I read a wide range of books in June. From some antiracist education to some light, teen romance, I kind of read it all. They weren’t all five star reads this month, but it was still a good selection of books. Let’s get started! 1// Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins In Perkins’s final installment of her young adult series, she follows Isla (Eye-la) Martin and Josh Wasserstein as they fall madly in love in a short amount of time. Isla’s had her eye on Josh since their freshman year, so when she runs into him at a cafe in New York, it’s Kismet – literally, that’s…
Catching My Eye | 06.19.20
Can I be honest with you guys? I am not doing so hot. Between Black Lives Matter, COVID-19, and every other tragedy going on in the world that we don’t even know about, I feel like I’ve woken up to a lot this week. Don’t get me wrong — this is a very good thing — but it also leaves me feeling very overwhelmed because how am I supposed to help everyone? The answer is, I can’t. Duh. But, I can keep focusing on educating myself and others. And donating when I can. I’ve also learned, that you have to pick your causes. I think I’m going to spend the…
Books to Read During Pride Month
Happy Pride Month! If you don’t know, Pride Month is celebrated every year in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan which served as the tipping point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the US. I’ve compiled a list of books I have either read or heard were great books that feature LGBTQ characters or were written by people who identify as such. Let’s get started! 1// Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz Aristotle and Dante don’t fit in. Aristotle is angry at the world, and Dante is a know-it-all. But when the two meet at the pool one summer, an…
Catching My Eye | 6.12.20
What a week. I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted. From listening and learning about the Black Lives Matter movement impacting the nation (world) to trying to survive during a pandemic, I am beat. I don’t know if I have anything poignant to share this week as I am truly just trying to keep my head above water at this point. I hope this is a pivotal moment in history. I hope this is a year we look back on and say, “That’s when everything changed.” Until then, I promise to put in the work. I promise to keep fighting the good fight even when I’m tired. I promise…
June 2020 Goals
We’re almost halfway through June, but it’s never too late to share a little goal setting, is it? I have to admit, I haven’t been nearly as goal-oriented as I usually am since the coronavirus forced us all indoors for the past three months, but I’m trying to get back in the swing of things as the world starts going again. These are some overarching goals for the month, and I hope to knock them off my to-do list, but I obviously have 8 million other things I’d like to accomplish. I’ve got to start somewhere though. Let’s get started! 1// Develop my plan for continuing to educate myself on…
Books to Read by Black Authors
Our work is not done. I was really mad last week. I hope you were, too. I was mad about the injustices in this country. I was mad about people not understanding the power in their words and actions. And I was mad that I had previously been a part of the problem. I am listening, learning, and growing just like a lot of people in this country, and I am committed to staying mad until things change. I compiled a list of reading recommendations based on books I’ve read and books I’ve heard are amazing and want to read. I’ve also separated it by non-fiction and fiction because it’s…
Books I Read in May 2020
Back at it with a total of NINE books read this month. Who even am I? I have never read this much in my entire life. I truly chalk it up to adding audiobooks into my routine. I got through three audiobooks in May, four e-books, and two physical books. I read a range of YA books, fiction, and non-fiction over the last 31 days. Let’s get started! 1// Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (E-Book) Anna and the French Kiss is problematic to say the least. But, it’s a fun read when you’re stuck inside on a rainy day. Anna is shipped off to school in Paris (the reason is…
#BlackLivesMatter
I’ve stayed mostly quiet about everything going on in our country right now for a myriad of reasons — which I admit, are excuses. I don’t have anything of value to add to the conversation. I don’t want to offend anyone. I don’t want to seem uneducated. I don’t have all the information. I don’t want to detract from what other, more important voices have to say. I’ve seen a lot of Instagram stories and had a few conversations in the last couple of days that have encouraged me to use my voice — that my voice matters more than I can imagine — that every voice speaking out against…
Catching My Eye | 5.29.20
Another week in has come and gone, and boy, was this one a doozy for me. I’ve been relatively steady throughout this whole experience (except for the very beginning before we were under any stay-at-home orders — I like certainty, and the back and forth and the unknown was more stressful for me than just knowing what to do), but my emotions were all over the place this week. Instead of beating myself up, I really tried to just let myself feel whatever emotion was working its way through my mind and body, and start fresh. If I needed a break, I took a break. If I needed a piece…
Habits I’m Carrying Into My Post-Quarantine Life
I’m looking at at least three more weeks of working from home, likely longer, but I’m still trying to prepare myself for life on the other side of all of this. I know things won’t go completely back to normal even when I’m back at work, but my social life is already picking back up with park hangouts and socially-distanced walks with friends. Staying at home for the better part of two months with only my roommate and my boyfriend to hang out with was quite the eye-opener. While I kept mostly a normal schedule (waking up and working out at 6 a.m. and working from 9-5), I didn’t have any of…
