Also knoan as: A little plug for our latest project

Okay, time to end the mushiness! A little plug!

Last weekend was the Summer Komikon and I don’t really go there except if I’m looking for autographs for some of the local series I follow, or if there’s an interesting launch. This time around, it was the latter, and I am very proud to say that it’s the first launch I attended where I actually went onstage because I was a part of the project! :)

From the Summit Media page:

Kwentillion Magazine is the country’s first publication dedicated to young adult literature and media, featuring YA-themed comics and fiction by Filipino creators. The bi-monthly, black and white magazine (with an eight-page colored spread in every issue) features reviews and previews of young adult books, interviews with creators, and articles which tackle a wide variety of topics of interest to the YA community.

I co-wrote an article here with my friend Chachic about YA books in 2012:

It’s not the first time I saw my name in print (I was in another independent magazine a few years ago :P), and I have been writing for Summit and other places online for a while now, but it’s quite nice to see my name in a project like this, something that I am passionate about. The other comics and articles are all awesome too — it’s always nice to read more local fiction. :)

The first issue is really a test run, and the next issue would depend on how well this first one sells, or how much buzz it generates. So! If you like young adult literature, or you want to read more about Filipino comics and fiction, Kwentillion is the magazine you are looking for! It’s available in National Bookstore and Powerbooks branches (last thing I heard, NBS Bestsellers in Galleria has copies) for Php 150. It has pretty good print quality too — I was surprised at the size of the magazine when I finally got my copy.

This post really fits my book blog more (hence the cross-post), but I’ll probably post a more comprehensive review of the issue in the book blog when I get the time. :D But hey, a project is a project, and I am more than thrilled to see this project come to life. I’m so honored to be a part of it.

Here’s a post from one of our editors about Kwentillion, and why he thinks this project is important. And then, you can also follow Kwentillion on Twitter or like the page on Facebook for more updates (or questions). :)

Also known as: Where I admit something I am not really fond of admitting
Can also be known as: Where I embarrass myself for being brutally honest

Now that I’m trying to blog a bit more, one of the things I tend to do is read my past entries in hopes of finding inspiration. It doesn’t always happen, where I write an entry to follow up an old post (I’m usually too lazy to do that), but it can also happen.

Like now.

So it’s been a few months since I wrote my current and favorite Valentine’s Day post. I still read that fondly, and I still believe every single word I wrote there and I still try my best to hold onto every single thing I said with conviction. I still believe that I deserve that much, that I want to be pursued, that I am worth the fight. I know and believe that because my God did so much to fight for my life and my heart and my love, I deserve the love that I dream of having.

But can I be absolutely, brutally honest, just for a moment?

Promise you won’t judge?

This image seems appropriate.

Okay, as much as I feel so embarrassed to write this down…here’s the truth.

I know that dating isn’t just to find a short-term relationship, but you know, to find someone you will be with forever. I know and believe that, and that’s really what I want, too. I mean, like what that song says, I want the real thing or nothing at all. I really, really do.

But seeing that I’ve never had a boyfriend in my entire life…is it so bad when sometimes I balk at the thought of, you know, dating for marriage. I mean, I know you should date because you want to get married…but if I were to be totally, totally honest?

Sometimes, I just really want to know how it feels to be in a relationship.

I just want to know how it feels to be you know, someone’s somebody¹.

I know that after this, I’ll probably hear of a story of a break-up from someone, or say, read about love problems that I am lucky enough not to experience because of my single state. I am enjoying being single and I am enjoying meeting new people for the sake of meeting them and making new friends. I admit — I even enjoy it when friends tease and talk about my love life and lack thereof. I am fine with being myself, I am fine with my friends, and I am always discovering something new with the things I get myself into. I know that that guy and that time will come, and I will probably just be surprised when he and that time arrives and things will fall into place and I will be surprised at how everything just fell into place.

But…who’s thinking about getting married that soon? I don’t want to. Think about it, I mean. I will probably think of that eventually, but honestly, I just really want to know how it is to be in a relationship. I want to be a girlfriend. I want to have a boyfriend. I want to celebrate monthlies and anniversaries without really thinking of what happens next. I just want to know how it feels. Is it bad or shallow of me that I want that, and I don’t want to think of forever just yet? Can’t we deal with that later?

I want this too. But...can't it wait?

Okay, so how’s that for over thinking stuff? I apologize. And I am embarrassed.

I think (and I admit) that I am writing this just because I’m feeling a little impatient again. I am happy with my current state, I really am, but sometimes I can’t help but wonder. And this wondering and wandering leads to thoughts like this. It’s times like these that I am convinced that I am probably not ready to get there just yet.

A friend once told me²: “Maybe your extended singlehood is God’s way of saving you from future hurts. Or worse, from settling for someone who is not your perfect pair. God knows that you’re the type of person who will work things out to the end, so you should be with your promised pair.” I know in my heart of hearts that what my friend said was true, so maybe that’s why I am still waiting. And that’s why I shouldn’t really let these kinds of thoughts make me lose sight of the real purpose of dating and romance, the one that God had planted in my heart.

I believe that I am being prepared. I am getting ready, I am being suited up, and all that. It’s not easy, especially with me reminding myself that I want to be pursued (Do you know how hard this is sometimes?), but like what the priest said at the mass earlier: true love requires fortitude. And I guess the kind of fortitude I need to have now is the one that requires me to wait and trust.

Moments like this is just another opportunity to trust God that He has a plan, and He hears and knows the desires of my heart. And even if I have absolutely no idea when and where and how and most especially who, I just know and believe that it will all unfold beautifully in His perfect time.

And then…I’ll know.

♫♫♪ You’re gonna be someone’s somebody…you’re gonna be somebody’s someone. ♫♫♪

1. Thanks, Dave Barnes
2. The original text was in Filipino, so this is loosely translated

Also known as: This was meant for the book blog, but I realized a post on friendship has a better place here :)
Also, a note: Look, I’m blogging two days in a row!
Photo credit: Ella – Thank you, thank you! :)

Sometimes, I’d like to believe that I have been lucky with my friends.

When I was a kid, I used to dream of writing a book. Not the kind of book I want to write now, but you know a non-fiction book based on friendship. I was big on finding true friends, in keeping friendships, and you know, just having these set of people you can count on whether you need them or not. I don’t know why I was so fascinated with that — maybe it’s because I don’t have a sister (but don’t get me wrong, my brother is awesome)? Maybe I read too many books and watched too many shows about friendship? I don’t really know, but I was in the search for true friends, and once I find them, I intended to keep them.

(On a sidenote, this is also probably why I can be slightly possessive with my friends sometimes. But that’s for another post.)

Anyway, last weekend, I met up with some book club friends to discuss one of my favorite contemporary young adult books ever, On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta. I was excited for this because one, this is my one of my favorite books, and two, my adopted little brother was moderating the discussion. Oh, fine, I was also excited for this because book discussions have been a highlight of my month ever since this year started, but that’s already a given, so there’s really no need to stress that. However, the days leading to the discussion weren’t really my best, with a vacation that didn’t end so well, and having my iPhone sent for repair because of an accident. I wasn’t sure if I could stay for so long there, but I was determined to at least show up and see how it goes — little time is better than no time, yes?

The discussion was an interesting one. There were mixed ratings for the book, probably because of some of the hype that us fans gave it. Nevertheless, the discussion didn’t turn out to be if the book was good or not, but more on the themes of friendship and family and forgiveness. I liked the questions a lot (even if I did end up getting the question related to sex — of all questions. Haha!), and I thought it gave everyone a chance to get to know the other people better. And as if that wasn’t enough, Aaron came up with a song exchange activity that was reminiscent of retreats and team building sessions — and I think it managed to accomplish its objective. I felt like I knew the people in the room better than when I first came in when it was all over.

Of course, the afternoon didn’t end with the discussion. There were photos, and jokes and laser tags and coffee shop games and…well, our book club meet ups were known to last for hours and hours, so it wasn’t really a surprise anyway. :)

I ended up staying until the end, and even after we had all left and went our separate ways, the conversations and the jokes and the things you’d remember were not ending. And even as I got home, it felt like it wasn’t over until everyone fell asleep. Which was funny because some of them didn’t fall asleep until everyone else was waking up. :)

You know that I could have written this book discussion recap on my book blog, but I realized that the things I got from this discussion were a little bit more personal than the usual that it deserved a spot in my personal blog. You see, even with all my search for true friendship and all that, I always had that feeling that I never really belonged sometimes. I guess I can blame this for the fact that I’ve lost touch with so many other friends I had before who I thought would be in my life in the same degree of closeness as we were at that certain time. There were friends from high school that I used to think I would see forever, and friends in community who I felt the same way too, but right now I don’t think we’d be able to talk much about anything. I know friends come and go, but I often feel bad about losing touch and all that, and I end up missing the old moments rather than finding a way to reconnect with them.

However, in the past months, I’ve realized that while there are some friends who go, there are some who stay. And…isn’t that the more important thing? The people who stay and become a part of your life? And they end up bringing more people into the fray, too, and they become a part of your life, and before you know it, you’re surrounded with people you can be yourself with. Isn’t that more important?

There’s this particular quote in Jellicoe Road that I really like that I think I can relate to because of that “search for true friends”:

These people have history and I crave history. I crave someone knowing me so well that they can tell what I’m thinking.

I think true friendships are based on shared history (or shared experiences, as my best friend put it). Last Saturday, I was reminded that I share history with some people –not just in my book club but with my other friends — and by that history, I belong. There are people in my life who I can be myself with, who I can have fun and cry and talk nonsense with, and more importantly, there are people in my life who stay (whether they would stay later on or not is another thing, but that’s for another post. Or wait, I posted about it already). I think that’s proof enough for me to say that I have been lucky…no, blessed with my friends.

Maybe it’s time for me to stop searching for “true friendship”…because I’m pretty sure I found that now. And I’m also pretty sure I will keep them for as long as I can. :)

Also known as: Lessons from a Bollywood movie

Hello. It’s been a while.

I meant to blog, I really do, but as always, life gets in the way. I’ve got a list of things I told myself I’d write about since last April, but we’re almost at the end of May and I’ve only written one post, one of which wasn’t even in the list. So if you’re one of the three readers of this blog, forgive me for being so silent in the past weeks.

Truth be told, I also don’t have much to say now. Oh, I have a list of things I know I should blog about — like getting a new toy, running with zombies, going to Boracay for the first time and that awesomely fun time I had with my book club friends last weekend (one that merits a post here instead of the book blog — that’s a big thing). I have drafts of those posts in my mind, and I can write them now if I wanted to, but that’s the thing: I kind of don’t want to.

Not yet, anyway.

Maybe it’s because my vacation wasn’t exactly the most stellar vacation I wished for (oh it was fun. It just had a series of very unfortunate events that made it a bit more memorable than I wanted it to be). Maybe it’s because I’m still in some sort of suspension now with that toy I mentioned, and the unfortunate accident that involved that and some saltwater is still fresh on my mind. Maybe it’s because the sudden lack of a certain routine that I got used to for a certain time jarred me. Maybe, it’s also because I am currently wrestling with my lungs after a sudden bout of asthma attack that’s kept me struggling for breath (literally) for the past days on a week when there are things that I want (and need) to do that does not involve going home and resting.

Ah, don’t you hate it when things like these happen? I feel trapped, and all I feel like doing is snuggling under the covers and sleeping, if only sleep can cure all these wheezes and waiting and silence these thoughts away. I just really want to lie down and do nothing. Okay, maybe throw a tiny pity party for myself for reasons I cannot even determine. I’m pretty sure this isn’t hormones, so don’t even go there.

But wait. I’m not trying to be depressing.

Last weekend, I finally sat down and watched 3 Idiots, this Bollywood movie recommended to me a few weeks ago. Now, to the people who know me, I’m not really a movie person, much less movies that aren’t, you know, from Hollywood. But because I was curious (and a previous recommendation from the same person was pretty much a hit for me), I decided to watch it. It was a fun and silly (and long) movie, but of all the lessons it had, there was one that struck me the most. If I may quote:

The heart scares easily. You have to trick it. However big the problem, tell your heart, “All is well, pal.”

*cue hand to heart*

But anyway, I wrote that line in my phone so I could think about it further after the movie was done. Of course, there were lots of instances in the movie that emphasized this point (including a seriously cheesy Bollywood dance sequence), and it provided me with a lot of material (a flood, even!), but I found myself saying that line over and over again to myself in the last days to remind myself that, Hey, all is well, pal.

I’d like to believe that it isn’t a way of deluding myself and believing things that are not what they are now. It’s not even that bad, for goodness’ sake. I guess I’m just getting a beating that I didn’t expect, but it’s not a bad, bad beating that it would pull me down. (Except maybe, if I get a really bad asthma attack all of a sudden :P For that, I have to rest a bit.)

But the point is that: whatever happens, no matter how I feel physically, emotionally, mentally (and even financially), I have to remember that all is well. Because it is. Even if it doesn’t seem like it. If it’s not, then all will be well.

Because it will be.

Right?

Also known as: Keeping it quiet

This is no secret: I am talkative.

People often hear me before they see me. I laugh out loud. I talk too much, I talk too often. I don’t know how to ask questions. I am loud, hardly demure, and practically all of my friends know some kind of story about me, and there’s always some kind of anecdote that I can share in the past twenty-six years of my life.

I talk. And as expected, this gets me in trouble.

Not trouble trouble, but enough trouble to make me regret talking in the first place. Enough trouble to make me wish that I was not the talkative type, that I had learned to shut up, that I was demure, that I will probably make all my friends tired of me soon enough because I can’t seem to control my need to talk and need to tell stories¹.

Of course, talking is a way to vent. And there is really nothing like good conversations with good friends…but do I really, honestly have to always have a story to tell? Do I always have to talk about something, to tell someone about every single detail that is happening in my life?

Why can’t I keep anything to myself for a change?

So just recently, there were some things and happenings in my life that proved yet again that my talking led to the disturbance of my own peace. Maybe it’s because my talking leads to people offering opinions (unavoidable) which I truly honor and am grateful for, but I also feel like I should heed these advice because they were given with the best intentions. But a part of me doesn’t feel like doing it, because in my heart of hearts, I know that it shouldn’t be a factor in any decision or move I make.

Okay, I’m talking in codes here, but let me summarize it: my talking too much leads to people also talking and it makes me feel upset, like I should do something, like if I don’t do anything, I will lose it all.

It’s hard because I’m really, really trying to listen to what God wants me to do, to listen and follow His will. I’m really, really trying, but I have a very strong feeling that the person hindering Him the most is me.

It’s kind of sad when you get to a realization like that, when you know that the entire mess you are in is really your fault. My tendency to fix things and clean things up make me even more jittery, until I took a deep breath and told myself to just stop.

Stop and enter the silence.

I read this verse in an article a few months ago, and I remember not being able to relate much to it before, but I took note of it. Perhaps the reason I took note of it then was because I would need it now? (Emphasis mine)

God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits, to the woman who diligently seeks. It’s a good thing to quietly hope, quietly hope for help from God. It’s a good thing when you’re young to stick it out through the hard times. When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions: Wait for hope to appear.
(Lamentations 3:25-29, The Message)

That’s the thing. I hardly enter the silence. I like talking, I like conversing with people, but sometimes, when life gets hard and heavy to take, what else can I do but enter the silence?

It’s hard. Especially for a person like me. But sometimes, when your heart is about to burst, when you’re so scared that you can hardly move, when there are too many voices in your head that tells you what to do next and makes you want to do the first seemingly reasonable thing to do from them, it’s time to stop. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don’t ask questions.

It’s hard for someone like me.

But not impossible.

So if you’re in the same boat, hold on. Stop talking. Still your heart, pray for peace, and enter the silence. In this silence, you will hear the only voice that matters, the One who can and definitely will send hope.

1. Note that this is different from gossiping — I talk about too many things about myself, not necessarily about other people

Also known as: Easter 2012

…let us rejoice and be glad in it!

And so another Lent and Holy Week came and went, and it is now time for my favorite season, Easter. I used to say that I liked Advent and Christmas more than Lent and Easter, but now I’ve grown up (a bit :D), I realize that I may just love Lent and Easter more. Not that Advent and Christmas aren’t equally important as Lent and Easter, but the latter seasons are pretty much the defining moment of my faith, of our faith. Without Lent and Easter, Christmas means nothing.

ALLELUIA! (Risen Christ image at St. Pio Center, Libis)

Lent. I meant to post more about how my Lent was, but March’s events got me so busy that I hardly found the time to post. I tried, but you know, it wasn’t easy especially when I was always out. But I didn’t take Lent easy this year. I tried something new, which I think are efforts that were blessed. I’ll post about it in the next few days (I promise!), but suffice to say: this Lent is probably the most meaningful one I’ve ever had.

Triduum. For the first time since I can remember, I managed to participate in as many church activities that I can during the Triduum. There was the usual Maundy Thursday mass, followed by Stations of the Cross on Good Friday (with actual crosses!) and Veneration of the Cross, and finally, Easter Vigil on Black Saturday. I used to think that Good Friday and Black Saturday were best spent at home in silence and reflection. But all the podcasts I listened to were right — the real best way to really and truly understand and feel the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus is to attend these activities because the Holy Week is meant to be spent in community with the church. :)

I can’t remember the last time I felt a holy kind of excitement in my heart until the Easter Vigil at our parish last night, and my heart was thrilled when the lights in the church were turned on. If I could shout, I would probably shout “Alleluia!” out loud. :)

Then, Easter Sunday. Bright and sunny (and hot!), and it felt like everyone was so full of cheer. Like there’s a new beginning.

And you know what? I think there really is a new beginning offered to each one of us. Because Jesus Christ had conquered death, we are free. And most of all, we are loved. :)

The best and most tangible feeling of this freedom: I gave up some things for Lent — these things aren’t bad things, but things that I could live without. It was hard to give up, and I broke my fast a few times. I almost thought I wouldn’t make it until Easter. But when Easter finally rolled around, doing the things I gave up again felt like such a huge gift. It felt like I was suddenly free to do those things again, when the only thing stopping me from doing those things were myself in the past 5-6 weeks. It’s like things were made new again. I was given another chance to live, but this time mindful of the fact that I should do these things I gave up for Lent for His glory and not mine because my Savior suffered so much to set me free. :)

See. I love Easter. How can you not love Easter?

Happy Easter, my dear friends. Today is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it. Jesus has risen, indeed. May this Easter bring you new hope and new beginnings. :) Alleluia!

Also known as: Saying goodbye to my favorite month with love

Look, March is almost over. I meant to blog more, but life just got in the way so I’m back only now after posting about my birthday.

Yesterday I finished rereading one of my favorite books, May Crowning, Mass and Merton: 50 Reasons I Love Being Catholic by Liz Kelly. I remember loving this solely because it was a book about Catholicism and it made my appreciate my faith more. The last time I read this was 2009, and I admit to being a little bit shaky with my faith back then. I’ve moved past from that part of my life, and I’d like to believe that I am better now. Reading the book this time around was different, because I think I got it a bit better now than then.

It’s also these times I believe that God sends affirmations to me about some things I am determined to live out. At the very end of the book, I ran across some passages about love that totally supported why I chose LOVE as my word for 2012.

The aspect of the cross that stops me short is that, throughout his passion and death, Christ was himself. He never tried to be anything else, never tried to please anyone, never tried to run away, never wavered from the truth; he only occupied himself completely and authentically with his own calling. He just loved, no matter what the outcome; just loved because that is what he was created to do. The miracle of the cross is that God loves anyway, no matter what the result, no matter our choice, no matter the flighty vacillations of the sometimes fickle human heart — loving one minute, resenting the next, indifferent or self-involved in still the next. Instead, he flings the door to his very sacred heart wide, wide, and invites all to enter and make themselves at home…

Christ’s suffering counts for something the most important things, the essential things. It counts for grace and for mercy. It counts for authenticity and for resurrection from our ruination and into who we truly are: children of light. It counts for being genuine and honest. It counts for love.

As my faith grows up within me, more and more the prayer I once clung to, “God remove my pain,” becomes “If I must experience this suffering, then please let it count for something. Just don’t let it go to waste.” When I can open my heart and love anyway, no matter the outcome, no matter the choices of people around me, no matter the risk involved, I become more powerful in heaven’s kingdom than any army, any fear, any cruelty or any rejection. Instead, those things are swallowed up whole and lost in grace and mercy. I find that when they are awash in love, they’re not such bitter pills after all.

I want to love anyway, to love because that’s what I was created to do. And I can trust that God will never let any potential resulting suffering go to waste if I’m doing that. It will always count, and that’s a promise. Even when I don’t know it; even when I can’t feel it. And that gives me courage, courage to love again, to love anyway.

I don’t understand the cross. I don’t believe understanding it is the point, or even necessarily a very worthy or interesting goal. But I think accepting it is — accepting that we were created to love no matter the outcome. The cross is God’s promise to love us, no matter what. And deep in my spirit where the most essential parts of me are anchored, there is a knowing, growing and resonant and burning with an eternal ache that tells me: the cross counts. It matters. It counts for grace and mercy. It counts for love.

- May Crowning, Mass and Merton: 50 Reasons I Love Being Catholic by Liz Kelly (pp. 269-270)

The cross counts for love. What a beautiful way to put things in perspective. I will never understand it, but even so, what I can do is to love anyway no matter what the outcome and trust that that is enough.

March is ending, but we’ve got a month full of new possibilities ahead of us. :)

Also known as: Birthday thoughts

So yeah, I just turned 26. Hi.

I think I’ve just encountered my first sign of aging. I’m still exhausted from my get-together with friends last night! Ah. I invited some friends to a karaoke night as we counted down to my birthday, and I’m still exhausted. Or maybe it was because I got buzzed and had only 4 hours of sleep after before I went out again to celebrate with my family. But truth be told (and I know I’m already thinking in advance), I’m thinking maybe next year, instead of partying like that, I’ll probably just spend my birthday out of town. Or maybe even out of the country.

But like I said, that’s thinking too far in advance.

I had a very good 25th year, and I think yesterday capped it off pretty well. Like I’ve been saying, it’s been an interesting year and I will always look back fondly on my quarter year. It wasn’t easy, but it was a pretty good one. :)

I don’t really have too many thoughts about this year. But as last night winded down, I realized that I have also let go of some excess baggage I had from last year. And it feels nice to do that. Despite my exhaustion, I felt lighter. I felt free.

And maybe that’s the best birthday present I could give for myself.

I don’t have very huge wishes for my 26th year unlike last year. I don’t want to pose heavy questions for myself like last year. Not that having those questions weren’t good. This year, I just want to make it a bit simpler. This year, I’m just going to focus on the word I picked: I will LOVE.

That’s it. In my 26th year, I will love. I will learn to love. I will choose to love.

I will live loved because I have a great God. :)

Especially when that great God is a God who paints the skies in your favorite color because of His love. :)

"Because it had to be love that painted this picture." - Stephen Speaks

So hello, twenty six. :)

Also known as: An early birthday present :)

Can I pretend just for a moment that this album was released at this month because my birthday is coming soon? You know, an early birthday present?

Stories to Tell by Dave Barnes -- in my iPod :)

Okay, even if that is not true, I am still going to pretend it is so. Just like how I want to think that The Hunger Games movie is released this month for that same reason too. :P

Anyway, other than Switchfoot, Dave Barnes is probably the other artist that I’ve written on the blog so many times. I discovered Dave through some friends in 2007 while I was on a Matt Wertz streak (who is incidentally, a good friend of Dave, too). It took a while for me to appreciate his music but once I got to listen and appreciate Until You in full, I was absolutely in love. I played his songs over and over and over again, used it as an inspiration for a NaNoWriMo novels and other short stories and just talked about him so much. It’s not the same fan level as other friends do, but if there was any artist that I started auto-buying on iTunes, it’s him.

So, here he is again with another album with a lovely title: Stories to Tell. I am thrilled. Just in time, Dave. Just in time.  You just made my birth month a hundred times awesome-r, and I can’t wait to love this album just as I love the others.

If you haven’t heard him yet, then this is the perfect time to get his latest album, Stories to Tell. He’s amazing, I tell you, and indulge me a bit while I push you his album. :D

The chances of him reading this is low, of course, but Dave if you (or anyone connected to him) read this, then please, please come visit us in the Philippines. :) We’d love to have you here (and I’m pretty sure you’ll love our mangoes, too :D ). :)

There’s life to be lived, and stories to tell, lessons to learn, we don’t know yet.
Nothing to lack looking back knowing that we have lived it well with stories to tell.

Also known as: The 26th birthday wish list

Sometimes I think I’m too old to make a wish list.

Just sometimes. The other times, I know I’m not. Or if I am too old for that, then I’m just denying that fact. :P

Make a wish

Okay, but seriously, I thought of not making a birthday wish list for this year. I just felt that maybe, since I’ve lived for already a quarter of a century then maybe I should stop asking for things for birthdays and Christmas (and Valentine’s day). Maybe it’s time to try something else and just be surprised you know?

But then I remember: ask and you shall receive. I personally believe that is true. And sometimes most of the time, we don’t get what we want (or need) because we don’t ask.

So in that vein, I am here to ask again. :) I’m turning 26 in ten days and if you find it in your heart to be generous to me, then I won’t stop you. In fact, here’s this year’s wish list to help. ;)

The “There’s No Harm in Asking” List

The items in this list are pretty much too expensive to get, and I will probably get it sometime later when I have saved up, but there’s no harm in writing it down. Who knows, right?

• 13″ MacBook Air
  With the 256GB storage, please. :)
  
• 32GB White iPhone 4s
  Yes I am giving in to this. I want an iPhone because it’s so pretty (and useful!).
  
• 32GB iPod Touch 4G
  I know it’s too much to ask for this other than the iPhone, but if I don’t get the iPhone, I kind of want to have a new iPod touch. Primarily because my iPod is already very old and another is because I want to have Instagram. :P
  
  
• Travel vouchers.
  Especially for places in my bucket list. Like I said, it won’t hurt to ask. :P
  
  

  Can't wait to fly again.

Books a.k.a. The Easiest Thing to Get Me List

Strangely enough, I don’t have a mile-long list of books that I want to get now now now. But I have a wish list on my Goodreads account! For surprise purposes, I also have a Book Depository wish list which automatically ships (for free!) to my house! Yay! But to be absolutely specific, these are the priorities in that wish list:

• For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund (pre-order)
• Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore (pre-order)
• Gunmetal Magic by Ilona Andrews (pre-order)
• This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers (pre-order)
• Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers
• Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers
• The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder
• Thou Shalt Not Road Trip by Antony John (pre-order)
• Amplified by Tara Kelly
• Thx Thx Thx by Leah Dieterich
• The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

These aren’t on the wish list because these books are available in bookstores here already. :D *wink nudge*

• The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen Thanks, Chachic. :)
• The Treasure Map of Boys (Ruby Oliver # 3) by E. Lockhart
• Real Live Boyfriends (Ruby Oliver # 4) by E. Lockhart
• I’ve Got Your Number by Sophie Kinsella
• What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones
• Heist Society by Ally Carter
• Sweetly by Jackson Pearce
• The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney
• Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales
• Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

Or, surprise me. Push me a book you think I’d like. I won’t mind. :)

The Other than Books List

• Snail mail. :)
  A card, a post card, a simple note — I love them. Of course, this is going to be hard to surprise me with this, but the surprise is what I will get and when I will get it. <3
  

  Snail mail love

• This star scarf from Cache Cache
  You should have seen my face when I first saw this.
  

  Stars! <3

• Vicki Rain Skimmers from Ready for Rain.
  I know it’s still summer here, but it pays to be prepared. I’m a size 6. :P
  

  Vicki rain skimmers

• A black fedora.
  This is really a vain thing, and I’m not a hat person really…but I tried a black fedora on one time and it looked good. So…just for vanity purposes, I want one.
  

  Black fedora

• Asking for clothes when sizing is hard to follow, so gift certificates for shopping are very, very welcome. (Besides, shopping is more than half the fun, don’t you think? Hm…take me shopping instead!
• Accessories
  Necklaces, bracelets, earrings, belts, what-have-you’s. I want ‘em. :) Preferably with stars or sunflowers.
• Tiny post-its for marking quotes in books.
  My friends would be proud of me for not dog-earing the books I am reading now. Dog-earing is still faster, but I kind of like seeing my books with post-its and markers so I would remember exactly what quote I liked in a book. :) So if you give me tiny post-its for this purpose, I will really appreciate it. :)
  

  Tiny kitty post it! :)

• Pretty notebooks.
  I’ve taken a liking to these Peter Pauper Press small format journals — they’re available in Book Depository too (and they’re also in my wishlist there)! I know I have a ton of notebooks at home…but well. Muji notebooks and Moleskines are accepted too. :P
  

  Pretty notebooks are pretty <3

• Pilot g-tec 0.4 blue or black or Muji pens (any color).
  Since I’m asking for notebooks, pens should be a nice thing too. :)
  

  Pens from Muji

• Twitter greetings from Dave Barnes. Or Switchfoot. Or Ben Rector, Matt Wertz or Brooke Fraser. Or Sarah Dessen. Or Jasper Fforde. Or all, if possible. :P I don’t open Twitter now for most of the day because of Lent, but I will obviously check at one point in the day. It’s worth the try. :D (My twitter handle is @tinamats, by the way)
• Sunflowers. :)
  I don’t think I have to explain this.
  

  ♥ !!!!

• Anything with stars. Or sunflowers.
  Or maybe even both. 
• Surprise visits, phone calls, text messages, coffee, dinner, simple notes, etc.
  I found out early last year that my primary love languages are acts of service and quality time. So really, quality time spent with me and surprises — even if they’re really small — are the things that definitely make my day brighter. :) (So if you’re one of the people I’m meeting up with this month, then that means seeing you again feels like a birthday present in itself. :D )

Ten days! Twenty Five, you’re still quite awesome but I’m about to say goodbye. See you soon, Twenty Six!