Fri-Yay #13

I was a bit bad and went shopping (online) and got some new items. I don't need them obviously since I'm going nowhere this year because of Covid-19 but whatever. 

I also listlessly read three books. I'm so slow this week for some reason! Plus, I only half watched some of the TV shows I had taped. I didn't really try any new recipes other than a bland lemon pasta bake. What is with all these bland recipes? I can make it better obviously but what's the point of keeping the original if it's so boring. Do we  not believe in spices and flavor? Lord help me. 

​Listening:

Since Spotify doesn't allow me to mark a podcast episode as "listened" if I heard it on another medium, I've been fast forwarding/skipping ahead on most of them. With casefile though, since the episodes are long and it's been awhile on a few of them, I decided to re-listen to some. I haven't worked my way up to EAR/ONS as of yet (the GSK/DeAngelo) as they were creepy. I know other people are getting into podcasts, and I got an email from Amazon or Google. I'm not sure if I'll stay with Spotify or not. I'm okay at the moment. 

I'm strangely slow with music/podcast innovations. I might have been the last person on Apple's previous platform (ITunes) before they shut it down. I keep trying to listen to the regular radio in the car but the station owners have decided to start playing Fox "news" segments and -I still can't get over this- Bill O'Reilly's segments. So...I'll be bouncing from that. 

I mean, I just want to listen to music. I don't need a DJ or their "forward from Grandma segments" and I don't want a biased "news" break. Just play the freaking music! They've been driving me insane. The other day I counted TEN ads and then the Fox "news" break.

I sent an email asking if this was permanent because if it is, I'll find something new but if it's going to stop I'll stay. I hate changing music stuff but I have Spotify, Amazon Prime and Google Music. I can switch over if necessary. 

And don't come for me over Fox. Everything Rupert Murdoch touches turns into tabloid trash. I'm not interested in losing brain cells from this crap. I'll lose them a better way thank you very much. 

Watching:

Ugh...have to cleanse the room of the Fox bad juju. Light a candle or something. Prick a voo-doo doll. 

I've been watching Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Potomac. I couldn't bring myself to watch Orange County because...well...

I probably won't continue with Beverly Hills with the whole "mean girl" teamwork going on. I'm tired of Kyle, Rinna, and Teddi. They need a massive cast shake-up on the show. More Sutton and Garcelle please!

I love Real Housewives of Potomac though. I'm bummed Monique and Candiace fought as it looked pretty bad. 

I sat down and watched "The 93 Victims of Samuel Little" which was on Investigative Discovery (ID) AKA the murder/true-crime channel. It was two episodes. It was an okay production but a lot got left out I think. The FBI has a page with information on his drawings/unnamed victims. 

I also started (or rewatched) season 2 of Midsummer's Mysteries. Barnaby and Troy are still solving crime and the 90s fashions are at their heights. I forgot how rough a lot of the hair and makeup was in the 90s on daytime TV. That's all I'll say about that. 

FX dropped a bunch of (repeat) episodes of What We Do In The Shadows. So that was fun to discover on my DVR. Sometimes with repeats I just delete but I sat down and rewatched these (the first two episodes of season 2). 

​Reading:

I read three books this week. They're all British books (British-ish). The first was Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen. It was cute enough and I'll probably continue on with this series as it was cozy but not high level cozy. From the other reviews I read on Goodreads, the first book is the roughest as it sets everything up and then everything else is more fun. There were some anachronisms that I know bothered people. I only caught one near the end and ignored everything else. 

The second book was by Lisa Jewell and titled Watching You. I always forget how much I dislike present tense in books, and in this one Jewell uses third person present tense. Present tense makes me edgy and I hate reading it in novels. I think this is common for her as it's not the first book I gritted my teeth through by her. Other than the tense issue (which is a personal thing), it was nicely done with some curveballs thrown in. 

The third book is by Anna Lee Huber and is titled This Side of Murder, which deals with a vague And Then There Were None setting (island cut off and party of people where they begin to be murdered one-by-one). I'm down for that type of plot. It's also set in the 1920s during the Spanish Flu/time between the wars in the U.K. I'm torn on this book to be honest. The writing was dry but wasn't too bothersome. The twist that came mid-way through the book threw me. I think I had set my little heart on one way so when the author revealed what she had planned I was grumpy. I'm not sure I can continue it to be honest. I might see if my library has it and force my way through but I'm still annoyed. I did like how Huber talked about the actual effects of WW1 soldiers would face, the disillusionment, the frantic need of the parties in 1920s, the terrors, and the rise of divorce. 

​Buying:

I wanted this dress so much when I saw it on Modcloth but it had sold out. So I found out who made it and went to their website. Which was a mistake (and by mistake, I mean, best thing ever) and bought two dresses. The maker is a shop called Sugarhill Brighton, located in Brighton U.K. The first dress  (the one I wanted) is called the Zadie Cyber Candy shirt dress and thesecond is the Gloria Caribbean Flamingo Dress. 

​I went to ASOS after that because I have problems and bought this tiered maxi dress that's super cute. Super extra and super romantic. I'll probably wear it to get a Publix chicken tendies sub. You're welcome Publix! Even if you don't kick out weird-ass Trump supporters who try to start fights in the bread aisle when asked to back up as they're not wearing masks. Ever seen a grown man shamed by a grandma? I got to that day. Publix has not universally handled any of this well and I only go early in the morning...otherwise I go to a local grocery store that's vicious on mask wearing. I'm immuno-compromised and on new (not long tested) medication plus have several elderly people staying with me. These anti-mask people are  a bunch of whinging self-absorbed dickheads. They're the same people who drive their shopping cart in the middle of the aisle. 

Right, off topic. Isn't this dress cute? It's very romantic, very girly, very over-priced polyester. It's $80 and I would recommend it on sale but I went ahead and bought it because I was in a maxi dress mode. They're perfect because you don't have to shave your legs. 

I got some more face masks with filter pockets. I got one that is more masculine from Target as my dad isn't overly keen on the sparkles and lace ones I have. I also got some random ones on Nordstrom Rack when I placed a different order. 

​The last thing I got was a Flamingo sweater from Modcloth. I needed it!