2021

1: What did you do in 2021 that you’d never done before?

–Tried out HelloFresh in order to expand my cooking skills. I’ve enjoyed the experience and while I might take double the amount of time to complete a recipe (I’m a bit of a perfectionist and take everything so literally in cooking), I do feel accomplished in the end. 

-Thanked Fred Penner over Google Meet for performing at a school event.

-Started to learn new languages. Far too many to handle, but it’s been fun picking up words here and there. I can say thank you in eleven languages now! (English, ASL, German, French, Tagalog, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Spanish and Ukrainian). 

-Started exercising somewhat regularly. I tried doing cardio dance workouts when I realized I was dancing like a fool so hard in the mornings whilst getting ready that I was building up a sweat. At this point I mix up abs, arms and cardio workouts. And yes, I still dance like a fool. 

-I got plants for my house. I’ve obviously had plants before in my life, but those were when I was still living with at my parents’ house. Now I’ve got Noodle (a spider plant) and Boris (a snake plant). I did have some cat grass named Fergus, but he died very quickly. RIP.

-Started using serums on my face. I guess this is what getting old is all about.

2: Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?  

I think I said I’d try to finish writing my novel this year. I’ve put that on pause because I think I need to revamp the plot.

3: Did anyone close to you give birth?

My cousin in Germany had a baby! 

4: Did anyone close to you die?

No. 

5: What countries did you visit?

None. Thanks a lot, Covid-19.

6: What would you like to have in 2022 that you lacked in 2021? 

Travel opportunities. Get outta here, Covid-19!

7: What dates from 2021 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? I’m terrible with remembering dates, but the POSITIVE things I’ll remember from the year:

-I started doing a better job in shrugging off peoples’ judgement. You can’t please everyone and you shouldn’t. I dress the way that I want to dress, I watch what I want to watch, listen to what I want to listen to and try things that I want to try. If someone has a problem with it, it’s their problem, not mine. Getting “old” is great for learning not to care much about what others think. Gen Z can say what they want about my skinny jeans. Flared jeans are making a comeback and the youth will just have to learn the hard way what it’s like to have slush seep into the bottom of said pants.

-Visiting my best friend’s cottage and getting to sit on the rocks to listen to the water. That’s it. That’s the story. Just existing with my friends.

-Meeting my best friend’s dog, Freddy. If you sit down, he sits in your lap. He is not a small dog. I love him. 

-Saw Aqua, the Vengaboys, Jenny Berggren from ‘Ace of Base’, 2 Unlimited and Simone Denny of ‘Love Inc.’, at the Canada Life Centre. The first concert at the venue since Covid, so that was pretty memorable. 

-Decorating Christmas cookies with all three of my best friends. It had been a year and a half since we’d all been in the same house together. Definitely a moment to remember.

-Time spent with family in general. 

8: What was your biggest achievement of the year?

I legit started learning German. Enough that I can read and understand simple sentences: Ich habe eine orangefarbene Kater namens Freddie. I brushed up on the little bit of French I already knew, and since I started listening to BTS and watching a K-drama I’ve picked up on a little bit of Korean. Ideally, I’d wanted to start learning Tagalog, but couldn’t find a solid website to learn from. Though I do know how to say ‘thank you’, ‘you’re welcome’ and can count to ten in the language. That said, it does feel pretty badass being able to read/write in Hangul following the basic rules and can be learned within a few short lessons. 안녕하세요, 친구! 어떻게 지내세요?

 9: What was your biggest failure? No failure, just lessons. 

10: Did you suffer illness or injury? No, but that second dose of Pfizer made me feel like I had heat exhaustion for two days. 

11: What was the best thing you bought?

– A cute case for my Macbook.

– A super light pink typewriter keyboard that makes all the clicking sounds to satisfy my obsession. 

– An exercise mat for the basement.

– A plant.

– A patio set.

12: Whose behaviour merited celebration?  People working double time during the pandemic to keep everyone else sane and/or alive/healthy.

13: Whose behaviour made you appalled? 

-Pallister. Good riddance, you self-proclaimed Grinch.

-People who don’t understand basic science.

14: Where did most of your money go? A patio set. And food (HelloFresh, Skip, etc.). I’m not ashamed.

15: What did you get really, really, really excited about? I was pretty excited to attend a concert in person again. I was also pretty excited to enjoy sitting outside more after getting a patio set.

16: What song will always remind you of 2021? I think it’s fair to say that my Spotify was conflicted about my music choices. Apparently my music aura is both “Angsty” and “Healing”. Hmm… Here are some songs I discovered this year and/or listened to a lot.

‘Eyesore’ by Salem I feel so personally attacked by this song, haha. Where’s the lie though? I’ve always found guys that look like death attractive. 

’59 Sound’ by the Gaslight Anthem The chains rattling in the background to represent Jacob Marley? So amazing. So sad. “Did you hear the rattlin’ chains in the hospital walls? Did you hear the old gospel choir when they came to carry you over? Did you hear your favourite song one last time?”

‘Time to Dance’ by The Shoes Yasssssssss! Jake Gyllenhaal also stars in music videos occasionally, whaaaT? I don’t really understand what’s going on, but slash ‘em all! This song almost makes me want to go out running. …Almost.

‘Hold Steady’ – Justin Forrest Cobra Kai features some pretty good music! 

‘Permission to Dance’ – BTS Not my favourite BTS song, but I’m choosing it because it gives me the same vibes as ‘Shut Up and Dance’ by Walk the Moon. Fun fact: the music video includes ASL that was adapted to fit the choreography. I smiled so much that my face almost broke when I realized what they were doing. BTS, you nice, keep going! 

‘dancing in the kitchen’ – LANY Thanks, J-hope! This jam is so chill, but, you know, fun to dance to in the kitchen! 

‘Dreams Come True’ – Brandon Flowers This sounds like it should be played during a determined character’s turning point in a film. 

‘Alive’ – NEEDTOBREATHE Another one that I would be a fan of running to if I ran.

‘Bidi Bidi Bom Bom’ – Selena I listened to a lot of Selena on a loop this year after finishing the limited series on Netflix. Of course, this classic was in heavy rotation on that playlist. 

‘Stop Making This Hurt’ – Bleachers This band knows how to address mental health and relationships in the most earworm worthy way.

‘Don’t Ever Change’ – Hanson (feat. Rick Nielsen) I said something similar in my summer playlist post, but I’ll say it again: it doesn’t matter if you’re 12, 35 or 80+ a song like this is always reassuring. 

‘No Love In LA’ – Palaye Royale LA, New York, Manitoba… Sleazy people exist everywhere. 

‘First Date’ – Ninja Sex Party I probably laughed over this song way too much. Real heavy on that explicit warning. 

‘Giants’ – Walk the Moon This band probably accounts for a good chunk of the healing portion of my music aura. I’m inevitably happier when I’ve got one of their upbeat tracks going.

‘Zitti e buoni’ – Måneskin I haven’t done a lot of research on this song, so I only have a general idea about its lyrical content that is in Italian. I heard this group for the first time when they performed a cover song at the AMA’s this year. They’re worth checking out if you like modern rock!

‘Fader’ – The Temper Trap Thanks, Mark Ferris! I’d never heard of this song or band before he shared it in a story on Instagram one day. I get some OneRepublic vibes from the chorus. Super catchy. 

‘Summer’ – Mumm-ra Thanks, Regan (PeruseProject)! Another song and artist I had never heard of!

‘good 4 u’ – Olivia Rodrigo Why are all the millennials listening to this song on repeat?! Because it sounds like the era of Paramore that got us through our angsty years! And that’s not to discredit Olivia Rodrigo at all. It’s refreshing to know that there are musicians out there who are carrying the emo torch. Go, go, go! Don’t forget your eyeliner and hair dye! 

‘Levitating’ – Dua Lipa I like the ‘Cake By the Ocean’ vibes of this one. Can you tell I’m trying really hard to keep up with the kids these days?! I’m trying my best NOT to become a crotchety old lady when it comes to music. I still haven’t found anything in the “real” country genre that has won me over yet, but it could happen! 

17: Compared to this time last year, are you: (a) happier or sadder? Sadder? When will this pandemic end?! (b) thinner or fatter? About the same. I did gain weight for a while after beginning to work out though. (c) richer or poorer? Richer. I can’t exactly go anywhere right now.

18: What do you wish you’d done more of?

-Working out. I started off strong, but then slacked off again. I need to figure out a better way to work it into my daily routine. 

-Reading. After finally finishing The Goldfinch, I began reading ‘Hollow Kingdom’. Which was a good book, but like many times before, I just fell into a slump for the whole summer. I always go through stages of reading a lot and then not reading for months. Nothing new or out of the ordinary. Just unfortunate.

19: What do you wish you’d done less of? Overthinking. What’s it like having a brain that doesn’t beat you up on a daily basis?

20: How did you spend Christmas? With family. Lots of food, lots of laughing, lots of movies, lots of games.

21: Did you fall in love in 2021? Nope. I’m currently on the lookout for a different dating site/app to try out. And also, if you know someone who you think could tolerate my quirky personality, let me know.

22: What was your favourite TV program? TV shows I watched this year:

‘Pretend it’s a City’ This was ridiculously entertaining to watch as a fan of both New York and morbid/pessimistic humour. Fran Lebowitz keeps it all too honest as she breaks the city down into bitter observations.

Second half of the ‘Selena’ series on Netflix I enjoyed watching the series, but of course hate the ending. 🙁

‘Superstore’ This show has made its way up there with the likes of ‘Friends’, ‘The Office’ and ‘Bob’s Burgers’ as one of my comfort shows.

‘Cobra Kai’ Took me a while to get to it, but once I started, I binged it all. Looking forward to binging the fourth season over my last few days off.

‘Run BTS’ (a play on the variety show ‘Running Man’) & ‘Bon Voyage BTS’ Particularly Bon Voyage, though. And especially the first season where they travel to Norway because it felt the most authentic. The group wasn’t as known yet and (aside from RM) knew very little English. I could relate to Jimin’s anxiety when the guys sent him off on his own with a memorized line in English to attempt getting his lost luggage back. Or when J-hope and JK set off the alarms at IKEA because they tried to exit through the wrong doors. These guys are basically comedians on top of being singers/rappers/dancers. As for ‘Run BTS’ – I’ve discovered very quickly that Korean and Chinese variety shows are a great deal more creative, wholesome, funny and authentic compared to most of the content we have in North America. Sorry, not sorry. 

‘Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father’ Piggybacking off ‘Bon Voyage’ and sad after I’d finished the four seasons, I wanted to watch more funny travel shows. My aunt and uncle mentioned this at dinner one day. This one is definitely a great deal more scripted, but it’s still fun. If you get a kick out of dry British humour, this might be for you, too. There’s just something about grumpy old British men that gets me. In a time where we still can’t really travel, it’s fun to at least watch footage of other people traveling. Bonus points if they’re as lost and confused as I feel when I go anywhere. And an extra ten points if a doll named Winston is involved. 

‘Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha’ – It’s definitely been a great year for South Korean culture! Again, a booktuber I watch was raving about this one. My sister used to watch a lot of K-Dramas, but I think at the time I assumed they were all terrible love triangle stories set in a high school setting (and as the older sibling I definitely couldn’t like what my younger sibling liked). While there are many plotlines that follow that formula, this Netflix original focuses on a dentist in her mid-thirties who moves to a small seaside village to open her own business. There she meets the town’s jack-of-all-trades charmer. I was worried at first, but this show is less Hallmark-Christmas movie and a bit more ‘This is Us’ due to the multiple storylines happening amongst people who live in the village. And while there are definitely some real cringy K-Drama moments, I’ve definitely shed a few tears watching it. If you need something wholesome, cozy or feel-good to watch, give this a try. If Chief Hongdoesn’t make you swoon at least once I don’t know what to say.

‘Running Man China’ – Thanks, Michelle and Violeta! ‘Running Man’ is a long time running (ha! I know, I’m hilarious) variety show. There’s both a Korean version and a Chinese version. Instead of watching a Christmas movie when I decorated cookies with my best friends this year, we watched an episode of the Chinese version of the show that one of my besties suggested and had a good laugh. I love how different every episode is, how shameless the hosts and guests’ sense of humour is and how overly dramatic the editors are. 

23: Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?

I didn’t get the chance to meet anyone new to hate. Thanks a lot (?), Covid-19.

24: What was the best book you read? Books I read this year:

‘History of Punk’ It’s exactly what the title suggests.

‘The Rise and Fall of the Gallivanters’ by MJ Beaufaunt This is a weird book until it dawns on you that all the sci-fi elements weaved into it are a metaphor for mental health (at least in the way I interpreted it) and friendship. When I started reading it I didn’t expect that it would make me cry by the end. I’d absolutely read this one again. If you love the concept of 80’s punk culture you’ll probably find it to be a fun read despite all the heavy content it includes and that parts definitely sound like an exaggerated fan fiction. At the heart of it all, it’s a story about a friendship. Many trigger warnings, so if that’s something you need/want to be aware of, check into it or ask me first!

‘Humans of New York’ – Brandon Stanton If you haven’t been able to tell by the amount I bring it up in general conversation, I REALLY want to visit NYC again. I love how artsy and busy it is. I love the architecture, Broadway and even crowded subways. If reincarnation is a thing, I feel like I’m definitely pessimistic enough to have been a New Yorker in a previous life. Anyway, I bought this book because 1. New York setting and people and 2. Possible inspiration for future stories I write. Also, I more often than not, dislike Winnipeg and would get out of here if I had enough guts/money to chance living elsewhere. I’m not saying elsewhere would be better/safer, I’m just saying, it’d probably be a lot more interesting than here.

‘The Ghosts Within’ by Angela Deane This woman has quickly become one of my favourite artists and I might have had a mini fangirl moment when she emailed me back because of some shipping confusion. She is responsible for the artwork on the album ‘Parachutes’ by Frank Iero and the Patience, which is how I discovered her in the first place. I purchased a print from her last year and was so jazzed when I found out she’d made a book of her work.

‘Cemetery Boys’ – Aiden Thomas Purchased this one on Kobo after a few booktubers I follow raved about it. They were right to. It’s like a darker version of ‘Coco’ mixed with the depressing flair of Adam Silvera’s ‘They Both Die in the End’. This is a perfect read for October. 

‘The Goldfinch’ – Donna Tartt Unlike the film, the book was good. It’s a hefty read, but once you get into it, it flies. There are a lot of themes to be explored and I think that’s why the film flopped. There wasn’t enough time for character development in the film and yet the film itself still dragged on and on without finding at least one solid point to make or highlight. Friendship? Grief? Love? Art? Drugs? Abuse? Crime? The book goes into all of it, but the film didn’t know what it wanted to be.

‘Hollow Kingdom’ – Kira Jane Buxton This book was gifted to me by a colleague because she thought I was weird enough to appreciate it too. She was right. It’s definitely unlike anything I’ve picked up before. I don’t generally like books that features animals as the main characters, but I was able to let that slide in this case. It wasn’t like they were speaking English to one another. If you like dystopian books about animals in a crisis who also happen to have super snarky personalities having been raised by trash humans, then this might give you a laugh. And maybe even a tear or two.

‘The Midnight Library’ – Matt Haig Started, not finished yet. So far it’s alright. Not the greatest piece of literature out there, but I like the concept. 

25: What was your greatest musical discovery? 

Bands/artists I discovered or started listening to this year: 

‘The Gaslight Anthem’ A band I’ve heard of before, but never listened to. I adore the sad haunted songs. Like The ’59Sound’, ‘45’ or ‘Break Your Heart’. I swear I’m gonna move to Jersey just for the music that comes from there.

‘Salem’ Thanks to CassieTheVenomous on Instagram. She’s dubbed the patron saint of MyChem, so I trust her taste in music. This band takes some mega emo lyrics and paints them into catchy tunes. 

‘Electric Frankenstein’ Stumbled across them while doing story research. What a great band name.

‘Shoes’ Ok, so long story short, when I was looking up the song ‘Time to Dance’ by The Shoes on Spotify, I came across this band simply called: ‘Shoes’, which is a band from the 70’s. They’re not bad! 

‘Mo-Torres‘ – Thanks, Connie! A German artist, this guy has some catchy songs on his new album called: ‘Strahlemann’ which was released earlier this year. Two of my favourite tracks are: ‘Grobmotoriker’ und ‘Tarzan & Jane’!

‘BTS’ I’ve got my students, a colleague and a book YouTuber that I follow to thank. Apparently, I’d known about BTS since 2018’s music video for ‘Mic Drop’, but didn’t make the connection that they are the same group responsible for ‘Dynamite’. Gen Z is their main audience and while I don’t agree with a lot of what Gen Z is into these days, I have faith in their decision to stan this group. 

‘Måneskin’ At least the AMA’s did a greater job including performances by international artists this year. ‘Måneskin’ s performance on the show was my introduction to them. Hailing from Italy, this modern rock band is pretty killer and did a good job breaking up all of the pop and rap acts of the evening.

26: What did you want and get?

-A little workout space in my basement.

-A patio set.

27: What did you want and not get? A My Chemical Romance show. To be fair, it’s probably a good thing the show was postponed again. In typical Frank Iero fashion, Frank went and broke his arm/wrist in a dumb way and probably wouldn’t have been able to perform. 

28: What was your favourite film of this year? Movies I watched this year, new or old:

‘Other People’ Spoiler alert if you didn’t already know this about me, but I love sad movies. Sad movies, books, songs, etc. So, this film was right up my alley. Jesse Plemons and Molly Shannon were fantastic in it.

‘Bridget Jone’s Diary’ I had never seen the entire thing before. I now understand the obsession people have with this film. I am a fan.

‘The Shop Around the Corner’ ‘You’ve Got Mail’ is probably one of my favourite films these days, so it only made sense that I watch the movie that it pulled inspiration from. There’s this way that Margaret Sullavan as Klara shakes her head that reminded me of Meg Ryan in ‘You’ve Got Mail’ so much that I was laughing. Also, Klara is ridiculous. Who exchanges 4 letters with a random dude they’ve never met in person and then assume they’ll be proposed to on their first real life encounter with each other? Save for arranged marriage of course. That scene where Alfred visits her bedside because she didn’t get a letter back, so claims she is sick?! C’mon, Klara! Get it together, woman! I was cry laughing at how dumb this film was at times. 10/10 would watch again! 

‘Donnie Darko’ A re-watch after many years. I talk about it in greater depth here.

‘Blackkklansman’ I don’t know why it took me so long to watch this one, but I’m glad I finally did! I was at the edge of my seat for the last chunk of the film and biting my nails. It’s so infuriating that racism still exists to this day. Bunch of weak-minded people.  

‘Zodiac’ Same blog post, different film. Click here.

‘It Happened on 5^th Avenue’ Another ridiculous old film. A whole lot of strangers move into a mansion together while the owner is away. Love story and hilarity ensues.

‘All the Bright Places’ How did you celebrate Valentine’s Day this year? Did you watch chick-flicks and rom-coms? That’s cute. I watched two heart-wrenching love stories back-to-back that both end tragically. I read the book back in 2016, so I knew exactly what I was in for, but oh boy, it was still a rough watch. The ending in the film felt a bit rushed and I think a bit more info should have been included about Finch. That said, I think I still liked the novel more, but Elle Fanning and Justice Smith were excellent as Violet and Finch, even if neither fit the image I had in my head originally. 

‘A Star is Born’ The other sad film I watched Valentine’s Day weekend. I ate a lot of ice cream. I had some difficulty separating Lady Gaga from her character in the film, because there were so many similarities between herself as a musician and her character in the film. Bradly Cooper played a broken character very well, but, I mean, we all know he can act. That all said I thought the film was good. I didn’t love it like many others do, but I do appreciate how they approached such a heavy topic.  

‘Nightcrawler’ Yet again, same blog post, different film. Click here.

‘A Simple Favor’ This movie is fun if you don’t try to look for any kind of deeper meaning or take it too seriously. Anna Kendrick is her quirkiest self and it perfectly clashes with Blake Lively’s snarky and blunt character for some laughs. Plus, Henry Golding is in it, so everyone’s eyeballs win.

‘Burden’ I won’t say I loved it, but I will say that Garrett Hedlund did a great job playing Mike Burden (the person this film is based on). Maybe I would have liked it more if I’d seen it before ‘BlacKKKlansman’. 

‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ If someone had told me Michael Keaton was the villain in this I would have watched sooner! In continuing my adventure of trying to learn how to love Marvel, my sister insisted that I watch this one. It was definitely a hundred times better than Iron Man. My only complaint is that it doesn’t cover Spider-Man’s origin story? It assumed you already knew the whole backstory of Spider-Man and who the Marvel characters are. So, is it a great stand-alone like so many told me it could be? I don’t think so. At least for me, who likes knowing the background information. Thankfully I’m decently versed in Spider-Man’s backstory already.

‘Florence Foster Jenkins’ This was both sad and sweet. I’m sticking by my opinion though. If someone is a terrible singer/dancer/actor/writer/anything, etc., someone should really let them know before they go so public and embarrass themselves in front of thousands. Especially if they genuinely think they’re great at something. Or at least tell them they need more practice before performing at Carnegie Hall, jeez. It just felt so cruel at points.

‘The Day After Tomorrow’ This natural disaster had to be based on the weather in Winnipeg, right?! If you – like me – lived under a rock and never caught this film during one of the countless number of times it’s been on TV, it’s a natural disaster movie where the world starts getting mighty frosty. This is definitely not a film to look into for emotional depth. It’s a big-budget Hollywood action film and meant to be a fun and easy watch. My favourite part of this film was when Dennis Quaidchucked his unconscious partner down the vent like a sack of potatoes. If only all those other people who were originally in the library had listened to Sam, right?

‘Stronger’ Based on the true story of Jeff Bauman (a survivor of the Boston Marathon Bombing), this film had a few harrowing moments that were a bit difficult to watch. Like the bandage changing, the bombing scene or the big fight near the end. I cried, you cried, we all cried. And then we laughed, because the film contains quite a few humorous moments as well. 

‘While You Were Sleeping’ I’m disappointed that it took me so long to watch this movie. I adored it! It’s on par with ‘You’ve Got Mail’ and I’ll probably end up watching it every year now around the holidays. 

‘Hamilton’ Don’t hate me, but I didn’t love this musical like so many do. It was pretty “meh”. I appreciated the music, but I don’t think I have a great enough attention span to enjoy the story.

‘Wildlife’ This film explores the relationships within a small family. The father’s pride often gets in the way of him securing a job and when he leaves to fight forest fires, his wife isn’t too happy. Then again, the mother has her own issues and it’s all a downward spiral from there that we see through the son’s view. 

‘Nocturnal Animals’ This was one heck of a dark and twisted film. I don’t even know where to start, so I won’t. I still don’t even know if I liked it or not.

‘Why Him?’ I laughed a lot during this one.

‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ Surprisingly entertaining for a political film.

‘Life’ Don’t let that little Disney-looking gelatine blob fool you at the beginning. That thing is terrifying and will prove itself as such upon the first kill of this horror film. This movie is definitely no ‘Alien’, but the ending was still pretty distressing.

‘Nightstalker’ documentary I had this playing in the background a lot, so can’t really comment too much. A serial killer documentary.

‘Highway’ I was hoping to like this film because it seemed like the kind of offbeat film I’d enjoy, but it unfortunately couldn’t figure out what it was supposed to be. A comedy? A drama? There was no happy balance between the two, so it was confusing. At the heart of it I know it meant to be a film about friendship, but it really missed the mark. 

‘Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel’ documentary I remember hearing about this case when it happened. This documentary basically reaffirms that it was an accident and had to do with the fact that Elisa Lam was off her medication. Still, kind of creepy and definitely sad.

‘Challenger: The Final Flight’ documentary Here’s the deal: I watched ‘Life’ and thought, hey, that was harrowing. I should follow it up by watching the very real and very sad national disaster about the rocket that blew up and killed its whole crew. I didn’t realize that this flight had a teacher going up to space in order to broadcast lessons back to students on earth. That’s brave. There’s not chance you’d convince me to go up there.

‘Murder Among the Mormons’ documentary What a twisted case. Also shows how easy it is to manipulate people’s beliefs.

‘Bubble Boy’ This film could never be made today. I’m pretty sure it almost got cancelled back in 2001 because it is, in fact, based on a true case, right? That said, you’re obviously rooting for Jimmy for the entire duration of the film and you obviously know from the very start that he’s going to be the winner in the end. In that way it still feels ok to watch. I’d compare the humour in this film to the likes of ‘Rat Race’ or ‘I’ll be Home for Christmas’, or ‘Austin Powers’, etc. Now I know where all those ridiculous lines boys at school were quoting came from.

‘The Last Blockbuster’ documentary I could hardcore relate to this documentary. I miss the experience and ritual of walking into a video store to find the perfect film for the weekend. The joys and disappointments of finding or not finding the one film you’d been hoping to acquire. Then watching that film over and over to get your money’s worth before having to return it like a library book.

‘The Lorax’ I finally watched the whole film with my students this summer to wrap up our unit on the community and environment and to celebrate the end of the school year. What a charming film. 

‘The Father’ This was a sad mind warp. 

‘Nomadland’ I love the idea of constantly traveling around the country without settling anywhere in particular. This film made me realize I’d suck at surviving it.

‘Moonlight Mile’ You’d think I would have loved this movie considering its plotline. I was bored watching it. 

‘Moxie’ I read the book last year and so of course needed to check out the film that was released on Netflix in March of this year. Amy Pohler both directed and starred in this film about a teenaged girl named Vivian who is sick of the patriarchy and starts a feminist zine at her high school. There were some changes made in the film, but overall, it held up pretty well. My only complaint is how they chose to end it. There wasn’t enough closure and it ended in a pretty lame costume dance party. Even so, the interactions between the characters screamed high school awkwardness and the music was A+.

‘Demolition’ Much better than ‘Moonlight Mile’. That scene where Davis dances through the streets felt iconic.

‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ I liked this a great deal more than ‘Iron Man’. Probably because of the time period and content. It even gave me some ‘Indiana Jones’ vibes in some moments. I’ve been told by a couple people that ‘The Winter Soldier’ should hold my interest, so I do hope to give it a chance one of these days! 

‘Velvet Buzzsaw’ Ok, so it was probably complete trash, but I still found it mildly entertaining. At least the deaths were interesting and unique compared to some other horror films.

‘The Kindergarten Teacher’ This film made me uncomfortable. Maybe because I am a teacher and it was so blatantly clear where she started overstepping boundaries when it came to the student’s talent. It is true though, how often times creativity is often only seen as a hobby and not something that can amount to a career.

‘The Devil Wears Prada’ I now know why everyone raves about this film. I loved it.

‘Little Miss Sunshine’ I may have watched this a long time ago, but if I did, I couldn’t remember. Anyway, the ending was fantastic. Be your own weird self. 

‘Confessions of a Shopoholic’ After ‘The Devil Wear Prada’, I wanted more fashion films. This one was a let-down when compared to ‘The Devil Wears Prada’. 

‘Spiderman: Far From Home’ Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood, but in the end I felt pretty “meh” about this one, save for Jake as the villain. I was hoping he was going to win.

‘Fear Street’ Parts 1, 2 & 3 Are these incredible horror films? No. Are they fun? Yes! Watching these films, based on R.L. Stine’s ‘Fear Street’ series, had me feeling like my eight-year-old self, staying up late to catch reruns of ‘Goosebumps’ on TV.

‘Midsommar’ There were a couple scene that I found pretty disturbing to look at, but overall, I think I laughed more than anything? I don’t know what that says about me as a person.

‘Booksmart’ It’s basically ‘Superbad’, but with female leads. Surprisingly funny and relatable.

‘Psycho’ (1960) A classic that I had never seen before. I didn’t expect to like this as much as I did. It had some eerie moments and the big reveal was still pretty creepy, even knowing the whole plot already. I didn’t expect the famous shower scene to happen as early as it did in the film.

‘Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time’ An ‘F’ for all the ostriches. A ‘C’- for the storyline. A ‘C’ for the ridiculous slowed down action shots. A ‘B’ for a funny side character. A ‘B’+ for the flirty banter and an ‘A’+ for Dastan’s hair and biceps.

Halloween (2018) Nothing new. Michael Myers is indestructible and has a major fascination with Laurie. It’s unfortunate for everyone else that gets in his path. Still, that’s a slasher film. It was exactly what I expected it to be. Jamie Lee Curtis is a boss.

‘Prisoners’ This film was like an extended ‘Criminal Minds’ episode, so I was sold from the get go. It was one where I was yelling advice to the characters again. While the plot was one that I figured out pretty early on, I was still pulled in by the suspense and build up in acting. Everybody in this film should have been nominated for Academy Awards. And Detective Loki needs his own crime show. Period.

‘Love and Other Drugs’ A whole Pfizer presentation for Covid! Just kidding. It was for Viagra. I watched it back-to-back with ‘Prisoners’. It was a double feature Jake day. And ‘Prisoners’, was, you know, dark. So, this was nice to follow it up with.

‘Jungle Cruise’ This was a lot of fun to watch! It was also the first film I saw in a theatre since Covid-19 took over everything.

‘The Goldfinch’ The book was great, but I think the film falls flat, unfortunately. Good casting, but the storyline is so skimmed over that you’re left wondering what it’s supposed to actually be about. I think it might have done better as a series with more time to explain and explore everything that  happens in the book. 

‘Chocolat’ This was whimsical. I suggest watching it while eating soup and then indulging in a lot of chocolate for dessert.

‘Jeepers Creepers 3’ I was a bit distracted while watching because I was also cutting up bits of paper for an art project with my students, but like all horror sequels, this was pretty predictable. The storyline with the granddaughter was pretty similar to ‘Halloween’, actually.

‘Doctor Sleep’ I own the book, but have yet to read it. That said, the movie was pretty creepy. I was a bit startled by how graphic the boy’s death was near the beginning and that set the entire mood for the whole film. Brutal. 

‘Ghostbusters: Afterlife’ Second movie I saw in theatres since Covid. I know it’s not the greatest film ever made, but they won me over with all the nostalgic bits. I think the build-up to the ending could have been a bit more original, but, hey, we still got to see streams cross. And then I blubbered like a baby. 

‘Encanto’ This one started off really well, but that was all it did. It built things up and then didn’t execute, leaving for a super anti-climactic ending. I still enjoyed watching it, I just wish the actual plotline had more to it. I think there was too much left unanswered. The soundtrack, however, is great!

‘Ron’s Gone Wrong’ I liked this one more than ‘Encanto’. The message felt important, explained things in a way so the audience could understand how consumer manipulation was happening and refrained from painting all technology as bad. Instead, it provided an ending and solution that created a happy balance. This film was smart, heartfelt, funny and didn’t give you a headache trying to put all the abstract pieces together (I’m looking at you ‘Soul’). I think it’s ridiculous that it’s not nominated for a Golden Globe. Easily one of the best animated films of the year.

29: What one thing made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

• Being able to talk honestly with colleagues.
• Sending the dumbest memes back and forth with friends to make up for the lack of not being able to see each other as much as we would have liked.
• Finally being able to see and hug my friends in person again.
• My cat (Freddie)’s never-ending antics.
• Jake Gyllenhaal movies and interviews.
• BTS, and these dudes who react to BTS. Even better than just watching an interview. Erase all toxic masculinity!
• Discovering new music.
• Painting
• Writing

30: How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2021? Flowy pants, sweaters, dresses, lipstick (on weekends), more mascara/less eyeliner and masks (ha ha ha… Ugh). 

31: What kept you sane?

• The ability to visit my family.
• Being able to actually teach in a classroom with students present.
• Being able to stay connected with friends.

32: Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?

My usuals. Frank Iero (I don’t care how messed up he makes his hair, he’s always going to charm me with his snark and take-no-crap personality), Adam Driver, Robert Sheehan, Garrett Hedlund, Andy Black, etc, etc.

New: Jake Gyllenhaal. Are you surprised!? This guy looks better and better with age. I’m also offended that no one told me he was hilarious. I would have been a fan a long time ago if I’d known this fact. For the love of gawd please have Jake and Adam interview each other. Adam will give his awkward monotone responses and Jake can make it extra weird. Never give the scarf back, Jake! 

33: What political issue stirred you the most? Everything surrounding Covid.

34: Who did you miss? People living elsewhere.

35: Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2021: It’s important to acknowledge the things that you are good at, just as it is to acknowledge the things you are working on. You can still be humble without belittling yourself. 

36: Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:

“Music is a drug that doesn’t kill you” – Fran Lebowitz (‘Pretend it’s a City’)