Our world is pretty darn stressful right now with the pandemic (or dampanic, as Susan Branch calls it), our (USA) current administration and out-of-control wildfires. Add personal stressors on top of it, and it's enough to make anyone run for the hills. Don't forget your mask. And better hope the hill isn't on fire.
Here in far northeast Illinois, we've hit another surge of COVID cases and deaths. Most restaurants are now closed again for indoor dining. I'd been taking Clementine inside the vet's office for her twice weekly subcutaneous fluids and starting today, just like back in the late spring, we have to stay in the car and the vet tech comes out to get her.
While we're all (mostly) stuck inside, sometimes it feels good to just snuggle up on the couch or in the bed and immerse yourself in a good book, lose yourself in some beautiful music, or watch an engaging movie or TV show. I thought it'd be fun to share what we're reading, what music we're listening to, and what movies or TV shows we're watching. Sometimes it's too easy to stick with the same types of books or music, so maybe we'll discover something new to read, listen to or watch.
As an introvert and avid reader, I've always been surrounded by books and have my nose stuck in one. I just tried reading four fiction books and couldn't get into any of them. So I'm back to reading my usual non-fiction. I'm currently reading David Kessler's newest book, Finding Meaning: The Sixth Stage of Grief. If you're not familiar with Kessler, he's written many books on death and grieving, including two co-written with psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. We're all probably familiar with the five stage of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Even though Kessler was a grief "expert", when his 21-year old son died of an accidental overdose, his life, of course, was upended and writing this book was a way to work through all the stages of grief - including this new stage he came up with - and to honor his son. As most of you know, my oldest son, Philip passed away 11 years ago ~ also at age 21 and from an accidental drug overdose. This book is insightful for anyone who has lost a loved one and is on the healing end of their grief journey.
Simple Abundance is a book I read year-round, as it's divided into months. And every day of the month has an short essay. Even if you miss a few days ~ or weeks, it's easy to pick up this book and just start where you left off. This book first came out in 1995 but the new edition (which I have below) came out in November 2019. This book is all about women's spirituality and following your own true path.
I didn't start truly listening to music until I was a pre-teen. Back then in the early 70's, I rode my bike around the neighborhood with my transistor radio in the basket on the front of my bike. And on Saturdays when I got my allowance, I couldn't wait to walk to K-Mart and pick out the newest "45". One record I remember playing over and over ~ even taking it to my friend's house and playing it on her record player, too ~ was Radar Love by Golden Earring. Now I just have a few CDs that I still haven't parted with (I do listen to them in my car) and my Spotify playlist.
I played the piano and flute growing up, but I didn't choose to play the piano. It was something my mother said I was going to do. Back in those days, we just said OK and did it. Did I enjoy it? Only the casual playing part. I hated the lessons and the 30-minute per day practicing. I did choose to play the flute when I was in junior high ~ and that continued through high school.
My favorite genre of music is classic rock ~ that's probably from being a teen in the 70's ~ but I also like alternative rock, folk music, bluegrass, jazz, disco, Motown, Indie, instrumental (piano or guitar), some classical, and vocal swing. I love discovering new artists, so share away! I hope you enjoy a couple of my picks.
Billie Eilish is only 18 years old but wow, what a beautiful, sultry voice!
It's no surprise that Kurt Vile paired up with John Prine on this song: Kurt was influenced by Prine in his early music career. This song was recorded just four months before Prine's death in April 2020.
As for TV and movies, I'm not much into either. I've just now turned the boob tube back on after having it off the entire summer, except for a cooking show here and there. I'm more likely to have my nose stuck in a book or be on my laptop writing emails or researching something. My blogging friend, Dewena recently recommended that I watch Angela, aka "The Parisienne Farmgirl" and Shaye at "The Elliott Homestead" on YouTube. I follow both of them on Instagram but haven't watched their videos yet.
So I'm probably late to the game, but we're just now watching Schitt's Creek. We watched the first two episodes when it first came out, but couldn't get into it. Last month we decided to try one more time, this time saying we'd give it four episodes. It worked. We are hooked. It's light-hearted and hilarious ~ something we need these days.
I read about this movie on the Greater Good website and it piqued my interest, though I haven't watched it yet. On my to-watch list!
"Driveways studies how learning to cope with the loss of relationships can help create new, meaningful ones. Because the fulfillment of this essential psychological need is so strong, these ties can be forged between people who are seemingly very different from each other. Everyone must carry something heavy, from time and time—and Driveways highlights how leaning on each other can lighten our burdens." (Maryam Abdullah, Greater Good)
My son is very much into movies, especially ones with deep meaning that leave you thinking and guessing. He watched this one recently and recommended it, so it's another that's on my to-watch list.
"When I got to the end of Charlie Kaufman’s I’m Thinking of Ending Things, I had to ask myself: What the heck was that about? After I watched it a second time, I came to understand a few things about this beautiful, unsettling, complex, melancholy film.
To begin, I don’t believe it’s a spoiler to reveal that the movie is a character study, and that it takes place entirely inside that one achingly lonely mind. But what’s the story about? In my view, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is really about goodness, but what makes this story a tragedy is that the goodness goes unseen and unappreciated by others.
At one point, his girlfriend (Jessie Buckley) praises Jake (Jesse Plemons) for taking care of his dying mother. “I’m glad to hear you say that,” he says. “That makes me feel better. Sometimes, it feels like no one sees the good things you do. You’re just alone.” She whispers to him, “I see it.”
However, this wonderful girlfriend doesn’t exist outside of his head, and the tragedy is that Jake needed to invent someone to see his very real goodness. She is variously named Lucy, Louisa, Lucia, and Ames; she’s sometimes a physicist, sometimes a painter; once a poet, again a film critic. When Jake’s elderly parents need their pain recognized, she becomes a gerontologist.
Throughout all these metamorphoses, she stays smart, grounded, and funny. She’s not a doormat or a manic pixie dream girl, as we might expect from decades of Hollywood movies. She’s something new to cinema: the imaginary woman who is wiser and realer than the shadow of a man who imagines her. She becomes what Jake could have been, if he’d been luckier. The movie left me wondering what goodness I might be missing, in the people I encounter. I could be missing a lot of bad, too; I’m Thinking of Ending Things doesn’t shy away from how much social invisibility hurts Jake. He’s not a bad man, but he is a damaged one.
By the end, we can see him whole, good and bad. It’s confusing, that karmic mixture, because we like to see clear-cut heroes and villains in our stories. When we don’t, it’s ourselves we begin to see, good and bad." (Jeremy Adam Smith, Greater Good)
What are you reading, listening to and watching? Or what do you recommend? Please share in the comments!
I first read of this idea, "What I'm Into" for a blog post from Deanna's blog,
Tea With Dee - and loved it! I believe the originator behind this idea is Leigh
from Hopeful Leigh. What a great way to learn more about the person behind the blog,
plus catch up a bit on what's been going on in their life for the month.
So even though it's not really the end of August, I figured the 26th was close enough.
Celebrations ~ We had two celebrations this month, but combined them into one party - Tim's going away to university and my birthday. You can read about the party here.
Around My Home ~ Always working on a project or two (or more)...I'm painting a nightstand; weeding through a ton of cut-out recipes and putting lots of them in the recyling bin; gathering household items and seldom-worn summer clothes to donate; last week made extra food and baked goodies to bring to Tim's new house yesterday (it was so good to see my "baby"!); masking off Tim's room so we can start priming the walls; working on a mini scrapbook for a friend's birthday; and maintaining all my outdoor plants and flowers, especially now that the heat and humidity have hit us hard.
Reading (Books, Magazines, Blogs) ~ Just finishing up the short novel, So Long, See You Tomorrow. You can follow me on Goodreads! I also have a stack of magazines I've been going through. I was almost to the end of the stack and picked up 5 more magazines at Savers today. I got all 5 of them for under $1.
When I was in Barnes and Noble last week and was looking through magazines, I was drawn to these photos:
I love gallery walls, and this one is no exception...
Always looking for ideas to decorate the inside of my fireplace in the warmer months...
I've always loved cottage decorating, but recently I'm finding myself drawn to
mid-century modern. Love this collection of glassware...
If you're not familiar with the blog, Down to Earth - you should be. Rhonda is from Australia, lives "simple" and has a ton of great ideas and thoughts. She's even written and published a book! You can join in on the forums on her blog:
"You'll
meet people from all over the world who are living simply, or trying
to. There are discussions about baking bread, making soap, vegetable
gardening, cooking, chickens, housework, home maintenance, crafts,
paying off debt, budgeting and life in general. We're a supportive and
helpful bunch and we'd like to meet you."
Watching (Movies, TV) ~ I have never been much of a movie or TV watcher, so nothing to report there. But after hearing about two new series on Netflix - House of Cards and Orange is the New Black - I decided to check them out. I couldn't get into House of Cards, but OITNB? Wow. The premise is a women's federal prison and the main character is sentenced to 15 months for carrying a suitcase full of drug money. The acting is fantastic and the characters amazing, terrifying, funny, and real. A heads-up: This is definitely an adults-only series. There's nudity, sex, and some foul language. Check out more details on this series from Wikipedia.
Food (Recipes, Groceries, Restaurants) ~ I made healthy, light dinners every night last week and now I'm kind of burnt out - of gumption AND ideas. Not to mention this entire week will be in the 90's, so I'm not turning on the oven nor do I want to be standing over the stove-top for too long. And when the weather is hot, I just don't feel like eating hot, heavy food, such as from a slow cooker. I'm fine with salads and things like an assortment of raw veggies, hummus, grapes and maybe some healthy-type crackers, but I feel like the husband needs a little more. So I'm still wracking my brains on this one for the week. Maybe we'll have BLT's one night and a breakfast dinner (scrambled eggs, toast, fruit) another night. There we go - two ideas down! When we were visiting Tim at his new place yesterday, we all went out to dinner at a pub-type restaurant. I had a chicken club wrap and only ate half, so the other half went with Brian today to work for his lunch.
Out & About ~ I seem to have a lot of that and usually write about it on my blog as it happens. One of my favorite days this month was thrifting with my mom and aunt. Another weekend day was spent moving Tim into his new place - and the next day, enjoying a hike in the State Park with Brian. On the 31st, me, my mom, and aunt are hoping to take a train ride into downtown Chicago to visit Millenium Park and go window shopping on The Magnificent Mile . Today, a friend took me to Savers with her.
Special Moments ~ Off the top of my head (I don't track these; maybe I should do so)...evening walks with Brian after dinner; catching up with a neighbor we haven't talked to in awhile; admiring another neighbor's beautiful front yard gardens; visiting Tim at his new place yesterday and seeing how well he was doing.
What have you been into this month...projects, outings, readings, blessings,
special moments, anything new you've discovered? I'd love to hear about it!
