Working at a bookstore, wrapping gifts, listening to lots of Christmas music and weirdly themed podcasts. And steaming cups of tea. Welcome to my December 2018.

For today’s post I would like to try something new, here’s a glance at my month. I hope you’ll enjoy it!

December 2018

I’m currently working in a bookstore and for everyone who’s ever had some retail experience, this month is a joy (or not so much, depends on how you look at it haha).

My days currently contain a lot of phrases as ‘Thank you for waiting.’ and ‘Are these 5 books all separate Christmas gifts?’ And also a lot of guessing books based on vague descriptions such as ‘I think it definitely had some yellow?’ or ‘I read it in the newspaper two weeks ago… Something with ‘Dog’ in the title?’.

I’m enjoying it all. With cheery Christmas music blaring in the background, who can be grumpy really? I get to talk about books all day, I’m living the bookworm dream!

An unexpected thing that came with working in a bookstore (or store in general) is wrapping skills! I’ve never been a good wrapper and never enjoyed it. But since I’ve started working in the store I love experimenting with ribbons and paper.

I recently wrapped all my Christmas presents (got everything before December even started – oops!) And I really had a fun afternoon doing so. A cup of tea besides me, a strangely themed podcast (I’ll get back to this later) on in the background and off I went.

Hope my family will like the effort I put into it, the packages definitely look great under the Christmas tree!

Currently Blogging

I’m still on my first month of blogging but I can already tell this little blog is bringing me a lot of joy. I very much enjoy the freedom of being able to write without a character limit. As the weeks go by I’m starting to feel more and more comfortable on here and I can’t wait to see where this blog will go in 2019!

So far my favourite post this month has been about my Bullet Journal, in which I shared why I love the system and how my routine looks. A totally different post for me to do on here, but once the inspiration hits, why not go for it? My favourite bookreview so far has been for The Natural Way of Things, I felt very inspired while writing that review and I’m quite content with the end result.

I’m currently still trying to find my way with the balance between my Bookstagram and my blog. I want the two places to be two sides of a coin. To not have any double posts on both platforms but for posts to enrich each other. I hope I’m succeeding in that so far!

Currently bookish

So far, I’ve finished two books in December and I’m in the middle of three. Because I can never read just one book at the time haha.

The first is a Dutch book called Verloren Grond by Murat Isik, which is a debut novel. If I enjoy this one I plan on going onto his second book ‘Wees Onzichtbaar’ in the new year. So far I’m really into the book. I was reading it on my way to work yesterday and was completely sucked into the story. Which is an awesome feeling to get while reading a book.

As a little advent calendar I got out Jeanette Winterson’s Christmas Days which contains 12 short stories and recipes for the festive season. I’ve read the book before, in the same advent calendar manner, in 2016 when the book was released. I remember getting the book Waterstones while I was living in London. I had spend the entire day getting Christmas gifts for people and just couldn’t pass up this little beauty of a book. Re-reading this book is making me thinking back to England and I do miss London in this season.

Lastly, I’m also reading The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey. In the beginning of The Western Wind a crime takes place in the tiny village of Somerset. We then spend the book going back in time, every chapter bringing a day earlier. It creates such an unique picture of a small town in the Middle-Ages. I’m reading it as an e-book so it’s going a bit slower than I would like, but I’m definitely interested to see where it goes!

Currently drinking

A couple of weeks ago I decided to order some tea for myself as a little treat. I came across Yourdailyteacup  on instagram and immediately got to browsing all the different teas available. In the end I decided to go for a white/green tea caled ‘Winter Orange Cake’ and the Christmas Tea they had in stock from Nu Te. Both of the teas are spicy, warm, delicious and perfect for December.

I love a good steaming cup of tea in this time of year and both of these make me feel super cozy! Especially when you drink it from the best Christmas mugs!

Although I have to admit my work’s coffee has probably been my most visited drink of the month. Not bad coffee if you ignore the fact that you have to dump two sugars in a very small cup to make it slightly enjoyable ha!

Currently listening

Earlier I mentioned listening to a podcast. Currently I’m really enjoyed a podcast called ‘Death in the Afternoon’. This is a podcast by the same person who runs the youtube channel ‘Ask A Mortician‘. A very unique channel which deals with all things death and mortality. Which sounds really grim, but is surprisingly very fun. Both the channel and podcast bring the topic closer to you and teach you not to be afraid of death and all that comes with it.

Besides the hours of Christmas music I’ve already listened to in December (I can’t say no to a good singalong to All I Want for Christmas is You or Driving Home for Christmas!). I’ve also been quite into Blondie’s music this month. The Parallel Lines (1978) album has been on repeat for weeks, thanks to songs as Heart of Glass and I’m Gonna Love You Too. It’s a fun album which is easy to listen to while I’m working on blog posts. Jamming to it all the way!

Here’s to the rest of December!

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the little glance at my month. This is a new concept for me but I just love experimenting with new type of posts. Have a good rest of your December and please tap the little heart to let me know if you like the post!