A bunch of things happened and amongst them is me having a major reaction to my acne medication, I dunno if it's some allergic reaction or smth, but my face went CRAZY. I woke up one morning with HUGE patches of red all over my face and they were swollen. I looked like a monster. Even my mom was scared for me. I can understand. She must be scared that her daughter might end up deformed. It must have been a shock for her as well. She rushed me to the doctor where he immediately told me to stop all medication and to even stop using ALL my skincare products and all my makeup. On top of that I had a flu and cough. So basically, he called for a house arrest. In which I had to stay at home for an entire week. He told me I could go out, if I had to. But that is a JOKE, 'cos there is no way in hell I could EVER leave the house looking like THAT without a mask on.

So, I had to stay at home until the swelling and patches subsided. But it took forever. Even now as I approach a week, there is still a pink patch on my cheek that refuses to go away. And every time I get heaty, it would turn a BRIGHT red and it's so embarrassing 'cos I can't even wear makeup to cover it up. Due to my boredom at home, I think I was driven to actual madness. Because on sunday I just went CRAZY. I was possessed by some demon or smth and I just felt like cleaning up. Or do SOMETHING. I got out some trash bin bags and started throwing junk out of my room and went on a cleaning frenzy. I didn't know what got into me. All I know was that I was sick of doing nothing and I really, really wanted to have some new bookshelves to house and display all the books I bought.

My mom was AMAZED. I have NEVER cleaned my room, like PROPERLY clean it for YEARS AND YEARS. And all of a sudden I went on a frenzy and made it spotless. It took me hours but I didn't even realize it. I just kept throwing stuff out. I am SUCH a hoarder. I keep holding on to things for sentimental value when I dun even use them anymore. Suddenly they all seemed pointless to me. So I threw everything out. And I painted my walls (a gorgeous aquamarine colour), ALL IN ONE DAY. I never knew I had it in me. Nevertheless, I did everything myself, without ANY help. Even the painting job. And by the end of the day, my room was neat and organized and an pretty shade or white and blue.

I AM IMPRESSED AT MYSELF.

WOW. The things that I can get done when I set my mind on something (in this case, getting shelves). For those who dunno me, THIS IS A MONUMENTAL STEP. 'Cos I have not seen the FLOOR of my room for YEARS. Literal YEARS. There is always shoes, clothes, books and junk all over the floor. The table is piled to the top with no space for even a 10 cent coin. NOW, I can SEE the floor. I have space to WALK and the door can open without pushing through a mountain of things. I feel strangely accomplished and clean. As if I did some sort of mental detox.

On top of that, I have TWO NEW SHELVES on my wall and I am sooooo excited to fill them up. My books are looking so pretty on them. And to commemorate this auspicious day, I went on a shopping spree with Jenny. After a quick stop at Starbucks (as usual), we head to far east where Jen got herself a gorgeous dress and also some accessories at New Look ion. I got myself some pretty bows (I am a sucker for hair accessories, gosh) and a CUTE marc jacobs-y laptop casing for my new sem. Then after seeing Jen off, I went to Kino to get some NEW BOOKS.

BAD IDEA.

I should NOT have gone ALONE. I had a list of books I was planning to read and get. But I thought I'll maybe get 2 or 3. I wanted to get 'Clockwork Angel' by Cassandra Clare. But they were out of stock. So I got a couple of other books (which SURPRISINGLY all happened to be at the young adult fiction section. I was quite upset about that. I hardly EVER go to that section, 'cos I feel like I graduated from it. And I kinda got over the whole high school stories anyway. But from all the rave reviews, most of the books on my to-read books are in this section. So I decided I shouldn't be so stuck-up about it and just enjoy them.

So first, I got Sarah Dessen's 'The Truth About Forever'.


This book was so hard to find. They had all the latest ones but not this one. But thanks to my sharp eyes and my determined-ness, I somehow found one stuck at the back of the shelf behind all the other books. Pfft. As if it can HIDE. Anw, I heard lots of good things about Sarah Dessen's novels. So I', excited to read one for myself. Although it is definitely something I would not buy if I were to just read the synopsis. I dun usually like those family drama types of stories. Divorced parents, angsty teens, etc. But I feel like I should keep an open mind and try this book out since it got such a great response from so many ppl.

Then, as I was getting a basket for my books (OMG I WAS SO EXCITED!! I'm finally gonna be one of those ppl who buys a BASKET of books at once, like a BOSS), I caught sight of 'Divergent' by Veronica Roth.


It is in my to-read list thanks to RAVE reviews on goodreads. It's a Young Adult fantasy novel about some dystopian society and the adventures of a sixteen-year-old protagonist. I dun really know much of the story, only that it is in the fantasy genre. But it gives similar vibes to Artemis Fowl. Anw, SUPER excited and curious to see what all the hype is about. I intend to find out for myself and make my own judgements about this highly talked-about book.

So I dropped that into my basket and looked high and low, ticking stuff off my list. I finally, finally found and got 'Looking For Alaska' by John Green.


Turns out it was in the young adult gifted writers section and not at the 'literature' section, where I tried to look for it last time. Pfft, who would've known?! It looks like such an artsy book. But this book had critical acclaim and many book prizes so, I am pretty sure that this will be one of those life-impacting books. It's about a mysterious girl named Alaska. That is all I know about this book. Nonetheless, I have been dying to read this one for MONTHS. So I am SO HAPPY I managed to get it this time. =)

As I headed for the cash counter, I walk slowly looking around as I walked. BAD MISTAKE. Those sly Kino ppl, always have stacked of cool-looking books at your reach as you make your way to the counter. And it's so HARD to resist the urge to flip the back and read the back when one of the covers or titles catch your eye. AND MANY OF THEM DID. Especially when the covers are sooooo pretty. BECAUSE OF THIS, I got three more books that were NEVER even in my list in the first place. Just 'cos I thought they looked so cool and the story sounds so interesting.

I got 'The Taker' by Alma Katsu.


I wasn't gonna get this book 'cos it was kinda expensive. But the book itself is GORGEOUS and entirely black. And the story sounds SO interesting. ALSO, I found out it's a historical fiction... MY GREATEST WEAKNESS. UGHHH!! I couldn't resist. It's also a morbid sort of love story. So, I dropped that into my basket against my better judgement.

THEN, beside it I saw 'The People Next Door' by Christopher Ransom.


The cover looks so mysterious and scary. Seriously, the cover art of books these days are so freakin' amazing. They MAKE me wanna have them. So, then I read the back. And it sounded SOOO scary and good. It's about this mysterious family who lives next door and have a dark secret and a dark twist at the end. It promises to 'shock and thrill' and I read a snippet of the story on the inside of the cover, it sounded so good. And I realized I didn't have a thriller in my book pile. SO, I threw that in the basket as well.

Finally as I reached the cashier, I was forcing myself not to look anymore. For fear I will fall for another book. My eyes caught on this curious-looking book that looked out of place and it looked like a diary. With a fabric cover and a band holding it. Turns out it was a NOVEL!! It just looked so unique and the synopsis sounded like a heartwarming story. It was 'The Sky is Everywhere' by Jandy Nelson.


So I threw that in ('cos it's SOOO PRETTY) at the last minute and sprinted to the cashier.

I ALMOST DIED when I saw the total. But THANK GOD for my privilege card. It totally saved me a bunch. But it was still a SUPER huge buy. I PROMISE myself not to go into Kino until I have all these books. Which might take a while, seeing as school is gonna start soon.

I've realized that my Book Hauls are getting bigger and bigger. But I just felt like I deserved to treat myself to the luxury of using the Kino Plastic Basket. After getting my shelf up and cleaning up my room.

I AM SO EXCITED TO START ON THEM. They look so good on my shelf. =DD