What's Up Wednesday

Today I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for What's Up Wednesday to share some highs (and lows!) from the last month! 

What I'm Eating: Now that it's the Lenten Season (and I'm a good Catholic girl), I've been struggling to find some meatless meals for Fridays that aren't pizza, PB&J, or a tuna dish. I made this DELISH Chana Saag (chick peas and spinach with Indian spices) from Budget Bytes with white rice and naan last week and it even got  two-thumbs up from my spice-averse gf, Blue! And it was so easy! That's one thing I love about recipes from this food blogger- they're usually wallet friendly, using ingredients I already have or are easy to attain, and fairly simple! If you try this one, I'd adjust the salt; I needed more, but I'd rather have that than too salty to be edible (which unfortunately has happened to me before)! 

This week I'm going to try this Cajun Sausage and Rice Skillet and this 20-Minute Red Curry Basil Garlic Oil Noods recipe. Wish me luck! 

What I'm Reminiscing About: My last "air travel" vacation in Jamaica pre-pandemic (Dec 2019). This was my first group vacation, and one of the couples who came with us are there right now and blowing up my FB feed with gorgeous ocean views and delicious food and I'm so jealous! I wish I were ready to get back on a plane, but mentally I'm not there yet :( 

What I've Been Up To: Well. There has been a leak in my ceiling since... October? Which is ridiculous because I'm on the ground floor and my upstairs neighbor hasn't had any water leaks/damage at all! Apparently high winds made rainwater leak between the two floors (how?!). So my landlords finally got a team in to fix it, but now my couch is sitting in my kitchen while they continue to fix the ceiling in my living room! It's been inconvenient to say the least! 

What I'm Excited About: Finally getting a chance to deep clean my living room now that everything is out of it? I may even do some rearranging/purging when it's done. 

What I'm Watching/Reading: I just posted about what I'm watching here! As for reading, I just completed a reading challenge, so I've slowed my roll on this front. I did just get The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren and am slowly making my way through that. 

What I'm Listening To: Every so often I find a country song that absolutely love and this one popped up in my Spotify recently and has been on repeat since! It's called "Fancy Like" by Walker Hayes. 

What I'm Doing This Weekend: Our wine is ready! For our anniversary Blue got us a gift card to make our own wine, so a few weeks ago we made/mixed it, and now it's time to bottle it before it sits for over 6 months. We got half a case so we can gift some to friends for Christmas.  

I'm also going shopping *gasps all around* I'm not a fan of in-store shopping but our dress code at work downgraded post-pandemic and my jeans aren't nice/dark enough since I never planned on wearing them to work before. 

Favorite Purchase of the Month: This wasn't my purchase, but Blue bought us these new zero-gravity chairs for her deck. I will probably purchase this similar one from Amazon for my deck since it has a cover, and I hate when it rains and I get wet because I'm on a lower deck and the rain comes through the upper deck! 

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month: It's this little munchkin's first birthday! So excited to celebrate with the  fam! 

And that's a wrap! 

What's been up with you this month?

Watching Lately

During the colder months of winter I tend to be a bit of a hermit which leads to a lot of TV and movie viewing. Now that it's spring, I wanted to recap some of the those that I've watched recently! I've broken it into movies first, then TV. Most of these are available to stream, with where to stream from somewhere in my notes. Click the title for a synopsis from IMDB.

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The Batman (2022): Ok so this was the first (and only) one I've seen in theaters since Ghostbusters: Afterlife in November 2021, which was a good movie but terrible overall experience because I was nervous the whole time (#covidproblems). But I'm trying to live my life AFTER Covid, and I'm glad I saw this one in theaters. It's gotten a bad rap because it's 3 HOURS long, but I can honestly say that it didn't feel that long! It's much darker than some of the other Batman adaptations, but it goes back to a rendition of Batman where he's a super-sleuth and though I didn't know that going in, I thought that was really interesting spin and very well done! And surprisingly to me, Robert Pattinson made a great (albeit broody) Batman. Blue told me that the producer had a vision of someone like Kurt Cobain in this role, and I definitely saw that coming through. 

The Adam Project (2022): This one came out on Netflix earlier this month and has an all-star cast (Ryan Reynolds, Julia Garner, Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana!). Sci-fi and/or saving-the-world type movies really aren't really my jam, however I loved this one! It was an interesting and new concept (thank goodness, anyone else tired of all the remakes lately?!) and Ryan Reynolds' signature deadpan humor along with his relationship to his younger self really made this work. 

Kimi (2022): This was a super short film at only 90 minutes and again, a super interesting concept. Zoe Saldana was perfect in this role as an agoraphobe who works as an Alexa-esque moderator/corrector who hears a murder. The overall vibe was pretty creepy but it kept me guessing which is always a win in my book.

Just Like Heaven (2005): I randomly saw this on Netflix one night when I was looking for a rom-com I haven't seen (very hard to find as a rom-com lover!). I was surprised I'd never even heard of this one as it stars Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo, both actors I adore, and it wasn't anything ground-breaking but it was cute and I do love a good HEA! 

Miss You Already (2015): We had to have at least one tearjerker, amiright?! I found this on my Hulu watch list from I don't know when and I watched it last night since it's set to expire soon. It's basically about two bffs and their journey through one of their battles with breast cancer. It was bittersweet to say the least but an honest look at how that could be. 

The Woman In The House Across The Street From The Woman in the Window (2022): This was a bit ridiculous if I'm being honest, but isn't that somewhat implied by the title?! It definitely kept me engaged trying to figure out the who-dun-it in this cozy murder-mystery and the ending is set up for another season, which I would absolutely watch! Available on Netflix. 

Inventing Anna (2022): My current obsession! It's about an average person who somehow makes everyone think she's some rich socialite and thereby living the high life. I've literally lost sleep watching this highly-addictive show (loosely based on actual events, I think?). I've actually put off watching the last two episodes because I really don't want it to end!! Available on Netflix. 

Sweet Magnolias (S2): Some shows just wrap you up like a cozy blanket and you know exactly what to expect. This is that show for me. I love the friendships, puppy (and other... bow chica bow bow!) love, and small town charm and drama. It's a bit more dramatic and delves into heavier subject-matter than season 1, but pulls at your heartstrings even more. Available on Netflix. 

Doll Face (Seasons 1 and 2): I'm not sure how I missed this one when S1 came out back  in 2019 but I'm glad I finally catching up! Basically a woman in her late 20's was in a long-term relationship but now that her bf has broken up with her, she realizes she's neglected her female friendships and is now trying to get back in their good graces. Also stars Kat Dennings, whom I love :). Available on Hulu.

The Book of Boba Fett (2021): I should mention that we watch basically everything having to do with the Star Wars Universe so this went on the "must-watch" list. I enjoyed learning more about Boba Fett's background told through flashbacks, however that was also a bit confusing and I wished it the series would have gone in chronological order. I was also very happy to see some cameos from my favorites from The Mandolorian. Available on Disney+.

Up Next: I'm really (REALLY!) looking forward to Get Organized with the Home Edit coming April 1st on Netflix, and I just got Peacock+  free for 3 months through a GrubHub deal, so I've added Marry Me and Redeeming Love to my movie watch list there! 

What are you currently watching? 

Have you watched any of these?

Any must-sees I should add? 

TTT: Spring 2022 TBR

Like I said last time, I'm only interested in book posts lately! Today I'm joining Jana and sharing my top books I'd like to read this spring.

My first order of business is to finish the Book Challenge by Erin 16.0, and I'm on my very last book, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island by Colleen Oakley.

I also want to read the books that are becoming movies/series, which include Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll and The Dry by Jane Harper. (For a comprehensive list of many books-movies/series coming out this year, check out Tanya's list!)

One of my reading goals this year is to read books that I already own, waiting for me on my (physical) bookshelf. These include Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid, Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney, and Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng. 

Another goal of mine this year is to clear out some books off of my Netgalley shelf. Two I've started but stopped, Ghosts by Dolly Alderton and Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Lois, and one is by a favorite author, The Therapist by B.A. Paris. 

Of course with spring in the air I'm thinking of spring cleaning, and I found this short book on Kindle Unlimited so I thought I'd check it out Decluttering at the Speed of Life: Winning Your Never-Ending Battle With Stuff by Dana K. White.

What are some books you'd like to read this season?

February Reads

Seems like the only posts I'm interested in writing this year are book-related, but I'm pretty sure this audience doesn't mind! One thing I bought myself this Christmas was a "reader's journal." Even though I occasionally come back to these posts to remember what I thought of a book, I hardly ever write/share spoilers and thrillers are one of my favorite genres, so this allows me to  write down and remember questions that I had while reading and those big AH-HA! moments. I love it. I'm still figuring out how exactly I want to structure it (like, I don't care about "character notes" but I am interested in how I got the book, whether it was from library or Kindle, or BOTM, etc.) and genres, etc. It's definitely still a work in progress, but I'm loving it so far! It actually helped me to write some of these reviews! So without further ado, here's what I read in February. 

What You Did - Claire McGowan: 5 Stars

Kindle Unlimited

Summary: 6 college friends get together for the first time in 20 years. They're having a great time until Ali (our protagonist)'s BFF Karen comes staggering in from the garden claiming that Ali's husband (and her friend as well), Mike, raped her. There is a trial, after which shit goes down and even more truths come out about that night and a night 20 years earlier at their graduation where another young woman that they all knew was sexual assaulted and murdered. 

Wow. THIS was the fast-paced domestic thriller I've been looking for. So many twists and turns, and even though our protagonist is a bit dim/wearing rose-colored glasses, I didn't see that ending coming!

"'Al. Ali. You know by now, don't you? You know and that's why you've come?'...

'What do I know?'...

'What I did...'"

The Call of the Mountain - Sam Neumann: 3 Stars

Netgalley (from 2015)

Summary: High-flying financial analyst Julian up and leaves his life in NYC because he's tired of the "rat-race." He moves to Denver because he's always wondered what it would be like to live "out west" after seeing an ad for the Rockies in his childhood. He gets caught up with some mob (like, really? How could you not know?) and a bunch of shit goes down.

This was just ok. Kind of predictable, but kept me intrigued enough to finish. I would not label this as a "face-paced thriller" but more of a slow-burn. Julian was a very unlikeable character with no real back-bone and there's 0 character development. The "romance" was lackluster at best.  The whole story was a bit far-fetched, but the ending even more so, and it needed an epilogue. It wrapped up a bit too tidily.

Jonny Appleseed - Joshua Whitehead: 2 Stars
Purchased, paperback

I wish I could summarize this one, but the storyline was so hard to pinpoint. I'll try though:  a young, gay man trying to make ends meet after he leaves the "rez," moves to Winnipeg and pursues a life as a cybersex worker (the author really makes a point of stating "cybersex worker" and not prostitute, but basically a prostitute). He is trying to make money to go back home to his grandmother's funeral- one of the few people who seemed to understand and love him for who he was. 

The stream-of-consciousness story-telling made this story extremely disjointed. There was just no coherent timeline and too many VERY graphic overly sexual scenes. I think the author was trying to be "edgy" but it just made me cringe. At least it was a short, fast read. 

Currently Reading: Why Not Me? - Mindy Kaling

Book Stats
Total number read: 8
Owned: 1

Library: 4 (same)

E-book: 4

Physical book: 3
Non-Fiction: 1 (same)
BIPOC Author: 2

What are you reading?

Linking up with Steph and Jana! 

January Reads

Hello fellow bookworms! I'm coming in late with my book reviews from last month... what can I say? Monday night I stayed up late reading instead of writing this post... oops! It wasn't even a good book ::facepalm:: But I'll be sharing that one next month. Last year was rough for sure, and my reading reflected a lot of what I'd consider "fluff" because that's all I could handle. This year I'm trying to be more inclusive in terms of authors (last year I only read books 4 by men, 2 of which were short stories, and only 6 by BIPOC authors... oh, the shame!). Here's what I read in 2022 so far.

Let It Snow - John Green, Maureen Johnson, Lauren Myracle: 5 Stars
library e-book

Short take: 3 intertwined stories of teens caught in a snowstorm between Christmas and NYE in NC. 

I almost never read the book AFTER watching the show/movie, but I made an exception because I barely remembered anything about it other than that the stories were interconnected. (And of course I re-watched the Netflix movie directly after I finished, and they were vastly different.) All that to say that I loved both (though I think I liked the movie a wee bit more *gasp!*). And I'm pretty sure this was a timing thing, as I was still feeling a bit of the holiday spirit and this had just enough mush and romance and holiday without going overboard. Also made me crave Waffle House hash browns.

Shout - Laurie Halse Anderson: 4 Stars

library paperback

Content warning:  rape, sexual assault, PTSD, war, physical abuse, fat shaming, alcohol and other drug use.

I never read Speak but I knew what the premise was, and knowing that made me wary going into this memoir. But this wasn't all about that singular incident (which was called IT and I found that profoundly fitting); it included poems about her childhood and growing up, about her family, her subsequent relationships, and her After life.  I love that she's going to high schools and school boards and spreading her truth and empowering the movement because it at least gets the conversation going. 

"too many grown-ups tell kids to follow

their dreams

like that's going to get you somewhere

Auntie Laurie is says follow your nightmares instead

cuz when you figure out what's eating you alive

you can slay it"

Jane Austen Ruined My Life - Beth Pattillo: 3 Stars
library paperback

Short take: Emma (ha) finds herself cheated on and out of a job; she moves to England after getting a letter from a stranger stating that she has Jane Austen's long lost letters, so she moves there to find, steal, and publish them to get "revenge" on Austen and her life back on track.

I admit I've never read anything by Jane Austen nor do I know anything about her life. I solely picked up this book to fit Erin's Challenge, but I enjoyed it! While Austen factoids were thrown in, it wasn't much about her at all but rather one fanatic's journey after she falls (or tumbles, painfully and quite publicly) from grace and lands in England on the hunt for Austen's long-lost letters (really to sell Austen's private life out and publicize the letters because she read to many of Austen's novels and wanted to get revenge on her for "making" her believe in a happily-ever-afters or something like that, but also to clear her name and get her career  as a professor at a university back). I liked the eccentric character of Mrs. Parrot, the witty banter and playful romance, but was disappointed by the ending and too many unanswered questions that I can't mention here without major spoiler alerts. 

"'I can't believe any of this is coincidence.'

Mrs. Parrot gave me another one of her smiles. 'My dear, you should never fail to believe in the power of coincidence. I'm sure Jane Austen would give you the same counsel.'" 

The Knockout Queen - Rufi Thorpe: 2 Stars

library e-book

Content warning: pedophilia, homophobia, self-harm, alcohol and other drug abuse, physical abuse/bullying

Short take: An unlikely friendship blossoms between neighbors and "outsiders" Michael (who is poor and gay) and Bunny (who is 6 ft tall and rich); this is "their" story."

I just didn't like this author's way of story telling. The first person narrative felt like a stream-of- consciousness, however Michael isn't telling his story at all- he's talking all about events that are happening to his best friend, Bunny, which felt weird. Events that happened to Bunny that should have been gut-wrenching, as told from outside/Michael's POV, seemed less so, if that makes sense. This was definitely a coming of age story, but also involved toxic friendships, abuse, and privilege. (F'n RAY aka Bunny's dad, what a scumbag.) A few reviewers mentioned that if you liked Holden Caulfield and/or Wes Anderson movies, you might like this. I dislike both, so take this review with a grain of salt I suppose. 

"You were poor, you got a drug charge, you got a gun charge, ding, ding, scrape, scratch, because those were the problems that came from growing up in a poor neighborhood. They were not signs of individual moral turpitude."

Currently reading: What You Did - Claire McGowan

Book Stats
Total number read: 4
Owned: 0

Library: 4

E-book: 2

Physical book: 2
Non-Fiction: 1
BIPOC: 1

What are you reading?

Linking up with Steph and Jana! 

Monthly Musings

2. Chocolate, Flowers, or Both? I prefer flowers because I've never had much of a sweet tooth, however Blue always says flowers smell like a funeral. I disagree, but since she said that I obviously never bought her flowers again! This was her favorite bouquet though...

3. Favorite Romantic Date? We like going to dinner, or an experience like the pasta/wine tasting we did for our anniversary. 

4. Any Valentine's Day Traditions with Kids? No kids, so no traditions. 

5. How Do You Show Love? I'm reading this in terms of "What's Your Love Language" and in that case it's Acts Of Service/Gift Giving. I'm always bringing Blue treats or doing little things that I know will make her happy, from ordering peanut butter when I see the empty container in the trash to cleaning out her closets (which actually brings ME joy too!). 

6. Do You Decorate for Valentine's Day? No. 

7. Do you Wear Red or Pink on Valentine's Day? Yes! Nothing special, but it nearly always involves some pink or red. 

8. Is Valentine's Day a Big Deal or Small Remembrance? Small remembrance. We feel that everything is so overpriced for Valentine's Day that it's just not worth it. Plus after my birthday, followed by the holiday season and then our anniversary in early January, we keep Valentine's Day very low-key; just a card and maybe a small gift or date (not ON Valentine's Day, but shortly before or after). 

9. Favorite Ideas for School Valentine's Parties? Again, no kids so no school parties. I do remember giving out those little cards and maybe cupcakes when I was in school. 

10. Have You Ever Had a Secret Admirer? I have, twice actually! The first a high school friend and he was very upset when I didn't feel the same. The second was in college. We threw a big graduation party, and had cardboard posters where our guests could write us a goodbye message. I didn't even see it until the next day, but one of my friends from a year below me wrote that he had a crush on me- it was so sweet! 

How do you show love?

Linking up with Patty and Holly!

What's Up Wednesday

Hi friends! Since I've been a bit MIA I wanted to join Shay and Schaeffer for a recap of all the things goin on lately!

What I'm Eating... Don'tcha hate it when a restaurant (or in my case a fast food chain) gets rid of your favorite dish? I've been missing my Taco Bell spicy chicken burritos for awhile now, when lo and behold I found a copycat recipe on Pinterest and it's so good! This recipe will definitely be repeated since it's so easy (especially when you use leftover shredded chicken)!

This I plan to try this creamy garlic salmon pasta, these crockpot Swedish meatballs over egg noodles, and these oven baked chili cheese dogs- man, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it! 

What I'm Reminiscing About... bigger vacations in general, but especially our last "flight" vacation to Jamaica 2019. Who knew then that would be our last international trip for awhile?! I remember I was SO COLD at Dunn's River Falls, but has so much fun too!

What I'm Loving... right now, my last day working remote! We go back to fully in office next week. I'm going to treat myself to a little lunchtime walk over to the library and lunch from this Italian deli around the corner from me which is never open when I get back from work! 

What I've Been Up To... Blue and I shared a 7-year anniversary! We both love "experiences," so she took me to a wine-making class followed by a scrumptious dinner at a new-to-us restaurant, and I took her to a wine and pasta tasting. As I told my friend, "Great minds think of wine!" 

What I'm Working On... decluttering! I just got rid of 5 boxes of "stuff" and I feel so much lighter! Definitely nice to see some more of my closets and floors again haha! 

What I'm Watching... Let It Snow - Netflix

I'm a BIG fan of book-to-film adaptations. In most cases, I'll wait to watch the movie version until after I've finished the book but when this movie came out in 2019, I couldn't contain myself and HAD to watch it. Luckily for me (I guess?) I have horrible memory, so I didn't have a problem watching the movie again right after I finished reading the book earlier this month.

The book was great (though I'll admit I'm a sucker for YA romances in general, and intertwined stories especially). The movie was pretty great too. That being said, this was not the same story- and THAT makes me mad/unhappy/upset. The movie was one story and the book was another, and they didn't intertwine and they should have just made a teen movie by another name because it was SO FAR from the book!

What I'm Reading... I just finished Jane Austen Ruined My Life by Bath Pattillo for Erin's Book Challenge and it was pretty good, though I wanted a bit more from the ending. Here are the others I read in January:

What I'm Listening To... Billy Bossa Nova - Billy Eilish

Loving this calming track that I actually Shazamed from a TV show (though I don't remember which one... maybe SATC?) I don't really like Eilish as a person/pop icon, but her voice can't be denied! 

What I'm Doing This Weekend... nothing on the books yet, but I have a Groupon for some bourbon tasting, so maybe that! 

What I'm Looking Forward To Next Month... a weekend getaway with 10 of my favorite people! We are heading to an Airbnb in the woods. I've actually never gone away for the weekend with this group but I can't wait. We're already starting to get a menu together haha!

What Else Is New... Blue got a new job! After several months of being unemployed she landed a fully remote program management position with a small company and I'm so excited for her! She said she really likes the vibe of the company and is looking forward to getting into a routine again. 

And that's it! What's up with you?