Category: Misc.

Music Featured in This Episode:

• “In The Rain (Far Away)” by WE IN THE ZONE
• “00:00 (Zero o’clock) by BTS
• “Shadow” by Raleigh Ritchie
• “Child” by Han Seungwoo
• “Dynamite” by BTS

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz.

First off, I want to start off by apologizing for not finishing Blogust this year. I mean, I don’t think anyone really noticed, but I did, and the writer’s side of me has been disappointed lately at the lack of writing I’ve been doing on here, in my free time, and creatively. It’s been… a weird couple of weeks for me.

I returned back to work and although things aren’t stressful, the upkeep and activity needed takes a toll on my body. Because of that, I’ve been experiencing a level of fatigue that, well, has been different to what I usually go through, and it’s causing me to not want to do anything but rest my body and my mind.

I’ve also been really busy getting prepared for bariatrics surgery in a couple of months. When I’m not at work, I’m pretty much taking every test needed to be cleared for surgery, which is a lot at times. I know everything will be fine in the long run, but the process to get there is… a lot to process in the first time.

I also have been spending a lot of time online in the kpop community and talking to my friends on the platform. My best friend, Ro, has been writing their own universe and to be quite honest, being in their universe has been really hard to be in my own, which is completely fine! Haha, their writing universe is so fascinating and interesting and I enjoy being so invested in it and like wow, they are a hell of a writer. But yeah, I just been wanting to spend my time with my friends whenever I can because they are some of the few reasons why my days are so much better.

I’m in a really good place, despite me having moments when I’m not; it’s just the human in me. But, I still haven’t been motivated to write, and I don’t know why it’s taking me this long to write something. Am I just in a funk? Am I just too busy? Am I falling out of love with writing?

Stop, Liz. That’s not the case.

The truth of the matter is, I’ve been… feeling inspiration through my eyes, as in I’ve been taking pictures of places and things that have been inspirational to me. Is that weird, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to take a picture of literally anything and find it inspirational?

I think I’m just… taking life as it comes. I feel like I need to capture moments more than anything these days. I feel like time is such a precious thing, and I’m afraid of not being able to see certain things in my life, in certain moments, at certain times. Is that weird? I feel like I may be blabbering. Something about being outside makes me feel… alive, and I just always wanna capture it on my phone.

I really do hope that this “funk” I am in with my writing goes away soon, because I really do miss being on the blog, just writing things for you guys, for the blog, and most importantly – for myself.

Thanks again for hanging around.

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

So, a year ago on this day, my first ever ult group debuted. They were called X1.

X1, for those who may not know, was a project group for the PDX101 season where the top 11 contestants would get the chance to debut in a group. In age order, the members were Seungwoo, Seungyoun, Wooseok, Yohan, Hangyul, Junho, Dongpyo, Minhee, Eunsang, Hyeongjun, and Dohyon. Their first mini album, Quantum Leap, was one of the most successful rookie debuts within 4th generation Kpop.

I very much followed their debut because I followed the survival show since the beginning; I knew some of these boys would be in the group since the very beginning; they just had the certain look and energy of a kpop idol. Others were a complete surprise but so deserving of their rankings! I instantly fell in love with them because I really liked every member that debuted in this group! They had amazing chemistry together even before they debuted, and I’m a sucker for a group with amazing chemistry.

When they came out with their debut mini album, there was already this dark cloud over them; people were speculating that the voting system was rigged. But nevertheless, X1 debuted, they sold out their debut showcase concert, and they sold I believe 500,000 copies within the first week? It was something along those lines.

For two months, they promoted and went to several events and even when we thought things were getting better for X1, the media was not giving them a break. After being silent for most of the last month of 2019, it was then announced that they are disbanding in January 2020. It was definitely a sad day for X1, One-Its, and everyone that worked on and with this project group. I know that I was heartbroken that this happened.

A couple of months later, and the members of X1 are now doing things within their companies: Seungwoo returned to VICTON and made his solo debut, Seungyoun made his solo debut (comeback?) as WOODZ, Wooseok also made his solo debut, Yohan has been in the public eye and just released a solo single, Hangyul and Dohyon made their debut as a unit called H&D, Minhee and Hyeongjun debuted in CRAVITY, Eunsang is making his solo debut, and the other members are still trainees in hopes to make their debuts soon. Nevertheless, they are all doing their own things in this industry and I couldn’t be more proud of them.

I will always have a special place in my heart for X1. Their album was my first ever Kpop album that I bought, they were the first group I ulted, and during the short time of their activities, their music and their presence helped me get through some of the toughest parts of my life at the end of 2019. They were amazing, they were precious, and I know that if they were still promoting, they would’ve been possibly one of the biggest boy groups right now because– I MEAN THEY BROKE INSANE RECORDS Y’ALL AS ROOKIES– but, they all seem to be extremely happy being where they are now and I’m glad most of them are present and active in the community. Plus, I mean if X1’s disbandment didn’t break my heart, I don’t think I would’ve gotten into VICTON and become such fucking trash for them!

Happy 1-Year Anniversary, X1. We will always love & support you, even if you are not together as one anymore.

Yours Truly, A One-It. ❤

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

Today’s post has a very Overexposed vibe to it. I wanted to talk about something that’s been on my mind for awhile now. I never came to terms with this just because I was still defining who was and what it was that I really wanted out of life. Well, in November I shared that I’m demiromantic, and it’s been a very important part of my identity and I’ve made it very apparent what my intentions were in new friendships. Because of this blurred line of friendships and romantic relationships, I learned how to set boundaries with anyone new that enters my life. I can romantically love my friends, but because of the boundaries I’ve set for myself and for the people in these newfound friendships, I’m able to be open about my romantic attraction but know to keep things healthy and friendly. Like I’ve mentioned a million times before, I will not have sex with you.

I say that, and yeah, perhaps it comes off as a joke because like, haha love your friends but don’t have sex with them, but I actually mean it. Actually, I mean it as an indefinite thing.

It’s been a year since I had sex, but even before becoming celibate, I used to get really panicky whenever sexual intimacy was suggested in my last relationship, I started to get really insecure and repulsive to the thought of me having sex, and it was something I just didn’t want to have anymore. Let me disclosed that I don’t have sexual abuse trauma, it was simply something that changed in me.

When my relationship ended, I didn’t miss being sexually intimate with someone I loved. I didn’t miss the act of having it, I feeling behind it; literally sex rarely came to mind. Sure, there were qualities in people that turned me on, but it never went anywhere and I realized a lot of my turn-ons weren’t sexually driven, they were… energy driven? In the most explicit ways, yeah: the same sex can have an amazing energy and it will have me intrigued.

Within the last year, I’ve met a couple of people of the same sex that I really vibe with well. It was confusing at first because I started to get– in a sense– a liking to them in the same way most people find in potential partners for romantic relationships. I loved them to pieces and I love them just as much as I would do a romantic partner because of the deep connections I have with them, but I’m not sexually attracted to girls. I also found myself gaining that same type of love for those who were not straight and whose who don’t romantically or sexually like women, but I still felt them. TLDR, I really can experience a deep love for someone no matter who they are or how they identify themselves. I just love them for them. That’s when I figured that I was possibly demi. I was still sexually attracted to guys and found guys sexy, but it still didn’t feel right to me. It wasn’t a “I’d have sex with him” thought, it was more so “you’re attractive, but I’m feeling your vibe, so can I get to know you and hopefully whatever this becomes doesn’t lead to sex because I can’t imagine myself having sex for awhile.” I just wanted some good friendships that felt mutually about me as I do them while keeping boundaries to respect each other in the friendship.

But even in the friendships I’ve made with people within the last year has made me realize I am at my happiest when I’m talking to people I care about, that care about me, and allow me to be my complete myself without any judgment. I am at my happiest when I remind my friends that I love them and that I’m immensely grateful for their presence in my life. I am at my happiest when I can just express myself without any seek of approval from friends; they take me in as much as I take them in. Simplicity, after most of my life making things complicated.

I don’t know if my future relationships will change this; perhaps my asexuality is something that bests defines me in this moment, whereas my demiromanticism is something I’ve felt almost in every friendship I had in my life… even if demiromantic/sexual falls under the asexual umbrella. At the end of the day, I live my life in the gray, because nothing defines me and I don’t define any label. I’m just… me.

Asexuality is different for everyone, and my asexuality also does not mean that I look down on sex completely. Listen, have all the sex you want, like go ahead and get your freak on, but it’s just not for me. I repulse myself having sex, not the idea of sex.

So, here I am, coming to terms that for awhile I’ve fallen under the asexual umbrella, and even coming to this realization, nothing has really changed. I’m just valuing the friendships I have in my life and the simplicity of just experiencing love on a platonic level.

Music Featured in This Episode:

• “Reply” by Han Seungwoo
• “Not Shy” by ITZY
• “Bad” by Christopher

Music Mentioned in This Episode:

• “FAME” (The Album) by Han Seungwoo
• “EQUAL” (The Album) by Cho Seungyoun/WOODZ
• “SURF” by ITZY
• “Wannabe” by ITZY
• “ICY” by ITZY
• “DALLA DALLA” by ITZY
• “Go Go” by BTS
• “Pied Piper” by BTS
• “Airplane Pt. 2” by BTS
• “Serendipity” by BTS
• “Singularity” by BTS

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

So, in this process of my self-discovery, I’ve deemed the fact that I am a Kpop collector. I like to collect albums of groups that I’m really into, I like collecting photocards (PCs) for my favorite members in those groups, and I’m a part of the collection/trading community; something I never imagined being in. It’s taken me awhile to fully accept the fact that this is something that makes me happy and I’ve met some amazing friends along the process, so yeah – I’m a kpop collector.

It’s definitely been an experience learning about this community in the past couple of months. There’s things I never knew could happen in this community and things that I absolutely adore, but there’s also been things that I wish I could avoid being in this community, but I mean not everything in a community will be positive. But before I start talking about my thoughts on being a collector, let me tell you guys how I got to this place…

Back in February, I started to become an album collector of Victon’s. They were raising on my ultimate bias group list and I really just wanted to collect their albums. In a sense, I’ve always been an album collector; when I was younger collected most of Kelly Clarkson’s albums and, well, I guess that quality in me carried over in Kpop. My collecting was small, but I definitely looked into the kpop community as an outsider and felt like one too; I didn’t have mutual friends that were interested in kpop, and I always had some interest in collecting photocards… just not as intensely as I do now, but that’s a different story for a different post!

What got me collecting was my growing love for Victon’s Seungsik and also the lack of Seungwoo cards I had in my little collection. After their 6th mini album release, I had one card of each member throughout their discography besides Seungwoo. So, I went on eBay, saw that they were selling two photocards I really wanted to own and, well, the rest is history.

I then stared to silently collect photocards on my own time; I mostly bought them until I started to trade within the trading community. My moot, Ella, was the one that inspired me to make the trading/selling account to help finish with my collection and, I mean… my Seungsik album PC collection is complete because of the help of the trading community! Besides the trading and the selling aspect of the community, I’ve made some amazing friends a lot the way that are honestly some of the closest people in my life and I talk to everyday even if it’s not Kpop related.

Collecting, in general, should be something fun. Trading and making friendships with the community should be the best part of the collecting process, and for the most part, it is. But within the last couple of months of doing this, I’ve realized just how stressful keeping up a collection can be, especially if it’s for a popular member that everyone also is collecting. Sometimes, the hype and excitement around starting or maintaining a collection is based off of pure adrenaline and you just don’t think about how you’re going to collect all album photocards. I know that within in some of my collections, they weren’t fun to collect after a while; they became more of a race to see who can collect the fastest. I know I was also in that mentality for awhile when I first started to collect, but now it just seems so unnecessary and i just felt like I was contributing to the toxicity that comes with the community.

My collection, although it means so much to me and I’m grateful to have it, sometimes stresses me out. To upkeep a collection, it costs a ton of money; money that you feel guilty in spending because you feel like you should spend it towards other things that aren’t Kpop collecting related. It sometimes makes you think your life choices, what you should be doing instead of collecting, and makes you question why you got into this collecting in the first place.

I’m reminded every time I feel bad about my collection is that this is something that genuinely makes me happy. Having a collection of things that you worked hard for is extremely rewarding, and to have a hobby in collecting is what makes it fun. Once a collection doesn’t become fun anymore, then it’s time to let it go or stop collecting for that certain member or group. I know withn the last couple of weeks, I dropped some of my collection due to the stress of the upkeep and to let them go literally feels refreshing and light.

I don’t know how long ‘ll be a collector. I am one of the older collectors in the community and sometimes I feel myself not want to be so heavily involved in it but like, again, it makes me so happy when I make a trade for a card I really wanted or find a card for sale that I’ve been looking for; again it’s just the excitement of getting far into a collection as possible and looking at it and being proud of it! I know that as long as Victon is a group, I’ll be collecting their stuff, even if they ever decided to do some solo stuff like Seungwoo recently did with his solo debut album, “Fame”.

Collecting is not just obsessing over kpop and getting stupid little cards, it’s a hobby and it’s taken me a while to realize that fact. People genuinely collect as a way of coping with whatever they are dealing with; it’s their happy place and their favorite groups and idols are just some of the reasons they smile everyday. I’d be lying if I didn’t say Victon does the same for me. It’s something so fascinating to explain to other people because of course, not many will understand, but I think they would appreciate that everyone collects something in their lives and yours just happens to be Kpop stuff. It’s okay if it is!

So yeah, I’m Liz: writer by day, kpop collector by night.

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

Y’all, it’s been one year since I started my job at the bookstore! It’s my job anniversary! I know many people will look at this and say, “uhm, okay, and?” but this is a really big deal for me! This is my first ever job and to have been at it for a whole year, the feeling is bittersweet. I still remember my first day really vividly; I walked into the college bookstore, literally it was like 95 degrees and humid, and I see two people behind the register and my manager. I just walked in and quietly said, “hi, i’m Liz and I’m here for the training?” and while I stood near the counter while my manager was taking care of one task, a guy comes in and stands next to me. I don’t know why I instantly was on this “make friends and talk to people” kick, but it just so happened that he was there for the training as well! As the day went on and we worked our official first day in the hot ass weather, I got to meet some other people who had started working there prior to me and the rest of the newcomers that day, but it was a good first day; tiring, but good!

As the months went on, I realize that the customer service position was testing my social anxiety and willingness to do my job well. I had to answer phone calls, I dealt with customers both nice and mean, and just dealing with any conflicts at hand I had to deal with them without allowing my anxiety shut me down. Of course, I had a good support system with my coworkers and my managers and if anything happened, we always had each other’s back. Working at the register for 7 hours a day with someone else downstairs with me, I got to know all of my coworkers as people rather than just coworkers. They instantly became my friends, and to even sit here and say “hi, yeah – a bitch has FRIENDS Y’ALL”, it’s definitely crazy that I did it.

My job also made me become more confident in talking to people, I mean I wouldn’t be able to do it well if I didn’t know how to talk to people. Over the course of a year, I’ve been able to comfortably to have conversations with customers that come in and out of the store to the point where I was able to make a friend from one of the regulars! It’s definitely been an experience from being terribly shy and anxious to talk to strangers to be confident enough to start a conversation of some sorts. In some way, it was the one thing that was missing in my life; having friends and confidence in myself to the point where I could be social with other people. In my sessions with my therapist, I realized that I actually like being social despite having SAD. I’m the happiest when I’m talking to other people, whether that be my coworkers or to customers in the store.

Lastly, my bookstore job helped me get through a lot of depressing shit I was going through this time last year. At the beginning, it was difficult balancing my work life and my personal life because they were on two polar opposites on the emotions spectrum. My work life I was meant to keep this happy and welcoming personality whereas when I came home, I was still grieving over my breakup. Being at work for most of the day created a great distraction, and in the process I made some really good friends that I say this all the time but truly saved my life during that difficult time. I couldn’t imagine going through the grieving process without them making me smile and laugh and without them knowing just being there for me.

Although the pandemic affected my normal routine of going into work and being productive, I still very much enjoy being at the bookstore. It’s a great first job to have, and I definitely lucked out. Although I don’t see myself being at the bookstore forever, I like being there for the time being & transitioning back into that life wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be.

So yeah, my first year at the bookstore treated me really well, and I’m glad to see what the next couple of months bring me! Happy workaversary to me!

Music Featured in this Episode:

• “Moonwalk” by WayV
• “Take Me Higher” by A.C.E
• “NOID” by WOODZ

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

I wanted to do something different for the blog! At first, I was thinking of just writing my thoughts and opinions on being a collector in the Kpop community, but then I thought: why not let the collecting/trading community ask me things they will like to know? So one night over the weekend, I asked people on my trading and collection accounts to ask me questions and, well, there’s a lot of interesting ones!

So without further ado, hi, I’m Liz and I’m a Kpop collector!

ktrades_cr (Cameron) asked: Where do you find your Victon non-album photocards and how do you know it’s for a good/decent price?

So for those who may not know: a non-album photocard is an official photocard that are not from their albums; they are typically from special events, merchandise, music show broadcasts, pre-order benefits, etc.

At first, it was really hard to find non-album PCs for Victon because I didn’t have the resources to find them. I say your moots (or mutuals) are your best way to score non-album PCs for any group that you may be collecting! My moot and friend, Amy, helps me find a lot of the rarer non-album PCs through sellers directly from South Korea. Many collectors have overseas connections so if you have a friend that can help you reach out to them for rarer photocards, I suggest doing that because it brings me to by next answer about pricing…

Pricing for PCs are insane these days, and if people are selling in-print album PCs for an absurd amount of money, people will do the same (if not worse) for non-album PCs because in most cases, non-album PCs are harder to find and not always available for immediate purchase. Sellers from the United States will sell a Seungwoo non-album PC for $50, but Korean sellers (directly) will sell them at a reasonable price just because of how frequent and available those cards are to obtain.

I say non-album PCs should not be more than $30 unless it’s a PC that is extremely rare and hard to find. Music show broadcast PCs should go for a little more just because they are only given out to people who attend these music shows during a groups’ promotion, so they have more of a rarity. It’s all about hearing from other moots and their buying experiences to see what price range works best for you.

hansetrades (Amy, my IG child) asked a couple of questions! She first asked: Any goals for my collection?

More space. I envy those who have, like, a real bookshelf for their albums and collection! So I guess for right now, my goals for my collection is to think smarter about it. When I started collecting, I started to buy albums that I thought I liked but I think I was just really in the moment of those releases, so there’s a couple of albums I might get rid of because I don’t like them being on my shelf! But I definitely would like to also finish my Seungsik collection to its entirety, I know some PCs are going to be harder to find than others, but honestly I’m even shocked that I made it this far into my Victon and Seungsik collections.

Amy also asked: How do you feel about your collection?

Oof. The deep question. Being a collector, I’ve realized there’s been many ups and downs. For starters, the great part about collecting is that it’s a hobby and something you look at and be proud of. I’ve always been an album collector (CDs in jewel cases) when I was younger and I guess it just transitioned into Kpop albums, but it’s been a really fun journey to have a collection and be so far into it.

But, my collection also can be a cause of my anxiety. I say that because although collection isn’t a competition and there’s no race to who collects the fastest, many collectors do run on that mentality and it always freaks me out if I’m trying to find a rarer PC that I might miss out on it because someone snagged it before I did. I’ve been on both sides of that scenario where I was lucky to find PCs and claim them before anyone else, and vice versa. But, I also am an adult with responsibilities so I know my collection will slow down for the time being, but – I don’t regret it. Should I have put all my money into a savings account for a rainy day? Sure, but I didn’t and I’m okay with that because I used it for something that has brought me an immense amount of joy.

My girl Amy coming in with the heavy hitters! She asked: What did you expect when you joined the trading community?

I expected to actually be kicked out of it because of my age. I am 26, and I always felt some shame behind me being so into Kpop and wanting to collect albums and PCs, so when my moot and friend, Ella, convinced me to open a trading account, I was skeptical at first because then it required me to expose that hidden fact about myself. I thought I was going to leave after awhile because I absolutely hate new things, and at first this account stressed me out. It’s been the complete opposite; I feel more accepted into this community more than anywhere, and I’ve made some amazing friendships because I joined the trading community.

The one thing about the trading community that I didn’t expect is that where there is a community, there will be some sort of drama. I try my hardest to stay out of any drama, whether that’s exposing people as scammers or time-wasters or just getting into arguments; I am more of the listener and occasional advice-giver! Just like any type of community, I know not everyone will like me for me or not connect with my energy and that’s cool; as long as we can keep things professional and just trade or sell for any given circumstance then that’s all that matters. But, you have to do whats comfortable for you at the end of the day and you have control what you want on your account or not.

Amy asked: Worst experience with a trade or a sale?

Juicy! I haven’t had many bad experiences with trades or sales; the only ones that come to mine are just the type of trade or sell accounts that kept things… very professional. I mean don’t get me wrong, the trading community is like a business so I know some people like to keep things professional and stoic, but with my own personal anxiety, I always feel the most comfortable when the person I’m trading or selling to is nice and excited for the transaction. I’m very grateful that most of my transactions with people have been smooth but I know I’ll get a bad experience sooner or later; it’s inevitable.

Amy & Mallory both asked: What’s your favorite/least favorite thing about collecting?

My least favorite thing about collecting is the judgment people have about people and the amount of love they have for a group based on their collection and priorities of collecting them. People have these assumptions about people’s true intentions in liking a group based on how their collection of them looks like: if someone only collects the most popular member of a group, then that person is deemed “not a true fan of the entire group”. If someone collects all members of a group, that means they “stan” that group more than those who only collect their biases. For example, I learned that moving forward, I will not be hardcore collecting Seungyoun’s PCs anymore because they are stressful and not fun to collect and find and the prices are expensive due to his popularity. Just because I’m stopping my collection for him, it doesn’t mean I like him any less than the person who decides. Collecting is all about preferences and priorities, not about who can collect the most and the fastest.

But, my favorite thing about collecting is being able to finally obtain cards and things that I couldn’t do on my own. I believe I wouldn’t have finished Seungsik’s album PC collection if I didn’t have amazing friends in the community that always help me with my collection and vise versa. The friendships made are definitely my favorite part of the collection process.

Last question from Amy! She asked: Do you have any plans for your collection if the group(s) disband?

Such a great question! To be honest, I have no clue what my plans are for my collection if the groups I collect disband. I believe if groups that aren’t my ult groups disband, I feel like I would probably sell them because I wouldn’t have space to put cards or albums I haven’t touched in awhile and they probably at some point will be forgotten. Ult groups, oof I don’t even wanna think about the fact that one day in the very distant future, Victon will individually move on to other endeavors. I think I would keep them, in all honesty – I feel like my collection is more than just a collection, it’s a representation of the person I am now and to look back at it in the future when collecting isn’t a hobby of mine anymore, it would be nostalgic (night) as hell to just see the progress I’ve made.

jiutrades (Jaqui) asked: What inspired you to start collecting?

I started to secretly collect when I started to collect all albums of Victon’s earlier this year. With photocard pulls, I was lucky not to get any duplicates of members, so when I bought their 6th Mini Album, Continuous, I had pulled 6 out of 7 members throughout their discography. The one member I didn’t pull was Seungwoo, and well, I also really wanted Seungsik’s nostalgia (nostos ver.) PC because it was the absolute cutest so, yeah – I bought Seungwoo’s VNTW PC and Seungsik’s nostalgia PC and the rest is history.

Because I pretty much follow Kpop IG on my personal account, I was always intrigued about people and their collections and even if I wasn’t going to initially go hardcore in collecting, I wanted to at least have an album collection. Well, 25+ albums and 2 binders full of PCs later, and here we are: a hardcore collector.

sub2jae6 (CeCe) asked: If you could design an album, what would you do that hasn’t been done already?

Very interesting question! I don’t think there has been a single thing that hasn’t been done yet in the Kpop industry, but a concept and album I would love is an album that resembles a composition notebook and the photobook itself would be showcasing the process of making the album from the members in the form of journal entries. The pictures would be taken by the members, the lyric book would be hand-written by the members who work on that specific song (and mark it up like actual sheet music); I guess what I’m getting at is that I would love to see an album that was personal and made by the members for their fans.

jeonswonu (Sunshine) asked: Least favorite album based on packaging?

Oh my god, so the first album that came to mind was WayV’s recent album, Awaken the World only because of the paper opening thingymabob that accesses everything else, but because I don’t physically have those in my collection yet, I’ll have to say Victon’s 6th Mini Album, Continuous. Personally, I feel like they missed a great opportunity to put some amazing imagery on the cover, like, hear me out:

How sick would these photos been as album covers?! Also, I really wish they did different photobooks for each version because, I mean, three versions but the same photobooks is not cool. She was an iconic era, but I reach for my Continuous albums the least because of the packaging.

jjongtiny (Mallory) asked: Rarest official merch you own?

I’m surprisingly not that much of a merch collector! If I had to choose just a couple of things I consider to be more on the rarer side, I think Seungsik’s Kapsul Collective necklace is a little harder to find. It was a limited edition jewelry collection that I haven’t seen anyone reselling yet, and I don’t believe many people got it when it was first released. PC wise, I think the rarest set in my collection is a set that is on the way to me! It’s the “Welcome to Wonderland” Fanmeeting photocards. From what I recall, they are a really hard to find in the trading community and when they do pop up, a complete set of one member goes for $40 ~ $60.

Oh! Also broadcast PCs can be a little rare; some more than others! Some of the rarest broadcast related things are actually photos and postcards which aren’t that common to do for music shows anymore.

I think the rarest album I own is my all-member signed X1 album, only because as a group they disbanded and although there are signed copies out there, not all of them are all-member signed; only promotional ones are.

That’s it for this post! Thank you to everyone that sent me their questions and made this post so interesting and fun to write! If I get more questions from people, we’ll write a part 2 for this series!

Until then, happy collecting!

Dear, guys – welcome back to Letters From Liz!

So, a lot of things have been changing in my life recently. I feel like the person I was even back at the beginning of the summer was not the same place that present me is in now. It’s a little scary, but I feel like I’m more than ready, especially now, to take on these changes.

For starters, I might be returning back to work soon! It’s been 5 months since I last had a day of work and now that the pandemic is slowing down here in NYC, we’re all are getting back to our lives in somewhat a normal (new normal) way.

I’m a little nervous to get back to it because I feel like I will need to relearn everything I knew before. I’m sure many of us who are returning are going to need just a day of relearning things, but I know myself well enough that I would get back into the swing of things once I’m physically there and going back to my routine.

Another major thing that is changing is also my lifestyle. Within the next couple of months, I’ll be finally prepping myself for bariatric surgery; it requires a lot of sacrifices and a complete change within my lifestyle. I can’t lie, it’s been causing me a lot of anxiety lately because I feel like I don’t have much self-control to ever majorly change my lifestyle in the way that I have to for this surgery. In other words, I feel like even if I slip up for a day or two, I would be extremely hard on myself for lacking discipline. I know it’s not going to be an easy transition and I know I will fail here and there while adjusting, but knowing that fact scares me.

Also, let me just slip the fact that any change whatsoever scares the living shit out of me.

Dealing with an anxiety disorder, no matter what spectrum its on, it makes change extremely worrisome. We work the best when we have a routine packed down; we feel the most comfortable when he know what’s going to happen, how’s it gonna happen, and when it’s going to happen. It’s knowing that we’re not threatened when things happen and that we don’t feel so overwhelmed when things don’t go as planned.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that we hate change, because we don’t know how it’ll affect our already established routines.

For me, I’ve been personally writing in what I call a anxiety journal; I wanted to write out my anxieties as they happen just so they don’t linger on my mind for too long! For the most part, it’s been working; it’s given me a place where I can talk thing out with myself and possibly resolve any worries I have about things. Of course, it’s not going to be the solution for every anxiety I deal with, but it’s still a good alternative to resolve some of them out.

Although many of these new lifestyle changes are up and coming and I have to start getting used to them, I know that in the wrong run that they will become a part of my routine and it won’t be as scary as it is now.

Embrace some changes, especially if they are positive changes.