This photo that I took on April of 2012 seemed appropriate for this particular post.

Asleep by The Smiths has been on repeat for more than a handful of minutes. Why does melancholy seem so majestic in melodies? In every note, in every heartrending do re mi, in every vestige of sound that reaches my foreboding ears, I am carried away into a breathtaking multiverse where bliss has become nonexistent and sorrow has turned mundane.

Pretense has been my favorite method to cope with the distress and the harrowing insignificance of my life. Bottling my emotions has turned into a means of escape from a world where every second of laughter and smiles seemed cumbersome and plagued and deceitful. Submitting myself into the pool of thoughts where in every letter, every word, every sentence, every paragraph I pour out in an empty space in the worldwide web has become my only comfort. 

I could talk and sound nonsensical. I could listen and become caught up in a web of ennui. I could stay away and become swathed in paroxysms of loneliness, of emptiness, of indifference. I can no longer feel human when all I could ever express are raging thoughts and pensive words. In fact, I no longer feel human at all.

I wrote this on December 17, 2011 - almost five years ago. I'm writing this very sentence with my heart filled with contentment, love and joy. It gets so much better. Never lose hope. 

The holiday season is just around the corner, and everyone's busy with gifts, decors, preparation for delicious food and the barrage of parties that come with it. Don't get me wrong - I like parties! The only difference is that for introverts like me, parties, even intimate ones, feel exhausting after a couple of hours. So if you have an introvert in your life, here are a few tips to make the holiday season less insufferable and more tolerable for them:

• For the love of all things cozy, please don't show up at our place unannounced. I get it, the air is teeming with a partying frenzy that feels too cumbersome to ignore, and you know we love your company. However, the holiday season is high-time for social gatherings, and more often than not, we really just want our own company. At least while we recharge.

• Parties are fun, and holiday parties seem even more so. But don't be surprised if your introvert turns down some of your party invites. Believe me when I say that this is not some personal vendetta against you, and it's definitely not something we do to decisively offend you. This is one of those moments when the phrase "It's not you, it's me" rings true. It's not that we don't want to hang out with you. It's that we don't want to hang out with you and fifty other people we barely know who may or may not vomit on our shoes.

• I don't know about other introverts but my personal limit for socialization is 2-5 hours, depending on the circumstances. So please don't take it against us if we slip out earlier than most people. Again, "It's not you, it's me". We might miss all the fun, but our favorite parties are usually a ménage à trois between us, a good book and a cup of hot tea. Besides, that just means you can hang out with more people! Win-win!

• You know those people who manage to find 5-10 minutes of alone time during parties? They're usually the ones taking too long in the bathroom, offering to walk the dog or suddenly wanting some fresh air. I'm one of those people, and yes, we're introverts in that even a few, precious moments by ourselves can rejuvenate us for parties. So please allow us our minutes of tranquility.

• If you're the host, allow your introverts to bring a plus one. If your introvert is headed to an obligatory party, offer to be his/her plus one. Like a good bra, life is just a little better with amazing support. 

There you have it folks - some kind deeds towards your introvert straight from a self-dubbed introvert's mouth. I hope this season treats you well!

I recently went on a social media hiatus after what felt like an overwhelming time of browsing online. What with the elections looming overhead, casting a shadow of gloom and doom, it felt easier and smarter to withdraw, rejuvenate and find myself again. And like all new things, I came out of the hiatus with lessons and epiphanies, which I will be sharing today:

1. I spend way too much time online. I realized I spend AT LEAST 3-5 hours online and that wasn't even hours spent on imbibing current events and information. I did not count the time I spent reading news, informative articles or listening to TED talk podcasts. It was just useless and mindless wandering on the internet that I could have easily done without. On my hiatus, I found myself not knowing what to do with the extra time I suddenly had. So I read books, learned how to speak basic phrases in French, did more meditations and practiced more yoga moves. It was definitely a productive month for me.
2. The world, and consequently the people around me, needs more attention. The thing about social media is that at its best, it's a virtual image of the world around me. At its worst, it's a distraction from the beauty you can only see when you observe what the world has to offer. While on a social media hiatus, I noticed beautiful sceneries more, became more sensitive to people's needs and just overall became more appreciative of the life I live. It's easy to be distracted by the barrage of information and likes, but when you look back, it's not online assurance you remember. It's the memories, the people and how you felt. That, ladies and gentlemen, is what matters.
3. Social media is a cesspool of low self-esteem. Seriously, it's weird how we're still constantly comparing ourselves to other people online when we know and they know and everyone with an IQ of at least 1 knows - NO ONE IS PERFECT. The highly curated, meticulously planned and feverishly organized social media content doesn't change that fact. While on my social media hiatus, I've spent more time looking into myself instead of outwards. I stopped comparing myself to other people, read more about improving myself and practiced it to no end. I liked the break from all the online noise, focusing only on myself, what I felt and what I could offer. It rejuvenated me, and I'm happier.

I wouldn't put it past myself to dive right back into another social media hiatus. Taking a step back felt amazing, and if it helps me deal with life better, a hundred likes won't make me stay.

And by nothing, I mean no puns. I legitimately spent five minutes trying to come up with an original pun for September and failed. Fortunately, I have more than enough favorites to make up for it!

Eventrockit food market is a fantastic event that happens every other month and changes locations ever so often. They have new food vendors every event and some old favorites as well. We had some sushi + taco fusion and blue crab & avocado crostinis from Norigami. We both found the sushi tacos amazing while the crostinis were just okay. On the other hand, both the mango chili and a couple of delicious aguas frescas we ordered from a drink stand were delicious. We also ordered a plate of good Thai Garlic noodles from a Thai Truck (I forgot the name!).

We also ordered some authentic Belgian Waffles from Marcel Waffles for desserts. We got the Original Liege and Original Brussels waffles without any toppings. Out of the two, the Liege was definitely our favorite. Since my boyfriend is Belgian, I was also looking forward to his thoughts (we've been on a look out for authentic Belgian waffles for a while), and he thought it was definitely close to the waffles in Belgium

Recently, my coworkers and I went to Escape Room LA as part of the company's team building exercise. While in the waiting room, we played a couple of games. As we were ushered in and given our orientation, we were instructed to turn off our phones so no photos - le sigh. Our HR person chose The Theatre theme, and off we went! I managed to solve one puzzle and felt mostly confused half of the time. While it was definitely fun and thrilling, I'm not much of a puzzles person (even though I like my whodunits - weird, I know). My boyfriend would definitely enjoy "escaping" though, and while I'm not as good in it as he is, I look forward to coming back regardless.

We're not big fans of shabu shabu because most restaurants serve only meat with little to no options for paescetarians like us. However, Joon Shabu Shabu was different. They offered a good seafood plate that was more than enough to entice us. It had a few pieces of big scallops, salmon and shrimp. We were given an elaborate orientation on "how to of shabu shabu". It was quite an exciting experience. My only criticism would be that we left feeling a wee bit hungry, which is kind of unacceptable for the $50+ bill.

Out of sheer curiosity, we decided to try out Lola's Peruvian Restaurant and HOLY COW, it's amazing. We've been there three times in the last two weeks (yep, we're obsessed), and it never disappoints. We've had their salmon plate, seafood paella and seafood pasta. The salmon plate probably had the best grilled salmon I've had in my entire lifetime, and trust me when I say, I've had a lot. The seafood paella and seafood pasta were extraordinary as well.

Alfajores - Peruvian cookies

We also had the Lucuta ice cream, corn flan and alfajores, all of which we've never had before. Out of the three, the corn flan was probably my favorite, although they have all been gastronomically orgasmic. I can't wait to go to this place again!

As a lover of all things ice cream, it seemed a travesty not to try Flavors Creamery, the new gelato place in Glendale. It was cheap (I got a small size for only $2!), and while it didn't wow me, it was a good price for what I paid. Besides, the people were friendly and I prefer supporting mom and pop shops in lieu of big companies.

Granted, I've only been to three German gastropubs in LA but Wurstküche slays them all. Touting one of the best fries, bratwursts AND beer selection in the area (it has my favorite sour beer on tap!), this place has carved a place in my heart and decided to hibernate there. In fact, I've always regularly craved for a visit to this restaurant. It's quite a drive and the traffic is horrible, but it's forever worth it.

This street art I saw while we were stopped in traffic in Glendale. I love it not only because of my affinity for art but also because of my affinity for puns. I thought it was cute and witty, and definitely worthy of being on my September favorites!

I know you might be feeling rather compelled to throw a rotten tomato towards my general direction after that hideous pun but I am nothing without my my love-hate relationship with puns so you'd have to suffer through that, unfortunately. I haven't written a monthly favorites in a while because I'm a lazy little prick having the time of my life. Seeing as to July is ending and I did have a lot of favorites this month, I thought it was high time I made another monthly favorites post. So, without further ado, here are my July favorites:

Every self-respecting Filipino will tell you that the best Filpino meal is homecooked. In other words,  if I'm going to a restaurant to pay for Filipino food, it better be damn well take me to the moon and back. With that said, EagleRock.Kitchen is a favorite go-to for when I have a hankering for Filipino breakfast food. We usually order the BangSiLog (Fried milkfish, garlic fried rice and fried egg) but we loved the ERK fries and ginataang bilo bilo. Their vinegar is amazing! It tastes just like the vinegar served with "silog" dishes in the Philippines, and it satisfies my palate in more ways than one. If you're interested in trying Filipino cuisines, I highly recommend this place.

An unassuming treasure in Glendale, Gam Tu Bop serves delectable rice balls with reasonable prices. We ordered the Gam Tu Bop #2, which came with free edamame and miso soup. We ordered the spicy shrimp, tuna, unagi (made from sushi grade unagi, you guys!) and salmon rice balls. Our favorite was definitely the unagi rice ball followed by the salmon. The spicy shrimp and tuna were both just 'eh'. I also found the cashier, who is also possibly the owner, absolutely adorable! If you're in the area and in dire need of carb overloading, head over to this place. It's worth it. Trust me.

A coworker gave me this stainless steel bracelet recently and I haven't taken it off yet (even if it clashes with the accessories I'm wearing). It's just too adorable to take off.

My boyfriend introduced me to Star Trek: The Next Generation recently, and suffice to say, I'm obsessed! It has 7 seasons and we just started watching season 2, but if you ask me why I love this show, I wouldn't know how or where to start. The characters are endearing & brilliant (except for the occasional underdeveloped caricature characters but who doesn't have them, right?), the plot lines are so cerebral and ponderous, it's so visually entertaining and I desperately wish I had a replicator and a holodeck. Yup. I'm a Star Trek girl now.

These are all the drinks in my refrigerator. However, the star of the show is definitely GT's Synergy organic kombucha in Trilogy flavor. I stopped drinking soda almost three years ago, and I've never looked back. However, on hot, humid days like all of the sweltering Los Angeles summers, I miss the fizzy feeling that only comes with carbonated drinks. I'm not a big fan of fizzy water *coughs* Perrier *coughs* because I personally think it's kind of gross. Enter my summer year round must-have: KOMBUCHA

I discovered kombucha three years ago and have loved it since. It has probiotics, less calories and sugar content than soda and it tastes great! We love kombucha so much we actually started making our own from the scoby of a Trilogy kombucha. I can't wait to give it a try!

If you follow me on instagram & twitter or are friends with me on Facebook, you're well aware that I've been playing Pokemon GO since its release almost three weeks ago. I wouldn't say I'm obsessed with the game so much as my inner 90s kid liking the idea of catching all 151 pokemons and having a viable reason to sing the Pokemon theme song in the shower more than twice. It also gives me a better motivation to be more active because evolving a charmander to a charizard trumps health and general wellness y'all. As of writing, I am level 16 and have 66 pokemons stashed in my pokedex.

These smile-inducing flowers I got from my boss for working so hard on the first week of July. I did 10 hours worth of overtime and managed not to die. I consider that as one of my greatest personal accomplishments in life right next to not accidentally killing Mac & Kiki (my succulents!) yet.

Inasmuch as July gave me a lot of wonderful memories, I'm excited for August! What are your favorite moments of July?

Woah! You guys, can you believe it's May already??? Don't get me wrong - April has been beyond fantastic, so much so that I didn't want the month to end. But I'm writing this in MAY??? I read an article about a psychological explanation as to why time seems to fly faster as we grow older, and I realized that as long as I focus more on creating memories instead of just the destination, time shouldn't leave any pangs of regret.

So to kick off May, I'll leave you my favorite things in April:

This darling boy who acts like a human sometimes, and it is so utterly adorable. I recently read a study that discusses how cats think of us as bigger, clumsier cats. I mean, I guess?? XD

This is a photo I took while boyfriend was driving - it looked so much like a gargantuan bird flying over the freeway. I knew I had to take a photo!

This Raspberry & Chocolate opera cake from The Park Restaurant was divine. Also, how cute are those intricate meringues?????

Yea, I'm kind of obsessed with this show. If you're into crime & legal drama, this might be your jam.

Pretty sunsets.

Gorgeous flowers! I always buy flowers for my apartment because it makes me happy.

This collection handbook given to me by my coworker/friend, Josh. It's super cool, and I always love thoughtful gifts. He knows how much I am into the arts, and this was such a wonderful gift.

Source: Ron Cogswell

Gabriel Dawe's art installations are my current obsession. I discovered his work sometime around early April and they make me so excited and blissful. Look at how gorgeous and rainbow-reminiscent his artworks are! I can only hope to see them in person sooner rather than later.

Aside from the above, I also can't forget to mention my recent birthday celebrations (1,2&3) because this year's birthday is definitely my favorite so far. Do you have any April favorites?