WTF: The Good Place: Human-ness reimagined

To get into what my ideas about the afterlife were like in what feels like a past life, without getting much into why, (I will really really try!) I used to think that whatever was ~beyond~ would be a timeless space, unbound by whatever simple three-dimensional idea we have of "places". That made thinking about what "Heaven" or "Hell" (or even "Purgatory".. I know, I said I won't get into it!) would, or even could be like was very tiring and confounding. I can't be the only kid who thought that was way too simple!

So of course I ended up just half-accepting what "people-who-somehow-knew-even-if-they're-still-alive" would claim, and what the general consensus around me seems to think at any point in time, (which was never consistent of course!!!) to save some energy for the life I'm supposed to be living in accordance to ..whatever dictates what it takes to get into whatever The Good Place is after this life, which now I can't focus on, because afterlife. Argh! I'm such a Chidi!

Anyway, that's all behind me now, and I said I won't get into it, so I won't, but all of that stress I had provided the perfect contrast for me to really, really, really appreciate this show.

The Good Place is an NBC/Netflix show about the afterlife. Specifically, Eleanor Shellstrop, who gets toured around by Michael, the Arch...itect of the Good Place. I will not get much into the story, because it's so twisty in such a GREAT way. I do not have the heart to spoil ANYTHING for anyone. So here's just a simple list of what I appreciate about the show:

1. The lightness of it. Of course if you're the type of person who might find this heretical or sacrilegious to talk about afterlife things with any degree of lightness, then I might not be selling this to you well right now, but I have faith in humankind, and I want to believe you will still find something to lightheartedly chuckle about. But I love how it approaches this topic, that used to give younger me so much doom and gloom, with so much lightness, and yet:
2. Insight. Make no mistake - just because it is lighthearted, does not mean it is empty and vapid, or even pokes fun at the striving of humans to be better people! On the contrary, I think, to it's core, the show is about dissecting and really taking an honest look at goodness, that doesn't favor any group of people. What is goodness, how does intention factor into it, and what is a well-lived life?
3. The depth of each character: They take on tropes for the sake of caricaturish hilarity in line with the perky mood of the show, but as you watch more episodes, your understanding of each character deepens, and they turn from being two-dimensional character tropes, to actually very satisfying archetypes that illustrate a lot of what being human is like!

They are starting their final season this month, and I do admit that it went more and more loopy and random after the main crux was fully developed and resolved in the 2nd season, but if you haven't yet, and have the time and the Netflix subscription to do so, definitely give it a watch! It's a Good Show.

WTF: The show Coffee Prince ...was ahead of its time!

Unlike me, who is, effectively, twelve years behind on this.

Super late reaction, I know, but I'm sure I'm not the only one, as Netflix had just recently added it to their roster.

On my birthday, Beardy and I were chilling in my mom's living room the whole afternoon. My family was out on churchly duties but had left Coffee Prince playing on Netflix, and we sort of just left it on, paying attention every now and then as we go about our business. I started paying real attention about half-way in the story.

You see, I had my doubts. Everytime I see gender-bending outside of what I percieve to be LGBT-safe contexts, I'm afraid to pay attention because I'm afraid to see transphobic things. And knowing that many of my friends have seen this show, I did not want to feel bad or worried. I'm not really the type that enjoys catching people make mistakes, like what many people seem to do in our current call-out culture. I see too clearly how damaging ideas are formed and do not feel free to blame any one particular individual a lot of the time. I just see how systematic the problem is and end up feeling quite bad. But after watching the rest of it, I actually ended up feeling quite good! Such a nice, weird, fun, but heartwarming show. Here are some points!

EUN-HYELMET IS SO CUTE DEMMET

Subversion that isn't merely for the sake of shocking: I have to admit I judged it pretty hastily. "What? How could they not know that she's a girl after she took her helmet off?! Come on." I thought it was purely an immature "BoYs aRe liKe thiS bUt GiRls are norMalLy nOt! heuk heuk" shock-and-awe type of humor, but the more I watched it, the more I saw it as a tool to be able to write a well-rounded female character. When the characters make statements about gendered expectations, it doesn't feel like the show is taking a stance, but rather, it feels like it is reflecting a realistic portrayal of how people currently think about gender, and how when we get over it, more organic, diverse ways of being a woman or being a man are allowed into existence.

Like the cute friendship of these two!!!

Of course, there was still space for caricatures for humor, and this doesn't necessarily get used for all the characters in the show, but you see that perspective shine through every now and then. Remember, this was 2007 so that was pretty great already! It was subversive for the sincere purpose of writing realistic people.


Characters with deep emotional depth: There isn't a switch in the hearts of the characters that can be clicked on with the use of a grand gesture plot device. When they get hurt, there's a struggle between holding and moving on. It takes time, and you can see them negotiate and deal with their feelings. They ask for space, and explain how they feel.

When Hang-sung and Yoo-joo make up, or not? or yes, or no? Yes. They did.

The male lead in particular is really shown as immature, and even though they seemed to make that look "cute" at times, I didn't feel like it was ever portrayed as valid. It is often repeated that he needs to "grow up". The female lead, even when she inadvertently hurts his feelings by choosing to study abroad, is shown to be reasonable for doing this, and rather than breaking the relationship off, the two are shown maturing in their own ways. The girl's horizons widen, and the boy's emotional endurance becomes strengthened. Instead of going back to his playboy ways, he actually makes a long distance relationship work. He is able to be patient for once, and for his character, that's a huge development.



His grandma is also a very interesting character in this area. She isn't portrayed as a simple villain. She is trying to do what's best for her grandson, and she is a victim of falling for her first impression. She is eventually won over, but not by a grand gesture. It took time, and she gave a condition that also lets the girl gain something, and eases her own qualms about the relationship. It is still pretty extreme, but it's suited to the character once again. It doesn't feel like a stance from the writers, but just a natural extension of the character.

Romantic authenticity: This show didn't have the weird alien "air-brushed" feeling that other shows have nowadays. Remember that delightfully disgusting Jjajangmyeon battle?!

If you have a weak stomach, just don't. Pretend it's just a picture.

There is awkwardness (A LOT OF IT OMG?), there is sex, there are potty mouths, brash characters, and you love it all in some way, because it feels sincere. Even when you're slinking at the end of your seat during the convertible scene. That's TOO LONG TO NOT PUT YOUR SEATBELT ON WHY ISN'T ANYONE PULLING THEM OVER?

All in all, I felt like the show was trying to say that everyone's different, and you must be authentic and true to yourself, but you do not use this as an excuse to never improve yourself. Everyone will have their own way of "being better", and will have their own conditions that they need to sustain their individuality while giving part of themselves to others. It's a freestyle dance, and you cannot expect people to line up in rows and do a line dance for the sake of making it simpler. There will be bumping involved, but there will always be space for who you really are.


I just wish they left space for her boyish style and short hair until the very end!!! But that's just me. That's her life journey, and I respect that.

♬ Oh Christmas Twix, Oh Christmas Twix~ ♬

 ♬A weirdly taasty caaandy~ ♬

I didn't know what to expect when I found this Twix variant in S&R. Decided to give it a go anyway because it's Christmas. And now here I am making a random review of it because It's new! It's odd! It's small and festive!❅ ❄ ❆

If you have a particular craving for a Twix bar, like, if you need to have one specifically, then this probably won't cut it. The biscuit usually takes a back seat and just mostly acts as a texture balancer in the original bar, but the biscuit in this really tastes like gingerbread so it tastes like a different candy. But the caramel and chocolate part is still the same.

So yeah it's just a Twix bar made ~~FESTIVE~~

Mind that if you don't like spicy treats like gingerbread or lebkuchen or anything with ginger or cinnamon in it you might not like this! But yes. Christmas Twix. Good. Yes. Good.

Rating: Five Snowflakes! Out of seven. *reference!!*

❅❅❅❅❅

A Spoiler-free Review of Netflix's Jessica Jones

Beardy and I had recently watched the first season of Jessica Jones. Now, I'm not a big Marvel fan, but I have to admit that I fell in love with the show pretty quickly. Let me state, without spoiling anything (I really want everyone to see it!), the reasons why.

1. Okay, obvious selling point first. Jessica is played by Krysten Ritter, who has been a huge girl crush of mine since the first time I saw her in a film. To be honest though, I hadn't even heard of the show before Beardy started watching the first episode, but once I realised it was her, you bet your butt I sat down and watched the damn show. And even with how much I already like Ritter, I was genuinely impressed by her performance in this role. So different from all of her other sassy sarcastic perky roles. Okay, it's actually still sassy and sarcastic, just not perky. But far from simply taking the perkiness away, it is replaced by a very palpable, believable darkness that makes you really hurt for Jessie, and so you root for her intensely as well.

2. It is so inclusive to LGBT and POC, but without being so heavy-handed that it undermines its own effort. This show is inclusive to non-straight relationships and people of color without wagging it around your face. It just does it, and does it well. It does it believably, respectfully, and so matter-of-factly that I actually didn't notice until I thought about evaluating it.

3. Talking about "Because it's 2015", it's quite gender-equal, especially for a Superhero-themed show. Maybe we can expect it from the showrunner herself being female, but it totally manages to avoid being a sausage party without losing the awesome action and gore elements that are cruicial to the story. Many of the main characters are women who hold their own, and men aren't reduced to two-dimensional characters either. The baddies are called out for inexcusable behaviour instead of insultingly implying that it's natural for men to act like pigs.

4. Kilgrave (Killgrave) is a terrifyingly good villain. Among my own reasons, very few aren't mentioned in this link (beware of spoilers though!). For people who don't want to be spoiled, I'll say this: Kilgrave is so complex, so mysterious, so unexpected, and the way he is revealed little by little in the show gives a sense of horror much akin to Lovecraft's style of omitting detail to terrify. And when everything comes into plain view, it makes an excellent social commentary about control, morals, and perspective. Among many other things.

5. Emotionally riveting character relationships, and character development. The dynamic between the characters are so engaging, and relatable at times. You will not be able to help sympathising with everyone, even with the reaaaaaaaaaaaaally annoying upstairs neighbor. They're not lazy with humanising the characters. They have inner struggles that show up every now and then and make them vulnerable in different ways. The show does not try to blind you with BOOM BOOM POW Michael Bay-levels of conflict and special effects. You feel the wounds, physical and emotional. You feel the characters feel for each other, you feel them hate each other. You feel the fear and discomfort that the abusive relationships stir up in their throats. And when two lonely characters get a moment of mutual understanding, you can't help but feel the love, and what it means to them.

Overall, I really cannot recommend this show enough. I only hope the next season is as amazing as the first, and that this show goes on for many many good seasons.

Things I Learned From Marie Kondo's Book: The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up

I finished listening to the audio version of this book while playing Minecraft a few weeks ago, during my slump (I use this word so much in my blog that it probably belongs in the header somewhere). As lazy and messy as I naturally am, I have always been very interested and excited by the prospect of organizing things. In fact, when I'm not ailed by my seemingly chronic low energy, I do a pretty good job at fixing, tidying, and organizing things. At least I think so, and Beardy would agree! Although he might not be the best judge of that because he normally can't tell the difference unless it's drastic. :o)

One thing I've learned, though, is that you don't get from a normal cluttered hum-drum room or house to one worthy of being in a magazine just by shuttling all your belongings from here to there and chucking them into boxes and cabinets - you actually have to get rid of stuff for your space to truly feel tidy.

But these few things usually trouble me when I attempt to tidy up: 

1. I have a lot of anxiety about parting with things as I have the tendency to be very sentimental.
2. I have a lot of guilt about throwing things in the trash because I don't exactly know where everything ends up *insert picture of Smokey Mountain and audio clip of O Fortuna here*
3. As sort of an effect of #2, I always have SO MANY IDEAS about how to recycle everything!!!
4. I like displaying cute things around me and sometimes the things pile up and end up hiding less-desirable things behind/under/inside them (I LIKE DECORATIVE CANS AND BOXES :c) and so my things eat up a lot more space than they should.

But boy oh boy did this book help me deal with these feelings! What I really appreciated about this book, apart from the clever and simplified ideas, was that it not only told you what to do (which everyone has their own way of doing things in the end anyway) but how do deal with the feelings that normally come up when we part with things. In fact, the whole philosophy behind this book is centered on how you feel - specifically, about what sparks joy.

It won't ask you to tick boxes of qualifications for a thing to be deemed worthy of keeping. It simply asks you to hold each thing you have and contemplate on whether it sparks joy or not. And if it's something you truly need, but it doesn't exactly spark any joy (for example, if you're a medical student you probably have a buttload of books.. Hi Jess c;), it asks you to contemplate on the importance it has in your life and to appreciate the role it plays, so that you change your mental relationship with it into a positive one. Then it ends up sparking joy, as well.

What it comes down to, basically, is for us to Mindfully Own Things, so that we don't passively accumulate things over time and rather make it so that our belongings change with us, grow with us, and don't weigh us down. In this way, every single thing becomes useful and important, we know where everything is, and we have space to let our minds breathe in our dwellings. Also, it's much easier to re-decorate with less things in the way.

So for my four stumbling blocks, here are the lessons that the book has offered me to overcome them:

1. Anxiety about parting with things- KonMari confronts us about the real reason why we keep things, and the true purpose of things and how we can part with things once they serve their purpose. She suggests that when we hold on to these things we are weighing ourselves down by holding on to the past and instead encourages us to cherish the present, and our present relationships. An example that really struck me was about how we hold on to gifts or letters out of guilt even when they no longer suit us even though the people who have given them have probably forgotten about them, or holding on to letters from people we've fallen out with, even though they probably don't remember anything about what they wrote and probably don't feel the same way anymore.
2. Guilt about trash- Well, actually, this book's attitude towards trash probably hinges on a more effective waste disposal system in Japan because the throwing-away part in this book is as simple as just putting them in trash bags and promptly taking them outside before anyone who'd want to dig through it in your family could see. Although, the whole part about the true purpose of things has made me ready to part with much more things than I normally would be, especially when they could do better if given away, or even, yes, ending up where the trash goes - because they're valuable as picking items (This sounds really problematic because it's usually kids who do this here in the Philippines. It's a sad reality that I do not condone at all, but it's really the best option for these unusable items :c Feel free to suggest better options, if any.)
3. Recycling- The book makes a good point that basically goes: "When though? I mean really.." when it uses the example of people keeping reference materials for finished classes under the pretense that they will want to read through it again one day. The reality is that we would likely only want to read through a couple of those things or even forget we even have them, so as for me, I probably would only be able to do some of these recycling projects, and forget about the rest. So I should either get with the crafting soon, or just ditch the project.
4. My Penchant for Cute Clutter and Sneaky Storage- The book turns the old saying "A place for everything, and everything in its place" into "A purpose for everything, and everything in its place." It asks us to avoid "storage solutions" that actually just give us places to hide things we don't know what to do with. Honestly, this is the hardest part. I have numerous small containers for numerous small things. The situation is especially dire on my desk. The technique of dumping everything in a single pile and sorting every single thing makes it so that there's less chances of me keeping duplicates of things, and I will get to see all of the containers and... maybe get rid of the ones that aren't cute anymore due to rusting or wear and tear. Luckily, KonMari doesn't actually have anything against having decorations, as long as they all, individually spark joy. So that actually wouldn't be so hard.

"Do I find this knick-knack or doodad as cute as Marie Kondo?" If the answer is yes, then I can keep it.

I'm excited and to be honest quite nervous about doing it, because I still am not 100% sure about how to move the things I purge along, and I'm going to face a lot of internal struggling when it comes to things that can still be fixed!

I'm planning to buy a huge sturdy box for the stuff I'm going to donate, and plan out my purge on a free weekend. I'm going to be documenting it, of course! I wonder when though, because I kind of need a huge amount of energy to do this!

PS: Go here for an Illustrated Guide to KonMari style folding. It's really simple, but once you read/listen to the book you'll realise how important that is!

Inside Out and how Empathy lets Joy "Grow Up" (and its parallelisms with Hector and the Search for Happiness)

*slight spoiler warning*

Inside Out reminds me of Hector and the Search for Happiness.

In this film, Simon Pegg's character Hector starts out pretty unhappy even though he is quite well off. He feels very meh about his very comfortable, "tidy" life. He is a psychiatrist and he listens to his clients' stories with emotional detachment. He tries to find meaning in his life and goes traveling, being the privileged individual who can afford it that he is.

I highly recommend this film for good vibes, by the way.

There is a moment in this film that keeps coming back to Hector, when he finds himself under Tibetan prayer flags, and he hears a voice saying that it takes all of the different colors. It takes all colors.

In Inside Out, this concept is illustrated through the five emotions in Riley's head. At first, it seems as though Joy is the only positive, functional emotion. I'll try not to spoil Hector, but at the end of both movies, the lesson is clear: processing, or working with the other seemingly negative emotions is the way to sustain Joy's functionality. We should not suppress "negative" things, but deal with them and let them allow us to empathise with each other, so that happiness can have meaning. 

As children, for us who are privileged enough in terms of where we live, our world is kept small and simple. At this stage, it is easy and natural for Joy to be the only emotion we come across often. But as we grow up, our world becomes bigger. We are made to deal with a lot of uncomfortable changes in our own lives, and we see the state of the rest of humanity. We also hopefully start to understand other people better, and we are pressured more to take other peoples' feelings into account. A lot of people cannot choose to live without these negative feelings as a result of their life's circumstances, or mental/psychological capabilities, or the experiences they've had.

Even though Inside Out and Hector demonstrate the same concept in very different life stages, both stories put Joy in charge, and allow her to work with the others. Joy is in charge, because it motivates us to keep going on so that we can make things better.

 Both stories attempt to teach the lesson that a meaningful life, one we can be happy to look back on, requires us to be open to all emotions and not suppress pain and discomfort when they come. Processing and going through all of them together, "all the colors", and not clinging too much to joy and comfort so much that it loses all meaning. 

Joy in itself is a dead end, if we don't put it in context with the other emotions. We need to use joy to propel us to ease each others' pain, and our own.. But only after we open our eyes and hearts to find out where that pain is.

Movie Rating: 4 STARS. Really cool, but makes me really want a sequel to feel like it's enough.

Spa Day

Last week I had the pleasure of being treated to some spa treatments. I had my usual massage because my c-curve has been acting up and ruining my sleep and then I had a foot spa treatment because my feet has been dry lately.

I didn't really get to talk about the place I go to the first time I wrote about it, so this time I made sure I brought my camera so I could take pictures! :)

Fleur Spa is just across the street from my mom's office. It's also Tita Cathy's (her boss and good friend) so it also reflects the warm colors and ambiance of the office.

Some teas water and light nibbles at the receiving area..

This time, having wanted to take pictures, I was able to notice all of the sci-fi thing-a-ma-bobs they have there! These ones I've seen before when I had a facial treatment. If I remember correctly, from left to right these are a bright lamp, a steamer and the thing they use to exfoliate/clean your face. After my facial that time, my skin was super smooth and dewy and nice. Highly recommend.

But these thing-a-ma-bots were new to me. Luckily someone showed me around and explained them a bit.

Behind the pretty top-to-bottom curtains are actually body treatment machines. I didn't even know they had this kind of service 'till recently!

These are apparently fancy body-shaping machines for well known methods that reduce cellulite and generally sculpt/tighten the body. I believe the Vela one is the new one, it's best for loose skin (advertised to post-birth moms) or cellulite, just in time for summer.* Paying more attention that time (and consulting the leaflets they had) I realised they pretty much have everything there. 

Slimming options are not all they have when it comes to body treatments (although they do have a lot of options for that) they also have body scrubs, nourishing soaks, even hot stone massage. Some of their treatments have machine options, which means you can meet one of those thing-a-ma-bots if you are so inclined. 

The full-body massage I usually get is pretty neat. The masseuse ate Tin is really good. She can make the massage softer according to my taste without it being too weak! I make sure they work on my problem area (upper back) and the massage does wonders for my sleep.

An amazing discovery I made is that they have general salon treatments too, all of them in fact! Not just hair spa and foot spa treatments. They actually have mani-pedi and hair salon services too.

They even have gel polish!

Here is the salon area, with their resident hairdresser and my mom hehe:

I didn't get to snap a lot of pictures of it, but it's obvious how relaxing the space is, right? I like the wood interiors of this place.

Now if you're thinking that a relatively new place that has soo many types of services available is probably a jack of all trades but a master of none, I have to stop you there. Talking individually to some people who work there, it's clear that even if the staff is small, everyone had their place, and were assigned to a particular kind of service so they can do it well. There was a manicure person, a hairdressing person, a machines person, a facial person... The hair dresser was nice and chatty and talked freely about hair cutting techniques and the like. I was impressed by how passionate he seemed to be about his job. It seems to be paying off, too. I cannot emphasize enough how stoked everyone in the office seemed to be about hair treatments. Everyone was raving about how good the hair services were! Maybe one day I'll get a treatment done. Or coloring. It's really tempting, everyones hair seemed really nice, even my mom had one and she didn't have to tell me that day. I simply noticed. Even ate apprentice had nice hair:

Nice.

So how do they manage to do all of these things and more?** Well they keep the staff small, and they are available by appointment. Call one day in advance if you can!.. although people who work at the office just call the same day like my mom here. But even then there were always patrons in there whenever I went. I guess they're really good! ;)

My cute happy mama.

So as I was saying my feet were really longing for a good buffing, and here's how it went:

First I had a nice warm soak. I was mesmerised by these colors so I took a couple of pictures :p

They let you borrow slippers and they're nice ones. They run a little small for my feet, but that's not unusual cos I have big ones B-)

They pat on a cotton wad and douse it with callus remover and it just sticks to your foot like this:

It tingles as the liquid soaks your foot. They buff your feet, and apply some creams, leave them on, rinse and repeat. After it all I was happy that my feet could feel again. Hahaha. But I did ask ate to not buff very hard, cos I was a bit scared! So I had a gentler buffing than usual. After a few days my feet started peeling, I guess it was a delayed reaction to the callus remover cos the skin wasn't forced off. So I just scrub them every day in the shower, and I think they're done peeling now. :)

I took more pictures of the interiors while having my foot babied. They always have nice magazines on their piles/racks. :)

Buff buff buff buff..

Then it was time for me to have a massage! Whee! I had a stressful morning so it was verrrry welcome and relaxing. This wasn't the actual massage table, but cute interiors, non?

One thing I really liked the last time I went was the soap they had by the sink. It was a lavender soap and I looove how it smells. But this time I changed in a different toilet. It had interesting stuff there anyway.. I like how random products are laid out like that around their sinks. You know when you go to a friends house and read all the labels on the bottles of their soaps and smell stuff like a creepy person? It felt like that, only it  felt like it was encouraged.

Click here for directions

Here's the back of the leaflet with their business hours and their phone number in case you wanted to visit!

______________________________________________________
*disclaimer: I do not promote jiggle hate or cellulite hate; you can go to the beach and wear a bikini if you want, whatever your body type/ appearance is! But it's nice to have options for people who want their skin to appear smoother. But if you're someone who's cool with it (like I am) that's also awesome!

**more means A LOT more. haircuts, hair color, hair therapies, rebonding (that everyone keeps raving about.. it doesn't make your hair look flat) diamond peel, acne and warts removal, cryoliposis.. laser hair removal and tattoo removal... I'm not even kidding.

From Sappy Worrier to Happy Warrior (Happy Nudge v.1)

Changing your perspective, in my opinion, is a happiness tactic that requires the least effort. Bad times and happy times will always come and go, but if you actively try to keep happier thoughts in your mind, then you can battle negativity's unfair advantage.

Yes, negativity has an unfair advantage, apparently. I'm not speaking as a psychological expert, but rather as a regular person who has heard the fact over and over from different, relatively reputable sources.

So, in an effort to battle anxieties I feel about upcoming stuff, I'm going to let my mind linger a bit on how awesome this week has been so far. I will do a Happy Nudge, which is a term I would like to use from now on for actively reminding yourself of things you can be happy about. *nudge nudge*

So... HAPPY NUDGE V.1! Here are reasons why my week is being pretty cool:

1. I met my friends on Monday. It was unplanned, they texted me and I went there. I'm not a very spontaneous person when it comes to going out, as much as I'd like to believe the contrary. So that was pretty cool.
2. I've been crossing off some huge Very Adult of Me tasks on my mental To-Do list that I have been working towards for monthsss and monthsss and I've encountered some very serendipitous lucky stuff when it comes to the nitty-gritty paperworky logistics and preparations (that I won't get into because it would be very boring) that made this week a lot easier than I thought it was going to be!
3. Due to the difficulties that I perceived as very likely for me to encounter, I was very stressed Monday night and I told my boyfriend "I wish I had more time every day" because I didn't get to watch any of my Sunday shows (that I watch on Mondays).. And the next day, my boss magically announced that I won't be having an afternoon class! So I relaxed and watched my shows and stuff :3
4. On that same Monday, I caught 11:11 on my phone and wished for things to work out alright. When I got home, I saw that the helpdesk question I desperately needed answered by my bank was answered at 11:11, and not only that: the answer was the BEST NEWS I could ever ask for. I thought I was going to have to go to the branch where I opened my account (would totally F up my schedule) but I didn't :)
   
   
   
5. My mom had been helping me so much, sometimes I feel guilty! But I realised that feeling grateful without guilt is a purer and more beneficial kind of thankfulness, and more likely to nurture loving feelings instead of indebtedness and bitterness. But I just want to take this time to say I LOVE YOU MAMA. I really appreciate everything you've been doing, you're like magic. (By the way guys, it's Mother's Day on Sunday.)
6. Today I was having a weird lucid dream about time. I woke up sometime in the morning trying to check on the time (I usually wake up around 7 and take note of the time so I can nap shortly before I have to really get up) and couldn't see it very well, so I drifted back to sleep and asked a girl in my dream "What time is it?" and looked at the clock in my dream which confirmed the girl's answer that it was 8:19 (I leave for work at 8:25, for it takes me 5 minutes to walk there).. I check my phone and apparently it was set to silent mode so I didn't hear.. I panicked in the dream, which made me wake up. I looked at the clock and it WAS the correct time. I forgot to bring my phone into my room because I was printing some documents last night. I was so disoriented. But I still managed to hurry and get to work on time with some help from my brother who just drove me there! HOW LUCKY WAS THAT?! Then my boss declared NO AFTERNOON CLASS again today, and my friends have said yes to spending an evening watching a documentary together! And talking, of course. :) So that brings us to a total of TWO impromptu bestfriendly meetings this week. A very high number for us!
7. I've been eating relatively well this week! Maybe that's also partly where I'm getting this break from negativity from...

So there, seven things that have made this week awesome so far. A part of me is trying to strike fear by saying "You've had so much luck that it's bound to run out soon" but I know that as long as I'm enterprising and keep a good-sport attitude about things, even if the worst happens, then I'll be completely fine. Like what we often hear, Luck is when opportunity meets preparation. 

I noticed, in writing this, that there are numerous moments where I suffered a bad imagined future in advance, not knowing that it was going to be fine... It's a natural emotional response in people, we feel like we need to feel bad in order to deserve feeling good. But it's a bit silly isn't it: If you imagine things to go bad, and they do go bad, then you suffer twice. If you relax and don't worry about them and they turn out bad, then at least you didn't suffer more than you had to. Worrying is A Bad Thing Happening all on its own. As tempting as it is, I think it's logical to avoid it as it has no purpose. Instead of worrying about things, care about them and act towards making things better, or as good as they can be!

Thinking Positively, using the same logic, is not as useless as some Grumpies may think. Thinking positively already gives you good feelings. It's a Good Thing Happening all on its own. If things go bad, you only suffer when you have to. If things go well, well you're just a happy little fuzzy peach then now aren't you. People (including me) often steer away from this because of fear of disappointment and the pang of shame that comes with looking forward to something that just kinda explodes in your face. But if you face the possibility of failure full-on with a brave face, have a plan B, and are prepared for the worst, then you can just get up and dust yourself off if things don't go your way. That's being a good sport. When things stop being about winning, but about doing everything to have the best result possible.

The Big Bang Chronicles

JK This would probably be my only post about Big Bang candy bars.

So I've always loved these things, they're one of my favorite local candy bars. I like them even more than Cloud 9! 

One day I was craving for a treat, and I walked to the nearby sari-sari store to get something. Anything chocolate. 

I asked if they had Kit-Kat but they didn't. Then I saw that the purple things were actually Big Bangs. WTH? As far as I can remember they were red and yellow. But I bought them anyway.

But then I saw the label: Blueberry and Cheese.

CHEESE?!

Not even cheesecake? Not even cream cheese? Come on, now.

At first I was a little apprehensive, what if this isn't even chocolate?! (It was a period craving. So it was absolutely crucial that it was chocolate) 

For a split second, I dreaded that it was one of those new recreations plaguing our local cheap candy bar scene that are covered with white "chocolate"... and I had bought TWO (I'm a cheapskate so I was a little hesitant to even spend just 16 pesos. I'm a horrible person jsyk.) so I quickly fumbled in the dark to check if it's chocolate, and calmed down after verifying.

I was very pleased to find that there was no real sign of any kind of cheese flavor. Just the classic slightly salty taste that normal Big Bangs have.

It did have some berry flavor through, not natural, more like the way they flavor Japanese strawberry chocolate, or the strawberry filling in soda cracker sandwiches.

So I guess they just said "cheese" for the classic combo factor of blueberry and cheeseCAKE (idek).

In any case, even with the weird labelling, I really did enjoy this. It's similar enough to the old Big Bang that it can nix a Big Bang craving, but it was different enough from the old one to not be a huge re-branding scam.

So yeah. Blueberry Big Bangs. Blueberry Big Bangs. Blueberry Big Bangs.

They're nice, they're new, and they're fun to pronounce.

Bye!

Cupcakerazy

Let's talk about cupcakes a little bit.

I have to admit: I'm definitely enamored by them. The special snowflake in me tried to deny it, but nope. it's love. Let me tell you why:

• They are auto-portioned. You get the satisfaction of finishing a whole cake without the guilt of finishing a whole cake.
• They are BEAUTIFUL! I love that cupcakes make it a point to LOOK good. That's literally half of what makes them what they are. I'm already perfectly happy with getting something that tastes delicious, but cupcakes make it a point to look nice. I like that.
• There are so many ways to make them! And you'll inevitably get all the elements in one cup. And whatever crazy shenanigans you decide to do when you make your cupcake, it usually carries its weight well because it's compact.
• They are fully customizable: from batter to frosting to topping to holder.

Cupcakes are the epitome of "WHY NOT?" when it comes to desserts. In fact, there was a point in my life where I wanted to have one tattooed on me. That was years ago. I wanted to remind myself that it's good to keep trying to make things your own, to go beyond the requirements and make things sparkle and pop. To exert myself creatively. Something that I need to be reminded of up to this day. Because why not?

I've moved on to wanting that, but every time I get cupcakes, I still get really excited. It's like unwrapping a gift when I pick one to eat. Getting free ones yesterday, a full box (plus one!) even, especially ones I've been wanting to try for a couple of months, felt like an awesome early birthday gift.

I poured some tea for my mom and me a little while after dinner last night and finally got to try "Midnight", which I've been staring at in pictures for weeks. I shared it with her. WORTH THE WAIT. The caramel was already dripping at the sides by the time of unboxing so it didn't exactly make neat pictures and instead looked like a sexy disheveled caramel-oozing volcano. Still good!

"Midnight"

It's got a chocolate cake base, a nice swirling chocolate midnight sky frosting, a nice sprinkling of white chocolate star chips, and a big chocolate full moon on top, hence the name.

If the seven cupcakes were the seven deadly sins, this one would have been gluttony. Or greed. I dunno. But it tasted like sin. (I'm pretty sure the one called Death by Chocolate would be Lust, in case you were wondering why not that.). The dense whipped-fudge-like full moon on top added more dimension to the already well-paired cake and frosting. All three were rich but worked nicely altogether. The cake was moist, the frosting velvety in my mouth, with a deep dark chocolate flavor. The moon was on the lighter, sweeter, milk chocolate side. The white chocolate "stars" added a playful bite. My mom exclaimed a greedy "GUSTO KO PA!" after it was all gone.

I let her pick the next one, and I guess the Midnight sent her on a roll and she wanted a full dose and picked the Death by Chocolate one at first... But I cautioned that we'd run out of the chocolatiest ones if we ate that one too so she picked the mango one instead. Hehe.

Mango Dulce Has since been upgraded to a Matcha Green Tea batter base!

The Mango Dulce had a nice light fluffy base, which made me think of a fluffy soft version of ladyfingers. Its simplicity made it a stable contrasting vessel to the flavors of the whipped frosting, sweet caramel glaze and ripe mango dices. It amazed me how sweet the mango bits are! I'm not exactly sure if they are fresh but they sure tasted like it! Imagine running a café complete with packed entrée and drinks menus and still making sure the fruit you buy is fresh, perfectly ripe and diced neatly! So amaze.

This one was very wholesome and balanced, and seemed like a polar opposite to the first one we had. It tasted heavenly, light and clean instead of sinful, and whereas the other one looked like midnight, this one looks like the hot summer sun! Tastes very summery, too.

But still very sexy. Check out that mango waterfall. (warning, nsfw image. Imagine Let's Get it On by Marvin Gaye playing in the background):

I've yet to try the other ones, and I'm super excited! Let's hope I find the strength to resist just downing them all in one sitting. Lawwwd give me strength. Join me in staring at all of them one by one:

Cheesecake Crumble

This one's the Cheesecake Crumble. It's the most rustic looking (very Nigella, haha) and I'm looking forward to having this one next! Cheesecake frosting, strawberry topping with crumbly bits on top. Not sure what the base cake is, but the colors look super cute with its pink foil holder. The travel home shook some of the bits off, as if it's trying to beckon me to eat it already by scattering pieces of itself around. Not that I needed much convincing. :3

Update: I just shared this with my mom and brother while finalizing this post... I.. have no words....

Just kidding. I have a bunch of them! Blew my mind, this one. I was already forewarned by this post that expectations are to be exceeded when it comes to this one, but even with expectations already raised, I still got my mind blown much like the cupcake's crumbly bits all over the cupcake box lining. The base was so light and balanced while still being very creamy and dense and just... wonderful. It tasted like how infatuation feels. Yep, I know what I said. I'll leave you to soak that in for a bit. Try to imagine it. That's what it was like. I wish I didn't have to share it! But I just HAD to share the love. And true enough, my mom and bro were also very surprised by how good it was. My brother was like,, What is that??

Oreo Cheesecake

This one's the Oreo Cheesecake! ...or at least I could swear that's what it's called. My cousin had made oreo cheesecake cups before when she had her baking phase and I LOVED those flavors together, which really surprised me. So this one is exciting! Not to mention super pretty: it has a royal blue foil holder. I love these colors together. It feels very boy-me. Haha.

Red Velvet

This one came in the super cute separate box~ and it deserved the spotlight! Look at this beauty. It looks like an elegant bride with its ivory cheesecake frosting, edible gold balls and silver holder. It's the red velvet one, and I appreciated that the base wasn't super red (at least from the outside.. haven't seen what it looks like inside yet), because it would have taken away from the elegance of its presentation.

Cookie Dough Cheesecake

This one looks like the Midnight Cupcake's fraternal twin. Looking forward to seeing how the cookie dough dollop would go with whatever surprise waits for me inside ~ I've never ever heard of or tried this combination of flavors before :o But somehow I can imagine it... And what my imagination has conjured is making my mouth water right now.

DEATH BY CHOCOLATE

Last but not the least, the devil itself. Excuse the blurry photo, this subject is like a ninja to me, as it's all browns and blacks. Actually, it looks better in this group photo:

Look at how evil and sneaky it looks amongst the other ones. How titillating. I'm sure it will sneak up on me when I eat it too, and I don't just mean as an extra milimeter around my thighs. I meant as an intense explosion of chocolate indulgence in my pie hole. Chocolate on chocolate on chocolate (...on chocolate, in this case) has never failed me yet.

DJMA Commercial Abel Nosce Street, BF Resort Village, 1747 Las Pinas

EDIT: THEY HAVE SINCE MOVED TO ROBINSON'S PARANAQUE 

[click for facebook page]

In case someone stumbles onto this and wonders how they can get their hands on these cupcakes, Kat's Café is in Las Piñas*, just refer to the details above! And say hello to ate Kat for me! They've got more than just awesome cupcakes; they have coffee, tempting frozen blended beverages, tea, sandwiches (the bread is made from scratch!) pasta, and other main dishes.

*and hopefully soon, in many places more ;) ;) ;) (didn't get the go signal to say where, and I don't wanna jinx anything!)

As much as this sounds like a sponsored post, it really isn't! XD these cupcakes really gave my weekend an awesome start. I can't wait to eat the rest! gahhhh :3