november 2018 gratitude journal + intentions for december

Nov 30, 2018

november has been quite eventful -- both personally and out there all over the world.

here's a few things i'm grateful for this month:

☽ conscious and moral voters investing time and energy in the 2018 midterm elections

☽ progressive orgs/groups putting in the work to inform constituents about current issues happening on capital hill, progressive candidate endorsements + campaigns; and the volunteers who dedicated their time and energy to help get out the vote

☽ stunning fall sunrises

☽ being blessed with a new job

☽ emergency responders and volunteers that are fighting the california wildfires

☽ community coming together for the camp fire wildfire victims

☽ giving tuesday, and those who partake in the generous global day of giving

☽ cooler weather

☽ having the right to vote

☽ empathy

☽ passionate + empathetic people who care about justice, equality + the well-being of others

☽ my little brother making honor roll

☽ people from all walks of life (i.e. religions, ethnicities, etc) coming together to mourn the jewish victims from the pittsburgh synagogue shooting, and protecting the jewish folks mourning at the vigil. restores a bit of faith in humanity in the climate seeped in hate

☽ people, organizations, charities + businesses donating/participating in giving tuesday

☽ earning + passing my very first food handlers certificate

intentions for december:

✰ stop blaming planet retrogrades (*ahem* mercury retrograde) + moons for every bad/negative thing that happens

✰ remember the lessons learned at the wellness retreats -- namely about being non-reactionary so quickly + self care

✰ give back to those in need. remember giving doesn't have to only happen on giving tuesday

✰ make new friends at new job

✰ rid of all the toxic people in my life once and for all

✰ learn as much as i can + not be too overwhelmed by everything

{Story Diary} Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

Nov 6, 2018

I received an advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review, however it does not influence my review. Quotes are taken from an unedited advanced review copy and is subject to change in the final copy. Thanks, Little Brown & Co./Jimmy Patterson Books for the review copy!

girls of paper and fire natasha ngan f/f sapphic rep

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

Young Adult Fantasy, Asian-coded, LGBTQ+

November 6, 2018 from Jimmy Patterson Books/Little Brown

Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It's the highest honor they could hope for...and the most demeaning. This year, there's a ninth. And instead of paper, she's made of fire.

In this richly developed fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most persecuted class of people in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards for an unknown fate still haunts her. Now, the guards are back and this time it's Lei they're after -- the girl with the golden eyes whose rumored beauty has piqued the king's interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but oppressive palace, Lei and eight other girls learns the skills and charm that befit a king's consort. There, she does the unthinkable -- she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens her world's entire way of life. Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide how far she's willing to go for justice and revenge.

Castes

➤ Paper

➣ Fully human, unadorned with any animal-demon features and incapable of demon abilities

➣ The lowest and most oppressed class

➤ Steele

➣ Humans endowed with partial animal-demon qualities, both in physicality and abilities

➤ Moon

➣ Fully demon, with whole animal-demon features such as horns, wings or fur on a humanoid form and complete demon capabilities

Rep

☀ Asians in fantasy
☀ #ownvoices
☀ f/f romance
☀ Asian-coded fantasy
☀ Queer MC + LI

Content/Trigger Warnings

➤ Violence
➤ Graphic animal death
➤ Sexual Assault
➤ Abuse
➤ Rape

"The fear might be strong.
But my hatred is stronger."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

"It doesn't matter how beautiful the cage is. It's still a prison."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

"When the world denies your choices, you make your own."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

"I don't want an easy life. I want a meaningful one."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

"We might be Paper Girls, easily torn and written upon. The very title we're given suggests that we are blank, waiting to be filled. But what the Demon King and his court do not understand is that paper is flammable. And there is a fire catching among us."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

"Her kisses heal the parts of me that the king broke. They tell me: You are strong, Lei. You are beautiful. You are mine. And, always, most important: You are yours."

--Natasha Ngan, Girls of Paper and Fire

**Quotes are taken from an uncorrected advanced review copy and is subject to change in the final copy**

Plot | 🌙🌙🌙🌙

Writing | 🌙🌙🌙🌙

Characters | 🌙🌙🌙🌙

World-building | 🌙🌙🌙🌙🌙

Diversity | 🌙🌙🌙🌙🌙

Pacing | 🌙🌙🌙

Swoon | 🌙🌙🌙🌙🌙

Natasha Ngan is a writer and yoga teacher. She grew up between Malaysia, where the Chinese side of her family is from, and the UK. This multicultural upbringing continues to influence her writing, and she is passionate about bringing diverse stories to teens. Natasha studied Geography at the University of Cambridge before working as a social media consultant and fashion blogger.

She recently moved to Paris, where she likes to imagine she drifts stylishly from brasserie to brasserie, notepad in one hand, wineglass in the other. In reality, she spends most of her time getting lost on the metro and confusing locals with her French. She is represented by Taylor Haggerty at Root Literary. Her YA novels THE ELITES and THE MEMORY KEEPERS are out now from Hot Key Books, and GIRLS OF PAPER AND FIRE will be published in October 2018 by Jimmy Patterson/Little Brown (US) and Hodder & Stoughton (UK). Head on over to the Books page for more info!

Natasha is also co-owner of fashion, travel and lifestyle blog Girl in the Lens.

october 2018 | a look back

Oct 31, 2018

[aesthetic]

highlights

early absentee 2018 ballots came in the mail this month for the 2018 midterms! after careful research and consideration, it's been filled out and awaiting until it's time to drop them off.
i got back into listening to podcasts again and discovered more great ones worth listening to.
after 3 weeks of not being able to eat certain foods due to dental extraction and temporary crowns, i finally got permanent crowns and can eat whatever i want again. hello pizza, i've missed you.
dedicated time and energy to join thelastweekend.org + people power in phone/text banking, postcard writing + mailing, and canvassing with fellow volunteers in my community for progressive candidates to get out the vote for the midterms.

lowlights

a dear friend of mine got bad health news but i'm praying and supporting her to pull through.
as if my bank account didn't take a hit enough after my dentist bills last month, my car took even more for maintenance and repairs. whoever said owning cars were fun, lied!
job rejections/non-follow ups
flakey friends
dealing with health insurance issues
halloween was lackluster this year but at least i had a job interview
my mental health was at a low this month

what i read

well-read black girl // glory edim

the minimalist home // joshua becker

a blade so black // l. l. mckinney

in the vanisher's palace // aliette de bodard

blanca & roja // anna-marie mclemore

odd one out // nic stone

a very large expanse of sea // tahera mafi

the boneless mercies // april genevieve tucholkk

what if it's us // becky albertalli x adam silvera

frugal living guide for the minimalism lifestyle //

minimalist living // genevieve parker hill

frugal: the art of frugal simplicity // jessica jacobs

a little bit of mindfulness //

mind detox //

betraying big brother // leta hong ficher

pinay: culture bearers of the filipino diaspora //

what i listened to

without me// halsey

taki taki // dj snake x ozuna x cardi b x selena gomez

bad guy // niykee heaton

1999 // charli xcx x troye sivan

focus // saweetie

sweet but psycho // ava max

(full playlist on my october playlist post)

{Raditorial} Museum of Ice Cream | San Francisco, CA

Sep 10, 2018

i celebrated my 26th birthday at the museum of ice cream in san francisco last week with my friends, and after showing my parents and siblings (little sis is an ice cream connoisseur) the photos we took, they wanted to check it out so we took a quick family trip to the museum. having visited the museum three times already, somehow every visit gets better and better. i've only been to the ones in LA and SF, and personally i like SF the best.

it was pretty cool to see all the ice cream-themed exhibits, although the lines and crowds were not. some of the exhibits were interactive and full of ice cream fun facts. some exhibits gave away free ice cream, pop rocks, cotton candy & lemonade for those with a sweet tooth out there. as you go through the exhibits, you'll find yourself jumping into the sprinkles pool, to candyland with a gummybear, to a crawl space that's made of all mirror, to a unicorn, to a ring toss game, to a 1950s diner with a jukebox, to a magnetic exhibit with refrigerator magnets to leave your mark, and more. there's also a set of swings perfect for the (insta)gram.

originally opened as a pop-up museum for a few months, by demand they extended it. twice. we're glad to hear that the museum of ice cream is here to stay permanently! so if you've planned on a visit to san francisco one day in the near future, make sure to put this down as one of your stops (if you're into ice cream and sweets). currently there are museum of ice creams in san francisco, LA, NYC and miami.

location: museum of ice cream

1 grant ave.

san francisco, ca 94108

website/tickets: https://www.museumoficecream.com/san-francisco

♥ have you been to any of the museum of ice creams?
what were your favorite exhibits and flavors? ♥

august 2018 | a look back

Sep 1, 2018

highlights

my lola (grandma) came back from philippines. again. she'll be here for my birthday and for the rest of the year until she goes back march next year.
my little brother started the 5th grade. his last year of elementary school :'-(
saw valfre and charmaine olivia paint their murals at our local open wide walls mural festival. they're my favorite artists, so it'll be nice to have a piece of their work on the streets of downtown and pass by everyday.
roomies + i participated in an aclu people power postcard writing party campaign with fellow local aclu volunteers to get out the vote to folks across the country.
celebrated end of summer at third thursday event hosted in downtown sacramento, where there were crafts that people got to participate in, games, drinks, silent disco, + a free showing of lady bird.
joined indivisible guide's textbank team (aka indivisitext) to text people in florida for andrew gillum for governor.
attended local aclu people power's 'demand police accountability' lobby day for ab 931. thank you assemblymember skinner and cosigners for creating and pushing for this bill. it's good to know there are still some people who care about accountability and the community.

lowlights

if you've been following me on twitter the past few months, you'll know that i've been having a bug problem particularly in my room. the usual culprits are spiders (and 2 cockroaches), but this time we found a centipede in there. how did a centipede get in the house? we have no idea.
mendocino fire grew and outbeat last years napa wildfire at 459,000 acres. larger than the size of the city of los angeles.
my skin broke out in weird patches out of nowhere, and then got puffy after putting aloe vera gel. i looked like a zombie with red circles around my eyes but luckily everything went back to normal a few days later.
ab 931 was shelved for another year, unfortunately. but we're not giving up on passing this bill to hold california police accountable for abusing their power.

what i read

the descent of monsters by j.y. yang

unapologetic: a black, queer, and feminist mandate for radical movements by charlene carruthers

legacy by whiti hereaka

rising out of hatred: the awakening of a former white nationalist by eli saslow

nejma by nayyirah waheed

mindful moments: everyday mindfulness for real people by haven e. carter

so done by paula chase

give a sh*t: do good. live better. save the planet. by ashlee piper

new poems of native nations, edited by heid e. erdrich + more

noughts & crosses by malorie blackman

girls resist!: a guide to activism, leadership, and starting a revolution by kaelyn rich

the joy of less, a minimalist living guide: how to declutter, organize, and simplify your life by francine jay

rad women worldwide: artists and athletes, pirates and punks, and other revolutionaries who shaped history, edited by kate schatz and miriam klein stahl

what i listened to

lucid dreaming (cover) // first to eleven

the 1 // blackbear

summertime magic // childish gambino

real friends (remix) // camila cabello x swae lee

tootimetootimetootime // the 1975

all the time // kim petras

lomesome love // mitski

devil's in the backseat // lostboycrow

beautiful // bazzi x camila cabello

summer on you // prettymuch

[full summer playlist coming in my next post]

adventures

none. i'll be going to the museum of ice cream sf and seattle next month, so stay tuned.

looking forward to in september

my birthday on the 1st! (but not so excited at the prospect of turning 26)
museum of ice cream
capitol airshow
vacation in seattle

summer 2018 playlist

Aug 31, 2018

f.f.f. // bebe rexha x g-eazy
give yourself a try // the 1975
playwitme // kyle x kehlani
i do // cardi b x sza
myself // bazzi
girls like you // maroon 5 x cardi b
middle finger // phoebe ryan x quinn xcii
i got time // bebe rexha
enemies // lauv
all the talk // mike stud
tension // cappa
5 in the morning // charli xcx
gratitude // livvia
so sad so sexy // lykke li
hunger // florence + the machine
first love / late spring // mitski
beautiful // bazzi
spin the globe // lostboycrow
better alone // lykke li

♥ the 1975 and lykke li are back!!

what were you listening to this month? ♥

july 2018 | a look back