely! Especially to those who are troubled, and think that there's no more to life. Reading this book will make you realize that you're not alone, that someone, even people who you don't expect to, is with you. They might not completely understand what you're thinking and/or going through, but there are people who are willing to listen and to help in any way that they can.

DISCLAIMER:
All that I have written are my opinion (except for the summary written at the back of the book, ofcourse). This is not a sponsored post (no matter how cool that would've been!). I tried to make this post as objective as I could (though I must admit that there's a bit of bias here). I have written this to help other readers to get an idea what to read next. I am in no way a professional book critic (but who knows? maybe one day...). 

Amana Waterpark Resort | Day Out with Work Friends

I have told you about my box theory before, and I think it is working. One box of my life is still clattered, but my "work friends" box is definitely in a good place right now :)

Ever since my first week in my new job, my officemates have been inviting me to join them in this day trip in Bulacan. On the original date of the trip, I had to back out (you could actually read what I did that weekend in this post). And believe it or not, they moved the date so I could join them! They're the sweetest because a normal set of colleagues won't do that considering that their other officemates (those that have resigned from the company already) is also clearing up their sched for this.

We ended up doing it last week (I had to edit photos and actually work before making a blog post, okay?). We had to meet early, like 6am early, at Cubao to get there early. Some were late, so we were complete by almost 7am. But an obstacle happened -- the person holding the vouchers (we availed Buy 1 Take 1 vouchers) could not be reached! No text from him and not even answering any calls. We waited for 2 hours, and I honestly thought we wouldn't push through. But some of us were already waiting at Bulacan... Luckily, one of my colleague's sister had the same vouchers as well that we could borrow for the mean time. So even if the sun was already shining brightly, we rode the first bus going there!

The first time I rode a bus to travel to somewhere was when I was in Bohol for my thesis field work back in college. I haven't rode a bus in Manila going to any province before! Heck, I don't even ride the bus to commute! But this was a nice experience for me -- it's the people who you are with that makes even a normal situation extra special and memorable :)

After a bus plus tricycle ride, we finally arrived at Amana Waterpark Resort!

 

We rented out a cabana, brought lunch and snacks, and ate and laughed together before deciding to have a dip in the pools. Funny story -- the guy from the cabana behind us was listening and laughing with our jokes!

The place was actually huge! There were lots of pools to go to - if I remember correctly, there were 5 open pools that time, but there were more that were temporarily closed.

We started at the wave pool,

tried out other pools,

took photos at Jurrasic World,

then came back to the wave pool.

It was a fun Saturday with work friends and new found friends :) I honestly couldn't describe the giddy feeling I got the whole time I was with them. It looked like we were friends forever when I just met them for around 8 weeks! I even got instant "twins" that day :))

Here are more photos:

 

One of the rare shots I'm in! :))

Eaten by a dinosaur??

My "twins" and our house :))

 

  

Crazy part? I was with my college friends that same night and went to my first college party! And yes, I have graduated college already. But my friends are still on their last semester, so I kinda count like a college student as well! :)) But that's another story (not) to tell ;)

PS. I'm not in most of the photos! But I did enjoy taking photos of my new friends :)

Book Review: Girl Online by Zoe Sugg

You reading this post right now proves that you're a netizen - that you have this virtual life where you're most likely a different person than who you are in "real" life. I'm not saying it's a bad thing; just like me, you could be more comfortable here. Just like Penny.

Personally, I think Penny and I have a lot in common: she's this regular, quiet, and clumsy teenager (might not pass the "teenager" category anymore but that's not the point here) who loves taking photos (definitely me) and embarrasses herself more than an average person does (holaaaa!). But unlike me, she has this growing blog called "Girl Online" where she stayed anonymous and expressed herself freely there. Most importantly, she has this panic attacks and anxiety problem which deprives her from a lot of opportunities - such as flying to New York for a very important business trip for her family.

It's hard to deny that her character is hugely inspired by the author's life herself. Zoe Sugg, better known as Zoella, is a blogger turned YouTuber with 9 Million+ subscribers (as of the time I posted this). Living the life of a blogger with anxiety issues has "Zoella" written all over it. This is what makes her relate-able to a lot of her readers. She shows the world that she's a person, too. That no matter hard it is to believe, she's not perfect. She breaks this distorted image that social media builds creating the illusion of a perfect life.

Okay, it's hard to deny that I'm a fan of Zoella. But I'll try to make my book review as objective as I could.

Speaking of, I haven't finished my short (?) description of the book yet...

With the help of her family and best friend, she overcomes her panic attacks. This leads her to meeting Noah. But what she doesn't know is that Noah has a secret life as well, just like how she's secretly "Girl Online".

I don't want to tell more because I might spill some of the twists of the story. But here's the summary at the back of the book (SPOILER ALERT!!!) :

Penny has a Secret.

Under the alias Girl Online, Penny blogs her hidden feelings about friendship, boys, high school drama, her quirky family, and the panic attacks that have begun to take over her life, When things go from bad to worse at school, her parents accept an opportunity to whisk the family away for Christmas at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. There, Penny meets Noah, a gorgeous, guitar-strumming American. Suddenly Penny is falling in love - and capturing every moment she spends with "Brooklyn Boy" on her blog. 

But Noah has a secret, too, one that threatens to ruin Penny's cover - and her closest friendship - forever. 

An instant New York Times bestseller in hardcover, this heart-felt coming-of-age novel perfectly captures the highs and lows of first love, friendship, and growing up in the digital age. 

So the summary spilled a lot more details than I did. But it's better that they did instead of me, right?

WHY I BOUGHT THE BOOK
To be completely honest, I bought it because of Zoella. I watch her vlogs almost everyday and I keep on hearing about her first novel and I was pretty excited to get my hands on one. Sadly, I got a copy days before she released the second book. So every one else in the world has read it already when I got my hands on it. I got the paperback, and I was honestly disappointed at first because I want the hardcover so bad (mainly because it's like a "collectible" for Zoella items). But the thought of finally being able to read the first book was more overwhelming and important. :)

WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE STORY
I love Zoella, but I think it's predictable. Well, not so predictable that I already know what will happen step by step in the story, but in a way that I already have an idea on how the story will end - that Penny and Noah will still be together despite the circumstances (major spoiler). I'm sorry, but I think the story follows this overused formula/stages - (1) girl goes through a lot, (2) girl meets boy, (3) they are initially happy, (4) something threatens their relationship (most likely to be a someone or a secret), (5) fights, (6) then gets back together by this grand gesture you see in the movies.

But, this doesn't discourage me to finish the book. It still gives me that giggly feeling because Noah + Penny's adventures still put a smile on my face. The story still makes me grip the book and read faster to know what happens next. It's a nice breath of sunshine that puts me to sleep with a smile on my face. :)

Also, I love how this book is so now. It discusses issues about living in the internet - how it could make you happy and make new friends, but also how it could isolate yourself from people in your "real" life and the effects of cyber bullying. Most importantly, it gives people who experience panic attacks or anxiety an idea on how to handle it, and it teaches people how to help them. Also, Penny will show her readers how to handle cyber bullying especially when it has already affected your "real" life.

But please don't hate me for saying this -- I think Zoe could have done a better job in discussing panic attacks, especially that she experiences this herself. Don't get me wrong -- I still learned a lot about this in her book. But it seems to me like she just inserted the panic attacks in some chapters and you'll completely forget about it when she's with Noah. But maybe that's the point, that people close to you could help you overcome anxiety.

I also had a hard time wrapping my head around the concept that her family is flawless. Let's be real here: no family is perfect. There was no point in the book where any of her family members argued. It just feels so good to be true, that it's not relateable in that level anymore. I have a complete family and I love all of them, but there are times where we argue but we still know that we love each other.

WHAT I THINK ABOUT THE BOOK (CONSTRUCTION, MARKETING, ETC)
Considering that this is Zoe's first book, I have to praise her for doing a good job. But as a reader, I wasn't transported to Penny's world that effectively. For me, her description of the characters' surroundings and emotions lacks a little bit.

For the book cover, this might be the best cover in all the books that I have in my shelf so far! I really screams "ZOE" to me whenever I look at it. It really feels like a peg for a blog design for me. And being a story about a blogger, it makes sense.

I am not doubting Zoe's skills and I believe that she deserves all the recognition her book gathered - but let's admit that she being the author gave her an instant market.

Despite all of this, I am looking forward to her next book; Girl Online: On Tour. For one, I am curious how "Girl Online" (blog) will be in jeopardy while she's on tour with Noah. Second, I honestly want to see Zoe's improvement as an author.

WOULD I RECOMMEND THE BOOK?
If you want a fun, light story to put a smile on your face, then yes!

I'm not just saying this because I'm a fan of Zoella, but because the book actually gave me good vibes for the whole 5 days I was reading it. I read the book every night after work, and it gave me something to get me through the day.

Most importantly, it discusses the unique issues of growing in this digital age. I know there are a lot of victims of cyber bullying, and Penny here will show you how to stand against it. So if you are or was a victim, then do grab yourself a copy.


DISCLAIMER:
All that I have written are my opinion (except for the summary written at the back of the book, ofcourse). This is not a sponsored post (no matter how cool that would've been!). I tried to make this post as objective as I could (though I must admit that there's a bit of bias here). I have written this to help other readers to get an idea what to read next. I am in no way a professional book critic (but who knows? maybe one day...). 

My Life in Boxes

I have this theory about how to live my life: I live it in boxes.

When asked what's the most important aspect of my life, I honestly don't know what to say. I guess it's because I treat every aspect of my life equally. In my box theory, I live my life in different boxes. You may have heard about it already, but I can't recall (or think of) the better term. Basically, there's boxes for everything: a box for studies (which is closed -- for now), a box for family, a box for friends, a box for a relationship, a box for work, and a box for goals. I do this so that if one aspect of my life fails, my life wouldn't collapse because there are other boxes that'll keep me up.

Each box may have sub-boxes; a good example is my box of friends, where there are separate boxes for high school friends, college friends, work friends, etc. Some box may be bigger and more meaningful than the others, but each one is important in its own way.

Recently, one box of my life collapsed. It's a big, meaningful box of my life. Honestly, it still hurts. I still cry myself to sleep every night. But in the mornings at work, I'm focused. In lunch breaks with officemates, I joke along with them. In nights out with friends, I laugh along with them. But when I sit alone in my quiet room, the pain floods back. So I pull out my laptop and blog.

You may call it simply diverting my attention, but I think that's the approach to materializing my theory.

This blog post may seem pointless, but I just want to say this: this is my approach to my problems. I portray a strong, well-collected image on the outside, but my emotions are screaming on the inside. I may seem to have a well-planned and perfect life, but I, myself, believe that perfection doesn't exist. It's just a state which continues to change its meaning. I have never been and never will be perfect. I commit mistakes, make bad decisions, and say the wrong words. But I still love myself for who I am.

My box theory helps me space out the negative thoughts surrounding me and to focus on the important things. Now when one of the important things fail, there's still more to focus on.

When asked what's the most important aspect of my life, I honestly don't know what to say. But maybe the safe answer is love. Love, that ignites passion for my work, career, and dreams. Love, from the people around me that keeps me standing tall. Love, that completes me.

Weekend Sepanx

I haven't blogged in a year! Thanks to Zoe's and Aspyn's blogs, I have been inspired to start posting on my little space in the internet again. :) I don't have hundred thousands of followers like they do, but it just feels nice to have an online diary.

Anywho;

This weekend, my parents are out of town. I am happy because (1) they get to spend time with just each other and forget about work for a while, and (2) I get a bit more freedom than I usually do!

Weekends have been more special for me because I started working a month ago. That two-day break feels more special now that I work 5 days a week. Although I don't despise Mondays because I guess I'm still excited with my new job, this weekend is different.

The start of my unique weekend!

On Friday night, I slept at someone else's house. We woke up very early because we had to pick up Tita Lira at the airport. I absolutely missed her! It has been 6 long months. That afternoon, we went to the mall to buy her a new phone and to dine out. I went home that night as promised to my parents.

The next day was something absolutely different for me. I went to church with someone else aside from family. My mom's views are very traditional: this includes declaring Sunday as family day. But since they aren't around, I decided to spend it at someone else's house instead of staying home alone (which happens quite frequently anyway).

Before going home, I'm having separation anxiety (that's what Sepanx mean, in case you didn't know) with this weekend. It's very different because I felt more independent for two days. Don't get me wrong, I miss my parents. But just being outside without worrying that your mom is already waiting for you with a well-prepared sermon feels nice.

Oh well. Tomorrow is another day. My parents are still on vacation for a few more days, but it feels different now because my mom left some office work for me to handle for her (which still feels nice because it means she trusts me), and my dad won't be around to bring and to pick me up from work (yes, he's sweet that way).

On the flip side, looking forward to a jam packed week ahead! This week, I have lots of social gatherings scheduled. Another milestone for an introvert like me who prefers spending time alone, eh? ;)

☀