My life is pretty purposefully quiet.
I’m an introvert, big time, which I used to mistake for being shy. I was shy, so very shy, when I was in college-I barely spoke to anyone for four years, which was as lonely and painful as it sounds.
I’m not shy anymore. But I am still an introvert and that lends itself to books and music and podcasts. (My idea of a perfect Friday night when the girls are gone involves a glass of wine, a good book, and sweatpants.)
Some of what I’ve been loving recently:
Books
Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
I read Beartown last year and while I thought it was well written, the story really didn’t do much for me. I felt like nothing really happened that I wasn’t expecting. This sequel exceeded my expectations-it is beautifully written with some profound observations-it explores and mines the tragedy from the first novel and offers up some searing truths.
Clock Dance by Anne Tyler
I loved the first half of this book. I love stories told as characters age through time and the beginning half of this book delivers on that.
The Ensemble by Aja Gabel
I loved most of this book-there were some cliched bits here and there that could have stood some finessing, but mostly this was an enjoyable read. I listened to the playlists at the beginning of each section as I read the book, and I think that helped to understand the complexity of the music.
Bachelor Nation by Amy Kaufman
Disclaimer: I don’t watch any television anymore that isn’t either sports or the occasional Hallmark movie. That sounds pretentious, I know-it’s not that I don’t want to watch tv, but that I just don’t have the time. Eventually I will get around to it. But I say that to explain that I really only know the basic premise of this show and not much more, and I still thoroughly enjoyed this book.
You Think It, I’ll Say It by Curtis Sittenfeld
I love Sittenfeld, mostly. And I love short stories, nearly always. So this worked for me.
Hey Ladies! The Story of 8 Best Friends, 1 Year, and Way, Way Too Many Emails by Michelle Markowitz and Caroline Moss
A perfect beach book, told through emails and text messages-I think most women can easily identify with being inside of a passive aggressive email chain. It’s not deep, it’s broad and funny and not especially life changing, but not all books need to be.
Podcasts:
Pantsuit Politics
This podcast prides itself on bringing nuance to its political view, and if I had to describe my own politics in one word it would certainly be nuance. I listen to Sarah and Beth every week and enjoy that they each have a distinct way of viewing the world but can speak to each other in a way that is respectful of the other. They have been doing a series on 9/11, digging into the history going back all the way to World War I and bringing it forward, and it has been excellent.
Overdue
I love the Overdue podcast and use it as a tool for learning the spine of books that I just know I might never get to (I mean, I honestly believe I’ll eventually read everything but people who are good at math are constantly telling me that it’s impossible). Right now they are doing a series for their patreon supporters called Stop! Homer Time where they are going book by book through The Odyssey and they release it on the main feed as well. It has inspired me to order my own copy and (fingers crossed) maybe I’ll actually understand all of it.
Typeology
I am a personality junkie (this drives my psychologist sister a bit nuts as she mostly thinks it baloney but let me tell you, she is wrong). I’m a 9 on the Enneagram, and knowing this helps me to come at life from a different place of understanding and acceptance of other people. If you are at all interested in the enneagram, I would recommend both the book The Road Back to You and this podcast, both of which are by Ian Morgan Cron.
The Bible Binge
I have gone on and on in several posts about The Popcast with Jamie Golden and Knox McCoy (they are, as Jamie would say, a delight). They are in their third season of The Bible Binge, which is sort of their take on the bible, so it’s funny and topical and also theological and inspired.
Also, if theology is your thing, I again am going to tell you that the First Five app is wicked cool and all sorts of awesome.
It’s not my weekend to have the girls, and so that means lots of cleaning and rearranging the furniture and getting lost in a book and being grateful for solitude. Of course, I miss the girls, and I do have some really fun things planned this weekend that involve other people. But, when life first flipped upside down, weekends without the girls dragged on and on. Embracing the fact that I genuinely enjoy time spent alone with a good book-for as long as I like-it’s a gift that I am given every other weekend.
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