1. Something we started watching...
The Burbs. Need I say more? Talk about a 1980s classic. It has been years since we watched this movie. I guess we were inspired by our own neighborhood to watch this comedy. After all, every neighborhood has its own quirky characters.
2. Something I learned...
While watching the movie, there is a shot where you can see mountains in the background, which clearly do not match the set. The Burbs appears to take place somewhere in the middle of the United States - not sure where (Iowa maybe?), but definitely not California, and the mountains scream Hollywood. Another shot shortly after made me think, "That looks like Wisteria Lane from Desperate Housewives." I looked it up (seriously, what did we do before Wikipedia?), and my suspicions were confirmed: The Burbs and Desperate Housewives were both filmed on the same set: Colonial Street. I also learned that shows like The Munsters and Leave it to Beaver were filmed there as well. Who knew? Yes, I fill my days with looking up random pieces of information. I can't remember what it was like to wonder about something and not be able to get an immediate answer. Did we just accept the fact that we would probably never know the answer to our question...because where and how would you look up facts like this? I'm not sure this is information that an encyclopedia would have.
3. Something I tried (and failed)....
Reading deprivation. I wrote about this in my last post. Obviously, I did not do very well with this. I tried, and I definitely read less, but I still found myself driven by impulses to look up information (knowing whether The Burbs and Desperate Housewives used the same set seemed like pretty pressing information to know at the time). I know, I have zero self-control. I found myself checking Facebook even more than I usually do in a week. Maybe because I was trying to stay away from reading my books? Occasionally, I cracked and had to read an article online plus I have been very curious about hygge, so I found myself reading articles and book reviews about it. Reading about hygge also led me to look up information about Denmark. Bernie Sanders apparently wants us to emulate Denmark. If Danish people are known to be the happiest people in the world, would getting tips from the Danes be so bad?
Okay, so you can see how I drifted away from reading deprivation. Clearly, I didn't do this right. I have no doubt that this is can be a powerful tool, but I feel like I had one of my least productive weeks in a long time, and I can't help but wonder if there was a connection here. In all honestly, this exercise left me feeling frustrated, unfulfilled, and guilty. Reading for pleasure (reading actual books for fun, that is) is something that I wasn't good at making time for to begin with, and this was one area of my life that I set out to improve because reading is a way for me to learn, be entertained, and be inspired to create. By abstaining from reading, I found myself in moments where I couldn't help myself and typed something random into Google and read whatever popped up on my screen. I almost felt like if it was just a quick glance over for a minute or two that it didn't count, but those "glances" added up, and I wasted a lot of time. I also allowed myself to do other things that weren't technically "reading" like watching TV and browsing through pictures on Facebook, which yes, led to me to reading statuses. I can't help it, you try not to read text that is right in front of you. I'm telling you, reading is a reflex. I suspect my version of "reading deprivation" was not what Ms. Cameron had in mind.
4. Something we did...
We had a campfire with our neighbors. We had a little taste of spring over President's Day weekend, so we spent a lot of time outside and it was delightful. The warm weather actually lasted through the week, and on Friday, we had a cookout in our backyard. What an awesome way to kick off the week and to end the week. It was great to spend time in the backyard and on our patio again, and it made us feel like spring is really on its way. Which leads me to...
5. Something we want to do...
We want to string lights around our patio. This is actually very hygge. My husband, P, ordered the lights on Saturday after we spent part of our day just shopping around for fun things. This is something that I really recommend actually. Go out and shop for fun. Don't even buy anything, just take a look at things that would be fun to purchase. No chore errands allowed. It was actually a really fun way to spend a rainy afternoon. We ended up ordering the lights from Crate and Barrel because the length was a better fit for our space.
6. Something else I watched...
On Saturday, P went out for a bit, so I ended up watching Big Little Lies on HBO. I read the book a few years ago, and so I can't even remember what happens (although it is starting to come back to me now). I remember I loved the book. When I heard of this series on HBO, it actually didn't even register that it was based on Liane Moriarty's novel or that I read it. When I made the connection, I had to watch it. I love Liane Moriarty's writing style and story telling. It is why I started reading her new book, Truly, Madly, Guilty. Now that my "reading deprivation" is over, it is time that I get back to it.
7. Something that made me happy...
I was thrilled to hear that Hoda from Today is a mom! Congrats to her! That little girl could not have a mom with a kinder heart. I couldn't help but cry when I watched this.
8. Something I did that brought me joy...
Last week, I met an old friend for coffee. This dear friend is someone I have known for ten years. She was also such a special friend to me when I was expecting my daughter. We drifted a bit, and my heart has missed her greatly. It felt so nice to spend time with her again.
9. Something else I looked up...
See? I told you I looked up a lot during the week of my "reading deprivation." After having coffee, I received a very kind email from my friend. She closed her email with "Fondly" which I thought was kind. I am terrible with email closings. For years, I signed everything with "Thanks" which didn't even make sense half the time, but I just thought it sounded nice. Many of the closings I have tried have felt forced. I am definitely not a "Cheers" person. "Best" seems over used - but I like it. I use "Kind regards" for most of my professional emails. I read a few articles including this one before signing off on my response. Does anyone else out there overthink things like me? I ended up going with "Warmly," in case you were wondering.
10. Something I want to read...
Well, given my reading deprivation, I have not started reading anything new. I am still reading the same seven books (see all seven books in the picture above), but that doesn't mean I can't keep adding to my "Want To Read" list. I just learned that Julia Cameron (author of The Artist's Way) has written two more books as a continuation of the 12-week course: Walking in this World and Finding Water. I did not realize this despite the fact that these two books are advertised on the back cover of the The Artist's Way. I am curious about where the tools I will learn in this series will take me.
11. Something I am curious about...
I used to love creative writing. In school, I loved writing stories. I even took a creative writing class in college, which looking back, was definitely one of my favorite classes. I want to start writing stories again. I am curious about what I might create.
Have a beautiful week...and Happy March!!!
Curiously,
Beth
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