Category: Notes

The past few weeks have been very exciting for anyone with a slight interest in space news. The Artemis II mission successfully sent four astronauts to orbit the Moon for the first time in over 50 years. Everything, from the launch to the safe return to Earth, was live-streamed on YouTube. And it’s just crazy to think that I can be sitting on my couch watching views in real time over 384 thousand kilometres away. But truly, the best part is witnessing something I’ve only read about, watched movies, or seen pictures. The last Moon mission was so long ago that my parents were mere babies when it happened. And that’s not even the first time that humans set foot on the Moon. For many generations, this is the first time they are witnessing such an event from our past with their own eyes. A second chance to see what …

FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) is hitting hard this time. Pokémon Pokopia is everywhere, and I’m guessing that if you are reading this, then we are probably on the same boat. I don’t have a Nintendo Switch 2, so I can’t play Pokopia. Yet, this game is on my mind 24/7. I want to indulge in every video and stream about this game because that’s the closest thing I can do to satiate my craving. But I don’t think it’s working. The truth is, the only game that can satiate the craving to play Pokopia is playing Pokopia. I know, it’s awful. But that’s the only solution. I’ve been on this boat many times to know how it works. However, I am not going to buy a new console to play only one game when I have perfectly good consoles (plural) to choose from and with games that I’ve barely …

Ever since I bought a Kindle, sooner or later, people will come to me asking if I recommend buying a Kindle. The short answer is always: no. The longer answer is: it depends. I’m not writing this post to influence you to buy a Kindle. Quite the opposite, actually. I don’t want you to buy one. While handy, there can be better options than buying a Kindle. So why did I buy a Kindle? I bought my Kindle back in 2017, and it wasn’t an impulsive decision. At that time, I was doing blog tours for upcoming books, which meant I was reading a lot of ebooks. I would read them on my phone, my computer or even on my iPad Mini (a fossil I received from my mother, but to read works just fine). However, it can get really tiring to read from a bright, glossy screen over time. …

I’m in one of the weirdest reading eras of my reading career. It’s not exactly a slump, but I can’t finish books. I keep growing my list of currently reading, and yet the books never graduate to the read shelf. And it’s becoming quite overwhelming. I can read multiple books at the same time, but I can juggle only a certain amount at one time. And looking at my spreadsheet, I’ve been like this for a while… October October was the month of the TBR Harvest readathon. I’ve missed a themed readathon even though I have a mixed relationship with them. This pushed me to finally grab a TBR veteran, Frozen Heat by Richard Castle. I had already decided not to continue with this book series. However, this book ended in the middle of a revelation. So obviously, I have to go read the next. Don’t you love it when …

For the longest time, the talk around perfectionism to me was always very… unhelpful. I think that’s the right word. I am a certified perfectionist. And have been trying to overcome it for a long time. So I’ve read and listened to a lot of talk about it. But time and time again, there was always something that didn’t click. The advice is always the same: recognise and then take action. Act despite the fear. Act despite the friction. Act and fail intentionally. And it’s not bad advice. But there was always something that was missing for me. I get an itch on my brain. It tells me that something is not quite right, but I can’t put my finger on it, just yet. I guess this is my gut feeling. He simply hasn’t learn all the words he needs to communicate better with me. When I was reading Refuse …

For a while now, I wanted to find a way to bring games into this corner of the interwebs. While I don’t play as much as I used to (I also have another thousand and one hobbies I didn’t have before), from time to time, some games steal my heart and time. They are all I can think about. And so, I want to share my love for them here as I do with books. But I’m not quite sure how to do it. Showing gameplay in video form is way better to get a grasp of what the game is really like… And I’m not doing that. I’m sorry. I’m not adding video editing as yet another thing to learn. So fast forward to 2024, I discovered a little indie game called Tiny Bookshop. And it immediately reminded me of The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan. In …

I’ve been dreading the day I had to sit down and write this update. I’m not giving up if that’s what you’re thinking, I’ve just made some progress… in the opposite direction. This summer, the TBR grew bigger, and I’m trying my hardest to clean up that mess! But what would you do if you saw some books become homeless? Wouldn’t you help them? Those poor things were shivering! It broke my heart. I couldn’t send them away… So I opened my shelves… They look so cosy and happy now! And I hope they can make me feel like that as well. June It all started on a warm sunny day in June. The doorbell rings with the mailman bringing a package with fresh new books. The second volume of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo – I can now start planning to read that – The Seven Deaths of Evelyn …

It doesn’t even seem real that I decided to embark on this journey three years ago this month. While this is in no way a project or a challenge I’m actively pursuing, I still want to see what’s on the other side. And it will take whatever time it takes. I want to be more intentional with my purchases. To be on top of the books I really want to read. I don’t want to own a graveyard of books, I think I’ll like. I want to find that out instead of keeping guessing. Over time, my approach to this challenge has changed. From a more strict strategy to incorporating other challenges like The Hardest Reading Challenge You’ve Ever Done, HRCYED for short. I went from book-buying bans to adding too many books to my TBR, from great reading months to reading slumps. But all of this is with one …

How often do you reread books? How often do you read the books you love again? I asked these questions recently, and the answer was rarely. Last year, I only reread 1 book, and the year before, I reread 5 books. In 2022, I reread only 3 books. In 2021, I reread 2 books. And in 2020, none. In total, in these 4 years, I read 193 books, from audiobooks to ebooks and not forgetting comic books. From almost 200 books, I only reread 11. But this isn’t a problem. It’s not written anywhere you have to reread books. You don’t even need to reread a book in a series to continue it. Rereading is a choice based on the type of consumer you are. And I love revisiting stories I like, so why don’t I do it more often? I’ve already realised that I love to rewatch shows and …

This post will be a little different. Usually, I keep my updates of the project TBR Zero separate from the monthly update of HRCYED. However, since I’m changing my approach to the readathon and don’t have much of an update for January, I believe it’s best to join the two. Firstly, time to look back on my progress on the TBR Zero project. October 2024 With Becca and The Books announcing the last Spookoplathon (not set in stone), I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to join. I can’t resist a readathon. I’ve been over this. Readathon exists. I join. On my first roll, the dice were in my favour and gave me The Stranger by Harlan Coben to read. I didn’t waste much time with it and quickly finished the book. I was familiar with the story since I saw the mini-series on Netflix. And while I prefer the …

I’ve been promising a post exploring my thoughts on readathons for a while. I’m a serial readathon starter. If I find one, I’ll likely participate in it. If I finish it tough, that’s another story. But first, a brief explanation of what a readathon is for those who might not be familiar with this communal part of reading. A readathon (like the name suggests) is a reading marathon. The objective is to read as much as you can for a set time, for example, 24 or 48 hours, a week, a month, or a year. Usually, a readathon has a theme. It can be based on genre, diversity, age range, a book series or a single book. Readathons became quite popular online since they are a collective effort. You can do one on your own, although it can be very motivating to do it with others. Suddenly, what is a …