Sooooo…. I quit my job a few weeks ago. I had decided to do it a while before actually pulling the trigger. Burnout is real and it got to the point where I felt I needed to save my sanity. Since then, I have been privately saying my goodbyes to my friends and people I’ve worked with in the past. I’d forgotten that resigning feels like breaking up over and over again. I’ve been so touched by the kind words people have shared to encourage me, both from friends who bore witness to my struggles, and from people who didn’t really have a clue that I was not doing well.
It’s a season of complex emotions. Grief that this chapter of my life is closing; excitement and terror and about what’s next; anxiety over not having income in the near future. I’m trying to stay afloat and just pedal my way through the waters, but mostly I’m just really tired down to my bones and I would still like to sleep for a year. I have been sleeping a lot lately.
Wish me luck, friends, and add me to your prayer list if it’s not too much trouble. I’m need of some good juju. I have no future plans yet; if there’s anything you think I might be a good fit for, do let me know. :)
Currently...
Feeling bittersweet about the stories coming out from former staffers of the Aquino administration. Raf Ignacio posted a series of short anecdotes that are rich with detail. I had never realized how many friends of mine had served in government during those years. How PNoy had inspired so many to hope, to dream that their contributions could matter. May he rest in peace.
Consuming the BTS documentaries in order, starting with Burn the Stage (first episode is free on Youtube; the rest are on Youtube Premium). It’s taken me this long to watch them because I knew this was where they would get really vulnerable and talk about the difficulties they face as musicians and performers on a world tour. Kailangan ko magpatibay muna ng loob, haha.
Drinking a lot of soju this week. I posted a drunk unboxing of the Map of the Soul ON:E concept photobook on my public Instagram if you care to look and have a giggle.
Trying desperately to be on merch/shopping ban. Writing it here as a form of accountability. HAHA.
Rewatching Lovesick on Netflix. It’s one of my top 5 series for romance lovers, so underrated. I also went back to finish Four Weddings and a Funeral on Hulu and wept deeply again as if I was watching for the first time.
Longreads...
How McDonald's Altered Its Strategy for the BTS Meal and Broke Its Social Engagement Records — Jess Zafaris, Adweek.
“These celebrity orders are perfect examples of the magic that comes with shining a light on such a simple, universal truth—that no matter who you are, everyone has a McDonald’s order.”
Read Britney Spears' full statement against conservatorship: 'I am traumatized' — NBC News
A grueling but necessary read. At the heart of it, Britney’s conservatorship case is about disability rights.
Do Chance Meetings at the Office Boost Innovation? There’s No Evidence of It. — Claire Cain Miller, The New York Times.
“‘The idea you can only be collaborative face-to-face is a bias’ ... Requiring people to be in the office can drive out innovation, some researchers and executives said, because for many people, in-person office jobs were never a great fit. They include many women, racial minorities and people with caregiving responsibilities or disabilities. Also, people who are shy; who need to live far from the office; who are productive at odd hours; or who were excluded from golf games or happy hours.”
A Parkland Victim's Dad Tricked A Former NRA President Into Speaking At A Fake Graduation — Amber Jamieson, BuzzFeed.
“Instead, the 3,044 empty seats represented the students who did not graduate this year because they were killed by gun violence.”
I wanted to be a better husband. So I planned my kid’s birthday party. — Joshua Ziesel, The Washington Post.
“I realized that, also unfairly, she constantly had to choose between just doing all the mental labor herself or continuing to try to help me see what I simply do not see, which is incredibly laborious in and of itself.”
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Yours from afar,
Pinky