10 Things Vol. 1

Inspired by Carly Riordan, here are 10 things that have been on my mind lately. This brings it back to the “old school” days of blogging where people would just post online about their thoughts and musings. A lot of content these days is sponsored or “curated” but I thought it’d be fun to just write about random things that are going on in my life.

1. SPORCLE

I’m a huge fan of lists – if you couldn’t tell by my 101 in 1001 challenge. I also love a good trivia/quiz situation. Introduce Sporcle. It’s an online “World of Quizzes” where people can create and play quizzes. The beauty of this website is that you can see the quiz “questions” and any correct answers will automatically populate the quiz. My favorite is the “Countries of the World” map quiz. It lists 197 countries (but according to Google, there are only 195 countries awkward). It’s a lot harder than you think, but sometimes it gives me some calm when I’m stressed or some fun when I’m bored.

2. ONLINE SHOPPING

Retail therapy is real for me, my friends. And most of the time I don’t even buy anything. I just love browsing online, putting things in my card, then walking away. I will go to all of my favorite stores’ websites and literally browse through ALL of their categories (focusing on the sale/clearance categories) and put everything I like in my cart. If I’m feeling really stressed and/or if there’s a fantastic sale, I will actually buy things. Most of the time I abandon my cart and that satisfies my “craving”. When I DO purchase anything, I make sure to have my Rakuten* on and check Honey* for any codes.

Currently shopping: Abercrombie & Fitch, H&M, Nordstrom, Madewell, Sephora

*Links to my referral codes – but I do NOT shop without these two plug-ins and they have saved me SO MUCH money.

3. BLACK FRIDAY

Speaking of shopping, Black Friday shopping gives me anxiety. I think that’s because I have major FOMO if there’s a good deal that I’m missing out on. Last year I was feeling really reckless and spent far too much money. But I put together an Excel tracker (because ya girl loves organization), tracked my purchases, and ended up getting rid of MOST of it. I usually do Black Friday shopping for Christmas gifts and any “electronics” we need for our house (ie. looking at the Dyson Supersonic hair dryer this year).

4. VIDEO MONTAGES

I recently made my first few video montages on TikTok (aka TikTok videos). The first was about me and Drew and the second was a “life lately” video. It was so much fun to compile the pictures and videos that I’ve taken over the weeks, months, and decades. I used to be much more creative (think back to Xanga, MySpace, and AIM days) so it was fun to tap into that part of myself. Similar to how I approach this blog, I think I’ll keep posting videos whenever I feel inspired or need an outlet.

5. FLU SEASON

I have the flu – well hoping it becomes “I had the flu”. Last Monday I started feeling body aches, feverish, and congestion almost “all of a sudden”. I tried to work through the discomfort on Tuesday, but ended up going to Urgent Care and was diagnosed with the flu. IT TOOK ME OUT. I was out the rest of Tuesday and all of Wednesday. I feel a bit better each day, but still in recovery mode. I’m almost done with my Tamiflu so hopefully, I’m back to normal this week, just in time for Thanksgiving.

6. TAYLOR SWIFT

Wow, just wow – and not in a good way. It’s still too fresh to get into, but I was not happy with the ticket-purchasing experience for Taylor’s new Eras Tour with Ticketmaster. It was disastrous and left me feeling disappointed, betrayed, and just pissed off. I, along with millions of others, waited in line for 6+ hours just to keep getting an error code and ultimately not getting tickets. My sister and I had to buy resale tickets but paid WAY TO MUCH. I don’t know anything about the industry, but as a consumer…immediately no.

7. DECLUTTERING

I almost labeled this “minimalism” but being realistic with myself, I re-labeled this as “decluttering”. I’m not made for the minimalist lifestyle at this point in my life, but as I enter my 30s, I do see the importance and impact of “clear space, clear mind”. I find myself being more irritable when I see clutter and mess around my home. And I think the solution is just having less stuff (obvi aside from #2 and #3 above). I’m going to incorporate this mindset into my decision-making (re: shopping) and as a continuous process throughout my life and home.

8. COOKING AT HOME

We’ve been eating out…A LOT. I can “blame” that on traveling or hanging out with friends and family, but in reality, it’s because we’re lazy. I am missing the warm and fuzzy feelings of homecooked meals, so I want to cook at home more. My goal for the holidays is to try and eat at home as much as possible but not put too much pressure on ourselves. I have plenty of cookbooks that I’ve been wanting to try recipes from, especially Magnolia Table Volume 1 and Volume 2 and Half-Baked Harvest. I also want to start learning classic Chinese dishes that I can cook for our families!

9. NOTION

I’ve been seeing so many TikToks about Notion and the idea seems like my cup of tea. I love the idea of getting and keeping my life organized digitally while also being able to customize the layouts. I may need to find a few templates or TikToks to get me started, but that may be my “Christmas Break” activity.

10. GOOGLE CALENDAR

Drew and I have a shared family calendar for the two of us and it has changed our planning game. We both put our travels (fun and work) and social activities on this calendar. When making plans, we can just check the calendar to see if we’re free and book from there. For major trips, we obviously discuss in person but for quick week-night dinners with friends, the calendar is a lifesaver. I also recently color-coordinated our events and it makes my Type-A heart SO happy, and bonus: Drew likes it too!

Happy blogging!

Vivian