Lately: Spring 2023

Hello, my loves. ♥  I started this year with the tentative goal of posting at least twice a month, and obviously that hasn't worked out too well for me.  But, I have been managing to meet the once-a-month mark (even if I get the post in just under the wire, as is the case today 😅), so we'll take what progress we can get.

In lieu of the heavier duty posts I have in draft, I thought it would be nice to have a cozy little 'miscellaneous' post.  It's been quite a while since I've given any kind of in-depth life update or talked about what I'm into right now in terms of books, movies, music, etc.  So, why not do that today?

Lately, I've been . . . 

☙ Watching

- much more TV than I used to. ||  I've always been more of a film girly, and I think I still prefer film as a narrative medium, but I do find it much easier to keep up with a TV episode here and there now that I'm working and studying full time.  My evenings are pretty tight at the moment, so full-length movies rarely happen.  But, I still gots to watch my stories, so television to the rescue.  I watched (and re-watched) Frasier quite a bit last year/the beginning of this year.  I've also been watching Bob's Burgers and Abbott Elementary off and on.  (The voice acting in Bob's Burgers kills me every time.  Tina's deadpan horniness, Linda's chaos, Bob's resignation . . . )  And, now that New Girl is on Hulu, I'm making my way through the series again.  (I have weirdly mixed feelings about that show:  it can be hilarious but something about it doesn't always work for me.  It's so excessively suggestive, for one thing — like, beyond typical sitcom fare.  Also, I'm pretty darn sure that Ryan is a better match for Jess than Nick.  Change my mind.) 

- Studio Ghibli. || As I was explaining to a friend recently, I think I've finally figured out what works for me and what doesn't when it comes to Ghibli.  I am here solely and exclusively for The Vibes™, and I'm not likely to enjoy any of the more serious Ghibli stories.  My favorites so far are Castle in the Sky, The Secret World of Arrietty, and Kiki's Delivery Service.  Ponyo is also fun.

- assorted period dramas. || As we approach summer here in Virginia, I naturally turn to leisurely, sentimental stories set in Italy and France, so I've been re-watching A Room with a View and enjoying it immensely.  What can I say?  I'm a sucker for "just a bit of nonsense, really" love stories playing out in golden sunlight and rolling meadows.

I've also watched the 2018-2019 miniseries adaptation of Les Miserables, which is excellent.  Dominic West is a tour de force as Valjean, and it's so cool to watch an adaptation that follows the book a little more closely and focuses more on other characters and plot points than just the ABC Cafe.  My one major complaint (among other, smaller ones) is that I wish the show more accurately explored what makes Javert tick.  David Oyelowo turns in a wonderful performance, as he always does, but the script doesn't capture the character's actual motivations.  He's portrayed as being obsessed with Valjean, specifically and exclusively, as opposed to what Valjean represents — which is, of course, a threat to Javert's rigid moral code.  But that's another post for another time.  Have any of you watched this version?

- my favorite YouTubers. || Morgan Long, especially, but also some newer finds like Megan Fox Unlocked (not that Megan Fox 😄) and Randi Lynn Reed.

☙ Reading

- my usual fare. || An assortment of classics, fantasy, historical fiction, and children's literature.  Every now and then I'll venture into the healthful and boring world of non-fiction, but the jaunt is usually a short one and I usually retreat right quickly to the safety of my little novels.  For instance, if I'm feeling particularly Pressed™ about the state of gender and sexual politics within the Church, I'll self-sabotage by reading a truly terrible Christian marriage advice book in the hopes that I'll someday channel the rage it elicits into a constructive think piece for the blog.  But that think piece — though it is in the works and I do genuinely hope to finish it sooner rather than later — has not as yet materialized in published form, so I need to stop doing this to myself until I can reasonably expect to finish it. *facepalms*  (I have Every Man's Battle waiting in my room.  It's mocking me, you guys.  I live in fear of the day I begin it and so should you.)

- Edna St. Vincent Millay. || I think she's officially become one of my "they get me" authors, and she's definitely joined the pantheon of my favorite female writers.  Her poetry blends a kind of casual existentialism with a deep love for nature and human relationships in a way that's really delicious.  I love her.  "I know I am but summer to your heart, / and not the full four seasons of the year, / and you must welcome from some other part / such noble moods as are not mine, my dear. / No gracious weight of golden fruits to sell have I, / nor any wise and wintry thing, / and I have loved you all too long and well / to carry still the sweet, high breast of Spring."

- old loves. || Some of which have gotten significantly less lovely since the last time I read them, but such is life.

☙ Listening

- to audiobooks. || Specifically my beloved Mariel of Redwall.

- again, to my usual fare. || Singer-songwriter, indie, pop, folk, etc.  Some of my current favorite artists are Isak Danielson, The Brilliance, Ruth B., The Collection, JOSEPH, The Gray Havens, Minnz Piano, Joel Ansett, and Tow'rs.  And T-Swift, of course. ♥

☙ Working

- full time as a legal assistant. || I've been able to move into my own apartment, which I love dearly, and I'm so grateful for the ways this job has provided for me.

- on health management. || I was diagnosed with a couple of tick-borne illnesses in 2021.  Unfortunately, the illnesses weren't caught in the early stages, so they've developed into chronic issues.  (We don't know exactly when I was infected, but it seems likely that I had the illnesses for several years prior to diagnosis.)  The good news is that, while I may be looking at a regular cycle of flares and remissions, I don't have to feel so hopeless when I begin to flare, because we found treatments that worked in the past and they may work again in the future.

Part of managing my chronic illnesses has been recognizing that exercise must look different for me than it does for many others.  I've always struggled with exercise because it never did for me what everyone told me it would:  it never made me feel better physically or mentally, even if I was doing it regularly; it never increased my energy levels; and it also rarely helped with weight management.  I now know that there are reasons for that — I now know that my illnesses affect both the feasibility and the efficacy of exercise on multiple levels.  But, now that those illnesses are more or less under control, I've regained a significant amount of capacity when it comes to exercise, which has been a real blessing.  I can go on hikes, now (something I've loved but been unable to do for a long time), and I can also implement some regular activity into my daily life.  I've found some low-impact, equipment-free routines that are working well for me at the moment, and it's been so neat to finally get to experience exercise actually doing what it's supposed to do in my body.  It's also been a huge relief mentally to be able to accept that I might not be able to follow all of the standard recommendations for someone my age, but that's okay, because there are a lot of different ways to keep active and healthy.

- full-time as a student. || Now that we've found some solutions for my health issues, I've been able to resume my studies and am finally completing my undergraduate degree.  Since I'm doing it online, all of the classes are compressed, which basically means that you take a full sixteen-week course in six to eight weeks.  And let me tell you — that's straight-up Not a Fun Thing to Do when you're also working full-time.  Ya girl is ✨struggling✨.  But, thankfully, one of my local friends is in exactly the same boat with me, and we are getting through it.  We are getting through it.

☙ Enjoying

- thrifting. || And thinking about trying the reselling game, though I have my doubts that I'd be successful at it.

- puzzling. || Trying to get into it, at least.  I've enjoyed doing puzzles with other people, in the past, but have never had much luck trying to establish the habit myself.  I'm trying to change that now. 😉

- the mountains. || Always and forever the home of my heart.

☙ Daydreaming

- about greenhouses and roadtrips and visits with friends.  and sundry other little girlish fancies. 😉

☙ Praying 

- for loved ones facing health challenges. || Amen and amen.

- for boldness. || In many ways and for many reasons.

What have you been up to this spring, friends?