Tea and Cookies

Warning: my blog got no filter. I hashtagged it personal for a reason, which means that you will end up reading my trash, my crap, and my compost. They can be irrational and they're not clean stuff. Sometimes I might write Chicken soup for the soul things, sometimes not.

5.11.2023

I have just finished my binge watching of Pen15! So my thoughts? I find the series both weirdly comforting and horrifying at the same time. I know some people have seen clips of Pen15 circulating around the internet without understanding the proper context, most people were thrown off by 30 something year old adults playing teenage characters. There were some uncomfortably awkward moments, so I think it's smart to have adult actors play those parts and have doubles partake in specific scenes. Plus the two lead actresses, Maya Eskine and Anna Konkle, were reenacting middle school version of themselves...(I'm sure there were parts that were exaggerated, and they changed the surnames of their characters), so I think they knew themselves better than anyone else. I liked that they didn't make themselves appear to look glamorous, they portrayed the ickiness of middle school pretty well. .. especially junior years during the Y2K era. The woman who played the lead character's mom in the show is the actress' mother in real life. Pen15 all together feels like a time capsule of locker notes and photos. You do not have to be someone who experienced being thirteen in the 2000s to enjoy this show, I think teenage awkwardness is a universal experience in every generation.

4.28.2023 Warning: a post about an 18+ movie

Yesterday, I finished the Netflix series, Beef. And my reactions towards the show? I was mind blown. I was not prepared to see some of the surrealistic elements towards the last half of the series. It's probably the best piece I've watched in years. I think there were a lot of moments that were relatable. I also learned that the cinematographer was the same cinematographer for Everything Everwhere All At Once (which I still need to watch because Bern wants to watch it with me).

One of the themes involves alienation and how a $$ crappy $$ society can prevent people from having healthy connections with their friends and families. I hope Ali Wong gets into more acting roles, because she's quite talented. And of course, Steven Yuen, Patti Yasutake, Young Mazino, & Joseph Lee played their roles very well!

If you're into films like Parasite, The Big Lebowski, High and Low, or Mulholland Drive, you might enjoy Beef!

Oh, off topic, I got a message from Miss Sis! It turns out she's suspecting that she might have an autoimmune disease especially after catching COVID a couple of times -___- (honestly, in her case, these were situations she could have avoided). So, she may have to drop the idea of getting (. \/ .) surgery.

4.26.2023 Trigger warning: body dysmorphia, body augmentation

So, I was able to get a hold of my sister after all. It seems like she's doing okay. She's planning on getting a (. \ / .) surgery....tbh, the idea of it makes me feel very uneasy because it's super risky and a lot of things can go wrong. Although my sis would never admit that she's being influenced in a certain way, knowing how she's been most of her life, I am realizing that she easily gets influenced by social circles & media. It's pretty criminal how industries can simply bank on people's insecurities in very many different ways. I'm really disliking how our society is normalizing cosmetic surgery as if they're some ibuprofen (obviously, you shouldn't be going overboard with them either).

It doesn't help that my mother has been sending her some $$ because she thought my sister was going through a financial depression -___- I'm starting to think that's not the case. I may have to contact my sister and let her know that our mother needs to hear her plan if she's really a 100% on it. I really don't want my mom to waste $$ on a procedure that could harm her either in the short or long run. I've already sent her a link of a medical article so I'm hoping she reads it & understands the negative effects of (. \/ .) augmentation.

Just a note: I'm not against reconstructive or GAS type of surgery, they're valid! There's nothing wrong with indulging in harmless vanities like safe skincare routines & a healthy dosage of fitness. I'm only dismayed with the normalization in cosmetic surgery in general.

Anyway, enough about Miss Sis, I think we're reaching towards a sunny week. It's starting to feel very warm, like 76 degrees Fahrenheit type of warm. Apparently, I'm still behind on my Vitamin D... but I think I've been good about getting sunny walks?

04.23.2023

My mom called yesterday. She wanted to check on me, but I think she was more concerned about my younger sister. Apparently she was feeling a bit depressed? My mom finally got a hold of her, and said she seemed okay now. I tried messaging her, as usual, she hardly gets back to me (it's the ADHD that runs in the family, so I get it) or she takes awhile to read my messages and respond them late. Sometimes she would just simply call me out of the blue. I'm going to guess that she needs to find personal time and her privacy to call back? I had to remind my mom that I don't get to talk to my sister super often, I feel as if I only get a hold of her bi-monthly. I'm hoping she's really doing okay atm. *Crosses fingers* At least she's active on social media, so I guess that's a good sign.

04.18.2023 Listening to Better by Saint Pepsi

For the past weekend, Bern and I quietly celebrated Songkranta by having home-cooked foods. Normally, I would be with my family around this time of the year or visit a local Buddhist temple supporting outdoor food vendors... but we're still doing the social distancing thing and I also don't feel like spending $$ on gas.

Anyways, I made lemongrass chicken skewers with pickled veggies. As usual, Bern loved it. For the next day, I made a glutinous rice ball dessert with mung bean filling... it turned out to be a little bit too savory (we still liked it)... I think I need to remember to add a bit more sweetness to balance with the savory flavor.

Just yesterday, Bern and I had banh xeo... it was super delicious and super light. I ended up using the remaining batter for my breakfast. Lately, I think I've been pretty good about maintaining my vitamin D, my fiber and my protein once again. I'm so proud of myself. *Crosses fingers* I hope to keep it up!

04.14.2023

Soooo many errands this week, and I think I am finally caught up! With so many things I wanted to do in my own " 'free time' and me being super scatterbrained, I feel like house chores can feel endless at times. I don't mind them, it's just that I get distracted in one thing when I'm supposed to be doing other things. Sometimes I would forget to take breaks, lol. Maybe, I will try to put up some cleaning playlists to keep me focused.

Last week, I baked cinnamon rolls with orange-flavored cream cheese. It tasted as if Cinnabon and Orange Julius had a baby, but not overwhelmingly sweet and super light. I always find myself using I cook and paint's recipe from youtube because I like that they would last for days and they would stay moist! The only thing I improvised was using a slice of orange juice and some zest for the frosting.

04.04.2023

Since I liked the movie Lady Bird and I grew up playing with Barbies, I'm super excited to see Greta Gerwig's take on the Barbie movie. I'm not even sure how I will be able to go see the movie during the lingering pandemic, I doubt I can find a drive-in place to catch. I guess I will have to wait for it to come out for streaming? The cinematography looks fun! Knowing Greta Gerwig and Noah Baumbach, I'm sure there will be some dark moments in this film.

03.31.2023

When I saw the trailer for Melon Journey, I was super stoked to add this to my RPG list. It comes out for download on April 7th! I believe the Gameboy cartridge release is already out. The artwork carries that classic Game Boy monochrome screen and the design remains to be cute pixel anthropomorphic people. The premise seems intriguing.

If you're like me and you're into Earthbound or Undertale, you might want to check bookmark this game to your wishlist.

03.29.2023 Listening to Vaporsprings mall

I'm alive! And I don't mean it in a self-deprecating way, it's just lately, I've been feeling physically off. I called my primary doctor about recontinuing my meds prescribed from my last doctor. I got better when I got back to my supplements. I haven't been getting enough sun, so maybe I fell behind on my vitamin D and my calcium? Regardless, I shouldn't have discontinued my supplements and I had to be clear with my current doctor (not their fault). Things do get difficult when your health plan changes T__T.

Anyways, we celebrated Bern's birthday. I spent the entire day assembling a cake for him. I basically used Sugarologie's Cakeculator for the cake layers recipe and SugarRun for the cake pops. I improvised the frosting, the curd, and the chocolate ganache to building this cake. I've also cut down the sugar amount from a quarter to a half, since we both love most of our sweets to be minimal. Bern loved the cake and I think it might be the most favorite I've baked for him.

Orange vanilla swiss merengue buttercream with orange curd and chocolate ganache.

I also baked keylime pie & assembled kappa-shaped (I know, they're bloopy) cake pops for our friend, another March baby. I mixed matcha powder into melted white chocolate, I guess they turned out pretty tasty!

Despite my body not cooperating with me, I had a fun week!

03.24.2023 My thoughts and ramblings about this week so far

1. The Weather 2. Sooo many birthdays in March 3. Potluck Gardening 4. Health and Fitness

1. We've been getting rain for most of the week, a combination of sprinkles and heavy rain. I can't say I dislike it because our state is always in a drought. Ideally, I would like to have our rains spread out and not pour all at once with flood warnings. I'm sure the LA River is filled up, I can definitely hear a Huell Howser's ghost saying, "Will, you look at that!?! That's amazing!"

2. There are so many March babies in my life (my Bern included) and I have to prioritize my celebrations with them. Obviously Bern is first on my list, so he gets full attention.

At least where I'm from, I guess people tend to make babies around the summertime

3. I stumbled upon a video on the idea of potluck gardening, this makes me wish I live in a place with a balcony because I would be growing quite some stuff to share with my neighbors. The idea isn't quite new to me since I also grew up in a rural town, with green thumbed- family members. Seeing how with the ways things are, I hope this idea gets passed around like fire.

Maybe I will read more up on indoor plants? Not sure how practical it will be

4. I've been falling behind on staying physically active and I haven't been getting as much fiber as I like >_< I have to really tell myself to be kind to my bowels to implement my routines.

03.21.2023

Note: Some media mentioned in this post are Rated R.

Bern and I got caught up with One Piece series all together, now we're just pending for new episodes. As we were binging throughout the series since last fall, I was telling Bern how much it reminded me of most of the films made by Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Hard 8, The Master...). The anime series has a lot of characters with nonbiological families and parental issues. Between the two creators, the theming seems to also center around love, but in a non-romantic way.

03.19.2023 Listening to Eyes Without A Face by Billy Idol

Since we're officially about to head into spring, I've been thinking about my teenage self and how much I evolved as a person. I don't think a fourteen year old Harley would recognize thirty something Harley. I imagine that the conversation between would be like:

Teen Harley: Wait, I'm going to become a decent cook? How did I learn to actually get good? And I will enjoy it too?!?

Adult Harley: You always had it in you. Tbf, mom was a bit overbearing and you needed your space and tools to experiment. You learn to get better from trial and error.

Teen Harley: Now that you mentioned it, you're right. Sometimes I like having my space.

Adult Harley: And when you also crave for attention , don't be afraid to ask for it. Just watch Ingmar Bergman's The Wild Strawberries, and you'll see what I mean.

Teen Harley: Do I have to make my own doctor appointments?

Adult Harley: Yes! But after a few calls, you'll be a pro. It will be part of your norm!

Teen Harley: Wait... part of my norm?

Adult Harley: Erm....take care of yourself, bye! *vanishes*

03.15.2023

Just for personal amusement, I decided to build my first Neocites page. I missed the days when I used to blog and not have to worry about content. Don't get me wrong, I think it's sensible to be mindful of certains things we share online, but I particularly liked not having to think about algorithm and getting 'shadow banned' over realistic and valid topics. I also missed signing a guestbook, and collecting cute pixelated gifs. I loved surfing around random stranger's pages and you would find that their whole content would be about dressing up as Peter Pan everyday (I think his name is Randy and I hope he is doing okay). Other than finding out about Space Hey, I was super stoked to learn that this site exists!

Overall, I'm not new to HTML but I definitely need to get better with reading more CSS. I'll probably share some random ramblings and recipes that I've collected for years. ^^

-Harley

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