May & June: Catching Up While Everything Burns

What We Watched, Bought, Cooked, and Ignored While the World Spiraled

Jen has five projects with deadlines and Karyn has not only been insane with work, but also sick. However, we don’t want to leave you hanging on the increasingly dubiously named “monthly” wrap-up, so let’s get after it! (And at least Jen has some good fiction in her stack instead of more of the same. So there’s that.)

WHAT WE’RE READING

Jen: The good news is I’ve broken the political non-fiction cycle that I’ve been on since the election. I finished Original Sin and all I have to say is this—fuck Joe Biden. Fuck him long. Fuck him hard. Fuck his fucking fucky ego that blinded him to the fucking polling because HE is why we’re here today, wondering if fucking sleeper cells are going to set off dirty bombs in Times Fucking Square. (Also, I imagine Karyn is going to have some thoughts about me coming out so hard right at the onset of the post, but she’s listening to the book, too. I bet when she finishes, she’s going to feel the same. Also, also, fuck Jill and especially Hunter.)

Anyway, my gateway drug back to fiction was The First Gentleman by former president Bill Clinton and James Patterson, a novel in which the First Gentleman is accused of murder. I loved their first book together, as well as their second. I liked this one, but the whole last quarter of it is in a courtroom which I HATE. I do not enjoy anything legal as a rule. I do not watch or read anything legal. Ironically I live for true crime, but not for the punishment. Still, I love seeing what happens when these two collaborate. (Major thumbs-up to the Louise Penny/Hillary Clinton joint fiction venture a few years ago. Equally great.)

From there I went to Worst Cast Scenario by TJ Newman, in which an airplane crashes into a nuclear reactor. In terms of stress level, this may not have been the wisest choice, but damn, does she write a page-turner. As for a plane hitting a nuclear facility? New fear unlocked.

Now I’m reading When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi. If I tell you the plot, you’ll be all, “Well, that's possibly the dumbest thing I ever heard,” as the conceit of it is that the moon has turned to cheese. But the thing about his books that works so well is that he takes very silly concepts and writes them so seriously, similar to how Tom Robbins did it back in the day. It’s like how straight Michael Caine played Mr. Scrooge in A Muppets’ Christmas Carol. This style works because he commits to the bit. Really, really loving this one. Scalzi is quickly becoming a favorite author.

Karyn: I’m still laughing at, “Ironically I live for true crime, but not for the punishment.”

Right now I’m reading Peter Pulaski Must Pay by Jen Lancaster — and it’s great! I mentioned this on the podcast, but I’ve been a terrible reader lately. I used to be the kind of person who read every morning with coffee and every night before bed. But now I just scroll TikTok until my brain turns to goo.

Of all the books I started this past year, I haven’t finished a single one (unless it’s audio). I usually make it two chapters in before forgetting they exist. But Peter Pulaski will be the book that broke my DNF streak. I’m 75% into it, it’s hilarious, and I highly recommend!

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

Jen: A few things of note! Fletch and I watched The Accountant II a couple of weeks ago and I loved it even more than the first movie. It is PERFECTION, plus they leaned into the comedy this time. A serious action movie with funny lines is deeply in my wheelhouse. And I always forget how great Ben Affleck is in basically everything. Save for Batman. There is one movie Batman and it is Christian Bale. I will not be soliciting feedback on this point.

I just finished Sirens on Netflix, which I thought was fantastic. I was expecting a massive twist at the end, given how much people were talking about this a few weeks ago. But it ended in a way that I thought was totally appropriate and I don’t understand all the discussion around it. What was shocking? While the ending wasn’t patently obvious—and I appreciate that—it made a great deal of sense.

Finally, and I am loathe to admit exactly how deep I am into this, I am onboard with Love Island. I’ve watched it a few seasons and I thought it was dumb and barely tolerable, but given the news cycle, it’s everything I need right now. I mean, yeah, the world is incredibly unstable and closing the Strait of Hormuz is likely to absolutely fuck our economy and has the potential to create gas shortages and spike oil to $200/barrel, but I’d rather talk about Nic’s cold sore and its impact on the kissing challenges. Love Island to me is Labubu to Karyn: a silly/fun coping mechanism.

Karyn: I just wrapped up Season 2 of And Just Like That and I’m diving into the new season 3 now — even though everyone on it drives me nuts. Aidan is whiny and way too unsophisticated for Carrie. Charlotte is a cartoon character — calm down, woman! And how can someone so smart be so incredibly dumb? (Miranda.) Jen asked why I’m watching it if I hate it so much, and all I can say is that I like Sarah Jessica Parker’s hair.

I’m also watching Stick on AppleTV with Owen Wilson and loving it. It’s about a washed-up pro golfer turned coach who discovers a young prodigy and starts entering him into tournaments. Give it a couple of episodes. At first I was like, it’s okay. But by episode four I was cheering and yelling, “I love this!”

And I started We Were Liars on Prime because I loved the book by E. Lockhart and I’m excited to see how they handle the storytelling on screen.

Next up for me is MobLand on Paramount+. My friend Nicole swears it’s the best thing she’s seen in forever, so I’m all in. Have you watched?

WHAT WE’RE LISTENING TO

Jen: I am about to start listening to Amy Phillips and Deanna Cheng’s Drama Darlings Love Island recaps, as I didn’t know it existed until yesterday. I feel strongly it’s going to be a favorite.

I have also been listening to (and singing along with) the best of Lizzo when I cut the lawn. BTW, for those of you who voted in the poll that I would suck it up and just do a decent job on the lawn, you were completely right. This is much to my own surprise. I have to say there’s something Zen about making straight lines, as well as starting a project with a clear and distinct finish line. Plus, there’s nothing better than a swim (read: taking a tip in a glorified bag of water) after pushing the mower all around the yard. I am actually doing a better job than the landscapers, so… hooray for me! Plus, every week, I can feel how much stronger I am, thanks to going to the gym, as I wrestle the mower up and down the 45-degree angle on the side of the house. Nothing but win here, baby.

Karyn: Mowing the lawn is the worst thing ever. I volunteered to do it twice when I was younger, only because I wanted money. The first time, I had no idea you were supposed to mow in straight lines and I went rogue. My stepdad looked out the window and was like, “Why are there zigzags all over the yard?” The second time, it was so hot out that I couldn’t finish and ended up crying. Never again.