I AM GRACE LEE.

new things

1. The number of indoor plants I look after has grown over the past year and a half - I now have four (4) plants. Being home more has helped me to become a better plant caretaker. I check the soil and water my plants weekly, make sure they have enough indirect sunlight, trim the leaves if things get too wild and say kind things to them as much as possible. I repotted two of my plants for the first time today and I somehow feel closer to them. One of the things I enjoy most is seeing new leaves grow. :)

2. I've been making little lifestyle changes like exercising and drinking less milk tea/boba and bread. I started going to pilates twice a week about a month ago and it has been really good for my body and soul. I plan on trying out boxing this coming week, so really looking forward to that! <3

3. I recently discovered a really cute coffeeshop inside of a bookstore (pictured below) and reached out to the team a month ago to see if they would be open to me volunteering as a barista. I sadly didn't hear back from anyone, but was able to talk to the main barista today. The barista was super nice and said he'd love for me to join the team - yay! Seems like the perfect opportunity to learn more about coffee + get to know new people.

That's all for now!

xoxo Grace

Posted by : Grace J. Lee
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Life goes on.

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A friend sent me an Instagram post on my birthday that was really encouraging and I wanted to share it here:

today is my birthday.

first thing I did was to go to a cafe

and get myself a cup of coffee.

then I sat down and started to think.

about my past year. about the things that

happened. about the things that did not

happen. about the crappy times. and about

the things that I am grateful of, in the end.

things don't always happen the way we

want them to be. people don't always

stay. the hopes that make you feel alive

often end up killing you too.

I was disappointed that a lot of things

I wanted to happen did not yet.

but I am also so so grateful for the things

that I have now that I never thought I could

ever achieve when I was younger. and that

makes me tremendously happy.

I am grateful for this account. for this

platform I have to be able to post my

thoughts openly and be accepted for it.

grateful for you -- who is reading this.

on most days, this platform is my coping

mechanism. without it,. things might not

feel as light as they are now.

I don't know when I started feeling this way, but I get the birthday blues every year. It's not that I'm not grateful for my life and all of the wonderful things that have happened, but it's just something that happens to my mood around my birthday. Part of me just feels sad. Perhaps it comes from my tendency to think about the things I haven't accomplished yet or maybe it's because I feel like I'm not moving forward. Still trying to figure it out! Anyways, after reading the Instagram post my friend sent me - I reflected on my day and made a list of the little things that brought joy on my birthday and I wanted to share them here:

- being home

- really nice weather

- my mom making me 미역국 (seaweed soup) for my birthday

- my mom's willingness to drive me everywhere (due to my sprained ankle)

- my mom carrying my crutches down the stairs when I need to leave the house

- receiving thoughtful gifts from my friends

- one of my friends stopping by to say hello and buy me birthday doughnuts

- my brother and sister-in-law asking if I wanted to go to Carlsbad to see the flower fields

- friends I haven't talked to in a long time sending me birthday messages

- going to a local park with my mom to celebrate my birthday

- my mom bringing a plate of fruits for us to eat at the park (kiwis, oranges & strawberries)

- my left arm not feeling as sore from my first vaccination shot