In the life

Hey there~ it’s been a whole year since I wrote in this series, “Recently”. A few major things have changed since the last instalment:

I graduated with a BSc degree in Biomedical Science, yay! Another blog post will be dedicated to my graduation that took place back in July.
Regarding the first point on my previous “Recently” post, I think I fell into a slump in terms of social media and blogging last year. But now, I’m back and more or less active in the online world ^^
I’m currently home in Thailand. I’ll explain about my future ‘education’ plans when everything is confirmed. At present, I’m just enjoying being a blob hahah. Eating good food, sleeping late and being glued to my laptop all day long. I’m treasuring my free time as much as I can before the next big chapter of my life begins.
Akash and I celebrated our 4th anniversary together! We’ve been through so much, and a few sentences would not suffice to express how much I love and adore this man. So to keep it short - in his words in the first month that we met - : “I want this to last forever.” ♡ It was also his 23rd birthday, and I need to edit the vlog of that day soon, ahh. We did film a boyfriend tag, and you can watch part 1 at the bottom of the post or click here :3

During the past year, I did a million and one things with my family and Akash in England. This post would be too long if I wrote about everything and added photos so I’ll make another blog post with all the things I did the past year. You can also bet that there will be a lot of restaurant reviews coming soon. Your girl turned into a pig and ate everything… I actually gained a few kgs ahaha oops.

:: In the next few bits, I’ll be talking about books I’ve read and films, tv shows and anime I’ve watched or currently watching. Don’t worry my friend, there will be no spoilers. These are just my quick thoughts. ::

Books

I haven’t read many books the past year but these are the few books that I managed to finish.

Artemis by Andy Weir - Akash bought this book as a New Year’s gift for me because he noticed that I’ve stopped reading books last year. He said he knew how much I loved to read so he wanted to spark my interest again. Honestly, this means so much to me, and I’m thankful for him for giving me this because it got me wanting to read more books afterwards. In terms of the book itself, I liked that he picked my favourite genre, sci-fi. The story was slightly slow-paced, and it wasn’t super exciting but it gave a sensible view of what life could be like if humans lived on the moon which was interesting.
This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay - This book made me laugh in public way too many times. It’s easily one of my top 5 fave books now. 10/10 highly recommended for a good laugh and a realistic insight into the life of a junior doctor working in the NHS. Heads up: the title is a foreshadowing, and the ending hit me right in the feels.
Fragments of Your Soul by E.S. Erbsland - Akash’s cousin, Nishu dd (“dd” means ‘older sister/female’ in Nepalese), recommended this book to me, and I absolutely loved it. Couldn’t put it down at all. It’s a fantasy with some mythology and romance. I was hooked to the world and storyline, and I truly can’t wait for the second book. Thanks dd for sharing this book with me :3
You, Me & Wine (originally: Naked As We Came) & Read This When I'm Gone by Hannah Cao (Arden Moore) - One of my favourite bloggers, Hannah, published these two books so without doubt, I supported her and got myself a copy. Her poetry is so raw and full of emotions. Her second book accurately captured the feels when you’re heartbroken. After reading it, I wanted to give her a big hug. T^T Hope you’re doing better nowadays, Hannah. <3
So Much I Want to Tell You by Anna Akana - Anna is my all-time favourite youtuber, and she’s an amazing storyteller so I was excited to read her first book but I’m not gonna lie… I was rather disappointed. I mean, it’s a good book yes, but I just didn’t feel connected to her writing, you know? Other than that, her book has some good advice and life lessons so I’d still recommend it to others.
The Watchmaker's Daughter by C.J. Archer - another book recommended by Nishu dd which was a decent read | A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle - this was a… weird read. I don’t know how to explain it. Not a big fan. I only read it because someone on instagram said it was their favourite book series ever.

read this when i'm gone excerpt.jpg — “you are a hero because you saved yourself”

— one of my favourite pieces from “Read This When I’m Gone” by Hannah Cao

FILMS

Ready Player One - As somebody who read the book before even knowing it was going to be a film, loves sci-fi and the anime ‘Sword Art Online’ (which has a similar virtual reality game component), I WAS SO EXCITED FOR THIS. AND IT WAS WORTH THE HYPE. Like most book-to-film adaptations, things were slightly different but overall, I thought it was extremely well done. The graphics, the characters and the storyline were all amazing. I remember just fangirling every other second in the movie theatre haha.
Crazy Rich Asians - Ahh where do I start? I LOVE THIS MOVIE TO BITS. I’d say it’s my fave film of the year. The fact that this Hollywood film features an all-Asian cast makes me so happy. I’ve always loved rom-com, and this is a great one. Akash and I were laughing our heads off throughout the movie. It was probably the first time I laughed at jokes that I could actually relate to in the cinema haha. My favourite character is the main character’s best friend, played by Awkwafina. She’s frickin’ hilarious ahaha. I liked that this movie touched on the subject about Asian men feeling insecure about their wife being more successful than them (Astrid & her husband). This needs to be talked about more. Anyways, I had waterfalls streaming down my face towards the end of the movie huhu… Also, Kina Grannis?! Her appearance was such a pleasant surprise, and her cover of ‘Can’t Help Falling in Love’ was beautiful :’)
Coco - Gah this film got my heart feeling all warm and tingly. I don’t remember if I cried or not at the end but I know I definitely felt emotional :’) Such a fun, heartwarming film that portrays family love in a beautiful way.
Venom - I’ve never been a huge fan of superhero movies but Venom changed my mind. I went to watch it with my sister, and she wasn’t expecting much too. But yoo, it was so funny, and we both enjoyed it. The interaction between Brock and Venom was gold hahah. The plot was rather intriguing; even the typical car chasing scenes were fun to watch. I think Venom is becoming one of my favourite Marvel characters :3
Incredibles 2 - this was super fun | Black Panther - woohoo finally more diversity in Hollywood. This was a superb film too. | Deadpool 2 - not as good as the first part but still enjoyable | Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom - it’s aight | Avengers: Infinity War - the ending… *gasps* | The Cloverfield Paradox - this messed my head up a little haha but nice sci-fi thriller
A Wrinkle in Time - this was the most boring movie I’ve ever watched. I wasn’t very fond of the book already but I wanted to give the film a chance but damn… I just wasted my money to take a nap in the theatre, heh. | Mission Impossible - Fall Out - typical action movie haha, my bae wanted to watch it so I went with him | To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before - unpopular opinion coming up… I didn’t like it much. Note that I only paid attention to some scenes while Akash’s cousins were watching it. Maybe it’s because I’m not a huge fan of romance/drama. Maybe I couldn’t relate to the main character like most people do. Nonetheless, I’m glad to see an Asian female lead in a popular film.

TV shows & anime

The Good Place - This is hands down my favourite TV show of all-time. I mean… when I found this show, I binge-watched two seasons in two days. That’s 26 episodes in total ahaha… yeah, I was on holiday and had no life :’) I love the plot and characters/actors, and the show is so light-hearted and fun to watch. You also learn a thing or two about moral philosophy. Currently, eagerly waiting for new episodes of season 3 every Friday.
Cells at Work! (anime) - I am a biology nerd and when I studied for biology-related exams, I tend to imagine that cells/pathogens/molecules are ‘alive’ and have unique personalities. (It helps me memorise the contents, okay cx) So when I heard about this anime, I GOT SO HYPED. Each episode got me all excited (I know, it’s sad haha). I love that it’s both educational and entertaining. I didn’t know I could get so emotionally attached to cells (characters) of the human body ahaha…
The Seven Deadly Sins (anime) - Akash watched this anime a while ago and he enjoyed it a lot. Last week, he finally got me to watch it too… and I’m hooked :3 I’m currently on the first few episodes of season 1 (there are 3 seasons). Loving the storyline, vibrant characters and comedy so far. Can’t stop shaking my head at the pervy parts tho hahaha.
Sherlock (Season 4) - whoever wrote the story is a genius, man. That plot twist tho. | Limitless - found it quite intriguing | Sense8 - seemed good at first but I lost interest afterwards | Stranger Things (Season 2) - can’t wait for the next season ahh

ON THE BLOG

In case you missed it, here are my (few, heh) blog posts from this year up to now:

Goals for 2018 | Exploring London | A day in York, England | Things people have always wanted to tell me

Horapha Thai Cuisine: Real Thai noodles

ON YOUTUBE

After a hiatus of about two years, I uploaded 9 videos on my youtube channels this year so far. Yay!

Newest video: Meet my boyfriend/best friend/big poop, Akash :3 We did the boyfriend tag, and it lowkey turned out to be just us roasting each other ahaha. Part 2 coming soon~

Other videos: How to make sticky rice | Aftermath of trying british snaxxx | Mom’s badminton lesson | Mom preparing spaghetti with holy basil seasoning

Keep in mind that I don’t consider myself as a ‘youtuber’. I simply just enjoy filming and editing videos for fun, and I have no regular upload schedule. ^^’ I wrote a little more about this in this blog post.

What have you been up to recently? :)
What are your favourite books/films/tv shows this year?