Summing It Up: May 2017

May was a marvelously restful month for me. On the 1st I took the last exam of my P1 year and started my summer soon after that. The rest of the month I (re)read a lot of Dessen (my favorite YA realistic fiction/contemporary author if you haven’t caught on by now), met up with some longtime friends, and relaxed. This is my last week of freedom, however, since I’ll be starting my summer community pharmacy rotation this approaching Monday, June 5th. I’m both nervous and excited but mostly thrilled since I was very lucky to get the site I wanted with this cycle. I won’t be working long hours as I thought I would so this may mean I’ll be around the blogosphere in June.

Anyway, I have lots of (different and kind of strange) favorites this month so let’s move on!

– What I Read –

The Truth About Forever (reread) | Once and for All | Just Listen (reread) | What Happened to Goodbye (reread)

I’m quite impressed with this reading month despite there being only 4 titles read. I’ve been meaning to have a true Dessen summer (where I reread some of Dessen’s old releases and review them) for years now. Also, in case you missed my review or only read the bold parts of that one, I mentioned that I was extremely thankful and happy that I was granted access to an eARC of Once and for All. I consider this a pivotal milestone in my blogging career. :’)

– May Blog Posts –

• Summing It Up: April 2017 [Wrap Up/Favorites]
• The Truth About Forever [Book Review] 5 Stars
• Summer Says: How to Gain More Blog Traffic [Discussion]
• Just Listen [Book Review] 5 Stars
• What Happened to Goodbye [Book Review] 3.5 Stars
• Once and for All [Book Review] 3.5 Stars

I daresay May wasn’t that shabby of a blogging month for me since I posted several reviews (mostly for blog tours but still) and even released a discussion post. Speaking of that Summer Says post… I just wanted to quickly thank you guys for the response towards it! I have to admit that my corner of the blogosphere has been a little dead since I’ve stopped interacting like I used to and a lot of my original friends are no longer blogging, but I am so grateful for those that read that post. You all are awesome! T_T

– Favorites –

Have you guys heard of gaining the infamous Freshman 15? My weight didn’t fluctuate from when I was in high school during undergrad… since I’m pretty health conscientious with food and I used to exercise daily. However, ugh, I’m not proud of this… but I didn’t exactly adopt the best habits with my first year of graduate school. With me often having late night study sessions (which meant late night snacking) and incorporating very little cardio in my schedule I gained 10 pounds. Therefore I’ve been more or less on a diet, which has also naturally meant I’ve been cooking more (mostly to counteract my recent weight gain but also to help me feel healthier). I’m not a great cook but easy, simple dishes are in the compass of my skills. And so far it’s been good! I do have my cheat days because you guys know I cannot give up my sweets. XD

I’m very predictable when it comes to clothes. I only really shop at Loft (for everything pretty much), American Eagle (for jeans), and Urban Outfitters (for Adidas stuff). Because we have to wear a lot of “professional” clothes in school, I’ve been more dependent on Loft these days. I love how stylish and youthful they make business casual clothes look. Anyway, I went a little crazy and bought several things from there in May, including this blouse. I did try it on but I decided to put the stock photo with the model since it shows the top better than the embarrassing mirror selfie I took.

I also wound up purchasing this entire outfit from Loft when it was 50% off. I’m usually not big on statement skirts like this one but the floral pattern looked so fun for the summer that I couldn’t pass up. I also tried the chambray top and liked its oversized look..

This was a treat to myself for finishing my first year of graduate/professional school. It’s a muted pink and floral wallet from Kate Spade! I’ve been meaning to get one to match my purse for a while now so I was glad to find this one that I’ve been eyeing go on sale. (And I had a nice additional promotion code too.)

I buy a new school agenda every year. I’ve tried a lot of different ones throughout the years but I decided to go with Ban.Do again. Their agendas are super fun because they’re already decorated on the inside. And I love that they aren’t spiral bound because I’m right handed and spiral coils get in the way when I write. Another bonus: it’s small and compact.

– Video Favorites –

I’m not really into girl groups and I’ve long since stopped keeping track with new K-pop groups (I still find it so weird that most of the members are now younger than me), but a group called Pristin caught my eye recently with this song, “Black Widow.” The song is very typical K-pop, but the choreo is pretty badass. And I always prefer it when girl groups try the darker concepts.)

This has been one of my favorite choreographies for months now but with each Summing It Up I kept forgetting to include it. So here it is! Yoojung and Koosung are so adorable together. (Okay, wow. I’m only realizing now that their names rhymes. Cute.)

I didn’t know I needed this subunit in my life until they debuted. Hyuna (formerly part of a disbanded group called 4Minute), E’Dawn, and Hui (both in Pentagon) all have amazing chemistry and strong stage presence. I guarantee that “365 Fresh” (as well as the other tracks on the 199X EP) are going to be my summer 2017 jam.

You guys know how I get with anime soundtracks… Anyway, A Silent Voice‘s really embodies what the story is. It’s soft, hopeful, and reflects Shoya and Shoko’s friendship perfectly.

Edit 6/2/17: The original video which had the entire soundtrack was taken down because of copyright… The replacement video I’m linking is just a cover of one of the songs. It’s still beautiful nonetheless.

I’ve always known that Nu’Est existed but never really got into them. After Produce 101 Season 2 I’ve grown to appreciate the members more. I wish that Pledis (their company) promoted them better. I mean they debuted the same year as Exo yet I’ve never come across them in shows or CFs. Anyhow, with that mini rant aside, some of the members being on this survival show got me to rediscover their last comeback title song called “Love Paint.” And right now it’s the most played song that I listened to this month.

Side note: Oh and with this “Love Paint” video as well as the Produce 101 show, I’ve become utterly obsessed with a cute smol bean named JR (real name: Kim Jong Hyun). (He’s the rapper with blue hair in the video above.) He’s just so kind and humble and goofy and hardworking and… the list goes on. T_T Of course, my top bias from K-pop will forever be Zhang Yi Xing but JR is becoming a strong contender. (I previously said that Kang Daniel was my favorite from Produce 101 Season 2… but you guys know how I am with these male Korean idols… It doesn’t take much for me to fangirl over these men, lol.)

I mean who could dislike this adorable human being? (JR. The. Living. Wartortle.) (But, seriously, he’s been in 1st place for the previous two weeks of Produce 101. I’m so pleased that he’s finally getting the recognition he deserves. Fingers crossed that he remains a part of the top 11 by the end.)

Every time this piano version of “Pick Me” played in the background of an episode of Produce 101 Season 2 I would get teary eyed since this is the main theme that would appear during eliminations. It’s hard getting used to the fact that this is survival program meaning contestants will get eliminated. After learning the trainees’ backgrounds and their desperation to achieve their dreams of becoming idols, viewers like me get attached to them.

Overall, Produce 101 is doing terrible things to my heart. Though I have my own 11 that I’m rooting for as the final group, whatever the outcome may be I wish for the success of all the contestants after the show. This season has more talented trainees compared to the first, in my opinion, and the hard work these boys put in their performances shows onscreen. I’m also in awe with how genuinely positive, supportive, and modest they are. (There are secret hidden cameras that show behind the scenes footage.) Not once has someone bashed another contestant or brought another down. When someone loses or is eliminated, that person always believes that he’s lacking. Anyway, it breaks my heart to see how much backlash and hate some of them get. The controversies/scandals/drama that have emerged with this season is absolutely ridiculous, too.

Produce 101 isn’t an easy show to watch… but finding stuff like this balances things out. 😛

– What I’ve Been Watching –

As just mentioned, I’m currently watching Produce 101 Season 2 but I won’t be including it in this section since this is normally reserved for Asian dramas/films and anime.

Anonymous Noise – 5/10 [Dropped]

I was so invested in this anime when it first aired because romances with musical backstories are exactly my style. (Nana, anyone?) As I was waiting for the next episode to release I went ahead and picked up the manga. But, unfortunately, after realizing that I was going to have severe second lead syndrome and my preferred OTP wasn’t going to happen I decided to drop the show. Also, this anime is a great example of a story that is better left as a manga. The constant “LaLaLa” humming was crazy cringeworthy. By the fifth episode I couldn’t handle any more of it.

A Silent Voice – 8/10 [Completed]

What a beautiful film this was. :’) A Silent Voice is an incredible manga series so I knew that this was going to be a challenge to adapt-especially since there are seven volumes worth of material in total. But, overall, Kyoto Animation did a fantastic job with fitting most of the relevant parts into two hours. Though I did feel like the film could be a bit confusing for viewers that haven’t read the manga. Like most book into movie adaptations, readers of the series have more of glimpse on the main characters’ inner turmoil and will sympathize with them easier. For this one in particular, the bullying during the elementary years was presented to be much more severe in the manga than the film since the latter used only a time lapse. In addition readers of the manga will understand the motives and shortcomings in the supporting characters’ roles more than in the animation. Therefore I’m going to just give this a solid 8 for now. Despite the few reservations I had with A Silent Voice, the movie, for how it was adapted from manga to animation, I 10/10 would recommend this.

Trailer:

Attack on Titan (Season 2) – ?/10 [Currently Watching]

I’m currently watching this with my dad. (He’s loving it by the way.) In comparison to season 1, I surprisingly still think I’m liking this one less… I don’t know. There are still a few episodes left but I have a terrible feeling that Eren is not going to get to use his key in this arc. (I haven’t read the manga so no spoilers please.)  -___-

I’m Your Destiny – ?/10 [Currently Watching]

The description of this one sounded so absurd that I had to try it. It’s about two people that have had terrible luck in love because they are actually destined to be life partners. The extra punch is that there’s a figure in this (God) that approaches the male lead and convinces him to get together with the female lead not only because they’re fated to be together but because their baby will save the world in the future. Anyway, aside from the male lead and the God’s chemistry as well as their superb acting (Kazuya Kamenashi and Tomohisa Yamashita were both in Nobuta wo Produce together years ago), this is kind of mediocre but amusing at the same time. The female lead has a horrible personality, however. I understand her skepticism towards falling in love after several failed relationships but she overreacts way too much. I’m only going to continue watching this because Yamapi is in it and he’s a total cutie. Also his antics as God is so freaking hilarious.

K2, The – 4/10 [Dropped]

The K2 was utterly disappointing! Ji Chang Wook is, hands down, my favorite Korean actor of all time. (Gah, he’s gorgeous.) I thought he did a pretty good job as he always does in his action roles but I just didn’t vibe with the rest of the cast. Aside from Chang Wook’s character, K2, the only other person that kept me intrigued was the female villain that was sort of in love with him (not Yoona’s character but her character’s stepmom). Speaking of Yoona’s role, the K2’s main love interest… I don’t know if it was Yoona’s acting or her character’s personality but she was irritating to say the least. After the 12th episode I was so done with waiting for her character to reach its much needed development. In addition, it upset me that there was so much back and forth with the plot. Viewers were so close to getting to a pivotal climax scene with the showdown between the K2 and the bad guys… and things finally getting resolved… but then that scene would be a false alarm and the plot would withdraw to a safer plotline. Basically, nothing important seemed to happen.

Six Flying Dragons – 7/10 [Dropped]

I was getting really far into this one because I love long historical dramas (like a lot). This one was very political and intriguing, but unfortunately my interest started to wane with each new episode. Also it bothered me that most of the episodes were ending on misleading cliffhangers… I may return to this one someday because I really, really liked the antiheroes that made up the cast but for now it’s a pass.

Suspicious Partner – ?/10 [Currently Watching]

I knew I had to begin watching this K-drama since my bae, Ji Chang Wook, is the male lead. (And it’s his first rom-com!) JCW’s mentioned that he’s sort of tired of being type casted into action roles and he’s been waiting for a role like this, so I’m really anticipating how he plans to portray a character ironically named, “Ji Wook.” There’s a murder mystery subplot… and I’m known to not like mysteries/thrillers… but, so far so good! It’s actually pretty darn cute and funny. This is my first Nam Ji Hyun drama but she’s gorgeous and I love her eclectic business attire style as an attorney, haha.

Trailer(s):

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And that covers my May! I hope everyone had just as awesome a month as I did! What trends did you enjoy? Any cool movies/shows I should check out? Let me know how you’ve been! And, as always, thanks for tuning in and checking out this monthly recap/wrap up/favorites. 🙂