Jana Says

Living life from cover to cover

Ten best in 2017: Shows I’ve watched

by Jana 14 Comments

With the year coming to an end, all the best of lists are popping up all over the place. Steph and I have a special Show Us Your Books planned for December 26 where we’ll be sharing our favorite books of the year (we hope you’ll join us) and I figured why not share some other things that have entertained me this year.

I might do a list with podcasts and movies but the simplest place for me to start is with TV shows. And by TV, I really mean Netflix since 90% of what I watch is from there. I also waffled back and forth with including this year’s seasons of shows I’ve previously watched on actual TV like Fargo, Stranger Things, Better Call Saul, Mr. Robot, Longmire, Silicon Valley, Ray Donovan, Billions, The Affair, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver and opted against that although if you’re interested in a list beyond the extensive one I’ve inadvertently provided, I’m happy to oblige. So instead, I picked some shows that I’ve seen for the first time, even if they’re old, and shows that gave me so many feels I still think about them.

I acknowledge that some of these may not make lists put out by actual critics but I am a real person and not paid to critique or look at shows with any sort of discerning eye except for asking myself if I like it enough to keep watching. And recommend that you watch it. There’s a mix of stuff here, although if I’m being honest, it’s mostly all dramas. I have a type. #sorrynotsorry

Okay. So. Here goes. The 10 best shows I watched this year in no particular order with where I found them. For some reason, my brain is rejected everything from Amazon but I think that’s because I don’t watch a ton from there like at all, ever (but I will once the newest season of Orphan Black shows up. My dumb ass forgot to set the series recording and I have all episodes for this season except the first one).

  1. Rectify (Netflix)
  2. American Vandal (Netflix)
  3. Ozark (Netflix)
  4. American Crime Story: The People Vs. OJ Simpson (FX)
  5. Snowfall (FX)
  6. Godless (Netflix)
  7. Westworld (HBO)
  8. The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu)
  9. Alias Grace (Netflix)
  10. 13 Reasons Why, G.L.O.W (tie, both on Netflix)

Honorable mention: Mindhunter (Netflix), Mudbound (movie, Netflix), and Big Little Lies (HBO)

Oh, and I know it looks like I watch a ton of TV. And maybe I do. But my habits are unhealthy AF. Like, I’ll DVR a whole bunch of stuff, binge watch everything over a couple of days, not turn on the TV for weeks, lather, rinse, repeat. This is also how I deal with all the Netflix shows.

So. That’s it. What did you guys watch this year that I should consider for 2018? What do you think of my list?

Working titles

by Jana 15 Comments

Now that I’m 40 I think it might be time to write my memoir. After all, I have a few decades of experience to share along with some wisdom and knowledge and truth bombs (that’s the term the kids are using these days, right?).

But what to name it? I have a few working titles:

Where’d I Park My Car?: A Life in 50 Parking Lots

Inspiration: My Life Between Sneezes

Hiding in the Bathroom: 47 Ways to Get Some Damn Peace

I Conquered Laundry Mountain: Great Achievements of the 90s-Now

That’s Where That Went!: Things I’ve Found in My Bra

Sure, I Like Her (and Other Lies I’ve Told)

I’m Not a Joiner: Tips for Avoiding the PTA

Wear Those Pants All Week and Don’t Wash Your Hair: A Style Guide for Moms

Carpool Confessions

Cereal, Grilled Cheese, and Chips: A Weeknight Cookbook

What do you think? What would you name your memoir?

Unpopular opinons

by Jana 17 Comments

Every fall since 2011 I’ve attended a blogger conference. At this conference, one of the sponsors routinely provides cookies. These cookies are white chocolate covered Oreos coated in purple sprinkles and stamped with the sponsor’s logo. Most attendees refer to them as blogger crack. I refer to them as disgusting. 

I’m 100% comfortable with my opinion and I stand by it and also, it’s just a number of unpopular opinions I have or popular things I don’t like. For instance:

Pumpkin spice anything. The only right way to consume a PSL is dump it right down the drain and when I was in Walmart a few weeks ago, I swear to you I was in pumpkin spice hell (which is different than the regular hell that is Walmart). It’s madness, and it needs to stop immediately because we all know pumpkin spice really isn’t that great. You can tell yourself it is but really? NO. Apple cinnamon, maple pecan, hell the smell of wet leaves is better than pumpkin spice. 

Game of Thrones.  I don’t have any fucks to give about it and I don’t care to find a fuck. See also: Harry Potter related anything, Gilmore Girls, The Walking Dead, This Is Us, any prime time reality show.

Audiobooks. I don’t like them. They’re not reading for me. They’re listening to someone tell me a story. When I read, I want to actively engage and read. Not passively listen. 

Wedding hashtags.  I get that they’re for finding all social media pictures from a particular wedding but good fucking lord. They’re stupid and take vanity to a level I am incredibly uncomfortable with. How do I make them stop? See also: the word “bumpdate”. Sorry, preggo friends. I hate the word and I’d like to banish it. 

Punctuation abuse. Look, I know it’s trendy to put grammar in a corner and forget that it’s important and to just say what you want and blame autocorrect. But OMG it is important and I will totally and forever judge you if you can’t use a proper apostrophe or understand the difference between “where” and “wear”. Also, if you’re trying to make a political statement about how kneeling during “The Star Spangled Banner” is unpatriotic and it is riddled with grammatical and punctuation errors, I will not take you seriously at all and your opinions are invalidated in my eyes. If you’re going to be that impassioned, at least take the time to spell words correctly. 

Ed Sheeran. I think his music sucks. There. I said it. (Also I’m not a huge Beyonce fan. I think she has an obscene amount of talent but I don’t get the constant and incessant worship)

Scarves in fall. How about scarves never? Putting a scarf around my neck makes me feel like I’m being strangled and I want it removed pronto. I will not purposefully spend money on a scarf as an accessory. Hell, I don’t like to spend money on them as a necessity for the 4 days a winter when NOT wearing one means I’ll freeze. 

Craft beers and IPAs. EWWWWWW for days. I’ll take my stouts and porters and my vodka sodas when I don’t feel like tearing up my stomach. But most microbrews are horrible and I don’t understand the love they get. 

Wine. I don’t like that, either. Except moscato. I’ll drink that. 

To be fair, I’m not completely immune to the allure of popular things. There are several that I do enjoy: 80s and 90s nostalgia, Carpool Karaoke, How To Get Away with Murder, hating on Joe Buck (he really fucking sucks, though), wasting time taking BuzzFeed quizzes, red lipstick, Adele, yoga pants, and all the IG pictures of coffee and sunsets and dogs and cats. 

It’s a good balance for me. 

How about you guys? What are some unpopular opinions you have about popular things?

Thanks to Stephanie for the post idea. 

 

 

 

 

 

Do NOT add it to your list

by Jana 18 Comments

The last Tuesday of the month means all the recommendations coming in courtesy of Lauren and Bre. You should go read all of those lists because they’re incredibly helpful. But you know what comes in handy for me sometimes? Knowing what NOT to add to my list. You know, those products that suck and are a waste of time and money and energy. So this month, I’m sharing what I think you should skip right over. 

NYX eyeshadow. Their lip products are THE BEST and the eyeliner is pretty fabulous, too. But the eyeshadow leaves a lot to be desired. The color payoff and pigmentation is shit, it almost never looks like what you think it will, and I have never had luck blending it in any sort of decent capacity. If you’re on a budget and don’t want to use products tested on animals, you’re better off with with e.l.f or Wet N Wild. 

Reese’s coffee creamer. Seeing as how Reese’s peanut butter cups are my favorite candy in the history of time, I was (way too) excited to try this. Then I did. And I cried a little. It’s AWFUL. Not even remotely close to good. Do not waste money or a cup of coffee or taste buds on this crap. 

Books by Ruth Ware. She’s a terrible writer who writes terrible books about terribly annoying characters. If you want to read thrillers written by women, I can recommend at least 5 who are better and none of them are Gillian Flynn, either. 

China Glaze nail polish. I am not a nail polish snob. I have all brands from drug store to salon quality and by far the worst one I have ever used is China Glaze. While the colors look phenomenal, they last maybe a day. MAYBE. I have never experienced nail polish that chips so much and so quickly even with using the amazing Orly bonder and a solid top coat. It is almost not worth the effort to do your nails using this shit. (However, if you have a suggestion for how to make it not chip, I’m all for it because some of the colors I have really are outstanding)

ios11. This is mainly for my iPhone users. If you’ve already updated, then you’ll know what I’m talking about. If you haven’t, please wait until they fix the battery drain issue. I’m not a heavy phone user, not even when I’m in the car, and my battery drains faster than a keg at a fraternity party. There are some good features added but you can honestly do without those. It’s incredibly frustrating needing to charge my phone 3 times a day. 

I know there’s a few TV shows and movies I want to suggest avoiding but I think I’ve blocked them from my brain since the titles aren’t coming to me right now. 

Okay, now that you know what I think you should avoid, what do you recommend that I not add to my list?

Add It To My List: Escapist edition

by Jana 13 Comments

Remember last week when I ranted about needing to protect my sanity because of the chronic shit 45 puts this country through? I figured that maybe some of you guys are going through something similar and so, for this month’s edition of Add It To My List, I’m giving you my recommendations for when the news is too much and you need an escape. 

Podcasts

Seriously. Listen to these even if you’re not a podcast junkie.

  1. Homecoming. I might have mentioned this before (in fact, I’ve probably mentioned all of these before) but this one is fucking spectacular. It’s got a celebrity cast (no joke. Catherine Keener and David Schwimmer and Amy Sedaris and more), the writing is incredible and, for season 2, there’s even a book to go along with each of the 6 episodes. It’s a dual escape!
  2. Conversations with People Who Hate Me. Hosted by Dylan Marron, these are the civil conversations we need to be having with people who disagree with us. There’s only 4 episodes so far so you’re not too far behind. 
  3. All the Books! Need more books in your life? Want to know all about new releases? Then you need this podcast. Liberty and Rebecca are book enthusiasts to the zillionth degree and they’re entertaining as hell. Also, Liberty has a spinoff podcast called All the Backlist! that’s about older books. It’s a good one, too. 
  4. Alice Isn’t Dead. Listen before it’s a book and a TV show! Seriously. It’s weird and crazy and surreal and satire and hard to follow sometimes but it’s quite excellent. 

I’ve left off all my true crime podcasts (there’s a lot. A LOT) because maybe you’re not in a good place to listen to murder and stuff like that but if you want some recommendations for that genre, let me know 

Instagram

Who doesn’t like to look at pictures? These accounts provide some of my favorites.

  1. Happy Tails Resort. It’s a boarding facility in Norfolk and they have a pool and watching all the dogs swim is basically the highlight of my days
  2. Introvert Doodles. Marzi is smart and funny and she really really gets me and the introvert life (even if I am more of an ambivert). I want her coloring book!
  3.  Quincy. He’s a dog. A Bichon, specifically, and he used to be insanely popular when Vine was a thing. Now I follow them on IG. You should, too.
  4. Katie Ryan. Well, it’s more for her kid (Ava) but the kid is fucking hilarious. Please, please watch some of the videos. This kid is a like a next-generation Kate McKinnon, I swear. 

I also follow lots of publishing houses and authors so let me know if you’d like some of those. It’s how I learn about many of the books I read. 

TV Shows 

Going with some old friends this time around. 

  1. Roseanne. My favorite sitcom of all-time and I can watch every episode forever and ever. 
  2. The Golden Girls. If you don’t love them, you have no soul.
  3. The Wonder Years. Fundamental viewing for this 80s kid
  4. That 70s Show. It’s so stupidly funny but I can’t not laugh all the time. 

Songs

This was the most difficult to narrow down because of the playlists that Erin and I have but I tried to pick songs that have never been represented and aren’t exclusively from the hard rock category. 

  1. The Anthem by Good Charlotte
  2. Cry Tough by Poison
  3. Ocean Avenue by Yellowcard
  4. Ain’t It Heavy by Melissa Etheridge

What would you add to my list? 

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