Vol 2. Issue 39

Pic of the week

Christmas in Portland!  Puzzles with Grandma!  Goats!  Freshly hatched baby chickens! Aunt Sibby!

Quote of the week

"I want to watch something with a handsome man in it."
-Grandma on which Christmas movie she wants to watch.

What's going on?

Christmas!

Also, I didn't post last week because I was traveling and didn't take my computer with me.  Rest assured it was a mostly uneventful week of work and travel prep.  I did go see CATS with some friends, though, and y'all it was TERRIBLE.  In such a fun way.  We had a BLAST watching it, but it was so so so bad.  So, if you want a good time, wait til it hits the dollar theater, gather some friends, and go laugh your head off while continuously saying, "What on Earth is going on..."

BUT CHRISTMAS!!!

I flew up to Portland to spend the holiday with aunt Sibs.  All of her kids were scattered to the winds for Christmas, and my immediate family was similarly dispersed, so we celebrated together.  Grandma was there, and uncle Dan was there, and my roommate came up too with her dog, so we were quite the crew.  We had a great time though.  Too much food, lots of Christmas movies, puzzles, treats, feeding the goats, watching the chickens hatch, naps, good conversation, and beautiful surroundings.  It was really nice to get away for a few days.

I flew back to LA Christmas Day because the little bro is in town helping out with the Rose Parade floats and he drove in that day.  We got Chinese food - our favorite Christmas tradition - opened some presents and ended the day well.  The rest of the week has basically been one long run of lounging, watching movies, eating treats, and playing games.  It's been fun, but if I'm being honest, I'm ready for life to get going again.  Hahaha.

The new year is right around the corner!  And most people think it's the start of a new decade.  And while technically that's not true (the new decade actually starts in 2021), we'll all treat it as a new decade, and that's fine.  Bring on the 2020s.

What I'm reading

This is so good.  Everyone read it.  These are important things. Heads up there are a couple of swears sprinkled in, but they are rare.

What I'm watching

Every. Christmas. Movie. Ever.  But mostly my favorite one:

What I'm listening to

On repeat.

Vol. 2 Issue 38

Pic of the week 

Just a casual wait for Mickey's Philharmagic show at Disneyland.

Quote of the week

What's going on?

A Disney-filled week this week!  Dad and Susan were in town with Susan's daughter and her family, so I spent the day with them on Monday.  Then I already had plans to go to Disneyland with some friends to enjoy the holiday magic before my pass gets blocked for the rest of the year.  There are some tasty treats at Disneyland around the holidays.  To be sure. It was fun to spend so much time there.

The rest of the week was work as normal.  Lots of tutoring, some time at Kidville (we had our holiday party this week and I was named "Kidville's Voice of Reason"), and a little Story Pirates.  Got in some Christmas lights, some hot chocolate, and some egg nog.  A festive week all around.

What I'm reading

Still reading 1491.  It's a long one, and I've been busy.  It's interesting though!

What I'm watching

This was delightful.  HIGHLY recommended.

What I'm listening to

Christmas radio on Spotify.  It's taken a few days, but I'm finally starting to feel the Christmas spirit. It's hard to feel festive when the weather is constantly sunny and 70 degrees (not that I'm complaining...).

Also, this new podcast discovery.  He's a fascinating guy and I just love everything he has to say.

Vol 2 Issue 37

Pic of the week 

Rainy days call for comfort foods.  Vegetables can wait til January.

What's going on?

I'm just hanging out in my onesie, sipping on some eggnog, listening to some chill Christmas tunes wrapping up a pretty awesome week.

Most of my week was consumed by Story Pirates auditions.  We audition new actors once a year, and once you're a Story Pirate, you're always a Story Pirate and you're basically eligible for any and all programming we may do throughout the year.  But we gotta keep a fresh rotation of people in the company because some people's lives go in unexpected and delightful directions.  Kristen Schaal, Amber Ruffin, Lauren Lapkis, Sasheer Zamata - all Story Pirates!  We also have people who go on to write for TV shows and the like.  It's pretty exciting to be surrounded by so many awesome people, honestly.

Anyway, our auditions are a really fun process of bringing a kid's story to life to see if you can do the thing we do.  So I just got to hang out with my friends and have a bunch of people delight us and make us laugh.  And some of those people will now be Story Pirates!  Mostly I just had a blast.  I really love my job.

In not so fun news, the ignition switch on my car decided to give up the ghost a little.  Kind of.  Its death rattles are becoming clearer and clearer.  I was unable to turn my key the other day.  A locksmith came and worked on it for a bit.  He said he couldn't fix what's wrong, but that it was once again functioning, though who knows for how long?!  I took it into the shop today and they said they didn't have the part and the place that would have the part was closed, but that they gave it a little tune up and it should work just fine - which was immediately proved wrong when I tried to start my car to leave the parking lot.  We were able to eventually get the key turned, but it's a real adventure every time I start my car now.  Will the key turn?  Won't it?  It's anybody's guess!  The guy at the shop said to try getting a new key made because it could just be that my key is 16 years old and might be too worn down to function properly.  So, I guess we'll try that and maybe get a replacement ignition switch another time.

An adventurous week all around.  Plus there was rain.  And I'm still training for a half-marathon.  Had a 9-mile training run this week.  That's the furthest I've ever run.  My knees are feeling it.

What I'm watching

What I'm reading

This beautiful example of what I think Christlike living looks like.  I was the recipient of one of those 1500 pizzas.  I probably didn't need it, but I can't tell you how much it meant. 

What I'm listening to

This podcast episode about Envy.

This podcast episode about Anger.

And this podcast episode about how our country is sometimes pretty terrible at compassion, which is frankly equal parts depressing and enraging considering how many people here claim to be Christian.

Vol 2 Issue 36

Pic of the week 

Thanksgiving dinner with my little surrogate family. The fierce lady with the dog is a Story Pirate friend of mine.  Those are her parents, and some friends of hers from college, if I remember correctly.

What's going on?

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  Always love a chance to take a breath and practice some gratitude.  I have a LOT to be thankful for in the past year - good friends, better jobs, amazing trips, delicious food, chances to perform in some amazing capacities, and of course the day to day things that make a life a life.  Glad you're all part of my journey.

It was a movie-filled week, for me.  I saw Frozen II (liked it better than the first one, cried through the whole thing), Honey Boy (didn't care for it much, but it will probably win a ton of awards), Knives Out (fun whodunit with a killer cast - pun intended), and A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood (Everyone needs to see this.  The world needs more Mr. Rogers.)

What I'm reading

This beautiful and unexpected story from the good ol' Utah news.

What I'm watching

Mostly just the movies above.  Though I have been catching up on Schitt's Creek - hilarious show if you don't mind some language, Queer Eye in Japan, and just started The Mandalorian on Disney Plus.

Vol 2 Issue 35

Pic of the week 

Quote of the week

"Don't do your job.  Come hang out with me."
-My manager

What's going on?

What a busy week.  I can't even remember what went on.  Lots of tutoring, lots of Kidville, a little bit of Story Pirates, an audition on the far side of town wherein I had to dance, naps, running, running, running, and a chance encounter with a 50% off running shoe sale - of which I took full advantage.  Merry Christmas to me. :)

Guys.  This time of year, though.  There are so many tasty things to eat!  TOO MANY!  And I haven't really even been to Disneyland in a hot minute!  But don't worry.  I have plans for that.  But how is a person supposed to stay svelte and comely with all of this rich, delicious food everywhere? HOW?!

We had a neurodiversity training for Story Pirates this week.  It was awesome.  We talked about how to make our programming more accessible to more kids, and how to make sure that all kids can enjoy what we do.  It kind of got me thinking about when subjects like this are brought up and people get their knickers in a twist about it.  Because I just think, why is it so hard to just...draw the circle a little wider?  Why does that cause people to get so defensive?  Is it really THAT hard for you to make a tiny adjustment?  I dunno.  Just something I'm thinking about.

What I'm watching

The Crown.  New cast.  Same old drama.  Honestly though, it's such a good show.  Find it on Netflix, k?

What I'm listening to

Too much Kidz Bop.  

Vol 2 Issue 34

Pic of the week 

Just gettin' crazy on a Saturday night.  Don't worry, I dominated.

What's going on?

Some of my plants didn't survive my trip to Vegas last week.  We said goodbye to Ezra, the baby spider plant, and to Genevieve the English Ivy I was hoping would climb my wall and make it lush. But as we say, put your shoulder to the wheel, let us all press on, and I guess it's time to buy another couple of plants. Everybody else weathered the absence just fine.  Good to know that I need to figure out how to take care of some of these plants if I'm gone for 7 straight days.  Didn't think it'd be that big of a deal.  All of the plants I have are on virtually every top 10 list of easiest house plants.

Also I took 3 trips to the grocery store on 3 consecutive days.  It's been a week.

What I'm watching

This was just delightful and fun.

What I'm listening to

Dolly Parton's America.  Fascinating series about Dolly Parton, her music, her legacy, and how she seems to effortlessly bridge any and all divides. 

Vol 2 Issue 33

Pic of the week 

It was a very colorful week this week.  Can't get enough.

Quote of the week

"Can I expose myself to you?"
So here's what happened.  We were doing a Story Pirates show and in this story the main character was afraid of bubbles.  The kids decided that the way to help him get over that was by exposing him to a bunch of bubbles.  So someone came on stage as a bubble and that's what they said.  Another character immediately said, "Um...maybe let's rephrase that...".  It was hilarious.

What's going on?

I was in Vegas all week with Story Pirates, and this was a tour for the books.  We had such a good time there.  We did 10 shows in 5 days for somewhere in the neighborhood of 2,500 kids.  On top of that we saw shows, ate at restaurants, walked the strip, visited the Pinball Hall of Fame, and generally lived our best lives.  It was so fun and also so exhausting.  But really we had a lovely time and laughed a lot and stuffed our faces and still probably didn't eat more calories than we burned with all the shows we were doing.  If you find yourself in Vegas, though, I've got some recommendations.

Also!  I signed up for a half marathon.  It's in February.  Never thought I'd ever do something like that but here we are.  So I've been training for that.  Getting some miles in.  My knees are not too happy about it, but they're surviving.  This week in Vegas was actually really nice because I had access to a hot tub post-run.

Vol 2 Issue 32

Pic of the week 

This is the view from a hill right by my apartment.  That line of gray you see along the horizon is smoke from one of the fires currently raging in the state.  We were safe, but have had some bad air quality for a few days. 

What's going on?

Happy Halloween everyone!  Hope everyone had a most festive day.  I spent most of the of the day working at Kidville and was not emotionally prepared for all of the cuteness.  Toddlers in costumes is just too much.  During the week I got in some holiday-themed fun: watching Killer Klowns from space with some friends (BIZARRE movie, but fun to watch), hitting up some Dia De Los Muertos celebrations, wandering the neighborhood looking at decorations (some people around me get really into it.).  It was a fun week.

What I'm watching

Great British Baking Show!  It's just so good and so refreshing.

What I'm listening to

This song is a fun little jam.

Vol 2 Issue 31

Pic of the week 

Went to a Jack-o-lantern festival this week.  It was very impressive!  Love some seasonal spookiness.  :)

What's going on?

Things are pretty bare bones this week, y'all.  Not a lot going on.  Just workin' and livin', ya know?  Had some hot temps.  Ready for that to be over - which it looks like it is, so yahoo!!!  For real, though, outside of work and constantly scanning photos into the cloud, my life has been pretty uneventful.

I feel like I'm in a bit of a rut in some ways, so I'm looking for ways to build up my self-discipline and work on some projects - brushing up on my Spanish, learning guitar, becoming better acquainted with history and politics, establishing better eating habits, all that good stuff.  If you've got any tips or tricks that have worked for you, lay 'em on me!

Vol 2 Issue 30

Pic of the week 

First day of kindergarten! 😍😍😍 Going through all of these old photos is so fun!  Sometimes I catch glimpses of the nephews and nieces in my and my sibling's faces and it's delightful.

Quote of the week

"Oh, that's just tacky."
- Maggie Smith in Murder By Death.  It's honestly one of my favorite moments in all of cinema.  Because Maggie Smith is a genius. 

What's going on?

Indigenous People's Day.  That's what!

Also National Pasta Day.  You know I celebrated with some mac and cheese.

I have a Spanish tutoring student at the moment and it's inspiring me to brush up on my Spanish.  You'd think I'd use it our here more than I do.  I am not as fluent as I once was, though.  So I'm planning to put in some time on that.  Staring with Duolingo!  It's so easy!  And it keeps me off Instagram.

Anyway, not much exciting happening around these parts at the moment.  Watching too many zombie-themed shows, and scanning loads and loads of pictures and enjoying the pumpkin-spiced season of the year.

What I'm reading

Last week I went to see John Leguizamo in a show called "Latin History for Morons."  It was fine.  BUT the show is based on a BUNCH of books that he read about American history (meaning the history of the Americas, not just the US).  This was one of them and it's fascinating.  Scholars believe that before Columbus there were more people living in the Americas than in Europe.  And that the societies here were every bit as complex and advanced as anywhere in the rest of the world - which sounds like a no-brainer, but for a long time people believed differently.  Anyway, great read so far.

What I'm watching

Over the Garden Wall. It's on Hulu and it's weird and spooky and delightful.  There are 10 episodes, each is about 11 minutes long.  It's a perfectly festive thing to watch. 

What I'm listening to

Season 3 of the Podcast just started.  Y'all, I know that this is my job and all, but this podcast is genuinely so good.  Share it with everyone you know who has kids.  Or even people who don't have kids.  Many a parent has told us that it's saved their car trips. Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard being two of them.

Vol 2 Issue 29

Pic of the week 

I scanned in a bunch of pictures of Mom this week.  Sometimes she was kind of a goofball.  I really loved that about her.

Quote of the week

"Excuse me.  You look so handsome to me."
-A 4-yr-old girl to me after a Story Pirates show.  Heart - melted.

What's going on?

FIRES!  We sort of do that every year.  This year's fires are a bit further north than they were last year, but we still got all the smoke.  Luckily it was really only gross for about a day, and it's mostly cleared up now.  But where the fires were happening - about 15 miles north of me - they had to close down 4 different freeways.  And that's really quite something because traffic in LA is already a nightmare.

Other than a little bit of smoke, it's been another pretty chill week.  I did some tutoring, some Kidville, some Story Pirates (in the sun and it was VERY hot and sweaty), found some late-season peaches at the Farmer's Market, scanned a BUNCH of photos, finished up the Dark Crystal series, saw John Leguizamo in a play, ate tons of Mexican food, had a bonfire on the beach for a friend's birthday, and used soap nuts for my laundry for the first time (they're great!).

What I'm reading

A People's History of the United States. John Leguizamo's play, "Latin History for Morons," was a one-man show about the history of Latin people in the Americas.  He references a TON of books in the show and this was one that I was especially intrigued about reading, so I checked it out.  It's supposed to be really good.  I'll keep you posted.

What I'm listening to

This episode of the podcast Note to Self.  It talks about navigating your relationship with your phone and social media and all of that. Definitely something I need to revisit from time to time.

Vol 2 Issue 28

Pic of the week 

I went to the RiSE lantern festival outside of Las Vegas this weekend.  Honestly, one of the top three most beautiful things I have ever been a part of. Absolutely breathtaking. If you ever get a chance to do one, I cannot recommend it enough.  I believe they do it out on the salt flats every year, so if you're in or near Salt Lake, check it out! Or join me in Vegas next year!  I plan to make it a yearly tradition. More pics:

Quote of the week

"They're not very good for you, but they're really good." 
- Our waitress at the Greek restaurant we ate at for lunch talking about the spanakopita.  We ordered them.  She was right.

What's going on?

Not much to report outside of the Vegas road trip.  We managed to do entire weekend in Vegas without really having to deal with Vegas.  One of the friends I went with works for a hotel company and got us some killer accommodations at the south end of town, and we just kind of stuck it out there.  It was great!  We also discovered some TASTY food there, so if you need recommendations at the south end of town, we've got some great spots with some truly amazing servers.

I got myself a photo scanner off Ebay and have started scanning all of my photos etc.  It's been a fun little journey into the past.  It's really made me grateful that Mom was so diligent about getting our pictures every year for our birthdays.  It's fun to see how I changed and grew over the years.  I'm also scanning some old papers and art projects from elementary school.  It's hilarious.  On one I spelled my name "Gregoy" so feel free to call me that from now on.

What I'm watching

Judy.  It's a movie about the last 6 months or so of Judy Garland's life and a little bit about how her beginnings in Hollywood led to her unfortunate and somewhat tumultuous end.

What I'm listening to

Did you know Dax Shepard has a podcast?!  I did, but I hadn't listened to it until my friend Kasi played it on our way to Vegas.  Honestly, it's pretty fantastic.  It's called Armchair Expert. In this episode he interviews well-known relationship researcher John Gottman who can predict with 91% accuracy whether a couple will get divorced just by listening to them talk for an hour.  He gives great advice on how to have a stronger relationship, how to communicate better, and even how to have a better sex life doing things you wouldn't necessarily think would help that specific area!  Have a listen.  Heads up, the episode is pretty long - he talks to the good doctor for almost two hours, and then has a fact-check section for about a half hour.  Also, there's a small amount of language.

Vol 2 Issue 27

Pic of the week 

Newest member of my growing plant family.  A friend was getting rid of this awesome mug and gave it to me with a little baby spider plant in it! Way cute!

Quote of the Week

"Freakin' heck!"

- 11-yr-old girl sitting behind me on the plane in response to discovering that the iPad may have been left at home.  I'm not used to fake swearing and it made me laugh.

What's going on?

What a week!  I flew home from Utah on Monday and basically immediately became the busiest human.  Kidville, tutoring, Story Pirates, birthday parties, dinner with friends, resisting the urge to spend money at Downtown Disney.  The struggle is real.

At Kidville we have a small boutique in our lobby where we've typically sold Melissa & Doug toys and books and the like.  We've recently decided to start selling party supplies instead as we do birthday parties on the weekends.  We're stocking a bunch of stuff from Meri Meri and it is honestly all the most adorable stuff that has ever been created.  My manager and I spent several hours hand-writing prices on a bunch of stuff and I'm not even mad about it.  Mostly because I love my manager and we get along great. Anyway, if any of the 17 of you who read this buy any of their stuff I hope they give me a commission.  Or at least a free robot toy.

I'm deep into uploading photos to the cloud.  I tackled a bunch of photo CDs from my time at Hale Theater and it made me rather nostalgic for that place.  I really had a lot of fun there.  Also, I was hanging out with a dear Hale friend this weekend and she posted some video or something to Instagram of us and someone commented on it and said, "Is that the Man in the Chair from Hale?!" and I guess what I'm saying is I'll never do anything as good as that show and I peaked at 27 and it's a heavy burden to bear, ya know?  So now I'll go back to making fart noises for kids and be content.

What I'm reading

This article was rather interesting.  And many, if not most, if not all of the women in my life can relate and have some interesting and depressing stories about it.

What I'm watching

More Dark Crystal!  I want it to never end!!!

What I'm listening to

Climate change activists.  Let's get it together, y'all.

Vol 2 Issue 26

Pic of the week 

Driving up to Salt Lake from Provo on a rainy morning and this little hill looked like it was frosted.  It made me smile.

What's going on?

Y'all.  The new Dark Crystal series on Netflix is so fun.  I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, but I LOVED the movie as a kid and this is just more of what I loved about the movie and so I'm loving it. Love.  It's beautiful and imaginative and fun and everything I'd want out of the series.  So.  Recommended.

This weekend was Grandma B's big 80th birthday celebration, so I flew out to Utah to help celebrate and see family and friends and eat too many treats and it was great. Being a heathen these days, I'm used to things being open for business on Sundays and I forget that many many things are closed on Sundays in Utah and I sometimes forget to prepare for that because all of my favorite cookie shops are closed.  Luckily I got in a couple of delicious cookies on Friday and Saturday.  I just happen to be in the mood for a cookie today and nothing is open.  *le sigh*  That's probably for the best.  Heaven knows I don't need a cookie.

Today is the official last day of summer. So, even though the majority of citizens in the United States don't experience fall in the traditional sense, BRING ON PUMPKIN SPICE EVERYTHING!

I got some wifi-enabled light bulbs recently that can pair with my Alexa device and I LOVE them.  Now basically all of the lights in my bedroom are voice-activated.  It's so so nice.  If you haven't done this yet, can't recommend it enough.

What I'm watching

This was so good.  Go see it.

What I'm listening to

Vulfpeck radio on Spotify.  Super fun, kind of eclectic music for a day of piddling around the house.

Vol 2 Issue 25

Pic of the week 

I finished my puzzle and hung it on my wall and I am in love.  It looks so good!!!

What's going on?

Pretty chill week, y'all.  Pretty.  Chill.  Week.
I spent a lot of my time getting my piles and piles of photos organized.  I want to digitize it all so I don't have to have hard copies of everything taking up space in the closet.  I was planning on just taking pictures of my pictures, which I know is not ideal, but then a friend who works with cameras and such said I should really scan them.  So.  Now I have to figure out how to make that happen.  Perhaps I'll snag myself a scanner from Craigslist and then sell it again when I'm done.  Craiglist is a wonderland, I'm telling you.  Also, going through bunches of old photos is a trip.  I found a photo of myself holding a falcon, or something.  I have ZERO memory of that happening.  And, fun fact, we took a lot of photos around Christmastime, but not a lot at other times of year.  Makes sense, just something I thought was interesting.

Honestly, I can't believe we're already halfway through September.  How did that happen?!  Also.  Can it please start to cool down?  I know most of you are already experiencing heavenly temperatures, but September is prime time for summer temperatures around here and I'm done.  Bring on the sweater weather. 

Not much else to report, really.  All of my plants are still alive, and I think that's worth celebrating.

What I'm reading

I really like everything this guy writes.  His worlds are so imaginative.  I'm only two chapters in so far, but I'm excited to see where this one goes.

What I'm watching

3rd Democratic debate.  No surprises here.  And honestly, I don't know that these debates are changing anyone's mind.  They're all just the same talking points and canned responses, but I watched it anyway. 

What I'm listening to

Jazz radio on Spotify.  Real fun and interesting mix of music.

Vol 2 Issue 24

Pic of the week 

My friend Toffer is currently living and working San Diego and came up to hang at Disneyland for the day.  My pass has been blocked out all summer and is finally unblocked!  Hot tip - the Tuesday/Wednesday after Labor Day are some of the best days of the year to go to Disneyland.  It was pretty dead.  Like, the brand new Millennium Falcon ride at Star Wars Land only had a 40 min standby line dead (we did single rider and basically walked on).  Like, pushing 100 degrees and the standby line for Grizzly River was only 10 minutes dead.  Also new and fun - there's a geyser at the end of Grizzly River that sprays up, but generally stops when a raft floats over it.  That did NOT happen when we went on the ride and we got SOAKED.  It was awesome. Here is evidence:

What's going on?

Aside from a magical day at Disneyland, I had a busy week of work and travel.  I went to Las Vegas to do a professional development workshop with some elementary school teachers and had a total blast.  We were training them in how we teach narrative writing and I think everyone had a lot of fun. Had a couple of auditions this week - neither of which panned out *shrug* and did some more ultrasound patient work.  This time they were looking at my heart, and according to the cardiac specialist who was training the doctors in using the ultrasound machine, my heart is in great shape!

And I bought some more plants.  Trader Joe's even had a Monstera plant for $10!  They're usually, like, $40!!! But I think I'm basically done with plant purchases.  My room is looking more green and lovely.  I might still need one more tiny succulent, but overall I'm happy with the life that's happening in my bedroom!  Now it's time to see how many of them survive.

What I'm watching

Heads up that there are some swears, but overall this movie was delightful. 

What I'm puzzling

This is one of my all-time favorite posters.  (It's a whole series, and they're all awesome.) My friend Mariah gave it to me in puzzle form for my birthday and I'm FINALLY getting around to putting it together. When it's done, I'm going to frame it and hang it on my wall.  I'm very excited.

What I'm listening to

Here's the deal: (heads up that I'm going to use the word "Mormon" here in a way that Mormons aren't going to like, and isn't agency wonderful?)  In the last few years I've been listening to a lot of liberal/fringe/progressive podcasts around Mormonism.  I think there are some fascinating ideas out there, and ways of looking at the faith I grew up in that are new and exciting and vibrant.  One thing that has come up time and again in these podcasts is the idea that Mormonism is pretty terrible at talking about sex.  And I have to agree.  That's not to say that the doctrines and beliefs Mormons hold around sex are bad, just that the way we teach and approach those doctrines and beliefs is problematic and damaging.  I can speak to this from personal experience.  All this is to say that I listened to a series of episodes on the Mormon Sex Info podcast (hosted by licensed sex therapist and active member of the church Natasha Helfer Parker) about pornography and sexual messaging in the church and I think they should be required listening for every parent and leader, and really every member, in the church.  You can find them here.  Episodes 18, 20-22, and 33-34.  I think if you get them from this website, they're $1.25 per episode, but you can download episodes 18 & 20-22 for free in any podcast app. Mostly I highly recommend anything Natasha Parker does. Also anything Jennifer Finlayson Fife does.  Her series "Ask a Mormon Sex Therapist" on the Rational Faiths podcast is awesome.  These two women should be speaking in general conference.

Vol 2 Issue 23

Pic of the week 

I made this! From scratch! I've been looking into getting a bookcase for a while and saw this really cool one on Etsy that I LOVED, but it's so expensive!  For a plywood bookcase!  And I thought, "I could make that.  For probably, like, $100."  So I did!  It's not perfect, but I am over the moon with how it turned out and pretty proud of myself for making it happen.  Especially since I basically built the whole thing with nothing but a jigsaw and a drill. (I did end up purchasing myself a circular saw - Craigslist for $20! - toward the end, which helped with some of the doors and stuff). I learned a lot in the process, and will probably make some more stuff at some point in the future because I also really enjoyed making it!  If I ever have the space, I may build some furniture as a little side gig.  Who knows!  Also.  I'm going to turn my mate (MAH-tay) cups into succulent planters.  CUTE!  Here are some pics of the process:

Also.  I had enough wood left over for a matching little side table. 

And I still have a plank of wood.  What should I make next?!

What's going on?

So many things!  It was a very busy week.  During the summer, we at Story Pirates like to check in with everyone since it's our slow time and see how everybody's doing, and how their last year has been and what goals or hopes they have for the year to come.  It's really fun, and also pretty time-consuming.  I started having some of those meetings this week, along with starting up new director training, and also putting together an After Dark show.  Most of our Story Pirates shows happen during the day, at schools or performing arts centers or what have you, but every once in a while we do a show "After Dark."  Traditionally these have been shows exclusively for adults - still family-friendly shows, just no kids allowed.  But since Story Pirates is growing and becoming more and more recognized, these have turned into family shows that happen in the evening.  Anyway, we haven't really done them a lot in LA because of a lack of space etc.  But we found a space and decided to go for it.  And it was a blast! 

All of that Story Pirates madness was mixed in with some hours at Kidville, a tutoring student, a job at UCLA medical school where I pretended to have a cough, some Shakespeare, and working on that beautiful bookshelf up there.  Also.  I seem to have come down with a cold here toward the end of the week.  But whatever!  Life is fun!

What I'm watching

This show is so good!

What I'm listening to

This episode of the podcast Revisionist History was fascinating (as are most, if not all of the episodes of Revisionist History).  I found the part about people's propensity to assume truth especially interesting.

Vol 2 Issue 22

Pic of the week 

Spent a couple of days this week at a summer camp doing some Story Pirates.  This is Stephen Eric Apple a glow-in-the-dark alien horse.  He went on quite an adventure to find a girlfriend who ended up being an inflatable dinosaur.  Love finds a way.

What's going on?

Y'all.  I love my job.  Like, LOVE my job.  And I recognize how lucky I am to be able to say that.  The summer camp we went to this week is called Camp Harmony.  It's a camp for underprivileged kids - many, and I think most of whom experience or are affected by homelessness in some way.  It's one of the coolest things we get to do all year.  This was the most involved we've been as well.  We did two days of programming.  Writing workshops in the morning and a show performing the stories the kids wrote in the evening.  It's always such a cool experience.  A couple of us did both days, but most of the Pirates involved just did one.  We got to stay overnight and experience all the fun things at camp - including staff pretzel night!  Also fun - a couple of the camp directors are sort of famous for riding Segways around camp.  One of the stories was set at Camp Harmony, so we borrowed one of the Segways and I pretended to be one of the camp directors and got to ride the Segway around for a bit.  Turns out, I'm pretty good at it!

Also spent a good chunk of time this week building a bookcase.  I bought some plywood, used a friend's jigsaw to cut it up, and spent yesterday afternoon assembling it.  It didn't turn out exactly like I planned, because all I had was a jigsaw and a drill, and didn't measure it out exactly beforehand, but luckily it's easily adaptable.  I still have a few finishing touches to put on it, so I'll post a picture next week, but I'm pretty darn happy with how it turned out.

Early in the week I had a meeting with a friend at a cookie shop.  I bought an extra cookie and threw it in the seat of my scooter.  It kind of got buried and I discovered it again SEVERAL days later.  It was still good!  Cookie surprise!

What I'm reading

This is a quintessentially British production and I am HERE for it!  I love British humor.  It's so bizarre.  Anyway, this also recently came out as a series on Amazon as well, and I'm interested in seeing the adaptation.

What I'm watching

This was delightful and so heartwarming.

What I'm listening to

This episode of the On Being podcast included such an interesting and refreshing conversation on what it means to be Christian.  I really enjoyed it.

Vol 2. Issue 21

Pic of the week 

I put up new curtains.  I had some blackout curtains hanging in my window because the porch lights of the building next door shine directly in my window all night.  Those particular curtains have been there since before I moved in so I thought it'd be a good idea to wash them.  I put them in a bucket of warm water with some Oxyclean and the formerly white curtains turned black.  No idea what happened.  Isn't science fun?  Needless to say, I bought some new blackout curtains.  

What's going on?

Summertime is finishing up with a bang!  I mean, I guess technically we're only half-way through summer, but school starts around here soon, so summer is basically over.  And I'm packing everything in.  Work, Shakespeare in the park, ice cream, dinners, cleaning, organizing, hanging curtains, installing a bike holder, taking my bike to get fixed because it broke while I was riding it, hitting a GIANT pothole and nearly eating asphalt on my scooter.  Quite an adventurous week.

Y'all.  There are too many TV shows to watch.  Have you noticed?

I had a plan this week to build my bookcase.  I went to the Home Depot and everything.  I was looking for 3/4" Maple Plywood.  I told the guy working the saw that that's what I wanted and he said, "maple?!" like I was crazy.  Anyway.  Turns out they didn't have any.  So I didn't get to build my bookcase this week.

What I'm reading

Super cute book about a robot who wakes up on an island and becomes part of the wilderness community there.

What I'm watching

Haven't seen it yet, but I plan to.  I loved these books when I was younger and am excited for the movie!

What I'm listening to

This playlist on Spotify.  It's so fun!