Hello, I’m Alive!

It has been over half a year since I posted an update here, and I must admit, a lot has happened since then.

Our cats turned 2

Dubu and Kimchi turned 2 in January, and we were glad to learn during our annual vet visit in their birth month that they were both healthy.

However, I have to admit that Kimchi seems to get chonkier each day.

As for Dubu, it appears she is finally past her angsty phase. She is sweeter now, even initiating brief cuddle sessions and greeting me first thing in the morning.

I started working full-time for a friend’s startup

After leaving my job at an international media company, I decided to take on a full-time role in a company owned by a friend. I own shares in the said corporation, and it seemed the most logical thing to do, considering all the crucial stuff lined up for us in 2024, including a crowdfunding campaign and the launch of a new product.

I had a lot of fun there, but at the same time, I also found everything too intense considering where we were in our startup journey.

My maternal grandmother passed away

Months after having a severe stroke that took away her ability to walk and talk, my grandmother died. It was so devastating for me that I had a hard time dealing with all sorts of emotions and even struggled with work. Even my appetite was affected.

Around that time, I also had limited contact with friends, as I simply did not have a lot of energy to interact with people.

We celebrated our second wedding anniversary

Sometimes I still forget that I am married, but I think it is just the case when you are having too much fun. No wonder when Tim and I celebrated our second wedding anniversary in April, we both were in disbelief that we’d been married that long. It seemed only yesterday that we began flirting with one another.

I was invited to speak at my high school’s moving-up ceremony

I’d always thought that day would never come, but it eventually did: I received an invitation to speak at my high school’s moving-up ceremony at the end of May.

I had a lot of fun writing that speech, especially since it talks about creating a satisfying story, therefore weaving writing tips into sensible life advice. And I am glad that it resonated with a lot of people, not only teachers and officials at the school but also students and even parents. I was so touched when people reached out to me to say my words inspired them.

Apart from that, the speaking engagement also gave me a great opportunity to reunite with high school batchmates who are now teaching at the same school, as well as the teachers who helped shape me into the woman I am today.

I received a writing fellowship to help me write my first book

Days before my grandmother’s passing, I received some good news—I’d been accepted into a writing fellowship for my proposed collection of essays in Filipino tackling food, hunger, and consumption.

The fellowship took place in Lucban, Quezon, three months later, and it gave me a good opportunity not only to fine-tune my existing drafts with the help of our generous mentors but also to learn about other possibilities that could further improve them and the other essays I was yet to write. It was also great listening to craft lectures about various genres, from which I picked up several things that I could apply to my own project.

But what I loved most about the experience was the chance to make new friends. It was so fun to connect with new people who were as serious as I was with my craft and with whom I shared other common interests—like horror movies. And speaking of horror movies, my co-fellows and I watched “Incantation” in our hotel room one night.

I’ve been diagnosed with asthma

In late June, I had a quick trip to the emergency room after experiencing difficulty breathing. It was something I’d tried not to make a big deal of at first, thinking my rhinitis had just been acting up. In the end, though, I learned that it was actually an asthma attack. It was scary, sure, but once in the ER and undergoing treatment, Tim and I simply had a good laugh about it, even calling the nebulizer “shisha.”

I haven’t had another attack since then yet because I swear, we have been a lot more careful at home, adding another unit of air purifier and making sure I do not get exposed to things that can trigger my asthma. I have been masking consistently as well and making sure I do not get so tired because apparently, exhaustion can also trigger attacks.

Our siblings graduated from the university

May-June is graduation season in the Philippines, and I am proud to share that my youngest sibling finally finished her creative writing degree from the country’s top university—the same institution where Tim and I studied. Tim’s younger brother graduated from the same school, too, earning a degree in nutrition.

We are very proud of them! We also loved spoiling them with amazing gifts and celebrating their milestones.

I left my friend’s company and was hired by another

Despite all the challenges, we were able to launch the product we had working so hard for. This meant it was time for me to move on and take on a different full-time job.

To be very honest, though, my job-hunting experience did not go as smoothly as I’d wanted it to be. The job market was hellish, and I kept seeing job ads from companies that expected successful candidates to perform the duties of three individuals but were unwilling to pay them well.

Good thing, though, I stumbled upon this LinkedIn post saying a tech-focused publication needed a copy editor. I applied, took the test, went on interviews, and was eventually hired.