Sweet Shit Round Up
August 2020
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The last full month of summer is at its end and I’m hella excited to finally be moving on to cooler weather and spooky surroundings. But in the meantime, enjoy the sweet shit August had to offer!
Books
Unpregnant by Jenni Hendriks and Ted Caplan
- Veronica is on the road to valedictorian and Brown University in the fall. So obviously she’s about to get thrown a major curveball. After discovering she’s pregnant and deciding an abortion is the right choice for her, she realizes she won’t be able to without her religious parents say so in her home state of Missouri. The closest clinic she can get to for the procedure without her parents finding out? Albuquerque, New Mexico (shout out to Breaking Bad.) Veronica has just three days to get to the clinic, have her procedure, and get back home without anyone finding out. But when some gross news about her boyfriend Kevin comes to light, the only person she can ask to drive her is her former friend Bailey. This book was a quick and easy read, I got through it in just a few hours and I really enjoyed it. I’m always a fan of books and movies that involve a dysfunctional road trip and a female buddy comedy? Sign me up. An Unpregnant movie is actually coming to HBO Max on September 10th so if anyone wants to lend me their login I’d be grateful.
The Last Book on the Left by Ben Kissel, Marcus Parks, and Henry Zebrowski
- If podcasts, true crime, or podcasts about true crime are your thing you’ve definitely heard of The Last Podcast on the Left, hosted by Ben Kissel, Marcus Parks, and Henry Zebrowski. The spooky boys put out a book in April chronicling the lives and crimes of 10 of the world’s most infamous serial killers. My friend Katy let me borrow her copy (thanks, girl!) and I spent the month reading it before bed….like ya do. I consider myself pretty well versed in the serial killer genre but I still learned things I had never heard before. Marcus has always been my favorite and he does a great job putting the information together in an entertaining way. There’s also some pretty funny moments, cause you gotta have a little levity when the subject is so dark, when Ben and Henry have their interjections. They’re like footnotes but more fun! True crime fans should def pick this one up. Oh! And Tom Neely’s illustrations are A+.
TV
- Netflix had one season of this awesome show that came out in 2018 and I can’t believe they haven’t made anymore. This reality show follows a group of Brits and one or two Americans as they see if they have what it takes to participate in the Special Operatives Executive or SOE, a secret organization responsible for espionage during WWII. Mostly made up of civilians who had to pass a grueling testing program, the SOE played a big part in the Allies winning the second world war. The participants in this show live, dress, and act as though it is the 1940s. There’s no cell phones, no internet, and the only newspapers they can read are from that time period. Each episode sees participants who wouldn’t have made the cut eliminated until they ultimately have their final team. The recruits learn lock picking, morse code, how to withstand interrogation, and all get assigned fake identities. It’s all. so. cool. Go watch the one and only season on Netflix then come back and tell me if you think you would have been accepted into the SOE…I definitely wouldn’t but Jonathan for sure would.
- British reality shows are so much better than American ones. There’s a lot less obviously scripted lines, barely any drama or shit talking, and the judges are somehow more memorable. Glow Up is a competition for make up artists. Every week they’re given briefs to come up with new, cool, or replicated make up looks in the hopes of staying out of the elimination face off. Series judge Val Garland steals the show with her cat eye glasses, dry humor, and silly catchphrase (DING DONG!) She also uses the term ‘cantankerous bitch’ at one point and that’s when I was sold. The make up looks range from amazing to what the fuck am I looking at. Anyone into make up, be it beauty or special effects, can find something/someone to love on this show.
- Last month, season one of The Umbrella Academy made my list as I went on a binge in preparation for season 2 to release on July 31st. It only made sense to include the second season on this month’s list. Starting from right where it left off in season 1, thanks to Five, the Hargreeves kids are time hopped back to the 1960s, all winding up in the same place (Dallas) but different years all in the early 60s. By the time they all catch up to one another, it becomes another race to end that pesky apocalypse that keeps plaguing them, this time, surrounding the assassination of JFK. Once again, the soundtrack is *chef’s kiss.* There’s a cover of Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” by Daniela Andrade that I still can’t get over. We get a new character in Lila, a woman who befriends Diego but of course is more than what she seems. Justin H. Min as Ben will make you cry. And Ellen Page’s Vanya gets to actually be fun and smile and be less mopey which I was a big fan of. The whole season is wonderful and I can’t recommend enough that you watch this series.
Documentaries
- Would you ever move out of the city and buy your own farm? Well Molly and John Chester did and John made a documentary all about the first seven years running the farm. With no real experience and wanting to run their farm, Apricot Lane Farms, in a more natural way, the Chesters share the ups and downs of their journey. We found this documentary randomly while scrolling through Hulu one night and I’m glad we did. I really loved watching these people who weren’t farmers take an awful plot of land and turn it into something beautiful. They struggle with coyotes killing their chickens and birds destroying their orchards but are determined to find natural ways to solves their problems, using nature to balance itself out. If you’re into gardening, sustainable living, or just watching people turn nothing into something, go check this doc out on Hulu.
- The littlest lady with the biggest impact on talking about sex in America. Dr. Ruth Westheimer rose to prominence in the 80s as a sex therapist ready and willing to answer any and all questions surrounding the topic of sex. Nothing was off limits and she didn’t make you feel awkward about asking anything. This documentary follows Dr. Ruth leading up to her 90th birthday as she travels the world reliving significant moments of her life. From being shipped off to Switzerland at 10 years old to escape Nazi Germany to her immigration to the U.S. in 1956, Dr. Ruth has lived a lot of life and she’s not afraid to talk about the good, the bad, and the sexual promiscuity. Hulu’s where it’s at, go check it out!
Video Games
- What came in as an unassuming online multiplayer knockout style game has, in only 25 days, turned into the most downloaded game ever on PS Plus! Not bad for a game centered around little jelly bean dudes wearing cute costumes and constantly falling over. Fall Guys is an easy game to get lost in for an hour or several with short “episodes” that usually take about 15 minutes if you can make it to the end round. The premise is simple: don’t get eliminated and be the last one standing at the end to get the crown. Ya’ll, that’s honestly so much harder than it sounds. We’ve been playing all month and I’ve only won one time. All these streamers out here hitting 40+ wins and I’m like….I don’t believe you. But, even though it can be frustrating to have that crown stolen from you time and time again, the game is a lot of fun and perfect for all video game skill sets. The only drag is that it’s currently only available on Playstation and Steam but with how popular it’s become I doubt it will be long before it makes it to the other consoles.
- Do you ever want to play video games but can’t find anything you’re committed to enough to actually spend the money on? PS Now is a perfect solution for that. For $60 for the whole year, you have access to a huge catalog of games including old PS3 games like the original Red Dead Redemption and Mortal Kombat 9 and newer titles like Shadow of the Tomb Raider or Overcooked 2 with more games added every month. Being able to try any game you want without worrying about spending money on something you end up hating is so cool.
Products & Miscellaneous
- I’ve dreamt of having my very own heavy bag to beat the shit out of since I was 15 years old. This month, Jonathan made that dream a reality. After cleaning and organizing the garage, we realized we had the space for a small work out area and the heavy bag was the first thing we thought of. I will admit, hanging it was kind of a nightmare what with being short, having to heave the 100lbs off the ground, and making sure the carabiner actually clipped onto the heavy bag hanger but now that it’s up it’s been awesome! If you’ve got some pent up aggression or just want to sweat, you’ve gotta get yourself a pair of gloves and a heavy bag of your own to try.
Homemade Pickles
- I love pickles. Kosher dill or dills only. Don’t give me any gross sweet pickles or bread and butter. So this month, we managed to get a decent cucumber haul from our garden and made our very own pickles! The process is surprisingly easy and it’s amazing how many slices you can get out of a medium sized cucumber. We even used our own home grown dill! We filled up these cute jars and passed some out to friends and family and they were a hit. They might have been a tad garlic-y (if that’s a thing) and got a little too tangy after a certain point of sitting but we’re still tweaking. We’ll perfect it next year.
Your turn. What made your list this month? Gonna check out anything from mine? Let me know in the comments below!