40 - Help Someone With Their List of Goals

So, I'm trying to finish this list int he last 2 weeks of December, so I texted Steph to ask her if I could help her with any of her goals to help me meet my goals, and she said I already did. 

It's weird to "take credit" for this one because I barely did it myself, but I guess I'll count it because she is counting it.

We have this wonderful group of people who are trying to engage more in politics and community development. At one of our meetings, we called our representatives. Well, most people did. I didn't because I was too anxious, but I did email two of my representatives and let my friend Nick make a call for me. But at that meeting, Steph definitely made a call, and that was one of her goals for 2025, so yay!

#3 - Read 40 Books

I read a lot of really good books this year.

* = recommend

** = strongly recommend 

**1 - You Are Here by Thich Nhat Hanh

1/9/25

This was a reread because I'm teaching a course on mindfulness and meditation this quarter. This book is a really nice, approachable introduction to mindfulness. We're using it as our textbook, so I wanted to get back through it again before assigning readings. The only weird thing is there are some jarring moments when he uses really traumatic examples, sometimes out of no where, but overall, it's just a really peaceful, calming, thought-provoking book.

2 - So We Can Know: Writers of Color on Pregnancy, Loss, Abortion, and Birth edited by aracelis girmay

1/25/25

I'm hoping that one day soon, I can rejoin Haymarket's Book Club because when I was a member, they sent me lots of nonfiction books on (sometimes very niche) topics that I am glad I've learned more about. Every book I've read from that club has been insightful and presented me with new ideas. So We Can Know is no exception. Being a purposefully childfree person, I wasn't sure what I might learn from this collection, other than learning more about other cultural traditions and socialization around pregnancy, loss, abortion, and birth and how women experience medical environments differently--particularly Black women who are often not heard or believe by medical professionals. This book was all of that and a lot more. I also really enjoyed the range of genres: essays, poetry, conversations, visual art, etc. The diversity of how stories were shared matched the diversity of perspectives and really demonstrated that while there were some themes throughout the book, there are infinite stories out there and no universal experience. It is a really lovely collection.

3 - Developmental Editing: A Handbook for Freelancers, Authors, and Publishers by Scott Norton

I had gotten maybe halfway through this book for my developmental editing class, and it's something I'm curious about, so I finished it. I did appreciate the technical and practical advice, especially in that it made developmental editing for nonfiction works seem a lot like coding qualitative literature and then looking for the narrative within the themes. That felt familiar, and I didn't expect that. I already do a version of developmental editing and call it "coaching" for doctoral dissertations, yet academic writing is so stylized that I don't think I'll use all the techniques presented in the nonfiction section. I did feel affirmed in some of the practices I've adopted based on experience. I was hoping for more information on developmental editing for fiction because that's probably the type of developmental editing I'd want to branch into.

4 - What Editors Do by Peter Ginna (Editor)

2/26/25

For someone who wants to become an editor but isn't quite sure of all of the routes and options, this book is really helpful. There are so many perspectives that give the ups and downs. It does seem like some are written from old-school folx who don't quite realize how much luck paid into their ascension through the ranks, but the descriptions of the actual tracks are great. I don't know that I got much out of it, as I already have my lane (academic freelance), but I did learn a lot about other tracks.

5 - James by Percival Everett

3/7/25 for Bingo Book Club

I really enjoyed this book and understand why it's received so many nominations and awards. It's a very thoughtful retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from Jim's point of view. In my perspective, it felt like Everett really loves Huckleberry Finn but wasn't quite at peace with his love of it because of how Jim is portrayed... through Huck's eyes. So, he wrote a book that is 100% compatible and, if taken as truth, makes both books and characters complicated and lovable. It also had a similar style and weight, keeping the tone very literary. I think it's beautifully written and a compelling story.

*6 - Writing Fiction by Janet Burroway

3/17/25

I am so thankful that Tori Carl recommended this book to me. It really breaks some things down nicely, and it's full of great reading recommendations and writing prompts. I plan to revisit it during revisions of my novel.

7 - Everything's Eventual by Stephen King

3/22/25

This was a fun collection of short stories. I liked that there was a range, but the monsters and creepiness stayed very human. It made me want to read more of King's stories where the bizarre and fear come from otherworldliness. 

8 - Yule by Llewellyn

3/22/25, gifted to me by Jerry and Kathy Krone

In 2022, when I asked my parents to do a Winter Solstice celebration with a solstice fire at their place, they not only said yes, they recruited their neighbors to join us and got me this book to learn a bit more about yule (Pagan) traditions. I really liked the approachability, explanations, and ideas and will definitely use it as a reference book moving forward!

**9 - Circe by Madeline Miller

3/29/25, for Bingo Book Club

I loved rereading this book yet again. It's definitely in my Top 10.

10 - Image of Organization by Gareth Morgan

4/1/25, learned about from Zachary Green

I started this book around 2015, got through the first few chapters, and, I assume, then had to focus on my dissertation and didn't have time to read about organizational theory for fun. I don't remember why i picked it back up this year, but this book is, actually, kinda fun. 

Morgan offers 12 metaphors to describe and understand organizations. Every one of the metaphors rings true... and also seems to clash with several others. It's a really interesting way to play with metaphor to bring about deep understanding of the way organizations and, more importantly, the people in them function.

11 - Hidden Potential by Adam Scott

4/5/25

I liked this book. There were some interesting tidbits. I just think it could have used a little more development and deeper examples. Like, some of the examples demonstrated a lack of knowledge of the field (such as suggesting there are faculty at universities who teach but don't do research, and there are those roles at every university. They're undervalued and underpaid, but they're there). But it was interesting.

12 - As You Like It by William Shakespeare

4/12/25

This wasn't my favorite Shakespeare play, but it does have some lovely lines. It was also nice to have a story where nothing super terrible happens and everyone ends up happy.

13 - Dream State by Eric Puchner

4/17/25

I read this book for a narrative writing class. Honestly, I really didn't like it. I'm pretty sure it's because I didn't like or even feel like I knew the characters. When we discussed it in class, our professor had us go through some sections in detail, convincing me that there was some decent writing and beautiful scenes/ideas, but when I read it myself, those sections just didn't hit because I didn't care about the characters. I also have a really hard time when cismen write women, and this book begins and ends in the main woman character's point of view. It just didn't hit right.

14 - Luster by Raven Leilani

4/26/25

I read this book for the same narrative writing class. I did like this one. The narrator was interesting and surprising. I'm not sure I loved it all the way through, but I enjoyed being surprised by a character who did strange things and had strange thoughts, yet they all seemed consistent with the her character.

*15 - The Question of Palestine by Edward Said

5/25/25

I learned a lot from this book, and it was also really wild to read about the situation with Palestine and Israel with a perspective from the early 1990s... and to realize that so little had changed and things have only gotten worse and worse and then exponentially worse, while we all watch.

16 - Wordsworth by William Wordsworth

6/8/25

This book is a small collection of William Wordsworth's poetry, and I must have had to have bought the book for a class because there is a lot of underlining in some sections and a few notes. I remember being very into Wordsworth's poetry, so I revisited it, and honestly, it was fine. Like, there are a few beautiful poems and lines, but altogether, it feels repetitive: nature is pretty, and he lost his wife. A few of the poems were so long that it was tough to maintain focus and follow them, but again, there are some really beautiful moments.

17 - Trust Exercise by Susan Choi

6/19/25

I'm honestly not sure how I feel about this book. We read it in a class, and at first, I was into it. I liked the voice and characters. Then, it got a little too icky with teenagers have sex and some very questionable situations. Then, it takes a hard turn, and I wasn't into it... and then I kinda was? I didn't realize there was going to be so much uncertainty, almost mystery, around the events and then what the "truth" was in terms of the message of the book. I still don't quite know what happened, but it did have us talking and trying to figure things out, while reading through some very well-written passages. So, if you read this book, I recommend making sure someone else you know has or will read it to because you'll probably want to talk about it!

18 - Sing, Unburied, Sing: A Novel by Jesmyn Ward

6/29/25

Teesha is always making us read the most depressing books, and this one is right on up there. I got pretty excited when there was a supernatural element, and then it was just sad sad sad some more. It's really well written. But sad.

19 - The Hitchhikers Guide to the Future by Douglas Adams and Mitch Been

7/10/25

I accidentally purchases this book when I was trying to purchase The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as an audiobook, and then it was so cumbersome to return it for some reason that I just kept it. Then, I thought it might be a good option for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge list item about reading a book about a favorite piece of media, but then, once I got well into it, I realized it was just a series about Douglas Adams's takes on the future of certain technologies (books, music, etc.) and not at all about his science fiction writing. By the time I realized we weren't getting to the Hitchhiker's Guide at all, I just finished it. It's kind of fascinating how much he got right, but then again, like all people, smart or not, he got a lot of things wrong. It was a few too many hours just to hit that message.

*20 - Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer

7/22/25

One of my professors recommend I read this book, as I jump into a new writing project that has some (kinda) similarities. I'd seen the film and liked it, so I decided to give it a go. Then, I was also able to get my book club's support in selecting it for our next read. I can't wait to discuss it with them. I usually hate when (1) cismen write from the perspective of women and (2) characters aren't given names. This book had both of those things and yet... I loved it. It was short and quick and had fascinating (nameless) characters, and I never had any idea where it was going next. (The film is based on the premise of the book but the two differ greatly.) It's a bit of a sci fi thriller... with some horror bits. If you like any of those things, I definitely recommend it.

21 - Chronicle of a Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez

7/30/25

I read this book to get ahead for reading for my fall writing course. I really didn't like One Thousand Years of Solitude, so I was prepped to hate this too. This book, however, didn't have any of the things I hated about the other. It was short, easy to read, easy to follow, and had all kinds of little twists along the way, even though it's presented from the start which character will die. He takes the reader through the how and why and all of the strange circumstances that meant the character should have lived and why he didn't. It was fairly enjoyable.

22 - The Avengers: 76:492

I have a bunch of random comics and sometimes read them, with no context. At least I knew most of the characters for this one... except one. And then that character dies in this issue. That was unexpected hello and goodbye, new character.

23 - House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

8/11/25, loaned to me by Cassie Branderhorst

I really wanted to like this book because Cassie and Stephen King and so many others have said it's great. But I just couldn't get into it. It was so much work, and I just didn't find I cared enough about the characters or the story itself for the work to pay off. There were some really cool themes throughout, but I wanted more out of them.

*24 - Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

8/11/25

I read this book for #19 on the Book Riot 2025 Read Harder Challenge list: Read a queernorm book. This was a middle grade book, and while I've come to really enjoy YA, middle grade isn't quite my thing. That said, there were parts of this book that were really beautiful. In particular, I enjoyed the main character, Jam, and her relationship with Pet, the "monster" she accidentally summons. I could picture them and enjoyed their growing relationship, even with its constant tension, as Pet was there to destroy an actual monster, someone Jam knew even though she didn't know who it was. Jam's friendship with Redemption was also very sweet and believable. The characters, their relationships, and the mystery element of the plot kept me invested in the story. 

**25 - Mutual Aid by Dean Spade

8/12/25

I read this book because I've been trying to learn how to be more engaged in activism work. There were some vital lessons I learned from this book, particularly in keeping long-term, versus short-term, impact in mind when deciding where to spend my energy in working to create a better world. In particular, it was helpful to have some clear guidance on engaging with nonprofit organizations, as many of them solve problems in the short term, rather than challenging and dismantling systems that create the conditions for the problem in the first place, and how many nonprofits recreate harmful systems and structures, contributing to barriers to liberation for all. I do think much of the work is beyond the current scope of my current circle, but it was a small book packed full of thought-provoking and useful information.

**26 - My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

8/17/25

I read this book as an assigned read for my novels writing class. Based on the title, I figured it would be fun. I was even more pleasantly surprised when I realized the chapters were short and very easy to read. Quickly, I was immersed in the characters and story. The premise of the story is pretty obvious from the title, and while it is an intriguing premise, and the author jumps right into murder, I was even more fascinated by the layers and layers of family dynamics, cultural influences, workplace tensions, unrequited love tropes, and really round main characters. I really adored this book and can't wait to talk about it with my classmates and professor. 

*27 - They Came for the Schools by Mike Hixenbaugh

8/18/25

I read this book for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge: Read a book about a moral panic. I picked They Came for the Schools for this item because of the recent attacks on education, especially public education. It was a hard read (i.e., listen). While the author told a compelling story and shared how people fought back, the main events of this story occurred in 2020-2022, and things have only gotten worse, particularly with the new presidential administration working to dismantle the Department of Education and privatizing K-12 education, and I see so much of the South Lake strategy spreading, while counter strategies do not seem to have been effective in pushing back. While I learned a lot, this was a stressful read.

**28 - The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton

8/19/25

I read this for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge: Reread a childhood favorite. The Outsiders is the first book I remember loving. Like, I know I was a kid who liked to read, but this is the first book that made me think, wow, I really love reading. I remember being even more shocked because it was assigned in my seventh grade English class, and I don't think I realized that I could love, like, not just do well, but really love something that was assigned. 

I haven't revisited the book since then, so I was both excited and nervous to pick it up again. I was worried I wouldn't love it... or maybe I'd even hate it. Maybe revisiting it would ruin my first book love. Good news: I loved it so much. Again, I didn't want to put it down. The characters are vivid and riveting. The story keeps moving. And it's so beautiful and heartbreaking all at once. 

I'm thinking this will enter my reread rotation. It's definitely at the top of my YA fav list, and that is a very strong list. Unlike other books on that list though, this one was actually written by a teenage girl (about teenage boys), and I definitely did not realize that until reading the preface and afterward. Honestly, it's mind blowing and inspiring. I might just reread That Was Then, This Is Now after this.

29 - Happy Witch by Mandi Em

8/23/25, gifted to me by Laura Lee

I liked the vibe of this book. It was super freeing and realistic, and I can't wait to try some of the rituals.

30 - Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan

8/24/25, audiobook

I read this for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge: Read the first book in a completed young adult or middle grade duology. I found this book through a search for ideas for this list item. It was fine. Some of the descriptions were pretty, and it's always fun to have a badass girl/woman main character. But it was all, she's a badass, and there's a love triangle, and of course she's going to save the day. I suppose I didn't see one of the twists coming, but it wasn't super compelling. So. Yeah, it was fine.

31 - The Entrepreneur's Guide to Financial Well-Being by Wayne Titus

9/2/25

This is a very helpful book. Some of it was over my head, but it's good.

32 - Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer by Dan Buettner

10/8/25

I read this for research for a book. It's silly but also made me want to make some healthier choices.

33 - Duma Key by Stephen King

10/20/25, audiobook

There were bits of this book that I liked. But it kind of goes off the rails at the end. The characters and setting were fun though.

34 - Hip Hop Is History by Questlove

10/27/25, audiobook

I picked this book because I've been a long-time hip hop fan and have always felt like I needed to know about the history of hip hop and how hip hop has affected history, especially in the United States. This book gave a lot of that, though I feel like the real meat of it was confined to a few chapters in the middle, when Questlove really goes into the emergence of hip hop and then how it evolved and was influenced and influenced into the 90s and 2000s. But I found the centering of The Roots, while understandable considering the author, to be frustrating. Like, I'd get if he talked about how various artists and albums affected his own music and the group, which he does discuss, but the whole beginning of the book is just him rambling about himself, in the middle he talks about how he and The Roots were affected (and kinda not really affected) by rap beefs and such, and then the end just feels like him spewing opinions on younger artists. Like, I get his opinions on the genre and hip hop artists are definitely more informed and nuanced than mine are, but it was just a little weird that he made it seem like The Roots were the center of all of it, rather than just telling the story as an insider who has a unique perspective. 

*35 - The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams

11/16/25, given and recommended to me by Kathy Krone

It took me a little bit to get into this book, but once I was in, I was in. It's a really sweet story with great characters, but more than that, it's about what gets left out of official records and whose stories go untold because of it. Williams keeps things focused though, talking specifically about how the words women and poor people used were left out of the Oxford English Dictionary and the value of those words and those stories. It's not too heavy handed because there's still a focus on the characters and how their lives weave together and influence each other.

36 - The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

11/16/25, assigned by Rebecca Johns-Trisler

I read this book for a second time, not because I loved it, but because it was assigned for my novels class, and I wanted it fresh in my mind. Some of it is really great. I really enjoy the characters in Evelyn's story. I find Monique to be boring though. Her problems seem to simplified, while Evelyn's problems and solutions are deep and complex. It still does read, however, as a white woman writing two biracial women, and I don't even know why the characters needed those identities. So, yeah, Still meh.

37 - Billy Summers by Stephen King

11/24/25

I liked this much more than I thought I would. There was no horror, though there is violence. It was honestly kind of a nice story.

38 - The Matzo Ball by Jean Meltzer

11/25/25

I read this book for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge item "read a holiday romance that isn’t Christmas." I kinda hate Christmas, so I was down for this one. So, you can imagine my disappointment when the book opens with the main character being obsessed WITH CHRISTMAS. I was so mad. But I'd bought the book, so I just kept going. And it didn't really end up being about Christmas, but there was a lot of Christmas. I also dislike a main character who is a writer. It feel so lazy because the person writing it is obviously a writer, and there are way too many writers who are main characters. In the middle, there were a lot of cute details, and I was brought back in. But then, the Jewish man who was throwing a Hannukah party ordered a meat-and-cheese charcuterie platter for his staff. And I was right back out. And then it just got so cheesy and stupid. Like, these characters hadn't seen each other in nineteen years, since they were twelve years old, yet somehow they knew they were meant to be together and were in love and should get married a.s.a.p. So dumb.

39 - Holly by Stephen King

12/4/25

I picked this up at an airport because for one time in my life I hadn't packed enough books on vacation and wanted something to read on the plane ride home. Even though I didn't realize this book was a spin off of another of King's novels, which I haven't yet read, I really enjoyed it. It reminded me of Silence of the Lambs, where we know there is a killer and the grotesque thing the killer is doing, and we have someone hunting down that killer, unsure of who they are and what grotesque thing they're doing, only that some is missing. It is a bit of a long book, but the characters are great, and the whole time, I assumed they'd catch the killer, but I wasn't sure who we'd lose along the way. Plus, it takes place during the prime of Covid and BLM protests, and it's really fascinating how King wove those elements into the setting, allowing those pieces to add to the character development, rather than being distracting. There are some pretty gross parts, but overall, I liked this a lot.

40 - Scrapper by Matt Bell

12/14/25

I got this book because Matt Bell mentioned it in his book Refuse to Be Done: How to Write and Rewrite a Novel in Three Drafts, which I read last year. He talked about being inspired by the ruins of the Packard Plant in Detroit, and that's all I really knew about the book. It was really good and then a bit icky but in a very intriguing way and then there were a couple extra stories thrown in there that I don't quite know how to make sense of. I don't know if I'd recommend it per se, but I did enjoy the read. It had me hooked from the moment the tension starts (which does take a few dozen pages).

#75 - Visit a New UNESCO Heritage Site

Me and my mom in the garden in Madrid

When we booked another trip to Spain, a small part of me was a little sad we weren't going to a completely new-to-me country because I was eager to cross something else off my list at the end of this very difficult year. 

We spent five days in Madrid, and I was still a little bummed because Madrid is... just okay. I mean, I got to check off my mental bucket list to see Guernica, one of Pablo Picasso's most famous paintings, and the food and wine were consistently good. But I found the city itself a bit icy and up tight.

Then, we got to Seville, and all of my wishes to be somewhere else vanished. Seville is a gorgeous, energetic, beautiful, delicious city. People have been incredibly friendly, kind, and fun. Everywhere we go, in all directions, the city is bustling. The sidewalks outside all the tiny restaurants are full of people in winter coats sitting and standing around tables, socializing, sipping wines, and snacking on tapas. Service is fantastic, and oh my goodness have we had such good food. Everywhere.

It was here that I was reminded that visiting UNESCO World Heritage sites is also on my list!

The best part of that is that we accidentally visited these sites in both Madrid and Seville.

I still don't quite get exactly what counts as Madrid's Paseo del Prado and Buen Retiro, a landscape of Arts and Sciences, but it seems both the tree-lined avenue that runs along past the Prado and the Sofia Reina (art museums) counts. I did comment multiple times that the fountain of Neptune in the middle of one of the roundabouts seemed very impressive... and that it was also weird it was in the middle of a roundabout with five lanes of traffic blocking any real admiring of it. My mom and I also went to El Retiro Parque, which was quite beautiful and pleasant. If I hadn't had plantar fasciitis, I would be been running there every day (like I did in Barcelona). 

Then, in Seville, while we didn't go inside the sites listed, we did go around them multiple times and met our Eating Europe guide (Alfonso, what a doll) in the center of one of the squares that is included in the site. So, I'm counting it, especially as it's just extra since we went to multiple sites in Madrid.

It was a bit sobering to read about the history of the UNESCO site and other sites in Seville though. As Seville is so far south, there's a lot of violent history affecting the former Jewish population, the Moors, and others who were forced out during various violent times in Spain's history, including the Inquisition. It's bizarre to think of so much beauty and erasure standing on top of so much historical violence. There are some areas where the history is incorporated into the architecture, like with the Giralda, and I was thankful our food tour guide described why there were not many Jewish people left, though there is still the Jewish Quarter, also called Barrio Santa Cruz, after the Jewish population was first killed and expelled, and then the Inquisition and then World War II. He still called it the Jewish Quarter, and others seem to too, which I hope grants some honor and respect to the people who were killed or forced out. 

So, I'm having mixed feelings about the history of this place, though I suppose I also have those mixed feelings about my home country, especially at this moment in time. Beauty and joy and art and food can and do coexist with violence and oppression and need for change. That's what I'm taking away from this trip and these sites.

#12 - Meditate Every Day for 28 Days

I've been working on committing to a daily meditation practice for awhile now. This is the longest streak I've ever had though.

I usually use the Headspace app, though every now and then I do a silent meditation, especially if I'm out in nature. 

I've often heard the recommendation to practice in the morning, to ground, set an intention for the day, etc., but I usually practice in the afternoon. I already fall asleep sometimes when I meditation, and considering how much I hate mornings and how hard it is for me to wake up, I both would rather use morning times to sleep and would likely fall asleep while meditating anyway. Afternoons allow me a chance to pause and reset, and it's something I look forward to after rushing around, trying to be productive. 

What I've learned is that a daily meditation practice helps me stay mentally healthy when I feel mentally healthy. It's very difficult for me when I'm anxious. My mind just spirals in the quiet, and sometimes I leave the practice feeling more anxious. So, moving forward, I am likely going to try to keep up the daily habit but will give myself permission to skip it or to do an exercise (such as a breathing exercise) instead of meditation when I'm feeling especially anxious.

If you're meditation curious, I highly recommend starting with an app, such as Headspace. I have friends who use Calm. Headspace had a beginner's course for free. I am also always happy to send a link for 30 days of free access to the paid version. I don't get any benefit other than spreading meditation, and I believe the more meditation there is in the world, the better our would will be! The paid version of Headspace also has mindfulness exercises, education, and lots of sleep options. I'm obviously a fan :)

Wishing you all the energy and care you need to get through today!

#29 - See One of My Favorite Bands Live

I was such a Green Day fan in middle school. I became a fan with Dookie and immediately went and bought Kerplunk! and 1,001 Smoothed-out Slappy Hours. While I like some of their later stuff, that's my Green Day era. But somehow, even though I've been a fan since the mid-1990s, I've never seen them live. So, when Dan Burns yet again had Riot Fest tickets, I was stoked to see them.

On Friday, I went to about 6 hours of Riot Fest and then 9 or so hours on Saturday, so I was wiped by Sunday. Still, I got on that train and got there, right on time, and was shocked to see how large the crowd was, much larger than I'd seen it for any other show in previous years. (Of course, they weren't playing against anyone.) I managed to find Bryson and immediately gave up on trying to weave through the dense crowd to find Washo. My brother then made it to us, and we jammed out.

I have to say, my favorite part was the beginning. They started strong with some political stuff and "American Idiot." 

Post show

Then, Billy Joe said he had a head cold, and I was a little worried he was going to phone it in, but instead, he asked the crowd who knew the next song and the people in the front row pointed out this kid (probably a high schooler). They pulled him up on stage, and this kid Argyle up on stage, and this kid rocked out. They even timed out a pyrotechnic jump for him. So cute. And even cuter when Billy Joe posted on Insta a comment from Argyle's mom saying they'd camped out all day in front of the stage, and Argyle's mom just had to run to the bathroom at one point and couldn't get back to Argyle through the crowd. She was super worried and then looked up and Argyle was there, on stage, singing with the band.

I mean, c'mon. So cute.

The rest of the show was fine. Not as much political stuff and for me, not nearly enough early stuff. Like, several songs from Dookie but I think only one from Kerplunk! and I don't know if there were any from 1,001.

But still. We had a blast. Super fun Riot Fest this year.

#28 - See One of My Favorite Comedians Live

No pics during the show but
The Den is a cool space!

I've been a fan of Gareth Reynolds for many years now. I don't know when I started listening to the podcast he co-hosts with Dave Anthony or how I even found out about it, but it's definitely the podcast I've listened to the longest and the most often.

The premise is that Dave Anthony tells a story from American history to his friend Gareth Reynolds, who doesn't know what the story is going to be at all. They're both comedians, and the roles they've created for themselves and each other are well done. Dave is a great and funny story teller. Gareth is amazing at reacting and riffing. At the start of the podcast, Dave mostly told really stories about really ridiculous, as in hilarious or strange, stories. Then, he got a bit more political. And then he just leaned all the way into that, so most of the stories are stories that we should have learned in school or only know a limited version of. In general, if you're a topic of a Dollop, you're probably a terrible person or terrible things have happened to you. So, Gareth definitely has his job cut out for him to keep things comedy.

Then, Gareth created a new podcast with Jake Johnson, who played Nick on New Girl. And Jake Johnson is kinda a smart version of Nick from New Girl. (Gareth also had a very important role on New Girl as a security guard, so you may know him from there too.) Their podcast is a call-in advice show, where people bring very ridiculous problems, and Jake and Gareth try to "help." The problems, however, are things like, "15 years ago, when I met her, I told my now best friend that I'm allergic to coconut, and she still thinks I'm allergic to coconut, and I can't take it anymore. How do I tell her?" Or "My husband thinks he's a survivalist. He'd never survive on his own though. And to prove it, for his birthday, I kinda want to dump him in the woods and tell him he's on his own. Please help me plan that." Just silly, fun, hilarious problems with equally hilarious answers.

As I told Gareth after the show, I listen to The Dollop to learn things I should know about our country and I listen to We're Here to Help when I just can't take this country anymore and need a break. Balance.

So, I was super excited when Gareth announced he'd be stopping in Chicago on his tour and, even more exciting, he'd be taping his special in Chicago.

Laura Masters kindly agreed to go with me to The Den, and we made a whole night of it in Wicker Park. It was way fun, and it was super cool that Gareth actually came outside, very quickly, to meet and take pictures with anyone waiting around. He was a delight. Very fun.

With the We're Here to Help van!

#57 - See a Friend I Haven't Seen in at Least 3 Years

Like this happens nearly every time I've checked this off the list, it happened by happenstance. 

Well, maybe this one wasn't quite happenstance because it happened because my friend and 2x former roommate got married!

I was so pleased to receive K Rob's text sharing his engagement and asking for my address to invite me to the wedding. I was even more pleased to attend. 

On the Friday before, he invited the out of towners to the Pizza Port in Carlsbad, and I was reunited with Kevin, met his fiancee Aimee, and then got a huge bonus when Smitty and Kelly, Smoky and Chanel, Dino and Veronica, Lams, and Jivs were all there, all with their children, ages ranges 2 to 16. It was so joyful to spend time with them again, and I really hope that it becomes a regular happening because I knew I missed them but didn't realize how much. 

K Rob and I have done an off-and-on job of catching up, something that definitely fell off during and due to the pandemic. He was there during some of my toughest and best years: undergrad and my doctoral program, and we were roommates for around 5 years total. I was so honored to be there for his big day and loved that it was super quirky and personal.

The rest, well, they were my best friends in undergrad and the years after, the guys who always treated me like one of the guys and also still always looked after me and made me feel safe and cared for. 

It was so nice to see all of them again, to see them partnered and not, and all parenting lovely kids with big personalities. 

I am bummed I didn't really take pictures at the wedding!

Before the wedding, I also popped up to see the brilliant Dr. Kai Mathews, and that was super delightful.

I also had the bonus of seeing Tyler, who popped over to play trivia with John, Jenny, Conor, and me. I know Tyler from my years of Big Ten kickball in San Diego, and I'm hoping to see him and more of that crew next time I'm in town.

What a great trip. My cup is very full right now.

#7 - Put in 52 Hours of Service to My Community

 Just getting my label counts in there :)

#7 - Put in 52 Hours of Service to My Community

Post-meal at LPCS

A few years ago, I learned how much I didn't know about board service from my former classmate Dr. Jennifer Jones. It inspired me to join a few boards, and now I'm the Secretary of the Board of Directors for Steep Theatre, Chair of the Associate Board for 826CHI, and on the Auxiliary Board for the Rebuilding Exchange (RX).

Steep: Steep is the quintessential storefront theatre – that iconic breed of Chicago theatre that makes our cultural landscape unlike that of any other city. Steep is committed to producing new and under-produced plays that tell the stories of ordinary people in extraordinary situations – small stories that illuminate larger societal issues. 

826CHI: 826CHI is a non-profit creative writing, tutoring, and publishing center dedicated to amplifying the voices of Chicago youth.

Rebuilding Exchange: Rebuilding Exchange invests in our communities by reusing building materials, reducing construction waste, and training, supporting, and connecting people seeking careers in the building trades.

One of the bands at RX's RE:fest, our annual summer festival

Each of these experiences has taught me a ton. I've been able to learn about nonprofit structures and functions, theater operations, planning fundraising events, grants, navigating city of Chicago permitting procedures, constructing a new theater, maximizing budgets, planning street fests, in-kind donations, workforce training for the trades, table saws, environmentally friendly deconstruction, soliciting donations, and all kinds of things I'm not thinking of right now.

I've also been trying to organize a bi-annual meal provision with Lincoln Park Community Services, which is an opportunity the organization offers to have groups bring groceries and cook a meal for their residents. I love cooking with others, and I believe cooking for others is a really special way to care for others. It's really fun to do a little work in the kitchen and to provide residents with something a little different. You can just sign up on their website! You can also donate items listed on their Amazon Wish List, work the front desk, or offer an educational opportunity. So many ways to contribute to this organization that helps people transition to secure and stable lives.

Lincoln Park Community Services: Lincoln Park Community Services brings communities together to empower individuals facing homelessness and poverty to secure stable housing and make sustainable life changes.

The mighty lunch squad

I also tried to do regular volunteer service with Care for Real, but once I injured my knee, that became difficult to follow through on, especially since the volunteer positions that most appeal to me require being on your feet. Plus, they moved from a quick 5-minute walk from my place to a location that's about a 30-minute walk.

Care for Real: Through locations in Edgewater and Rogers Park, Care for Real (CfR) provides food, clothing, referrals, and additional services with compassion to improve the health and well-being of low-income residents to foster a stronger, healthier, equitable, and more stable community.

If you're curious about board service in general, check out Jenny's work!

We're actively recruiting members for 826CHI's Associate Board, so if you're interested in that, hit me up!

I'm also happy to share more about my experiences with Steep and the Rebuilding Exchange!

And Steep is soon going to start massive renovations to create what will be a beautiful new theater space in Edgewater. I'd love to catch a show with you!

That all said, I am still unlearning a lot of harmful capitalistic practices, and nonprofits can contribute to that harm by providing short-term relief instead of fighting the systems that lead to the problem they claim to be fighting. They also often replicate harmful capitalistic structures, further harming their staff and the people they serve. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the role I take up in serving my communities. I found the book Mutual Aid by Dean Spade a short, helpful guide in thinking about how to push for liberation and good for all.

Here's a quick log of my hours, sprinkled with a few photos of some fun times.

January (9 hours; 9 hours total)

1/15/25 - Steep Theatre: Board Meeting (1.5 hours)

1/17/25 - Steep Theatre: Dress Rehearsal (1.5 hours)

1/18/25 - Rebuilding Exchange: TA for Table Saw 101 (3.5 hours)

1/25/26 - Shopping for Lunch Provision at LPCS (1 hour)

1/26/25 - Lunch Provision at LPCS (1.5 hours)

February (5 hours; 14 hours total)

2/3/25 - Rebuilding Exchange: Monthly Meeting (1 hour)

2/18/25 - Rebuilding Exchange: Summer Planning Meeting (0.5 hour)

2/19/25 - Steep Board Meeting (1.5 hours)

2/25/25 - Rebuilding Exchange: Summer Planning Meeting (0.5 hour)

2/26/25 - 826CHI Associate Board Meeting (1.5 hours)

March (3 hours; 17 hours total)

3/4/25 - 826CHI Trivia for Cheaters Committee Meeting (0.75 hours)

3/11/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (1 hour)

3/18/25 - 826CHI Trivia for Cheaters Committee Meeting (0.75 hours)

3/25/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

Bowling Fundraiser for RX

April (5 hours; 22 hours total)

4/1/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

4/4/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Kick Off Party (1 hour)

4/7/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Monthly Meeting (1.5 hours)

4/15/25 - 826CHI Trivia for Cheaters Committee Meeting (0.75 hours)

4/15/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.75 hour)

4/29/25: Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

May (5.25 hours; 27.25 hours total)

5/9/25 - RX Meeting (0.5 hour)

5/13/25 - 826CHI Trivia for Cheaters Committee Meeting (1 hour)

5/13/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

5/20/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.75 hour)

5/21/25 - Steep Board Meeting (2 hours)

5/27/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

June (14 hours; 41.25 hours total)

6/1/25 - RX Fundraiser: Bowl-o-Rama (3 hours)

6/3/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (0.25 hour)

6/18/25 - Steep Countdown to Lights Up Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

6/18/25 - Rebuilding Exchange Summer Committee Meeting (1 hour)

6/18/25 - Steep Board Meeting (1.25 hours)

6/22/25 - RE:fest (8 hours)

Dan trying to take down Danny at RE:fest

July (7.5 hours; 48.75 hours total)

7/7/25 - Rebuilding Exchange: Monthly Meeting (1 hour)

7/16/25 - Steep Countdown to Lights Up Committee Meeting (0.5 hour)

7/16/25 - Steep Board Meeting (2 hours)

7/22/25 - Call (0.5 hour)

7/24/25 - Steep Board Meeting (2 hours)

7/31/24 - Steep New Member Welcome Happy Hour (1.5 hours)

August (3 hours; 51.75 hours total)

8/20/25 - Steep Board Meeting (2 hours)

8/29/25 - Steep project (1 hour)

September (3.5 hours; 55.25 hours total)

9/8/25 - RX Auxiliary Board Meeting (2.5 hours)

9/10/25 - Steep CLU Meeting (1 hour)

#33 - Try Reiki, Accupuncture, Rolfing, or Cupping

Well, I wish my first completed item of the year was more pleasant and that I had tried cupping under much more pleasant circumstances. 

In February, I tore my ACL.

In April, I had surgery, where the surgeon took a bit of my quad muscle and then inserted it into my knee, replacing my ACL.

So, I go to physical therapy three days per week.

Right now, I'm in the period where there's just a lot of physical manipulation, trying to dispel scar tissue, loosen up tight spots, and regain my full range of motion.

Last week, my PT started massaging my hamstring, and while a massage sounds nice, instead, it felt like a burning, stinging sensation because it's so wildly tight. So, my PT pulled out a cup, sucked my skin into that cup, and then ran it along my hamstring. Jkdsl;afdja I did not enjoy that. 

I do think it might be kinda nice on my upper back and to loosen up other areas, but this version just hurt. I do hope to try it again because I'm curious about the benefits, which you can find here.

p.s. I highly recommend my PT, who is with Rush, but we're in a very unfun period of recovery.

#1 - Complete the 2024 Book Riot Reading Challenge (Fail)

I love how much the annual Book Riot Challenge has diversified my reading. With this annual list and Bingo Book Club, I've fallen in love with genres and subgenres I previously though I had no interest in. All of these are also listed in my (failed) Read 40 Books item from this year, but I wanted to group the Book Riot ones all in one place.

I got through over half for the first time ever!

1. Read a cozy fantasy book
2. Read a YA book by a trans author
3. Read a middle grade horror novel
4. Read a history book by a BIPOC author
5. Read a sci-fi novella
6. Read a middle grade book with an LGBTQIA main character.
7. Read an indie published collection of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author
8. Read a book in translation from a country you’ve never visited
9. Read a book recommended by a librarian
10. Read a historical fiction book by an Indigenous author
11. Read a picture book published in the last five years.
12. Read a genre book (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) by a disabled author
13. Read a comic that has been banned.
14. Read a book by an author with an upcoming event (virtual or in person) and then attend the event.
15. Read a YA nonfiction book
16. Read a book based solely on the title
17. Read a book about media literacy
18. Read a book about drag or queer artistry
19. Read a romance with neurodivergent characters
20. Read a book about books (fiction or nonfiction)
21. Read a book that went under the radar in 2023
22. Read a manga or manhwa
23. Read a “howdunit” or “whydunit” mystery
24. Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat

1. Read a cozy fantasy book: The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

8/19/24, audiobook

I low key loved this book. It reminded me of The Night Circus with its sweet magic and underlying (very adult) love story. I didn't see the twist(s) or the ending coming. It held my interest, and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a light, sweet read that still has some depth

2. Read a YA book by a trans author: The Witch King by H.E. Edgemon

This book started slow but then amped up in pace and stakes really fast. I also really appreciated something that my friend Allison once pointed out to me: YA really spells things out. You don't have to figure things out on your own. In the case of this book, that meant learning a lot about the teen trans experience and ways to be kind to people. I loved that the main character (Wyatt) was so complicated and was seemingly surrounded by simpler characters... until he wasn't. Everyone was complicated and was working through complicated situations. It really made for a compelling story, and I'm considering reading the rest of the books in the series.

7. Read an indie published collection of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author: Postcolonial Love Poem by Natalie Diaz

5/7/24

This was a lovely collection of poems. Some of the lines really hit hard, and the poetry was beautifully lyrical.

8. Read a book in translation from a country you've never visited: The Vegetarian by Han Kang

2/26/24, audiobook

I found the premise interesting, but I didn't love the story overall. It just felt like so much hating on this woman for becoming a vegetarian, and then it seemed like she lost her mind. It was just meh.

12, 21, & 24. Read a genre book (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) by a disabled author. read a book that went under the radar in 2023; & pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat: Listen to an audiobook performed by a person of color of a book written by an author of color (2023): Noor by Nnedi Okorafor

4/14/24, audiobook

Book Riot listed this book as being under the radar in 2023. The premise was great: technology versus analog. In this world, some people, like Noor, have been able to overcome barriers due to their physical body through body modifications. Noor feels like she has the body she wants, but there are others, whom she eventually meets, who believe it's wrong to have body modifications. But then, she's on the run and is somehow the main target of a war? I had trouble following all of that, even though there weren't a lot of characters. The enemy was so faceless that it was hard to be invested, as the story felt so one sided. I know I just missed or forgot some things, but I didn't enjoy the story enough to go back and figure out what I missed.

9. Read a Book Recommended by a Librarian & 20. Read a Book About Books: Refuse to Be Done by Matt Bell

12/28/24, recommended to me by Tori Carl

I'm so pleased that some of my (writing) grad school friends took a course on teaching creative writing this fall and that their instructor assigned so many fantastic books to support writing a novel AND that these friends recommended the books to me! Refuse to Be Done is an incredible resource for strengthening a novel. I've already started paying attention to some of the advice around language, and I can't wait to go back and try some of the exercises on the novel I'm working on. Thank you, Tori!

15. Read a YA nonfiction book: Night by Elie Wiesel

8/8/24

Just an important read.

16. Read a book based solely on the title: Anarchism and Education: A Philosophical Perspective by Judith Suissa

8/21/24

I learned a few helpful philosophical distinctions from this book, which does help me think through how I articulate my approach to teaching, but, even though I shouldn't because the title includes "a philosophical perspective," I really expected some applications to practice. There were a few examples of schools with some interesting practices, but there wasn't really much about what this philosophical approach means and looks like in practice. But, it was short and an interesting read!

17. Read a book about media literacy: Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport

7/1/24, audiobook

Were there useful insights and practices in this book? Sure. I took some things away. Plus, it's super short. And. It is clear to me that the author is a well-educated, white, cisman who is likely also pretty wealthy and seems not to have interrogated this whole system we call capitalism, nor his role in it and in our colonialist, white supremacist country. So much of it is like, just cut down on social media (which he has never used) and go for a walk! Walk every day! Maybe for four hours, like this famous (old, white, wealthy) man who is famous for his deep thoughts! While surely, hours spent scrolling social media (a low-impact activity) could be traded for better uses of our time. And also. There's SO much privilege in being able to engage regularly in "high-impact" activities, especially time alone doing things that are good for us. Also, he seemed to advocate for "productive" uses of our time, even spending a little time shaming just resting, if it's passive resting, like watching TV. While this book might be helpful to some, those shortcomings were irksome to me. I also don't spend a ton of time on social media and even have some specialized accounts to engage with content that I find truly joyful, rather than just mindless scrolling. So. If you feel like you're super super into social media in an unhealthy way, this book could be helpful. He gives actual practices, with rationale, to declutter that part of your life and engage in things that you actually want to engage in and give you the energy you want and need.

23. Read a “howdunit” or “whydunit” mystery: I read this for the Book Riot 2024 Read Harder Challenge: The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino

5/12/24, audiobook

I did not enjoy it. Like, the twist worked okay. But it would have worked for maybe a short story. It just dragged on and on. Just this detective and his weird friend being like, I think these two people who don't know each other well killed this guy. But we can't prove it. Huh. Weird. Talk to him. Talk to her. Still think that. Talk some more. I'm glad it's over.

#3 - Read 40 Books (Fail)

I was only 4 short this year, but it was full of bangers! 

* = recommend

** = highly recommend

1 - The Center of the Universe by Nancy Bachrach

2/13/24

I read this for the 2023 Book Riot Read Harder Challenge and just didn't finish in time. It's a very interesting story, and at points, I really liked the book. The tough part is that I found the narrator pretentious--and it's a memoir, so I guess I found the author pretentions, like she was leaning too hard into poetic language, using the story to show off, rather than letting the writing flow through. So, it was okay.

2 - The Vegetarian by Han Kang

2/26/24, audiobook

I read The Vegetarian for the Book Riot 2023 Read Harder Challenge item read a book in translation from a country you’ve never visited. I found the premise interesting, but I didn't love the story overall. It just felt like so much hating on this woman for becoming a vegetarian, and then it seemed like she lost her mind. It was just meh.

**3 - What It Means When a Man Falls From the Sky by Lesley Nneka Arimah

2/27/24

I regularly read short stories, all because my undergrad creative writing professor used the Best American Short Stories series as our "textbook." Each year, a new anthology comes out, and I probably have 10 or so from the last 20 years. I rarely, however, read short stories outside of this series, so I'm so so thankful for this recommendation from one of my classmates in the short story writing class I'm taking right now. She was raving so much about it, I just ordered it, and I'd finished it within two weeks. While there are some themes throughout the collection, each story was so unique and packed a punch of emotion. Truly fantastic collection that I highly recommend.

*4 - Asylum: A Memoir and Manifesto by Edafe Okporo

4/3/24

I read this for the Book Riot 2023 Read Harder Challenge Item... but I can't remember which one. Okporo tells the story of how he migrated to the United States as a refugee, as his life was in danger in his home country of Nigeria due to his sexual orientation. While the writing itself is dry and lacks some flow, I am really glad I read his story. There is so much talk about the "issue" of migration, but we so seldom hear people's real life stories and how our systems truly dehumanize people who are simply fleeing harm. Reading Okporo's story and his commitment to activism made me want to learn more and to see what influence I have in my community.

5 - Noor by Nnedi Okorafor

4/14/25, audiobook

Book Riot listed this book as being under the radar in 2023. The premise was great: technology versus analog. In this world, some people, like Noor, have been able to overcome barriers due to their physical body through body modifications. Noor feels like she has the body she wants, but there are others, whom she eventually meets, who believe it's wrong to have body modifications. But then, she's on the run and is somehow the main target of a war? I had trouble following all of that, even though there weren't a lot of characters. The enemy was so faceless that it was hard to be invested, as the story felt so one sided. I know I just missed or forgot some things, but I didn't enjoy the story enough to go back and figure out what I missed.

6 - Postcolonial Love Poem by Natalie Diaz

5/7/24

This was a lovely collection of poems that I started for the Book Riot 2023 Read Harder Challenge Item... but I, again, can't remember which one. Some of the lines really hit hard, and the poetry was beautifully lyrical.

**7 - The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by S. A. Chakraborty

5/8/24

I'm so thankful for the Bingo Book Club for getting me out of my comfort zone in reading! Marissa picked The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, and I got to go on a super fun middle-aged pirate adventure. The characters were so unique, and I especially loved cheering for heroes (anti-heroes?) who were my own age: totally capable but maybe have a knee injury or aren't as flexible as they used to be. The story itself had twists and turns and magic and delight. Highly recommend.

8 - The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino

5/12/24, audiobook

I read this for the Book Riot 2024 Read Harder Challenge. I did not enjoy it. Like, the twist worked okay. But it would have worked for maybe a short story. It just dragged on and on. Just this detective and his weird friend being like, I think these two people who don't know each other well killed this guy. But we can't prove it. Huh. Weird. Talk to him. Talk to her. Still think that. Talk some more. I'm glad it's over.

9 - The Best American Short Stories of the Century, edited by John Updike and Katrina Kenison

5/19/24

The Best American Short Stories series is a favorite of mine. I was introduced to the series in my undergraduate creative writing classes. My fav professor, Tish O'Dowd, chose the most recent edition as the "textbook" for her classes. Since then, I have kept at it and currently have read 10 editions from the last 20 years--the most recent, 2023, edited by Min Jin Lee, being my favorite.

When I saw there was an OF THE CENTURY edition, for all of the 1900s, I thought that would be a perfect pick for the Book Riot 2023 Read Harder Challenge Item Read a Book of Short Stories. So, I ordered it. And when it arrived, I was like, welp, this isn't going to get done this year. I just assumed it would be a regular book of short stories, maybe 10-15 stories. Oh. No. this is OF THE CENTURY, so it has 56 stories. It is 788 pages long. So, yeah, it took awhile to finish. 

There were some really lovely stories in the collection, some of which I've read before (e.g., "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien). I have to say though, I much prefer the later editions because of the diversity of authors, leading to really rich selected narratives. Because this one stopped at 1999, I missed that element that's present in the more recent editions. So, while I highly recommend the Best American series, I would recommend other editions before I would this one.

10 - Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

5/26/24

I reread the series in anticipation of a Hunger Games-themed trivia night around my birthday. I only got halfway through the third book (and really, really needed a few answers from the second half), so I tok a few months to finish it up again. I have to say, this volume is much more violent and much more satisfying than I remembered!

11 - The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating Our Nation's upheaval and Racial Reckoning by Resmaa Menakem

*5/26/24, with Hilary Montgomery, Missy Jensen, Laura Masters, and Molly Stafford

Menakem offers a lot in this book, and I learned a ton. I'm especially thankful for the practices offered and the additional resources. Because of this book, I've been actively thinking about the visibility of my own activism and how I want to engage in activism. I've also taken steps to protect myself, in general and when in tense situations, including protests. While I was a bit timid and skeptical at the start, by the end of the book I felt more present with the tensions in this country and confident that I will continue to learn and practice, so I can be ready for those tensions to increase into the election season.

12 - When No One Is Watching by Alyssa Cole

5/27/24, loaned to me by Mom & Dad

I read this for the Book Riot 2024 Read Harder Challenge: Read a social horror, mystery, or thriller novel. My dad loaned me the book and said he liked it okay. I liked it okay too. I really, really liked the premise, and the tension and mystery both build nicely. There is a fantastic sense of place and community. I wanted a little more roundness to the main characters--especially because things get really violent really quickly at the end, and I didn't really buy it. But I did enjoy how Cole resolves everything. So, yeah. It was okay.

13 - A Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka

6/5/24

This was a lovely collection of poems that I started for the Book Riot 2023 Read Harder Challenge Item... but I, again, can't remember which one. I'm not sure how I feel about it, to be honest. It felt more like a really long poem than a book of... historical fiction? There were really beautiful and haunting lines and images. Otsuka really stabs at the heart, sometimes with just one beautifully crafted sentence. But overall, I really don't like books where the characters don't have names. It bothered me even more that some of them did, but only in the second half, and I'm pretty sure any name was only mentioned once. I understand it's a tool to show the universality of the experience--while also highlighting that no experience was the same. I think that's why it felt like poetry, rather than a novel/novella. So, yeah. I'm not sure.

**14 - Palestine: A Socialist Introduction edited by Edited by Sumaya Awad and Brian Bean

6/17/24

This book was incredibly helpful in gaining a historical understanding of current-day Palestine from a Palestinian and socialist perspective. I got a ton of historical background, mixed in with philosophical frameworks, applied to the real-world setting. I also gained some understanding into the connections between movements all around the world. I highly recommend this book.

15 - Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

6/30/24, read for Bingo Book Club

I was so skeptical about this book because I really did not like Little Fires Everywhere. I thought it was just gossipy. (But I also finished it, wanting to know what happened, so maybe I should write gossipy books.) This book, however, was totally different. It felt literary. Poetic. There were high stakes. And then... meh. It was fine. 

16 - Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport

7/1/24, audiobook

Were there useful insights and practices in this book? Sure. I took some things away. Plus, it's super short. And. It is clear to me that the author is a well-educated, white, cisman who is likely also pretty wealthy and seems not to have interrogated this whole system we call capitalism, nor his role in it and in our colonialist, white supremacist country. So much of it is like, just cut down on social media (which he has never used) and go for a walk! Walk every day! Maybe for four hours, like this famous (old, white, wealthy) man who is famous for his deep thoughts! While surely, hours spent scrolling social media (a low-impact activity) could be traded for better uses of our time. And also. There's SO much privilege in being able to engage regularly in "high-impact" activities, especially time alone doing things that are good for us. Also, he seemed to advocate for "productive" uses of our time, even spending a little time shaming just resting, if it's passive resting, like watching TV. While this book might be helpful to some, those shortcomings were irksome to me. I also don't spend a ton of time on social media and even have some specialized accounts to engage with content that I find truly joyful, rather than just mindless scrolling. So. If you feel like you're super super into social media in an unhealthy way, this book could be helpful. He gives actual practices, with rationale, to declutter that part of your life and engage in things that you actually want to engage in and give you the energy you want and need.

*17 - The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer

7/3/24

I picked up The Naked and the Dead because it's on the Modern Library's Top 100 of the 20th century, and it's been a long-term goal of mine to read all of the books on that list. I was not looking forward to this one, especially because of the length. But honestly? It was really, really good. The way the current action is intertwined with flashbacks to really flush out the characters and explain their choices was really beautifully done. The characters were so round, so unique, and there is enough substance that I didn't like or dislike any of them because they were too human to simplify like that. I also can't think of another book since Lonesome Dove that I physically felt the tension and the overwhelm at the end. Unlike Lonesome Dove though, I did want it to end because there was such a torturous climb (literally), and like the characters, I wanted a respite. Really surprised at this one!

18 - When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka

7/4/24, finally finished from the Camp Michigania Book Club 2023

It was interesting to read this book alongside The Naked and the Dead because The Naked and the Dead is a story of U.S. soldiers in Japan during World War II, while When the Emperor Was Divine tells the story of Japanese Americans in the United States at that same time. While I feel like Americans learn a lot about World War II and have countless popular books and films set in that time, it's usually about U.S. soldiers in Europe, sometimes their families back home. But these two books, while fiction, talk about other stories and suffering during that war. Just interesting to focus on the Japan aspect of the situation for once, rather than the German or "generic" American soldier.

I feel similarly about this book as I did A Buddha in the Attic. I think I liked it even less because we have actual main characters--without names. At least in A Buddha in the Attic we heard dozens and dozens of stories, a swirl of stories in seas of people. But this was mainly a family of four, who had unique characteristics. I get that in not naming them, they could be any Japanese family at that time, but also, in this tory, they were a very specific family. It felt like I couldn't fully invest in them as characters because the author didn't think they deserved names. I also wanted more details. Like, what was the girl getting up to? I didn't see enough of the camp and her peers to really know, other than she was probably getting into some trouble. Anyway, not my favorite, even tough I wanted to learn more about this event in our history.

**19 - Best American Short Stories 2023, edited by Min Jin Lee

7/5/24

This is one of the best volumes of this series, and I love this series. It might have helped that I read it for a short story writing class that I really loved, but I think I would have loved them anyway. It's an incredibly eclectic collection, and so many of the stories were laugh-out-loud funny and very memorable. I highly recommend it.

*20 - Night by Elie Wiesel

8/8/24

Just an important read.

*21 - Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer

8/11/24

I read this based on a recommendation from someone in my book club who said that this book is one that changed her life. I wouldn't say it was life changing, but I learned a LOT and it reconnected me with some of the reasons I like to be in nature regularly. It's a really important book.

*22 - The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna

8/19/24, audiobook

I low key loved this book. It reminded me of The Night Circus with its sweet magic and underlying (very adult) love story. I didn't see the twist(s) or the ending coming. It held my interest, and I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a light, sweet read that still has some depth.

23 - Anarchism and Education: A Philosophical Perspective by Judith Suissa

8/21/24

I learned a few helpful philosophical distinctions from this book, which does help me think through how I articulate my approach to teaching, but, even though I shouldn't because the title includes "a philosophical perspective," I really expected some applications to practice. There were a few examples of schools with some interesting practices, but there wasn't really much about what this philosophical approach means and looks like in practice. But, it was short and an interesting read!

24 - Body Trauma: A Writer's Guide to Wounds and Injuries by David W. Page

I picked this up upon recommendation from the professor in my horror writing course this spring. While the formatting and proofreading are really poorly done, this book is an incredible resource for anyone trying to write about bad things happening to a human body.

*25 - American Psycho by Brett Easton Ellis

9/22/24

Whoa. What a ride. I mean, I watched the film years back, so I thought I knew what I was getting into. But... no, no I did not. The book is SO much more gruesome. It felt like the violence in the film was campy and almost playful. That is not at all the case in the book. There are details that made me squirm and then shut the book to stare off in space for a bit, trying to wrap my brain around what I'd just read. And I have a pretty high tolerance for horror-y stuff. I mean, I loved the book, but some chapters were really, really hard to read. But then how he then flips to a diatribe on something completely innocuous, it was really brilliantly done. The changes in voice are so intentional and communicate so much about what the main character is experiencing. Brilliant book, but also, proceed with ample caution.

26 - We Dreamed of Empires by Álvaro Enrigue

9/30/24

I really wanted to like this, but I was honestly just confused most of the time. Characters and groups of characters had so many interchangeable names and nicknames that I just couldn't keep everyone straight. There were some really beautiful moments and language. 

27 - A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan

I was a bit skeptical with someone picked this for book club... and then I was right to be. I wasn't aware of the story and the impact of this one event, but also... It's a white man writing a story about how a white woman "took down" the very powerful KKK in Indiana. Really (trigger warning): A very powerful member of the KKK / politician who had a lot of support brutally raped and tortured a wealthy white woman, who then took steps to die by suicide (while still in his custody) and then eventually did die. So. People only cared because a wealthy white woman was hurt, and she was forced into a situation where she had to endure sexual assault and torture for anything to be done. Like, this wasn't a hero story. This was a tragedy on many levels. 

**28 - A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay

10/2/24, for Bingo Book Club

I had high expectations and then was kinda disappointed when I started because this horror subgenre is not one of my favorites, and I don't like it when men write from the perspective of women. But then... Tremblay really amped up the creepiness and did a great job narrating from the voice of a very weird kid (as all kids are weird) to a seemingly less weird adult woman. While many people feel like they know exactly what happened, I love that he had little drops of doubt that led to a fun book club discussion.

*29 - Writer's Market 

11/18/24, assigned in my horror writing class

While I'm still skeptical that this book will maintain its value because of how quickly things change these days, it has SO much valuable information for writers, including so many ideas of where to submit writing of any genre, length, or type. I will definitely be going back through it to decide where to submit my writing.

*30 - The Witch King by H.E. Edgmon

11/22/24

I read this for the Book Riot challenge of reading a YA novel by a trans author. This book started slow but then amped up in pace and stakes really fast. I also really appreciated something that my friend Allison once pointed out to me: YA really spells things out. You don't have to figure things out on your own. In the case of this book, that meant learning a lot about the teen trans experience and ways to be kind to people. I loved that the main character (Wyatt) was so complicated and was seemingly surrounded by simpler characters... until he wasn't. Everyone was complicated and was working through complicated situations. It really made for a compelling story, and I'm considering reading the rest of the books in the series.

*31 - American War by Omar El Akkad

11/22/24, for Bingo Book Club

Only Teesha and I showed up for this book club, and then only reason I'm bummed about that is this book was good. It was challenging and had such unique characters. I really loved the way El Akkad twisted a very American-style viewing of the world and put the power in another, very distant country's hands. It was so fascinating to think about how a very strange but also likeable and relatable character could be living her life as best she could in the middle of actors who acted like she didn't matter... and yet she really did. Finishing this after the 2024 election has me really reflecting on what people might feel pulled to do.

32 - Seven Days in June by Tia Williams

12/13/24, for Bingo Book Club, chosen by Deanna Benson

I think this was my first romance novel. I'm feeling kind of... neutral to warm about it. I liked the characters. I liked the HEA vibe, knowing I wasn't going to be disappointed, even if I didn't know how things were going to get resolved--and, more particularly, resolved in a way I could be at peace with. I wasn't absorbed by it though. I also tend to dislike stories where the main characters are writers... especially when some of the writing pieces aren't believable. I mean, clearly, most of them are, as Williams knows the writing/publishing industry. But others were a bit too romanticized for my taste. It's just so hard to do writer main characters well because writers are so close to it and have insider knowledge that many of us don't. And also, I liked how the two (fictional) book series tied together. That was nice. So, yeah. It was my first (I think) romance novel, so I can't judge all romance by this one. So, I'll probably try another and would love some recs!

**33 - Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut

12/13/24

I decided it was time to revisit some Vonnegut, and since I'm rewatching Criminal Minds, which has an episode where two characters discuss Vonnegut and specifically Mother Night, I decided on that one. And... oof. I forgot what this book is about: A Nazi war criminal who is actually an American spy tasked with spreading propaganda, and he does it so well, they put him on trial for war crimes in Israel at the end of the war. While Slaughterhouse-Five is certainly an incredible commentary on war and how humans treat each other, Mother Night is a commentary on the hypocrisy of the roles we assign in war and how we artificially amp up the stakes. It was quite a story to read the month after the 2024 election.

*34 - Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

12/15/24, for Bingo Book Club, chosen by Selina Uringa

I'm so pleased Selina chose this for our book club pic for January. I've been meaning to read it, especially since I've been writing horror, and Frankenstein is so iconic. It's also sparked my interest more knowing that it was written by a woman in the 1800s. I mean, sure, Shelley was a very wealthy, very well connected woman (as evidenced by the author's note, where she discusses being inspired while visiting Lord Byron in Geneva), but still, there aren't a lot of well-known works of fiction (or any genre) written by women in the 1800s. 

I was surprised at how little I knew of this story. I mean, yes, Dr. Frankenstein creates a monster. But in the book, there are so few details about how the monster is created, and that's generally what I think of when I think of this story: a doctor painstakingly putting together body parts and trying to animate them. Frankenstein certainly goes through a painstaking process, even more so than I would have ever guessed, but we know far more about the exhaustion he experienced as a result of his work that we do about the process itself. And then, the monster... teaches himself French and then English? Through observation? And then is just kinda pissed and vengeful because everyone hates him because he's a monster? And he's super duper articulate? I had no idea. Super fun little read.

35 - Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt

12/20/24

This kind of book isn't really my cup of tea, but it was a very sweet story with some compelling characters. I didn't expect the octopus on the cover to be a central figure in the story, but that was kind of a fun twist on advancing and solving some mysteries. 

36 - Refuse to Be Done by Matt Bell

12/28/24, recommended to me by Tori Carl

I'm so pleased that some of my (writing) grad school friends took a course on teaching creative writing this fall and that their instructor assigned so many fantastic books to support writing a novel AND that these friends recommended the books to me! Refuse to Be Done is an incredible resource for strengthening a novel. I've already started paying attention to some of the advice around language, and I can't wait to go back and try some of the exercises on the novel I'm working on. Thank you, Tori!