may 2026
the month’s media
listening
Identified - Vanessa Hudgens: I saw someone online post about this song saying that it was produced by Max Martin (a producer I love who’s produced some of pop’s biggest hits and has worked with some of my favorite pop girls: Britney Spears hihi and Katy Perry during her peak), so I knew I had to give this a listen. I think I love this song so much because it feels like a song Britney could perform? Such a good club song also!
I’m Just A Kid - Simple Plan: Was feeling a bit lonely and out of place at work because some of the teams had joint team buildings but HR wasn’t invited or included which made me a bit sad. I feel my HR-ness so deeply here in Giftaway and I hate it. One of the things I miss about Smarter Good is that it felt like HR was part of the team and people generally liked HR huhu.
Where Does the DJ Go? - Kylie Minogue: Another song that would be so good to hear on the dancefloor. This song makes me wish I was a dancer, particularly a waacker, because I think this song would go so well with that dance style.
Favorite Girl - Justin Bieber: Can’t believe I just discovered this song now!!! Salamat Coach Seb Mangrobang HAHA I discovered the song because of the choreography he made for the song lol.
Obsessed - Mariah Carey: Got hooked on this song after watching a YT video about the beef between Mariah and Eminem, and how this song was a product of that beef. Salamat Slim Shady sa pagsshade mo kay Kween Mariah because we ended up with this gem!!!
Shawty Get Loose - Lil Mama and Chris Brown: Another song I got hooked on because a dance teacher (Coach Chris Vino, whose classes I’ve never attended yet oops) came up with choreography for the song….I hate that it features Chris Brown, and I hate that the song is so catchy.
watching
Monster (2023): I watched this after one of my office happy crushes recommended it to me. I…..do not know how to summarize the movie HAHA but very badly put, the movie revolves around two children, their friendship, and the monsters in their lives, and the movie is told from the perspective of three different characters. I enjoyed watching this though there was a bit of a lull in the middle, and there were definitely details I missed out on; I liked how different each story was depending on whose POV we’re looking at. This reminds me of what Bea (who also recommended me a different movie by the same director!) said about how if you’re going to use different perspectives effectively as a tool, they shouldn’t all be saying the same thing/pointing towards a single narrative, and I think this movie does this really well! It’s not a movie I’m attached to, but I enjoyed watching it (though I don’t think I’d rewatch it oops).
The Sheep Detectives (2026): This movie was right up Carlos’s alley, and we watched this movie more for him than me, but I ended up enjoying the movie so much? I love whodunnits (see: Knives Out franchise and my early love for Nancy Drew) and the fact that the mystery was being solved by a group of lovable sheep, and to have the movie include such a lovely perspective on grief and memory in the wake of loss….. napaka galing! Also: Hugh Jackman feeding a lamb……..hihi
reading
It was a pretty good reading month! I absolutely loved 3/4 of my reads this month, which I was so happy about since a lot of my reads earlier this year were just so-so.
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar: This is such a bad summary/description of the book, but it’s about Cyrus, an angsty guy obsessed with martyrdom, and it delves into his family history and his encounters with Orkideh, an artist who spends her final days in a museum, talking with museumgoers. I….am a bit conflicted about this book. Some parts I enjoyed (especially the parts about Orkideh and her process as an artist) but my attention often wandered in other parts. The ending was a bit confusing because things suddenly took a turn towards the fantastical. I’m glad I read it, but it wasn’t a read I particularly liked.
The Good Enough Job by Simone Stolzoff: I loved this book! It challenges the idea of workism, the idea that we have to find meaning and fulfillment in our work. It then dives into the stories of different people and the different relationships they have with work, depending on their view of work and the role they want work to play in their lives. I really enjoyed this because it showed me that work life balance will look different to different people, and there’s no one correct way of having a good relationship with work, because people’s definition of a good relationship with work will differ. It’s a huge plus point that they featured people across a wide range of roles: more corporate-y roles like software engineers or creative/marketing consultants, and roles that we think are more fulfilling like librarians. I recommend this for anyone who’s working haha because it makes you reflect on your own relationship with work. Might actually go into more detail on this in a different post because of how much I learned from the book!
The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali: This earned a spot in my top 5 fiction books (maybe even my top 5 books) of all time. I love stories that feature female friendships, the fine line between admiration and envy, loving someone whilst being envious of them, and this book had all 3! It reminds me of Elena Ferrante’s My Brilliant Friend (and the Neapolitan Novels series basically), so if you enjoyed that, this is a shorter version of the series. It was a huge plus also for me that food was featured so much in the novel; that politics wasn’t just the background against which events happened, but actually played a huge part in the plot; that a good chunk of the book took place in a school setting; that the book spanned several stages of their lives (from childhood to adulthood). Some parts were heavy but gosh!!! I loved this book so much :”)
Good Guys by Sharon Bala: In a bid to read more books recommended by people I know as opposed to just relying on the algorithm, I read this since it was highly recommended by Dan, and it did not disappoint! It’s about Claire, a former PR person turned NGO marketing staff, and how her dream of supposedly doing good in an NGO unravels when the organization faces backlash after a huge scandal. I especially enjoyed it since I had worked in a social enterprise, and though my previous company was nowhere near as scandalous as Children of the World (the NGO in the book), I still felt that same disillusionment that Claire experienced throughout the course of the novel. Most of the book’s criticisms on philanthropy and the development sector were already opinions I had prior to reading the book, but it did show me a different perspective when it came to the day-to-days of development workers out on the field — the gap between the workers and the directors, the difficulties of having to work on a tight budget and the friction it causes amongst the team, the vested, personal interests in projects (and which of them gets cut), how the passion to do good work is extinguished by the bureaucracy and politics and need for survival. Napakaganda, and it was such a riveting book that was hard to put down.
eats
Homemade hamburgers for Lance’s birthday!
Amici that same weekend, also to celebrate Lance’s birthday. Mozzarella sticks and the 4 cheese pizza were so good! I love Amici so much - always a hit!
Frankies dinner with Carlos.
Yellow Cab takeout dinner at home. 4 cheese pizza again since it’s lance’s my favorite pizza flavor.
Pancake House with Mom and Lance! I don’t like spaghetti but Pancake House spaghetti is so good…
Breakfast at Antonio’s Tagaytay brunch with Lance! This was so-so. I wish I got something else.
Musashi Maru at Glorietta with Carlos! One of my favorite Japanese restaurants in general, and one of my favorite places to eat at in Glorietta. I looove their salmon bowl!
Sisig from Icebergs - comfort food!!
Lagrima fish tacos (my usual and the best fish tacos I’ve ever had), but I tried shrimp tacos also which was good though kind of dry.
creations
Some digital illustrations I worked on and/or finished this May! Some works were more than a month in the making. I particularly love the drawing of my old condo unit and the cake :”)
I attended a Girls Who Build Woodworking Workshop by Bumi and Ashe, where we were taught the basics of woodworking and I got to build my own stool! Funnily, I now use it as a side table because I accidentally drilled a nail too deep to the point where it pokes out of the seat.
highlights
Lance’s birthday: Highlight pero di naman sinama yung picture! HAHA but it was nice spending Lance’s birthday with him at home, and I got to enjoy good food because of Lance’s food requests (e.g. silog breakfast, hamburgers)
Lola Amour 10th Anniversary Concert: Went largely because Carlos wanted to go! It was so hot and humid because it was outdoors even if we came prepared (cooling wipes and mini-fans). Despite the weather, we had so much fun - it’s such a treat hearing Lola Amour live - napakagaling talaga nila; they’re evidently having so much fun together onstage, and I feel like Pio’s voice has improved so much since I last watched them live back in college. I ran into Josel unexpectedly as well so this was extra enjoyable.
Emo Night Manila: A year after hearing about this event from Migo, I finally got to attend their event! I went with workmates (and one ex-workmate) (Nella, Gerard, Armel, and Charles), and I had such a blast dancing and singing along to my favorite pop punk hits. It was so nice also that I was bonding on the dancefloor with people I didn’t even know! I got home at around 2 AM and fell asleep at 4 AM, but this late night out was worth it. I can’t wait to do it again.
Team Building Ocular with Lance: I was supposed to do the Team Building Ocular alone, but I wasn’t comfy with booking a Klook driver for the day and being alone for those long stretches. So, after “casually” mentioning to my family over dinner about the plans of me being alone for the ocular, Lance offered to be the one to drive me around. It was so fun getting to spend the whole day with him - bonding over music, throwback hits (Nickelback), and going around the resorts with him (and him even asking questions on behalf). Definitely one of my core memories this year.
Snek Gang Reunion: After more than a year of not meeting, we finally got to meet up! The few hours was a little too short considering how long we haven’t met in person, but it was still such a life-giving hang :”) if there’s one thing I’m grateful to Smarter Good for, it’s that I got to form friendships with them, and even though we’re all going down different paths, I still feel the care and love even if we aren’t a constant part of each others’ lives anymore.
BRA Meetup: Another life-giving hangout that finally happened after almost a year! It was so fun getting to catch up with them in Musashi Tei and having dessert at home. I can’t believe that I used to see them almost every day back in college, but now it’s been reduced to just 2-3x a year. Also on that note, after work dinners with friends are god-tier because it gives you something to look forward to during the workweek. It makes you enjoy the workweek and not just wait for the weekends.
Brownout (+ making new friends): The month was marked by consistent brownouts, and I ended up having to walk down 38 flights of stairs since I needed to make it to my dance class, lol. I ended up needing to go back and forth between QC and Makati that week, but something good that came out of this was that I was able to make friends with some of my neighbors, and we’ve talked a few times since then!