January Look-back

Busy, busy, buseeyy!

I was feeling kinda sick yesterday, but I'm a-okay right now, and I want to create a little month-ender post (though it's already February and all my commitments are biting me in the ass, lol). A lot of wonderful, memorable things happened during the first month of 2017, and when the end of the year comes by again, I want a series of summary posts to "look back" to. :) 

Please bear with this post? It might be long, but all these were really exciting for me, haha. I had to put them all in!

January 1, 2017

Aaahhh, this day broke my heart. Or my wallet. Either way, this was the first day of the year and I spent it with my brother at Starbucks (forever the patron, right?). But no, we went to Starbucks because around Christmas and New Year, our area was hit by Super Typhoon Nina, and a lot of the areas had no electricity. We had to spend both holidays in the dark lit only by candles and those small flashlights (quite intimate, haha). 

Left: I forgot the name of the cake, but it was sweet as hell. Had Hibiscus Tea with it.  Right: Our third batch of orders. Yikes!

I'd been going back to the place everyday, days before I brought my brother along, 'cause I needed to get work done. Thank goodness my plan entitled me to 6GB worth of data (which I used up and used over) so I'd spend the whole day at Starbucks just to blog and charge my electronics. The bill was worth it, though a little too much for me. (This was also the same period when I met Kuya Stalker No. 2, so yeah, worth it.)

Left: Bliss Planner mood board page: Be Fearless!  Right: The brotha! I made him try my favorite breakfast food.

I have three planners that I bought to help organize this year's business: the DYL, ABC's Daily Journal, and the Bliss Planner. I figured I'd do something with the latter first, while charging my phone.

January 5 - 15, 2017

The current had come back by this time (if I recall right), and I could finally binge on some Netflix shows, more specifically, their take on Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. I was not disappointed. I mean yeah, it's much much different from the movie, but if you've read the books, you'd realize the series felt more aligned and accurate. I finished the series before the end of January, and I'm a little sad there's no Season 2 yet. I might just reread the books. Haha.

Still hesitant to subscribe to Netflix? Read my previous review here. (Updated review will be up next week!)

L-M: VIOLET! Loved this series!  Right: More lettering on my Bliss Planner!

Left: My favorite from the menu! Bacon, Egg and Emmental Cheese on French Toast!  M-R: Kimbob goodness!

I can never get enough of this specific menu item from Starbucks: their Bacon, Egg and Emmental Cheese on French Toast. It goes perfect with Hibiscus Tea or their Dark Mocha Frappuccino (though I don't drink Frappuccinos in the morning if I can help it).

Goodness in a plate. Delicious!

Can I just say that, though I don't usually eat at the food court at SM, I keep coming back. For this baby. Kimbob is Korean-cuisine outlet that just made the food court better. It set up shop just last year and they've had steady business. The food is delicious and their kitchen is very clean (you can see everything from the counter). You can choose your meat, chicken, pork, or beef, and can choose your level of spiciness. This was cheap too, just between Php 99 to Php 150. My brother loves the classic Bob and we usually come here Sundays, just after church.

January 16 - 20, 2017

Oh yes, the epic week when the Nendoroid I ordered online came to the office. If you haven't read my post about Umaru and have no friggin' clue why I love this slice-of-life animé, please read my review on Himouto! Umaru-chan here. 

L-M1: Umaru's various placements and faces at home and work.  M2-R: Starbucks (again) and my face during a lazy Friday.

I previously wrote about the Nendoroid package, and I still feel the same about my little sunshine. This has brought so much light to my desk at work, along with Hatsune (who arrived around a week or two ago). So adorbs!

Also, don't mind my pic at the far right. I was feeling so bored when I got home from work on a Friday. It was a weekend and I couldn't go out. Dull.

The desk sitch.

My desk used to be right beside the computer table, but I've since moved to a smaller nook. I've disciplined myself to put only what I would be using everyday on the table, and not fill it with random sketchbooks and pens. I've also been getting into logging everyday on my DYL and I'm very happy about it. Since I wanted a little DIY project, I turned a few clips and twine into a washi tape dispenser of a sort. :)

January 22, 2017

I remember this being a Sunday, the first time I tried going to church at Victory Naga. They were located right inside a mall, which was convenient as all morning services usually end just before lunch. I've never tried eating anything from the small food court, but on this specific day, I was feeling adventurous. 

All three came from different food stalls, so I got to choose what to eat. Pica Pica tasted awesome.

I have a sensitive stomach when it comes to eating street food, and even when they're inside a mall, I tend to be cautious. These three smelled good though, so I took a chance. Good thing I had no complications in the evening.

The first one (left) was your typical fried siomai topping on rice and for Php 50, it wasn't bad. It wasn't as tasty, but filling. The one in the middle, Pica Pica was my favorite. I bought it because of my mom's recommendation (her friend recommended it to her as well) and it was worth the change. Fresh veggies formed into a ball and dipped into a batter. Nice when hot.

The last food item was okay, but pretty messy, since they turned the shawarma into an open taco. I've lived in the Middle East for three years and have tasted legit Shawarma before, and not one local Shawarma place has come close to the actual taste and texture. I get disappointed a lot of times. I've grown to accept the fact that unless I go back to Oman, I'll never get that flavor.

At White Bean. Had dessert and pesto pasta to fill in the gaps in our stomach.

JP and my mom shared a large plate of Pesto Pasta and water while I settled for a Black Forest Frappuccino over Coffee. They make you pick what your "liquid" would be, chocolate or coffee, and you know I don't say no to coffee. It was the perfect flavor too, the sweet mixed with the bitter coffee. 

When we got home, the crazy, always bored side of my brain got triggered and I snapped this video:

Aaahhh! Hahahahaha. Follow me on snapchat? @theindymiss (Suri na.) I kind of sound like Mitch from Pentatonix here, don't you think?

January 29, 2017

Another Sunday, but a different experience. For the last Sunday of the month, my mom, cousin, brother, and I went to various stores in search of, well, anything. We were partly driven by my desire to bring a desk plant to the office, since I wanted to have something green in a sea of Apple products. 

Dunkin stopover! Again, don't mind my face.

We had lunch at McDonald's before getting donuts at Dunkin (walking distance from Master's, a store we frequent for office, sports, and random supplies). I got the chocolate muffin and had to eat it by hand. By hand. I asked for a fork or a spoon, but they didn't have any available. I ended up taking it home and finishing it there instead. As for the dalandan, mom and cousin bought some from a vendor on the sidewalk. According to them, they could eat a whole cart of these babies. Lol.

We decided to create a Terrarium-like arrangement for my desk! Also, mom wanted to give me a face massage/treatment.

We got the plants from the marketplace, the moss from a plant nursery which was nearby the mall, and the glass bowl and pebbles from Master's. I don't have a "green thumb", but my mom does, so I let her do the terrarium for me. Mom loves to garden, so any chance she gets to work with her hands, she'll do it. We did research the best way to make one, so it wasn't just shoving greens inside the bowl, haha. 

How was your January? Let me know in the comments!

Ciao, bellas!