There are many things that I do to unwind.
Sometimes I like to draw up a warm bath and read a nice book. Or maybe just order in food and put on a K-drama on TV and binge watch till I fall asleep.
But the best thing I like to do is to draw. I love any sort of art. It disconnects me from the world and makes me just happy.
How do you unwind after a demanding day?
The series revolve around the South Korean legal system.
In South Korea, children between 10-13 are sentenced to “reformation” which aims to for rehabilitation of the child back to society. However, children between 14-18 can be punished either with reformations or official punishment such as prison terms.
The series follows the story of Shim Eun-seok, a judge of the Juvenile Court who seems to harbor a strong dislike for juvenile offenders. At first look she seems like a cold hearted person with a vendetta to punish the children with the worst ruling that could be given.
Over the course of the series, the viewer will understand that Eun-seok is the kind of judge that goes above and beyond her job requirements. She sought to understand the mind set of the offender, to understand if there was any sought of genuine regret of the crime that was committed and not just taking the words that are spoken by them at face value. She is well aware that the lawyers that take up such cases try to give the offenders a loop hole to get the minimum sentencing possible.
In the series, we get a backstory to her life which puts a light on why was she so severe towards the juvenile offenders. We also see the life of another judge by the name of Kim Mu-yeol, who seems to be the other side of the coin. He believes in second chances and always believes that children when given enough care can be better. The series gives a peep into his past as well to understand the development of his character.
The series is definitely worth a watch in my opinion. The writer certainly knows how to tap into the emotions of the viewers helping one really connect with the main characters as well as the different situations faced by the children in each of the episodes.
The plot is an adaptation of the web novel of the same name. It follows the life of Kang Ji-won, a middle class working woman who is diagnosed with late stage stomach cancer.
She is portrayed as an ordinary woman – timid, hardworking and in simple terms the “not so popular”. She is married to Park Min-hwan, who was initially shown as a caring partner but changes since their marriage. Post the marriage he chose to quit his job and ended up being a burden to Ji-won. Things were just made worse by his mother who thought that her son could do nothing wrong and in turn pressurized Ji-won to work harder.
The stress takes it’s toll and she ends up falling sick. In those times her closest friend Jung Soo-min was her only companion when she battling with cancer. Her friend regularly visited her during treatments and encouraged her to fight.
Little did she know that her life was about to be turned upside down when she was sent back home from the hospital due to non payment of the hospital bills. When she arrived at home the scene in front was that of her husband cheating on her with her closest friend. They all the while were plotting a way to get rid of her to cash on the life insurance.
She threw a fit of rage on discovering the truth but neither of them regretted on what they did to her. They said “The living needs to keep on living” and in the scuffle pushed her sending her crashing to the floor. She saw her life drain out of her.
When she wakes up again she is back to the year 2013. To a time before she made all the wrong decisions in her life. Given the opportunity to change her fate, she now has to make the right choices to ensure a better future than the one she lived.
The series follows the changes she makes to enact her revenge on the ones that had killed her and all the while claiming her right to to a “Fairytale Happy Ever After”. With the help of her romantic interest Yoo Ji-hyuk who seems to be in a time loop of his own they sought to alter the present to make their future one in which they finally win.
In my opinion, it is a light-hearted revenge tale which is a nice break from reality giving the viewers the motivation that it is never to late to change their destiny.
One of best portrayed TV series I have watched in a long time.
Part 1 and Part 2 of the Netflix series, inspired by true events, revolves around the life of Moon Dong-eun. She came from a broken home with a mother who had all but abandoned her. She cherished the dream of one day becoming an architect. She take to take odd jobs to survive and in the time that she had she studied hard. She is seen as a happy child before things took the turn for the worst.
On the other end of the spectrum, a gang of bullies. Park Yeon-jin, Jeon Jae-joon and Lee Sara came from wealth and had parents who threw money at anything that came in their children’s way. Accompanying them were Choi Hye-jeong and Son Myeong-o, though they were not well off like the others they were party to everything the other 3 did.
The storyline shows how over the course of the schooling years this gang of bullies ragged their fellow students and ruined their lives. They chose victims who were poor or from desolate homes. When the victims asked “Why Me?” Yeon-jin’s response was “Because I can and nothing will ever change for you”. That one statement shows that the bullying was not caused by an event but just for the pure pleasure of hurting someone.
Their bullying broke the protagonist Moon Dong-eun, but she sought to take revenge. She sought to change the what was told would never change. The whole plot is how she enacted her revenge on each of them for the crimes they had committed. The story also shows hope in a desolate circumstance through the love interest Joo Yeo-jeong.
Truly, a well scripted and picturized series worth the watch. The series awakens emotions in the viewers and drives you to join in the revenge plan of the protagonist.
My ideal day… Now that is something I always think about. Let’s start from the beginning.
Phase 1: Energize
Wake up at 6 am. I know that is early but I love the morning air. I want to go out for a walk at that time and I don’t want other people to be there. Just cause it would beat the purpose of relaxing. After the walk, I want a nice cup of warm hot chocolate. Then sit out on the balcony in a fuzzy blanket and just want the sun rising listening to some calming music.
Phase 2: Fueling
My ideal breakfast is a Toasted bread with sausage and bacon. It is my comfort meal. I love it! It makes the whole day just happier. After breakfast, maybe finish up some of the basic chores at home
Phase 3: Meditate
For the early part of the day I prefer to visit a museum or art gallery or even a nice park. Where there is no noise of the busy streets. I can just sit down and get lost in the castles of my mind.
Phase 4: Enjoy
I probably would skip lunch for a nice cup of Java. After that, a movie! But let’s get specific, I want to go for a movie in an empty theatre. The movie can be a an unpopular one I am okay with that. I just want to be able to look at my phone and laugh loud and sit in the best seat in the theatre without troubling anyone. Oh and theatre food! Cheese Nachos! I know popcorn is the go to but I just prefer nachos.
Phase 5: Unwind
After the movie, a cab ride back home and a soaking bath in the tub. I personally wind down at that time and often take a little nap. After the bath, I would watch one of the TV series that are part of my every increasing list. I prefer light hearted series at night mostly veering towards K-Dramas. With the binge watching I would love to draw or paint and update my journal.
Phase 6: Indulge
After that, probably dinner. Dinner could be anything but it has to end with an ice cream. If not something special, I usually prefer Haagen-Dazs Belgium chocolate. And with dinner, I would continue to watch the TV series.
Phase 7: Settle Down
The best part is always for the last! Take to the warm bed. Clean up everything from the whole day and then just tuck myself under the warm blankets and keep the TV series on till I fall asleep. It is a good thing that most of the online platforms have auto turn off or else my electricity bills would run high!
This kind of day I would not want it everyday though. Just once in a while. I think I appreciate more because it doesn’t happen that often. A day like this would give me the strength to get through the bad days. Besides, no matter how much stress my work brings I actually like working so “relaxing everyday” might not be a concept I can get behind.
Word Hues 