a list of happy things

a list of happy things | chainyan.co
a list of happy things | chainyan.co
Only 18 (!!) days left before Christmas, and soon after that, it'll be January. I don't know about the rest of you, but I just really want the year to be over and done with. It's not that 2016 has been particularly unkind to me, but all these local and international events happening one after the other just makes me want to fast-forward to 2017. Also, with all the shit happening to the country at this time, it's so hard to find something to be happy about. So today, I thought I'd try making a list of things that made me happy recently. I got the idea from Audrey's 52 week challenge for 2016, which I found through Tannya. Like I said, a lot of bad things have been happening, so it was hard for me to come up with anything. But this way, I got to look back on the past week and think of all the things that made me happy, no matter how small.
  1. I finally got my glasses back from the optometrist! The first days I wore them, I had a major headache because the jump from -2.50 to -3.75/-3.25 was too drastic. Now it seems like I've gotten used to the new prescription since my head doesn't hurt anymore. Also, everything is so clear and super HD now!! I can't believe I put up with my old pair for so long! I also bought a new pair of contact lenses that match my prescription.
  2. This cute clip of two cats ringing a bell for food. SO CUTE. I think I watched this more than 10 times....
  3. This short film for H&M Christmas 2016, directed by Wes Anderson. I swear, everything that man touches is magic. (Which reminds me, I really need to watch Moonrise Kingdom one of these days..)
  4. A hand-me-down Chanel backpack from my mom. Granted I don't know how authentic it is (I only know it's been in our house for as long as I can remember), I still think it looks very cute and goes well with my current style. I also borrowed her other Chanel bag—a shoulder bag—for our KL trip, because I'm maarte and I told her I wanted to take outfit photos with it, lol.
  5. A new song and MV by Heize. When I first heard Shut Up & Groove, I fell in love with her voice and her whole aesthetic. I fell in love with her even more when I watched this episode of Happy Together, where she admitted to having a habit of kissing friends (starts at 5:03). She's so cute! I hope she gets invited on more variety shows, I just find her so charming.
  6. Going to bed at night and waking up in the morning with 4/7 cats sleeping on my legs.
  7. My Japanese has not improved in the last year as I completely slacked off on studying, but I've noticed that I can understand more words now, compared to before. I notice this a lot whenever I watch anime. I still can't tell the katakana for 'shi' and 'tsu' apart at all though, so I better crack open my books soon!
  8. @cosme recently shared their Best Cosmetics list for 2016! Happy to see that a few items that I've tried and really liked—Lush Mask of Magnaminty, Canmake Marshmallow Finish Powder, etc—made it on the list!
  9. One of the best decisions that I made this past year would probably be staying the hell away from Facebook. I haven't deactivated my account, but I'm only ever there to post stuff on my Facebook Page and check updates on the Kawaii PH group. Other than that, I try not to look at any posts at all. And so far, I've been more or less stress-free. I'm still active on Twitter, but the people I've been following there are all educated and #woke, so it's a much better place to stay than on Facebook.
  10. Having a moment to talk with my INFJ SO about the things that have been bothering my INFP self. I read somewhere that the main problem for INFJ-INFP relationships is usually the lack of communication, as they mostly rely on sensing and feeling, and I think it's true. So I'm glad we were able to talk about these things properly.
  11. One of the stray cats we've been feeding gave birth just today! She's been pregnant for a while now, and I knew she was due soon, but I wasn't expecting it to happen today. She was being very clingy last night and was meowing outside the whole time. (Probably asking us for cuddles and reassurance? Cats are so precious, I can't.) And today when I went to look for her, I found her in a super small space, so I assumed she'd already given birth. I couldn't see the kittens, and we might not be able to see them until much later, but I got to hear their little tiny mews – it made my heart so, so happy.
Looking at this now, with everything listed down like this, makes me appreciate these things even more. I have to say, this was really.. therapeutic. Sometimes you just get so angry with how unfair and cruel the world is that you forget to appreciate these small things. Maybe once 2017 comes around, I'll try making Happy Lists as my 52-week challenge as well. I'd probably have a hard time coming up with a list of good things every week, but I think it'll be fun. We'll see!