DECEMBER NOTES
Happy New Year everyone! ⭐ Hope you had magical holidays and a restful end of the year. I cannot say that 2023 flew by nor that it took it’s time, it just happened. No big events, staying in a routine and letting the time flow while still trying to figure things out. Slowly, but surely I am starting to feel the energy coming back and sensing an itch to do something about it. However, given my past experiences, I am fully aware that any changes I want to implement into my day-to-day life have to be sustainable in the long run. Which brings us to a small announcement that affects the monthly blog posts.
When I first started the blog posts, I thought that surely it wouldn’t be too difficult to write one each month. Somehow I forgot how time works, especially during busier times and yet again I have put more pressure on myself than needed. So what is the conclusion after one year of doing monthly blog posts? Making them a bit more spread out and possibly changing up the structure.
Aiming to have a seasonal round-up of any updates or interesting things to share. Still keeping it on the lighter side and trying to not make it hard on myself. Might add some art related posts, if time allows, and keep the miscellaneous part of the monthly blog posts separate. Will see at the end of 2024 how this all works out, but I hope it’s for the best and it will give me more time to create something a little bit more fun.
On the creative part, I still have many ideas that I would love to bring to life, not only by illustrating with traditional and digital media. I might try and dip my toes into embroidery, sewing, ceramics and other more manual creative. It can be quite scary to try new mediums, but I have been thinking about them for such a long time and was never able to get over myself and just do it. Feel free to tag along this journey, in case you find it interesting or you find yourself in the same position.
For one last time, let’s jump to the miscellaneous part of this month with a few bits and pieces I have enjoyed.
MISC.
BOOKS: Iertati-ma ca nu sunt japonez is a Romanian book about the author’s experience when moving to Japan. He learns the language at a school and in his free time he works odd jobs and gets to learn the Japanese culture. I am always interested to read more about anything related to Japan, however I did not fully enjoy this book. It’s nice to read someone else’s thoughts and how they perceive the world, but there were often moments when the author’s choice of words did not help at illustrating his experiences. Towards the end of the book, the tone changed a bit. Sadly, it wasn’t enough to “save” it for me.
In the same theme, I have recently finished Hiroshima, which tells about the events during that fateful day. We have several points of view from the survivors and how their life was after being affected by the atomic bomb. It is a raw story that does not shy away from the real consequences and how the world acted in the light of the event. My only pain point would be that sometimes I would get confused following all of the characters and the shared information. Nevertheless, it is worth giving it a try in case you are interested in this subject.
MOVIES: Still need to see the last seasons of The Crown, until then I got to watch Spencer. Can I just start by saying how much I loved Kristen Stewart’s outfits in the whole movie? They were all gorgeous. The movie shows a short episode of the family around Christmas time, when things were already tense between Diana and Charles. Kristen Stewart did a good job at playing Diana, maybe even a bit too dramatic, but she nailed the character’s mannerism. Even though it wasn’t spectacular movie, the cinematography, main characters, setting and mood have made it a pleasurable expereince.
I really enjoyed The Witch and The Lighthouse by Robert Eggers and had to watch The Northman. Even though I am not a big fan of Norse mythology, the action of the movie caught my attention and was at the edge of my seat to see what will happen next.
I was so happy I got to see The Boy and the Heron at the cinema. It was my first Miyazaki movie that I was able to see on the big screen and was curious to see how it translated rather than seeing it at home. The animation and cinematography was gorgeous and a pleasure to see. On the story side, the first half of the movie is a bit more slower by setting everything up and not many fantasy elements appear. In the second half, that’s where the action picks up the pace and the quirkiness we are used to comes in. There is a lot left to the viewer to piece together and interpret the backstories of the characters, which depends on each person how they enjoy it. Not my most favourite movie by Miyazaki, that doesn’t say I did not enjoy being back in his world.
MUSIC: While traveling so much, I sometimes use the Song Radio option in Spotify in order to find new songs. This time I was lucky to find Matilda by Harry Styles. I am by no means an active listener of his, however I fell in love with this song. Everything about it is beautiful.
That was it everyone! The last blog post of 2023 is done and I am ready to change it up a bit for 2024. I hope that you all had a Happy New Year, full of joy and relaxation and wishing everyone a wonderful year ahead. Will see you soon ✨🌿