Hi, it's me again for the nth time

If my blog could talk, I imagined it will go "Well well well, look who decides to pop in after half a decade". For my own record, I have 88 posts (lol only 72 published and SIXTEEN drafts) to date since I started this in 2012, which averages to less than 10 post each year which heeeeyyyyy doesn't sound too bad? :D hahhaha lol but for real, I abandoned this blog for far too long. It's true what they say, working life sucks the life out of you. 

Let me try to rationalise my disappearance this chart graph list here. AHEM here we go! 

[2012] I was inspired to start writing down my thoughts again after watching the Meme Proposal and was in Form 6 at that time. 

[2013] Was still in Form 6 (3 semester, 1½ years) and looking back now, I'm impressed that I published 41 blog posts in that year alone what the heck!

[2014] Done and dusted Form 6 (last exam was in November 2013) so I guess I was just free and unemployed before I started uni in August? Scratch that, maybe I worked in Kumon for a couple of months and then resigned, and I faintly remembered that we went to Penang to attend the first wedding (amongst cousins!). Oh wait, I just skimmed through my blog and found that I was working in Switch and then switched to work at Don Kaiton! Hur hur hur, see what I did there? So I guess I worked in Kumon after SPM hmmm... ok! Now I'm half disappointed that I didn't blog more during those unemployed months! What was I doing? And for the later part, I understand why I was MIA because it's a lot to get used to in uni - new room/housemates, course mates, activities, friends, dorm life, classes, academic writing urghhhh, etc etc.

[2015] Only 3 measly posts that entire year. And one of it was a throwback, continuation of a trip back in August 2014 oh my lord. 

[2016] 1 long ass post hahaha I am a joke. This was a late entry about my entire year in 2015, with empty promises to dedicate individual posts to some experiences that I deemed deserving of their own posts. But to be fair, I did take the effort to make drafts for some of time even tho the drafts only have the simple title to indicate what posts are pending. Usually people do a summary review of their year and get them published/posted before the new year starts but sighhh I guess this is not surprising since I crowned myself as the queen of procrastination > Link here. I recently also updated my Instagram profile to add that title:

Nevertheless, I am most proud of the 2015 post because I rather quite enjoy reading through what I experienced and learnt that year *sniff sniff. Oh! And in the summer of 2016, I went to the US for the Work and Travel (WAT) cultural exchange program! I started taking short video clips so that I could edit and make a video out of it but of course I haven't done that, and haven't even posted the pictures in Instagram lol. Returned home with dark clouds over my head and lost joy in everything for a while there.

While we're at it, lemme just pen down a quick update for my future reference too! Because as usual, I hope to be able to dedicate a post for each major event/experience but we'll see about that since I'm overly ambitious - writing blogposts, editing and uploading videos on Youtube and coordinating my Instagram feed lol.

[2017] Pushed through and even participated in a Cheer competition in Singapore! Attended my first and last prom with my now-ex. Joined a colour fun run! Did my 8 month practicum (August 2017 to March 2018) in an international school in KL during my 4th year of my TESOL degree. 

[2018] Attended second cousin's wedding in January! Ended practicum in March and then potate at home until I joined WAT again during the summer (June-September)! Short and budget trip to Singapore with my now-ex. Joined the workforce in Agoda for a short 3 weeks in training.

[2019] Went to HK & Disneyland! Hopped over to work in Shell. Finally graduated! (missed my ceremony with course mates in July 2018 when I was in US). Broke free from my shackles!

[2020] Covid hit in March, WFH. Upgraded from SE to SE2! Joined SEATRU (turtle conservation program in Chagar Hutang, Pulau Redang) in July! Attended crochet workshop. Went to Penang with my SO. Edited and posted videos for SEATRU, Penang trip and WAT 2018 on Youtube! 

[2021] Went Dining in the Dark! Got vaccinated! Edited and posted video for HK trip (2019). Resigned from Shell. Au pair adventure starts - application to interviews, matching, rematching, going to the airport, applying, flying, arriving and adjusting. Finished reading A Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren after a couple of attempts. 

And here we are. This time, I'm inspired to start writing again because it helps me think and reflect, and it's encouraged from the book by Warren to pen them down for our future reference. I agree with that because my memory is not great at all (proof from when I visit my blog and feel amazed and go "Oooohhh really? Oh wow I forgot that happened" every time I reread the 2015 post). Also, because I wanna be able to look back and see how I've grown over the months/years, and especially from this au pair experience. Besides, it's less time consuming (maybe) to write than to edit a video. And maybe I might need to compile footage over months before editing and publishing a video. We'll see!

Oh and here's to surviving 2 solid months here as an au pair (arrival date: 19 September 2021). Well, technically, it's 2 months tomorrow (MY* time as it's only 10.51pm on 18 September in US time). And at this point, I haven't posted much pictures of my US adventures in Instagram (apple picking, Asian Market, Halloween, autumn, etc.) while Thanksgiving is just next week! >.< 

*MY = Malaysia