I don’t know if I’ve ever watched as many movies in a month as I have in the past few weeks. From a girls trip to the mountains to a long holiday weekend with lots of holiday movies to enjoy, I feel like the pop culture part of me that lacks, has finally caught up! I hope you had a great Thanksgiving holiday and that it was filled with some great pop culture moments. Here’s a few of my favorites from the past month.

Reading

I had planned to read on my girls weekend, but instead we watched a bunch of movies which was glorious. I did finally get back into audiobook mode and listened to I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy. I had heard about this book over the summer and was intrigued even though I didn’t know anything about the actress. There are a myriad of trigger warnings for this book, so please be warned it isn’t for everyone. If you’re fascinated by the rise of a child star (Jennette was on iCarly which I never watched) and want to read a very very personal and candid account of their upbringing by one of the top 5 worst parents I’ve ever read about, I highly recommend this book.  I listened to the latest episode of Keep It (a podcast I keep telling you to listen to) and they talked about celebrity memoirs (my favorite) and what makes a good one. If you enjoy a good celebrity memoir (and we all know I do!) this was a great podcast that discusses McCurdy’s book and talks about what makes a good celebrity memoir (which evidently Matthew Perry’s is NOT).

Thanksgiving weekend finally was the time and space I needed to pick up a book and start reading again. I’m almost finished with Drunk in Love, a contemporary romance that I’ve heard great things about. It’s a quick and fun read, just what I needed this weekend.

Listening

You know what’s a great idea when you’re running a state level campaign? Going to see Lizzo 4 days before the election! As expected, Lizzo is an AMAZING performer in person and the concert was incredible. It was exactly the night out that I needed with friends and the album continues to be on repeat over here.

I know I jumped the line on podcasts above, but last weeks Keep It introduced me to Celebrity Book Club, and of course the first episode I’m listening to is about I’m Glad My Mom Died! 

I have ONE episode left of Ultra the new Rachel Maddow podcast. It is BONKERS to learn that this wasn’t the first attempt to over throw the government in the last 100 years…

I finally listened to We Were Three from Serial. It was an interesting and sad story about a broken family that was torn apart during COVID and the rise of disinformation. Lots of trigger warnings here too and they aren’t well warned I felt (just a heads up!) I was excited for the bonus episode of Burn Wild and happy to hear the judges ruling and an update from one of the main characters.

Watching

I get that the new season of White Lotus is different than the last, but I am still really enjoying how weird and intertwined it is. For a complete 180 I am thrilled that Yellowstone is finally back! The second episode was emotionally draining but I am still excited to see where this season goes. I am also thrilled for the return of The Sex Lives of College Girls, one of the funniest shows of last year.

I watched a bunch of movies on my girls weekend, and highly recommend Fire Island, Where the Crawdads Sing (the book was better, but it was still really good!) and I think I recommend Don’t Worry, Darling. I mean, what even was that movie? Was it a good movie with bad editing or just a bad movie? If you’re at all curious about the movie, you should watch it. And then call me after and we can discuss.

I jumped into the holiday movie spirit this weekend and Bad Moms Christmas will never not be funny to me, it’s so dang great. Speaking of KBell – The People We Hate At The Wedding was a funny holiday weekend watch, although not a Christmas movie.  We watched Christmas Vacation with friends in the theater which was a super fun holiday kickoff activity that we will hopefully continue for years to come! If you missed Single All the Way on Netflix last year, there’s no time like the present!

Alright! What got you through Thanksgiving and November? What are you excited for in this final month of 2022? I can’t wait to hear…

With just over a week until the election, my pop culture habits are more important than ever to keep me sane and provide an escape from the chaos of politics. The change in weather also means a change in how and where I consume my pop culture, as you’ll see from the one book I made it through this month…

Reading

We took a (much needed and maybe not great timing) trip down to Palm Springs earlier this month for a fun get away with friends. I didn’t get as much reading done as I had hoped but I LOVED More Than You’ll Ever Know. It goes back and forth between a journalist and the woman she’s writing about who had two husbands (at the same time) and one husband killed the other. It’s a great story and I loved the back and forth narration and the mystery of it. I head out of town for a girls weekend after the election and look forward to getting back on track with my reading for the year. 

Listening

I haven’t been able to focus on an audiobook since early  September, but I have been blazing through podcasts. The latest episode of into it “The Abortion Episode” is FANTASTIC and the pitch for a Parks & Rec style show set in an abortion clinic is something I need to have happen ASAP. Trust me, listen to this.

I am obsessed with Ultra from Rachel Maddow. It’s a crazy story I didn’t know, and based on how well it parallels current politics I’m surprised it hasn’t come up sooner. Burn Wild has been another fantastic series from Leah Sotille, and listening to the story set in Oregon has been fascinating to me. I’m also glad The Daily has had some fantastic reporting and explainer episodes lately.

Watching

I really enjoyed SheHulk: Attorney at Law especially because Tatiana Maslany is such an awesome actress (see Orphan Black). The fourth wall breaking in the finale was insane. “This can’t possibly be where this season was going” and KEVIN, were perfect.

Reboot on Hulu was a great show with a clever premise with an awesome cast. Bad Sisters was a great series and I loved the finale. I don’t think they need another season but I would watch these sisters do just about anything together. 

My husband is a HUGE This Old House fan so of course we watched The House that Norm Built, the retirement celebration episode! I have seen the Ask This Old House episode where they install a garbage disposal so many times, I am certain I could do it. I thought we (finally) broke ours last month and was disappointed when my husband fixed it and I didn’t get my chance. It’ll happen.

A few weeks ago I read a story in the New York Times about Empress Elisabeth of Austria and the new show on Netflix about her. The Empress is a slow burn story about this woman but I am really liking it and can’t wait for more seasons as she becomes more of a recluse…

That’s what’s getting me through this month, I’m looking forward to catching up post election season and into the holidays! What got you through the past month?

The heat kept up in September around Oregon – and while I enjoy the extra time outside, the days are getting a bit shorter and I can feel that spider infested fall air on its way… This month, a few things kept me going between work, dog walks and campaign activities.

Reading

I listened to Invisible Storm by Jason Kander and I thought it was fantastic. Why would I care about a soldier with PTSD? I’ve followed Kander’s career since he went viral a few years back and his podcast is on regular rotation. Listening to his story was inspiring. Whether you have served or have family or friends who have served in the military this was such an interesting and thoughtful story. I especially appreciated that his wife is a part of the book sharing her side of the stories.

I read The Family Upstairs when it came out and remembered it being a good British mystery. So when I heard the story continues in The Family Remains I was excited to pick this up for a great end of summer read. I am glad that you can read this as a stand alone book – I needed a LOT of reminders as to what happened in the first book. Lisa Jewell is a prolific writer and I need to go read more of her, you know, when all those stacks die down…

A couple of people I like recommended Small Things Like These and they were correct. It was a beautiful short story (novella? it’s 115 pages…) that takes place in Ireland in the 1980’s. It’s a part of history I wasn’t aware of and (as usual) furious it lasted as long as it did.

Listening

After I finished Invisible Storm I haven’t been in an audiobook mood – too many good podcasts! Somewhere I read about Will Be Wild which is a great series that came out last spring about January 6th and the people involved in it. Fascinating listen, a good compliment to the January 6th Hearings if that’s your thing. Like the rest of the podcast world I listened to the Serial update after the release of Adnan Syed. Wow, I am so happy for him and his family. I appreciated the explanation of WHY this finally happened. My favorite journalist (we all have one right?) Leah Sotille has a new podcast out about the Earth Liberation Front (yup). Burn Wild is a fascinating story and includes a lot of ELF efforts (that’s not the right word is it?) throughout the Pacific Northwest that I wasn’t paying attention to.

Watching

I’m not going to lie, I am exhausted at the end of the day lately and so mindless, easy TV is at the top of my list. She-Hulk Attorney at Law is such a fun show and exactly the kind of entertainment I need right now. I’ve been catching up on Selena+Chef on HBO Max which is a very fun cooking show. Not all chefs are good instructors and this show is fun to watch them handle that. When I can muster energy it all goes to Bad Sisters on Apple+. It is FANTASTIC. If you watched Catastrophe with Sharon Horgan a few years ago, this is for you. The shows are NOTHING like each other but Horgan created both and her dark humor is all over it.

Reboot on Hulu is hilarious and exactly what I needed this fall while waiting for new episodes of Abbot Elementary. I am also still catching up on Reservation Dogs, which is again amazing. I will slowly make my way through the latest season of The Handmaids Tale, very, very, slowly.

I got my COVID booster AND my flu shot on the same day (might as well get it done!) and spent the next day on the couch. I finally watched Chip & Dale: Rescue Rangers which was a very funny and clever movie. It was perfect for this fan of the  cartoon growing up. I then binged (seriously, didn’t leave the couch all afternoon/evening, we ordered Chinese food and I was in bed before 10) Uncoupling the Neil Patrick Harris show on Netflix. It was a good binge when you don’t have the energy to focus on all the details.

You know I’ve been obsessed with the Lori Vallow/Chad Daybell story, from the book to podcasts, so of course the new Netflix series (only 3 episodes, come on!) Sins of Our Mother was a great way to learn the story, and they interviewed her oldest son which was a fascinating dimension to all the media I’ve consumed on this story. Read the book but this might be the push you need to want to learn more.