Looking back: Feb '25, Week 2

What a whirlwind of a week it was! There were so many highlights:

~💜~

✨ Monday - Kickstarted the celebration for hitting 800 subscribers on YouTube with the release of my cover of Fragrance by Mahiru & RINZO

Sincerely, I think that I am fortunate to even have 3 digit subscribers. Considering that I almost never self-promote/ share my videos with my IRL friends, I never would have imagined that my channel would see slow but steady growth.

I'm just here doing my thing, and you found me. Thank you for walking with me. 💜

✨ Tuesday - Created this blog, and wrote my first blog post

It felt right to have a new space for my reflections. Sometimes I prefer to find words to describe how I feel instead of singing, because I believe that when we are able to articulate how we feel, our emotions calm down and we can think more clearly and critically.

If you haven't seen the landing page, please do! It's prettier on desktop!

✨ Tuesday (Night) - Finished the main story of Yakuza: Like A Dragon!

Bought the game years ago, and decided to catch up on the series this year! The final dungeon and boss fight were so long... and I didn't expect my team composition to suffer so badly. But after 1 wipe, and praying to RNJesus, I finished the game in the wee hours of the morning (~3-4AM?)! 🎉

Streaming the entirety of the run (except for a short period of grinding for levels) for my friends turned out to be a huge confidence booster. 💕💕💕

I like to uninstall my games when I'm done with them. I swear I played it! 🥺

✨ Wednesday - Updated my Throne wishlist and returned to D4DJ for Abyssmare's Reverse event!

Had a difficult time finding items to list, because I really don't need a lot to get by. So I decided to use the page as a way to give insight into what my life is like. 💖

The cards are so pretty.🥹Hope I get the Neo too.

As someone who doesn't like to spend, I have a love-hate relationship with D4DJ nowadays. It's difficult to keep grinding events and trying to earn diamonds for 10-draws, especially if Merm4id, RONDO and Abyssmare events are back to back. But since I didn't have a 4-star Neo and Weronika, I decided try my best this week.

... I can imagine Ari in this outfit...

✨ Thursday - Started playing Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name

T'was a rude awakening after 70+ hours of turn-based combat. But now I'm enjoying it! I took a break from the Yakuza/ Like A Dragon series because I was sad that the main protagonist seemed to be shifting away from Kiryu Kazuma to Kasuga Ichiban. 💔 Gotta savour every moment of this game!

✨ Friday - Announced our Discord server! 💜

Was happy to finally have an opportunity to use lil Monster's illustration of Mimi!

Actually, I created the Discord server at the start of the year out of frustration that it was difficult for my works to be noticed in the current social media climate. It is also difficult to complete song covers fast enough to even come close to being able to monetize my YouTube channel... and I can't monetize my covers anyway. I thought of streaming, but I... still feel the hurt of standing on a stage to be perceived.

I spent a lot of time late last year thinking about what I want to do with my life, and Discord seemed to be the best way to get one step closer. I had to come to terms with the cold hard truth that what I want to do with my time alive can't help to pay the bills, but working for someone else doesn't make sense unless I believe in their vision - to give my all, and all of me. I've done that at all my previous jobs, and I've always been a valued and admired team member, but what pushed me to leave was always some executive decision driven by money.

Fortunately, I am still able to get by with the support of my loved ones, and eating and spending as little as possible on myself. Until I find a meaningful new mission to serve, I hope that this Discord server will help to keep me focused on what matters: Those who care about me, and what I can do today. 🥹

✨ Saturday - Attended a friend's wedding lunch!

Chinese wedding banquets are expensive, as people are expected to give red packets to the newly weds. The amount expected per red packet can easily range from 150 SGD to 300 SGD (sometimes even 400++ SGD). But this friend is one of the few who (I think) really appreciates me for who I am, so I wanted to share in his joy!

We were colleagues who bonded during a 2-week work trip to Estonia (Tallinn) over weird animations on IG and hunting for bread. When I left my job, he was supportive of my decision to pursue my interests -- which is rare in Singapore, where the norm is to always be employed by some company. It's important to have a stable income to pay the bills, but I wanted to live without regrets.

So if you're coming to Singapore, please try bread from our local bakeries (not the chains, but those around neighborhoods). You might learn to appreciate what you have at home a lot more. Hahahaha!

✨ Sunday - Had lunch with my brother, and rested at home. 💜

~💜~

My weeks are usually a lot more peaceful. But unlike before last week, I now have a platform to reflect and appreciate the little things in life. ❤️

Hopes for this week

♪ Get good progress with the next song cover! I'll be updating my Discord status whenever I'm working, so those of you who are curious can see where I'm at! How cool is that?!

☆ FFXIV: Get good prog./ reach enrage/ clear E8S. I've been doing old raid tiers with some friends (synced, without echo). It's still more forgiving than doing it on-tier, but it would be nice if we can clear the fight before MonHun: Wilds launches at the end of the month. 🙃

Thank you for reading! 🌙🐰