Exploring New Hobbies | Reading Update 4.27.23

Hey hi hello friends, I hope you're all doing well. 

I realize I haven't done much on my blog so far this month, so I thought I'd give y'all a quick reading update before May rolls around the corner. 

Honestly, not much has changed since my last RU. I'm still technically in the middle of The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov, but that's because I haven't picked it back up at all. In fact, I put it back on my shelf, with my bookmark still holding my place. So I haven't truly given up on it, but I'm also not in any hurry to start reading it again. 

Today I managed to finish a book, for the first time in a week. I was originally planning on doing a review for A Far Wilder Magic by Allison Saft, but the truth is I didn't enjoy it nearly enough to feel motivated to do so. I don't think I'll get to a review this month, honestly. Hopefully I make up for it in May by doing more than one review. Fingers crossed!

Instead of reading, I've mostly been playing solitaire and rewatching Game of Thrones. I have also been rereading one of my favorite fanfictions on Ao3, but I can't exactly count that to my Goodreads goal. My emotions are still out of whack from the beginning of the year, however, and I don't have much energy to do anything but that. I'm sure you're getting tired of hearing that. I'm certainly getting tired of saying it. The emotional burnout I'm dealing with is extremely annoying, but I know that if I try and push through it I'll just make it worse. So I'm trying to take my time and process everything to the best of my ability. 

One YouTube channel that has been helping me with this tremendously is Charlie Rewilding. Her "Burnout Diaries" videos spark an intense sense of comradery in me that I'm actually able to work through my own issues after I've watched her work through hers. She's also helping me understand my autism much better than I could have ever imagined doing it on my own, since she only got her diagnosis last year and, while I'm unable to get a proper diagnosis at the moment (damn you, American healthcare), I've only recently come to the conclusion alongside my psychiatrist that I am, in fact, autistic. It's been one hell of a journey so far, but Charlie's videos have made it so much easier to handle.

I've also dived headfirst into the world of stationery collecting. I've been bullet journaling for four years, but I've always used my mom's scrapbooking supplies and never really had a collection of my own until now. I bought a ton of pens, stickers, and washi tapes from Stationery Pal during their huge anniversary sale (which is still going on actually, it ends on the last day of April), and I also recently just placed an order from TheCoffeeMonsterzCo which should be arriving sometime next week, and then I'll have even more stickers. I like how fun it is to sort through my supplies and pick a monthly theme for my bujo, even if I am a bit of a perfectionist and it takes me hours to finish a spread. 

I think that's all I have, update wise. As for my next read, I'll probably start my binge of Yona of the Dawn, since I have nine volumes from the library sitting on my desk, waiting to be read. I'm not sure why I've been putting them off, since I know I love the series. I think I just haven't been in the right mood.

I'd love to know what you've been reading lately, or just what you've been doing. Let me know in the comments below, or DM me on Instagram (link in the sidebar under the header "More Media").

Until next time, friends!