Hi friends, how’s it going?
I was going to say hope you are doing well, but even that seems a little weird to say given the situation these days.
Want to pop in here and talk about how things have been lately. As you probably already know, I’m based in Hong Kong (have been for a few years now) so COVID-19 has been a thing here for a few months already.
When I mentioned it in my last January favorite post, I had no idea it was going to be how it is today. Back then, I thought it was going to only last for a short time and though it was starting already, it still felt quite distant. Life was still (almost) normal and the rest of the world hadn’t caught on. Fast forward to now, May is starting and the entire world is very much affected by this pandemic.
Though HK’s cases are nowhere near as extreme as some other places nowadays, I can’t say that things have been fine here either. My company, along with everyone else have been on work from home arrangement these past few months. Social distancing has become a new norm and everyone’s lifestyle had suddenly been challenged and changed to adapt to the situation.
It’s been weird, being an extrovert who thrives on people’s interaction, to not get any real human contact in days and weeks time. Time has also become a sort of just a concept, where it feels like it’s going by so slowly, yet from time to time we get reminded just how much time had flown by without us noticing.
Before this hopefully pass by soon and becomes a distant memory, I want to talk about some of the things I’ve been doing to keep myself sane during my stay at home.
Cooking, escalated
Last time, I mentioned cooking as my new hobby. Now a few months later, it’s become a true habit and hobby that is in my mind pretty much all day long. Especially now that I can also cook lunch at home (as opposed to being in office), I really do have all the time in the world to experiment.
Few of my recent favorites include
- Doenjang Jjigae (Korean soybean stew) from Jenn Im’s video
- Garlic butter pasta aka my go-to pantry pasta from Marion
- Salmon teriyaki, super simple recipe
- Mushroom carbonara for when I’m tired of the butter pasta, super step by step here
- Tteokboki when I’m craving spicy, using Maangchi’s recipe
- Spam musubi and spam fried rice (I love spam), I just wing both with no particular recipe in mind
Embroidery update
I’m happy to report that months later (though with few dips in between), embroidery has still been a favorite activity on mine. Especially now that we’re actively looking for ways to pass time, it’s the perfect opportunity to pick up a new time-consuming hobby. I love how embroidery allows SOME creativity but not as daunting as say, painting, and depending on your design, it can be done in a few hours OR weeks. Oh and I’m very proud to report that I’ve managed to get a few of my friends hooked into it too, I highly recommend trying it out if you are looking for a creative outlet with fast results.
Here’s some of the ones I liked
Shows, and more shows
Honestly, there’s really no better time to binge on Netflix shows than now. From January to now, I think I’ve finished more than 10 shows, mostly Kdrama. This is the first time I’m watching ANY Kdrama since like … high school or early college so it’s definitely a new thing. My obsession has gotten so dire that I’ve somehow gained the reputation of being Kdrama obsessed that my friends/co-workers made a Kdrama starter pack for my birthday last month lol (more on that later). Among the many that I recently watched, Hi Bye Mama, What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim, and One Spring Night are my favorites.
Hi Bye Mama is a true tearjerker that will bring ALL the feels and make you sob all day every day (I sure did) but I loved every minute of it. It’s about a mom who died and returned to life, but it’s really more about family, friendships, and relationships – all the good and bad parts of them. I found myself reflecting upon my own relationships while watching this show, and it’s guaranteed will make you want to talk to your parents ASAP. I’m not kidding when I say you need to be mentally prepared though, a pack of tissue near you is highly suggested.
What’s Wrong with Secretary Kim is an older drama that I had JUST watched last month. It’s supposed to be about a relationship between this super confident boss and his loyal secretary, but believe me, it’s also so much more than that. There’s an unexpected plot that makes it stand out about halfway through, don’t be fooled by the early premise and episodes. I have a feeling that this will be a drama that I will rewatch again and again later since it really blends in a good story and funny moments incredibly well. Plus, the main guy is objectively cute 😉
One Spring Night is the latest Kdrama I finished, and it is by far the most mellow and realistic one. There’s no huge plot twist or weird alter reality stuff that some Kdramas have, but its simplicity is its charm. It’s just about boy meets girl and everything that happens around their lives. The main guy is so damn cute and their relationship development is a slow but interesting one. I don’t know I would rewatch it, but I did enjoy it this first time around.
Few other things I watched include Goblin, an old favorite that I still love; Crash Landing on You and Itaewon Class, which honestly were pretty overrated in my opinion, and Money Heist possibly being the only non-Kdrama show I watched recently.
Money Heist is totally worth the hype and I do love it, but I’m currently pausing after the second season finished so I’ll hold off my review until then.
Random shenanigans
Now let’s talk about all the random things that happened during self-isolation.
My birthday was just a month ago, and it was the first time in my life that I see zero humans in real life on my birthday. Not to worry though, I still had a great one with lots of surprise deliveries and Zoom calls. Regardless, I’m still super grateful to have friends and family who celebrated with me (virtually). Here’s the half-jokes Kdrama box my coworkers put together for me (along with another gift that I will not disclose here HAHA) and a sentimental one from my college friends. Thank u guys <33
Quarantine time also means more time to work out and try new exercises at home. Admittedly, I’m not doing this consistently at ALL but I did enjoy Emi Wong’s workout videos as a beginner who’s mostly looking to do simple exercises at home. This one is good for abs, this one is for when I’m lazy in bed.
Two Dots aka the only game I’ve ever played and liked deserved a mention here. For when I don’t know what else to do, I find myself gravitated to this game. It’s similar to Candy Crush I think? But the UI is nicer and there’s a lot of side games in the app. I’m now on level 180 and it’s probably going to be my ‘I’m bored’ game for a while.
Lastly, being at home has inevitably got me into a home-decor mood. Simple stuff like hanging up my old string lights and putting up old pictures and cards had made my room feel a lot cozier and more like mine so I dig it.
And that’s pretty much all I’ve been doing + work during this quarantine time. It’s interesting how now I feel that I’ve gone through the ‘going crazy at home’ stage and emerged on to the other side since I really don’t mind being home 24/7 now.
Maybe it’s just Netflix that keeps me entertained, maybe it’s the lack of FOMO that used to exist, maybe I finally figured out how to spend time a long time alone. Who knows?
All I know is that we can only keep ourselves sane and entertained at home as much as possible and hope that this dies out soon so life can resume, to whatever that looks like after this. I miss being able to do whatever I want outside, I miss traveling, and I miss the feeling of having endless possibilities to go anywhere anytime. I don’t know when is the next time I can go home and be with my family, or the next time I can see my college friends back in SF. Hopefully, that is not too far in the future for us, but we’ll see. In the meantime, hope everyone is staying safe and sane at home 🙂
