as we get older we tend to be more conservative in terms of the things we would attempt to do, so our world gradually shrinks because we tend to stay in our safe and comfortable zone, experiencing less and less as we prefer the sameness of our routines. but for this trip i deliberately wanted to break out: haven't drove in a foreign country since 2019 but we wanted to experience something different. am glad we did so, and i love that she supports my weird endeavours even though she tends to b...| Winnie Lim
Yesterday I watched a video interview with Kristen Kish, whom I discovered via Iron Chef. Apparently her mentor put her up to compete in Top Chef – she was reluctant to, but her mentor said that there needs to be representation of women chefs on tv. I found myself nodding vehemently along with that remark,...| Winnie Lim
When I wrote about open-air dining in seoul I thought nobody would care, but surprisingly I got quite a bit of comments and DMs from fellow covid-cautious travellers. I would keep on doing the same otherwise: people tend to to write on popular topics to feel accepted, but isn't it meaningful to share something different...| Winnie Lim
the latency of eink is slower so there is always a slight lag when drawing, and due to the inherent nature of the technology it can be frustrating to draw with, but...| Winnie Lim
When it comes to self-care people may think about treating themselves to a day at a spa, having some quality alone time, or spending some time on hobbies, but as I grew...| Winnie Lim
The Airfanta 3 pro is a corsi-rosenthal-style air purifier that is sold commercially and has an impressive CADR (clean air delivery rate). It is also relatively affordable compared to air purifiers with...| Winnie Lim
The time I spent in Khao Yai was one of the most freeing periods I had felt since 2020. Being known for its national park, the qualities of the place makes it very ideal for covid cautiousness especially in low season as most places are open-air and spacious. Fortunately or unfortunately, a car is required...| Winnie Lim
this lovely old couple seated next to us started talking to us. We ended up having a long conversation while we ate our dinners. They told us where to go, asked the shopkeeper to tell us “where to play” in hokkien, even another diner couldn’t help but chip in because they were so enthused about helping us enjoy our time here. It wasn’t the content of the conversation that left such a deep impression on me, but their spirit...I am at loss of words to describe the connectedness I felt i...| Winnie Lim
being covid cautious means even though there is a very nice cafe with cosy interiors we are still drinking outside in the cold rain getting bitten by mosquitoes| Winnie Lim
on our 107th month anniversary I’m just really grateful and glad to have a partner who really enjoys doing things with me. it is quite uncanny that we have similar strange tastes — like we both love to eat hotpot with lots of vinegar and cilantro. today she managed to find a rare outdoor hotpot restaurant for our dinner which we haven’t had in years. it isn’t easy to exist as a covid cautious couple but i think despite all the precautions and restrictions we still try our best to have...| Winnie Lim
Once upon a time I would start doomscrolling when I woke up. I realised it was causing mental fatigue way too early in the day, so I switched to writing morning pages...| Winnie Lim
The people who brought me up have a sweet tooth, so I was allowed to snack on unregulated amounts of chocolate, sweets, chips and carbonated drinks whenever I wanted. I used to...| Winnie Lim
when i was into bicycles she would accompany me to see bicycles, she would even accompany me to computer malls in various cities around the world even though she has zero interest. i think the world is always trying to deaden us, so any attempt to nurture aliveness should be applauded. she, has brought more life to me than anyone or anything else; she, encouraged my adhd-switching of hobbies, never frustrated with me when I lose interest in things rapidly; she, who would cover my ears when pl...| Winnie Lim
[tw warning: suicide ideation] Yesterday I had another episode where I spent hours crying. This actually feels embarrassing to write, but intellectually I think it is society that conditions us to think that crying is embarrassing. I also feel like it seems wrong to keep writing posts about my sadness, but why is this so?...| Winnie Lim
I was telling my partner that though I love the sense of accomplishment when I finish a travel sketchbook, it inhibits me from doing more travel sketching because the thought of completing...| Winnie Lim
I went for a 5km run yesterday a couple of days after returning from thailand. Sometimes after a long break it may feel more strenuous but I felt better than expected, even...| Winnie Lim
I still feel afflicted by my mind in many ways. I try to focus on the present, and distract myself by trying to live life in my fullest possible manner, but once in while I still notice that sinking feeling that has plagued me since I have known consciousness. Intellectually I know it is just...| Winnie Lim
Last year around this time I had my first strength training session with a personal trainer. I had only 3 sessions with them, but due to a fundamental incompatibility – they had issues with me wearing a mask – I decided not to renew the contract. It was difficult getting another trainer at the same...| Winnie Lim
Khao Yai is about 2 - 3 hours drive from bangkok airport. For the past few years we usually go to places where we don't have to drive because I tend to find driving stressful. But this limits our travel options since places that have good transport infrastructure are typically heavily populated cities. The last...| Winnie Lim
I've been on a rabbit hole to learn more about the human memory after watching college kids perform seemingly impossible memory feats on a tv variety show. It has made me reflect on my own poor working memory. A few years ago I attended a bicycle building class: I struggled badly with remembering the instructions...| Winnie Lim
I used to really dislike washing dishes. I would leave them in the sink, and they would feel overwhelming when I finally had to do them at the end of the day. Then I would hate doing them even more, because all I associate with washing dishes is that overwhelm. That negative association with overwhelm...| Winnie Lim
My interest in playing board games got reignited after watching some korean tv puzzle shows. After few days of playing board games my partner was reminded that life is like playing a game (or rather games are designed to be based on life): most of us have some particular outcome we want out of life...| Winnie Lim
Recently I chanced upon a tweet stating that highly sensitive persons (HSPs) are basically autistic without admitting it. It surprised me, since the traits of HSPs as I know it seem to be the opposite of stereotypical autistic traits. A couple of decades ago I identified as a HSP, but I somewhat grew out of it before...| Winnie Lim
We started watching korean variety shows since they started appearing on Netflix. I think it started with Physical 100 which gave me the push I needed to get started on my own strength training journey. Physical 100's participants were widely varied so they feel more relatable compared to professional athletes. It was mind-opening to see...| Winnie Lim
I am glad that my past self came up with this monthly ritual because as creatures of comfort we are too ingrained in our daily mundane routines to do something out of the ordinary. we can be together in the same house for 24 hours and yet it doesn't mean we spend quality time with each other. she's usually tied up with her creative projects and i'm tied up with my moping. but once a month we set aside everything including our own personal quirks to focus our full attention on each other. i fe...| Winnie Lim
I first came across this term when I was browsing the subreddits for adhd and autistic women. After reading more about it I realised belatedly (in my 40s) that I have been coping with this my entire life. Strangely just finding a name to something formerly ambiguous can bring so much clarity and comfort, along...| Winnie Lim
“I have no answers for anything these days. I’m trying to write down details. Remembering. Looking. I’m trying to keep my bearings in the forest of the world as it is now. I’m noting rhythms, I’m trying to catch the wave in my mind, I’m checking my sources.”– Transactions with beauty I relate so much...| Winnie Lim
I've been subscribing to the rss feed of Sekar Writes for a while now – she writes these detailed summaries of books, the kind of summaries I aspire to write myself but I am seldom able to muster the mental capacity to. I don't know how she finds the mental energy to read them and...| Winnie Lim
I guess reading this post is timely for me because I tend to go into bouts of frustrating boredom. But a state of extreme boredom is essential to creativity, according to Craig Mod: When I’m not talking, just walking (which is most of the time), I try to cultivate the most bored state of mind...| Winnie Lim
I'm currently reading Humanely Possible by Sarah Blakewell – I liked her previous two books so it wasn't too difficult to pick this one up as well. She devoted quite a few pages about Petrarch. He liked collecting books, except that back then the printing press didn't exist, so he has to manually copy every...| Winnie Lim
completed these some time in march but only had the mind space to post them online now. I think it is a great little mindful exercise for me, and drawing an ugly sketch in these tiny rectangles seem a lot more doable than a regular sketch.| Winnie Lim
I've been manually entering twitter and facebook statuses into obsidian for a long while now, because it is meaningful to review them and reflect on the chasm between my past selves and current self. These social networks are like a black hole, once we publish them we're likely never to see them again unless we...| Winnie Lim
The last time we've been to taiwan was in 2018, just a couple years fresh into our relationship. 7 years later we're both radically different people with different interests: back then she was not into fabric art, and I did not have a camera. I try not to be intrusive and take quick snaps, but...| Winnie Lim
I don't have fond feelings for hackernews, but since this blog never ever gets on hackernews due to its subject matter I thought it was objectively a novel phenomenon that it was on the front page for a day or so about a month ago: I can't help but wonder who submitted it in the...| Winnie Lim
It is so easy to take for granted, the ease of a relationship that has lasted 106 months. That is almost 9 years, a little less than a quarter of my life. Our existences are so ingrained into each other's lives that we cannot imagine how else we would exist otherwise. I have never thought...| Winnie Lim
Our current minister of defence had made a public speech last week, stating that the US's image has "changed from liberator to great disruptor to a landlord seeking rent." Considering that Singapore has traditionally tried to stay as politically neutral and ambiguous as possible, it feels like some tide has turned. This is on top...| Winnie Lim
she made “matching” clothes for us again! they are basically using the same base fabric, but how they turned out is representative of our personalities. i just want something minimal but still with enough design elements, she just goes for maximalism. we’ve been using the same pattern for all of the shirts she has made for me because i tend to stick to something once i really like it, because i am such a grinch it is actually rare for me to like anything. whereas all her clothes are rad...| Winnie Lim
I was quite vain when I was younger due to a low self-esteem which led to a high level of insecurity. That insecurity made me feel ugly and that I was never enough, so I felt like I had to work harder just to meet the minimal standards required to exist. One of the ways...| Winnie Lim
I am still recovering from my failed root canal (and still have one visit to complete the procedure), so I have been hesitant in taking up my regular exercise again because I don't want to distract my immune system from my tooth's healing. So when I went to the gym today for the first time...| Winnie Lim
Lately I am trying to have more compassion for myself, but it has been a struggle. I tell myself just like I wouldn’t expect someone without a leg to run a marathon, I shouldn’t expect myself to function like a normal human being because my brain is dysfunctional. I can’t tell how much of my...| Winnie Lim
There may be a misconception that all covid cautious people are the same, but it is pretty wide spectrum. Some covid cautious people may frown upon my behaviour because I still travel and I mostly don't mask outdoors when it is not crowded, whereas people who are not covid cautious may think I am a...| Winnie Lim
Travel enriches me in many ways. Apart from novelty and discovery, new surroundings help me to temporarily forget things that usually weigh me down. Certain familiar things back home trigger uncomfortable feelings in me. I guess that is why I had a multi-year respite when I moved to SF for a while. For that few...| Winnie Lim
