Hello friends, happy Tuesday! I hope you’re all well and the year has been treating you well. Today I’m here to wrap up my February, so let’s get into it!

Currently Reading:

To Kill a Mockingbird by: Harper Lee. This is my next classic read. I’ve never read this before so I’m exciting to be diving in. So far I’ve been enjoying it; I’ didn’t realize how fast-paced this is!

War of the Bastards by: Andrew Shvarts. I’m so close to finishing this (and I might tonight!). This is the final book in this trilogy and I feel like it’s been all over the place. This series has been so much fun so I’m really curious how it’s all going to end.

What I’ve Read:

23/100

The Arsonist by: Stephanie Oakes. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was such a strange, crazy read. I think it was closer to a 3.5 star read, but I definitely liked how this kept me reading despite the crazy plot.

Gleanings by: Neal Shusterman. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a short story collection from his Arc of a Scythe trilogy and it was so much fun to be back in this world; it’s one of my favourite worlds – the stories really completed the original trilogy, highly recommend!

Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by: Julie C. Dao. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a good first novel; it didn’t completely wow me, the pacing was off for me, but I look forward to continuing.

Oddball by: Sarah Andersen. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This collection was just as good as her previous graphic novels and I found it just as relatable and fun.

The Night Circus by: Erin Morgenstern. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ After years… and years of people telling me to read this, I finally did. In the end I rated it 4 stars but it took me a long time to get into, but the writing was really beautiful.

The Odyssey by: Homer. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a better read than the Iliad, and I enjoyed reading this, but it’s not something I can see myself reading again.

Love in the Time of Cholera by: Gabriel García Márquez. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was such a strange read; the concept was really interesting, but the execution wasn’t great.

Revery: A Year of Bees by: Jenna Butler. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I read my second Canada Reads 2023 longlisted book and I loved this one. It was so short and easy to get through; I just wanted a little more facts on bees.

Hitting a Straight Lick With a Crooked Stick by: Zora Neale Hurston. ⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a collection of short stories that take place within the Harlem Renaissance; some stories were better and more memorable than others, but it was an interesting read.

The Gunslinger by: Stephen King. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I read my next Stephen King read, although this was a re-read for me, and I enjoyed it just as much as the first time I read it. What I didn’t remember was all the foreshadowing this book had, phew!

Links to my my blog posts this past month:

Links to posts I enjoyed around the blogosphere:

Zainab @Zainab Chats talked about how to make yourself a priority when you feel like you can’t

Krysta @Pages Unbound Reviews had a great discussion on the 3 star rating

Marie @Drizzle & Hurricane Books talked about how she uses Notion for writing

Kat @Life and Other Disasters discussed about how her favourite books are about grief and loss

Mackenzie @Colour Me Read posted a compilation of bookish resources

This month has felt really busy and I also feel like I didn’t do that much. It was unseasonably warm for the better part of the month, which was nice… but also really weird – global warming. But that didn’t last long because the cold weather swooped back in… with lots of snow, meh. I also didn’t get around to baking this month due to all the dust in our house because of a renovation… there’s always next month.

Highlights:

✨Bought a Kobo so I can start my true e-reading experience. I’ve been reading ebooks on my phone for the past few years and I’m getting tired of it, so an e-reader is a step in the right direction!

✨Went to a mortgage class/info session – so glad I went, very informative.

✨Started getting things ready for a reno we’re doing at home – it’s exciting, yet hectic.

✨Celebrated Galentine’s Day with my best friends where we each brought cheese to make a charcuterie board, yum!

✨Celebrated my brother’s birthday just going out to dinner with the family

✨Went to the movies for the first time this year to see Ant Man… which wasn’t great, but then went out to dinner with friends, fun night

✨Tried the new McFlurry at McDonalds, the Siakam Swirl, so yummy! So much chocolaty goodness

What I’ve watched:

Star Trek: The Next Generation; season 7. And just like that, I’m done. Well, not just like that – I’ve been watching this since August of last year. It doesn’t feel that long, but it’s true. I’m really going to miss this cast of characters because this is the longest series of Star Trek I’ve watched this far, so the longest I’ve gotten to know and spend time with. This last season really just pulled all the stops with each character, like I had mentioned in my wrap up last month; Data finds out he has an Android mother; Deanna finds out she has a dead sister; Worf and Deanna get together; they pull a son out of nowhere for Picard. It was truly a crazy last season. I liked how the last episode was a call back to the very first episode (I really like when shows do this in general) I love how Q came back to really test Picard. The whole time travel aspect was a bit wonky and weird, but it was just like Q to do something like that. I really liked when Q would show up throughout the series because he liked to shake up trouble every single time. This has become one of my top tier series in this universe.

One Tree Hill; season 2. This season brings a lot of my favourite secondary characters, if not the best? I love Andy, he’s amazingly sweet and perfect for Karen (sorry Keith), the intro to Chris Keller is always my favourite, we love to hate him. He’s an ass, but he’s a gentle ass? I don’t even know how to justify what I mean. I also really liked the addition of Anna, I wish we could have had her longer because her friendship with Lucas was the best. I loved that they were just friends, no attraction. Felix I could leave, as well as Jules, I’ve never cared for her either; her weird bubbly personality always felt so fake. Anyways, I’m excited to continue my re-watch as I make my way to my favourite season, season 3!

Buffy the Vampire Slayer; season 6. I have to say I’m really not enjoying this show. I will continue because I have one season left, but god this season had me wanting to throw things. First off, I have an unpopular opinion and that is, I hate Spike. He has no redeeming qualities after this season like UGH. I’m in Xander’s camp here, Xander has never liked him and seasons 1 – 4 Spike was ok, he was the instigator, funny comic relief, season 5 he started to get weird and this season he was unbearable. Ever since he claimed to be in love with Buffy he’s been insufferable. I hate that we got SO much of the two of them having sex… like WE GET IT, they’re into each other, you don’t have to keep showing it. But then when he tries to manipulate her into thinking she’s in love with him too, god! And when he attacks her, I’m SO out. Please leave the show now. What I also couldn’t stand this season was the three nerds who were supposed to be Buffy’s nemesis… WHY?! They were so unorganized and always unprepared. It was clear Darren was the ring leader who had A LOT of issues and the other two were like doormats and just followed his lead. Gosh, it was painful to watch. We have Xander leaving Anya at the altar, which I didn’t see coming (if they make Xander and Willow get together I will be pissed). Then Willow’s whole bad girl plot was interesting. I mean, I liked that she got to do more this season, but turning her into an evil witch was a bit much. I was SO sad to see Tara gone, I couldn’t believe they’s just shoot her off JUST after her and Willow got back together! Please tell me the final season is better than this.

YOU; season 4, part 1. I’ll have a complete wrap up on the blog after the second part has finished, but as for the first part I enjoyed it, but not as much as the past seasons. I don’t know what it was, but I found this dragged longer than it needed to and the whole whodunit plot didn’t leave me on the edge of my seat. Finding out who it was wasn’t that exciting, I was just like oh alright. I’m hoping in the second half it’ll play out better and that the killer has something truly interesting for Joe to make him really run for his money. I know he tried to in the first half, but now that we know I’m hoping it’ll be better.

Inside Job; part 2. I’m sad that this show got cancelled because it’s hilarious (I mean, not all the jokes landed, but for the most part, this was really funny). This mocks the government and a lot of major corporations, talks about world domination and it’s just fun to watch. The way this ended sucks because there could have been something really great, but we’ll never know now. Watching Regan find love this season was different to watch, it really developed her character and gave her strength she didn’t always have. I feel like everything she went through, whatever they had planned would have been great and it just sucks that it’s over.

The Simpsons; season 3. Another solid season; I gasped out loud when Side-show Bob came back because I wasn’t expecting that! 😂 I have a feeling he’s going to continue to come back throughout the show.

List of Movies:

• Disney Movies:
  • Cinderella – This was a re-watch, and I enjoyed this so much
  • Treasure Island – I’ve never seen this, but I really enjoyed it. Full of so much adventure!
  • Alice in Wonderland – A re-watch, but one I enjoy every time
  • The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men – I’ve never seen this, nor knew it existed and it was an alright movie. I’ve never consumed any Robin Hood lore, so this was a fun (although sometimes boring) intro.
  • Peter Pan – this didn’t hold up as well as I remembered, it was an interesting rewatch
  • The Sword and the Rose – I’ve never heard of this movie, but I enjoyed all the twists and turns

Back to the Future – I’ve seen this movie so many times, yet it never gets old
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania – This movie was so slow and kinda boring; I’m not the biggest fan of Ant-Man and yeah, this just wasn’t it for me

Star Trek: Generations – I like that they blended Kirk and Picard together for a mission, it felt very classic. Also Data getting feelings! That was so interesting to watch!
Star Trek: First Contact – I love any time the Borg are brought in, it’s always so exciting
Star Trek: Insurrection – I enjoyed this when I watched it… but it wasn’t that memorable; it felt like another episode, not a feature film
Star Trek: Nemesis – Picard’s clone is out for blood; this was such a weird film, but I enjoyed it

What I’m watching:

The Good Doctor; season 6. This show really knows how to talk about the topics no one wants to talk about. We get an episode where a couple who don’t agree on how to raise their child come in and this of course freaks Shaun out because now all he can think about is him and Leah. I do like that they bring up having these conversations because they are important ones to have.

Station 19; season 6. This came back last week and woah was it ever a douzy. Bishop needs serious help and she’s turning into her father and it’s just so sad to watch; meanwhile we’ve got a police brutality storyline that was also tough to watch, so then they threw in a plot line where these older ladies come in asking for photos at the station and with the firefighters to lighten it up, which it did, but also super random. I’m not sure where the second half of this season is going to go.

Grey’s Anatomy; season 19. Grey’s also came back and it was Meredith’s farewell to Seattle, which if you ask me doesn’t sound like her farewell to the show. I feel like she’s going to end up like Avery and show up in random episodes here and there for however long this show is going to keep going.

Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan; season 3. I watched the first two seasons so I figured, I’ll watch this one too. This season isn’t captivating me as much as the first two, but I’m going to continue watching to see if it gets better. At least it’s a short eight episodes.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine; season 1. I’ve started watching a new Star Trek series and like TNG, I’m having some trouble getting into it. I’m at the very end of the season and I’m starting to warm up to it. I think my favourite character so far is Odo, he’s hilarious. This is the first (and only, I think) show that doesn’t take place on the Enterprise, this takes place on a space station where everyone comes through them. So less exploring and more investigating.

One Tree Hill; season 3. Continuing my re-watch of my fave show. As much as there is SO much drama this season, I’m loving it. Every time I start an episode I go ‘oh yeah this is the one where… blah blah blah happens’ it’s very nostalgic to watch. Also, I forgot how much miscommunication is in this season, like more so than the last two, like woof. As well we got the introduction to Rachel.

The Simpsons; season 4. I’m just adding this here because I’ve always wanted to watch the Simpsons from start to finish. Now that I have Disney+ I can and so I’m taking my time with it.

Instagram & YouTube videos from the month:

How was your February? Read, watch, do anything interesting? Let me know!