This was such a fun movie. I watched the first and the second movie in the month of January and I genuinely thought that I’d love the first movie, “Knives Out”, more and not like the second movie, “Glass Onion”. I had all these assumptions knowing absolutely nothing about the movie other than that “Knives Out” had a cozy autumnal vibe that seemed much more of my preferred aesthetic than the more summer, flamboyant vibes of “Glass Onion”. Well, I was proven wrong lol. Don’t get me wrong, I genuinely did like “Knives Out” but “Glass Onion” was just so over the top and entertaining. It had a larger cast of characters who all had bigger roles in the movie than the large cast in “Knives Out”. The cameos were spectacular, the references were hilarious, and the subtle innuendos were perfect. It’s the perfect movie to watch when you’re not feeling your best and you need a pick me up.
January was the month I really dove into the “A Court of Thorns and Roses” series. I’m about to start the third book but I’ve got to say that this book has to be my favorite read so far. The world building, the friend group, the character growth, the politics, it’s a five out of five from me. While “A Court of Mist and Fury” is definitely my favorite book in the series so far, I want to include the entire series so far as a favorite in this post. The start of the New Year was rocky at best for me so I knew that I wanted to fall into a book series and just stay lost there and this series did exactly that. I keep describing this series as cozy to my friends and you probably think I’m insane for calling it that considering how dark the second book gets (content warnings for PSTD, abuse, and trauma), but the world building is just so lush and easy to fall into that it’s cozy? I don’t know how to describe it but I really appreciate the quiet moments in between the more tense plot beats and the way Feyre is discovering this world alongside us readers.
This is the most amazing story I’ve heard in a podcast in a long time. If you don’t know, Morbid is a true crime podcast that uploads every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. They also cover some paranormal stuff occasionally as their branding now is all things spooky rather than just true crime. I still have a lot of their backlog to cover but I was surprised to see that one of their latest episodes was a survivor story of a woman and that it wasn’t a true crime she had survived, but a plane crash. I had listened to an episode or two that centered around a survivor story but it was the first time I listened to an episode of theirs that didn’t have anything to do with true crime or the paranormal and let me tell you, I was shaken. The way Alaina narrated this survivor story was so gripping and the way she built the story up to the moment the plane crashed already had me in tears knowing what was going to happen to this happy and wholesome family. This was one of the most inspiring and motivating story that I’ve ever heard and I can’t wait to read the book the survivor wrote on her experience in the jungle in Peru.
I started of the year with a mental health trip to Target that inspired a new era of life for me called “The Age of Color”. I’m usually hesitant in gravitating towards apparel or accessories in colors that I’ve never owned before or don’t have things that’ll match with them perfectly. But in 2023, I’m saying yes to all the colors, like this yellow, green, neon, but soft pastel wallet that’s puffy but not too puffy. It’s big enough to hold my phone which is a lifesaver for when I’m out and about and don’t want to carry around a huge bag to hold a wallet and a phone.
Talking about huge bags lol, this tote bag from Madewell has been a lifesaver the past few weeks. Like I’m a big mood reader, I’m also a big mood dresser. I gravitate towards comfort over aesthetic but I’m hoping to change that up this year. This bag was a purchase from last year’s Black Friday Sales and I was worried that it’d be too big for me as I’m just under 5 feet tall but it’s perfect. It’s big but not too big and it holds a lot of stuff. I love taking it to work and it makes all the walking and carrying stuff I have to do a lot easier as the long strap is sturdy and doesn’t dig into my shoulder.