In these times of turmoil, stress and anxiety, can I have this one thing please?
Lately, I’ve been feeling hopeless. I think, in this current time, with its modern problems and many issues, it’s harder not to be. I think. Maybe it’s easier for me to believe these feelings of anxiety and stress are not just uniquely my own. Social media definitely shows me that ,any people feel just as lost as I do.
Sometimes, it’s hard to know what the right thing to do is. Should I be looking for a better job? Is it wrong to be content with seemingly the bare minimum? When am I supposed to be the “adult” that I see everyday in my mother, mentors, coworkers… Life really comes at you fast and I’m wayyy too young to be having something of a quarter life crisis.
Truth is, I may never have those answers, I may not know what I need to do in every second of my life. But I do know what makes me feel happy, what keeps me going despite everything.
I used to think romanticizing your life was kinda bullshit…
One of those TikTok, girl boss, “everything about my life is always perfect” type of things. Looking at the viral videos you see of things like this (luxury vacations, gorgeous apartments, gourmet dinners every night), it was never really something I could personally relate to, nor was it something I necessarily felt the need to relate to. It seemed both unattainable and undesirable. I had simply written it off as a trend and moved on with my life. However, I think I was just looking at this from the wrong perspective.
Romanticizing your life works best when you tailor it to your own lifestyle. Duh right? But sometimes you need to remind yourself of these things. That your life is about you, that you need to cater to your own needs. Maybe it’s just me that needs the reminder. Regardless, having this mentality makes things more straightforward and more attainable.
I’ll probably never be the luxurious travel girly, but I do love nerdy things like figures and manga collecting, I love going to local cafes and restaurants, and I enjoy taking cute aesthetically pleasing pics of these things. This is what makes me happy, so what’s stopping me from romanticizing my life and highlighting the nerdy aspects of myself? Absolutely nothing.
Admittedly, I’m not that good at this yet. I’ve realized that part of this is building habits I’ve not been accustomed to. You don’t quite realize how much you neglect yourself, until it’s time to take care of yourself. Eating breakfast everyday, spoiling yourself with little gifts, taking yourself out on solo dates all seem like easy things to do in theory, but making them a consistent habit is where I have the most trouble. Everyday is really unlearning lifelong patterns and replacing them to something better and more special to you. This by no means is a guide on how to do this lol, simply my own thoughts and progress trying to do it. If I help anyone or give anyone some inspiration, that would be a really cool benefit! That being said, I want to share a little of what “romanticizing my nerdy life” has looked like so far.
Things I’ve started to implement so far in my romanticizing journey
-Instead of defaulting to Door Dash or Uber Eats, actively going into restaurants (extra points if they’re local businesses) and eating inside, even if I’m by myself.
-Taking my time to research and save for the figures, plushies, and other merch I really want. I’m even being more selective and picky, so I guess having a raised standard for quality.
-Investing in my manga collection! Being more mindful of what series I want, indulging in hardcovers for my favorites, and having fun with it (like buying mystery boxes even if I give some away later on).
-When buying necessities, taking the time to look around and buy ones I like aesthetically instead of just buying the first one I see out of convenience. (I recently bought this wok I thought was soooo cute and I just purchased some bed sets I really liked)
-Baking desserts instead of going to the store and buying them. (This is also for health related reasons too)
-Buying fragrances and other body products that make me feel good.
-Taking time to read my books with lo-fi music in the background and dressing up to do my hobbies (reading, gaming, etc.) even if I don’t leave the house. (I just feel like a princess when I do things like this!)
-Reading in bookstores and working on crochet projects in my local yarn store. It provides a change in environment, but they’re also just good third places to hangout and spend downtime!
These are a few of the things off the top of my head that I’ve been trying to do. And actually doing this made me aware that I’m doing more than what I initially thought I was, which is great! Like I said before, these may seem like small things, but they really do make a difference. I’ve noticed changes in myself from doing these things; I’m happier, I’m more willing to go outside and do things, and I’m having better and more meaningful conversations with people. I won’t go as far as to say my life is perfect, but things have been more positive than negative lately.
Other Thoughts…
I’ve still have a ways to go in this new phase of my life, but I’m excited for it! I’m also having so much fun recording and documenting my progress and taking cute pics of my growing hoard of nerdy things!(You can see most of it on my blogging Instagram: @/sundai_morning_) . I hope that some of you will choose to try romanticizing your life in your own specific way and hopefully have great things come out of it.
In the meantime, I have a Joseph Joestar figure to fawn over until it actually gets delivered and two Peach Riot figures on the way now. Do any of y’all know about Peach Riot? The figures are extremely cute and stylish and these are the first non-anime figures I’ve really wanted ever. It’s these little things I’m finding as I’m starting to embrace being a nerd more and more.
Well I’ll see you all next time! Thanks again for checking out another blog post.
Sundai Paper 
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