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This week in…: Volume 22

June 26, 2015 by Jana 20 Comments

It’s a slow week with my trip to New York but let’s hit some of the highlights.

This week in reading…Still reading The Long Home, finished Hidden Bodies and The Husband’s Secret and picked up 7 new books including Dirty Rush, Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac, and The Rosie Effect. I’m about to build a book fort and never come out because I refuse to accept that there’s not enough time to read everything I want.

This week in TV…did you guys know Christian Slater has a new show, Mr. Robot? I didn’t until 2 days ago. I don’t know that I’ll watch it but it warms my 16 year old heart to know he’s still employed.

This week in projects…I want to do something more with my bookworm series. Podcast, perhaps? Would you guys listen or be guests? Also still working on my book and while this is the first draft and it’s a disaster, I think it’s got potential. And I never say that about my work.

This week in what the hell…Makeup shaming. To quote John Oliver, how is this a thing? But it is and I love the ladies all over Instagram and YouTube who are responding to the bullshit of makeup shaming by only making up half their faces. Ladies (and gentlemen), if you want to wear makeup, go ahead and do it. Whatever reasons you have, those are your reasons and no one, I mean NO ONE, has the right to tell you otherwise. Wear as much or as little as you want in whatever colors you want and if it makes you happy, then fuck everyone else’s opinion. Especially some douchecanoe on the internet. He’s probably jealous of your smoky eye skills anyway.

This week in internet reads…Anyone want to take a road trip with me to this town in upstate New York that has 6 bookstores? In light of Nick’s interview yesterday, there’s this interesting article about men and work-life balance. This post from The Bloggess because she’s often much better at saying things than I am (although I don’t get the requests to share like she does because, let’s face it, she’s WAY more famous than I am. In fact, famous and I have never met). And, finally, this crazy story about an American fugitive living in Australia (but now he’s actually dead).

This week in funnies…

Have a great weekend! I’ll be back here Monday with something profound and witty. Or utter nonsense. Definitely one of those.

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Losing my New York State of Mind. Or am I?

June 24, 2015 by Jana 15 Comments

I’m in New York this week visiting my family so I figured it would be appropriate to write something about me being a native New Yorker. Even though I’ve lived in Delaware for roughly half of my life, I grew up on Long Island and being a New Yorker is like having an STD or something less disgusting that gets in your blood and stays there. No matter how much time I spend away, when I go back, it’s like I never left except I always forget about sales tax and that shit throws me off. We don’t have sales tax in Delaware so I fail to plan for it and man, does it mess up the price of things. When it says something costs $5, IT NEEDS TO COST $5. Not $5.18. GET IT TOGETHER, NEW YORK.

Moving on.

As I said before I got distracted, there are some part of me that will remain forever a New Yorker despite my years away. Like these:

I will always believe that bagels or pizza or Italian Ices (hey there, Ralph’s) are better in New York (and, let’s be clear. By “New York”, I mean everything below Westchester County. Upstate is a whole different animal).

I will always bleed orange and blue and will never, ever defect to the dark side of sports. And by that, I mean becoming a Philadelphia sports fan (sorry, Steph).

I will always play Jewish geography. For those unaware, it’s a game that I’m pretty sure New Yorkers invented where two Jewish people meet and they see how many people they have in common. There’s usually one. It’s weird.

If I tell you that I’m from Long Island, and you tell me you know someone who lives there and ask if I know them, rest assured, I do not. Long Island has A LOT of people and I’m pretty sure I don’t know your college roommate’s uncle’s friend’s daughter’s first grade teacher. Unless they grew up in my town and are roughly my age. Or they’re Jewish (because see above).

While we’re on that topic, if you ask me where on Long Island I’m from and I tell you and you nod like you know what I’m talking about, I will always know when you don’t, especially if you say something like “oh, that’s near The Hamptons, right?” No. No, it’s not. Visiting there one time does not make you an expert.

If I do meet someone from Long Island or even Queens or Brooklyn which is like NYC lite but like Long Island’s moderately cooler older cousins, even if we grew up in different parts, it’s an instant friendship. And if not friendship, it’s at least a good hour or two of conversation. We’re kindred.

I will always, always hate the Belt Parkway. I’m pretty sure the road to hell is an exact replica.

I will always talk fast, drive fast, be cynical and sarcastic, say “coffee” and “talk” and”dog” other words like that exactly the way you expect a New Yorker to say them and #noshame and yes, my husband has a mild Southern accent and yes, when we fight, it kind of sounds like the Civil War but again, #noshame

I will always cringe when I hear people call New York City “The Big Apple” or something else horrifically cheesy. It’s how we know you’re a tourist or trying too hard. It’s “The City”. Nothing else. Also, Manhattan is not the only part of the city. If you don’t know all 5 boroughs, well…learn your NY geography.

I will always feel nostalgia and pride for how and where I grew up because, despite all the years I spent clamoring to leave, I know I couldn’t have grown up anywhere better.

I will always be okay with the label “New York native” because if I’m going to have a label, that’s a pretty good one to have.

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This week in…: Volume 21

June 19, 2015 by Jana 23 Comments

This week in reading…if we’re friends on Goodreads, disregard what it says as “currently reading” because I cannot keep my currently reading books straight. I started Some Luck and while I’m enjoying it, others are popping up. Like Hidden Bodies, Caroline Kepnes’s follow-up to You (thank you, NetGalley). You all know how much I loved that book and it’s nothing short of a small miracle that I don’t have to wait until September to read the new one. I also started The Husband’s Secret and other books like The Long Home are back in waiting which means that current reads are being mixed and matched like Punky Brewster’s socks.

This week in shit I don’t care about…The Stanley Cup. The NBA finals. The release of the new 50 Shades book (this one actually has me asking why? Why another book? Do we really need his perspective? No. No we don’t. E.L. James, we need to have a long chat). Firefly. Well, I care a little about Firefly only in that it affects traffic near my house. GO AWAY, concert revelers. Find another route.

This week in TV…Anyone else excited for True Detective? I know the casting was controversial but I love me some Vince Vaughn and I’m looking forward to seeing what he does in this kind of role.

This week in podcasts you should listen to…If you’re not already listening to Criminal, do that. Also, Book Riot has another podcast, All the Books!, and it’s a weekly one devoted to new book releases. Crime and books. My two favorite subjects.

This week in things that are awesome…the kid in Washington who started an Instagram account that praised and complimented his classmates. This story about Laverne Cox and her reaction a 7 year old trans girl. The volunteers organizing all the books in a Philly high school’s basement.

This week in Internet reads…This article and accompanying video on how much sleep you actually need and the cumulative effect of sleep debt. If you’re into the Myers-Briggs personality tests, you might like this post on classic novels for each personality type (I’m an INFJ and the recommended book is Ulysses by James Joyce, which is extra funny and coincidental because it’s one of the books in my and Alyssa’s upcoming reading challenge). This post is originally from February but it’s important because it gives you all the reasons why you should stop using your smartphone in bed (this is a good accompaniment to the article about hours of sleep). And, finally, for all my fellow 80s kids, here’s a list of things we could do in school that kids today most definitely cannot.

This week in funnies…

Have a great weekend! Happy Father’s Day to those celebrating! See you back on Monday with a recap of my favorite books of the year (so far).

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Planner Alert: The Remarkable Year

June 18, 2015 by Jana 7 Comments

As a personal rule, I don’t ordinarily share any sort of crowdfunding campaigns here on the blog. Today, though, I’m breaking that rule because I wanted to share with you guys a project my friend Kathleen is working on and I think since so many of you are planner addicts (myself included), you can get behind this idea. It’s in its final days on Kickstarter and this is the kind of planner that many of us can benefit from.

I’ll let Kathleen tell you a little more about herself and her project:

I’m Kathleen Celmins, and I blog in a variety of places. I’m new to the Stacking Benjamins team, and that and For Profit Blogging are my primary platforms. I got into blogging through Frugal Portland. Essentially, I’m a writer/designer/marketer who wants to teach other people how to tell their own story.

The project that is taking the most time and attention is The Remarkable Year, a calendar/planner/motivational journal that has you set goals at the beginning of the year, and marks your progress throughout the year. Weekly, you create a “done” list instead of a “to-do list” and your progress becomes a record of how you’re making your year remarkable.

From start to finish, the process took about three months. I worked with a designer, then poured through it continuously until I was satisfied. I researched quotes until I was certain that they were accurate (which takes longer than you’d think!), then I printed it 27 times, continually adjusting things until they were done.

The Remarkable Year is a memoir in the making — a time capsule of what you accomplished in 2016.

This planner is for:

Those who feel like they’re running on a treadmill and not actually getting anywhere.These people are running 100 miles an hour in 27 different directions, and they don’t feel like they have anything to show for their efforts. The Remarkable Year will show them that they did a lot more than they thought, and will encourage them to keep up the good work.
Those who don’t plan their days hour-by-hour. Or if they do, they’re planning using a calendar app that helps ensure they make it to meetings on time.
Those who aren’t always looking for a new app. In today’s ever-connected world, some people seek to step back from technology. And what better way than to write down the major and mini-milestones in a beautiful book you write yourself.
Those who want to journal, but are intimidated by a completely blank page. It’s often easier to respond to prompts instead of starting from a blank page. Writing prompts make it simple to jot down the important pieces of your week.

The Remarkable Year will only be printed if we can raise enough money on Kickstarter: http://bitly.com/remarkableyear

What I love the most about a planner like this is that a) it’s paper. I need a break from organizing apps. They don’t work for me; b) it’s a way to look at the big picture instead of analyzing the minutiae; c) it’s a consolidated way to look at your progress; and d) it focuses on your accomplishments instead of what you didn’t do. It’s basically a reframing of goals and to-do lists, and I think this has immense potential.

A disclaimer I need to throw in: Kathleen is a personal friend of mine. She did not approach me about sharing her project; I approached her because I think it’s such a great idea. Please do not feel any pressure to contribute or share her project.

What do you guys think? Are you as excited about this as I am?

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Riders on the storm of lawnmowing

June 17, 2015 by Jana 38 Comments

In case you missed the announcement on Instagram, we’ve added a new member to our family. His name is Willard. Here he is. And yes, his name is from exactly where you think.

As a suburban girl, born and raised, I’m still struggling with adapting to country living. Buying a riding lawn mower? Well, I guess that means I’m officially country folk and I need to leave the suburban girl at the mall.

It’s a been a long process to acceptance and when we bought Willard the other day, here’s what went through my head:

So that’s what $1500 looks like. I feel like it should be prettier.

It’s cheaper in the long run than hiring the neighbor’s lawn service.

But where the hell are we going to get $1500? Might be time to start hooking.

Who am I kidding? I can’t do that. Might be time to start growing some stuff instead. We have the space.

He’s going to make me use Willard. I’m going to have to help cut the grass now. I don’t want to help cut the grass. It’ll probably turn into that scene from Mad Men.

My husband is going to host lawnmower races. I just know it.

It’ll probably look like that scene in Footloose. Thank god there’s an emergency room less than 10 minutes from the house.

He’s going to play “Thank God I’m a Country Boy” REALLY loudly.

Oh, shit. He’s actually making a playlist of songs about tractors. What did I do to deserve this?

Wait, did he just refer to a lawnmower as a tractor? Isn’t a tractor a type of truck and a lawnmower, well, a machine for mowing the lawn? When did they become synonymous? I feel this is wrong.

I’m so glad we have a two car garage so the cars can park on the driveway and the lawnmower and the inflatable pool can go in the garage.

OMG, we have a riding lawnmower AND an inflatable pool. His music of choice is country. We’re one pickup truck away from official redneck status.

My life has taken a strange and unexpected turn. I need to process how I feel about this.

Did he and the child just have a conversation about which headphones they need to buy for when they use Willard?

Wait, did the child just say she wants to use him, too?

He’s planning winter activities for Willard. I just know it.

I hope none of them involve pulling the child behind Willard on a sled.

I think I just inadvertently gave him an idea. He doesn’t need more ideas.

I can deal with the rest but I swear, if he drives the lawnmower to the neighbor’s house instead of walking, I’m asking for a divorce.

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This week in…: Volume 22

Losing my New York State of Mind. Or am I?

This week in…: Volume 21

Planner Alert: The Remarkable Year

Riders on the storm of lawnmowing

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