Hi guys I hope you all having an awesome start of the week. Is labor day and well as much as I want to be one of those people who earn money from home and living the life, that is not me!!! I am not much of a people person and is funny because all my jobs have been either working as customer service, being a teacher or my first job that was teaching violin. I prefer working alone but seems like all my jobs tells a different story. Right now I work as a support advocate, at least that’s how they call it here. I work helping people with brain injuries, hoping that in some future they can be independent and go back to the community. It can be a very rewarding job but some weeks are harder than others.

So let’s talk about journals. When I first started journaling I bought an A5 notebook from AliExpress, I didn’t know about different type of papers and pens I just knew I wanted to journal. I am not saying I never journal as a kid, I did I just can’t remember much and I don’t even know where they are. I knew I had one and I left it in my grandmas house and my brother took it to write his stuff, I was mad haha

So I think after a week or two I got interested in a Passport, that was an eye opening. My first passport was from AliExpress too, at first I was just using it for planing, it looked like a nice size for that, quality of the cover and insert was very good for the price. So I used my passport none stop, I would show it to my parents all the time even if they didn’t found it that interesting haha

I would a lot of drawings and be like “hey dad look at this” and he would ask me if I draw it myself, was it hard to believe that I could draw decent things? haha

It was still 2018, I got interesting in journaling around end of October, start of November. I always been a paper/notebook type of person, I LOVE notebooks.
I stop by Walmart and found a pocket size notebook and well being the person that I am I bought it for $3 I think, it was made for painting I believe.

That’s when I was like “well I am not going back to A5”, pocket felt like such a comfortable size that I just didn’t want any other size.

From that day until July 2019 I used the pocket for everything, at first I wanted to journal about Criminology terms, different type of sick people that will bring them to kill someone, type of sickness and all that. I love it, I wanted to also study criminology and forensic science. I watched a lot of Criminal Minds and NCIS and that’s how I learned about all that and I wanted to journal about it, do my research and keep it in a notebook. Whatever I found interesting in the series I would write it down and do more research later.

Unfortunately that didn’t last long because after doing that for 2 to 3 weeks I started using it for everything, that was my main journal.
After I used that journal for a couple of month and was reaching the end, I started looking into journals for the other haft of the year. I have seen hobonichi before and I really wanted one, I think before I got the A5, that AliExpress notebook was a test before I actually bought a Hobonichi one.

So that haft of the year I decided to get a Hobonichi A6 avec, Weeks and an A6 week planner. I did not utilize this notebook like I though I would. Having the dates on top made me feel like I need it to journal everyday, that I couldn’t miss a day and I didn’t like that feeling.
So I start using the passport as my journal, it was great, I took it to my Cruise trip and I journal everyday, I even took my camera in the library and recorded a journaling section. Passport was the best size I could have ever discover haha

I did a flip through of that traveling journal if you guys are interested in see it. Here

So after testing so many journals, writing in them and traveling with them this is what I am using today.

Hobonichi Weeks

After using this for daily journaling for the first time last year October, I liked the idea so much that I end up doing it for a couple of months. I stoped and a few months after 2020 started I decided to use it as a regular journal and not as a daily journal. I mean come on, who can write in that tiny rectangular, one daily? Nope. I also liked the idea of writing in a 2019 planner in 2020 haha

I finished the 2019 planner and I started a new one in August. I know is a planner but something about using this planner for another purpose feels good, I should go to jail for not following the rules for this planner haha

Police: Why you here?
Me: I used a planner as a journal
Police: Excuse me?
Me: I should be punish but I will let you know that the moment my pen touched that paper there was no going back and I will do it all over again.

Okay, let’s stop joking around, so my next journal is:

A6/Pocket Notebook:

So pocket is the easy journal for me. Is graph paper, sometimes I just journal which is the purpose of it. Sometimes I want to document so I add paper, labels or receipts. I journal but I also document, it can be more personal sometimes.
I like it, I am not haft way through but by the end of this year I probably will. Any traveling that I do or will do is going into this journal, so is basically my travel journal.

There are a couple projects that I am doing and I like to write about it here. When it comes to daily journaling, the pocket is the best option.

Passport:

Now passport I have said this before, I think, is my favorite size (just in case I didn’t). I finished an inserts 3 months ago I believe and I decided to give it a rest since I am using Weeks and Pocket for journaling.

Like I was saying earlier, the first pocket I own, I wanted to make it into a little book. Just information of things I find interesting and there I was sitting, thinking, “well I have new inserts, maybe I can start doing that again but in a passport” and that’s what I did. I called it “The Book of Knowledge”, I came up with this name when I was using my pocket. I always though it was an awesome name, hopefully there will be multiple volumes of this, for example, 2 to 3 inserts (little notebooks) you know, I think is a great idea.

So I am currently using 3 journals and each of them haves a purpose in my stationery life.
Lately I been kind of neglecting my journals, some weeks I work 56 to 60 hours. I been a bit tired and just a little drain, I am saving money for a project that I am doing which I will tell more later although it does not have to do with journaling or stationery. My family is traveling again from PR to help me with this project, this will be the second time they will be here for this. They are so supportive, so I am working hard to save money for that.

So yeah guys, this are my little babies for now, I love my journals, I treat them with care haha
I am happy I did this, I been meaning to talk more about my journals and how I started journaling.

If you want to share how did you started journaling that would be great. Actually I am very interested to know what TN size you use and if you have a notebook/paper you prefer. Also your prefer fountain pen if you use one or gel/ballpoint/rollerball, I WANT TO KNOW!

If you have gotten this far, thank you, you get a gold star! I hoped you liked it and follow for more.

Have a wonderful day, take care and God bless you all.