recent Instagram posts!

One thing I really like doing is sharing bits of my study life (and other parts of my life!) on Instagram when time allows. Unfortunately, this isn't often but at the same time, I'm sure you guys appreciate that your feed isn't clogged up by my posts! If you're interested in seeing more, check out paperl0vestory on Instagram :-)

It is currently exam season for me so the posts may die down for a few weeks or it might not because... Procrastination! Anyway, here are a few of my most recent posts all in one place - enjoy!

a new year, a new journal: courtesy of my sister and christmas!

I'm nearing the end of my current journal now and it was almost like my sister knew this. For Christmas, she got me the cutest journal ever and if you want the pictorial proof, here it is:

The journal is adorable: it has a clothbound mint fabric cover and at the front is a beautiful illustration of two foxes surrounding the letter 'A'. Foxes are a big thing in my family so that makes the gift extra special. At the spine, there is a gold-embossed 'A'. 

The page edges are a lovely coral pink colour which completely clashes and compliments the mint-green cover at the same time. The ribbon is a lovely cream colour too.

This is an absolutely beautiful journal and I can't wait to get stuck into it. She bought it from Anthropologie and I haven't linked to it because it's a little bit cringeworthy to look up how much someone spent on a gift. If you're struggling to find a present for someone who loves stationery, does a fair bit of journaling and also loves pretty things, a journal like this may well be the thing you're looking for! And if you're not looking for a present for someone else, there's no shame in buying something as pretty as this for yourself too :)

do you journal or keep a diary?

A Hong Kong journal - in a Paper Republic notebook. On the bottom - my current journal by Martha Stewart x Avery x Staples. I originally wrote the month and year I started this journal on the spine but this was quickly replaced by a Dymo label.

Writing in my journal is something I try and do at least once a week and I use it as a means to 'brain-dump' negative thoughts, to remember things and just as a release. Life as a graduate student isn't easy - there are money issues, social life issues, life issues and just many, many other issues that I could never have predicted.

Brain dumping also ensures that some memories won't be forgotten in the future - I found myself reading my diary from when I was 16 earlier this week and I did have a laugh at how silly some 'issues' I wrote about were but that's the beauty of keeping a diary. We can look back and realise that those big issues weren't so big after all - hindsight is a wonderful thing!

My journal is also a place where I put in cinema tickets and other tickets collected from memorable events that I went to with friends. These ticket stubs would just become clutter and would otherwise end up in the bin if I didn't stick them down somewhere meaningful.

For me, journaling gives me that hour or two a week where I can purely focus on myself. It's a time that I dedicate to myself and my mind - I'm the type who can get emotionally caught up on things if I'm not careful and being a medical student, that isn't the best frame of mind to be in. I think that learning not to get too attached to patients will come with experience and I don't necessarily think that the way I am now is a problem - but it does mean that I can end up emotionally exhausted if I'm not careful. And my way to combat that is to take a step back from it all and journal.

Do you journal or keep a diary? Do you enjoy it or do you see it as a chore?

Just a sidenote: I never refer to patients in my journal by their name and I never write anything down that can make them easily identifiable.

little bits of happiness

Having started a happiness journal earlier this year, I thought it would be fitting to write a post on the little bits of happiness that surround me on a regular basis. The number one happy thing in my life has to be my network of family and close friends - they keep me sane through difficult and stressful patches and without them, I'm not sure what kind of person I would be!

1) Cute notebooks

Notebooks that are a joy to look at on my bookshelf make me happy. Another happy thing is that you don't have to splash out to make notebooks aesthetically pretty on a shelf, you can washi tape spines in a DIY project.

2) Adorable cushions and house furnishing

These cushions are usually on my bed but sometimes, they are forced to migrate to my bookshelf if I there is something I want to hide (in this case, a medicines and first aid box!).

3) Positive posters

This cute poster from Nina and Other Little Things is something that is on my bedside table. During stressful times, falling asleep is easier said than done so I try do as much as I can to create a relaxing environment and beautiful illustrations like this help.

4) M&M Pretzels

These are seriously hard to find in the UK and when I found a supplier based in London, I quickly placed an order. I eat one packet every one or two weeks as a treat as I find them a bit too sweet to eat often (sometimes, one pack lasts me for two days) but I like the balance between sweet and savoury flavours.

5) and 6) My happiness journal and Hong Kong journal of memories

I started this happiness journal to try and just document things that happen each day. My worst fear is looking back in ten years' time and not remembering those little moments that brought a smile to my face so this journal is perfect to write down three lines of happiness that occurred each day.

My Christmas holidays were spent in Hong Kong and during that two week period, I took loads and loads of pictures. I wanted a way to remember this precious time in my life because this may be the last time I visit Hong Kong in a long, long time; so, I decided to create a memory journal.

7) My favourite scent at the moment

Viktor and Rolf Flowerbomb is my current perfume of choice - it is feminine but not too girly, and playful without being too immature.

8) Reading in bed

There's nothing better than snuggling under a duvet with my Kindle! I love reading and often wish I had more time for it, so I try and read a chapter or two whenever I have a spare moment.

9) Pens that are a pleasure to use

Muji gels will always have a special place in my (stationery) heart but these Pilot Juice pens are definitely well on their way to being my joint favourite gel pens.

These are the little things and moments that make me happy - they aren't expensive or hard to come by and I think that is the most important thing to remember: happiness does not have to cost you anything or much financially. Although a new and luxurious purchase can bring joy; generally, happiness cannot be bought so crack a smile and enjoy each moment :)

how I have kept my journal since the end of 2012

You know when you watch films and people start their diaries with 'dear diary, today was...' and so on? Well, I've always wanted to keep a diary like that. Instead, I used to always end up keeping a mini-scrapbook of what had happened in my life, through train and other travel tickets, photos and what not. So, from November of last year, I decided to try and keep a diary and a journal at the same time, and in the same book. I wanted to keep a (lazy) record of what I had done and also examine my own thoughts and feeling about the events of that day or period of which I was writing about. I decided not to start each entry with 'dear diary' though, as I feel that would have been appropriate when I was in my teens but not anymore as a young adult!

Here is the journal I opted to use; it is a Martha Stewart x Avery x Staples one:

Each day, I would start off by writing the date in a coloured felt-tip pen, followed by what I had wore and the weather at the time too.

And then, I just start rambling. It could be about anything or everything. Usually, I start off with what I had done since my last entry and then I would write my thoughts and feelings in relation to those events (if there were any). When I was going through a rough patch two years ago, I learnt that it was because I was bottling everything up. Writing things down really helps with any negative feelings I have (most of which are about myself) and then I write about how I can 'fix' these negative thoughts and turn them into positives.

In a way, I'm putting what I had learnt during my cognitive behavioural therapy sessions into practice. 

Not only this, keeping a diary/journal also helps me see where and what I need to develop and improve on to become a better person.

I keep writing until there is no more to be said - sometimes this can be a page, sometimes half of a page and other times, it could be two or even three pages. I try and write an entry once every two weeks' or so. I really am quite OCD about how my journal is kept so my handwriting is pretty much all printed as you can see (although blurry, I think my writing style is still obvious):

Ultimately, I keep this journal as a means to improve myself. I hope you've enjoyed this little peek and explanation into how I've kept my journal. 

Do you have one? And if so, how do you keep yours? :)

plans, back-up plans, back-up back-up plans...

This is a different post to usual, but I thought I'd write it anyway. I am not here to lecture, I just wanted to share my own experiences in my short life so far as it might help someone out there and that is enough for me :)

We all have them: plans. And quite often we have back-up plans, and a back-up plan for that back-up plan and so on. From a young age, I was taught to aspire for something - but for something I, myself, wanted and this meant having plans. At the age of fourteen, I was sure that I would go to university and study something academic (as, at the time, I held the belief that something academic would give me a better grounding for the future), graduate, get married at the age of 23 or so, have my first kid at 25, etc.

My plans when I was 18 months old... Kidding. My plans when I was fourteen, in a pictorial format.

Of course, mapping out your future doesn't always go to plan. At the age of sixteen, my aspirations changed - I decided I wanted to be a doctor in the future but that plan was scuppered when I failed to get an offer for an undergraduate medicine course at the age of eighteen. And so, I executed my back-up plan and went to a high-ranking university to study something academic.

The day where I pranced around and pretended I was in a Harry Potter book...

After graduation, my plan was to try and get onto a 'graduate-entry medicine' course, but I knew what the odds were and was realistic. I had made a back-up plan - to try and find a job in PR and marketing, or look to do a PGCE and then teach in Hong Kong if all my dream of studying medicine were to fall through. I was now 22 and my original plan to get married at the age of 23 was looking more and more unlikely because the thing that predominantly occupied my mind was to find a career that I would want to be doing in twenty years' time.

You'll notice that I put a 'date' for each action. I gave myself a 'deadline' for each thing and made sure I set aside time to research each option as thoroughly as possible.

Luckily, my first choice plan worked out - but that was the first time in my life that this has happened. When I was eighteen, I had to go with my back-up plan, and then when I was 21 and fresh out of university, I decided to draw up a new 'life plan' (well, why not?). Being a graduate is more glamorous than it sounds - finding a job is hard, especially if you aren't sure of what you want to go into (I had spent my summers doing work experience within a healthcare setting and so, to find a job in another sector with no experience is hard).

Credit: Kush and Wizdom

So what is the point of this blog post? Well, my point is this: to have plans is not a bad thing but be prepared to change them if your circumstances change. Bounce back and be prepared to take the long road to get to where you want to be. As I've grown up, my plans have changed from personal to work-related ones and I don't see this as a bad thing. Yes, I'd love to get married, have kids and whatnot but those things are out of my control whereas my career and future working life is not (to an extent).

For instance, when applying for Medicine last year, my back-up plan if I were to be unsuccessful was to undertake a Masters course in something health-science related and then reapply. That is what I'd call taking the 'long road' as for graduate-entry Medicine, one doesn't need a Masters to be able to apply. I think that if you want something enough, you'll do anything to get it and that is why I was willing to do this if needs be.

Now? I have another plan but time will only tell how that will pan out. Here is how it looks:

Purely career related. Nothing personal in it as I've recognised that I can't control that aspect of my life.

My mum always said that it is all well and good to plan out things in life, but the preparation must be there in case there is a sudden change in circumstances. And I agree with her - looking back at how I had planned out my life to be, I have undertaken a lot of changes to my life plan and I don't regret a single one. And that's how it should be - to take everything that is thrown at you, turn it into (invaluable) experience, alter your plans slightly and move on but with your sights still firmly on that end goal you have set yourself.

This end goal can be anything. For instance, mine is to be happy in as many aspects of life as possible. And quite honestly, right now, I think I can say that I am. My career prospects are looking peachy and is exactly what I want to do; I am surrounded by family and friends who care a lot for me and I for them and my social life is where I want it to be.

Credit: Tumblr

Overall, I'd say that my new life plan is going swimmingly. And so I will leave you with this: when it feels like your plan is falling to pieces, it's not - it just means that something better is around the corner and it's funny how life masks that into a lemon that is being thrown at you (to make lemonade of course). Unexpected things will happen but it is how you pick yourself up from these occasions that will make you a stronger and better person.

it's that time again: my march review

Although it is April Fool's Day today, I assure you that this post is no joke!

This month, my happiness mini-project was to work hard but also ask for help if I needed it.

For my first goal, I decided to start revising some stuff from my degree and also learn some anatomy in preparation for September. I want as much of a head start as I can get and what better time to start learning than now? No time like the present, as they say.

The second part of my goal was achieved when I had to ask my mum for help with some anatomy I was learning. There are a lot of weird names given to bones and whatnot and so, her help has been invaluable. Next month, the goal is to have more energy and to exercise more. The main aims are to sleep earlier and wake earlier, and also to do twenty minutes of exercise a day (even if it is just walking).

Anyway, here is the second half of this post where I review some essential items from the month of March. I have tried to choose new and different items each month and this is why, sometimes, these posts can be quite random (but that's why I still do them - a bit of randomness is good)!

1) Duck Door Stop

The doors in this house are very heavy and self-closing and having a cute door-stop can be a nice touch to an item that can be quite boring and bog-standard like these door stoppers. This one was actually from Sainsbury's, though I have seen some cute chicken ones in my local TK Maxx.

2) A Warm Scarf!

I alternated between two scarves (well, one is technically a snood) but this is the one scarf I keep coming back to, time and time again when the weather is mild. My sister got it in Spain when she was there for a brief holiday (random place to buy a scarf, I know) and it is literally my neck warmer of choice. It is super long, so can be wrapped around twice with ease, and it has a cute pattern to it too.

3) Compression Leggings and Other Base Layer Clothing!

Right picture credit: Under Armour, left picture taken by myself.

I started netball again at the end of February and with outdoor training sessions every other week, I knew I needed to crack out the compression and base layer gear I had. These Under Armour Compression leggings came in super handy, and the awesome thing about them is that they are long enough for me! Sometimes, I have trouble finding leggings long enough but these are perfect in length. In fact, they would be fine on someone a bit taller than me too!

Not only do they fit well, they have kept me warm on cold nights and long gone are the days where I end up peeling off a sweaty layer after a training session as these leggings claim to keep you warm and dry - and I'm not arguing with this claim! I used to wear normal high-street leggings but after wearing these... well, never again! They are just awesome.

NB: I paid for these leggings myself and this is just an honest review from a very happy customer.

How was March for you?

planning bedroom decor

As you may know by now, we moved house in February. The 'new' house needs quite a bit of renovating and redecorating - mostly minor things though - and we are trying to do it gradually. I'm quite lucky in that I received an offer to my first choice medical school - which happens to be a short bus ride away - and so my parents have allowed me to live at home.

They've also been really kind and said that my room and my sister's room are to be the first ones to be redecorated and done up, and they even let me have the biggest room for all of my stationery and other stuff! I sound really spoilt but I really do know how lucky I am to have this opportunity. Hopefully, I won't fail any exams at medschool and then, in four years' time, I will have started earning and paying for the bills and the upkeep of this house, along with paying for my parents expenses so that they can live a comfortable retirement.

Anyway, back to the topic in hand - redecoration. Before we moved, I started planning my workspace (this was in the hope that I would receive an offer, which luckily, I did) and this was what I came up with. All of the furniture is from IKEA but I am looking at other alternative sources as they have served as more of an inspiration than anything.

And so, three weeks' ago, we started the tearing down the old built-in wardrobes (they were really quite ugly and were pretty much on their way out) and this was how my room looked.

From top left, clockwise: 1) view from the doorway, 2) view from the top right corner, 3) ridiculous amount of clutter under my bed, 4) a closer look at the top wall.

Having ripped out the previous wardrobes, I have had to re-plan my bedroom. And I still need to get some storage stuff, like a bookshelf. I am on the lookout for one that will look good, but also be able to stand the weight of heavy textbooks that I will inevitably borrow from the library, or buy from somewhere or other.

This is the new room layout I came up with, and a drawing of the interior of the wardrobes I am desiring:

At the moment, I am leaning towards some sliding door wardrobes from IKEA as they are cheap and cheerful. Moreover, although the quality won't be brilliant, I love how the insides can be chopped and changed as I fancy. They come with a ten-year guarantee (though I don't read too much into this) but for the price that they are, that does make them seem more worth it than opting for wardrobes that would cost £5,000 in total (yes, we actually got a quote of £5,000 for my room!). The IKEA ones are only about £500 in total! 

So, my room is currently a work in progress. Wardrobes chosen and once everything is sorted and set up, there will be another post to show it off. The final touches will be the painting of the walls and buying of new curtains and a new curtain rail but that is a minor thing compared to the installation of wardrobes.

Don't you just love doing something up, completely to your liking? I'm quite excited to start on the other rooms now!

february's happiness check-in and review

Another month, another chapter of my own Happiness Project done and dusted. As mentioned earlier this month, I was focussing on aiming higher. In order to try and succeed with this goal, I set myself some challenges.

1) Get a job in healthcare.

Although I have not had the time to do any job searching after this house move, I have signed up to the NHS Jobs e-mail alert whenever a job of interest comes up in this new area. However, as I am only available for part-time work until about August, it is proving difficult to find any vacancies that I can apply for. I may have to resort to just asking for work experience though.

2) Redecorate as much of the house as possible.

Only recently have we managed to get some quotes for some of the work that needs doing. I have already planned out the paint colours, etc for each room so this is a work in progress! It will take a fair few months for this to be accomplished though.

3) Continue blogging three times a week (at least).

I went through a phase of blogger's block recently and it seems I am (slowly!) finally finding my way out of this rut. I have some ideas for blog posts coming up, and I have planned quite a few relating to time management and studying, so sit tight for those! They may not be published for a few months but they will definitely appear before the new academic year starts in September.

Now, onto the March chapter of my Happiness Project. This is one where I remember love. I will write more letters, keep in touch with friends on a more regular basis than I do now and not nag or anything like that. Let's see how that goes, eh...

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As with my normal monthly reviews, here were my essentials.

1) SatNav

Moving to a new area means that we don't know where the local shops are, or even how to get around. And so, for the first two or three weeks in this new area, we have been very reliant on our SatNav. It has been a God-send as without it, I don't think we could have gone grocery shopping, or even been to visit friends in this area.

2) Oyster Card

Being so close to London means that my Oyster card has seen more use than usual. When I used to live in London, during my university years, I rarely used it then as everything was within a short walk and so didn't see a need to take a bus just to head to the supermarket! However, the trains from my new place into London now mean that I have to take public transport to get to the city, which is why my Oyster was included in this list.

3) Porridge and Warming Noodle Soups

One of my personal favourites: udon noodles (they taste better than they look) and fish balls. I improvise the soup base by adding half of a teaspoon of Korean chilli paste and half a teaspoon of oyster sauce; and if I do say so myself, it is delicious. 

It has been a very cold month here in the UK. We tried to copy birds in migrating south but unfortunately for us, I don't think we went south enough to get the warm weather! As a result, I have been surviving on porridge for breakfast and warm noodle soups for lunch.

Having seen the doctor and deducing that going gluten-free didn't really do much in the long run, I can eat gluten again, yay! Over the past year, I lost some weight whilst on a gluten-free diet so I'm still incorporating as many gluten-free meals as possible (as I think it is a healthier diet anyway) but I can eat pizza and pasta again (honestly, if I could be reborn as any nationality, I think Italian would be up there... along with Korean; and all because of the food!).

january review: essentials & happiness project

Another month, another review. This year, the reviews will be split into two parts; one part about my happiness project and the second part being the usual monthly essentials.

H A P P I N E S S

I kind of failed this month with regards to being more social and seeing friends and that is because I was all caught up in the house move that is now imminent! In less than a week's time, I will have a new address and that means a hell of a lot of packing, and also a lot of decluttering.

However, I did manage to fit in some time for friends. I was in London for a day, back in early January, and I met up with a friend for dinner and I will also be going out for afternoon tea with another friend sometime soon! And to cap it off, I fit in some time for volunteering too but I do feel sad about leaving that role after four and a half years' of weekly service.

Noted in my diary - To book a date for the afternoon tea! We bought a deal on Groupon :-)

It is times like these that I have become super attached to my phone too. Short texts and tweets also allow me to keep in touch with friends under the time constraints I am currently enduring (as packing is overriding all other activities right now)!

Although I'm counting this month as a fail, I'm hoping to make up for it after my move back to London. At first, the move was meant to be in mid-January but got pushed back to February, which meant that this goal was no longer (realistically) achievable.

Onto my goals for February. The overall happiness goal is 'Aim Higher' and this I will try and do. I have been applying for jobs in and around the area I am moving to (in an attempt to try and minimise travel costs and time) and am also setting goals for this blog (to continue posting regularly and with posts of a higher quality). I am sure that my February will consist mainly of some inevitable interior design as the new house will need a new paint job in each room as well as new carpets and other little things. Only time will tell if any of my self-set goals are a success and of course, I will be evaluating that at the end of the month.


E S S E N T I A L S

There is only one this month, unless you would like to see pictures of cardboard boxes and packaging tape? I hope next month's will be more interesting but I have a feeling it will consist of wall paints and old clothes that I wore to do the painting in! If that is the case, I won't post pictures of the latter - don't worry!

1) Earmuffs

Due to the snow and bitterly cold winds, I have become reliant on things that keep my extremities and other parts of my exposed body warm. And that's where these cute earmuffs come in. I bought them in the sale at the end of 2011 (I think?) and they have served me well. Plus, they are a quirky alternative to a knitted hat or beret, right?

Was there a lot of snow where you were? And what were your January essentials?