Ack! I haven't been on here since FEBRUARY!!! Which is super bonkers because I've probably been writing more this year than in other years, just not for here... Had a few minutes to kill so hopping on to Leigh Kramer's What I'm Into for the month.
Loving me some October this month, cannot take enough pictures of trees, but they never look that good. I need a better camera. Had some good travel this month, and all around busyness, but the good kind.
Read and Reading:
Finished all of the Harry Potter books in September, so been trying to cash in on my reading momentum to keep going. Still haven't read as much as I'd like to, but have done okay. As always I have 2 or 3 more that are mid-read.
Enjoyed Mindy Kaling's newest book, maybe not *quite* as much as her last, but she cracks me up and had a great overall message.
Finally read Bob Goff's Love Does which I've been carrying around for years. Having seen him speak a number of times some of the stories weren't new, but had the added benefit of me really being able to hear his voice while I read it. A great, fun read for someone ready to take their faith from head to action.
I also finally picked up Serious Dreams, compiled by my friend Byron Borger of Hearts and Minds Books. It's a compilation of graduation speeches from mostly Christian colleges which was a GREAT read. Having been out of college for [a number of] years, I still found it motivational as if I was starting from scratch. a GREAT gift for any recent graduates, those career searching, or someone working in Higher Ed. High recommendation - I'm going back this weekend to buy more to give away as gifts!! Also, epilogue written by my dear friend Erica, who shares a tale from her own frosty graduation morning, which happened to be mine as well.
TV:
Must-see TV: To be honest, there isn't much new stuff on the dvr these days that I'm totally captivated by. If I have a full dvr the first things I watch are Brooklyn 99 and You're the Worst. I try to keep up with The Good Wife live as I love following the live-tweeting as well. Almost everything has fallen to the back burner. Still enjoying Big Bang and Undateable (the live experiment has been entertaining thus far). Having a hard time remembering to watch Mindy on Hulu with the weekly releases. I don't think I'm loving it as much as the previous seasons, but like what they've been able to do without the network ties.
New shows: The only new shows I picked up so far this year are Life in Pieces and The Muppets. They both have potential but have not gotten me to a point where I can't miss them.
Streaming: Watched the first 2 seasons of Maron in about 4 days. It's pretty crass and not for everyone, but I have not laughed so hard and so consistently in a long time. His sarcastic wit and collection of cats makes me wonder if he is my spirit animal.
Finally started Mad Men - tried a few years back and couldn't get into it, powered through the slow, dark beginning and I've really loved seeing what they've done. I have 1.5 seasons left.
Continuing to rewatch FRIENDS - I find myself LOLing throughout - it's STILL funny after all of these years!
Music:
No new music this month... been really tweaking some playlists of my old stuff to give it a new experience, which is always fun. Been listening to a lot of Wilco since their anniversary & new album stuff came out, and loving the newest Dawes.
Podcasts:
My love of The Relevant Podcast continues (I might need to write a whole thing about that). Also been trying to get caught up on Undisclosed, which is 3 lawyers discusses the Sayed case from Serial. Super interesting.
Things I love:
Have not spent a whole weekend at home in 2 months, which has been exhausting, but so fun. This month I could be found: in Philly with a former roommie & her kids for a lazy pj weekend, at the National Apple Harvest Festival w/ my college roommie & her kids, Applebutter making at a former roommie's family farm w/ LOTS of old pals, in California for a work trip & extended wine country travels with my cousins. It's seriously been loads of fun. (I had fun pics of these to upload, but the photo editor won't let me. Oh well)
Fall foods are so great: apple products everywhere, lots of homemade chilis, stews and breads. YUMMMMMM
Am missing warm weather, but LOVE fleece, sweats, hoodies, puffy vests, and smartwools, so I'm making due.
Was supposed to run a 5k for the Four-Diamonds Fund for Pediatric Cancer along with a friend whose baby is undergoing treatments. We had a GREAT fundraiser, but sadly the race got cancelled due to huricane, which was probably a blessing for grossly out-of-shape me.
Heat: had to turn it on. I wouldn't have battled through until November (my standard rule), but with going out of town and having a student stay to cat-sit I took pity on her and turned it on. Plus, then I can enjoy it without guilt.
Best Instagram:
Gotta go with this - wine, cheese, mustard, views: a perfect depiction of my whirlwind weekend in CA. Cannot complain about that! So good!
That's a wrap on the month, probably see you in 3 months.....
