It’s Okay to Just Be Okay (July 2021)
This month I entered the world of online selling and all I can say is that it is very addicting. So far, I have gained nothing but good things. Aside from earning some extra money I also enjoyed the process of posting product listings, chatting with potential buyers, and packing my orders. But the most positive thing to come out of this is that this activity has kept me busy enough that I forgot to feel sorry for myself. It was a nice change.
I brought that up because I want to say that since I was just starting out with this selling endeavor, I spent a considerable amount of time setting things up, researching and experimenting, and getting myself used to the Facebook and Shopee apps. So, I did not have much time for my other hobbies and moving forward I think that would still be the case.
But anyway, here’s my media consumption for July 2021
Another KPOP month. Noticed that it’s my go-to Genre when I don’t feel like searching for new music.
EXO’s D.O released his first solo album this month! Prior to its release, I streamed my favorite single of his, That’s Okay, to prepare myself for the beauty that is Do Kyungsoo’s voice. I love this song to bits. It’s calm; it inspires hope and comfort. D.O’s voice is healing itself, but the lyrics take that to the next level. “It’s okay to live like flowing water. It’s just okay to be okay”.
Empathy came out July 26 and it’s the only new music I listened to this month. I think for this, D.O opted to continue from That’s Okay, sticking to the basics and the power of his bare voice. And it works! At least for me. The title track Rose is my favorite. D.O wrote the lyrics for this song himself and with the translation, I find it so sweet and pure, very consistent with his image. The MV itself is so pure and fun to watch, and it also had the drawing animations we had in That’s Okay, so there’s our continuity. We did not have any nods to D.O’s force power though, in any of the songs, the concept, and photoshoots. I wonder why that is. Anyway, we had EXO-DAY6 collab! And that made me so happy. DAY6’s Jae (as eaJ), helped compose for D.O, for a song titled My Love and it is my second favorite track. I am so excited to receive my album copy because I like this solo album very much, and because I bought some extra copies for me to sell as well :)
I just continued with my DAY6 throwback from last month with Moonrise and Sunrise. One can never go wrong with DAY6’s discography, as far as I am concerned. I just want to share that this month, Jae had an instagram live and I felt really bad to have judged him all this time. My state of mind isn’t exactly normal these past years, and with him having a similar situation I realized I should have given him more support. When he said, he isn’t afraid to show people when he’s not okay to set an example for others, so that his fans can see him, someone they look up to, not okay and struggling, but doing something about it, I really admired that. His message is that it’s normal for people not to be okay all the time and sometimes you just have to accept that and go on with life. It’s a common message nowadays actually, but coming from him and from all that he went through, it’s just a lot more sincere and personal. On the other hand there is YoungK and I rewatched his interview with Eric Nam, and I just can’t help but admire the guy’s resolve. From a young age he has learned to be independent and just live with life’s flow, mostly because it’s the only option he had. He basically just called his shots and made the best of what’s in front of him. Didn’t have to be perfect, but he just did it. Jae and YoungK’s examples are quite contrasting when you think about it, especially when it comes to the mental approach in dealing with life’s twists. But I learned something from them, ideals I would like to apply to my own life, I guess depending on the situation. I’m so proud to be a MyDay.
I re-read this book out of a whim because I listed it for sale. I remembered buying this for suring aklat in high school. The story is pretty basic, our heroine believing in something non-conforming and suffered from this belief, but still she rose out of the challenges battered but fulfilled.
It’s a short book, around 150 pages, and I read it in one sitting. The story just flowed easily and I sometimes think almost too easily that you can expect what’s going to happen next. It’s an OK book nonetheless and we have a moral to get from it. This is the only book I finished this month so, thank you.
Grimm’s Fairy Tales by Brothers Grimm
I sincerely feel like it’s a mistake to read this. I’m like 15 tales in and in most occassions I end with a “What the fuck did I just read?” At first I searched for what’s behind the stories, like the moral and some background on why the shit went down like it did, but then I felt burdened by that extra work so I proceeded to just read the tales as is. My eyebrows furrowed deeper the longer I read and most times I question what’s the point of me reading the tales when I don’t understand it. So, I kept my reading on hold for a while, but I’d like to finish it still. Let’s postpone this to August. Hopefully, this year.
Some side story: my cousins gave me this book and this actually added to my desire of collecting Collin’s Classics. I started with buying Pride and Prejudice, and now I already have 8 in total, most of them still on queue for reading. I am aware of Project Gutenberg but the Collin’s Classics are cheap anyway and have a standardized look, very collection-worthy, so a physical book copy is just very enticing.
But there’s something about the Classic style of writing that really hooks me. I want them sentences long and winding. Please give me more words than what is necessary. But really, the beginning is when my ex gifted me the Sherlock Holmes collections for my birthday and it had a similar vibe going on and I just loved it. I liked the BBC Sherlock so there was already some affinity for the character. I think this prepped me for my Pride and Prejudice journey, which I loved, and that in turn birthed my want for Classic works.
Relativity : The Special and the General Theory
I bought this on Kindle because it was on sale. I planned to read this alongside Grimm’s Fairytales because I was having a hard time reading that, but so far I was only able to read the preface. Bravo.
I don’t know what else to say about this. I find the episodes unimpressionable at this point. I care only about what was in front of me then I would forget about it entirely. I’m trying to remember if the first season had a similar effect, but I doubt that. First season hype is still strong in me. I would go down with the first season. But nevertheless I still enjoy watching this drama. I’m still invested with the main characters and their friendship. It’s just getting a little bit bland. Just a little bit. You know, just like how romantic relationships usually go when you get past the honeymoon stage. You get too familiar, everything starts to look like a routine.
History 101 (The Space Race)
What I appreciate from this is the infographics on interesting comparisons, like how much money space science is getting compared to the money needed to solve the global food crisis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m up for all kinds of science, but when you see just how much ego and politics get involved in budget allocations, you’d start to question the motives. But I’m not saying that to discredit how far humanity has come when it comes to exploring space. It’s amazing what people can do. It might not be too significant when talking about the real expanse of the universe but in earth history perspective, it’s quite a feat.
History 101 (The Rise of China)
I have read somewhere that no billionaire can ever acquire that amount of wealth without engaging in some form of exploitation and when you think about it, it makes sense. Respect though, to China’s growth and their journey to get there. It took effort and careful planning how their economy boomed and went at par with the US. But if it means exploiting your workforce, your environment, and other people’s IP and resources, is it really worth it? That’s just how power works now, isn’t it? Every country exploits the shit out of things, no matter the political setup. It just differs depending on how much the power is shared and the scale of what can be exploited. It’s just China’s time to be on top right now, but if you follow the same route, anyone with the stomach for it will reach it.
I brought that up because I want to say that since I was just starting out with this selling endeavor, I spent a considerable amount of time setting things up, researching and experimenting, and getting myself used to the Facebook and Shopee apps. So, I did not have much time for my other hobbies and moving forward I think that would still be the case.
But anyway, here’s my media consumption for July 2021
Music
Top Albums- Empathy by D.O
- That’s Okay by D.O
- Don’t Fight the Feeling by EXO
- The Book of Us: The Demon by DAY6
- Sunrise by DAY6
- Rose by D.O
- That’s Okay by D.O
- My Love by D.O
- Rose English Version by D.O
- Don’t Fight the Feeling by EXO
- BOOMBAYAH by BlackPink
- I Like You by DAY6
- Binibini by Zack Tabudlo
- DDU-DU DDU-DU by Blackpink
- I’m Gonna Love You by D.O
Another KPOP month. Noticed that it’s my go-to Genre when I don’t feel like searching for new music.
EXO’s D.O released his first solo album this month! Prior to its release, I streamed my favorite single of his, That’s Okay, to prepare myself for the beauty that is Do Kyungsoo’s voice. I love this song to bits. It’s calm; it inspires hope and comfort. D.O’s voice is healing itself, but the lyrics take that to the next level. “It’s okay to live like flowing water. It’s just okay to be okay”.
Empathy came out July 26 and it’s the only new music I listened to this month. I think for this, D.O opted to continue from That’s Okay, sticking to the basics and the power of his bare voice. And it works! At least for me. The title track Rose is my favorite. D.O wrote the lyrics for this song himself and with the translation, I find it so sweet and pure, very consistent with his image. The MV itself is so pure and fun to watch, and it also had the drawing animations we had in That’s Okay, so there’s our continuity. We did not have any nods to D.O’s force power though, in any of the songs, the concept, and photoshoots. I wonder why that is. Anyway, we had EXO-DAY6 collab! And that made me so happy. DAY6’s Jae (as eaJ), helped compose for D.O, for a song titled My Love and it is my second favorite track. I am so excited to receive my album copy because I like this solo album very much, and because I bought some extra copies for me to sell as well :)
I just continued with my DAY6 throwback from last month with Moonrise and Sunrise. One can never go wrong with DAY6’s discography, as far as I am concerned. I just want to share that this month, Jae had an instagram live and I felt really bad to have judged him all this time. My state of mind isn’t exactly normal these past years, and with him having a similar situation I realized I should have given him more support. When he said, he isn’t afraid to show people when he’s not okay to set an example for others, so that his fans can see him, someone they look up to, not okay and struggling, but doing something about it, I really admired that. His message is that it’s normal for people not to be okay all the time and sometimes you just have to accept that and go on with life. It’s a common message nowadays actually, but coming from him and from all that he went through, it’s just a lot more sincere and personal. On the other hand there is YoungK and I rewatched his interview with Eric Nam, and I just can’t help but admire the guy’s resolve. From a young age he has learned to be independent and just live with life’s flow, mostly because it’s the only option he had. He basically just called his shots and made the best of what’s in front of him. Didn’t have to be perfect, but he just did it. Jae and YoungK’s examples are quite contrasting when you think about it, especially when it comes to the mental approach in dealing with life’s twists. But I learned something from them, ideals I would like to apply to my own life, I guess depending on the situation. I’m so proud to be a MyDay.
Books
Ang Titser (The Teacher) by Liwayway ArceoI re-read this book out of a whim because I listed it for sale. I remembered buying this for suring aklat in high school. The story is pretty basic, our heroine believing in something non-conforming and suffered from this belief, but still she rose out of the challenges battered but fulfilled.
It’s a short book, around 150 pages, and I read it in one sitting. The story just flowed easily and I sometimes think almost too easily that you can expect what’s going to happen next. It’s an OK book nonetheless and we have a moral to get from it. This is the only book I finished this month so, thank you.
Grimm’s Fairy Tales by Brothers Grimm
I sincerely feel like it’s a mistake to read this. I’m like 15 tales in and in most occassions I end with a “What the fuck did I just read?” At first I searched for what’s behind the stories, like the moral and some background on why the shit went down like it did, but then I felt burdened by that extra work so I proceeded to just read the tales as is. My eyebrows furrowed deeper the longer I read and most times I question what’s the point of me reading the tales when I don’t understand it. So, I kept my reading on hold for a while, but I’d like to finish it still. Let’s postpone this to August. Hopefully, this year.
Some side story: my cousins gave me this book and this actually added to my desire of collecting Collin’s Classics. I started with buying Pride and Prejudice, and now I already have 8 in total, most of them still on queue for reading. I am aware of Project Gutenberg but the Collin’s Classics are cheap anyway and have a standardized look, very collection-worthy, so a physical book copy is just very enticing.
But there’s something about the Classic style of writing that really hooks me. I want them sentences long and winding. Please give me more words than what is necessary. But really, the beginning is when my ex gifted me the Sherlock Holmes collections for my birthday and it had a similar vibe going on and I just loved it. I liked the BBC Sherlock so there was already some affinity for the character. I think this prepped me for my Pride and Prejudice journey, which I loved, and that in turn birthed my want for Classic works.
Relativity : The Special and the General Theory
I bought this on Kindle because it was on sale. I planned to read this alongside Grimm’s Fairytales because I was having a hard time reading that, but so far I was only able to read the preface. Bravo.
TV Series
Hospital Playlist (Season 2, Episode 2-6)I don’t know what else to say about this. I find the episodes unimpressionable at this point. I care only about what was in front of me then I would forget about it entirely. I’m trying to remember if the first season had a similar effect, but I doubt that. First season hype is still strong in me. I would go down with the first season. But nevertheless I still enjoy watching this drama. I’m still invested with the main characters and their friendship. It’s just getting a little bit bland. Just a little bit. You know, just like how romantic relationships usually go when you get past the honeymoon stage. You get too familiar, everything starts to look like a routine.
History 101 (The Space Race)
What I appreciate from this is the infographics on interesting comparisons, like how much money space science is getting compared to the money needed to solve the global food crisis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m up for all kinds of science, but when you see just how much ego and politics get involved in budget allocations, you’d start to question the motives. But I’m not saying that to discredit how far humanity has come when it comes to exploring space. It’s amazing what people can do. It might not be too significant when talking about the real expanse of the universe but in earth history perspective, it’s quite a feat.
History 101 (The Rise of China)
I have read somewhere that no billionaire can ever acquire that amount of wealth without engaging in some form of exploitation and when you think about it, it makes sense. Respect though, to China’s growth and their journey to get there. It took effort and careful planning how their economy boomed and went at par with the US. But if it means exploiting your workforce, your environment, and other people’s IP and resources, is it really worth it? That’s just how power works now, isn’t it? Every country exploits the shit out of things, no matter the political setup. It just differs depending on how much the power is shared and the scale of what can be exploited. It’s just China’s time to be on top right now, but if you follow the same route, anyone with the stomach for it will reach it.