Monthly Recap | September 2020

Happy October! It’s starting to actually feel a bit like fall around here—and by “a bit like fall,” I mean it was 83 degrees at noon yesterday and that felt DOWNRIGHT PLEASANT. We take what we can get here. 🙂 Today, I’m recapping September in terms of books, podcasts, TV shows, and more. Enjoy!

READING

I read 12 books in September, bringing my yearly total to 116 books. This will definitely be my highest reading year yet! (This time last year, I was at 101 books and the year before that, 103.) My top three reads from September were:

• Deacon King Kong by James McBride, a character-driven novel about a shooting that reverberates throughout a community
• The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan, the follow-up novel to The Royal We (essentially fan fiction about William and Kate!)
• The Real Doctor Will See You Shortly: A Physician’s First Year by Matt McCarthy, a memoir about a medical intern’s first year working in a hospital

WATCHING

• Cheer (Netflix) – I finally watched this Netflix documentary and I enjoyed it so much! I did competitive cheerleading when I was younger and this brought back so many great memories. I fell in love with all of the cheerleaders (ugh, let’s not get started about Jerry, though. I am so disappointed!) and their stories. And man, I was so impressed by the athleticism of these cheerleaders, especially the girls who are just being tossed up in their air like rag dolls again and again and again. I would definitely recommend this documentary!
• Getting Organized with The Home Edit (Netflix) – I’m not a huge fan of The Home Edit, but I started watching their Netflix show for something easy and fun to watch during my move. And it was exactly what I needed! While Clea could most definitely get on my nerves (Joanna is a saint for putting up with her), I loved watching all of these dysfunctional spaces become beautifully organized. Are there issues with the show? You bet! But when I needed something calming and easy to watch, this truly fit the bill.
• Big Brother (CBS) – I’m still trucking along with Big Brother, even though this season has been a massive disappointment. I don’t even have a favorite (maybe Tyler?), which is unheard of for me at this point in the season. Blah.

LISTENING TO

• All American: Tiger Woods – This podcast is all about the rise and fall and comeback of Tiger Woods. He’s such a compelling athlete, from being a black athlete in a majorly white sport to his sex scandal and fall from grace. I’m really enjoying it! I believe this podcast is going to be looking at all kinds of athletes, going deep on their beginnings and scandals and all that jazz, and I’m looking forward to who they’ll profile after Tiger.
• Childhood with Chanel and Tiffany – When I heard that Chanel Miller (author of Know My Name) started a podcast with her sister, I knew I wanted to listen to it. Chanel is known for speaking out about really hard topics, and this podcast is the opposite of that. Instead, it’s just Chanel and Tiffany giggling together and discussing their childhood memories. It is goodness and light and hope, and I highly recommend it!
• Kids on the Case on Criminal – Oh, my heavens! I have never enjoyed a podcast episode so much! Phoebe talks to a handful of kids (ages 10 to 16, I think?) about some of the cases they’ve solved, such as finding an Alzheimer’s patient who got lost. It is so lovely and made me tear up about the sweetness and kindness of children.

BUYING

• Laptop stand + wireless keyboard ($56) – Chalk this up to a spur-of-the-moment decision, but it’s one that has made my work life so much better. It makes it easier to type and look at my screen with everything tilted in a much more ergonomically pleasing manner. My posture is so much better, too, surprisingly! (Or maybe not so surprisingly?!)
• IKEA dresser ($150) – One of my new purchases for my apartment was a new dresser. My old one was falling apart with many of the drawers difficult to open, so I took a trip to IKEA one afternoon to check out their dressers and loved this style. It was a beast to put together, but it’s a nice little addition to my bedroom!
• Desk ($285) – I couldn’t help myself, you guys. I am so tired of working from my tiny desk and bought the desk I linked to last week. My mom and stepdad are coming over tomorrow to help me put it together since it’s huge and not a one-person job. I’m looking forward to being able to work from a much nicer desk soon! (And let’s face it: the cats need more space to sleep on my desk. They barely have room for it right now! Hehe.)

Highlights

> Moving. This was indeed the highlight of my month and I am so happy to be in my new place. It is so much bigger and I feel so much less cramped. The move itself went fine, although moving to a third-floor apartment with no elevator in 100-degree heat was no fun at all. I’m slowly settling in and creating a little home for me and my cats, and I’m just so grateful I was able to make this happen.

> The return of reading dates. My friend, A., and I used to have regular reading dates where we would find a coffee shop or outside locale and just read. Of course, we would spend a good amount of time catching up but then set a time for 45 minutes and sit quietly, reading. Well, our last reading date was in JANUARY! The pandemic really threw a wrench in our plans. This month brought the return of reading dates. We met up at a park downtown and had a nice view of the water. We spent more time talking than reading, haha, but we had a lot to catch up on! We’re hoping to make these reading dates more of a regular thing—especially with the weather cooling down!

> NFL football. I am so glad football is back! I needed this in my life, mostly because it meant spending all of Sunday with my mom, brother, and older nephew. The NFL has implemented somewhat strict COVID protocols, but I am so annoyed by the mask-wearing by the coaches! It doesn’t work if you don’t wear your mask correctly, dudes! Ugh. Other than that, I’m enjoying the season, even if it is weird to see empty stadiums. (They have piped in fake crowd noise so it doesn’t feel totally silent aside from game noise, but it’s definitely weird.)

> My election assignment. I was so excited to get my polling assignment for the upcoming general election. It’s going to be an interesting election (seriously wondering if we’ll have Trump supporters trying to “watch” our precinct as he has been instructing them to do, ugh). I’m glad to be able to do my part and help ensure a fair and free election. And let this be your reminder that as long as you are at the right precinct, YOU ARE ALLOWED TO VOTE. Always! You can vote by provisional ballot even if your voter registration has been challenged. Please do not leave without voting, even if you’re being hassled.

> All of the birthdays. It was a month of birthdays in September! My brother turned 34 and my nephew turned 12, and we celebrated with cookie cake, presents, and football. My stepdad also had a birthday at the end of the month. And I got to surprise my friend B for her birthday with a bunch of my other friends, which was a delight! It was a good month of celebrating my people, is what I’m saying.

> Pup-sitting Chip. My mom and stepdad went on a little vacation for his birthday, which meant I was on Chip duty! It was so nice to have one-on-one time with him and to be able to enjoy their backyard. I didn’t go in the pool but loved being able to dip my legs in the water while watching Chip run around the backyard (and reading my book outside! So nice!)