It’s now just 24 days to Christmas and 31 days til we all say goodbye to 2021. How was November for you? I didn’t blog so much this past month and that’s mainly because I’ve been busy going out and around the Metro. With cases going down in the country (Yay!), I’ve been a little more confident to go places. The past month gave me a feeling of normalcy that’s the gist of my November wrap-up. Just look at my featured photo – it’s the Glorietta 4 cinema ticket booth all lighted up. It’s the first time in almost two years that it’s open and showing movies again. Even though I’ve no plans to go to the cinema anytime soon, it’s just nice to see it open again.

Here are some other updates from November:

Reading Progress

Well I wish I could say that I wrapped up November with another finished book. But I just couldn’t bring myself to sit still long enough to put a dent on the latest book I’m reading. I picked up Sophie Kinsella’s Love Your Life and hopefully this month, I will finish it! Meanwhile, if you’re looking for some suggested readings, check out the books I read in October.

Where I Went in November

I mentioned I’ve been taking advantage of the low cases of COVID-19 in NCR. This month, I went to hang out at a nearby Starbucks since it’s red cups season. And once I got a craving for Yabu so the following day, I went out just to fulfill that craving. My friends and I also went to Blackbird Restaurant in Makati one Saturday for brunch supposedly. I was late so brunch turned to lunch.

I also went to check out two new restaurants: Las Flores (a Spanish resto) and Bungalow Cafe (a small bakery and cafe shop in the South. It’s the first time in a long while that I’ve gone to the south side of town and you know I was reminded of why! I don’t have a car and you just don’t go to the south area without one. I enjoyed my visit but I could do without the worry of how I was going to get home. My friend and I had a hard time booking Grab back to Makati.

Tried Starbucks holiday drink offering Christmas Cookie Latte. Not my favorite red cup drink!
I enjoyed this Spinach gnocchi from Blackbird. Just enough serving to satiate hungry diner
November wrap up highlight: paella rice craving fulfilled!
Had a Spanish-themed day where I dined in at a Spanish restaurant. I’d been craving for paella rice for quite awhile so it was cravings fulfilled!
November wraps up with a dine in experience at Bungalow Cafe
November wraps up with me dining in at Bungalow Cafe in Alabang. Been wanting to scope out the place in months!

My Business Venture off to a Good Start

In my October wrap-up, I talked about my new business venture with my best friend. Well, this past month, I’m thrilled to say we made our first couple of sales! Our coffee table book business is sure off to a good start and it makes me happy that less than a month since we started, I’m already writing about making a sale as part of my November wrap-up post. I really do believe this is a great business venture for both of us and I found myself a good business partner! if you love reading books that have nice pictures to look at and aesthetic decors for the home, check out our coffee table books at Reader’s Den MNL.

November Shopping

I made two major purchases in November: a new mattress and a new closet! My old mattress has been giving me body pains and it is no fun to wake up with an aching body! So I bought a new one from Uratex that’s orthopedic. I really want to improve my sleep quality and a good mattress plays a major role in that! Definitely plan to buy better pillows too.

As for the closet, well I finally found a good closet to replace my old one. Back in my July wrap-up, I talked about a purchase I regretted. I was able to return it and got my money back but ever since then, a bulk of my clothes had just been in a balikbayan box. But I finally had enough of digging in the box to find something to wear when I have plans to meet up with friends. I’m very happy with my new cabinet which I purchased from SM. Now my clothes are all organized!

November Gratitude List

Thinking of things to be grateful for helps people have positive emotions and ever since this pandemic, I’ve been making it a point to think of all the blessings I’ve received and have to be thankful for. I wrap November up with these things I’m grateful for:

  • The sales we’ve made in our small business
  • The sense of normalcy brought about by COVID-19 cases going down
  • Clarity on the direction I want to take (career wise)
  • And finally, grateful for friendships that have withstood the test of time!
We don’t celebrate Thanksgiving in the Philippines but we certainly are thankful for each other so this was our mini Friendsgiving celebration

So that’s it for my November wrap-up! It’s going to be Christmas soon. Hopefully, even with the discovery and arrival of Omicron variant, we won’t be seeing any more surges! I just want a merry Christmas and a happy new year.