Tag: Recommendations


  • February was more chaotic than last month, wow. | Side Notes

    February was more chaotic than last month, wow. | Side Notes

    Yep. You read that right.

    Remember when I said last month, I hope February was going to be kinder to me than January? February was like, “NOPE! Not gonna.”

    On a more positive note, though! I have new graphics for Side Notes, whee! Figured it was about time. That old one was getting… well, old.

    Side Notes is a monthly wrap up where I share the interesting, and incredibly inspiring things I found during the month that I couldn’t fit in any post. Expect awesome recs, awesome books and awesome bloggers.

    Also expect: fangirling (lots of it) and a glimpse into my life — the happy, the chaos and all.

    In the Blogosphere

    Anne shared 7 gift ideas for those in a long-distance relationship. And I say, they’re all pretty wholesome enough for anyone in your life!

    Brett talked about dealing with negative feelings and shared some awesome tips to do so healthily. Check it out!

    In need of some self-care ideas? Jackie recommends doing something creative — like building a house on Sims! Read her post for 6 more awesome recs!

    Lea talks about her life as a 28-year-old married woman with no kids. (Guess what question she always gets asked.)

    Hafsa created a journaling party and it. Sounds. SUPER. AWESOME??? I want in so bad.

    Is blogging dead? Ashlee thinks not. And I, as I write the draft for this on WordPress Classic Editor, so so agree.

    Lauren talks about grief and how to cope with the loss of a loved one.

    Apostolia shared habits to have a happy life and I’m taking notes.

    Deze shares the 6 hard lessons she learned in her first two years as a married woman and it’s applicable to any relationships!

    The Awesome Side of the Internet

    The Internet can be a jerk sometimes, let’s all be real here. But it is also filled with authentic and incredibly inspiring human (and non-human) stories.

    Someone made a music video out of Paint and it’s BRILLIANT.

    You need to rewatch LoTR but with cats.

    Someone’s gonna be a great lawyer someday. Case closed, y’all.

    You know how last month my recommendations were both educational apps? Welp, today I’m recommending two of my recent fave series!

    VIOLET EVERGARDEN

    I’m going to put it out there: this is anime. And before you scroll further thinking, “Oh, that isn’t my cup of tea.” Hear me out first!

    This anime series revolves around a young girl who knew nothing of life outside her military background. Now that the war is over, she has to learn what it is like to live outside the front lines of a battlefield. (Wow, someone hire me to make blurbs. I think that’s a fair, non-spoilery one.)

    It’s a coming-of-age series, my favorite anime genre after fantasy and slice-of-life, and it is heartbreakingly beautiful. It may revolve around Violet Evergarden, the young girl I mentioned above, but it’s more than just her story. The entire series is jam-packed with stories about love and family and self-growth. Not to mention, the animation is just BREATHTAKING. And y’all I’m not just saying that because Kyoto Animation, my all-time fave anime studio, produced it.

    You can watch Violet Evergarden on Netflix now. Please watch it. (And if you do or did, hit me an email or slide a DM wherever. I want to talk about this and none of my friends has watched it yet!!)

    HEARTSTOPPER

    This is another series I recently got into that I think not a lot of people generally know. Like Violet Evergarden, you would only know about Heartstopper if you’re in the community. (The anime community in Violet Evergarden’s case, the book community in this one’s.)

    Heartstopper is a webcomic written and illustrated by YA author Alice Oseman. It’s about two adorable soft bois being adorable together. An openly gay boy who overthinks for a living, and a soft-hearted guy who’s still figuring out his sexuality.

    That’s it. That’s the pitch.

    Now here’s the thing. I’ve read books my whole life. Consequently, I’ve read tons of books while on public transportation. But I’ve never — and I mean never — cried on public because of a book. Ever. This webcomic? It’s responsible for my first-ever public book tears. It is that good. You can read Heartstopper on Tumblr or in the Tapas app.

    Little Victories – Kickass Stuff that Happened This Month

    • I landed my first ever full-time job, y’all!
    • I’m getting on top of my Twitter game, ey!
    • My sleep is now regular!!! (It really was the lack of a structured routine omg! Once I was working, I’m already asleep at 10pm and up by 5am the next day. Could still need a little tweaking as I want to spend a bit more hours on my blog… but I’ll take it!)

    Little Detours – What Kicked My Ass This Month

    (because we’re not perfect, and it’s good to share your awful moments)

    • My blog game and all other social media games are not as strong as the Twitter one. As you may have noticed, I decided to go on a hiatus halfway through the month.

    Little Milestones – Things I Want to Achieve or Do Next Month

    (because according to Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies, I am an Obliger and I need outside accountability to reach personal goals)

    A MINI-REVIEW ON THIS MONTH’S GOALS
    • Make no bake cheesecake. ✘ I was on the verge of becoming broke so I’m doing a rain check on this one.
    • Get interviewed by 5 companies. ✘ This didn’t happen BUT! I landed my job on the only company I got interviewed so yay!
    • Finish writing and scheduling March’s posts. ✘ Still writing up March’s post. Oh well.
    GOALS FOR NEXT MONTH
    • Create a routine around work
    • Set aside 5,000 php to savings (That’s about $100, give or take)
    • Write and schedule posts

    Last Month’s Self-Improvement Challenge

    Eat fruit once a day. This didn’t happen BUT!!! I am eating fruit every other day so that’s a good start.

    Next Month’s Self-Improvement Challenge

    Finish one book. If I said I didn’t have much time reading books on February, I’d be lying. I just chose not to read any books. Now, I want to just finish one book. If I could just finish reading one, I’m good.

    I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

    How was your February? Was it awesome or did it suck so bad? Share to me everything!

    xx Kate

    Photo from Ivory Mix


  • September is Half and Half, No In-Between // Side Notes

    September is Half and Half, No In-Between // Side Notes

    Side Notes is a monthly wrap up where I share the interesting, and incredibly inspiring things I found during the month that I couldn’t fit in any post. Expect awesome recs, awesome books and awesome bloggers.

    Also expect: fangirling (lots of it) and a glimpse into my life — the happy, the chaos and all.

    Half on-my-knees-crying, half jumping-up-and-down happy.

    Half super chaotic, half super relaxed.

    Half unaccomplished potato, half slaying-it-productive potato.

    In my September, there were no in-betweens. Only halves of the extremes. Interestingly, the first half was where all the crying and chaos and unaccomplishments happened. I have this itty-bitty suspicion it’s like one of those light drizzles that’s left over after the huge storm that was August passed. *glares at August*

    The second half, there were still a bit of chaos and a bit of crying and a bit of unproductiveness, sure. But it was all manageable. And frankly, with the degree of happiness, and chillness, and accomplished-ness that I felt on the second half. Those tiny bits of negative were irrelevant.

    interesting finds

    In the Blogosphere

    Suktara shared some amazingly practical hacks for busy women (and we all need these, believe me.)

    Ki’ara discussed why we lose our motivation and offered great tips on how you can keep it.

    Brittany argued why it’s best to forget about finding your purpose and it is such an interesting perspective!

    Are you listening? Alex talked about active listening – what it is and how you could benefit from it.

    We can definitely find happiness in the little things which is why Joy listed down 25 small things she finds joy in.

    Amber wrote a comprehensive guide on how to navigate stressful situations.

    Lana bravely shared the darkest moment in her life, in hopes of helping others realize that they are not alone. Not gonna lie, this one’s my favorite post I’ve read this month. (And that’s saying something, considering I’ve read dozens!)

    The Awesome Side of the Internet

    Yes, yes. I know. The Internet can be a jerk sometimes. But it is also filled with authentic and incredibly inspiring human stories. I always believe it only takes one kind heart for other kindness to join in 🙂

    <3 Somebody created this masterpiece that is the Avengers: Infinity War anime opening. It’s BRILLIANT. My geeky heart is in paradise.

    <3 This tweet DID NOT make me cry. I’m not crying. You are.

    https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

    <3 If you want something totally adorable, scroll through this thread of cockatiels. Two is ah-dorable and the other one is downright funny. Watching these videos literally cured my cough.

    <3 This comic about purple hair and imposter syndrome is TOTALLY RELATABLE. I can’t even.

    recommendations of the month

    Feedly app – For Keeping up with Your Fave Bloggers

    My problem with the WordPress app is that it’s not so friendly with non-Wordpress blogs. And I rarely open Bloglovin hehe. Feedly is my favorite app to use when I need to quickly browse over all my favorite bloggers’ recent posts. And it has a super simple interface that even tech newbies can navigate!

    Google Keep

    I honestly don’t know what I would do without Google Keep. Honestly. Making use of Keep beyond just blogging is probably 80% why my second half of September wasn’t so chaotic. I use Keep to take notes on my academic works, putting links to refer back later, blog to-do lists and even reminding myself of my goals. Plus! I recently found out that I can open it on my browser. So when I need to make an outbound link to an article I referred in a post, I don’t have to do some Matrix maneuver with my phone! It is literally a life-saver!

    the little things

    Little Victories – Kickass Stuff that Happened This Month

    • I finally finished my application for graduation ahhh!
    • Joined in with a group of super inspiring ladies to work on something super incredible. (This one’s a secret for now 😉 )
    • Achieved my goals of reaching 950 followers on my blog and 90 followers on Instagram. Thank you so much to all of you!!! <3
    • I actually understood finance??? As a context, I hate finance. Of all my major subjects, I despise finance. And it’s so weird that I finally get the underlying theories behind some of the topics.

    Little Detours – What Kicked My Ass This Month

    (because we’re not perfect, and it’s good to share your awful moments)

    • Cough. Severe my-lungs-want-to-come-out-of-my-ribcage hacking.
    • I still didn’t do a lot of art this month. Still haven’t finished my Kate Harker illustration.
    • I still haven’t repotted Watson’s babies.
    • The rainy season. Which worsened my cough a few times.

    Little Milestones – Things I Want to Achieve or Do Next Month

    (because according to Gretchen Rubin’s Four Tendencies, I am an Obliger and I need outside accountability to reach personal goals)

    • Reach 1000 followers on here before November 14th (but preferably on October) and 100 followers on Instagram
    • Do two full-color illustrations. The Kate Harker one and another cutesy weapon-yielding girl.
    • Join in on Inktober for 20 days tops.

    Last Month’s Self-Improvement Challenge

    Read a Rumi passage a day. Nope. This didn’t come through at all. But! Sometime in the last week of September I was able to read a chapter of a nonfiction book a day. So can I’m calling that a 10% success? Yes or yes?

    Next Month’s Self-Improvement Challenge

    Read a chapter of a nonfiction book a day.  I might as well continue on to this for October since I’ve already accomplished it in the last several days of September. Also hoping I’d finish a couple of nonfiction books this way.

    I WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!

    How was your September? Is there a goal you want to reach next month? Let me cheer you on!

    xx Kate