1. The highlight of the week was seeing fellow blogger Bone and Silver, who was in NYC for her brothers wedding. I met up with her at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens and had a lovely time walking around with her and chatting! Always a highlight to put a face to the words!!! But that means I can’t tell you anything about the birdhouses or the thing in the middle of the pond because we were sort of walking around.
2. Lots of little advertising gimmicks around New York right now… though I have no idea if wither thing is enticing me to buy anything
3. Mochi donut was delicious. We had the milk tea flavor and it was light and airy and delicious!!!
4. Saw POTUS on Broadway! Delightful farce about the President, and the women who really run the country. All star cast, highlighted by hilarious Rachel Dratch.
5. Asian Art at the Met is just striking. Went to The African origin of Civilization exhibit which was supposed to have new stuff- alas it looked like the same stuff I saw last time- so I just took a pic of something I thought was interesting

1. Comfort Book– I loved this book- it’s just a book that you read a page a day, and basically it’s a big “It’s OK” hug. If you ever need a little pick me up, this is the perfect inexpensive, non caloric, non addictive option. And even if you’re not having a bad day- it’s just nice to get a few sentences of comfort. I recommend this to everyone who lives a full and varied life.
2. Zen– I loved this book. Chapters are about a page each and they just explain how doing things simply is good for the mind, body and spirit. Honestly, I think this is a great book for any parent to read, because some of the things that the author writes about are the basis for raising a confident child. I don’t care what religion you are, or if you don’t believe in religion- this book is just practical and logical about how to think about your life and your purpose in it. I read a page a day for about five months and it just made me feel good.
3. Hottest Dishes of the Tartar Cuisine– Brilliant satire told from the perspective of the abuser. Very well written, clever tale of the most narcissistic, controlling witch ever. While I don’t like what this character/book represents, the actual book is worth it for discussion purposes. Really eye opening. Also touches on the spirit on communism, if that rocks your boat. This book is not for anyone who gets triggered easily.
4. Adult Assembly Required– If you are looking for a beach/plane read, and like the rom com genre, this is a good one to try out. Cleverly written, well drawn out, often quirky, characters, the obstacles the characters face aren’t too bad. I also really respect Waxman, but there will be a post about that in the future.
5. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland– There’s actually quite a few layers to this book, especially as it’s technically children’s literature. I don’t know if I would have read this without it being for book club- I know the storyline from movies and such. However, it’s a mainly fun ride.
6. A Caribbean Mystery-This is classic Miss Marple- only instead of St. Mary Mead we find find murder in the Caribbean. Red herrings, assorted characters, lots of knitting. If you like the genre you will enjoy this light yarn. This was published the year I was born, and goes to that spot on my BINGO card.
7. Book Lovers If you want a light read about romance and love, this is a pretty good option. The characters are not quite three dimensional, but I liked them. They were written so that I felt good about rooting for them- they were basically good people who had challenges in life that they were trying to get past. Good book for summer.
8. Left on Tenth– Decent memoir about Ephron’s losing her husband and sister, her new chance at love at 72, and her cancer. This book is fine, if a little lackluster- I felt like some parts were phoned in. I think there are better memoirs out there dealing with similar subjects.
9. Through the Looking Glass– What can I say about this book? I admit I didn’t like the beginning very much, it sort of annoyed me. However, I love the ending- I thought it was quite tidy and made me smile.
10. Something Wilder– This is a rom com with a side of action/adventure. If you go into this book with low expectations and are a fan of the genre this book is fine. But an award winner it’s not.
11. How to Live an Awesome Life- This is my style of self help book- easy to read and digest. Formatting highlights steps to take for positive actions- very easy to put steps into action if you wish. This is a great book for someone who needs someone cheerleading and yelling YOU CAN DO THIS- Tells people to just jump into life and live.
12. Killings at Kingfisher Hall– This is the continuation of Hercule Poirot. The book is Ok- not quite the cleverness of Christie, but not a bad read if you like the genre and Poirot. Hannah utilizes her sidekick, Catchpool, who is sort of like a young Hastings, and the book is seen through his eyes. I don’t like how she has Poirot disappear for awhile and then reenters the scene and tells us his observations. There’s that old show don’t tell thing again… I don’t want to hear Poirot’s conclusions- I want to hear the evidence and do the deductions along with him.
13. Today Tonight Tomorrow– If you are a 16 year old and like rom coms, you will probably like this sweet and predictable book. It has some preachy moments that sort of fall flat given the type of book it is, but it’s not a bad book, just not a great one either. This fulfills my BNYA square on the Barnes and Noble Bingo book challenge.
14. In a NY Minute– New York is a character in this book. Alas, I’m not sure if the author has been to NYC, much less lived here. Just like loving a person, you must see the good and bad…this book tries to make NYC into a happy go lucky place where plucky is the appropriate adjective…the heroine wouldn’t last a day in NYC…meet cute or not. Trite is the best word I can use to describe this book that thinks it’s more charming than it actually is. And there are two storylines don’t really mesh they just take up space. In conclusion- the author should fact check: Alter is in Greenpoint not Williamsburg. When you get the details wrong I just can’t believe anything about a book.

1. Unbearable Weight– Nicolas Cage plays himself to outlandish glory. I love when an actor is humble enough to know that they were a meme before there were memes. No- this is not a “great” movie, but I found it highly entertaining and watchable. I guess it’s for people who don’t always want to take things too seriously.
2. Bad Guys– Cute movie with a moral. Don’t judge a book by its cover. Good is better than bad. Probably not good for really little kids, but it’s a fun little ride. Not much to hold an adults attention, but I could see this being nominated for an Oscar.
3. Hello Bookstore– This is a charming doc about an indie bookstore and its iconic owner Matt Tannenbaum. This is a love letter to reading and readers, and those who surrounded his store with cash love when he almost went out of business during the pandemic and set up a Go Fund Me. On a side note, I’m pretty sure that Tannenbaum was at the same viewing of the movie as I was- I didn’t say anything because it’s me and I am shy and there was no way I was going up to him
4. Anais in Love– This is a wishy washy love story. I didn’t like the protagonist- I thought she was too flighty, and I had trouble wanting good things to happen to her. I also hate the trope of young person dating someone older as a parent substitute- it’s boring and too pop psychology and has been done SO many times. Can’t we come up with something better? Pass unless you like irresponsible characters who are in need a reality check.
5. Dr. Strange– I really wanted to like this movie because I like Dr. Strange as a character and I like Benedict Cumberbatch. However, liking a character doesn’t get you past this confusing plot- just because it’s about the multiverse doesn’t mean it can just twist and spin around with a point. That being said, I’m still all in on Marvel.
6. Senior Year-High School Senior has terrible accident and lands in a coma. Twenty years later she wakes up and wants to finish her Senior Year of High School. It is exactly how it sounds…Yes- there is a message in this, and there are some interesting moments, but unless you are watching with your 20 year old daughter you can probably pass

Have you ever looked to a celebrity or famous person and felt like you know them?

Ever have a hero worship thing happening?

A few months ago I told you about the person who sat next to me at a Book Talk hosted by Eugene and Dan Levy…https://wakinguponthewrongsideof50.com/2022/02/17/rabid/. Not long after I posted this, I was watching Guy’s Chance of a Lifetime on Food Network. (Hi- I’m LA and I’m addicted to food competition shows- even the below average ones)

The show was hosted by the uber popular Guy Fieri, and the concept was that he would bring in a group of people, and every week he would evaluate their performance on various tasks regarding cooking, marketing and owning a fast casual restaurant. There would be no weekly eliminations- but everyone would get evaluated and given scores, and the score would accumulate week to week. The winner of the competition would be the one with the highest score. The prize was a Chicken Guy franchise.

Big prize.

But to get that prize you had to be able to accept some harsh criticism if you made a blunder. Here’s my keys to success:

1. Try new things
2. It’s ok to make a mistake
3. If you make a mistake you must own it
4. If someone critiques you, you must listen with open ears
5. Learn from your mistakes
6. Move on

Now back to our scheduled programming:

So guy had a contestant on the show. She was quite good at a lot of things. She was also that teacher’s pet sort of personality- she liked raising her hand and getting the gold star.

One episode she had an epic fail.

Fails happen. People make mistakes or use poor judgement or just don’t think things out properly. This happens to everyone.

But her fail was really one of entitlement. She got mad because no one on Guy’s staff would “help” her. She was in the weeds on a challenge- but for some reason she thought she was entitled to help that the other contestants didn’t receive… She stormed and huffed…

She especially stormed and huffed when Guy called her on the entitlement…

She said something along the lines of – Doesn’t Guy know that he’s my idol? (apologies- I couldn’t get the direct quote because I accidentally deleted the episode before I got the quote and I refuse to pay for HULU premium)

Just because someone is your “hero”, does that mean they should give you special treatment? That they should excuse your flubs because you mean so much to them?

Is hero worship a thing that we should give a hard pass?

Has celebrity worship gone too far?

Do we forget that no matter how famous one is, they’re still human at the core?

Discuss:

I recently read The Arc by Tory Henwood Hoen. The book talks about a very involved matchmaking site- and we see the story of the two main characters Ursula and Rafael as they get matched up on the site, and their ensuing relationship.

As a Rom-Com, this book is somewhat light and reasonably enjoyable. The style of the matchmaking app gives the reader much to think about regarding dating in the 21st century, and relationships between two people.

However…

You knew there was going to be a however…

The book manages to mention feminism 16 times. 16 times in a book about dating, a book that features a woman who wants a partner so badly she goes to an expensive and completely over the top dating app. I’m not saying that a feminist can’t be married. I’m saying that during one of these waves of feminism, isn’t there at least one that says that a woman is complete without having a man?

Does a rom com need to prove how feminist it is?

Or

Is the author embarrassed that they wrote a rom com, and wants to make sure her feminism card isn’t revoked?

As my new thing is to give you quotes from books that I read, here’s the ways the author used feminist/feminism:

1. White Carrara marble and rose gold dominated the palette at The Stake, the nouveau feminist wellness club where she and Issa convened as often as their schedules allowed- usually once or twice a month.(Hoen) Do we need to call a wellness club feminist? Is getting a massage and a mani bad, so we need to call it feminist to take the edge off that sometimes woman may want to treat their bodies because they might be stressed out, being a feminist and all?
2. Some argued that rather than advancing the feminist cause, The Stake bastardized it. (Hoen) Ok- we can see here that quote 1 was not satire- the book is trying to make some sort of feminist statement. Wellness spas- friend of the feminist or foe?
3. Right, like you get together at your feminist wellness club and drink green juice and complain about dating.” said Issa. Are we mocking feminism here?
4. Orla’s engagement crumbled in the ensuing weeks once Chip realized that not only would there be no inheritance, but that Orla also had what he called a “latent feminist temperment” that he found troubling.” (Hoen)
5. This was convenient, since her thirties coincided with the rise of fourth-wave feminism. (Hoen)
6. Is he a real feminist or just a self-described ‘feminist‘ who actually wants to teach you how to do things you already know how to do? (Hoen) Is this how we judge men- trying to figure out which type of feminist the guy is?
7. On my own, I am this well defined, strong, feminist, career-driven person.(Hoen) So -can we be a feminist and be in a relationship? Or is the implication that once I becomes we, we is no longer feminist?
8. He has feminist values, but he doesn’t brag about being a feminist in that annoying way that some men do, when they’re just doing it to curry favor with women? (Hoen) Can men be feminists?
9. It was a good investment on Mike’s part, although the irony was not lost on Ursula that all of the funding for this feminist-wellness empire came from middle-aged men hoping to profit from it. (Hoen) If this was the only time that feminism was mentioned in the book, I would be happy with it. This is a solid thought and observation, but it gets mired in the rest of the feminist bull.
10. When I think about what it means to be a working woman and a feminist, you’re the person I think of. (Hoen) Can you be a working woman and not be a feminist? I mean, isn’t the whole bring home the bacon and fry it up in the pan cause I’m a woman W-O-M-A-N, I’ll say it again the theme that feminism was based on?
11. “Our child will be too busy leading a post-capitalist feminist revolution to worry about things like racquet sports.” (Hoen) This one just annoys me. Talk about a man trying to curry favor with a woman…
12. “You don’t have to singlehandedly solve for the ills of the capitalist system, and you don’t have to win Most Valuable Feminist every year,” said Rafael. (Hoen)
13. “Isn’t feminism about freedom of choice, anyway?” he asked. (Hoen) I ask that very question
14. “Aren’t feminists allowed to take breaks too?” (Hoen)
15. “Your whole ‘woke feminist” schtick has gone a little far,” said Roger. (Hoen)
16. “I think fourth-wave feminism has veered a little off course,” said Issa as they drank their moon water and stared into the flames. (Hoen)

Do you think books throw in certain topics so that they can seem weighty or relevant?

If we are reaching for a light/beach read, do we want to be listing the pros and cons of feminism in our heads?

Is the true meaning of feminism live and let live- do as you please with no judgement? Or do we use the veil of feminism to continue to judge other women?

What has had more waves: Covid or feminism?

Discuss: