Follow me on Spotify! Right now I have four playlists, though they are a bit bare at the moment, so forgive me: mellow/chillstep, upbeat/mainstream, background, unsorted. It’s taken me awhile to jump onto the bandwagon because I didn’t get how to use it and I still don’t really, but I’ve been making myself use it instead of 8tracks or Pandora like I usually do, so hopefully I’ll catch on. Spotify isn’t the most user-friendly platform and connectivity can sometimes be spotty (or maybe that’s just me) and if I have to listen to another Febreze ad I think I’m going to stab something, but people use it and I like listening to music other people discover. Music makes me happy, and finding new music makes me happier, which is why I usually add a “currently listening to” at the end of my happy lists. What have you been listening to?

1. We finally cleaned the kitchen! It took 2.5 hours, but we did it! It’s unrecognizable from the filth it once was. Now I don’t have to bend over the edge of the sink and tuck my belly in every time I wash the dishes, making sure my clothes don’t wipe the edge of the counter. The first thing we cooked was ddeokbokki.
2. Whenever my dad makes a pitstop in Japan, he makes sure to bring back boxes of Royce nama chocolate (Amazon) for us. That stuff is luxury ? chocolate. Victoria had a layover in Japan and was debating whether to bring back Royce chocolate or Tokyo Banana (Amazon) for us and went with Tokyo Banana, which I’ve never tasted or heard of before. It’s a banana cake filled with banana custard. So good!! The taste, the texture… impeccable! I’m definitely recommending my family to add Tokyo Banana to their list of things to bring back from Japan.
3. I like that the word “loaf” is also a verb.
4. Having to provide food for myself this summer, I am so incredibly thankful for the free lunches we staff were treated to on Wednesday and Friday. I was nervous about the lunch socials because I work my job independently, so I don’t know any of the other student staff except for one friend I knew beforehand, and even then I wasn’t sure how close we were, but the socials turned out to be fun and I met two more student workers. Yay for new friends!
5. Not only did we get a free lunch on Friday, but we also had the rest of the afternoon off and were paid for a full day of work. This is the nice part of working a campus job. I feel like this would never happen in the real world!
6. Jennifer invited me and Victoria over to her apartment on Thursday for a “community dinner,” which is basically just a potluck amongst friends. Anything that has to do with free food, I’m there. I especially loved the pudding, which I topped with fresh blueberries and [super fresh super sweet] strawberries. I’ll dream of it in my sleep :’)
7. Victoria and I pulled out the rice cooker our friend Grace lent out for the summer. We weren’t sure exactly how to use it–there were so many buttons!–but we tried our best (with the help of YouTube videos) and then just sat there waiting for the rice to cook, crossing our fingers and hoping for the best. The rice was a success!
8. I finished all three of the books I checked out of the library 2.5 weeks ago (#9)! The last of the bunch was The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton. I’m sick of reading YA books about love, and though this book is essentially a YA book about love, it’s so much more than that and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It’s not your typical contemporary YA book filled with teenage angst and trivialities; it’s a fantasy and a tragedy. I haven’t read too many fantasy books since middle school. Anyways, it feels so good to be back in the reading grind. Now I’m on to The Stranger Beside You by William Casey Moreton. Keep up with me on Goodreads!
9. I visited the King of Prussia Mall for the first time with Julia, Victoria, and Ami! I was trying to save money so I didn’t buy much else other than a deliciously cheap meal from the food court, but I had a great time hanging out with the girls and I also did a lot of reading while they shopped. What a nerd. Anyways, being at the mall reminded me of my family and childhood, because my parents used to always take us to the mall to ice-skate and get corndogs from Hot Dog on a Stick. I miss those simple days!
10. The night before Victoria left [me, again!] for her dental program in DC, Julia stopped by our apartment and surprised Victoria with a birthday cake, which was a super rich chocolate cake. The rest of the cake has been left for me to eat o.o I feel like Augustus Gloop. I mean, I’m not complaining.
11. My dad messaged me this morning and said: “saw your new blog, very good (y) I think the best investment for me in cameras and lens are the ones that I gave to you. Keep shooting.” Thanks Dad! That means a lot to me :’) ❤
12. Currently listening to Start a Riot by Banners.

What was the highlight of your week?

I want to make an effort to remember the little joys in life, so my 52 week challenge for 2016 is to write weekly Happy Lists.

PS: 22. 21. 20. 19. 18. 17. 16. 15. 14. 13. 12. 11. 10. 9. 8. 7. 6. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1.