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Lockdown Journal – Day Twelve of Twenty-One

Posted on April 15, 2020April 15, 2020 by Denisa

Day 12 – Tuesday, 7 April 

I want to break free. I put a touch of foundation and mascara on my face for the first time in days and go to the nearest pharmacy after a week of confinement. Ironically, all beauty services and colour/make-up cosmetics are not available for sale during this lockdown. Looking good is not essential, but looking like yourself, warts and all, is downright preferable when you’re living like a hermit. I finally stock up on hand wash and bath products, vitamins, toothpaste, sanitiser and cleaning wipes. It’s a Tuesday morning, and the place is empty aside from a few other shoppers. Must be five of us in total. I avoid contact with other people and don’t linger longer than necessary. There’s a long queue at the supermarket across the parking lot, so I skip going there altogether. 

This seldom outing is a breath of fresh air in my daily clockwork routine: coffee, reading, writing/blogging (I am behind on my lockdown journal), cooking (today I make a creamy ham and mushroom fusilli pasta). Then more coffee, dinner, entertainment – movies or games – and rest. The sun is smiling dashingly on a perfectly blue canvas, and a new set of towels, bedding and clothing is drying outside in the garden. More dried clothes are stacked up and ready for ironing, perhaps the only household chore I shy away from and prefer to outsource, but in the maid’s absence, I bite the bullet and do it anyway. My husband helps with the clothes, and we take turns ironing in between hours of work. 

Tonight we are watching The Return of The King, the third and last instalment in the Lord of the Rings movie series – well, it’s mostly myself struggling to go through the three hours and a half of cinematic drama – feeling a bit tired and under the weather. I should rest. Instead, I go through the battle of Gondor and the assault over Mordor and feel elated as Frodo and Sam end their journey to cast out that damned ring in the pits of hell. It’s over. The Middle Earth and its men’s kingdoms are saved. A new king is crowned. The hobbits are reunited with their families. Only Frodo embarks on another epic journey after getting the sweet taste of adventure, this time without his trusted friends. Everyone is happy. As for me, I can only enjoy such epic voyages and foreign travels from the comfort of my couch, or through the pages of a good book. I’m almost done with my current fantasy reading and pondering where to next. 

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Lockdown Journal – Day Thirteen of Twenty-One →

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books.coffee.creative

Writer, book lover, coffee addict & creative soul

Tiny trees are dreaming 🌳 Bonsai heaven at the Tiny trees are dreaming 🌳 
Bonsai heaven at the Japanese Festival ⛩️
Beautiful memories ❤️💚

#creative #bonsai #japanese #japaneseaesthetic #creativelife #floweraesthetic #creativegrammer #creativegram #japaneseart #treephotography #bonsaiphotography #photogram
Happy weekend! 🌸 What are you reading? 💖 Sta Happy weekend! 🌸 What are you reading? 💖
Started this classic Japanese gem ⛩️❤️ 

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#bookstagram #bookrecommendation #bookstagrammer #bookgram #booksofinstagram #japanesefiction #japaneseliterature #genzaburoyoshino #bookaesthetic #bookaddict #booklover #bookobsessed #bookphotography #bookphoto #booksandcoffee #coffeeaddict #coffeeandbooks #classicbooks #espresso #coffeeaesthetic #coffeegram #coffeeshots #weekendvibes #weekendreads #weekendreading
Daily dose of #coffee and beauty ☕️🌸💖 # Daily dose of #coffee and beauty ☕️🌸💖

#coffeegram #coffeetime #coffeeaddict #coffeelover #espresso #coffeeaesthetic #coffeemagazine #pinkaesthetic #coffeelife #coffeeshots #coffeedaily #coffeephotography #coffeeculture
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#ikebana #japanesefestival #japaneseart #creative #flowerphotography #plantsphotography #flowerstagram #plantstagram #flowerarrangement #floweraesthetic
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I finally have my English copy 🤩 

Love this cover so much, I’m looking forward to the whole series! 📖

Book: Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Japanese author Toshikazu Kawaguchi 💙

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookgram #bookgrammer #books #bookaesthetic #japanesefiction #toshikazukawaguchi #beforethecoffeegetscold #japaneseliterature #bookphotography #bookphoto #bookrecommendation #bookaddict #booklover #bookobsessed #coffeeaddict #booksandcoffee #coffeeandbooks #nespresso
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Remember to prioritise your well-being and happiness today 💖 

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#coffeegram #coffeeaddict #coffeetime #coffeelover #flatwhite #coffeeshop #coffeeart #coffeeday #coffeelife #coffeephotography #coffeephoto #coffee #coffeeholic
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A Magic Steeped in Poison, Judy I. Lin 🍵 ☠️ 
The more you give the magic, the more it takes

This fantasy book was super fun to read, and the cover is stunning. I loved the magic system rooted deep in Chinese mythology and it’s ancient tea-making traditions ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Torn by guilt after her mother’s death and her sister’s illness due to poisoning, Ning assumes the role of her mother’s apprentice and travels to the imperial city to compete in the search for the country’s greatest shennong-shi - masters of the magical art of tea-making. 

The winner of the competition will receive a favour from the imperial princess herself, which may be Ning’s only chance to save her sister’s life before it’s too late and uncover who is behind the tea poisonings that killed her mother amongst many others. 

Between backstabbing competitors, bloody court politics and a mysterious handsome man with a shocking secret, Ning quickly discovers that her life might be the one in more danger. 

Part of a duology - looking forward to reading the sequel, A Venom Dark and Sweet 💖

#bookstagram #bookreview #bookrecommendation #bookstagrammer #bookgram #fantasy #fiction #yafiction #yafantasy #chinesemythology #mythology #bookaddict #booklover #bookobsessed #bookaesthetic #pinkaesthetic #booksandtea #teaandbooks #magic #bookphotography #bookphoto #bookphotograph
✨ Favourite 5-star read in August ✨ The Invisi ✨ Favourite 5-star read in August ✨ The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, V E Schwab - what a delicious treat (and beautiful cover art, too) 📘☕️ 🍰 

In 1714 France, young Addie LaRue makes a desperate deal in the dark in search of freedom, which turns out to be a Faustian bargain of unlikely immortality: to live forever, but be remember by none. Until 300 years later, after countless dazzling adventures across centuries and continents, she meets a young man in a small New York bookstore, Henry Strauss, who remembers her name. And everything changes.

An unforgettable story hard to put down and brimming with excitement and emotion - wish it never ended ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

#bookstagram #booksrecommendation #bookrecommendations #bookstagrammer #bookgram #booksofinstagram #fantasy #fiction #veschwab #theinvisiblelifeofaddielarue #bookaddict #bibliophile #booklover #bookobsessed #bookaesthetic #booksandcoffee #coffeeandbooks #coffeegram #coffeeaddict #nespresso #coffeeandcake
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