I’ve been entertaining myself lately with my unofficial solitude phase especially that my friends have been busy with work, and oh, I got my summer break too as a *wink*asst. prof.*wink.*
I declare that these months will be breather of months where I’ve got stay up a little longer at night and wake up
a little bit later by morning.
Bookworming
The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd
Given by one of my boss, this is a story about Jessie Sullivan falling in love with Brother Thomas who resides in a fictional abbey at a fictional island.
This existential spiritual novel is a slow-paced chronicle of how a woman returns to the place she grew up in and fell dangerously in love with someone who is almost divine.
Reading this brought me to a vulnerable contemplation of my own spirituality. Both characters experienced tragic loss that brought them to the island: Jessie, still consumed with passive guilt from allegedly causing her father’s death, and Brother Thomas, grieving over his wife’s and child’s death. They sought solace at the hermitage they built in the middle of the river from the outskirts of town.
In the end, it aided me to connect to the pieces of my soul that I’ve forgotten. And as what the novel said, God is everywhere with no circumference point.
Martyr by Rory Clements
Set in the Golden age during the reign of Queen Elizabeth Tudor, this novel is about the cunning wit of John Shakespeare as he uncover plots of assassination towards the Queen’s best commander, Sir Francis Drake. This novel is also the first in the series of this pre-Sherlock inspired detective novel wherein John also explores his emotional vulnerability with the love of his life.
As a lover of English history, this novel is another royal treasure in my shelf. I particularly enjoy travelling in the past during this era. The language didn’t betray with its elegant English formality. And though I cringe with its blatant brutality, I commend the author for not shying away from writing reality in that era.
Potato-Couching
The Mentalist
I’m drowning with laughter while sitting at the edge of my seat with that anticipation of knowing who the murderer is while binge-watching this crime television series The Mentalist.
A fabricated model of modern Sherlock Holmes, Jane Patrick becomes the California Bureau of Investigation’s consultant. He helps close cases with the agents through his bizarre psychosis, hypnosis, and unorthodox methodologies in getting confessions.
Though the show heavily deals with murder, the agents’ warm approach to the victims and survivors make it more human.
Secret Summer (2016)
In the beginning of the film, I honestly didn’t hold any anticipation to how it’s going to be. Judging by its title, I envisioned walks by the beach and a summer romance brewing under the sun. I was right with the latter because the beach is exchanged with a faraway town. This is a story with Rachel, a property assessor, who teams up with Jake, a writer, to save the town library from turning into a beach resort. Along with this is making the summer memorable for Jake’s niece and nephew.
This film is a cup of tea for slow developing romance combined with familial issues. It’s not a complicated plot with surprising endings and sympathetic back stories. It’s still a goal-oriented light drama, and in a way, more realistic to comprehend.
Not Cinderella’s Type (2018)
Indy’s childhood is cut abrupt when her mother died, and she needed to live at her uncle’s house. Her aunt’s lifelong goal is to make her life miserable by restricting her freedom and bombarding her with chores. It may seem like there’s no end to Indy’s misery, the school’s prince Charming, Bryant, hit her cat with his car. A blessing in disguise, Bryant helps her escape and seek justice from her step-aunt.
As what the title gives, I already have a bucket of expectations from prince charming to the weeny Cinderella-type of girl. And of course, all the classic elements are present. What makes this film unique from all the Cinderella-type films is its approach on how to turn Indy’s life around in a more grounded strategy. The dialogues are bearable to the non-romantic types because it doesn’t try hard to make the characters fall in love. The process of liking each other is also slow-paced and developed from situational basis.
Wild Child (2008)
I’ve always been a fan of Emma Roberts especially with her signature persona of a spoiled blonde teenager because she completely defines the character. But this film fully thrust her into that role where she is forced to study at an English boarding school where her mother went to. Wild in nature, she devises plans to get expelled from the school with the help of her new friends.
Full with teenage angst, classic bullies, and a kind headmistress with her son as the school’s heartthrob, Alex Pettyfer, this film connects to every female’s heart in re-connecting with their teenage years of fitting in and realizing the power of female friendships. Plus, the accents in this film made me swoon the whole time.
Eargasming
So with my music taste evolution, I delved into different genres of music. I’m listening to Kodaline and Cigarettes After Sex. These two music groups has a thin line that almost makes them sound the same. Both has the recipe for melancholy during cold November afternoons.
Kodaline’s “All I Want” has that sympathetic though bizarre official music video about a man who is despised by everyone because he looks different. The lyrics is filled with agony of lost love, even pledging his body in exchange to see her again.
Cigarettes After Sex’s “Sweet” is a fairly innocent account with its true-to-life description of wet hair and unspoken I Love Yous.
YouTubing
With my high expectations of humor, it’s not easy for me to generously chuckle at people’s attempt for comedy. But this YouTube channel Odd1sOut doesn’t even try.
I commend his unique and simple comic animation and his captivating storytelling of his childhood with honesty spread across his video. His genuine take on humour kept me supporting his content from childhood reminiscing to navigating early adulthood. I’m also compelled with his confident nature to carve his own path in art through the YouTube platform with genuine hard work and natural talent.
And also, not every man makes me laugh (that’s why it’s not easy for me to exclusively commit to the men I’m dating). But James, he doesn’t even try.
Pigging Out
Aside from the perennial love of lighthouses and houses on hills, I’m particularly in love with Tierra Alta’s cheesy pizza and citrus Iced Tea. The uphill one-kilometer hike from the entrance is all worth it once the stomach is filled at the Clubhouse.
I’m still that person who craves pizza with all the mushrooms and olives on top, but mere cheese spread across the dough is a new venture in pizza-eating for me and worth it.
Miel 