bethgstories

I wanted this month to be over and write an entry for August. I wanted to share something uplifting - perhaps a piece of good news or a new milestone. Except that I can’t think of any. I feel so tired and my back pains are killing me, hence the turmeric tea, the pain relief rub on my table, and some lo-fi version of Moonlight Densetsu to calm my senses. Oh and yeah, let me include the fairy LED lights on my mesh grid and the faint glowing lights of my keyboard, mouse, and headphones. My life’s looking bright, ain’t it? I discovered the wonders of turmeric tea when my sister-in-law made some, back when our entire household got flu. Its earthy-sweet flavor made it up for its pungent smell, an aroma that I’ve learned to appreciate as it became the smell of relief and answered prayers, much like the smell of hug, companionship, and clarity with coffee. That cup of hot tea took away my body aches and I sweated like I went to the sauna which made me feel a whole lot better afterwards. That e...

Captain Ri and Yoon Seri lied to all of us - freshly roasted coffee is not as delicious as they said it is. Roasted beans should be left to rest for up to 10 days at least to allow for its structure to form. Yes, structure. Coffee has structure and I've fully experienced this just recently after having claimed to be a coffee addict for several years now. Reading Megan Markle's The Tig, I'd say now I understand when she described the wine having arms and legs as she took a sip. Same for coffee. I took a sip and I was transported back to my Christmas mornings when there're chocolates and chestnuts and oranges and the cool breeze is too gentle it was too difficult to get off my pajamas. Nostalgia. Pure childhood umami.  The coffee workshop I attended was Sugar's birthday gift to me, a perfect complement to the giant boob mug I received for the same occasion. It taught me how to use v60 properly and allowed me to work on the intimidating espresso machine. Coffee is bes...

There might be spoilers ahead. It wasn't until I updated my Goodreads reading challenge that I realized it took me almost an entire month to finish reading this book. The Nakano Thrift Shop is a slow read, a book that I'd likely curl up with on a rainy Sunday afternoon, except it's dry season in the Philippines and there's hardly any rain. Anyway, if you are after the plot, there is none. It's a character-based story written from Hitomi's point of view, the girl that works behind the counter of the shop.  There are only four significant characters in the story. There's Hitomi. Then there's Takeo, who heavily reminded me of  Nakajima Yuto  in his drama Where Do I Came From , whose job is to go with the shop's owner Mr. Nakano in search of items to buy and sell. Then there's also Mr. Nakano's older sister, Masayo, an artist who eventually became Hitomi's closest friend.  The story imitates life too closely, and it's because the characte...

Warning: Spoilers ahead  The first episode premiere of this drama stressed me out - it didn't have subtitles and I wanted to join the raffle where Kang Minhyuk gives away a bookshelf that he painted himself and I wanted it so bad (yes, because I'm a baby Boice)! Anyway, How To Be Thirty is his first drama after the military discharge, and his hey-I-just-finished-serving-the-country glow just made him more adorable. As the story effectively delivered me from quite a stressful day, it didn't bring me to the place where there are no broken hearts unlike other Kdramas did. Pero nakakakilig pa rin! Here are some of my takeaways: Follow your instincts. If you feel like there's something wrong, chances are, there really is. I have no idea how many times my woman instinct could have saved me from disappointments and embarrassment had I not refused to follow it. That one summer evening many years ago I suddenly felt something wasn't quite right upon receiving a stray text m...

Uh-hmm... it's 0150 and I can't seem to sleep. I just finished watching that Kdrama about adulting, the one that I should have finished watching over the weekend had I not chosen to lay on the bed and stare at the ceiling for hours. Come to think of it, is it still a do-nothing day if your mind's not empty? Probably not. But that has become my way of coping. Especially these days when there's nowhere to go but the kitchen, the bathroom, and the happy corner in my room. When everything appears to be falling apart and there's nothing else you can do but to watch idly as things break in front of you, you just stare at nowhere and wonder if life has ever been kind to you at one point. I don't really need to wonder about that, though. Life has been more than enough kind to me. I still have a job. My family's intact. I've a place to live. I've friends to call when I need help.  Maybe I am just anxious. Another year has gone and it's the season where I ...

If hospital walls could speak, what kind of stories could they tell me, I would often wonder during the lonely afternoons I spent in the ICU many years ago. I figured it must be fascinating to hear stories of triumph over death, and of course heartbreaking to hear tales of defeat. Years later, I stumbled upon this book, and surprise surprise! It somehow resonates with what I was thinking. Reading it was like listening to one of the walls that surrounded me when I was seemingly counting my every breath. And I should say the stories were all so vivid that I could smell the smells (disinfectant mixed with detergent). I could see the faceless crowd walking back and forth in the hospital's dim corridors. I could hear the hush voices of the nurses drowned in the beep of the vital signs monitor. From the doctor's point of view If I am to write a non-fiction book, I'd write about my myasthenia gravis journey. I'd write about my hospital  mis adventures - the horrors of misdiagn...

Gift-giving must be overrated during these troubled times. But what we always forget is that gifts do not have to be expensive. In fact, you can just put together random (but definitely useful) things you can find in your home and put together a nice letterbox gift set. It’s economical because you’d only spend a little amount of money. It’s sustainable because you do not need to use extra resources. Plus, it’s thoughtful and sweet because what’s more special than a gift that is carefully thought of? Here are some of the letterbox gift sets you can put together at home, and I’d be more than delighted to receive one of them.  Bullet journaling box. My fondness for bullet journaling is all over this blog. Naturally, I have a lot of extra supplies in my stash that I am easily able to put together a gift set for that. This is best for your friends who are into journaling, or anyone in your family who simply loves to write and doodle. The box includes a notebook, coloured pens, a cute ...