Starting a bullet journal

I started a bullet journal this month and while, yes, I am a little late to the party as most of these are supposed to be started in January, I quite like having this start in the middle of summer, AKA my seasonal depression. I love being able to track my habits and feelings in this journal and it is genuinely a color coding heaven for me. It has helped manage a lot of my anxiety and make me feel less discouraged as I can see the efforts I am making in what I want to achieve.

Another Philly Trip

Another massive shoutout to Cora and Sean for carting me around while I slowly but surely take the steps to get my driver’s license (don’t.). This was an amazing trip where I helped put up a concert produced by the collaboration of SPRUCE and ILLUMANIZE (check these companies out!) and had the opportunity to work on personal projects as well as my own mental health. It was my first and certainly not last time going to scream in a forest and I felt like a whole new person afterwards, I recommend almost as strongly as I recommend therapy.

Oppenbarbie Day

Please scroll below for the review of these films, the day itself deserves a whole other section.

Oppenbarbie day was one of the best days I’ve ever had at the movies - We dressed up (obvi) and started with Oppenheimer at 11am, processed our entire lives at a late brunch, and went for happy hour before going to see Barbie at 6. I recommend that everyone see the films in this order, I cannot IMAGINE seeing it the other way around or the emotional damage it would inflict.

Dracula by Kate Hamill

I think I enjoyed this even more than last month’s play by Kate Hamill. The scenery is so simple in this play that it is easy to follow the characters wherever they may be. The allegories between vampires and men were subtle enough to not feel like they were being pushed and the female rage bubbling under the surface of the play was an aspect I very much indulged in.

I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb

Holy moly. Does Wally Lamb write any joyous works of fiction? Right off the bat we have drama and tragedy - which is what really hooks in the reader and reigns them in to not put the book down. As the book progresses so too does the plot, but in a way that twists and turns and has you believing one thing is to come when really Wally Lamb is going to jump scare you with a revelation that leaves you shocked and in tears.

Marisol by José Rivera

This play is absolutely unhinged and I loved every second of reading it. It is about an apocalyptic New York City in which angles are leaving their humans so they can go fight in a war against God. In the midst of this happening overhead, Marisol is trying to make sense of the constantly evolving world she lives in and desperately trying to feel safe. Whether or not it is a metaphor for anxiety or trauma I do not know but it very much seems like one.

Joyride

Joyride, although a fun journey, fell into a trap that many comedies nowadays fall into - trailer death. Watching the trailer for this film was what got me excited about going to see it in theaters ; but when I had finished watching the film, I realized they had taken their strongest jokes and funniest moments and packed them into the trailer. This made watching the movie feel a bit disappointing as I thought there would be more humorous moments and further exploration of the slapstick comedy. There is a balance to this film as it pulls on your heartstrings and has you getting emotional by the end of the film. But I wasn’t peeing my pants laughing as I had expected to.

Oppenheimer

My very first reaction when walking out of the theater was “This is the best movie I have ever seen in my life”. Looking back, I fully agree that cinematographically it is the best, although I do have one single qualm about this film. While Cillian Murphy was absolutely brilliant (Oscar nom for sure) and the Visual effects were insane (Oscar nom for sure) and the soundtrack carried the tempo of the entire film (Oscar nom for sure) not to mention that everyone in Hollywood and their mother were in this film (Supporting Actor Oscar noms for sure), Christopher Nolan still has an issue with female characters. While I thought the portrayal of Kitty Oppenheimer had facets of strength, I did not understand the cinematic value of having the character of Jean Tatlock be nude in every scene. It seems odd that the only female character in the film to appear naked is the one who ends up having mental issues - introduced fleetingly before her death in the film - and while it had its place in certain moments it felt exploitative in others.

Barbie

I thought this was going to be a fun movie about Barbie world and accidentally ending up in the real world but OH NO. Halfway through the movie you’re already wiping away tears and by the end you are genuinely full-on crying. The commentary this film had on patriarchy and what a matriarchy would look like in a (albeit, fantasy) world was a magnificent contrast to the humor (yes, this film was hilarious) that was woven throughout. Although it felt like some of the cast was in the film to make it more popular, the actors were on top of their game and understood the assignment of supporting the load Margot Robbie was carrying. I think this is an immediate cult classic and cannot wait to see it again.