This chilly fall air has me cozied up inside, but luckily earlier this month was warmer than expected for a little more outside reading time. I hope you’ve made the most of October, since we know what’s ahead. Here’s a few things I’ve enjoyed this month…

Reading

I absolutely LOVED Transcendent Kingdom. I will officially read everything Yaa Gyasi writes. Homegoing is the best book I’ve read in 2020 – I loved it so much I bought 4 copies to give as gifts this holiday season. Transcendent Kingdom was a very different story but I appreciated the struggles of the main character with her family and how frankly they wrote about addiction and depression.

The best graphic novel I have read this year is They Called Us Enemy –  George Takei’s graphic memoir about his childhood in internment camps. My official Goodreads review was: “Buy it. Read it. Share it with your children. This country will never learn from our mistakes If we never learn the horrible things we’ve done.” We have GOT to start learning from the horrible things this country has done, or we will continue to do them.

I also picked up A Very Punchable Face from the library. It’s Colin Jost’s memoir and if you appreciate him on SNL, you will laugh a LOT. Multiple times there were tears streaming down my face from laughing so hard. It was the EXACT mental health treat I needed this close to the election.

I’m not sure what’s next up on my list, I think there’s one or two things on hold at the library and I still need to read any one of the books I on my shelf I’ve recently purchased or that never ending comic book stack…

Listening

I’m in a bit of news and election overwhelm so I’ve been a little more particular with my podcasts this month. I really appreciated the Pod Save America interview with Obama a few weeks ago. I continue to listen to What a Day to stay on top of it all too. The Daily episode (10/6) on “How a Small Bar Battled to Survive the Coronavirus” was REALLY good.

The recent news about women leaving the workforce has been incredibly upsetting. OPB’s Think Out Loud did a great episode talking with women across Oregon dealing with this issue. This article was also incredibly helpful in putting words around a lot of feelings I’ve had.

Oddly I have been listening to a lot of 90’s music lately. My workout studio had a 90’s class that inspired me to relive high school, it’s been a great break! I also REALLY loved Megan Thee Stallion on SNL earlier this month!

Watching

SNL is back and nothing makes me happier than having this show back on the air. I am NOT sold on Jim Carrey as Biden but Maya Rudolph is SO GREAT it makes up for it. I was also really impressed with how SNL handled the musical act who was seen out at a college party not socially distancing. No one is above the law with Lorne.

I am in the midst of a Veep rewatch – it’s been a nice laugh during the election. I also enjoyed the West Wing GOTV special on HBOMax.

Lovecraft County is such a crazy weird show. I finished it this week and it was BANANAS. Half way through the season they do a whole story about a woman in Korea and 2/3 of the episode is in Korean. I love when shows tell the story that needs to be told. I liked it a lot and loved the journey, but wonder if it should have been a miniseries – I’m not sure where the story will go or if it will just go off the rails next season.

The new season of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction has a great lineup. We were fascinated by the Robert Downey Jr. episodes – where they both talked pretty candidly about their addictions. Dave Chappell is always amazing and it was great to learn about the work he is doing in Ohio where he lives. And I love Lizzo, she was awesome. We still haven’t watched the Kim Kardashian West episode because I don’t know if my eyes can roll that far back into my head. I will at some point I promise…

Ted Lasso was the surprise fall hit that I needed. I have ALWAYS loved Jason Sudeikis so was already on board to re-up my Apple+ subscription. The show is so sweet and funny and exactly what I needed this fall.

The Amber Ruffin Show on Peacock is deLIGHTFUL. She’s such a gem and I always appreciate everything she does on Seth Meyers.

My husband and I loved The American Barbecue Showdown on Netflix. It filled the food competition hole in our hearts.

I watched Ratched over the past month and it was…fine? Beautiful people having sex & murdering others – this time at a mental hospital! Ryan Murphy may be too over the top for me. But Cynthia Nixon & Sarah Paulsen were fantastic as they always are.

This past weekend I watched The Social Dilemma, and it was a lot of information I remembered from reading Bored and Brilliant last year. However, I was fascinated at the end by how these ex-social media execs were handling their own phone/social usage AND how what they’re allowing for their kids. It was an important documentary if you’re online anywhere. It made me consider giving up Twitter and then realizing that for now I WANT it, but need to clean up who I follow so that the overwhelm of information and anger and rage is dialed back a notch or two.

Alright – that’s enough pop culture for one month (never!) – how did October go for you? Any excellent pop culture discoveries I need to add to the list?

The smoke filled air had most of the west coast stuck inside for about a week this past month. It was hard to not get out and exercise or just sit in the backyard and read. The rain finally arrived to wash away the AQI numbers and help us to breathe a bit better. I realized it didn’t help with my reading – I’m a loud and proud outdoor reader, so a week away from my patio was hard on reading. I’ve also been in a weird reading slump…Here’s what has kept me sane in September…

Reading

I am slowly making my way through How to Be an Antiracist. I’m trying to just read one chapter at a time to give myself some time to process the book. It’s REALLY great and I highly recommend it.

I kept hearing great things about Wow, No Thank You. Samantha Irby is HILARIOUS. This book of essay’s has had me laughing SO LOUD I’m afraid I’ve scared the neighbors! And, I am not constantly in the mood for essays. I picked up this from the library and since there are SO many holds on it, I ended up buying a copy (well two, one as a gift!) so I can savor it.

Last month I won a gift card to Elliot Bay Books in Seattle (yes, super random) so I ordered Transcendent Kingdom which I just started and it’s FABULOUS. I will read everything Yaa Gyasi writes from this point forward. She’s an incredible author. I’m finally out of my reading slump.

I also ordered The Three-Body Problem which I have heard great reviews of, and with the recent news about who’s adapting the trilogy, I am excited to be on top of this soon to be pop culture HIT.

Listening

It was recently the 21st Night of September, so there’s been an increase in my Earth, Wind & Fire consumption as with most September’s. My dad has been around more lately which usually means more Steely Dan in our lives, which is always fine by me.

I listen to What a Day pretty religiously, and Akilah Hughes response to the Breonna Taylor DA was so sad and incredible.

I always make time for Majority 54 and Missing America continues to be a great podcast as well.

With the fires in Oregon I had a hard time keep up on ALL the news. Between The Daily and Think Out Loud I mostly stayed on top of it! I also loved hearing my fellow Emerge Oregon classmate Candace Avalos on a recent episode talking about police oversight in Portland.

Dax Shepard’s podcast is one I don’t usually listen to, but his episode last week “Day 7,” is a great conversation about addiction, recovery and being honest with ourselves.

Watching

For about a month my dad would NOT stop talking about I’m Sorry on Netflix. And he was right, it’s HILARIOUS. I had half-watched the first episode late at night a while back and am SO happy I gave it a second chance. And I devoured the series, this will be a very rewatchable show. Add it to your list if I haven’t told you to already.

I also devoured The Home Edit on Netflix. I LOVE organizing things, but that Marie Kondo hoarder clean out doesn’t work for me. So, I was nervous. But I shouldn’t have been – I now need to AGAIN reorganize my pantry and buy ALL the clear bins for my whole kitchen. And while I loved most of what they do, I will NEVER organize my books by COLOR. This former bookseller and current Library Board Chair can officially say that is BLASPHEMOUS.

I’m slowly making my way through Lovecraft Country and really like the cult aspects (big surprise) and the over the top monsters.

Last weekend with the rain I rewatched Always Be My Maybe and it is great for a rewatch!

The best thing I’ve watched this month though? Teenage Bounty Hunters. Yup. Private Christian school twin sisters become bounty hunters in suburban Atlanta while balancing dating, church and race. I know you skipped right over it and don’t believe me. But you should…

I hope you’re having a lovely “end” of summer. I’ve been taking Friday’s off since July which has been REALLY nice for my mental health. An extra day to not look at a computer screen has meant more time to get all those other chores done, and spend time absorbing more pop culture. Here’s a few things I’ve loved this past month…

Reading

I started off the month with one of the longer books I’ve read in a while – The Likeness by Tana French. French is an Irish author and her Dublin Murder series is one that a client of mine has been recommending for a while now. I finally picked this one up when she said it was her new favorite. And it’s BANANAS. if you love a good murder mystery and an undercover cop story this is for you. If you don’t, you really should try this, it’s awesome.

My friend gifted me a copy of Garth Stein’s new graphic novel – The Cloven. I love a good graphic novel and loved that this one is set in Seattle and since Stein is from the area, he gets the geography right (you’d be surprised how often authors don’t!) If you liked Orphan Black (yes the TV show) this is for you. I promise.

A few years ago I read My Sister, the Serial Killer and LOVED IT. The author is Nigerian and her stories take place there. She has a new short story (30 pages) on Amazon called Treasure. It was a fun short read and I like the way she ends her stories.

I’ve been a fan of Bess Kalb’s Twitter account for a while now and was excited to pick up her new book Nobody Will Tell You This But Me.  It’s a quick, HILARIOUS and sweet read. It’s a “memoir” (ish) based on her and her Jewish grandmother’s relationship. It’s sweet and funny and I read it in two days.

I have started and am deliberately making my way through How to be Anti-Racist and really appreciating it so far. I am also continuing to read the Anti-Racism Daily newsletter which is chock full of great information and great calls to action.

I picked up The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes from the library last week and it was a fun summer read. It takes you back to the world of The Hunger Games but MANY years earlier. It’s a good origin story and it I keep thinking I should probably rewatch Mockingjay to remind myself of what a terrible guy Snow becomes…

Listening

I am really enjoying What a Day as a great way to start off each morning with a healthy dose of the news. I continue to look forward to Majority 54 each week, and the episode with Jason Sudekis last week was GREAT. I appreciate Missing America and the back stories that Ben Rhodes can apply to current situations going on in the world. The episode on authoritarianism is a can’t miss.

Chef Tom Colicchio has a podcast I just discovered called Citizen Chef – I really am enjoying it! He talks to people in different food communities about the work they’re doing or their experiences. I highly recommend the How We Feed Our Students episode…

Watching

I watched almost every night of the Democratic National Convention, and yes even cried a couple of times. If you haven’t watched either of the Obama speeches, you should go do that. I’ll wait. I of course have balanced out the high brow with the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills & New York. Sometimes you just need to watch rich ladies being ridiculous.

I finally started watching the final season of Orange is the New Black. I didn’t like the previous season so when it finished I had planned to call it quits. But a friend of mine said the final season is great AND it talks about ICE and child separation and wraps up the series well. I have one episode left and I am glad that I decided to finish the series.

I have watched the pilot for Lovecraft Country and I loved it! It’s the right amount of horror for me (I’m not a fan of scary, but the occasional other world monster is fine). I kept reading that it was the perfect series right now, and I have to agree…

Alright, what pop culture is keeping you sane as summer wraps up?