Well, November. It was a hard month, starting with Pops’ funeral on the first day of the month. I never expected to be burying my grandfather this year, definitely not 28 days before my birthday. But November had its bright moments, most especially my dear friend B’s wedding that might have been the highlight of my year. I just had the absolute best time, and I really needed it after many, many weeks of hardship. Here’s my recap of November:

Books

I read nine books in November, bringing my total for the year to 123. Woop! Like I mentioned yesterday, I’m hoping to reach 130, making this year my highest reading total ever. And remember, reading is not a competitive sport! We all read at our own pace and in our own time. I just tend to devote more time to reading than, say, exercise. 😉

You Will Know Me was a thriller that had me on the edge of my seat, and the gymnastics lover in me loved the gymnastics plot. I finished Sometimes I Lie in less than 24 hours and gave it five stars due to how easily it kept my attention. The Fractured Heart was a disappointing romance with lackluster characters. I’m working my way through the Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny, and A Rule Against Murder, the fourth book in the series, was absolutely delightful. I love when we get glimpses into Gamache’s marriage. I absolutely adored One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid and want everyone I know to read. It was just so fun! I found Now That You Mention It by Kristan Higgins to have problematic language in regard to fat-shaming, and so because of that, I wouldn’t recommend the novel. No One Tells You This was the memoir that I needed to read, all about living a happily single life in your forties. I listened to The High Season on audio. It was a slow, meandering read, but I enjoyed the exploration of privilege, family, art, and love. And I wrapped up my month with The Road Back to You, which is all about the Enneagram personality framework.

Podcasts

The Baby-Sitter’s Club Club finished reading through the BSC books! The last book, The Fire at Mary Anne’s House, was split into two parts and I was so impressed and delighted by the way they chose to wrap up this series. (Fear not, Jack and Tanner will still be podcasting and are tackling the Sweet Valley books next.)

Unladylike had an incredible episode titled, “How to Get a Rape Kit.” The episode mostly features an interview with a sexual assault nurse examiner, which is a person who is specially trained in how to examine rape victims after they’ve been assaulted. The episode was heartbreaking but hopeful, and my only wish is for every hospital to have these nurses available for rape victims.

Phoebe Judge, host of the podcast Criminal, went on a police ride-along for a day and I found the episode fascinating. We know so little about what police officers do on a day-to-day basis, so it’s worth a listen.

Serial finished up season three with episodes about juvenile detention centers and the kids who are incarcerated there. It was hard to listen to, but necessary. I liked season three of Serial much more than season two, but I don’t think it warranted a two-and-a-half year break in between seasons. I really hope she doesn’t make us wait that long for season four.

Lastly, I want to give another plug for the podcast Believed. It’s incredibly produced and so damn fascinating. It’s giving me the same feels that Serial season one gave me, where I have to listen to each episode the minute it’s downloaded. It’s not for the faint of heart (trigger warnings abound), but goddamn, it’s good.

Posts

I memorialized Pops, after losing him unexpectedly on October 28th, and then wrote about the life lessons he taught me over the years. I really never expected to be writing those posts so soon after losing Grandma. Not at all.

In mid-November, I took everyone through an average day in my life, which was really fun to put together. I need to do more posts like those!

I wrote about a fun weekend I spent in Orlando with friends, celebrating the wedding of a dear friend of ours. It’s definitely one of those weekends I’ll look back on fondly as the years pass.

I recapped my Thanksgiving holiday, a day that was hard since it was the first one without Pops (and since the loss still feels so unreal and raw, it was that much more difficult) but still had moments of goodness sprinkled throughout.

I wrote about turning 31, the miserable mess 30 was for me, and what I’m hoping for from this next year.

Highlights

> After seven weeks of impatient waiting, my couch was finally delivered and it is everything I want. It’s the perfect size for my apartment, and I just love relaxing on it while reading a book. Definitely the best purchase I made this year!

> My mom, stepdad, Chip, and I went to Dogtoberfest in Dunedin, where Chip participated in his first-ever Running of the Wieners. It was harder than I expected to be surrounded by all the dachshunds and not have my beloved with me. But sweet Chip helped me get through it. He wasn’t successful in his race (he didn’t even cross the finish line, ha), but I think he had fun nonetheless!

> I took the whole week of Thanksgiving off, the first time I’ve had that week off since I was in high school. It was so nice to have a little staycation. The first day was spent traveling back from the wedding and recovering from a very stimulating weekend. The rest of the time, I didn’t really do all too much but somehow I managed to fill up my time just right. I think I’m ready for retirement. 😉

> I joined a new gym! It opens in January and it’s super close to where I live. Ever since I canceled my gym membership, I’ve felt a little lost when it comes to my workouts. I just really like the gym atmosphere and having access to classes and such. I locked in a great rate ($20 a month!) and all the signup fees were waived. This gym will have the standard Les Mills classes and while they won’t have spin classes to start off, the manager plans on adding it into the workout schedule within a few months. I joined with one of my good friends, too, so it will be nice to have her as an accountability buddy!

> My mom took me to this adorable place called Robert’s Christmas Wonderland. It’s filled with all kinds of Christmas decorations and has this incredible room full of lit-up Christmas trees. All of the trees are fake and they are expensive. I’m talking $1,200 for a friggin Christmas tree. Nah. I picked up a few ornaments and a fun Christmas countdown for my desk at work, so I was happy!

> I had a wonderful night at a favorite local pizza place with my girlfriends to celebrate my birthday. They showered me with gifts and love. We stuffed ourselves silly with Greek salad, cheesy bread, and pizza. And we reminisced and laughed about the wedding weekend and our antics at the reception. (I don’t think anyone would have guessed that the bride’s book club friends would outlast everyone else on the dance floor!) It was a beautiful night and so good for my soul.

Tell me one of your highlights from November!

It’s October! It’s the last quarter of 2018! What even happened to this year? No matter – we’re entering my favorite time of the year, so I am ready for all these next few months have to bring. Give me pumpkin-scented candles, cooler weather, peppermint mochas, and the holiday season. I am ready.

Here’s what September looked like in my world:

Books

I read 10 books in September, bringing my yearly total to 103. So, I already met my reading goal for the year! That’s cool. I’m not going to change my reading goal; just going to keep trucking along and see how many more books I can read before 2018 is over.

I loved Sleigh Bells in the Snow, which was just a really sweet and fun contemporary romance. I listened to A Million Junes on audiobook and it was fantastic. I’m not one of magical realism, but it worked for this novel. Our book club pick for September was Red Clocks and I was not a fan. I listened to The Meaning of Michelle on audiobook and loved it so much. Taking Fire was an okay romantic suspense novel, but had my least favorite romance trope, ugh. I read Persuasion to fulfill my goal of reading four classic novels this year and decided that Jane Austen is not for me. Come as You Are was life-changing and made me feel a lot more normal about sex. I think it is a must-read for any woman. I finished up the Never, Never trilogy by reading part three and didn’t like the twist. Meh. Mr. Strange Beard was one of Penny Reid’s best and I had so much fun reading that novel. Fear by Bob Woodward was so fascinating and I listened to it on audiobook, which I think made the reading experience better for me. (Not sure if I would have made it through a print book!)

Movies

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (★★★☆☆) – A sweet movie, based on the book of the same name. I read the book and liked it, especially considering it gave us a different perspective on WWII. The movie was sweet and lovely and something most people would enjoy. It didn’t wow me in any way and probably wouldn’t watch it again, but I’m glad I gave it a watch.

The Hangover (★★★★☆) – Can you believe I’ve never seen this movie? Thankfully, I finally remedied that this month and watched it. It was hilarious and fun and ridiculous, and pretty much what I expected from a movie like this. I’m definitely going to check out the sequels in the coming months!

The Big Sick (★★★☆☆) – I put up a poll on Instagram one Saturday, asking people to vote between The Big Sick or Trainwreck. I had a few people express a very strong dislike for Trainwreck, so thankfully, The Big Sick won! I enjoyed this movie, but some of the plot was hard to believe, even though I know the movie was loosely based on real-life events. (For example, if your best friend is sick in the hospital, why would you call her ex-boyfriend with whom she had a super nasty breakup to come stay with her? <– That may be spoiler-y.) Even still, it was a heartwarming movie and I loved all of the stand-up comedy, and I’d highly recommend it! (Just be aware, it’s very F-bomb heavy!)

Podcasts

I laughed my way through Ike Barinholtz’s episode on Armchair Expert, falling in love with him even more than I already was. Dax and Ike did so many impressions throughout the episode, and that’s the easiest way to make me laugh.

Call Your Girlfriend’s episode on white fragility is a must-listen for white people. Unfortunately, I think the people who need to listen to this episode the most probably won’t.

Criminal had a really interesting episode featuring trauma surgeons, and how they deal with gunshot victims both from a medical perspective and a personal one.

I’m so happy that Serial is back! There is nothing like Sarah Koenig in my ears again. Season three explores the law and court system by spending a year inside a Cleveland courthouse. I’ve listened to the first two episodes and they were pretty damn fantastic. I don’t think this season will be as all-consuming as season one (where I had to listen to the episodes immediately and spend all my time on Reddit forums), but I do think it will be much, much better than season two.

Posts

This month, I blogged about my ideal evening routine and you better believe I am spending October trying to make that ideal routine more of an everyday reality.

I also talked about my reading routines, showing how I make time for reading on a daily basis. This post seemed to encourage more people to give reading in bits and pieces (i.e., under 15 minutes) a try. Do it, do it.

Based on a question posed on my Instagram, I offered some advice on how to choose books to read, from making a monthly TBR to cultivating a reading syllabus.

Highlights

> September kicked off with a fun walk with Chip and my mom. We went to a nearby park that has a great (mostly shaded) two-mile trail. Chip had the best time and got a lot of his puppy energy out. Afterwards, we went to Starbucks for a quick breakfast and Chip had his first taste of whipped cream. (He’s a big fan.)

> My mom, my brother, my older nephew, and I did a fun bike tour in Safety Harbor. We all rode together in a surrey bike, although we all found the biking to be really difficult! We’ve done a surrey ride before, in downtown St. Pete, and don’t remember it being so physical. Whew! We went out for breakfast after the bike ride and it was a really fun afternoon!

> I had my first massage in almost a year in early September because I had been experiencing some lower back pain. The massage was fine, but the masseuse talked way too much and made the experience a little aggravating. Ugh.

> I started therapy! Finally! It’s going well so far. I’m not ready to say she’s “the one” as my therapist, but she could be. I’ve scheduled appointments with her every other week through November, so I think I’ll reassess after then. I will say that it’s been a much more positive experience than my previous therapist, as she’s great at asking questions that help me to open up. I always leave her office feeling a bit more hopeful about my life.

> I got my second tattoo, this one in remembrance of Dutch. I always knew I was going to get a dachshund tattoo for him and I am so, so happy with the way it turned out. It’s even better than I expected! I went to the same tattoo artist who did my book tattoo last year because I had such a positive experience with him, and yet again, he didn’t let me down.

> I tried to enjoy myself during a girls’ night out in Tampa on a Wednesday evening, but anxiety got the best of me. Sigh. There were a few days of recovering from being in such a high-anxiety state afterward.

> My brother turned 32 and my nephew turned 10 this month! We celebrated my nephew’s birthday at an indoor trampoline park.

> Book club at Capital Tacos was an unexpectedly emotional night. I’m glad we all have each other and the support I get from these ladies is undeniable.

> Near the end of the month, I started having this weird eye pain/pressure/fatigue… I’m not really sure what to call it. My eyes just felt tired, as if just keeping my eyes open took all of my strength. I was also getting dizzy, so I scheduled an appointment with my eye doctor and had them dilate my eyes to make sure there wasn’t anything crazy going on. Good news is, I don’t have a crazy eye disease! The bad news is, I don’t know what was causing the eye issues. My eye doc said my eyes appeared a little dry, so he sent me home with a sample of eye drops and I used the drops a few times after that appointment, and my eyes are fine now. I’m really not sure if it was the eye drops that helped, but whatever works.

> I went to my local animal shelter to look at the kittens, and it solidified my decision to adopt kittens. I’m still feeling a little weird that I’m not going to have a dog in my home for the foreseeable future, but I also know my home will be just as sweet and happy with cats as it would be with a dog.

Tell me a highlight of yours from September!

Happy Friday, friends! And happy September. It’s hard to believe it’s time for pumpkin spice lattes and fall decor. Florida doesn’t really get the “fall” memo, so it’s going to be hot and humid here for another few months, but I’ll try to ring in fall with as many pumpkin-scented and -flavored things as I can.

I continue to play around with my monthly recaps, and maybe this one will be here to stay for a while. Who knows, though. I sure don’t. I feel like my mood changes from season to season. This one, however, recaps the books I read, movies I watched, podcast episodes I enjoyed, and other highlights from my month.

Books

I read 11 books in August, which puts me at 93 books read for the year. So, yeah, I think I am going to well surpass my goal for reading 100 books this year. I don’t think I’ll be able to read 150, but I’ll definitely come close.

I really liked The Woman in Cabin 10, which I read for my work book club. I found the narrator to be incredibly annoying, but the mystery itself was well-paced. I read Never, Never (parts 1 and 2) this month, and while I was blown away by part 1, part 2 left a lot to be desired. Hillbilly Elegy is a book people have strong feelings about (usually negatively), but I gave it 5 stars and thought it was well-written and really helped me come to terms with my own upbringing. Wicked and the Wallflower is Sarah MacLean’s latest historical romance, which I really enjoyed, although I wouldn’t have minded if it was 50-75 pages shorter. Tears We Cannot Stop is a book I had on my “immediate TBR” list (I read two books a month off this list) and it’s a book every white person should read. You cannot stick your head in the sand anymore. Ninja at First Sight was a romance novella that was pretty silly and poorly written. Penny Reid is such a hit-or-miss author for me! I listened to You’ll Grow Out of It on audio and really enjoyed it! I feel like I could be really great friends with Jessi Klein. A Princess in Theory was a fun romance that I think just about anyone could enjoy. I finally read Beartown this month and while it took me nearly two weeks to read, it’s a book I can’t stop thinking about and I’m so glad I finally read. It’s definitely going on my favorites list this year, no doubt. And I finished out the month with Love and Other Words, which is my second Christina Lauren romance but definitely didn’t wow me in the least. The writing was good, but the plot was not.

Movies

Crazy Rich Asians (★★★★★) – I found this movie to be the perfect companion to the book, and I think I actually prefer the movie adaptation to the book. I wasn’t a huge fan of the book, mostly because it was very long and filled with a lot of uninteresting details, but the movie was everything. I had an intense emotional hangover after watching the movie, and just immediately wanted to rewatch it the moment I finished it. Constance Wu and Henry Golding were the perfect Rachel and Nick!

The Spy Who Dumped Me (★★★★☆) – This movie was so funny! I didn’t expect it to be nearly as funny as it was (I thought it would be more stupid-funny, but it was smart-funny). Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon were perfect in their roles. I also just loved the emphasis on strong female friendship and wanting the best for your friends no matter what. We need more movies like this!

Podcasts

I loved the Lecrae episode of Good Christian Fun, as the hosts and guest had a really interesting discussion about racism and segregation in the church.

Jon M. Chu, who directed Crazy Rich Asians was on the Keep It podcast to talk about diversity in the filming industry and what it felt like to direct this movie. A must listen!

I fangirled hard when I listened to Jon Lovett interview Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on Pod Save America. She is so eloquent and brilliant and the change America needs today. (And yes, I’m now fangirling over politicians. This is the me.)

Seth Rogan’s episode of Armchair Expert was much more interesting than I expected. Seth is an open marijuana user and didn’t have any shyness about talking about how he uses marijuana and how it helps him both personally and creatively. I’ve never used drugs of any kind, nor do I wish to, but I found the conversation enlightening and helpful in moving forward the dialogue of legalizing marijuana.

Highlights

> I had a bagel from Einstein Bros for the first time and was blown away by their everything bagel. Every Friday is “Bagel Friday” at my work and we usually get Panera, but they decided to switch it up and order Einstein’s and I’m a convert. I don’t want to eat any other kind of bagels ever again.

> I went to a dear friend’s bridal shower in early August and left with a fun gift after winning the “how well do you know the bride and groom” game. It helps that I lived with the bride-to-be for a year!

> My work now has a snack bar! This is good and bad news. Good because now I can pop into the break room for a sweet treat when I hit the 2pm lull. Bad because now I want donuts for breakfast every morning.

> I had a taco date with some girlfriends, in which we ordered a large guacamole, queso, and chips. We killed the guac and queso, no problem.

> My salon gave me a complimentary blowout when I went to get my hair colored. Usually, I just leave the salon with wet hair when I only get the color touched up, so this was a nice surprise!

> I spent an afternoon with my friend M. binging on season one of Nailed It. Have you seen this show? It’s hilarious and a must-watch, in my opinion. We picked up a dozen vegan cupcakes to eat while watching the show, and I learned that four cupcakes is about my limit for one afternoon.

> This month, we held book club at a friend’s new house! We had a potluck-style lunch and then floated around in her pool for awhile. We had perfect weather and it was such a fun afternoon with my favorite ladies.

> I went to see Crazy Rich Asians with a group of coworkers at the fancy Cinebistro movie theater. You guys. It was a $50 date for myself between the ticket and the dinner itself (which didn’t include an alcoholic drink). Whew… I’m an expensive date!

> My mom started an Instagram account for Chip, and you should really give him a follow. I’m posting to it often – usually, in the form of Instagram Stories. It’s been fun, and Chip already has more followers than my mom, ha.

> For the first time ever, I voted in a midterm primary! And for the first time ever, I completed a mail-in ballot. I tried to make informed decisions about who to vote for, and I was seriously excited when Andrew Gillum won the Democratic nomination for Governor. Now we just have to get him to beat Ron DeSantis who is, yes, the one with that crazy Trump ad that looks like an SNL parody. I may have to move out of Florida if he wins.