2022 in review and 23 things to do in 2023

it feels like i say this every year, but SERIOUSLY: how is 2022 over already? i loathe the passage of time. anywho, it was a good year. a great year, even. it wasn't omg-best-year-of-my-life-all-my-dreams-came-true or anything, but you can't win 'em all. here are the highlights, and some to-dos for next year that will hopefully provide some inspo!

in 2022, i:

• resumed my tradition of winter getaways with a trip to visit my friend alissa in st. petersburg, florida, where we ate, drank, went on a museum scavenger hunt, drank coffee at cute cafes, stalked adorable houses, watched inventing anna, bought a drink for a tiktok star we saw at a restaurant, and watched the super bowl halftime show at a bar

  
  

• saw 40 artists/bands live (including 2 festivals, 16 acts i’ve seen before, and the long-awaited and twice-postponed def leppard/mötley crüe/poison/joan jett show at fenway)

• met andrew mccarthy of brat pack fame at a travel show

• spent a beautiful, perfect week in portugal

• started a substack newsletter, which will be returning in 2023; shameless plug to subscribe!

• took my first dance class (hip-hop) since before COVID!

• met my internet friend danielle IRL and had a fun-filled overnight trip in mystic, CT 

• drank frosé, people watched, and jumped around to ABBA at the tea dance in provincetown 

• enjoyed a completely idyllic weekend at a farmhouse in upstate new york with 6 other ladies for my best friend gleni's bachelorette extravaganza — we drank wine, made dinners and breakfasts and french press coffee, lounged in the pool, took edibles and sang karaoke under a blacklight, watched legally blonde, did nail art, had a coastal grandma photoshoot, and made s'mores by the fire pit

• went to brooklyn for for gleni’s wedding, gave a toast, and danced the night away

• dealt with the insanity that is salem, massachusetts on a saturday in october, but apple cider cocktails eased the pain

• reunited with my marist friend tati in vegas for a whirlwind adventure that involved a distillery, high winds, meow wolf, magic mike, and a frantic but ultimately successful search for when we were young sunday tickets after the festival was canceled on saturday

• did the stranger things thing as eddie munson with my friend cassidy (who was max) at the liberty hotel halloween party

• got a new couch!

• found out both my moon sign (aquarius) and my enneagram type (7) and have been fascinated ever since because they’re SO ACCURATE and have given me so much insight into why i am the way i am

• did barely ANY writing outside of my full-time job...for me, anyway. i've been dealing with a prolonged case of writer's block that i just can't shake, so i'm going to get my club out and chase that inspiration until it submits to me in 2023. i did manage to eke out a few pieces i tossed up on medium, though:
• mmmbye: breaking up with my favorite childhood band
• the enduring mystique of pizza hut
• searching for stars hollow

happiest moments:

• sitting for hours at a wine bar in porto, portugal with my new tour friend nolene — looking at the douro river, eating cheese and sardines, drinking wine, and chatting 
• marveling at the natural beauty of the caves on the algarve coast on a boat tour
• singing and dancing like a fool by myself at a machine gun kelly concert
• seeing a man walking his pet pig at the hollis flea market
• finding a random magic 8 ball on the sidewalk on my way to get a scone and sourdough and iced coffee on a summer sunday morning
• drinking painkillers at the treehouse bar + watching youtube videos with danielle in our b&b room in mystic
• floating in a random suburban pool cassidy and i rented through swimply
• walking 45 minutes to honeycomb creamery in cambridge and ordering a scoop of port cherry vanilla ice cream and a scoop of salted caramel crackle and walking home
• screaming "pour some sugar on me" with thousands of other people at the stadium tour
• singing karaoke for hours, watching family feud, and then sleeping in a magical canopy bed during the bachelorette weekend
• listening to "away from the mire" by billy strings several times on my solo road trip and tearing up every time
• seeing my best friend get married and dancing to the best wedding playlist!
• smoking a joint in my bathtub and listening to d'angelo on a random tuesday night
• reliving my emo glory days and catching up with tati 

pop culture favorites 

note that these did not necessarily come out this year (though some did), i just consumed them in 2022.

songs: HERE

albums:

the berries - high flying man

nilüfer yanya - PAINLESS

rolling blackouts coastal fever - endless rooms

why bonnie - 90 in november

harry styles - harry's house

momma - household name

they are gutting a body of water - s

PHONY - AT SOME POINT YOU STOP

soccer mommy - sometimes, forever

movies:

promising young woman

hotel mumbai

jackass forever

barbarian

top gun: maverick

books: 

mary jane by jessica anya blau

miss fortune by lauren weedman

in five years by rebecca serle

the paris apartment by lucy foley

everything i need i get from you: how fangirls created the internet as we know it by kaitlyn tiffany

cackle by rachel harrison

one italian summer by rebecca serle

a novel obsession by caitlin barasch

tv shows:

inventing anna

the 7 lives of lea

the sex lives of college girls

the summer i turned pretty

maggie

the bear

2022 to-dos review

well, out of 22 items, i did 11, which is kind of par for the course at this point. not bad!

visit portugal

sing karaoke

visit a friend in a different state

take a road trip

find one of the records on my vinyl wishlist out in the wild and buy it (the list includes MC5, the stooges, and crosby, stills, and nash) found CS&N at bull moose in portsmouth!

take one day off work for no reason other than to relax and recharge

see a live play/musical counting lost spirits distillery and magic mike in vegas

finish the new york times crossword every day for a week

order a cocktail that involves fire got a smoked old fashioned at two different bars, so i'm counting it

hang out on someone's boat technically, the p-town ferry is someone's boat, right?

watch a classic movie rome adventure

23 things to do in 2023

1. do a sound bath meditation

2. visit a state i’ve never been to (looking at you in may, utah)

3. dine at the olde pink house in savannah, georgia

4. go to a sofar sounds show

5. finish taking (and develop!) the roll of film on the disposable camera i bought last summer

6. take a pole dancing class

7. finally learn to parallel park and do it successfully

8. get published on one of my bucket list publications (the new yorker, the new york times, travel and leisure, condé nast traveler)

9. go to a poetry slam at lizard lounge

10. make this bourbon cheddar apple pie

11. find the acler raven midi cutout dress secondhand for less than $100 because i fell in love with it last summer at saks off 5th and have thought about it nearly every day since, but have nowhere to wear it

12. go to a GVF show with danielle because we haven’t seen them together yet (bonus points if we get barricade on jake’s side of the stage so we can realize our banger sisters/cougar dreams)

13. host a dinner party for real, for real this time

14. try a tasting menu (maybe at tasting table?)

15. go to the encore casino since i haven't been

16. make dinner using a majority of ingredients from the farmers market

17. be a guest on a podcast

18. get a cute vintage table + chair set for my dining room

19. visit montreal

20. crash. a. wedding. SOMEBODY DO IT WITH ME!

21. complete and shop around a book proposal to literary agents

22. get another eerily accurate psychic reading from raymond at the tremont tea room

23. stay at a luxury hotel or resort (thanks, heather!)

also! i decided to take a look back and note the stuff that i've had on previous lists that i eventually accomplished in a later year. this was kind of a fun exercise. there were 45 in total!

2012:

visit san francisco 2015

go to a talk show taping 2013

take a pottery class 2019

go to an open house (with no intention of buying) 2014

visit nashville 2013

go out to a sit-down dinner by myself 2015 if bar dinners count, 2019 if we're talking an actual table

take pictures in a photobooth 2016

go to tampa & st. petersburg 2022 

go to the rock & roll hall of fame induction ceremony not the ceremony, but R&R HOF in 2018

make my own bread 2015

stay at a bed & breakfast 2016

go speed dating 2017+ 2019 with two different companies, and they were each comically awful and everyone received refunds because literally 20 women and 2 men showed up both times despite the fact that you had to prepay???

ride a bike 2016

finally get my cheeseburger tattoo! 2015

2013:

see blue man group, because i've never seen it and that's just wrong 2019 and it was one of the cooooolest manifestation stories ever
visit the pacific northwest (preferably portland, OR) 2017, seattle and portland!

drink a mint julep 2017

hula hoop 2022 when my neighbors were throwing theirs out and i swiped it from the curb

play a musical instrument 2022, trying guitar again!

send a query letter to an editor or literary agent 2014
go on a picnic 2015

2014:

try air bnb 2017

get something that i wrote published on mcsweeney's 2016, 2019, and 2020!

win at pub trivia 2015

2015:

secure a book deal 2019

go zip lining 2018

relax in a hot tub 2018

get a tarot reading at the tremont tea room 2017

2016:

take a day/weekend trip to providence and/or newport, RI (i've never been, somehow??) 2018 and 2017, respectively, and then newport again in 2021

sing karaoke (preferably a rap song) 2017, but i sang harvey danger

give a toast 2022

2017:

book a trip to south america 2018

jump into a ball pit 2018 

read seinfeldia 2020 i think?

adopt a shelter cat 2020

go to a renaissance fair and order a giant turkey leg 2021

find and buy liz phair's exile in guyville on vinyl from a brick-and-mortar record store 2018

2018:

visit south america 2019

related: take a selfie with an alpaca not a selfie, but a photo with one, 2019

get my aura photographed 2019

eat fried dough on hampton beach 2019

watch an outdoor movie 2019

see the sunflower fields at colby farm 2020

(weirdly, nothing from my 2019 list)

2020:

renew my passport 2021

spend a weekend in philadelphia 2021

5 things i love right now

1. this song by alaska reid, "boys from town"

i'm getting crunchier anna burch vibes here and i love it. apparently, alaska is not from alaska, but from montana. i've never been to montana, but this song (and entire album, big bunny) sounds exactly like how i'd expect an album by an indie singer-songwriter from montana to sound. i mean that as a compliment, obviously. that pre-chorus is pure magic!

2. this book by jessi klein, you'll grow out of it

have you ever read a book about the EXACT moment in life you're currently experiencing? comedian jessi klein's essay collection is 1000% that for me right now. there are essays about filling your free time as a 30-something single person, essays about anthropologie, and essays about just feeling generally out of place as a particular kind of woman (slightly anxious, not particularly girly-girl or flirtatious, joke-cracking, and late-blooming) in the world. it's not only making me laugh, but it's making me feel a whole lot less alone at the moment.

3. this video of evan dando from the lemonheads singing in a walgreens on cape cod

Just had a special guest appearance at Walgreens by artist @Evan_Dando (lead singer of the group the Lemonheads). Thank you Evan, you sounded great as always! pic.twitter.com/GB6XOBPfnS

— Mike Ghelfi (@GhelfiPC93) March 1, 2021

put your mask back on, evan!!! but seriously, barring that, this is basically my favorite thing that has happened in 2021 because i am here for any and all content related to evan dando/the lemonheads. plus, this is just such a great story. basically, he lost his wallet "walking from a hotel" in falmouth (drugs, probably?) and tweeted about it. then, the walgreens manager told him someone had turned it into them and i guess when he claimed it, he decided to give them an impromptu serenade of "confetti,"which is definitely in my top five lemonheads songs. sigh.

4. this garfield shirt which i may or may not purchase because it's my forever mood

5. this 2014 movie that i somehow missed, two night stand

just when i thought quar had depleted me of frothy romantic comedies to watch, amazon prime suggested this to me and i was as giddy as a child on christmas morning. miles teller? analeigh tipton from crazy. stupid. love? a plot that revolves around an app-based hookup and a new york city blizzard that forces the two main characters to fall in love? how the hell did this pass me by in my late 20s when it came out?? regardless, all that matters is that i've watched it now and i highly recommend it for lighthearted and feel-good viewing. sidenote: it also has a great soundtrack that introduced me to a bunch of tunes i'm currently obsessed with, like "nuclear seasons" by charli xcx.

what i've been watching lately

a teacher (hulu)

9/10

a teacher-student affair plotline has so many chances to go terribly awry, but i think a teacher really nails it — showing the reality of the consequences and long-term repercussions that result on both sides. both nick robinson and kate mara are absolutely fantastic, giving the nuanced and complex performances that this type of show demands. i, the worst binge-watcher in the world, blew through the 10 episodes in two days.

black bear (on demand/amazon prime)

6/10

okay, so i THINK i liked this but i'm still not quite sure?? i definitely can't stop thinking about it because i didn't really get it, so that's...something. i don't even really know how to describe it without spoilers except to say that it stars christopher abbott (charlie from GIRLS) and aubrey plaza, and it's dark and weird and very meta. i feel like it's what i wanted i'm thinking about ending things to be...almost. the first scene involves a young woman (plaza) who is staying at a couple's (abbott and sarah gadon) rural cabin to work on her screenplay. drama and weirdness ensues. idk. i'd love to discuss with anyone else who's watched it.

pretend it's a city (netflix)

8/10

so basically, fran lebowitz is a national treasure and i want to be her when i grow up. i'd heard her name previously, but it wasn't until i read this great profile of her in the new yorker that i became fascinated. so when i saw that netflix was releasing a docuseries about her, i was so excited to learn more. her dry musings remind me of jerry seinfeld with an edge, and she's lived a fascinating life in new york city (working for andy warhol at interview magazine, hanging with early glam and punk bands like the new york dolls in the '70s). plus, it's just an absolute joy seeing martin scorsese doubled-over with laughter at nearly everything she says, even if it's not THAT funny. i would have loved to delve deeper into her past since a lot of it revolves around her observations about current life in the city, but overall, i loved it. and don't even get me started on the NYT "takedown" piece the other day; just let people enjoy things!

the incredible jessica james (netflix)

6.5/10

i'd been meaning to watch this for like three years and just never got around to it. it was aiight, but i remember it being so hyped up that i guess i expected a little more. and like, i get that the title character is fictional, but her personality was so off-putting and brusque that it became bothersome to me and kept taking me out of the story. it was partially for this reason—along with the total lack of chemistry—that made the romance with chris o'doud (the dude from bridesmaids and jessa's husband on GIRLS) pretty unbelievable. it was unique enough that it kept me watching until the end, though, so it had that going for it.

the ultimate playlist of noise (hulu)

6/10

this one was super-heavy on the cheese, but i feel like most of us could use a little of that right now, eh? even the premise is a bit much: music-loving teenager finds out he has a brain tumor and the subsequent surgery will cause him to lose his hearing permanently, so he sets out on a road trip (with his female love interest, natch) to capture his favorite sounds in the world before he can't enjoy them anymore. i know, you're probably rolling your eyes, but i'll be damned if i wasn't tearing up a bit at the inevitable montage of sounds they recorded. it had major john green vibes and reminded me of paper towns specifically, which i really enjoyed. so if you're into that particular flavor of YA movie, you'll probably dig this one.

the sister (hulu)

5/10

hmmm. this miniseries originally aired in the UK, and i feel like maybe i needed to be british to fully appreciate it. the idea is that a man shows upon the doorstep of his old friend, and threatens to expose something if he doesn't help him out. we slowly find out what that is and the suspense kept me watching for four episodes, but overall, it fell a bit flat for me. it also didn't help that i kept having to rewind because the protagonist kept mumbling on top of his accent and i was like "YOU SOUND LIKE YOU'RE FROM LONDON AND I CAN'T UNDERSTAND A BLOODY WORD!"

what i've been watching lately

i guess i've been on a hulu tear because not a single one of these is on netflix!

stella's last weekend
6.5/10




an entertaining little indie drama. sure, there are some real heavy-handed scenes (the arcade, oof) and alex wolff's character can be way too much at times (nat is great, though!), but stella's last weekend is a lovely update to the "two brothers in love with the same girl" plot—starring actual brothers and their mom!—with some funny dialogue and poignant moments.

high fidelity
8/10



loved it! zoe kravitz was the perfect casting choice to turn the '90s classic on its head and give it a fresh spin in TV form—plus a dose of much-needed girl power. the supporting characters were all fabulous, the music references were solid, and most importantly, the writers did a fantastic job of really nailing the deeply flawed, unlikeable nature of rob's character in the book and movie.

in a relationship
7/10





i tend to gravitate toward these kind of dramatic, romantic indie movies a la peter and vandy, a case of you, in your eyes, and hello i must be going, and in a relationship continued in that tradition. emma roberts and michael angarano, whom i love, star as that couple who has been dating forever but also hate each other and fight all the time and you don't understand while they're still together. meanwhile, matt and willa are just starting to date. a highly relatable, realistic, and modern look at relationships.

little fires everywhere
8/10




full disclosure that i never read the book, but man, the series was insanely captivating and i couldn't wait for the new episode each week. the plot centers on the intersecting lives of two women's families in a small ohio town, both of whom are shady in their own ways, making it hard to know who to trust. and also, it's set in the late-90s so the music is on point.

big time adolescence
7.5/10



it has taken me a while to admit that i have enormous dirtbag crushes on both pete davidson and machine gun kelly; more MGK than pete, but they're both hilarious and attractive in that questionable "late-20s/early 30s stoner you meet at a skatepark" kind of way aka MY KRYPTONITE. but i digress. big time adolescence is a coming-of-age comedy/drama with a pretty unique plot: a teenager bonds with his older sister's boyfriend (played by pete), and their friendship continues even after the two break up. machine gun kelly is pete's best friend, and sex, drugs, and hijinks ensue.

isn't it romantic
7/10




honestly, i enjoyed this way more than i expected to. sometimes, you just need a dumb, silly, feel-good rom-com and this one totally delivers. rebel wilson stars as a down-on-her-luck NYC woman who's always been overlooked by guys she's into...until she gets knocked unconscious in the subway and her life turns into an over-the-top, fantastical romantic comedy—complete with cliches like her stoner neighbor becoming her gay BFF and her apartment being magically updated to a luxurious penthouse (you just have to go with it). it kept me engaged the whole time and the cinematography was so aesthetically pleasing in that dreamy,  disney way. cute!

20 things to do in 2020 and 2019 in review

all in all, 2019 was really good—much, muuuuch better than 2018, that's for damn sure. i wrote an extensive summary of my decade over on medium, but i still had to look back on my favorite parts of the year...and come up with some to-dos for the coming one. cheers!

2020


1. get another tattoo
2. have a drink at the chateau marmont
3. renew my passport
4. attend a writing residency
5. host a dinner party
6. visit one new state (28 down, 22 to go)
7. get a photo taken with a celebrity
8. check out an open mic
9. pay for someone else's coffee
10. try axe throwing
11. meet an internet friend IRL
12. book my next international trip
13. spend a weekend in philadelphia
14. publish 10 7 humor pieces/articles/essays
15. take a candlelight yoga class
16. <strike>make pizza from scratch</strike>
17. buy myself flowers
18. crack the new yorker’s daily shouts
19. do a tarot/fortune telling card reading for someone (i just bought this dope "gypsy witch" deck from 1903 and learning it is FASCINATING/slightly terrifying)
20. find a used book with a message in it and buy it

2019

favorite books:

on writing by stephen king

comedy sex god by pete holmes

trick mirror by jia tolentino


favorite articles (interestingly and unintentionally, all by women): 

"the most gullible man in cambridge" by kera bolonik

"let's meet again in five years" by karen b. kaplan

"do you have a not-so-stranger?" by caroline donofrio (AND THE COMMENTS!)

"dating terms inspired by catfishing"by sara k. runnels

"rihanna's "bitch better have my money, repurposed for freelancers" by riane konc

"i think about this a lot: justin bieber's "call me maybe" lip-sync" by melinda fakuade

"a perfect, preemptive obituary for my ex-boyfriend" by danielle kraese


favorite songs: HERE

favorite albums:

djo - twenty twenty
catfish and the bottlemen - the balance
cherry glazerr - stuffed & ready
girlpool - what chaos is imaginary
oso oso - basking in the glow
the drew thomson foundation - the drew thomson foundation 
starcrawler - devour you
harry styles - fine line 

concerts (favorites bolded):

cherry glazerr
the cadillac three
girlpool
dandy warhols
greta van fleet
rooney
catfish and the bottlemen
jimmy eat world and third eye blind
damone
the struts
phantom planet
incubus
tegan and sara
ben kweller
twin peaks
hanson

favorite tv shows: 

shrill
russian doll
stranger things
modern love
home for christmas

favorite movies:

knives out
booksmart
little women
five feet apart
blinded by the light
someone great

goals:

1. do 1 activity per week that allows me to meet new people: DONE

...because i obviously kept track. highlights included a '70s punk rock photography talk, "buy me boston" old advertising/music scene talk, board game speed dating (because half the guys didn't show up), a drag queen disco bash, the opening of time out market, and the grand opening party for the citizenm boston hotel.

2. take 2 classes: DONE

did an extremely unhelpful summer writing workshop and just finished a pottery class. not for me, but at least i tried!

3. bake 3 desserts (or breads, whatever): DONE

white chocolate lucky charms cookies, atlantic beach pie, and pear tart!

5. place 5 humor pieces or essays: DONE

1.  little old lady comedy: barry manilow rewrites “copacabana” after visiting lohan beach club

2. points in case: i am the woman who bakes brownies for her coworkers on a weeknight, and my life is definitely not crumbling before my eyes

3. mcsweeney’s: i’m an adorable romper, and i’m about to make your life a living hell

4. little old lady comedy: welcome to dating app ninja warrior 

5. weekly humorist: announcing the ex-boyfriend reunion tour

 
6. take 6 trips (at least 1 international): DONE

charleston, new york (3x), provincetown, peru


7. watch 7 new tv shows: ALMOST...6!

shrill, russian doll, tales of the city, modern love, breakfast, lunch & dinner, home for christmas

(carryover from 2018) get my aura photographed: DONE 

stuff i didn't do: volunteer 4 times, take 8 dance classes (only 1), try 9 new dinner recipes (only 5), read 10 books (only 6)

what i've been watching lately

breakfast, lunch & dinner 
7/10

in this short series, momofuku restaurant group founder david chang eats his way through a different city with a different celebrity pal in each episode. he's no bourdain, to be sure, but i enjoyed his easy rapport with the likes of chrissy teigen and kate mckinnon. my favorite, however, was the first ep, in which he gets delightfully baked with seth rogen and they wander around vancouver.


let it snow
3/10

i know this is a fairly controversial stance to take, but about 95% of the cheesy YA original movies on netflix are...just really not any good, folks. and yet, i continue to keep hope alive, watching and trying my best to get into them as each one comes out—because i do love a good cheesy YA movie! in let it snow, the cringe is almost unbearable. there are like three different plotlines to follow, all centering around a blizzard that hits a small town at christmas time. and one of them involves a pop star who gets stranded there, which was very unnecessary and dumb. like, joan cusack plays a bizarre character known only as "tin foil woman." sure, okay. whatever. it's bland, it's soulless, and i just really didn't get it at all. come to think of it, it's exactly how i feel about the 1975...


echo in the canyon 
8/10

really, really enjoyed this documentary about the laurel canyon/LA music scene in the '60s. jakob dylan (sidenote: when did he get SO ATTRACTIVE? i don't remember being so taken with him as a young'n) interviews a bunch of revered musicians, including tom petty, ringo starr, and stephen stills, about the creative and artistic energy of that time. there are a lot of behind the scenes stories that are super interesting, too. a must-watch, feel-good movie for music fans, IMO.

tales of the city
7/10

blew through this miniseries last summer, which was based on the books by armistead maupin. set in san francisco, it features a lot of big names like ellen page, laura linney, and olympia dukakis as a bunch of intertwined friends, relatives, lovers, and neighbors dealing with lots of drama and mystery. it was admittedly a bit difficult to keep track of what was happening at points due to all of the characters, but overall, it was a nice lil' show.

20th century women 
6/10

considering that this is an A24 indie movie set in 1979 and starring greta gerwig, i SHOULD have loved it more than i did. it was fine enough, but really dragged on at many points and could have been much shorter. there's a lot going on, including explorations of sexuality, feminism, and tense family dynamics, so the plot is pretty meandering. i loved the references to the punk music scene of the late '70s and there were some unexpected plot twists that were pretty intriguing. a slight bit sleepy for my taste, though.


holiday in the wild 
3/10

i thought that maaaaybe, just maaaybe, since this was not a *cheesy YA* netflix original movie—and because it stars rob lowe and kristin davis—it might be good. it was not. the gist is that kristin davis' character goes on a honeymoon by herself to africa after her fiance breaks off their engagement, she meets rob lowe, they rescue an elephant(?) and the rest is basically just safari porn masquerading as a rom-com. i wasn't invested in the characters in the slightest, and "this isn't about us. this is about the elephants." is an actual line delivered straight-faced by rob lowe. oof.

5 things i love right now

you know, aside from "old town road."

1. this new album by the drums, brutalism



more than any other musical element, a great, infectious melody can completely make a song for me. and the latest record from jonathan pierce aka the only remaining member of the drums is chock-full of 'em. its dreamy, surf-y vibe is totally perfect for spring. apparently, many longtime fans don't like the new sound...which, of course, means i do. :) my favorite tune so far is the breezy "626 bedford avenue."

2. this movie, the boy band con

as a bona fide "old millennial," the boy band craze was an integral, amazing, wonderful part of my life from ages 11 through 32. i mean, uh, 16. i loved backstreet (nick!), 'n sync (ehh, JC i guess), o-town (dan!), LFO (brad?)—basically everyone except 98 degrees because they were too vanilla for my edgier pop palate and by that i mean they had zero songs with bizarre, heavy-handed sexual innuendo. lame!

i digress. i obviously had to watch the tell-all about the man behind it all: the late, disgraced, ponzi-scheming mogul lou pearlman, so i signed up for a youtube premium trial and canceled it immediately after viewing. honestly, i can pinpoint the moment back in high school when my friend molly and i knew he was creepy as fuck: during a scene early on in making the band when he said "papa's here to protect." shudder. we started saying it apropos of nothing because we thought it was as funny as it was gross, but...ugh.

there wasn't much it revealed that i didn't know before, but the nostalgia of the TRL clips, ashley parker angel's surprisingly insightful commentary, and aaron carter looking ROUGH while defending lou made it worth watching, especially if you're a woman of my certain age.

3. this clothing company, stoned immaculate

okay, so this brand showed up in my instagram feed as a #sponsored post and i felt personally blessed and attacked at the same time. blessed because every single item of clothing is extreeeeemely my shit. their tagline is "vintage inspired woman’s clothing for the dazed & confused," for god's sake! attacked because big brother is clearly watching and because every single item of clothing is at least $100. blaaaah.

4. this now-defunct podcast, mystery show

the great poet lil uzi vert once said, "all my friends are dead." well, all my podcasts are dead. it never fails that my favorites always get canned after a short while (FOUND, why oh why) or, by the time i discover them, they're long gone. such is the case with this one, which came recommended by my friend sarah last week. i dug into the first episode on monday and binged all six by wednesday.

the premise is simple: host starlee kine solves kinda quirky human interest mysteries (i.e. a writer whose obscure book only sold 1,000 copies total sees a paparazzi picture of britney spears holding the book and confusion/intrigue ensues).

my favorite episode, however, was about this badass belt buckle a child found in the street—pictured above. yes, that's a toaster, and a frying pan with eggs, and the name "HANS JORDI." but who's hans jordi, and what was the deal with this belt buckle? you gotta listen to find out, folks. probably the most entertaining podcast episode i've listened to since the reply all "long distance" one. and really, all of the episodes are incredible.

5. this new chocolate-cherry cold brew from dunkin' donuts

i've explained before that i'm one of those weirdos that always tries new food and beverages born out of desperation for product innovation at corporate headquarters. they're almost always short-lived, being discontinued mere weeks or months after they arrive. so i've learned to act fast.

my latest foray is the chocolate-cherry cold brew from dunkin' DONUTS (i will never stop adding the donuts and nobody will stop me). it's basically just cold brew with some sort of "natural" syrup in it, but it is delicious, and the fact that i can drink it black is absolutely huge. now, i wouldn't say it necessarily tastes a ton like chocolate or cherries...it's subtle. refined, even. jk, that's a stretch. 

i refuse to title this post "netflix 'n chill"

at the risk of sounding like a total fuddy-duddy, i'm fairly new to the netflix world, having finally took the plunge for the gilmore girls reboot in november and sticking with it because i got hooked on stranger things. here's what i've been watching lately, for better or worse. more recommendations, please!

audrie & daisy: 8/10



be forewarned that if you decide on this documentary, your evening (or day) is about to take a pretty dark turn. audrie & daisy explores the world of teen sexual assault and cyber-bullying through two recent cases. it was fascinating and very well done, but i was utterly disgusted by the lack of remorse and self-awareness on the part of both the boys involved in the cases and the sheriff who led the investigation of daisy's case ... to the point where i was actually yelling expletives at the TV. still, very much worth watching.


 
tiny furniture: 7/10



i fiiiinally got around to watching this indie film, written by and starring lena dunham of girls fame before she created the show. between the plot (aimless post-grad millennial moves back in with her mom, complains a lot, and has cringe-worthy sex with a terrible dude in a large metal pipe) and the other stars (jemima kirke, who plays jessa on the show, and alex karpovsky, who plays ray), it's basically like an extended girls episode. if you're a fan of the show, this isn't a bad thing, and it was equal parts enjoyable and infuriating in the same way.


comet: 5/10



y'all know that i'm always down for a good out-of-order love story a la 500 days of summer, or my personal favorite, peter and vandy. comet drew me in by promising a similar plot ... and justin long. the only difference was that it was supposed to take place in "a parellel universe." maybe i'm dense, but i didn't even notice this element in the movie, nor did i understand why it was necessary. a couple more gripes: it was paaaainfully slow at parts, and the female protagonist, played by emmy rossum, was a total pretentious bitch. actually, the whole movie had an air of pretension that was just lame and didn't sit well with me. mehhh.

twinsters: 6/10



being an adoptee myself, i was intrigued by this documentary about a girl who randomly discovers the identical twin sister she never knew she had through youtube. i'll admit it was a bit plodding at points, but my personal connection to their story kept me watching. plus, it was really cool to witness these pretty amazing milestones: meeting each other for the first time, getting DNA testing, attempting to contact their birth mother. the girls' personalities shone through, and it was a heartwarming watch overall.

good kids: 6/10




i'm never above turning off a movie at any point if i get bored with it or start to dislike it, and i was fully expecting to reach a point of exasperation with this one. however, i found myself at the end, having enjoyed it much more than i thought i would. like a poor man's eurotrip -- minus the whole, um, europe thing -- meets american pie, good kids centers on a group of four sorta-nerdy recent high school grads that want to make up for lost time before they leave for college. yes, there are some extremely silly characters and plot lines, like a hippy-dippy martial arts teacher who calls himself "the lion" and the geeky ringleader prostituting himself to the cougars to whom he teaches tennis lessons, but it's all in good fun. if you don't take it too seriously, it's a perfectly fine summery romp.

the invitation: 8/10

what a delightfully freaky, slow-burning psychological thriller. the basic premise: a man and his girlfriend show up to a dinner party at the home of his ex-wife and her new husband in the hollywood hills, and things just get weirder from there. within the first half-hour, there's a coyote getting hit by a car, a wacky pants-less woman, and a group viewing of a cult video. i lost count of the times i uttered "what the fuck?"/"what is happening right now?" and "ohmygod i'm scared" aloud after that. the wary ex-husband, will, is perfectly portrayed by logan marshall-green, and his expressions were probably my favorite part of the movie. i'd post the trailer, but it would spoil the fun. if you're into creepy, suspenseful b movies, this one's a winner.

the best home alone finds on etsy

in honor of the film's 25th anniversary, celebrate with one of these fantastically quirky items.

a tres chic pullover

a badass doormat 

scream-worthy earrings 

a cute pop-art print

where are they now? do i even care?

you know those d-thru-z-list celebs who occasionally pop into your head, that you don't have the energy and/or interest to research? i've got a bunch. in no particular order, i've wondered what happened to the following folks at some point, but have absolutely no desire to type their name into my google search bar:

da brat

leif garrett

former mtv vj jesse camp:

while we're at it, former mtv vj ray munns:

and, because i'm on an mtv roll, that redhead that co-hosted say what? karaoke with dave holmes (i think her name was laura, but can't even find a picture)

sisqo

the nerdy guy from can't hardly wait/jack from hook

the boy band 5ive

samantha mumba:



the pizza guy from home alone

christian oliver, who played some cute swiss guy in the babysitters club movie and was in some reincarnation of saved by the bell (i think):

moira quirk, the referee from GUTS

mystikal

juvenile

devon gummersall, aka brian krakow from my so-called life

meg white

lou bega

everyone from the ghostwriter cast

evan and jaron:



ryan cabrera

the nerdy guy from sixteen candles who wasn't anthony michael hall or john cusack:

who are your picks?!

5 things i love: movie music scene edition

was originally going to do a rundown of my favorite movie scenes of all time, but realized that a good number of them involved music, so here goes. super honorable mention goes to the outstanding "faith"/dinner theatre scene from rules of attraction, but it's a little ... um, colorful for both this blog and a sunday morning.

1. wayne's world: "bohemian rhapsody"

i nearly forgot about this incredible moment in cinematic history until panic! at the disco performed a (surprisingly good!) cover of the queen classic at the concert i went to last weekend. brilliant from beginning to end.



2. sister act 2: "joyful, joyful"

SA2 is one of the few sequels that is actually better than the original. with great one liners like "go with god, crispy" and "yo' mama so fat, she sat on a rainbow and skittles popped out," and this uplifting performance of a hip-hop hymn remix that features pre-crazy lauryn hill and that dude from city high, it makes me so happy. AND THE CLOTHES. you down with G-O-D?



3. pretty in pink: "try a little tenderness"

ah, the good ol' days. before jon cryer headed down the dark path that was two and a half men. i don't think i'm the only one who's still a little pissed that molly ringwald picked the rich d-bag over duckie after he serenaded her like this. insane.



4. can't hardly wait: "paradise city"

unquestionably one of my favorite movies of all time. in this scene, the class geek gets some liquid courage and suddenly becomes the most popular dude around with this karaoke performance. the "this is the greatest night of my life!" kills me.



5. school of rock: battle of the bands

basically a rehash of the sister act 2 thing, but i'm a sucker for this stuff. the best part is that the top hat guitarist kid with the killer solo is actually a musical prodigy, not an actor, so it's legit. what am i doing with my life?!

5 things i love right now

1. this adorable dog, floppy bear

when i thought that dogs didn't get any more adorable than boo, i was so wrong. meet floppy bear, the cute-as-a-button samoyed with a terrible name that has improved my instagram feed by at least 150% this week. doesn't hurt that shaun white's apparently a fan, too.

2. mat devine doing dramatic readings of stuff

i've written about the multi-talented mr. devine's blog posts before, but i recently discovered that he also does deadpan youtube readings of various things, from restaurant menus to hip-hop songs. my personal favorite is one of the latter: "buy you a drink" by t-pain. pure gold; there are few things better than a pasty white musician saying "damn, shawty."



3. this twitter account, @raplikelilwayne

why didn't i think of this? you see, weezy follows a pretty simple formula for his lyrics. someone has capitalized on this, and it's the gift that keeps on giving:

"Stole a fat guy's wallet, call that Robin Thicke"
"Answer no on a test, call it Quiznos"
"Pushed Tyra Banks down a hill, call that a role model"
"Took my old girlfriend out to dinner, call that Fed-Ex"

4. kitschy movie stuff from etsy

adding all of these to my christmas list right now.

dazed and confused

don't tell mom the babysitter's dead

empire records

5. amber riley's freestyle routine on the dancing with the stars finale

i don't watch DWTS, but my mom's obsessed, and made me watch this when i came home for thanksgiving. all i have to say is "YOU GO, GIRL." probably one of the best dance routines i've ever seen performed on TV. though i didn't follow this season, this performance alone convinced me that she deserved to win.