March 2018/2019 & April 2017/2018/2019 RECAPS #MonthlyRecap

Last April was A to Z Challenge season once again! So happy for those who were able to participate. Meanwhile, I’m sad that I was not one of them. I wanted to join very badly, in fact, I already had a theme in mind. Thinking things through, I realized that with stuff that were (and are) going on in my life, I might not be able to participate much at all. Rather than disappoint myself further, I decided to skip it. I’m sad and relieved at the same time!

That said, on to business.

I have prepared a two-in-one monthly recap, the reason being that I should have done the March 2018 and 2019 recap last month. The draft stayed as draft for weeks. I’ve been having technical problems, honestly. Don’t get me started on how unfair I felt life was so let’s just do this!

RECAP!!!

Here’s the recap of my March 2018/2019 andApril 2017/2018/2019:

Blog-wise:

March 2018

Hash potatoes!!!

I just checked my list and I am honestly now annoyed…I only posted once last year!

All Hash-days — NONE!!!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * t u m b l e w e e d * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

If there’s a ghost town, consider this a ghost blog. Pffft…

#AnythingDay (see Woe is Me )

I really should not be annoyed at myself, considering my circumstances. But it’s that initial emotional reaction, you know? I really am BUMMED big time. That’s not anymore initial, but you understand.

March 2019

#WhatsupWednesday (see For Real, This is a Test) – It’s really a more personal post that I maybe should not count, but it’s posted so…

#AnythingDay (see “Pagpapatawad” (Forgiveness) )

I was cooking up a #FeatureFriday idea, but the “research” required more time from me. It’s still coming, though.

April 2017

I did not care much about hash potatoes in April. My focus was on something else. I participated in the A to Z Challenge back in 2017. It was actually a very productive month. However, it is always the Holy Week days that throw me off. So 2017 was no exception. I was unable to finish on time. In fact, I still have not finished the whole alphabet! I did try in some other months.

First,…

#AnythingDay (see A show of support for blogging’s annual marathon and How to Apply as a Graphic Designer)

 

Now, below are my posts from back in April 2017. My theme: “Writing”. They are listed in descending order, from latest to oldest.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE…?

“TREACHERY”

SONGS AND SHORT STORIES

THE TRUTH IN YOUR MAKE-BELIEVE

LIFE AS THEY SAID IT

BEAST-MODE POETRY

ODE THINGS

WHAT’S IN A NOM?

AS LOVELY AS A TREE

I NOT STUPID (A REVIEW)

THE HAIKU

GRRRR-RAMMAR!!!

“WHICH FICTIONAL CHARACTER THAT YOU CREATED IS YOUR FAVORITE, AND WHY?”

MARK YOUR WORDS!

WHY DIALOGUE IS IMPORTANT

CONTENTS WITH ALL THE FEELS

“HOW DO YOU PERSONALLY DEAL WITH WRITER’S BLOCK?”

HOW TO SPELL THE ANCIENT FILIPINO WAY

I was almost proud except I was not able to finish 😦

April 2018

It wasn’t hard searching for last year’s post. They weren’t a lot.

(post-)#MondayMemoirs (see “I miss Perspective”)

#WhatsupWednesday (see Let Us All Rise! )

April 2019

This wasn’t hard either.

#ThursdayTips (see How to Make a (Boxed) Ninja Turtle Costume and 6 Reasons a Vlogger is Not Popular)

 

I will have to end this recap here. I will not promise anything except that I will try to be more active. That said, I just want to enjoy life, basically. Who doesn’t?

February 2018/2019 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

Welcome back, peeps! More importantly, welcome back to me! This is me trying to get back into the blogging jive. So since I’ve been wanting to do this for the longest time, this is a good time as any to restart this thing.

I checked my posts history and — gasp! —  the last recap I posted was my March 2017 one! That’s two years ago! I never realized that it would take me that long! Why did I keep putting it off??? But since we’re now here, it’s time to get back into doing it.

RECAP!!!

This is going to be the norm for me every month: Since it’s now March, I am supposed to be posting a recap of February. And since I missed it last year, I’m doing both February 2018 and 2019 recaps. Next month, it’s going to be recaps of March 2018 and 2019. But wait, there’s more! Literally! Next will be the start of the “threesomes” — April 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Don’t worry. Considering how seldom I posted, my posts would probably be not too long (‘cept maybe April 2017 when I last joined the A to Z Challenge).

Here’s a recap of my February 2018:

Blog-wise:

(1) Hash potatoes!!!

#MondayReviews (none)

#TuesdayToons (see Write! Write!)

#TuesdayTunes (none)

#TVTuesday (none)

#AskWednesday (none)

#WhatsupWednesday (see Busy is the Word)

#ThursdayTips (none)

#FeatureFriday (none)

#FridayFlashdance (none)

#AnythingDay (see Versatile Blogger ) –  Any day could be about anything.

Judging from my results, I was not exactly that active at all. However, I did get to post stuff so it’s not bad either.

(2) My Trending Stories…What trending stories??? I must admit, I lost a lot of interest after encountering problems with their site over and over. But it’s never out of my mind. I plan to come back. But I need to be active here first. As far as blogging is concerned, this is my priority.

Here’s a recap of my February 2019:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * t u m b l e w e e d * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ * * * ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Yup, that pretty much sums up what I did last month.

Social Media Reach-out:

I will repeat what I said the last time, because it is still true.

“I’m getting followers slowly but steadily, at least. I don’t really expect to get many, I’m just surprised there are those who decide to FOLLOW me on Facebook (even Twitter, which still confuses me at times) when they don’t really know me personally. It’s so nice to get followers who think that what I post are interesting enough.”

A great shout-out to all of you!

Meanwhile, I mentioned and even posted about my new “endeavor”, which is vlogging. I am currently trying to get back after more than two months of forced hiatus (laptop problems). The good news is I have acquired a new cellphone that should help me make things easier and be more creative. Hopefully. Don’t worry, though, folks. Blogging is still my main squeeze 🙂

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

Nada. Honestly disappointed with myself.

Both of my wedding ninangs (godmothers — there really shouldn’t be any “s” there as the Filipino language does not add it to change a singular word to plural) actually PM’d me a poetry competition. I haven’t checked. I will try to check later.

As for stories, through work, I found Grammarly and the Hemingway Editor last year. I realized I could use them for my works. I am very much partial to the latter, though. Will edit those I’ve done and will use the editors for future pieces.

Literature:

“Bakokak” written by Gerry Alanguilan, illustrated by Kevin Ray Valentino

No book-reading happened whatsoever last month (but not sure about February 2018). Well, okay, I think I did read comic books. That counts.

Personal:

• I have mellowed down when it comes to Wish 107.5 FM. That’s because they have, too. I mean they have expanded in the US, which is a great idea, but as far as artists that shake me, so to speak, no one’s really gotten my attention. I do plan on giving those “new” artists they feature a chance one of these days.
• Quora recently suffered hack attacks. My account was one of those that suffered. They did sort of give me back copies of my posts, but my old account is lost. I am getting lazy just thinking about trying to start over. I don’t even really know how to get them all posted again considering that a lot of what I did was to comment on others’ posts. They’re not my posts, know what I mean?
• Because of the new cellphone, I finally…

1. 1. got to play Plants vs. Zombies
   2. got to play an updated/leveled-up Temple Run
   3. was able to play Fruit Ninja whenever I wanted to (the first and only time prior that I played it was on a big screen at the arcade)
   4. found Wordscapes that got me hooked for a while (I still play it regularly, just not in that addicted-mode…Happy to say that I’m already doing Level 1132 as of this writing), and
   5. found Empires & Puzzles, which is my main game at the moment.

So officially, I am now a (quite) amateur semi-online gamer. Meanwhile, Soda Crush and other word games have taken a backseat.

 

And that ends this February — er, these Februaries(???) — recap. Watch out for March! I mean, you know, just sayin’ 🙂

March 2017 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

I missed doing my March 2017 recap. To be honest, it feels so long ago now that I can’t even remember the stuff I wrote about. My revisiting the posts now will take me back, definitely. From what I know, I was really hyped up for the then-upcoming A to Z Challenge. I hardly really checked out Facebook even.

Here’s a recap of my March 2017:

Blog-wise:

(1) Hash potatoes!!!

#MondayMemoirs (none)

#MondayReviews (none)

#TuesdayTunes (see Wishes and Songs Part 1)

#TVTuesday (none)

#AskWednesday (see “As writers, have you ever had ideas only to find out later that others beat you to them? What were they?”)

#WhatsupWednesday (see The Guy Google)

#ThursdayTips (none)

#FeatureFriday (see The BRF and New Society with its New Technologies)

#FridayFlashdance (none)

#AnythingDay (see JAMIE PART 4: DEAR JAMIE, The A-to-Z Challenge theme Reveal 2017 and JAMIE PART 5: JAMIE AND THE GOSSIP BOYS)  –  Any day could be about anything.

Judging from my results, I was semi-active, which was better than hardly active or, worse, inactive. I was gearing up for April anyway.

(3) My Trending Stories. I still put it off because of certain hindrances, but I decided to finally restart it sometime in May (which is NOW).

(4) A to Z Challenge. Wait till I’m done.

Social Media Reach-out:

 

I’m getting followers slowly but steadily, at least. I don’t really expect to get many, I’m just surprised there are those who decide to FOLLOW me on Facebook (even Twitter, which still confuses me at times) when they don’t really know me personally. It’s so nice to get followers who think that what I post are interesting enough.

A few months back, I started sending thank-you messages to FB followers. Unfortunately, it could be so time-consuming that I had to stop. What I normally do when I have the time is to visit bloggers who decide to follow my blog. I get email notifications everytime, so I just filter to see followers and go from there.

I’ve been somehow more active than I’ve ever been on Twitter (just a tad more). And, oh, I should give special shout-outs to both Annette (@YouAreTheExpert) and Debbie (@DebbieDogLady). Whenever I post anything here, it gets posted on their Twitter pages. That’s free promotion for me through RSS Feed-ing. Thank you, ladies 🙂

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

Restarted being a bit more active. See, I posted two Jamie Tales shorts (see #AnythingDay).

Literature:

No book-reading happened whatsoever. I am so ashamed.

Personal:

• I have become a Wish 107.5 FM fanatic, ergo, my #TuesdayTunes post. It honestly helped me overcome a sort of tough time then. Music is great therapy.
• I have become an active Quora adviser, but I am very curious why 98% of questions I am asked has to do with handling relationships. I suddenly feel like a relationship guru. But I suppose, the key is to put myself in their shoes.
• I declared self-imposed hiatus on Facebook and was away for more than two weeks, I think. It was due to a mix of avoiding things/people that make me feel a bit depressed and trying to write more.

 

Your thoughts? 😉

February 2017 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

After my January recap, I don’t know what to say of my February either. I think it flew by so fast!

Here’s a recap of my Febuary 2017:

Blog-wise:

(1) Hash potatoes!!!

#MondayMemoirs (see Effanineffable 1: The Brain and The Unofficial Translation)

#MondayReviews (none)

#TuesdayTunes (none)

#TVTuesday (see Love in the Time of Forensics)

#AskWednesday (see “What was the strangest thing you found cleaning out your parents’ house after they died?”)

#WhatsupWednesday (none)

#ThursdayTips (see Advice for the Supposed Lovelorn)

#FeatureFriday (none)

#FridayFlashdance (none)

#AnythingDay (see JAMIE PART 3: CAUGHT IN NEW YORK CITY)  –  Any day could be about anything.

“I do need to come up with an actual system when it comes to handling blog-related emails, blog visits, and social media accounts, and actually WRITING.” That’s what I said the last time. It still holds true.

I’ve realized I’m not a lazy writer. It’s really all these ideas swimming in my head and all these real-life distractions. Very recently, one writer on Quora said in nicer terms that people who say they have writer’s block are just plain lazy. I agree that writers need to keep writing, but as some other writers explained, sometimes you need a breather or to do other things to get more ideas and be more inspired.

(3) My Trending Stories. I’ve started re-orienting my self a teeny bit. Will see if I can start posting soon.

(4) A to Z Challenge. Decided on Plan D. Yes, that’s how many times I changed my mind. I’m starting with the letters.

Social Media Reach-out:

More bloggers to share, yay!!! If you’re not here, chances are, I’ve already mentioned you in past recaps. But if I haven’t mentioned you yet, nothing personal, okay? Will get to you. This is a mix of regular followers, new followers, and bloggers I follow though they don’t follow me, WordPress or not. I tell you, the way I do things sometimes…

I’m not exactly following a system here. It’s all random. I want to give opportunity to everyone so I mix them all up. Here are my awesome online friends, would-be friends, some wish-I-were-friends-with-but-I follow-them-anyway peeps, and actual peeps that I know, in alphabetical order:

 Alli,      Carl,    Colleen,    Joseph,    Kendall,    Lora,    Liberty,    Needull,    Phil,    SWO8

More bloggers to come.

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

Restarted being a bit more active. But until I get a proper laptop again,…

Literature:

Aw, c’mon folks! Still a tie! Really??? Well, these were the results:

While waiting for the results, I came to read a supposed novel online that I just happened to find. Thought I’d give it a chance. Ugh. One of those romance novels where all the men are supposed to be buffed and forever virile and it’s supposed to be okay that they treat women like trash. I’m not making this up or just stereotyping! You’ll have to read to believe it. To make the long story short, I stopped reading. They’re not exactly protagonists I’d grow to like. There was not much plot to speak of.

Anyway, I’m putting off my decision on what to do with the poll and I’m actually going to pick up an actual novel I can hold. Or at least read a couple of free ebooks I’ve downloaded.

Personal:

I have:

• become an addict to  The Walking Dead. I’ve been mentioning it here a lot and reading stuff about it.
• become a Quora-person because I love to share my thoughts, give advice and getting information from other writers.
• been dealing with various things, my brain wants to explode…

 

Your thoughts? 😉

January 2017 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

Don’t know what to make of my first month of blogging in 2017, but here is the recap. I think I did okay enough. I chilled, but I never forgot to post at least once a week. Give me a new laptop and unlimited access to the Internet and you can bet I can do this more regularly. So until then….

Here’s a recap of my January 2017:

Blog-wise:

(1) Hash potatoes!!!

#MondayMemoirs – (see GASP! I Cook?!!!)

#MondayReviews (none)

#TuesdayTunes (none)

#TVTuesday (see “I am Wonder Woman”) – New hash potato, yay!!! I surprised you with this new hash; surprised myself, too.

#AskWednesday (see (Not My) Interview with Neil Gaiman and Oh, My 2016! (Not My) Interview with Myself) – Still waiting for my friend’s answers to my questions, but I’ve got a lineup and it now includes an event organizer/host.

#WhatsupWednesday (see Best of the Best Philippine Comic Books)

#ThursdayTips (see 5 Ways to Make Use of Google AdWords)

#FeatureFriday (none) – I am honestly annoyed with myself because I don’t have anything for this, GRRR!!!

#FridayFlashdance ( see Bleedin’ Love & Single Ladies)  – As mentioned some months ago, I was going to allot a day featuring dance, so here it is, the first one 🙂

#AnythingDay (see HAPPY 2017!!!!!, Sorry, Augie…, and The A to Z Challenge Announcement)  –  Any day could be about anything. The first one was my first-ever actual video where I spoke directly to the camera just to greet you all a “HAPPY 2017!!!!!” It was a happy post. Unfortunately, what followed was my post saying sorry to our dog, Augie (+RIP)…I don’t think I’ll ever stop feeling sorry…The third’s about, well, it’s kind of self-explanatory already, don’t you think?

Considering how many blues I’m seeing above, I think I should be happy as I had been enough of an active blogger. The stats go up and down, but I’m not beating myself up over it as this blog is not a business. I do need to come up with an actual system when it comes to handling blog-related emails, blog visits, and social media accounts, and actually WRITING. If I had all day, I could do all really well. But I don’t.

(3) My Trending Stories. Nothing much to share for now. I mentioned in my imagined self-interview that I’m trying to find my mojo again. That is totally true. I am re-orienting myself again with writing on paper. I restart this month.

(4) A to Z Challenge. I thought of a theme already and have planned out what/who to feature for each letter. But until I am sure I can deliver, I am not revealing anything or giving any clues. And as Plan B, I am also actually listing down ideas for another theme. Aren’t I so focused? ~L~”

Social Media Reach-out:

More bloggers to share, yay!!! If you’re not here, chances are, I’ve already mentioned you in past recaps. But if I haven’t mentioned you yet, nothing personal, okay? Will get to you. This is a mix of regular followers, new followers, and bloggers I follow though they don’t follow me, WordPress or not. I tell you, the way I do things sometimes…

I’m not exactly following a system here. It’s all random. I want to give opportunity to everyone so I mix them all up. Here are my awesome online friends, would-be friends and some wish-I-were-friends-with-but-I follow-them-anyway peeps, in alphabetical order:

 Alice,     Annette,     Anamika,     Basil,     Dee,     Gerry,     John,     Lesley,     Sally,     Sarah

More bloggers to come.

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

We’ll see what happens.

Literature:

I shared a poll last time, unfortunately, it’s still a tie. Please break the tie and kindly take the poll. Whatever the result after this, I will follow. Cast your vote for me?

Personal:

I said it last time and I’ll say it again: We really wish to have a much better year this year. Had to repeat it because so far, we’ve had two to three negatives to count. We hope for more of the positives this time.

Once Upon a Time, there lived…

I am done talking about The Walking Dead here, but that’s mainly because I now have a hash potato to take care of that,  he he. Meanwhile, again, can you recommend any good series? It doesn’t require a poll, just your contribution in the comments section below. I read somewhere that Once Upon a Time is good. And one blogger I follow actually posts updates on it.

Your thoughts? 😉

December 2016 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

It’s the new year! Time to start over. And while my new year’s resolutions list hasn’t been made yet, one of those resolutions would be to blog more (which is not necessarily synonymous to writing more, although that’s a resolution, too).

I did find ways to blog last month, but my blogging was somewhat erratic, mainly because I “chilled”. I still plan to chill, but be more productive, anyway. Plus, I’ve got other plans to take care of.

So here’s a recap of my December 2016:

Blog-wise:

(1) Hash potatoes!!!

#MondayMemoirs – (see My Decade-Old Grown-up Christmas List)

#MondayReviews (none)

#TuesdayTunes (see Awesomely Techno-weird Musical Instruments Part 1) – I was supposed to post the second part last December 28, but I didn’t get to finish it. Will post soon.)

#AskWednesday (none)

#WhatsupWednesday (see Going Disney)

#ThursdayTips (see How to Properly Use Sitelink Extensions)

#FeatureFriday (none)

#FreakyFriday (none) – It was supposed to be only for the whole month of November, anyway. I did promise true horror/ghost stories. I have not forgotten.

Saturdays and Sundays, or any day, could be about anything. I will post anything when I feel like it, like So… (a quick Christmas greeting), The Legend of the Fifth Turtle (a repost), Hippie’s Guide to the Multiverse (reblog of an interesting post of a young blogger I know…I like featuring young writers/bloggers to encourage them more).

My three-in-one poetry post Tula ng Puso: Pananampalataya, Pag-ibig, Pag-asa (Poems of the Heart: Faith, Love, Hope) last November made the cut. My poems (well, the link to them) are now featured in the Saranggola Blog Awards site. I just found out the winners a few minutes ago. Didn’t win, sadly, but it’s still okay. There will be a next time. I’ll try not to procrastinate again.

(3) My Trending Stories. Nothing to share for now.

(4) A to Z Challenge. I want to join again this year so I am already thinking of a theme. *crosses fingers*

Social Media Reach-out:

Again, I am very thankful to new followers. They keep on coming, even if they aren’t a lot. I certainly hope they’ll stay. Anyway, as I am now making it my tradition, let me share more: people who follow me and/or whom I follow, and/or whom I actually know. Do visit them–you might have to jump over to other blogging platforms like Blogger, though.

If I haven’t mentioned you yet, nothing personal, okay? Will get to you. I am adding really new ones, too. It’s to hit two birds with one stone as I won’t have to go looking for links to their blogs/sites again. Definitely, I will first try to see if they are legit and active blogs. My call, guys.

Here are my awesome online friends and would-be friends, in alphabetical order:

 Ally,         Anne-Marie,         Debbie,         Damyanti,         Eyoalha,        

Jacob,      Justine,                  Lori,               Roo,                    Sanch   

More bloggers to link to in the coming months, for sure. “Old” ones, new ones.

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

We’ll see what happens.

Literature:

I shared a poll last time, unfortunately, I think only one person voted. Kindly take the poll, pretty pleaaaasee…..? Not sure which to pick. Wanna cast your vote for me?

Personal:

Christmas was good! The family celebrated it with the husband’s clan. Well, their clan, the husband’s and the kids’. A few dramas, but it was good. Several reasons why I chose to celebrate there, which I won’t delve into. I don’t see any reason for now not to do that again next year. Oh, and I won a TV from the Office party raffle! That was perfect since our old one has not been working for a long while. We were to have it fixed, then bam! Won the TV 😉

New Year’s Eve was good, too. Our little family was complete. The kids were happy, the husband was happy, I was happy. Best New Year’s I’ve had in years. There were only a few stuff on the table: spaghetti, chicken drumsticks, chocolate cake, and sliced bread. The spag and the drumsticks were a hit with some visitors, so it was totally great. Neighbors shared sopas (Filipino noodle soup), pansit (dried cooked noodles), “Graham” or “ref” cake (Google it, he he), and gelatin, which we all ate the following day (refrigerators are heaven-sent!).

We really wish to have a much better year this year.

The family hasn’t had a chance to eat out so we’ll probably do that one of these days. It’s gonna be a four-in-one celebration: Christmas, New Year, our second wedding anniversary (today, January 5), and my husband’s birthday (January 23). Hitting four birds with one stone, right? I’m just waiting for our family movie date to push through then we’ll do that on the same day.

Meanwhile,…Save for the new one, we’re done with all seasons of the  The Walking Dead. I admit to checking out IMDb every now and then. It does not really tell much, anyway, although I do find out a few things prior to watching episodes. I’m more interested in how the whole story is developed so a few spoilers do not really “spoil” me. I have read some reviews and reactions about Season 7, too, so at least, I am already warned especially about Episode 1. I told the kids Glenn dies in Episode 1–OOPS! SPOILER!!!

Well, I wanted to prepare them for what’s to come because apparently, fans were fuming over the violence and of Glenn dying (so what was Abraham, chopped liver?…OOPS! SPOILER AGAIN!!!). I understand about the latter, but the first complaint? It’s been there since the very first episodes. If you couldn’t handle it, you had the choice to turn your head away, change the channel, or turn the TV off entirely.

I’ve got more to talk about, but I realize this is becoming more of a feature on TWD, so I’ll save those for some other time.

Now that we’re temporarily done with TWD, can you recommend any good series? I’m continuing with CSI: Las Vegas, but my husband isn’t into it and it’s got too many sexy scenes (many unexpected) to skip over for the sake of the kids. So I’m going solo with this, as always. (Gosh, imagine once I start with Game of Thrones!)

 

….Alright, now that we’re up to speed, time to go writing more! Toodles!!! 😉

November 2016 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

I followed my own advice and chilled. Of course, whenever I couldn’t post, the blogger-guilt gnawed on me.

I always tell myself I am not in a good position to actually prioritize blogging. It is not my bread-and-butter, for one, then there are other important stuff to do, then my resources are scarce (I don’t feel the need to explain that one), and I prioritize family still. The big  takeaway in my so-called chilling means more family time, so I am not that sorry 🙂

So here’s a recap of my November 2016:

Blog-wise:

(1) I hope I gave you gravy with my hash potatoes 😉

#MondayMemoirs – No time to do this pre-Monday and during Monday. Will try again next time.

#MondayReviews (see An American Crime) – See? At least I had this one.

#TuesdayTunes (see Listening with Your Soul)

#AskWednesday (none this month, sorry)

#WhatsupWednesday (see Yo, Man! Imma Show Ya Rap Battles!) – I just introduced this to you last week. I enjoyed this post 🙂

#ThursdayTips (none) – Will make up for it soon.

#FeatureFriday – Because it’s November, I decided to make it a whole month of #FreakyFriday posts.

#FreakyFriday (see Life Lessons from “Train to Busan”, And RINGU was its name-o!) – Did miss one or two Fridays. I did promise true horror/ghost stories. Failed that one, but I am on it still.

Saturdays and Sundays, or any day, could be about anything. I will post anything when I feel like it, like Finding Grace in a Grilled Ham & Cheese that is a reblog of another writer’s wonderful and heartfelt post. Very relatable.

I also shared three poems written in Filipino in one post: Tula ng Puso: Pananampalataya, Pag-ibig, Pag-asa (Poems of the Heart: Faith, Love, Hope). It was as part of the requirements for a local contest that I decided to join and I was just fortunate to beat the already-extended deadline. I am not sure, though, as of this moment, if my entry made the cut, so to speak. If it didn’t, well, that hurts my ego, but then I can’t mope around. Instead, get better, right? There will always be winners and non-winners. There are many talented writers out there, and many more untapped ones.

(3) My Trending Stories. I failed my November here. I have actually emailed them something and they have promised to make it a better experience for MTS bloggers.

Social Media Reach-out:

Again, I am very thankful to new followers. And of course, I am also very thankful to those who have followed me over the months, especially the years. I shared some of them to you last time. Let me share more–people who follow me and/or whom I follow–and you’re welcome to visit their blogs. Also adding people I actually personally know. You might have to jump over to other blogging platforms like Blogger, though. If I haven’t mentioned you yet, nothing personal, okay? Will get to you.

Here they are in alphabetical order (I am re-mentioning one because I gave the wrong link last time, I just found out now, and I’ve edited appropriately):

Andy,         Cole,         Diana,         Fran,                    

Jason,       Meikah,    Tobe,          Victo      

More bloggers to link to in the coming months, for sure. “Old” ones, new ones.

Fiction/Story- and Poetry-writing:

Well, I mentioned already the contest I joined. Meanwhile, this made me think of honing my craft more. I have cooked up a few personal plans for a few but very important personal reasons.

Literature:

I was in an unintentional hiatus from reading, but have just started again. I am just having trouble prioritizing since I am interested in both The Hunger Games and Game of Thrones. Not sure which to pick. Wanna cast your vote for me?

Personal:

We’re done with season 1 and half of season 2 of  The Walking Dead. Some episodes unexpectedly made me tear up.

***SPOILER ALERTS IN CASE YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THEM YET AND KNOW NOTHING OF IMDb***

I was distraught with what happened to Dale because I liked him, and I never really had a grandpa. Good that he and Andrea kind of made up already; bad that the others let him down just before he died — in fact, that’s why he was roaming away from safer grounds. Good he wasn’t bitten; bad that he still died a horrible death. Why couldn’t they just let him die from accident while fighting off the zombie??? Or let him die with a heart attack or something while the others killed the walker?

Later, Shane died, too, and I didn’t see that coming. He was  increasingly being impossible and that’s what made the character more interesting (disappointing if he were a real person). I think he should have stayed longer–he was impossible but he was still an ally. And it would make for a more interesting storyline.

Lastly, Lori died as well. She wasn’t Mrs. Perfect, but I don’t understand what I’ve read about viewers hating her. Her reactions were understandable, even her fears. Didn’t make her right, but didn’t make her evil either….So I got distraught again when she died due to childbirth. I’m even surprised she got that far without suffering a miscarriage with all the stress and running around.

Good that she didn’t die because she got bitten; bad that after Carl made sure she wouldn’t turn (what Carl did was heartbreaking for both of them if it were real), a walker would eat all of her, anyway. That made me mad. What, the writers couldn’t let Carl and Maggie make sure the door wouldn’t be opened? Shane did that for Rick.  Maybe they should have let her turn first then have Carl shoot her, so at least, she wasn’t served meal to any walker that happened on her.

Winners! Me and Ian

Aaaaand…I just spent much space discussing about The Walking Dead, ha ha haaaa!!!!

Meanwhile, can you guess what this pic’s about? Clues: office, hunting, game, most candies, longest, Halloween, winners…

Till next time!!! 🙂

October 2016 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

Ha! You’d think I’d be doing this quite regularly now. But no, I still miss posting on certain days when I am supposed to. I shouldn’t be hard on myself, though. Have to remember that I promised myself that I’d just chill and not stress over it. I did stress about other writing-related things and with good reason. Let me just keep that/those to myself, though. Regardless, I think I did okay enough.

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here’s how October 2016 went:

Blog-wise:

(1) So, how did my hash potatoes go?

#MondayMemoirs (see “comfort”) – I’m supposed to always have a Monday post weekly. Unfortunately, these days, I am usually busy at home on weekends, I am not able to log in.

Even when I am able, I often spend my time worrying about other “real-world” things, like accompanying one of the kids to class rehearsals as the class is required to perform as a group. Well, they were made to choose from dancing and singing and it’s good he chose the latter–he’s not a good singer, but he is a more awkward dancer. He even kind of freezes when performing. I am trying to change that, although I don’t think my strict style is working on him...

#MondayReviews (see Cancer? Schmancer! ~Fran Drescher)

#TuesdayTunes (see Fight Songs!, Poetry in Music) – You can never really run out of things to share when it comes to music. Maybe just run out of time when busy. Good thing I was able to deliver.

#AskWednesday (see The Warrior Teacher) – Well, somebody promised she’d be sending her answers, but she probably hasn’t answered anything yet. Plus she just lost someone close to her so that’s understandable. As for the others, it’s my own fault as I haven’t sent any questions yet (partly because I was expecting the said promised answers). Will push through then.

#ThursdayTips (none in October ) – In a sort of way, my missing posts here were kind of affected by a kind of issue I had to deal with last month. To think I do have stuff to share.

#FeatureFriday – Last time, I said this would alternate with #FridayFlashdance, which basically meant it would be my default post whenever I couldn’t post a feature in time. However, given that it was near Halloween, thought I’d do a #FreakyFriday thing again, like last year. So…

#FreakyFriday (see Freaky Me, ZZzzzoooommmbiiiesss…!!!) – I actually enjoyed these! The thing is, I was also supposed to share a third post last October 28. Miss Indecisive got the better of me again. The post is still in draft mode. Because I enjoyed that, though, and it’s still November, anyway, think I’ll continue this hash potato for a while. Don’t be surprised, then, by next Friday.

Saturdays and Sundays, or any day, could be about anything. I will post anything when I feel like it, like Moms, we are with you… that is a re-share of a writeup over at My Trending Stories. I definitely could relate to it.

(3) My Trending Stories. Posted once or twice, but certain things were kind of off for me and I didn’t have time to deal with them as well. I will need to have a working scheme for this because I do want to post there.

(4) Memoirs of a Coffee Cat. If you don’t know yet, that’s my more personal blog over at another platform. There were a few posts when I was in Drama Queen mode, but they were not really much. I just wanted to let off a bit of steam. Meanwhile, I have been re-sharing stuff from way back 2004, editing and updating along the way. It’s weird in a way as I get to re-read stuff that I now do not remember what were really about (some stuff vaguely shared), or who I was referring to. To think I said somewhere there that I could be having a lovelife soon. LOL. I should have known that “soon” meant eight years more, give or take.

Social Media Reach-out:

As I said in my last recap, I am very thankful to new followers. And of course, I am also very thankful to those who have followed me over the months, especially the years. Let me share some of them to you  and feel free to visit their blogs. Here they are in alphabetical order:

Christine,         Jane,          Lani,        Mabel,

Raine,               Rara,          Victo

More bloggers to link to in the coming months, for sure. “Old” ones, new ones.

Fiction/Story-writing:

Trying something out. That’s all I’m going to say.

Literature:

Done with Gregory Maguire‘s Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West online book. I wish I could read the third installment of his series, but I couldn’t find an uploaded copy where I found the first. I will read something else from there then as I am curious to see how certain movies based on books actually “look” and “feel” in written form.

Personal:

How apt that I thought of starting to watch The Walking Dead. Got season 1 and watched with the family. There were several awkward moments the first family night when characters spent sexy time, so the kids had to look away or close their eyes. The next night, I made sure to fast-forward to more wholesome scenes (like there’s any) as I already finished the whole thing the night before, ergo, I knew what to expect and when. Got season 2 now, but we haven’t seen it yet. Meanwhile, we started watching Japanese animated films. I made sure to watch with them so I could translate and explain the movies to them.

Aside from movies, I am again obsessing over stuff and stars that I obsessed over years back. Two of them are “CATS The Musical” and Veerle Casteleyn. I have, in fact, been playing professional sleuth (or professional stalker, you choose), trying to really find Veerle. I am proud to say that I have updated my post that is dedicated to her: Little Dove: Cat of a Feather. Do check!!! One of my fondest wishes is to see Veerle in person before I die. If I do die not seeing her, then I’ll fly and get to finally find her at the other side of the globe–no visa!!! I’ll be the first stalker spirit/ghost, ha ha haaa!!!!

 

Alright, that’s it with October. I predict that November would be a blast (yeah, right). Oh, and it’s my parents’ wedding anniversary today…

Love you, Mame & Dade!!!

 

September 2016 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

September was a much better month for me, writing/blogging-wise. There were some glitches, but the positives outweighed the negatives. I mean this in a less-stressed out way. There were two weeks that I hardly posted anything. Something got me busy, but all was for naught. At least, I tried. It honestly did cause me to lose my mojo a bit, had to clear my head…Now, I’m BACK.

Here’s how September 2016 went:

Blog-wise:

(1) Not obvious, but I have begun calling may hashes as “hash potatoes”. No reason, I just think it’s cute. I’ve thought of several reasons to give just so I can justify calling them that but, bottomline is, I just like it, period.

So, how did my hash potatoes go?

#MondayMemoirs (see What I Am) – I could have posted more, but Mondays are often tricky unless I am able to schedule something the weekend prior. No #MondayReviews posted.

#TuesdayTunes (see Out of Oz)

#AskWednesday (see Born to Sing) – I was so lucky to have interviewed the very gracious Hanna De Guzman. Read to get to know her, guys.

#ThursdayTips (see Let the Spiders Crawl)

#FeatureFriday (see Butterfly Kisses and Lullabies, my replacement Friday post) – This is also a tricky day for me. I do intend to alternate this with #FridayFlashdance. Guess what that’s going to be about 😉

Saturdays and Sundays could be about anything, just like any given day of the whole week. That is, when I am able to post anything. Or MORE, like Dream a Little Dream [Reshared].

(2) So I’m done with my singer, Hanna. I am currently waiting for my interview with my horticulturist-friend, and a Muay Thai artist with whom I worked when I was in college. I have not really yet talked to Andoyman regarding the update interview. But here’s news! The professional dancer I mentioned before has said yes to an interview. Will do that soon!

(3) My Trending Stories. As mentioned before, it’s a new site, they’re still doing stuff to perfect it, but it’s still an honor to be invited, and there’s no such thing as perfect. This is me (CLICK ON IT):

I began posting for it. Then there were two weeks that I was really prolific in posting. The next two weeks, though, I lost much interest and time in posting anywhere.  I’ll get back to it, I promise.

Social Media Reach-out:

This really took the backseat. But I assure you that I appreciate everyone who clicks on LIKE and especially FOLLOW. I am awed and humbled that despite my seeming inactivity, I keep finding out through my email that people have been clicking on the FOLLOW button.

I would like to pay it forward. Just let me get my act together and I will soon be posting links here to legit followers (I do emphasize on legit).

Fiction/Story-writing:

NEXT!!!

Literature:

Abandoned Thomas Hardy‘s Tess of the D’Urbervilles for now. Unintentionally abandoned Gregory Maguire‘s Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West online book. Priorities weigh heavier. Will try to get back to reading soon as I am able.

Personal:

I do try to go online on weekends, but I’ve lessened it. Going online does cost money if you don’t have a permanent Internet connection and you just buy “load” for your WiFi, like I do, though it is less expensive.

I’m only home on weekends, so it’s the time to do stuff in the house the way I want them done (I am slightly OC, so understand that I want to do things a certain way).  Time to arrange things the way I want them arranged, sew what needs to be sewn, fix what little things need to be fixed, iron clothes for the coming week, and see to it that the kids open their books and notebooks. More important, weekends mean family time. I’m not the perfect mother at all, but I try to manage the best I can, even if they hate it when I get mad.

So in the evenings or while I iron clothes, I just watch my still-unseen Season 9 and 10 episodes of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation…

Life is a series of ups and downs, so you face everything. No ifs, no buts. You have to learn everyday. Therefore, in the meantime, you get to watch the gory stuff and plan how you can get away with murdering your enemies and covering up all the evidence…KIDDING!!! 😉

August 2016 RECAP #MonthlyRecap

What to write? What. To. Write? What-to-write? Whatto write? What towrite? Whattowrite? Whattowrite, Whattowrite? WhattowriteWhattowrite? WhattowriteWhattowriteWhattowrite…?????!!!!

Seemed like it was just last week when I was complaining about how fast July flew by, thing was, it wasn’t last week. August certainly beat my July. I hardly know where the weeks went! And I am totally irritated with myself. Seems like I hardly did anything, at least nothing that I really wanted to do. Well,…not exactly, but I’m still mad.

Here’s how August 2016 went:

Blog-wise:

(1) Excited by how my hashes made me prolific, I decided to do some trial-and-error and find out what would work best for me. In my busy-ness about this matter, planning and planning and planning, I ended up not posting much at all, because I couldn’t make up my freakin’ mind!!! Indecisiveness does not solve anything. I need to fix that about myself. If you were able to follow me, at least, last week, I think you would notice that I tried.

So I have created a new set of scheduling scheme and it will hopefully work. Anyway, my hashes will go like this:

#MondayMemoirs (which I am skipping for now to make way for this), alternating with #MondayReviews (see Helen vs Troy, though that’s more of a comparison of two films rather than a review)

#TuesdayTunes (see They Say Something Together)

#AskWednesday (see Interview with a Komikero REWIND)

#ThursdayTips (wait for it)

#FeatureFriday (I didn’t have any last month. I know already who to feature, but I never get to write the full thing.)

Saturdays and Sundays could be about anything, just like any given day of the whole week.

(2) Happy to say (like I haven’t yet…) that I have a bunch of interviewees already — a horticulturist, a singer, a Muay Thai artist, a comic book artist (we haven’t talked about this yet, but he saw already last Wednesday’s post, so he knows an update interview is coming), hopefully a dancer (haven’t talked about it with her yet), hopefully another martial artist (who hasn’t yet read my invitation for an interview). Now, I am crossing my fingers that anyone of the first three sends her answers for next week’s post…

(3) Well, I got a nice invitation to be a regular writer for My Trending Stories. It’s a new site, they’re still doing stuff to perfect it, but it’s still an honor to be invited, and there’s no such thing as perfect. This is me (CLICK ON IT):

You will see that I am FOLLOW-ing myself. Narcissistic -much. Pathetic, huh? LOL. Actually, I don’t know what I did but I ended up clicking on the follow button or something and can’t even find a way to unfollow myself. But YOU! You, my friends, are welcome to FOLLOW me there, LIKE anything, make a COMMENT.

I post random stuff, meaning, much like here in my blog, I post anything I feel like posting. I want to be able to post for various sections and be versatile. I do choose the less personal thingies. Readers are not there to find out what I did today, what I ate yesterday, where I was last week. Well, I could tell you, but the life of the Real J.Gi isn’t so interesting so, bleh.

Social Media Reach-out:

I am ashamed to say that this whole reach-out thing is kinda overwhelming me. It’s not that I don’t do it. The thing is, I try to do everything, that is why I end up kind of like incapacitated. Talk about irony. I need to be more organized. Or maybe I try to organize everything, that’s the problem. My husband has been saying that with me, I always have to have a process. That is true. But it also causes my downfall. So maybe I’ll just chill-out a bit and be more spontaneous about it. Yes, let’s try that.

Fiction/Story-writing:

Did I mention I have lived with a chaotic mind this past month?

Literature:

Started with Thomas Hardy‘s Tess of the D’Urbervilles, but then I found Gregory Maguire‘s Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West book online! Yay!!!!

Personal:

When my August started, it was really messed-up already — remnants of July. If only I could tell you. Maybe the life of the Real J.Gi is interesting after all, at least, for those who like tension a lot. However, it has been my motto to be positive so I try not to let things get to me. They still do, but at least, I don’t sulk about them. You can’t change people, especially not the self-important, self-righteous, self-entitled, judgmental ones. So you change how you react to them instead.

Okay, the happy things: I met up with two of my dearest friends on separate days. Didn’t take a twofie with Jenny; did take twofies with Myra, lots of ’em, but not sure if she’d be okay with me sharing any here. We updated ourselves with one another’s lives. It’s always nice to spend time with your buddies for life.

The sad things:

(1) I missed the Indie Komiks Market. Again. But I never miss the Komikons without valid reasons. Just that they are always valid. I’ll try to make up for it in the Grand Komikon.

Me and my friend Sherwin The Kraken at one of the Komikons

(2) Two good guys have left. One good guy is about to. It sucks when you lose people you like, those who have been good to you, who even tolerate you when you’re being talkative or asking too many technical questions while they also worked, who make an effort to not make you feel left out.

A special shout-out to one of my besties, Sherwin The Kraken! I will miss you. Thank you so much for everything, you know I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I hope to still see more of you, but we know that reality is, people do grow apart, at least, by distance. I hope to still be with you and your lovey on the next comics conventions!

 

Alright, let’s see what September 2016 has in store…