April has flown right by! Hops baseball season began at the beginning of the month in our brand new stadium (it’s amazing, come join us for a game!) and the weather is starting to get warm enough that Cliff and I can spend more time outside running around the yard, reading, and enjoying some free vitamin D for a change. Here’s a few things that got me through the month…

Reading

I picked up Lake Effect at the library at the beginning of the month and really enjoyed it. It’s about a neighborhood of families in the 70’s and how their lives are all intertwined. It was a good spring read. Like everyone else I finally read The Correspondent and it is as great as everyone said it was! I love a good curmudgeon and this one does not disappoint!

I just finished The Heir Apparent which showed up on my library holds list last week, and it was the perfect weekend read while traveling. I may have stayed up too late last night finishing this book, it was that good!

I also listened to Strangers a memoir from Belle Burden about her 20+ year marriage that dissolves at the beginning of the pandemic. I watch a LOT of “rich people behaving badly” tv (and books for that matter), so this memoir wasn’t as shocking to me as it seems to be to the rest of the book world. If you like to read about rich New Yorkers problems, you would enjoy this one.

Listening

Adults in the Room was a fantastic podcast, and incredibly hard to listen to. It’s insane how our parents just trusted teachers and school administration in the 90’s. I then zipped right through The Idiot from Serial Podcasts and it was wild. The reporter is right, his cousin is an idiot every step of the way. Just listen.

I am now half way through The Secret World of Roald Dahl and it’s fascinating! I remember hearing at some point that he was more like the bullies in his books than the children, but YOWZA, his story is bonkers and I still can’t figure out if I feel sad for him or if he’s an ass.

Watching

I know what you’re thinking – now that Shrinking is done for the season what will I watch? The answer is easy: Rooster. First off, that was an amazing season of Shrinking, and I am curious where the next season start. Rooster is by the same creator (Bill Lawrence who also did Ted Lasso) and it’s about Steve Carell as a visiting author at a college that his daughter also teaches at. It’s so funny and smart and sweet. Someone on Threads the other day mentioned that Alice (on Shrinking) needs to go to the college on Rooster so we can have the cross over series we all need. They are correct.

Hacks is back for it’s final season and I am so happy to have these insane characters back in my life. I am also loving the new season of Your Friends and Neighbors, and James Marsden was an EXCELLENT choice to bring to the neighborhood drama this season. I have started The Testaments and loving it so far, even though it’s always hard to be back in Gilead.

This season of Top Chef is really great and fascinating to watch Kristin Kish host with such humanity for the contestants. There was a great story in the New York Times this weekend about the show and its humanity. Gift link here for you. Finally, if you aren’t watching SNL UK, this is your sign to do so. This past weekend had Nicola Coughlan and Foo Fighters and it was so funny, even if Jimmy Fallon showed up.

What pop culture have you been enjoying lately? what are you looking forward to as we head into the warmer months and a holiday weekend?

Well, March was a real crap sandwich over here. Lots of sadness and snuggles, not much ability to focus, and what little capacity I’ve had has been mostly focused on clients and local political work. I’m grateful the sun is coming out and warming things up so I can spend more time with Cliff in the yard running arond and enjoying the fresh air. Here’s a couple things that helped distract me this month.

Reading

I really couldn’t focus much, but on my flight to DC earlier this month I was able to listen to Lisa Rinna’s new memoir – You Better Believe I’m Gonna Talk About It. I really wasn’t sure I’d like it but I do love RHOBH and behind the scenes gossip, and this one had some of that. What was actually great was the talk about her marriage and career and her ability to hustle to make ends meet when life took unexpected turns. Bonus – she’s an Oregonian which is always a good sign!

Late last month I picked up I’ll Have What He’s Having and had a hard time focusing on it. Luckily this past weekend was warm enough to sit outside and enjoy a change of scenery. I was able to zip through the rest of this very sweet and funny book! The book also has “A Guide to Pairing Muppet Movies and Wines.” I had no idea I needed this in my life, but it happened and I am a happier person for it! I’ll read more from this author.

Listening

Similar vibes with my podcast listening this month, I couldn’t get into it much, even the daily news podcasts have been a slog. I am really liking Adults in the Room which is based on Seattle on a story I completely missed in the last 90’s (college will do that). If you’ve lived in the Pacific Northwest or grew up in the 80/90’s with questionable restrictions around student/teacher relationships – this is a podcast to check out.

I started The Idiot, from Serial productions over the weekend and wow this guy is a piece of work! The interviews are fascinating and his incompetence at a botched murder to hire plot is bonkers.

Besides that I’m listening to the new Harry Styles album, more Gorillaz thanks to their SNL appearance, and as always: Yacht Rock.

Watching

Thankfully we’re in that winter sappy romances you don’t really have to pay close attention to, but also no judgement if you do, along with some reality TV to keep things going.

What I’m really loving is all the drama with the cancellation of The Bachelorette, a show I have successfully never watched, WHILE finishing up the latest season of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives which is all about the bachelorette preparing for the show. This story really says a lot about how we treat reality TV stars who are clearly in a mental health crisis and need support not spotlights. Lisa Rinna’s book had some good thoughts on this.

Shows I am loving and can’t wait to watch each week include… Shrinking, The Pitt, and Rooster. Rooster is off to a great start – I am glad it’s arrived since Shrinking wraps up way too soon for me. I’m also loving the new season of Top Chef and SNL UK is off to a great start this season!

Okay, a few bright spots in a rough month. I hope you had better pop culture inspiration than I did, hoping to get back into the swing of things in April!

February was a weird pop culture month for me. I finished a book, couldn’t get motivated to start reading anything else, and mostly just binged the Olympics (everyone watches women’s sports!) and took care of a sick pup. Here’s a few things that kept me going (besides curling) and Crossplay.

Live Theatre

I started off the month seeing The Wiz in Portland with a friend. This is obviously the best version of The Wizard of Oz (well, except for maybe Ted Lasso) with such fantastic music! I haven’t seen the show in ages and it was very fun for all.

The next weekend we had a double date down to Salem to see Nick Offerman on his Big Woodchuck tour. It was VERY fun – in fact his shop manager joined him on tour and built a project from their book during the show. It was VERY fun!

Reading

I finished reading Notes on Infinity this month and it was really good. I feel like maybe I need to have a been a bit closer to college (or in that world) to get a few of the assumed acronyms, but the story was great. It had a very Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow vibe mixed with Elizabeth Holmes and the Theranos story.

I can’t get excited to read right now. I know, it’s the dead of winter (or something like that in the PNW) – I am hoping that a flight to DC next month will help me get out of this funk. Clearly I need a vacation or some warm sunny weather to sit outside!

I am excited to attend the Hillsboro Reads event next month where the book this year is Tilt which I really enjoyed! If you’re looking for a fast and thoughtful read, this is it!

Listening

Nothing too exciting this month, Carol Burnett on Good Hang was fantastic, and the Jonathan Groff episode made me laugh more than once! I also really appreciated the Wirecutter episodes about Making coffee (brewing) and how to buy beans. It made me think more about where my beans come from and when and how I grind them. It may need a re-listen to make sure I got it all before I start spending money on expensive equipment I have clearly lived without…

Watching

Like most of the world I started the month with the Olympics, enjoyed a Benito Bowl distraction (hooray Seahawks!) and have spent the last couple of weeks trying to figure out curling, and enjoying way too much bobsled and luge!

But, every once in a while we needed a break, and I am grateful that The Pitt is back, and that this season of Shrinking has started and is PERFECT. I also finally started watching The Burbs, we all know that Keke Palmer is amazing, and the cast on this show is bonkers great. Great actors getting to be funny and awkward and weird is always a good mix for me.

Okay, what pop culture have you enjoyed this month? What gets you out of a pop culture (or seasonal?) funk? What are you getting excited for this spring?