In case you didn’t see tonight’s SNL At Home episode, the musical guest was Miley Cyrus and she performed a particularly nice cover of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here.”
I’m pleased to report that I finally started a book that has no pictures and can still hold my attention. The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary is the last of my #TBTBSanta gifts, and I’d been holding onto it for … today, I guess.
It’s about two Londoners who come to share a one-bedroom apartment — one sleeps in it during the day and the other at night. They communicate via post-it notes, and it’s sweet and exactly right for a point in time when we’re also living sub-optimally. I only began it this evening and am already past the crucial 50-page mark. I assume I know how it’s going to end, and I’m glad. I crave concrete happy endings right now. I don’t want wishy-washy. I don’t want to be continued in the next volume. I want mostly forward movement and “they lived happily ever after. The end.”
Otherwise, I’m intermittently listening to Size 12 Is Not Fat, by Meg Cabot, and, with Rudi, Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. I still have The Cruelest Month out in audiobook, but I haven’t had it in me to listen to it this past week. I probably should finish it off, though, since April ends next week. It just makes me so tired to think about.
In the same way that I’ve been having a hard time concentrating on books, I’m also having a hard time focusing on knitting. Probably I need to find something to knit on big needles that is just back and forth or round and round. When life gets too much, sometimes it’s helpful if your yarn size grows, too. Or at least that’s what I’ve occasionally found in the past.
But I haven’t moved forward with finding a worsted or bulky project, so I content myself with having knit three rounds on the second Smock Madness sock since last week. Hey we knitters know that eventually all those small efforts will add up.
Check out As Kat Knits for people who manage to knit whole rows at a time and who’ve finished bunches of books.
I will admit that Rudi and I are spending way more time than maybe I expected these days watching tv shows at night. I am not great about binge-watching shows, preferring to draw them out in a more traditional timeframe, but between scripted shows ending early, long-time watches drawing to a natural conclusion, and just more anxious time on our hands, we’re going through series faster than I expected.
Therefore, I could use some more recommendations.
What we’ve been enjoying this year, from current shows to dvds:
What have you been watching that you love?
We (read: I) tend to prefer shows that are optimistic and upbeat, so I’m never going to watch Breaking Bad or Dexter, no matter how compelling or well-written they are. And we’re not going to watch reality tv, particularly ones where they showcase horrible human beings, so The Tiger King is also a non-starter.
If you have any shows you think we’d like, please leave them in the comments. We have access to a variety of, but not all, streaming platforms, so I’m open to suggestions from wherever you have them, and I’m happy to consider shows from any era (we may finally watch The Gilmore Girls).
Similarly, if you have films you’ve streamed recently, I’d be open to hearing about them, too, since I’ll have to move to movies if I run out of tv.
Thanks in advance!
This week’s Top Ten Tuesday from That Artsy Reader Girl invites us to look over book titles and determine ten that we think would make great band names. Here are ten from my to be read list:
Have you come across any book titles that bands should consider?
Sometimes you just need Paddington to read to you, and he’ll do it as long as you bribe him with marmalade sandwiches. Honestly, I think he’d do it even without the treat.
Tonight’s book is A Velocity of Being: Letters to a Young Reader, edited by Maria Popova and Claudia Bedrick, and my Christmas present from Karen. It’s a series of letters from famous writers, artists, scientists, and leaders to children about a shared love of books. Each letter is accompanied by an illustration, and each pairing is thoughtful and thought-provoking. It’s not the sort of thing you can plow through if you expect to enjoy it, but is lovely to dip into for a few letters each night.
The sock is last year’s Smock Madness, which I discovered when I was moving bags around. Sock #1 is already done, which makes it a better project than this year’s Sock Madness socks, which are only up to the heel flap of the first sock. Wool socks are a part of my daily quarantine wardrobe for at least another month, so finishing a pair would be a nice gift to myself.