~ Sometimes Courage Is Listening To That Quiet, Inner Voice Rather Than The Hundred Loud Ones Surrounding

~ Details from an old spread ~

.

Sometimes I don’t feel like clicking the whole page. At such times, I really wanted to appreciate the individual stickers, prints, washi and sequins through my photos.

~ I celebrated the discovery of my own creative journaling style, last Sunday.

Inspired by Ana Jimenez , I wanted to include cute, minimalist illustrations, enjoy fussy-cutting them, play with memos (my favorites), include bits and pieces of handmade papers (sometimes soft, sometimes scratchy, I love their textures), and my weakness--- Avril yarns. :)

I wanted to include one positive quote or saying in each page too. So here’s Davi Nakadamaki’s spring illustration saying hello.~ 🌸🌸🌸

“needing the type of hug where you bury your head in their shoulder and they just hold you tight and there’s this mutual need to keep holding on.” - @constellatedlove

‘Flavour: It’s Yours’ Taught Me That Talent & Ego Cannot Go Hand In Hand

Of all the romance C-dramas I've watched over the past year, the story troupes have always been very similar : childhood friends meet as adults, fall in love and help each other become their best selves.

But with 'Flavour: It's Yours' (also known as ‘Instead Of Tipsy Why Not Get Drunk), it was a very welcome change.

First up, I love the idea of a wine critic losing his taste buds after he accidentally kisses a girl who's lost her own since she was 10. What?! Who comes up with concepts like these?! Can I please meet them?

The Story & Its Characters:

Lu Wei Xen is China's top wine critic and he's established himself as one of the pioneer voices in the wine-making industry. Various wineries seek his counsel to determine their latest flavors and marketing strategies. Going against his father's wishes to inherit his family business, Lu Wei Xen is formidable, arrogant and talented.

He Bu Zui is a woman who's lost her taste buds due to a traumatic experience in her childhood. Her father, who was once the owner of a winery decided to shut it down in order to heal Bu Zui's condition. Our heroine is now threatened by a cheap gangster-landlord to repay her  father's debt. Using her loss of taste buds as a weapon, she participates in drinking contests and earns money to get her family by.

Unknown to her, her childhood love's (Yi Nan Ke) brother Yi Be Dao is back in town and he has some serious evilry up his sleeve. Sparked by the desire to avenge his father's death, Yi Be Dao will go to any limit to resolve the mystery behind it and find the murderer. 

What Yi Be Dao doesn't expect is crossing paths with the ambitious, headstrong yet soft Mi Ya. Working as an editor at a reputed wine magazine, Mi Ya is extremely independent. She's smart, sassy and isn't afraid to go after what she desires.

After Lu Wei Xen and He Bu Zui accidentally exchange their taste buds through a kiss, we embark on a journey of how the two try to reverse this ordeal for Wei Xen. How can a wine critic still retain his no.1 spot when he cannot even taste wine anymore?

They decide that they only way to break the curse and help get Lu Wei Xen’s taste buds back is to “exchange saliva” through a lot of kissing (since that’s what triggered the weird condition in the first place). So our hero hires our heroine on a contractual basis to help do just this.🤷🏽‍♀️

Mu Chun Feng poses as Wei Xen's competitor and he does a damn fine job at it. I loved watching the wine battles the two of them hold.

I also have a soft spot for Xia Fan who plays Lu Wei Xun's biggest fan. He's a popular vlogger with a huge fan-following and is known for his live sessions. He's a complete fan-girl when it comes to Wei Xun's talent and addresses him as 'idol' in the cutest way. He's also super loyal and stands by his hero when the latter is going through hard times.

What I liked:

What I loved about this show was that while romance was still a big part of it, there was also a murder mystery woven in, in such a seamless, interesting and exciting way. Both the male and female leads were their own persons and were chasing their own individual dreams. The villains' were villain-y enough to make the chase worth it and the side-character narratives were as interesting as those of the leads.

What I didn't like:

~ I'm all in for good kissing but it can't be a forced affair. I thought the show took 'dominant male lead make-out' a bit too far.

~ I also found Yi Be Dao's character too regressive and his vengeance for his twin's death lacking complete knowledge of the situation that caused it.

~ Mi Ya is exceptionally amazing as a woman and I found her too accommodating for a toxic man like Yi Be Dao, even though eventually he does change his ways.

My top 3 learnings:

1. Talent and ego should never go hand in hand.🍜 2. Choose to be seen and loved as you are. 🍜 3. Let that shit go. (It really is too heavy to keep carrying) 🍜

My last thoughts:

In short, I was totally blown away by how unique this drama was and how mature it is compared to its typical, commercial C-Drama cousins. So if you're reading this, I know you're wise enough not to pass this one by.

.

.

.

GIF Credits: GIF 1: @movielosophy​ | GIF 2: An Asian Drama Vortex | GIF 3: Pi Yanuo | GIF 4: Tumgir | GIF 5 & 9: Foolish Asian Drama Life | GIF 6: The Ofy | GIF 7 & 8: Tumbex 

A Small Guide on How to Sit with Yourself

My Teacher said, "Sit with yourself for 15 minutes everyday. Take this time to reflect and just enjoy your solitude."

It's the best advice on self-love I've received. I do this every morning, with a cup of coffee alongside. Here's a tiny guide I'd like to share for you to experience this joy too:

* Choose your favorite spot (at home, a café or even the metro)

* Not mandatory: It's good to have trees or the sky to look at

* Put your phone away for the next 10-15 minutes

* Consciously pause all the mental to-do lists and planning of activities or goals that's surprisingly always running in the background, even when you're not aware of it

* The minute you do this, you might hear yourself exhale or sigh a bit louder than usual. (It's a good sign)

* Feel free to have a coffee or a mug of tea for company

* Notice the most predominant feeling present inside you in that moment

* Allow this feeling and any other ones to fully move through you without stopping or analyzing them

* Once you've felt all of them deeply, allow yourself to talk to yourself or the Universe about things that feel too tough to solve, hurtful or confusing

* You may feel a sense of release, even if the answers aren't coming to you yet (don't worry, they'll come. Answers have a unique way of showing up when we least expect them.)

* Right now, notice if your breathing has softened and slowed down. Enjoy this state of presence with yourself

* Talk aloud to yourself if you'd like. (I find this particularly comforting.) It doesn't have to be profound talk. Even a regular catch-up with your thoughts, something that changed your perspective yesterday, a new learning, a meal you'd like to eat again, all are good.

* You may want to chill with yourself past those 15 minutes. Go on, it's a fine idea.:) 

* For some, it may be discomforting at first-- the silence, the weirdness about meeting yourself-- and that's cool. 

* Try to keep coming back to yourself everyday if you can. Mind you, it can get addicting. :) 

P.S: I'd like to thank you my wonderful Teacher who made me meet myself in this soul-easing way.

~ The Rainbow-Lookalike Mediterranean Platter ~

Quite honestly, I fell in love with clean eating courtesy the Vegetarian Meal Bowl at Farmer's Cafe. 🌈

But it in no way meant that I was going to leave rest of their menu untouched. On exploring, I chanced upon their Mediterranean Platter (a very happy discovery, indeed). 🌈

Housing three different kinds of hummus -- the beetroot, the chickpea and the olive and black bean -- there's a generous serving of lavash, carrot and cucumber sticks along with 3 piping hot falafels. 🌈

My favorite among the three is that beetroot hummus. Sweet and earthy while imbibing a wonderful coolness, it goes beautifully with the crunchy carrots. The robust earthiness is balanced by salt and a hint of chili to cut through the natural, beet sweetness.🌈

The olive and black bean one comes as a total surprise. Lavash'd up, it is creamy with thick savory notes of black beans, chili and ground spices.🌈

Break open a falafel ball and the aroma of singing cumin and coriander wafts out. Quite frankly, you could eat these plain, they're that good. But they also pair up really well with the classic, chickpea and garlic hummus. I have to constantly remind myself to be a gentlewoman and share these with the person across the table.🌈

If you love unhurried, easy conversations and the idea of slow lunches, this Mediterranean Platter makes for the perfect background score. How you can nibble and spoon something so simple yet tasty and have the joy of sharing it with someone makes for a delightful experience! 🌈

I am not a huge fan of their lavash sticks. They have a weirdly tangy and bitter taste which is unpleasant if you eat these individually. 🌈

Lastly, the fourth mound is the most heavenly ensemble of cauliflower couscous. It comes with notes of vinegar and fresh coriander. This provides immense relief from all that hummus creaminess. 🌈

Bro-Tip: Try the veggie sticks with all three hummus's. The cucumber goes really well with the black-bean rendition. Also, the lavash isn't unbearable if you pair it up with the beetroot hummus. 🌈

“Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person; having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then, with a breath of kindness, blow the rest away.” 

~ George Eliot ~

" 'It seems to me that you're getting anxious, thinking that you have to discover quickly what you enjoy or do well.' 'Is it so? Hmm... that's true.' Mincheol averted his gaze as he mumbled. He turned back to Seungwoo. 'It feels like I have to find it quickly.'

'Why are you in a rush? You don't have to hurry. If coming here isn't boring, just come over more often. Be who you are right now, and you will be fine.'"

~

~ Page 221, Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop, Hwang Bo-Reum~

Image Credits: @spongecake on Tumblr

~ “Today’s Special: Gyozas” - Favorite stills, Episode 3, Izakaya Bottakuri ~

~ A shower to reset the mind, a cry for the heart. ~

Whenever I am stuck in a loop of negative thoughts or my mind feels anxious, my subconscious nudges me to take a shower.

I don't know what the philosophy behind this is, but the warmth of a hot shower helps my head settle down. I allow myself to ease away from the continuous thinking. Sometimes, a cool shower energizes me and preps me up to switch to a happier headspace.

In fact, it's become my thing without me trying to make it my thing. A shower has become the secret reset button for my mind and body.

Shower power? That should be a thing.🌸

.

01: A nugget to help me fall in love with life again.

.

Image Credits: Discovered on @taros