Tag: janet mock

My 2019 Reading List

Chelsea Harper1 Comment

These are a list of books I have every intention of reading in 2019. I’m only including books that I already own, since I’m not allowed to buy media this year (that’s why libraries exist, y’all). Here’s what on the docket!

  1. Becoming by Michelle Obama. I’m listening to this one, because I want Michelle’s amazing voice to soothe all of my ills.
  2. My Squirrel Days by Ellie Kemper. I’m listening to this on Audible right now and loving it. Ellie is so sweet and super funny.
  3. All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung. I started this about a month ago but had to put it off until school was over so I could truly enjoy it.
  4. Not That Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture, edited by Roxane Gay. I read most of this book in the spring but never got around to finishing it. Some of the essays can be extremely challenging to get through. The writers bare their souls.
  5. Shrill by Lindy West. Discovered Lindy way late, on Dear Prudence, and have been obsessed with her ever since.
  6. Wonderful Tonight by Pattie Boyd. Pattie has the up-close-and-personal deets about Harrison and Clapton
  7. Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Been meaning to read this one for ages.
  8. Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan. I started this earlier this year but it got sacrificed to the grad school gods. As soon as I’m finished I’m watching the film.
  9. Live from New York. The SNL book! Been dying to read this ever since it came out.
  10. Waiting for the Punch by Marc Maron. This is a collection of all the wisdom he gained doing his interview podcast WTF with Marc Maron. He basically invented podcasts, and he’s had some of the most incredible guests—Barack Obama say whaaaat?
  11. Bitch Doctrine by Laurie Penny. I discovered Laurie on Dear Prudence and immediately started following her on Twitter. She’s a savage, and I love her.
  12. Unladylike by Cristen Conger and Caroline Ervin. The former ladies of Stuff Mom Never Told You wrote a book!
  13. Hard Choices and What Happened by Hillary Clinton. Because of course I am.
  14. In Intimate Detail by Cora Harrington. Remember the thin privilege Twitter thread this summer? That was by Cora, who is a lingerie writer at The Lingerie Addict. I know literally nothing about lingerie, but I’m a grown-ass woman and it’s about time I did.
  15. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Started this one years ago and never finished. I am such a distracted reader!
  16. Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood. I am a Handmaid’s Tale stan (both the book and the show), so I can’t wait to read more Atwood!
  17. Flaubert’s Parrot by Julian Barnes. JB is one of my favorite short story writers, so I’m pumped to read his novel.
  18. How to Rent a Negro by Damali Ayo. This was on the syllabus for my American Racial Satire class, but I fell behind and never got a chance to read it.
  19. Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. I KNOW. It’s insane I haven’t read this already. Don’t come for me. Not every avid reader can read every damn classic.
  20. Erasure by Percival Everett. I Am Not Sidney Poitier is one of my favorite books of all time and apparently this one is even wilder.
  21. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. Another classic I should have already read.
  22. Every Day by David Levithan, because who doesn’t need a YA break every once in a while?
  23. Redefining Realness by Janet Mock. For obvious reasons.
  24. The Merry Spinster by Daniel Mallory Ortberg. For obvious reasons.
  25. The Measure of a Man by Sidney Poitier. Love a good biography, and I find SP so inspiring.
  26. Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson. I’ve read at least 60% of this book like three times, but always end up not finishing it for some reason! Here’s to a better 2019.
  27. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Same as Housekeeping.
  28. Swing Time by Zadie Smith. Bought this while I was in England. Zadie is bae.
  29. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han. Heard such good things about this one!
  30. All the Lives I Want by Alana Massey. To be fair, I’m a good chunk of the way through this one on Audible, but I do plan to finish it soon.
  31. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. This is another one I read most of in high school, but I bought it on Audible narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal, so I plan to listen to it on my work commute.
  32. Basic Witches by Jaya Saxena and Jess Zimmerman. I am obsessed with Jaya, and who doesn’t want to read a book about summoning success, banishing drama, and raising hell?
  33. MAUS I & II by Art Spiegelman. Because I was supposed to read them for class (oops!), and because I want to challenge myself to actually read a graphic novel.
  34. So Close to Being the Shit, Y’all Don’t Even Know by Retta. Audible, and Retta is my favorite.
  35. I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara. Audible. When Michelle McNamara died, Julie Klausner re-aired an interview with her and she was such a brilliant mind.
  36. This Will Only Hurt a Little by Busy Philipps. Audible. Busy is the best, from Kim Kelly to Busy Tonight.
  37. Always Look on the Bright Side of Life by Eric Idle. Monty Python is my favorite ever.

I hope to read more than this in 2019, but clearly, I have a great year of reading ahead of me!

Sunday Kind of Love

Chelsea HarperLeave a comment

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My vacation in Florida this weekend was cancelled due to a f***ing Nor’easter, so of course, instead of enjoying myself in the sun, I’m bundled up in the Boston suburbs, miserably freezing my butt off. I did, however, give myself the gift of an extra-long weekend and a bottle of Rosé to comfort me in this dark time. So, when I have to, in the words of poet laureate Marshall Mathers, snap back to reality on Monday, here’s what I’ll be thinking about.

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  1. Should I give up paper towels? They’re my green cleaning vice, along with disposable sanitizing wipes.
  2. I’ve been consigning my clothes with thredUP this year, to amazing results. They make it so, so easy to purge your house and get a lil’ cashish in the process. I’ve made over $200 already, with almost no effort!
  3. I’ve been wishy-washy about this for well over a year. Should I finally actually try the Pomodoro Technique? I mean, it is named after the Italian word for tomato, so it’s right up my alley. Time management is NOT my strong suit.
  4. I went on a Society6 bath mat window-shopping spree. I have four in my cart right now: check them out here, here, here, and here. My new bathroom has a black-white-and-grey Parisian-inspired theme, but who says I can’t add tiny rugs to other parts of my house as well?
  5. Vacation is the best, but mostly because I get to read for pleasure! I’m reading Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace and Janet Mock’s Redefining Realness this week. #YQY
  6. This article is #goals. I can’t walk out of Trader Joe’s without spending $150 on strange chip varieties.
  7. My level of jealously re: this closet is unacceptable.
  8. Full disclosure: I read Fifty Shades of Grey a few years ago when I was house-bound for a day. I watched the movie a year or so later, because it happened to be free on HBO. Now that the franchise has come to a close (probably), should I just read the other 2 books and watch the trilogy? I love trash, so I could probably spin it into my thesis topic or something.
  9. Did you all know that Ivy Park is still a thing at Nordstrom and TopShop? Now that I actually go to the gym, maybe it’s time…(Update: 100% just bought these.)

 

peace out, cub scouts! until next week,

c

Sunday Kind of Love

Chelsea HarperLeave a comment

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Happy weekend! This week is spring break for those of us still affiliated with a college or university. Even though I have to work three out of the five days next week, it will all be worth it when I fly to sunny Florida! Can’t wait to go to Tallahassee for the third time—I’m telling you, it’s a really cool city! But until my flight Wednesday night, I’ll just be daydreaming about better weather and improving my mood with a few of the following:

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i know you are but what am i?
  1. Michael Ian Black wrote a piece called “The Boys Are Not All Right” regarding masculinity, violence, and the ongoing gun debate. Michael Ian Black is (obviously) one of the best writers and actors of our time—you might know him from Stella, I Love the 80s, Another Period, The Jim Gaffigan Show, and Wet Hot American Summer, to name only a small fraction of his impressive credits. He is also the author of over 10 books (you may have heard of A Child’s First Book of Trump?) Sorry for rambling, but I love this man so. Black has such moving, important things to say about toxic masculinity’s role in the epidemic of gun violence. Peruse his website here.
  2. This song is the extreme jam. Lyrics here for the nerdy among us.
  3. Have you heard about the Hamilton Polka yet? The Weird Al/Lin-Manuel connection is my OTP.
  4. People dressed up like Marvelous Mrs. Maisel characters for Purim! Rachel Brosnahan and Alex Borstein have been retweeting them into the TL! As someone from the most Catholic-dense area outside of the freaking Vatican, I had no clue Purim involved costumes! Just the best.
  5. I’m reading this book over break and I am so damn excited. Janet is the actual queen. Watch her on Super Soul Sunday!
  6. This recipe is almost as amazing as its creator! I obviously mess with it a bit (not about that pancetta life), but it’s an easy classic that literally everyone loves. If you haven’t bought Chrissy Teigen’s cookbook yet, what’s wrong with you?
  7. Have I shouted out May Designs yet? They have an agenda collab with Blue Sky available at Target and my gosh is it cute. But my favorite thing about this incredible brand is the free (!) cellphone and computer wallpaper they create every month! I’m rocking March’s lewks right now!
  8. Oh, hi! If you need me, I’ll be browsing ALL THE SHOES for spring and summer. No shame in my Katy Perry game. Take my first born in exchange for some lemon or left shark heels. These are like if my soul were a shoe. P.S. They sell a few of the fruit Gelis at the retail establishment and work for and y’all KNOW I’m getting some.

See you next week on another installment of Sunday Kind of Love!

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xoxo,

c