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Reading Watching Listening
Reading… Changing Guard at Buckingham Palace by A.A. Milne. While I was in London a couple months ago, I picked up a beautiful copy of this book to send my favourite tiny human for his birthday this month. It’s not totally age appropriate, but his parents can read it to him until he can read it himself. That’s how it works, right? (I’m child inept.) I definitely sat down and read through it before sending it off though. Watching… The live broadcast of the Branagh Theatre Company’s Romeo and Juliet. I have complicated feelings about this particular adaptation. Actually, no, that’s wrong. The adaptation is brilliant. Richard Madden played…
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Read This
I occasionally peruse the missed connections page on Craigslist. Sometimes it’s hilarious, sometimes it’s touching, sometimes it makes me mourn for the state of humanity. It is always inspirational for character creation. And there is something endearing to even my jaded heart about the fact that people think something — anything at all — can come from these kinds of posts. Ethan Kuperberg’s “Missed Connections for A-Holes” is honestly more up my personal alley. Like I would post one of these. That probably tells you a lot about me. Stop judging me, and read the piece. I promise it is funny. I was at a coffee shop in Park Slope.…
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In the Moment
Once upon a time I was the type of person who carried a dslr with her almost all of the time. Once upon a time I was also the type of person who intentionally went on walks just to take photos. Then two things happened. First, I moved to Ontario. I don’t know what exactly it was about this move that made me put my camera away more and more often, but whatever the reason, Ontario doesn’t inspire me to take photo walks nearly as much as Nova Scotia. Second, I got an iPhone. My previous Android phone definitely had a camera, but it wasn’t as good as the one on…
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Quoted
The hardest thing about writing is writing. — Nora Ephron
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Reading Watching Listening
Reading… Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari. So far it’s more…scholarly?…than I expected. Super fascinating though. Still in the early stages of this one, so probably too early to form any real opinion. Watching… The Night Manager. I’m only about an episode and a half in, and it definitely requires actual attention, which is a good sign in a lot of ways, but also means it takes me a lot longer to make progress since I can’t really do other things at the same time. Brilliantly cast. Stunningly shot. Compelling storyline. Listening… This incredibly impressive cover of “Send My Love” by Kurt Schneider, Sam Tsui, Madilyn Bailey, and Alex…
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Read This
Required Reading. Sometimes, for no reason at all, a poem will loudly announce its arrival in my brain. Often this poem is “The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock.” I have loved this poem since my first encounter with it in high school, so I never much mind its arrival in the midst of my daily life. It is also one of those poems that I associate with a particular person, so being reminded of a dear friend is a nice bonus whenever I think about this poem. It’s a long one, so grab a cup of tea and settle in. I promise it’s worth it. The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock T.S.…
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Quoted
I’ve always got to have one impossible dream on the back burner. — Michael Caine
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Reading Watching Listening
Reading… Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley. I picked this up on a whim at a Chapters in Edmonton. It is endearing and touching and beautifully written and infinitely sad. I was not prepared for it to be sad. Like at all. I literally cried so hard for about the last half of the book that I had to stop reading it before bed because I couldn’t sleep due to the level of distress. Watching… UnREAL. In all honesty, I started watching this show because Mindy Kaling posted on something (Instagram? Twitter?) about being obsessed with it. She did not steer me wrong. This show is bonkers good. Shiri…
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Quoted
If you ask a writer to give a lecture, you’ll get a writer’s lecture; and as we all know, the insides of writers’ heads resemble squirrels’ nests more than they do neatly arranged filing-cabinets. — Margaret Atwood, “Concerning Franklin and his Gallant Crew”
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Reading, Watching, Listening
Reading… The Clasp by Sloane Crosley. I’ve already established on this blog that I adore Sloane Crosley’s writing, so it is no surprise that I was thrilled about her debut novel. Sadly, between picking it up and now, life intervened and it sat unopened on my to-read stack of books. I finally pulled it out over my recent trip to Alberta, and I loved every word. She has a particular talent for creating characters who feel real, who are both likeable and loathsome (often at the same time). The dialogue is alternately smart, witty, funny, and touching. And above all, it is believable. She is singularly skilled at capturing the…