Diary: Things that I love (and aren’t beauty related)

Photo by Wang Xi on Unsplash

So this is something a little bit different, but I did make a new years resolution (not sure if it was this year or last) that I wanted to do more personal posts on my blog so that people could actually get to know me and my life – rather than just a plethora of beauty posts and product reviews (though I bet that that’s why people come here anyway).  I actually drafted up a couple of headings and I have a few heavier topics that I want to write about, but I figured that it’s better to start off on a lighter foot.

Plus, I’m writing this while watching an episode of Criminal Minds, and that really isn’t the right mood to write about the darkness of my soul – is it?

So, kicking this off, I’m going to list and share a couple of things that I absolutely love and that have nothing to do with beauty at all – no products, no regimes and no make up trends. Just me, and everything else that makes me who I am.

Image from Taeyeon’s ‘This Christmas’ album

Taeyeon (Girls Generation)

I mean, It’s kind of kpop in general (I’m a fan of a number of groups – Big Bang, EXO, Seventeen… just to name a few) but the one absolutely love of mine is Taeyeon from Girls Generation/SNSD. I first fell in love with her because of her voice – I’m a big fan of ballads and Korean drama OSTs so, naturally, a lot of her solo work before she actually became a soloist was right now my alley. Later on, I’ve come to really adore her as a person too – I love her style, her quirkiness and her humour but I especially love that I see a lot of myself in her.

Similar to her, I’m very much a homebody. I am extroverted but I am also introverted and, given the choice, I would spend most of my time alone and at home. I am lonely and I give myself a hard time about things because I’m an excessive perfectionist, but that isn’t something that other people will usually see. In a way, I project myself onto Taeyeon (as an idol, I mean), so I see her as an alternate self.

Also, she’s just so pretty!

Promotional image for Criminal Minds

TV Dramas (especially procedural)

Ever since I was watching TVB (Hong Kong) dramas as a kid, I have always loved procedural dramas – I love watching the ins-and-outs of doctors, policemen/agents, lawyers, magazine editors… anything. My current obsession is with darker, more twisted dramas like Criminal Minds and How to Get Away With Murder so I can’t stop talking to people about these random but totally wonderful facts (like the profiling of a serial arsonist – seriously!)

In addition, I’m also a fan of some more ‘teen’ dramas like Pretty Little Liars, Shadowhunters, Riverdale, Teen Wolf… and I’m watching super eagerly for Sabrina’s reboot!

Photo by Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash

Musical Theatre & Pop-Punk music

This usually surprises people for two reasons: one, musical theatre isn’t exactly popular culture here in Australia and two, both of these genres are so vastly different. However, I’ve really grown up loving the both of them and my dream for the longest time (well, it’s still my dream now) is to be a broadway performer! When I was younger, I really wanted to move out to New York and try to chase that dream but… as I grew older, it just seemed further and further away.

Still, I never miss the opportunity to see a show when I can! There aren’t many performances here in Sydney and I only managed to see one while I was in NYC, but I’m hoping that I can go again soon and catch as many of them as possible! My favourite is definitely RENT – I am a total RENThead and I credit that musical for redefining how I view life.

For pop-punk music, I got into this when I was a teenager and I just love the instruments in these songs – powerful but easy enough to enjoy without too much though, you know? In fact, when I was in music college, I was in a band and I loved singing pop-punk songs and – providing that my theatre dream didn’t work out – my next one was to tour the world in a band. My favourite has always been Paramore and, even though I prefer their music from when both Farro brothers were in the band, I have been enjoying some of their new releases too (Fake Happy is a go-to morning song for me).

Photo by Monica Saavedra on Unsplash

Playing the Guitar and Songwriting

So, as you can gather from my above point, music has played a big part in my life since I was young. I started learning to sing when I was 11, but wanted to be a singer since before I can remember. I performed all through high school and then went to music college and got my degree. When I was in high school, I first picked up a guitar and started to teach myself some simple chords because I wanted to learn how to sing along to my favourite songs. The fact that I had a crush on a cute guitarist back then also didn’t hurt.

I also started to song write in my last year of high school but developed that a lot further in music college. I have a couple of songs and videos uploaded (which are is so embarrassing! I hate seeing myself on camera!) as well as a bunch of songs recorded under my name for copyrighting. It’s been a good few years since I last picked up a guitar and wrote a song, but I am currently blaming my lack of ’emotion’ for this. I mean, I haven’t dated or even been interested in anyone for years and ‘love’ is such a prevalent topic in all of my songs that I just don’t know what to write anymore. Maybe I will again soon.

Photo by Charles Etoroma on Unsplash

Shopping (mostly clothes and shoes)

This… kind of has something to do with beauty but, truth be told, I have always been a bit of a shopping addict – but it has always been clothes for me! I love going to shopping centres so much and there’s nothing that excites me more than a sale. In fact, there has been a time where I’ve been a bit unreasonably upset because I wanted to shop… but didn’t know what to buy.

It is truthfully a bit of an issue and, reading in shopping addiction, I can see myself in a lot of what is described – using material goods as a way of comforting myself, buying things I don’t need and then regretting it, even having to hide my obsession or making excuses for it at times. It is definitely something that I’m actively trying to amend. I don’t think that I will ever stop loving to shop and I don’t think that there’s anything wrong with loving to shop but, in the future, I just want to be more conscious of my purchases.

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So yes, that’s five things unrelated to beauty that I love! There’s a lot more that I want to talk about – like fluffy puppies, pop art, design, Seoul, Tokyo, neon signage, funky phone cases and acrylic earrings, but I think I will do more of these posts in the future. If only for my own enjoyment.

If you stumble across this post (most likely because you know me and follow me on IG), I would love to hear things that you love that are unrelated to beauty as well!

diary