August can be quiet when it comes to pop culture, but that seems to make it a great time to catch up on all that pop culture you’ve been meaning to get to. Or maybe that’s just me. I haven’t read as much as I’d like this month, but with a few road trips the podcasts are in full force and my Netflix queue is getting cleaned up this month!
Listening
When we were in Bend for my niece’s first birthday my brother recommended the ESPN 30 for 30 podcast. I’m not a big sports person, but sports stories (and the 30 for 30 series FYI) are great. I highly suggest The Queen of Sorts, a really great poker story…
I’m still really enjoying Ear Hustle and The Daily – which is becoming my go to podcast first thing in the morning. Due to the popularity of The Daily they’ve launched a new podcast that I’m also enjoying – The New Washington. The interview with Sarah Sanders was really interesting to me.
Reading
The older I get, the more I turn into my dad. Evidently this year that includes having multiple books going at the same time (a classic dad habit). On the book stack to take to the beach and finish by Labor Day are:
- David Sedaris’ diaries (it’s too easy to pick up and put down!)
- Fetch, a graphic novel about a woman and her dog that I’m really enjoying
- The Boy on the Bridge which I just started
- Fierce Kingdom – this was my latest Book of the Month and I haven’t started it yet but it’s next on the list
- Comics…I’m way behind on Outcast and I picked up a graphic novel called Rasputin I’m excited to check out.
Watching
Well that Game of Thrones finale sure was something! The juxtaposition of Bran’s big reveal with that scene on the boat was well executed but really high on the incest ICK factor for me. And holy ice dragon, WOW. WOW. WOW. I rewatched the entire season over the weekend and was glad I had so I was really ready for that finale. Waiting over a year for it’s return is going to be TORTURE.
I am really liking The Sinner on USA. It’s the Jessica Biel series about a woman who kills a guy she doesn’t know. I could do without Bill Pullman’s story line, but oh well. Also – I think the husband on the show must audition as “knock off Jon Snow” because he and Kit Harrington have to be related…
I’ve been on a streaming binge lately. I signed up for Hulu when The Handmaids Tale was on and discovered they have all of Happy Endings, which is a FABULOUS show! I just finished the rewatch of that series which holds up! I had heard great things about The Keepers so finally watched it. I don’t do well with sexual violence and molestation so half way through the second episode I was pretty sure I was out. But I kept with it and the way they wove the story together made you really really angry at a lot of people in authority in Baltimore. I had seen a preview for Atypical on Netflix and was happy when it arrived a couple of weeks ago. It is FANTASTIC. It’s clever and real and very funny. I love the ridiculousness of Wet Hot American Summer and the 10 year reunion had the stupidest ending yet, but the Adam Scott joke never got old! And I just rewatched one of my favorite new shows from last year The Good Place which is now on Netflix. If you never watched it, please get on that this holiday weekend!
I’ve been watching a few of the Princess Diana specials. The ABC one was really interesting and I didn’t remember, or know, a lot of things that happened and I don’t think I ever realized how incredibly young she was when she married Prince Charles or how large their age difference was. WOW.
Leah Remini‘s Scientology series has returned and continues to infuriate me (especially after finishing The Keepers), but it is very well done and fascinating. SNL’s Weekend Update Summer Edition has been exactly what I needed this August.
I know I should be excited for the return of Will & Grace this fall, but that series finale was so final that I’m ticked they’re going to pretend it didn’t happen…
What pop culture is getting you through the dog days of summer?
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