March 25, 2026

Purely because she wraps up winter, I think it’s fair to say March is up there among the better months of the year.
A late happy spring equinox to those who celebrate; March 21st is new year’s for people who realise turning a new leaf in the dead of winter won’t work, for there aren’t any leaves on the trees to be turned.

Ages 11 to 17, I took a bus to school whose route went past an impressive magnolia soulangeana. This tree blooms in early March, and is therefore one of nature’s first signs of longer and better days coming. The second spring of having to take that bus, I told myself that no matter what, when the first flowers emerged from the stems, I had to drag myself up and away from seasonal depression to make sure springtime lethargy could not even dream of affecting me.
In the spring before I moved away to uni, my dad planted a small magnolia tree in the garden with plenty of space to grow. It was a gift for passing my final exams. This March on the 8th, it showed flowers for the first time.

READING:

This post won’t contain any spoilers, but maybe some minor hints for Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb.
Assassin’s Apprentice is the first book of The Farseer Trilogy, which in turn is a part of the Realm of the Elderlings. The story is about a young bastard child who grows up in ‘the shadow of the royal court’, where frowned upon by most, he is favored by the king, who has him secretly trained to become an assassin.
This book is so hard to pick up because every time I do, I can’t put it down. I’ve seen a lot of people say the first book of this series has a slow pace, but I feel like my boy Fitz cannot catch a break. Every single chapter seems to have an event more traumatic than in the former. Currently I’m on chapter 17, and even though it’s a whole new fantasy series I’m picking up, I was only really confused during the prologue and maybe the first chapter because of all the names. I feel the short bits of Fitz looking back before each chapter (I assume it’s him?) really help give the story some context.
This is my first time reading first-person fantasy, and while scary at first, I think Robin Hobb does an amazing job at it. Still – maybe this is because I’m a sucker for long descriptive paragraphs, but sometimes the atmosphere feels a bit lacking. For example, Fitz is walking through a hallway, but we never get to learn what decorations line the walls, if there are long carpets lining the floors, or if the stone feels cold etc. I’m guessing (and kind of hoping) this is because we see the world from Fitz’ perspective and he simply does not care for these things, but it does leave space for your own imagination :)

EATING:

It doesn’t get easier than a can of sardines! Super easy, healthy, and filling part to any meal, nutrient-rich, and no risks of mercury poisoning like from bigger fish (canned tuna is SO 2025). Sardines provide you with vitamin D and B vitamins, which support proper nervous system function and energy metabolism. They are also high in major minerals and some trace minerals, and a natural source of omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular disease, and recent studies have even suggested that regular consumption of omega-3 fatty acids reduces the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s and can boost brain function. And when paired with a healthy meal, any skin irregularities I have will be gone by the next day!
Usually, I’ll have them alongside an egg (boiled or fried), a slice of toast, and 2 portions of any fruits or veggies I have laying around.

PLAYING:

Recently we haven’t had a lot of time to do so, but in the first half of this month I started a new Terraria world with my friend. We have had a lot of worlds together but this one will be the one we truly 100%, and hopefully keep playing on for a bit after the Moon Lord has been defeated. If I think of it I will attach some screenshots of our world later!

OBSESSING:

I ♡ working on my website!!! It doesn’t seem like a lot at the moment but for me this is a long term project where I can share anything I want, and not to mention have it look any way I want! The amount of hours I’ve worked on this when I should’ve been working on uni assignments.. Anyways, I find that the more time I spend studying, the more my brain starts overflowing with ideas, almost as if it's a resistance to doing the same mundane things each day. It just is a really accessible outlet, and an educational one at that; I’ve never picked up a coding language as fast as HTML.
Having a platform to share writing has gotten me so motivated to do so. It has me looking out for things to write about, noticing things I normally wouldn’t notice. Sadly midterms are getting in the way of that for now :(

RECOMMENDING:

Picking up an old hobby! Perhaps it came to me in a dream, really, because ever since last week I’ve had such a drive to pick up skateboarding again. It came out of nowhere, and I left my skateboard at my parents’ house so I had to wait until the weekend to actually try it out again.
I used to cruise around town on my board a ton when I was 13-14, but then lost all motivation when I attempted an ollie and couldn’t do it. Now, balance and board feel came back in a day, and I actually landed a baby ollie on the third day, so all my interest has been rekindled. It has me so excited to go home again this weekend to practice more.

TREATING:

Even though I was just talking about the benefits of sardines including lowering occurrences of cardiovascular disease, I’ve been treating myself to energy drinks while studying for midterms. The flavours they come up with are just so fun, I think even if they sold caffeine-free versions I’d still buy them. I tried the new Red Bull ‘spring’ flavor, and despite me not being the biggest fan of cherry-flavoured anything, this was super good! Though I’ll be sad to see the ginger apple flavour go.