This Week in Pop Culture

That's right, I'm bringing it back.

Movies

Ok, so I've totally been slacking in this particular department. The last film I saw was Sharknado, which was everything and more, but that was like three weeks ago. I can tell you that I hope to see Fruitvale Station this week, and I already saw The Spectacular Now and Austenland, which premiere this week, at Sundance. I feel like that counts, right? Anyway, everyone should go and see The Spectacular Now (and see that Shailene Woodley is not a fluke and is here to stay) and girls who love Jane Austen should see Austenland. I talk about them in more detail here.

Television

I'm currently cycling through season two of Parenthood, season three of Doctor Who, Orange is the New Black, and Orphan Black (seriously, how does Tatiana Maslany play ALL THOSE CHARACTERS??). What I watch depends on my mood, but they are all brilliant for very different reasons. Here are these reasons, in five words or less:

Parenthood: Real life emotions. Tears. (Sidenote: A mix of Adam Braverman and Nick Miller would make the perfect man. Just saying.)
Doctor Who: David Tennant. Blink.
Orange is the New Black: Strong females. Of all races.
Orphan Black. Tatiana Maslany. Crazy clone shenanigans.

And of course, SYTYCD every Tuesday. We're finally at the Top 10 and can I just say, DAAAANG Aaron and Jasmine. Holy crap.

Books

I actually get a lot of reading done now that I have a long commute on public transportation. I recently read the entire Queen's Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner. What a brilliant series. You instantly fall in love with Eugenides, the clever and complaining Thief with a million tricks up his sleeve, and his complicated relationship with Attolia, the Ice Queen with Issues, is so subtle and delicious. I honestly didn't see most of the plot twists coming (especially in the first two books). The only issue I have with it is that at the end things only seem to get done with violence, a moral I don't entirely agree with. But there's enough mind trickery to make up for it.

I've also started JK Rowling's  Robert Galbraith's  The Cuckoo's Calling, which has been enjoyable so far. I'd like to see more of Robin, but the mystery of supermodel Lulu Landry's death has kept me intrigued. I'm about 35% through it.

Music

Jay-Z and JT's "Holy Grail."

YouTube

I recently plowed through the whole series of Your Dad's Friends, which was hilarious and perhaps hit a little too close to home. I've also been obsessed with Miranda Sings, the absolutely hysterical, egotistical character played by Colleen Ballinger who thinks she is the best singer to grace the Internets. Check them out now.

News

1. If you haven't seen Steven Colbert's triumphant reaction to Daft Punk's snubbing, then you're living life wrong.

2. ComicCon and VidCon recently happened and I'm still jealous that I wasn't there.

3. Comedic geniuses literally playing our feelings in the upcoming Pixar movie, Inside Out.

4. And of course, the existence of Orson Welles' Too Much Johnson.


That's it for this last week! What are your recommendations?

I Think I'll Go to Boston

Yes, we did hear that song a million times on the radio while we were in Boston. Nuance isn't really their style.

Jenny and I went to Boston this past weekend and we had a blast. Seriously guys, New England is the prettiest part of America. The green, the sea, the cute architecture, everything is wonderful.

We stayed with my one of my favorite old Young Women's leaders, Bekka, and her adorable family. They have the cutest New England house and were so gracious to let us crash for a couple nights and show us around the city. Here are some of things we did:

I'm obsessed with the architecture of this city

The fabulous Joner family!

King's Chapel Burying Ground

The wharf

My main man Ben.

Mike's Pastry has the best cannolis on this green earth.

Gorgeous.

These clam shells were EVERYWHERE on the beach.

Mikey's burying my feet. Though I'm not sure where my legs end and the sand begins... #pastywhite

Mmmmmm.

After the city we chilled at the beach for a couple hours. It was perfect evening followed by an even more perfect meal, LOBSTERS and CLAMS. If you know my love of seafood, then you know I was in heaven. Jenny scored some life points by cracking open her very first lobster. It was a proud moment.

The next day we went to Salem to see the witches. We checked out the Salem Witch Museum, which showed the history of the 1692 trials and the changing perceptions of witches throughout the ages. Interesting stuff. Even more interesting is just how much this town embraces its witchy history. There is literally a witch trail, potions shops, people in costume, and several psychic readers. And yes, I did get a tarot card reading where I was told I need to keep on my current path to be successful. So there's that.

Here are some pics of Salem:

Puritans!

Not tacky at all.

Embracing my inner witch. I didn't have to try too hard. 

Seriously. Obsessed. 

Basically it was a perfect weekend and I need to go back. Here's a video I made about it. Enjoy some more fun facts about witches.

IT'S CRAZY HOT

Hey all,

It's been a crazy couple weeks. I got a new job, a new apartment, and a perpetual sweat stain. Seriously, it's been so hot lately, I don't remember what it feels like to not be sweating. 

But life has been good (other than the fact that I'm becoming broke faster than I care to admit). This week was Fourth of July weekend, and I realized that I haven't spent the holiday in the same state (or sometimes even country) for four years now. New York's Independence Day was certainly one to remember. We got decked out in patriotic gear and saw the fireworks on the Jersey side of the Hudson. Most spectacular view for a fireworks show I've ever seen. 

Ariana, Jenny, and I dressed for success.

Here's a quick vid I made of my weekend, plus a quick catchup of my life:

Other than that, I've mostly just been hanging out, eating a lot of great but unhealthy food, and seeing shows. Thought I'd give a quick review of the shows I've seen so far:

• Newsies: Just a super fun musical. The choreography was great, the cast was attractive, and I understood all the nerdy journalism jokes. Loved it. 
• The Lion King: I had already seen this one on tour, but it was still breathtaking. The sets, costumes, creativity, it's all genius. And who doesn't love the story of Lion King? Or the CIRRRRCLE OF LIIIIIIIIFE song. (Fun fact: that song is how we start most of the road trips in our family. Good times.)
• Once: Yes, the ending is pretty depressing, yet I still felt hopeful leaving the theater. I loved the raw emotions of the songs and the real-life feel of the production. Definitely one of my favorites so far. I've been humming "Falling Slowly" every day since I've seen it. 
• Peter and the Star Catcher: SO FUNNY. This prequel to Peter Pan features the most hilarious cast, with the guy who played Capt. Black Stache standing out in particular. They all just seemed like they were having a great time and as a result I did too. And that mermaid scene. My goodness.
• Chicago: Great songs, terrible message. I guess it works as a parody of the American justice system. Or the glamorization of the 1920s. This musical is worth it, though, if only for the "Cell Block Tango" number. 

What else... Oh! I've been on a SciFi kick lately. I finally got through all of Joss Whedon's Firefly, which was fantastic of course, and I'm halfway through season three of Doctor Who. I've also started Fringe, now that it's on Netflix. Maybe I'm secretly wanting to visit other worlds or something? I don't know, you tell me, psych majors.

Also, here's a new webseries for you all to check out--The Autobiography of Jane Eyre. It's done in a similar style to The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, and so far the plotting of the particularly dense novel has translated greatly to this format. See for yourself:

That's all for now. I have some ideas for future posts, and since I'm only working part-time right now I should have more time to write!

Peace and Love.

The theme of my summer: 

Love Each Other

Yesterday us BYU program kids had our last class of the spring term (and mine forever. Yay!), a class on gender, race, and diversity in the media. We only met once a week, but I really enjoyed the discussions we got into regarding diversity. Dr. Wakefield asked us a lot of tough questions, such as: What makes up a person's culture? Why do stereotypes exist? Are government programs helping or hurting those groups that are oppressed? Is America a melting pot, like it claims to be, or is it more like a salad bowl?

We never really came up with definitive answers to these questions, nor do I think there really is one.  But I was impressed how many different opinions and viewpoints this small group of white, Mormon, 20-somethings expressed regarding these issues. It was always a lively debate.

I realize that as a Single White Female I can't exactly push my views onto other cultures or expect them to see things the same way I do. I've never lived in their shoes. I've never experienced the unique pains and joys that come from living in an urban community, or a reservation, or a house full of immigrant families. However, I do believe that we should all accept each other's differences and Love Each Other, as GOB Bluth so eloquently puts it.

The vast array of cultures is probably my favorite thing about living in New York City. What's that old joke? That you know you're in New York when your doorman is Russian, your grocer is Korean, your deli man is Israeli, your building super is Italian, your laundry guy is Chinese, your favorite bartender is Irish, your favorite diner owner is Greek, the watchseller on your corner is Senegalese, your last cabbie was Pakistani, your newsstand guy is Indian and your favorite falafel guy is Egyptian.

I don't think any other city exists like this in the world, and I love interacting with those so different than me on a daily basis. It's the reason Humans of New York is one of my favorite websites. It just shows that no matter how different we are, we all have hopes and dreams. We all want to make it in this crazy world. We all have a story to tell.

It's not hard to be kind. It shouldn't be hard to not be judgmental. No matter the person's race, gender, sexual preference, hair color, size, political party, whatever, there's no excuse for hate. We don't have to agree. We just have to Love Each Other. 

Missing Maurice

Hey look, three posts in a row! This must be some kind of record. 

"I still think the same way I thought as a child. I still worry, I'm still frightened...Nothing changes."- Maurice Sendak

In case you either weren't aware or didn't see today's wonderful Google Doodle, today would have been Maurice Sendak's 85th birthday. I'm not sure how many people know this, and it's not that original, but Where the Wild Things Are is one of my favorite books of all time. When I  was little I would imagine myself as Max, escaping the duldrums of my life to have adventures with the Wild Things. It's probably the book that made me love fantasy and the ways the imagination can come up with worlds more exciting than our own that we can retreat into every once in a while. 

So imagine my happiness when I was asked to help pitch the new PBS Digital video at work today. This is why I love PR, because you can help share wonderful things that you love and that inspire you to the rest of the world. This interview, along with every other interview I've watched of Sendak, just made me respect him even more. Sendak's life and views, at least on religion, were very different than mine, but there was something so raw about the way he spoke about children and the regard he has for them that you can't help but admire him and his view of the world. What an inspiring visionary and creative mind, and I hope we can all learn a bit from this wild rumpus. Let's not ever forget Mr. Sendak, and let's not ever forget what it felt like to be a kid. 

Also, the interview series he did with Colbert will always remain one of my favorite things ever. I only hope to be as crotchety and carefree as Sendak was so late in life. 

"That is the truth of her life. That she must accept her inadequacy and her failure to live up to expectations...but no one really wanted anything more from her."

Becoming a New Yorker

The other day I was walking through Times Square to transfer to a new subway stop (the trains stopped at 50th and it was this whole big mess, don't ask) and it was loud and bright and crowded and the people were walking as slow as my grandma and I bumped into someone without apologizing. I didn't even feel bad. I was more annoyed at them for getting in my way.

When I finally got to the train, I sat next to this large man who smelled quite horrible, but didn't care, because it was a seat, and thought about what had just happened. I had gotten annoyed at tourists. I hated being in Times Square. When had I become this person?

I think I'm finally becoming a New Yorker, you guys. Here are some other indications:

• I bucked up the courage and bought a $20 umbrella. Those dinky $5 ones were just not cutting it.
• I always move to the middle of the train. 
• I know which lines go to which area. 
• I successfully gave a lady directions to the Met.
• I don't feel bad about ignoring "homeless" people or hecklers.
• I feel no desire to do my hair in the heat. 
• I fall asleep to sirens, instead of waking up to them. 
• I successfully avoid eye contact with the people on my train. I know some of them are there on the same car with me everyday, but heck if I've even smiled at them before. 
• Falafel is my new favorite food. 
• I know that paying more than $40 for a Broadway show is a fool's errand.
• I wanted to give pointers to this poor kid trying to perform on the subway because he was going about it all wrong and had no confidence. 
• I've jaywalked in front of the cops more than once and they didn't even bat an eye.
• I look forward to getting into the subway car because it has air conditioning.
• My favorite drink is Snapple. 
• I have a favorite cheesecake place. And a favorite pizza place. And they're better than yours.

Oh Hey.

I know. I know. I'm the world's worst blogger. Like, if they were handing out awards for People Who Say They're Going to Post but Never Do, I would win, hands down. To be fair, though, 1) I was out of a computer for two weeks, 2) life has been nonstop craziness, and 3) I've been more worried about getting my life together than keeping up this blog. I'll talk more about that in a future post very soon (I'm serious!) but for now I just wanted to give you all the highlights of these past three? four? weeks. 

Also, I've been a little bit better at updating my videos than my blog, so subscribe to my YouTube channel for better updates. I have iMovie now so hopefully they're getting better in quality. Besides, who wouldn't rather watch a five-minute video than read well, anything. Not me, that's for sure. Here's one about my Memorial Day weekend in D.C., for example:

Ok. So. It's been a fun-filled, crazy past few weeks. There's just so much to do here, and no matter how long I'll live here, I don't think I'll be able to do it all. I do think I've gotten most of the touristy stuff out of the way, though. Here are some of my favorite things I've done:

seeing lion king again. probably my favorite musical that i've seen so far.

getting to tour around d.c. with chelsea and alyse.

and brooke.

it was a pretty patriotic weekend. my first time in d.c.! the holocaust museum was probably my favorite thing we visited. i can't stop thinking about it. 

seeing jesse tyler ferguson in shakespeare in the park

my all-time favorite painting at the moma

coney island beach

riding roller coasters with these fools

meeting mr. grimaldi at his original restaurant.

the first time i couldn't finish a milkshake. props, serendipity 3

amateur night at the apollo. literally the coolest thing i've been to.

biking for the first time since high school and seeing the city in a whole new way.

That's all for now. There's a lot more to say about my internship and life in New York in general and worries about the future, but I'll save that for another time. Just know that I'm having a blast out here and miss all of you! I have a Mac now, so no excuses not to Skype me! Or FaceTime, as the Apple people call it. 

xoxo.