May seemed to fly by faster than April did. Maybe it was that we turned our backyard into a dog park for Norm & Cliff so are enjoying more time outside. The warmer weather also helped. Pop culture continues to keep me sane this month. Thanks to attending another Bookish Happy Hour with the library this week my list of “to reads” is getting longer and longer…Here’s a few of my favorite pop culture finds over the past month. Please make sure to share yours in the comments – I am always up for new recommendations!

Reading

Becoming RBG was a nice graphic novel about Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s life. It was a gift from my dad and I’m not sure if he knew it was more of a young reader book, but it was fun to read her story and I’m happy to share it with kiddos in my life who need to learn about this hero. I then ready a very NOT child friendly graphic novel – November Volume I, by Portland comic book writer Matt Fraction. It’s a weird story but I liked it enough that I’ll complete the trilogy.

On vacation with a friend last year she handed me The Nest when she finished reading it. I figured now was a good time for a light and easy “beach read.” It’s a good story with some nice twists to it. Nothing amazing to write home about, but it was the easy read I needed after finally finishing The Starless Sea last month. I have a lot of other books on my shelf to read, but also a long list of new books I need to find. Might be time to finally do curbside pickup at Powell’s (I really need the library to open)…

Listening

I have a friend who has similar podcast taste and he texted me a few weeks ago to recommend We Crashed, about the rise and fall of WeWork. It was FASCINATING. I’d heard pieces of the story but hadn’t heard it all. If you like a good “guy sounds like a massive tool and gets his comeuppance” kind of story, this is it. It’s only 6 episodes and it’s really fascinating.

Now I’m in the midst of Wind of Change, an investigative series into whether the CIA wrote the hit power ballad by The Scorpions at the end of the Cold War. I’m learning a TON about the CIA during the cold war and the story is BANANAS. It’s still going on because I refuse to download Spotify to binge it. But that will probably change soon enough…

The Daily episode a few weeks ago about the Murder Hornets was fascinating if you’re curious what’s going on there. This weeks episode about USPS was really helpful too. And I’m grateful for Think Out Loud and OPB Politics Now for helping to keep us up to date in Oregon on reopening and our May election!

Games

I don’t usually talk about my obsession with the NYT Crossword mini, but it’s a thing. Last month I also discovered Tiles on the New York Times app and it is such a calming, zen like game to play. You can pay for the game app or play tiles 8 times a day for free. So far that’s been enough for me.

Last week one of my all time favorite pop culture writers, Whitney Matheson, mentioned a new app called I Love Hue Too. It is my new obsession (and probably why I should rewatch Upload, I was two screening with the game). It takes color hues and mixes up the pattern so you have to put it back. Again, it’s super soothing and zen like. I’m. Obsessed.

Watching

We finally finished Ozark and it was SO GOOD. If you need a good series right now that’s SUPER dark but a great story, this is it. We could only watch one episode a day – it was a lot to process. And I am grateful that my clients are so much easier to manage than Helen’s.

A few people had recommended Never Have I Ever on Netflix and it was SO GREAT. It’s produced by Mindy Kaling and a very smart show about an Indian American  teenager growing up in LA. The voiceover is John McEnroe, which makes NO sense but really ties the show together. Trust me. It’s awesome. I’m also enjoying #blackAF if only because Rashida Jones is so great. I tried a couple of episodes of Hollywood on Netflix and couldn’t get into it. It’s just not my jam, but if you like Ryan Murphy you may enjoy it.

Over on Hulu I devoured Mrs. America. I know it’s a fictionalized account of some characters but I learned a lot about everything that was going on during the Equal Rights Amendment work in the 70’s. I thought it wrapped up nicely.

I blew right through Run on HBO, with just 7 half hour episodes it’s a light and easy show. I love Merritt Weaver which won over my aversion to “hey lets have an affair” kind of shows. It’s just weird enough with some good twists I kept with it. And it’s all worth it for a very ridiculous minor character late in the series.

The best thing that happened over the past month was on April 30th – A Parks and Recreation Special. It was EXACTLY what I needed during quarantine. What is Leslie Knope doing? What do her binders say? I was SO HAPPY, and yeah I cried at the end. It also got me thinking about what other fictional towns and characters are doing right now. My friend and I went down a wild Gilmore Girls quarantine fan faction hole that we really should have shared with the internet.

The other day my brother suggested I check out Upload on Amazon Prime, and so I binged that this week. It was a clever show by Greg Daniels (creator/EP of The Office & Parks & Rec). It has a similar but different vibe to The Good Place – what if right before you die you could “upload” and then still communicate with your loved ones on earth? There’s a good mystery to it and the female lead, Nora, is an actress I hope I see for years to come!

That’s the pop culture that has kept me sane this past month, what about you? I’m excited for more warm days ahead to spend time outside with my pups and making a dent in my bookshelf and the laundry lists of books I want to read…

Stay Healthy, Stay Sane, Walk Your Dog…

Consuming pop culture in a pandemic is weird. Sometimes it’s great, but I am noticing the changes to my pop culture habits this past month. I can’t watch too much “dark” TV, news podcasts are fewer and further in between and books better be entertaining and escapist for me right now. What pop culture habits have you seen change over the past year month? Here’s a few things that got me through…

Reading

I FINALLY finished The Starless Sea and I didn’t like it. I mean, it was fine but it needed to be read on vacation over a couple of days where you could continue to pay attention to who was who and what all that flowery language in the beginning was referencing in the end of the book. I posted a comment on my Instagram and had multiple people agree and a few who actually loved it. I think those that enjoyed it were able to consume it in less than 3 months. So, take that note if you pick up the book (or want my copy – happy to pass it along!)

Inheritance by Dani Shapiro was my Pandemic Book Club book and it was a much easier read! Shapiro discovers through a DNA test that her father wasn’t her biological father. It was a fascinating story about a woman who’s parents had both passed away without sharing their secret. It’s a really interesting story. Fun fact – my dad was adopted and his birth family found him about 14 years ago. Somehow I find his story (and his birth mother’s) more interesting (big surprise). Still if you love a good WTF happened? this is worth it!

I’m not sure what’s up next – I need the weather to warm up. I have a stack of books on the table to get through, plus a bunch of new recommendations thanks to the library. Fun fact – my library does a Book-ish Happy Hour each week, which is now on Zoom (and open to anyone from anywhere!) if you’re stuck on what to read next, they can help! It’s low key and a smaller group so you get lots of great ideas tailored to you! Also – check out your own library, they might be almost as awesome as mine 😉

Listening

I’ve been catching up with Think Out Loud an OPB podcast with local news stories each day. It’s been a good way to keep up on local/state news especially with an upcoming election in May! I also appreciate OPB Politics Now for keeping me up to date. Family Secrets from Dani Shapiro (or Inheritance fame earlier in this blog post) has a GREAT podcast where people tell you about their crazy family secrets. Most of them have books or have written/spoken of their stories in other venues but man alive they’re crazy fascinating stories if you like that kind of thing (and I do!)

I’m also listening to more Steely Dan than usual (thanks dad?), the Trolls World Tour soundtrack is pretty great and other random pop music that keeps me moving.

Watching

My husband and I making our way through Ozark right now which is a REALLY good but hella dark show. We’re good for one episode at a time and we don’t make it every night. We’re about to start S3 so should be done by my next round up to fully discuss – which I know my in-laws can’t wait for either.

I mostly sobbed through the Schitts Creek finale, it was so fantastic. I did finally watch the Best Wishes, Warmest Regards documentary about the final season and it was lovely and man that show is so good. As per the usual, we’re on a Parks & Rec loop and can’t WAIT for the special episode tonight!

I LOVED Little Fires Everywhere, wow that was fantastic. It was weird to watch a show set while I was also in high school, so relating to the adults AND kids was kind of weird. It was great. If you have Hulu jump on this show! I’m also enjoying Mrs. America on Hulu. I didn’t know the story of Phylis Schlafley and really not a ton about the ERA work and who all was involved with it, so I tend to learn something new each episode.

The SNL at Home episodes have been weird, but I’ve appreciated them. They’re trying something that I think a LOT more shows are going to have to figure out in the coming months. I was sad the Gretchen Whitmer sketch was cut for time last week, it was so great!

I really enjoyed this season of Brooklyn 99 – the dance number in the finale was FANTASTIC. Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist continues to be the perfect show for right now. Trust me, watch it. Also, both seasons of New York & Beverly Hills Housewives are keeping me sane. There’s nothing better than a bunch of crazy rich women who have no idea what’s coming complaining about NOTHING. My husband and I are also grateful for the return of Top Chef, although it REALLY has us missing going out for dinner. I miss restaurants and not having to clean up after dinner…

The other day my brother texted the family to demand we all start watching Never Have I Ever, and he was right, it’s AWESOME. We only watched the pilot but we’ll binge the rest over the next week or so – it’s the kind of show we need right now! Plus, John McEnroe does the voice over which is super random for a show about an Indian American teenage girl…

Okay, that’s it for the month – what pop culture is saving you and your quarantine companions lately?

I finally read a book! I was on quite the dry spell this winter and I am SO happy to say I read a book – and I read it in 3 days which is really fast for me. YAY ME. Here’s what I read, plus my other favorite pop culture distractions this month…

Reading

I read The Family Upstairs last weekend. It’s a book I heard about a few months ago from Entertainment Weekly (I think that’s where I heard about it…) it’s about a woman who inherits a large home in London on her 25th birthday. She was adopted and she finally discovers who her birth family is. It has two of my favorite topics – adoption AND cults. It was a fun quick read!

I also caught up on some comics while we were at the coast earlier this month. Brian K. Vaughn did a stand alone The Walking Dead comic called The Alien that was a quick read. It was good, not great, but did tie in well to the story as a whole. I also finished Kelly Thompson’s Sabrina the Teenage Witch, it was cute but not amazing (which she often is -I read most of her comics).

I’m 150 pages into The Starless Sea. I really like the current day story but it alternates with a book (one chapter about a person in the present, the next about a book they have) that is a SLOG to get through. I was talking with a librarian last week and she agreed that it’s a really hard read. I trust the author (she wrote The Night Circus which I LOVED) but man alive is it a challenge to read…

Listening

Justin Timberlake and SZA just came out with a new single for the Trolls: World Tour soundtrack and I am here for it all spring and summer…

I am really enjoying the latest single from the Jonas Brothers – What a Man Gotta Do. I never expected to be a Jonas Brothers fan but here we are. Also – if you missed the Seth & the Jonas Brothers go day drinking last month on Late Night it was worth the time. And has my new favorite musical rhyme. Please let me know what you think it is after you watch.

I’m listening to 30 for 30 – The Spy who Signed Me and it is a really weird story and mostly is a great reminder that female athletes are paid TERRIBLY and we need to stop that.

I’m enjoying (when their audio is level) Capitolizing which is a very niche podcast – it’s 2 Oregon State Senators who recap what’s going on in the capitol each week. I just discovered it and it’s nice to get some inside scoop. I’m also listening to a LOT of Politics Now and Think Out Loud as Oregon is in the midst of our 35 day short session and the Republicans walked out (seriously – they left the state and bragged about their tickets to somewhere warm…) on Monday so there’s a LOT to keep up with.

And I was ON a podcast this month! Digital Marketing Masters had me on their pod to talk about email marketing for small business owners. We also talked about HillHub and the Hillsboro Chambers Small Business & Entrepreneurs Council. It was fun and worth a listen if you miss the sound of my voice.

Watching

I finally started watching The Outsider on HBO and it is SO GOOD. The PI is an amazing actor and the story is so creepy – I can’t watch it late at night I’ve discovered. I also watched the pilot of Locke & Key which is based on a comic book series by Joe Hill (Stephen King’s son – also Stephen King wrote the book The Outsider is based on) and it was super fun. More family oriented in its mystery but I enjoyed the pilot and will binge the rest soon.

I watched the pilot of Briarpatch and enjoyed it, now to keep going. I didn’t love the pilot for Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist but my friend emailed me about it a month ago when the pilot aired and so I decided to try the next couple of episodes. I’m caught up (through ep 3) and I have to say – I am really liking it! I tried the pilot of High Fidelity (on Hulu) and couldn’t get into it. I like the movie and Zoe Kravitz though, if you continue to watch and like it please let me know!

This final season of Schitts Creek is so great. I need a case of Moira Rose please…

While at the coast my husband and I finally watched The Battered Bastards of Baseball which is about the Portland Mavericks – an independent baseball team in the late 70’s. It is a crazy fun story. If you live in the region you should watch it. And if you like baseball and live anywhere in the world you should watch it. They had their own dog ball boy, this team was so great…

A couple of weeks ago I recorded Date Night (yes the Tina Fey/Steve Carrell movie) and it holds up. It was the perfect Valentine’s Day movie my husband and I discovered. Speaking of older movies – last weekend I finally watched The Campaign (from 2012 with Will Ferrell) and it is ridiculous and hilarious and was a perfect Friday night movie with friends.

Okay, I think that was enough pop culture for one month. What kept you entertained and distracted from politics and coronavirus free this month?