farewell, december
alexandra:
december was filled with ~chaos~, as anticipated. it started with final exams (which really weren’t so bad). the chaos was mostly from the numerous power outages and my sister doing her pastry shop’s pop-up in LA. the details were unveiled here:
after that, it was a week of ~i don’t want to do anything~ and that feeling extended to the end of the month. (i’m still basking in it.) christmas weekend was pretty uneventful: stayed home, binged true beauty‘s drama then webtoon (more info coming), made some milk bread, and watched some movies. all was chill; all was well. the highlight of the month was definitely attending/hosting subtle asian book club’s holiday party! i was really stressed about it, but it went smoothly and made me feel all the sappy feelings. SABC was definitely one of the highlights of my year. *sob*
retrospectively, this december was the least december-like month i’ve ever experienced. it was so odd. in a way, it feels as though it didn’t happen; instead, it was just a series of events that had no correlation to holidays or time. (what is 2020?????) now that my favorite month of the year is over, i miss it and wish i did *more* – of what, i’m unsure. i think i just wanted to feel the holiday spirit, but it’s hard when energy levels are low and things are virtual.
priscilla:
turns out finals actually weren’t as terrible as i expected! i was able to finish a lot of my projects early (go me for managing my time well!) so i have been CHILLING since i submitted my last assignment on december 18. i finally made some use of my netflix subscription haha but also got so tired of watching netflix oops. some highlights of the month: seeing an old friend in person, receiving cookies from friends, celebrating friends’ birthdays, getting an internship i applied for (!!), taking walks here and there, taking time to slow down and journal, and eating lots of korean fried chicken LOL
delicious cookies from juliet <3 
check out http://cranes4change.com/ for super cute paper crane earrings & support small businesses in nyc chinatown <3 
media consumed
alexandra:
i CANNOT believe evermore was released just this month. excuse me??? i’ve been listening to it (almost) exclusively and the *vibes* of the album encompass my current mood. my favorites are probably happiness, long story short, gold rush, and currently: closure and evermore. I CAN’T JUST PICK ONE (or five). i also watched Taylor’s folklore sessions on Disney+ and am here for all the Taylor content this year. she really served. ;–;
as for cinema, i was (apparently) in the mood for trashy content. i watched the first episode of true beauty with some friends and was internally screaming the entire time because the MC is so awkward and annoying !!!!!!!!!! but for some reason, i felt compelled to continue. and here we are, 7 hours later, sleep-deprived and pinning for dumb characters. THEN i have the audacity to binge the webtoon even though the characters are just as frustrating!!!!!! FOR WHAT?? ONLY because the cast is beautiful. i am Looking.
priscilla:
i finished re-reading harry potter and it was honestly one of the best things i did this year :’) i still want to marathon the movies but i’m not sure where to find all of them. i also read take care of your type by christina wilcox aka my favorite enneagram instagrammer. the book is super cute and i love her self-care recommendations for each type <3
the last book i read this month was the ruthless elimination of hurry and it was SO GOOD. it’s centered on the idea of matthew 11:28-30, which reads: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” please please please everyone read this!!
The solution to an overbusy is not more time. It’s to slow down and simplify our lives around what really matters.
John Mark Comer, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry
in terms of netflix, i finished watching the latest season of the great british baking show (the feels are real), re-watched an anime called erased (SO GOOD, kinda creepy and suspenseful but also heartwarming), and watched sweet home (also kinda creepy, kinda weird, but also kinda emotional). in terms of movies, i re-watched the knight before christmas (aka the cheesiest holiday movie) with friends and also watched soul – it was very cute and i think it made me appreciate jazz a little more <3
foresights of january (and 2021)
alexandra:
a h a haha the final two weeks of december were as if it were already 2021 because i am SO OVER this year (lol aren’t we all). i spent a good chunk of time planning my new year goals and i won’t spoil everything since i’m sharing a youtube video on it~
here are my main goals for Q1, january:
- move daily!! – get back into running, workout daily (rest days will be stretching/yoga)
- have a consistent morning and night routine – this has been my goal for the past few months and i manage to botch it every! single! time! but!!! this month will be different!!!!!!!
- konmari your bookshelf (and sell the books unhauled) – i want to *purge* the excess in my life so i’m starting with unhauling many (many) books and hopefully selling them on my shop!
priscilla:
okayyy i don’t think i actually exercised every day last month but i definitely tried to take more walks and work out more so that’s progress and we can keep working on it :’) my goals for the next month and the next year overall are kinda centered around the four disciplines from the ruthless elimination of hurry (solitude/silence, sabbath, simplicity, and slowing), and i’ll start with focusing on solitude/silence in january. i realized that i’m someone who does not naturally enjoy being alone (oops) – i always find myself filling up my time by calling people and i love it but i realized i also need time to really unwind, which is something that take care of your type really called me out for haha. overall, i really love the idea of margin that john mark comer talks about in the ruthless elimination of hurry. he explains that margin is the difference between our loads and our limits and talks about the importance of not living to the edge of our limits, whether that’s with time, energy, money, or something else.
sooo one thing i want to commit to for january is journaling at least a little bit every day. i’m actually about to fill up the journal i started during quarantine this year, which is kinda wild, and i’m excited to start a new journal and make it a consistent habit. journaling for me is honestly the best time to reconnect with myself and with God, so it’s something i really want to make time/space for.
i’m also beyond excited to go back to new york at the end of january! i’ll be living with a couple of my really good friends, and i can’t wait to cook/bake together and to just be back in the city. after being home for the past nine months, i’m very ready for a change of scenery and a change of pace overall 🙂
how was your december? let us know in the comments!
note: some links are affiliate which means i made a small commission if you decide to purchase through them! it doesn’t cost any extra on your part. :))
the final exams for me were just fine (even though i wasn’t ready for all of it, lol) and i’ve watched the true beauty drama as well (along with the webtoon)! i agree with the whole awkward/annoying characters but they are somewhat adorable✨ i’ve done a whole family christmas movie marathon (and yes, it was fun even though there were some arguing of what we were going to watch).
And I hope you have a lovely 2021💖