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Reading: Fairydoll, Hemlock and Silver
Watching: Smallville, Mr and Mrs Chen, Daemons of the Shadow Realm, Interview with the Vampire S3, My Adventures with Superman
Playing: Animal Restaurant, Pokemon GO!, Deltarune Chapter 5
Last watched: The Watermelon Woman

We're about half way through 2026, so I want to review check-in on my goals that I created at the beginning of the year. Taking time to stop and reflect should help me get back on track and/or reassess goals I'm no longer vibing with.

Before I jump into that, though, I just got back from the eye doctor. I've gone 31 years of my life without needing glasses, but apparently I have astigmatism. It's not severe enough to NEED glasses according to the doc, but I will notice a difference in clarity, especially in long distance viewing and dimmer environments. I rarely drive at night, but I think getting glasses as an option will at least be good for me. But speaking of driving, I cannot believe they let me drive home by myself after putting something in my eyes that made everything blurry for hours!! I could not read at all after the exam--the person helping me pick out glasses had to read prices and notes about lenses and frames to me. Then they let me drive home!!! Crazy to me. Next year, I'll bring someone with me so I don't have to drive blind.

A little after I got home, I could finally see again. So I went out for a walk--the city is hosting a flea market at the park. I couldn't resist, and I got some work appropriate summer shirts, candles, and $50 in music CDs. I'm listening to Avril Lavigne's acoustic CD--it's really good! The weather was perfect this morning, but it's starting to get too hot to be comfortable for me. I'll spend the rest of the day indoors. My plan is to catch up on Chiina's and America's VNL games. I hope they keep winning!!

Anyway, on to that mid-year review:

Fitness: Run a marathon. Last year, my goal was to improve my 5K time, and I didn't achieve that one either!! My fastest 5K ended up being about 31 minutes when I was trying to get sub-30. This year, the furthest I've done in one run has been 10K. Really no excuse here, but it's not that I've abandoned fitness altogether. It's just I use most of working out time on short runs (like 25 minutes/3K) or on strength workouts in the house. With the summer heat coming, too, it's harder for me to WANT to run. I won't completely abandon this goal, though!! I will try for a half marathon by the end of the year. That's only about double my longest distance.

Books: Read 25 books. This is a big jump from my goal last year (15) since I crushed it (24), but I think I'm behind. The Art of Joy--while one of my favorite reads this year--was a really dense, long book. I'm a little worried I won't hit my goal, but I'm almost half way there and currently reading my 11th book of the year: The Dragon Republic. If I continue to read daily and go to bed early, I should be able to hit 25! My favorite books so far:

The Art of Joy: I picked it up for the sexy nuns, stayed for the anti-facism and feminism and sexual freedom. It follows a woman, Modesta, through her life in 1900s Italy. It's one I plan to re-read already because, as I mentioned, it's really dense and one of the harder reads.

Half His Age: Jeanette McCurdy's debut novel was so good!! It was shocking and raw, much like The Art of Joy, and fast paced and impossible to put down. While Joy took me two months to finish, this one took me two days.

The Scholomance Trilogy: Loved this trilogy from beginning to end. The characters are dramatic teenagers, but it sets up a fascinating world and then completely changes it.

Work: Find a job I like. I did it!! It's a boring 9-5 desk job, but it's exactly what I was looking for--with the benefits I need to cover that eye appointment this morning, too.

Finance: Get a new (used) car. My old car forced my hand when it crapped out on me. It would have cost nearly ten grand to repair, so I used that money for a down payment on a new (used) car instead. So while I have car payments now, I'm not afraid of it breaking down on me on my way to work or home.

Overall, I'm happy with my progress, but know I still need to lock in with fitness and reading!! The best way to maintain a good reading pace is to keep going to bed early and using an hour or more to just read before falling asleep. For fitness, I'm going to have start forcing myself to run even if it's really hot outside. Wish me luck ^_^

Finished Reading Since Last WR
I finished reading A Deadly Inside Scoop---it ended about as climactic as I expected. I guess "cozy" books aren't for me, and I found it boring most of the time. But I also finished Michelle Obama's Becoming, and I loved reading that! It was really insightful into her life and how her choices got her to the White House. It was also interesting to read--in the midst of current events--that she had to fight to get a vegetable garden planted on the White House lawn. She also talked a lot about protecting her daughters from the same news and media outlets that her and her husband were often engaged with. She talked a lot about her life growing up in Chicago. I also found it funny/cute how dorky she found Barack when they first met. He's a big reader and an optimist. It really makes me nostalgic for an American political climate that isn't what it is now.

The Dragon Republic by RF Kuang Currently Reading
Currently reading the second book in The Poppy War trilogy, The Dragon Republic. It's a loose fantasy retelling of post-Opium War China and their struggles against the Japanese with fantasy elements and all the names changed. The main character Rin had just ended the war with the Muganese (pseudo Japanese) and now she's taking part in a civil war under a general who wants to bring democracy to the people. It's really dramatic and doesn't shy away from the horrors of war while making the characters seem relatable. And I love seeing Rin grow more and more between the books. I'm more than half way done with this, though, and I have no idea how it'll come to an end. It seems entirely hopeless--enemies coming from both sides--but Rin did just unlock her fire powers again, so maybe she'll be able to take the vengeance she wants (or not, I kinda hope she realizes Altan wasn't worth the effort and she can put energy into rebuilding instead of destroying--but I doubt it).

Reading Next
T. Kingfisher's Nettle and Bone is next on my list, but I also need to read the third book in The Poppy War trilogy. So we'll see which I get to first.

I took the plunge and deleted my FB and Instagram (and Spotify) yesterday. Thanks to muscle memory, I've checked them a few times without thinking about it, only to have the "sign up" page in my face. But I'm free now!! What held me back from deleting them for so long was that they were an archive for me--a lot of memories and photos. But I ended up being able to export all those and save them on my external hard drive. As for friends, I contacted a handful and gave them my phone number or Discord so I wouldn't lose contact completely.

Without Instagram Reels to distract me, I think I can get more reading done this year! I was getting into the bad habit of reeling before reading, so that is time I can just spend reading. It's about time for a mid year check in for my 2026 goals, on that note. I'll get to that this weekend.

Also VNL just kicked off and China lost their first game--a home game!! Lowkey upset about it!! China and the US are the two teams I'm rooting for this year. US is playing Ukraine today, so hopefully at least one of my faves wins today. I'm gonna be bummed otherwise. China really made a lot of mistakes, losing points that way. They also tend to all gather at the front, near the net, leaving the back part of the court wide open. I don't get it!!!!!! Oh well. Next time.

Current Music: Seven Devils by F+tM

1. In an average week, how many nights do you eat home-cooked dinners?
Seven. I eat out maybe once every other month. I'm super Spartan with my diet and cash lol, so when it comes to food I'm genuinely satisfied on the bare minimum. I tend to splurge on coffee and technology, though.

2. Do you plan your meals out in advance, or just wing it?
Half and half--I prep my lunches for the week so I don't have to worry about food at work, and my dinners are whatever I feel like cooking based on what I have in the house. Usually some combination of fish or chicken and vegetables.

3. How many nights per week do you eat out or order food delivered?
Zero... It's less than once a month, truly. I used to have a career that allowed me to eat out pretty much the entire week, so these last few months have been a hard adjustment for me. I used to spoil myself and now I cook three meals a day. 😭

4. Do you keep a stock of nonperishable foods from which you could whip up a meal or two if you needed to?
The only nonperishable food I keep stocked are noodles and rice--do they count? I'm not even sure if they count. But then I'm confident I can whip up a good meal with whatever protein and vegetables I have on hand.

5. Have you ever tried preparing meals for the week all at once, say, on the weekend?
My Sunday evening routine includes prepping five lunches for work. Usually it's just rice and chicken because it's super simple and I don't have to think about it. Though last weekend I was hungover and didn't get to it. So Tuesday I ate out for lunch, went home and cooked, then prepped for only a couple days because work treated us to free lunch since one of the seniors are retiring.

I want the newly announced Tamagotchi Paradise!

I have the sky edition. And when they announced the forest edition, I felt a mixture of annoyance and excitement. The problem for me was that the forest edition removed the sky field from original three and replaced it with, well, the forest, and I was worried this was setting up a pattern of if-you-want-to-collect-them-all-then-you-must-buy-a-bunch-of-Tamagotchis. But the newest Paradises--Glacier and Jungle--will feature the three newest fields: Forest, Jungle, Glacier. So by having the sky edition and the glacier edition, I could have all six fields. It still feels a little gimmicky--why can't all the fields be available on a single device? But I've always wanted an excuse to get a second Paradise anyway so that I could play with the breeding function more. I'm debating pulling the trigger and pre-ordering on Amazon... That's a decision I'll make by payday.

Friday Five time--I like to browse the community on Friday and see if anything strikes my interest. I like to travel and I'm craving to fly again!

1. Have you ever stayed in a hostel? If so, where? Did you like it? If you haven't stayed in a hostel, would you?
A couple hostels! When I first traveling solo, I chose hostels to save money, meet other people, and have some guidance on what to do in the new area. I've stayed in hostels in South Korea and Shanghai. I did like it because you meet other people and it makes solo traveling less lonely. In South Korea, the people was especially friendly and we all had a great dinner together. But as you save more money, hotels are just more convenient and comfortable. Hostels aren't completely out of the realm of possibility for me though--I'd be willing to do it again!

2. What is your favorite airport that you've been to? Why?
This is silly, but LaGuardia in New York because a woman at the Wendy's gave me a free frosty. I felt that going through security and everything was super smooth compared to a lot of American airports I've been to. It was just a pleasant time. Never flying into Newark again.

3. What is the best museum you have visited on vacation?
I went to a tiny propaganda museum in Shanghai that I still think about--it featured a lot of old posters promoting Russian and Chinese ally-ship. A lot of the pictures were drawings of a Chinese man and a blue eyed, blond haired Russian man embracing--nowadays the vibes read as a little romantic in my opinion. They were very cute. I always visit museums when I visit cities, but most of them blend together. This one stood out because it was so tiny and had this specific focus of putting old propaganda on display.

4. Have you ever made friends while traveling whom you keep in touch with on a regular basis?
While traveling no! Back in my hostel days, I swapped social media with people, but we never really chatted or stay in touch. I just see them on my feeds every now and again.

5. Have you ever had a conversation with a seatmate on a plane?
Yes, and I can't really remember those conversations because they were a while ago. But my most recent seatmate conversation was a woman on a train from Osaka to the airport. She was widowed and retired and using her time to travel more. She struck up a conversation with me to practice her English, and we just talked about the places we've been and want to go.

My urge to be more active on Dreamwidth and Neocities is part of a general desire for more creative outlets, so I'm going to do a 30 day challenge where I aim to write 1,000 words each day. I started it yesterday, and it was harder than I thought! But I did it! It was a mix of drafting an essay and prose. I do journal almost daily, but that is mostly to keep memories and practice gratitude, so I'm not counting that in my 1k a day. Writing with deliberate structure is something I'm really out of practice with. I'm ready to shake the rust off my fingers and work my brain again. It's also important to me to upkeep and improve my critical thinking skills in the age of AI.

In the same vein of wanting more creative outlets, I realize I kinda want a more hands-on creative hobby, too. Writing and reading are great for the brain, but I think I need to find something I like that lets me get my hands dirty--or at least tired. It's just that these sorts of activities (knitting and woodwork comes to mind) cost money!!!! And I'm so cheap! I hate spending money. It might be good for me to bite the bullet on that front though, and just dive into something that sounds interesting.

I'm really grateful to have this drive to improve myself. I guess it comes from the fact the job I've settled into isn't demanding physically or mentally, and I have plenty of time to myself after work and the weekends. So I can put more energy into my personal life. It also helps, I guess, that I don't have any friends in this new city yet. Admittedly, it's been hella lonely because I'm such an extroverted person, so I'll keep attending meet-ups and try to make friends!

The leaked mold for the new iPhone looks sooooo promising. The foldable iPhone is going to be sooooo cute and I'm going to want it. Folded, it'll be about the size of a passport and open up into a tiny iPad. However, if the pricing rumors are true, it's going to be more than $2000 for just its base model with the lowest amount of storage. For that price, you could get a nice computer!!!! I can't really justify spending that much on a phone, even if I really want it!!!! I'll definitely be sitting out on upgrading for the next few years because I just got a new phone, but I hope 1) it is good and 2) the price comes down to something reasonable as they develop it through the years.

Apple isn't exactly the risk taker or trailblazer it used to be either. I feel like I can depend on them to eliminate the crease that seems inevitable on all other folding phones right now. They usually sit out the latest trends and upgrades and wait for them to be developed reliably before taking advantage. It's lazy, but it does result in reliable tech. I switched to Apple a few years back for technical reasons, and I don't really regret it. I love not needing Google for anything and their ecosystem is crazy convenient if impossible to escape. Funnily enough, the folding phones by Huawei and Samsung were making me consider going back to Android--but it seems like Apple is feeling the pressure just in time for me to not have to lol.

So yeah, I'll be keeping my eyes on the iPhone 18 and 19 line ups--granted, I'm pretty tuned in every year anyway despite it being the same old stuff

Current Mood: curious
Current Music: artist, Hayley Williams

Finished Reading Since Last WR
This is my first Wednesday Reading, but I most recently finished Half His Age. It took my just a few days to read it because I couldn't put it down! Jenette McCurdy writes in a really addictive, raw, and blunt style. It was really good, an easy five stars from me. What surprised me about it was how much agency and control she gave the main character--how she was the younger pursuer in the age gap relationship and how other characters around her ruined their lives. The book didn't feel like a warning or patronizing, but you could see this unhealthy relationship play out because the main character's home life was so bad and she felt so directionless that she just wanted to reach out and control something. The writing captured desperation and shame and awkwardness really well. Not a comfortable read, but it'll be one of my favorites this year, I think.

Currently Reading
I'm currently reading A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collette. It's fine so far. I'm not big on "cozy" books or mystery books and this is, well, a cozy mystery--which seems to be a popular genre. And I don't know how much of the dullness I can blame on the genre and how much I can blame on the writing. I like set the up (a woman returns home to Small Town, Ohio to run her family's ice cream shop and someone gets murdered just outside its door) and the characters (said character takes all the action into her own hands with her friend's help trying to find the killer since the police are suspecting her father), but I'm not on the edge of my seat. It's especially cozy and slow, with plenty of time for fluff and ice cream and flirting with a local professor. I guess proper mystery might be more my speed. I'm almost done with the book too and honestly I have no idea who committed the murder. I am only sure that it's not actually her dad because of the cozy nature. We'll see.

Reading Next
On a whim, I stopped at the library a few days ago and got two books: Michelle Obama's Becoming and T. Kingfisher's Nettle and Bone. I'll flip a coin when I'm finished with Inside Scoop to decide which to read, unless someone has a recommendation either way?

I want to get back into Dreamwidth and the Colors TCG!! My life has been more stable again: I've changed careers, moved countries, and now I'm almost happy again lol. And with the internet getting worse everyday, I long for proper blogging and time to mess around with HTML/CSS.

How's everyone doing?

Current Music: song, Atlantic City

A coffee on a tablle with a card describing its ingredients: VIENNESE COFFEE - 薄荷巧克力 - Cream - Milk - Espresso - Menthe Verte - Chocolate Spread

Current Music: album, Rachell Chinouriri's 'What a Devasting Turn of Events'

Modern Idiot

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Mid-Year Review

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