Here goes!

I’ve been binge reading since May. I never thought I’d say this ever: but I need a break from reading! Yup. My annual challenge is set at 12, 1 book for each month. I’ve already read 17 books and we’re just halfway through the year. It’s time I take a break.

So what should I do with all the time I have? 🫢 Instead of reading these brilliant authors’ words, I thought it’s time I start writing my own.

A lot has happened lately and I’ve mostly wrote about those experiences in my IG stories. I barely share in Facebook now. And my IG posts are limited too. These platforms are quite limiting — in the number of words I can share without losing context and in finding the right time to share a topic.

Medium felt like the perfect place to keep these stories. I’d like to write about

• the PH 🇵🇭 cafes my husband and I have visited lately — excellent coffee shops are sprawling across Metro Manila since after the lockdowns
• the Filipino Tasting Menus we’ve tried
• the trainings we’ve attended in the past years
• the different local coffee beans I’ve tried since we had to stay at home most of the time in the last 2 years
• learnings from my experiences at work, specifically on scaled Agile frameworks
• notes from Agile PH and LeSS PH community meet-ups that have been long forgotten
• countries we’ve traveled to in the past years
• (we’re back at it again) the book reviews shared only in Goodreads — not much redundancy there
• what new hobbies I’ve discovered
• … and just whatever

See? My social media is quiet not because I don’t have anything to say. I actually have a lot to share, I just don’t know how to express them properly and when to actually share them.

I also felt like writing is that aspect of my life that needs more attention — proof: I have a lot of unpublished drafts here in Medium. I haven’t done much practice lately. Just this morning, I saw a story I published last November 2020 about Nakasendo Trail and I was amused at how well written it was (based on my personal standards heh!) and that was enough to inspire — that I can do that again and maybe write even better, in time!

GOAL: Make these stories last. Create it now, reminisce later. At the same time, see improvements in my writing habits and skills.

RULES: 1 story a week. On Mondays. Or Tuesdays at the latest. Write 2 if it’s not too taxing. Publish in #ealdenandlhiza if it’s a shared adventure. Leave as my own if it’s a personal one. Don’t overshare.

So here goes…