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My Top 12 Pop Culture Finds of 2024

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For the past few years I have done a top 10 list of my favorite books, TV shows, and things I listened to. 2024 was a very different year for me and I consumed less pop culture, thanks to the campaign, politics, the writers strike, and life. So this year, I am wrapping up 2024 with my top 5 favorite books, top 5 favorite TV shows, my favorite podcast, and a bucket list concert experience.

My Favorite Podcast

Why yes I am still thinking about The Good Whale from NYT and Serial podcasts. It was an incredible story told well. I binged it, but for those listening week by week I am hearing great gasps at episode five, which now includes a music video!

My Top 5 Favorite Books

  1. The Husbands – Quirky and smart and romantic and fun.
  2. If You Can’t Stand the Heat – the author is hilarious and thoughtful and so is this book.
  3. The Divorcees – I still think about this historical fiction book and reference it more than I expected to.
  4. Greta & Valdin – Schitt’s Creek New Zealand edition. I loved it.
  5. From Here to the Great Unknown – Lisa Marie Presley’s memoir was a perfect audiobook option with recordings from Presley herself, Julia Roberts reading the memoir, and stories from Presley’s daughter Riley Keough read herself. The story was one I didn’t know past a few headlines and it was devastating and excellent.

My Top 5(ish) Favorite Shows

This was a year of distracting TV for me, shows that weren’t stressful and I could sit back and enjoy. In no particular order…

  1. Man on the Inside – Ted Danson is a delight and this show was exactly what I hoped for, I’m so excited it’s getting another season!
  2. Nobody Wants This – yes we did, might be time for a rewatch over the holidays, it’s that great.
  3. Somebody, Somewhere – I loved every episode of this series and all the time we were able to spend in Manhattan, KS with these incredible characters.
  4. Shrinking/Hacks/The Diplomat/Acapulco – These shows aren’t similar but they did all return this year and had great seasons that I have loved/am loving.
  5. Mr and Mrs Smith – I don’t know how they’ll top the first season but I do love the anthological nature of the series setup, and it was fantastic.

The Foo Fighters Concert

When you finally get to a bucket list show and it is even more fun than you expected – I can’t believe it took us so long to go to a Foo Fighters concert, I won’t miss them again!

November Pop Culture Round Up

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What a wild month November has been! From winning my election (hooray!) to escaping to the coast to celebrate (and sleep!) It’s been a busy month! Before we all head off and unplug for Thanksgiving, I have a great podcast series for the road trip, a great TV series to watch with your parents, and an audiobook suggestion to help you unplug and dream about food.

Reading

I mentioned last month that I didn’t read or listen to a single book in October. It was the first time in forever that I can remember not reading a book. I’m a little slow on the uptick again but I’m getting back into my groove. I started after the election with Stanley Tucci’s new memoir – What I Ate in One Year. It was DELICIOUS. Tucci’s voice is EXACTLY what I wanted to hear after the election as I re-entered reality. The book was a diary of what he ate (and where and with whom) for 2023. If you miss Searching for Italy this will help fill the void.

I was able to unplug and read while we were at the coast for a few days (and sleep, I slept so much it was glorious…) I enjoyed How to End a Love Story which is written by Yulin Kuang who is writing the screenplay for two upcoming Emily Henry books. I think we’re in good hands with her!

Listening

I was born and raised in Oregon and one of the greatest (I thought) stories that happened when I was a kid was bringing the orca from Free Willy to the Oregon Coast Aquarium to “save him” just like the movie. I had no idea what happened to Keiko, but luckily the folks at Serial (always a good podcast series!) were interested enough to create The Good Whale. The story is devastating. I had no idea how sad it would be, but also that so many people cared for this animal and truly wanted what was best for him. The series is perfect for your holiday road trip, older kids would like it too I think. And do NOT skip episode five, it is possibly the best podcast episode I have ever heard.

Watching

I will watch anything that Mike Schur does because he’s a genius. When I saw that Man on the Inside was his show I binged it in a weekend (honestly, if I’d planned better I could have done it in an evening!) Ted Danson is a national treasure and he is perfect as a widower who goes undercover at a retirement home to help figure out who stole something. The characters are wonderful, the story is lovely, and as always you’ll laugh a lot and also think about life more than you’d expect.

I loved the first season of The Diplomat and the second season did not disappoint! Make sure you watch the recap from season one, there’s a lot of names and places and actions that occurred in the first season you’ll be expected to remember. I’m not sure why we only got six episodes this season instead of eight but I’ll take what I can get from Keri Russell and her team!

A few more shows to recommend you catch up on this holiday season…Secret Lives of College Girls is back for a new season and it’s still great! This season of Shrinking is also wonderful, and I totally agree with this review of the show’s MVP of the season. You know I love the Real Housewives, and I am currently in the midst of New York, Salt Lake City and the new season of Beverly Hills just started. Somebody, Somewhere is so wonderful and I’ve talked about it before, this could be a perfect holiday binge watch show… My binge list this week includes Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, My Old Ass, Babes and catching up on the new season of Bad Sisters.

What pop culture are you excited for this holiday season?

October Pop Culture Round Up

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For the first time in as long as I can remember, I didn’t read a single book in October. Also, I have never had an October like this before! Running for office, every day has something new happening and my attention span is SHOT – I can barely focus on a Gilmore Girls rewatch. I did manage to catch a cold at the beginning of the month and read my first People magazine in years – the crossword continues to be a guilty pleasure. I did consume a bit of pop culture this month, here’s what is getting me to election day…

Listening

Last week I was able to get out for Name That Tune at a local watering hole with some friends. It was a great night and the theme was Classics (Pre 1980). I spent the day listening to Steely Dan in preparation and was disappointed they didn’t make an appearance. Who did make the list? Norman Greenbaum, Ziggy Stardust, and Eminem (the whole category was songs he sampled – clever…) It was a fun night, I will be back!

The Wirecutter Show, What a Day, Think Out Loud, The Daily, Pod Save America, Offline, and OPB Politics Now continue to fuel me through this election season. And I find myself turning it off for music or the radio more frequently…

Watching

I finished English Teacher on Hulu last week and it was so funny and smart and raunchier than expected. If you haven’t binged it yet, add that to your to do list on a rainy fall weekend! I just finished the latest season of Only Murders in the Building and the cameos and celebrity appearances were fantastically over the top. Plus – I am in full support of the rumor that Meryl Streep and Martin Short are dating, it’s adorable. Abbott Elementary, Shrinking, and Somebody, Somewhere are back and I couldn’t be happier about it! SNL is back and every single election year cameo is PERFECT!

Earlier this month we watched Will & Harper and it is as wonderful and kind and thoughtful as everyone is telling you. I can’t recommend watching it enough, I even believe it could be a good choice over the holiday with families if they’re SNL fans. Seth Meyers has a new special on HBO Dad Man Walking and I didn’t think a comedy special could be written specifically to my brother and nephews, but here we are. It was hilarious, I will be rewatching it more than once.

After the election we will run away for a few days to unplug and rest. I can’t wait. It will be lots of long walks, ignoring my phone, reading, and binging a few shows. I’m looking forward to it! What are you excited for in November? Any new pop culture you’re looking forward to? I can’t wait for the next season of Bad Sisters, the new season of The Diplomat and the new Marisa Pessl book Darkly.