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July was awful. Stress, a horrible job, demanding teachers and students and staff, extra-long days, and no time to get over it. I think this is the first time in my life I've been so stressed about something that I routinely began to wake up in the middle of the night to try to work out problems, and was unable to get back to sleep.
It's gotten better but I'd like to make sure that I won't be going back to that.
My Cousin Rachel by Daphne Du Maurier - I must confess to enjoying Du Maurier's books quite a bit. I've been told that "Rebecca" is awful but I haven't read that one yet. This was an interesting novel, with original quirky characters and enough secrets to keep you guessing. The reactions aren't always normal but that's part of it's charm.
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness - I've been eying this book for a while and finally started reading. I wasn't thrilled with it at first, since it felt like a more grown-up version of Twilight: stalked by a vampire who won't leave her alone, she falls in love, he controls her life... But it expands beyond that if you give it a chance. The feminist in me still isn't thrilled with the whole thing but I'm enjoying the historical aspects enough to give the second volume a try.
Movies
How To Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) - I love these movies, just love them. There's so much going on, even in the background of conversations. I would have enjoyed it even more if it wasn't in 3D however.
Monty Python Live (Mostly) (2014) - not so much a movie as an event, since it was broadcast live by satellite from London. Some fun sketches, some silly sketches, some not funny sketches - pretty standard fare for Monty Python, really. It was good to see them evolving some sketches for the times, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the Penguin Sketch included (one of my all-time favorites)
Lucy (2014) - a decent movie but not nearly as cool as the trailers made it look. The pacing was strange and by the end of the movie, the whole thing had degenerated into a straight-up mind-fuck. Not what I was expecting but still not bad.
The Fault in Our Stars (2014) - my guilty pleasure movie. I had a horrible, horrible day and went to see this by myself in an effort to decompress. I saw the plot twists coming a mile away, I cried when they wanted me to cry, and I enjoyed it.
People Like Us (2012) - a good movie that felt like every other movie of the same genre.
Ginger & Rosa (2012) - a lot more depressing than I was expecting. Elle Fanning and Christina Hendricks were marvelous, however.
It's gotten better but I'd like to make sure that I won't be going back to that.
My Cousin Rachel by Daphne Du Maurier - I must confess to enjoying Du Maurier's books quite a bit. I've been told that "Rebecca" is awful but I haven't read that one yet. This was an interesting novel, with original quirky characters and enough secrets to keep you guessing. The reactions aren't always normal but that's part of it's charm.
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness - I've been eying this book for a while and finally started reading. I wasn't thrilled with it at first, since it felt like a more grown-up version of Twilight: stalked by a vampire who won't leave her alone, she falls in love, he controls her life... But it expands beyond that if you give it a chance. The feminist in me still isn't thrilled with the whole thing but I'm enjoying the historical aspects enough to give the second volume a try.
Movies
How To Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) - I love these movies, just love them. There's so much going on, even in the background of conversations. I would have enjoyed it even more if it wasn't in 3D however.
Monty Python Live (Mostly) (2014) - not so much a movie as an event, since it was broadcast live by satellite from London. Some fun sketches, some silly sketches, some not funny sketches - pretty standard fare for Monty Python, really. It was good to see them evolving some sketches for the times, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the Penguin Sketch included (one of my all-time favorites)
Lucy (2014) - a decent movie but not nearly as cool as the trailers made it look. The pacing was strange and by the end of the movie, the whole thing had degenerated into a straight-up mind-fuck. Not what I was expecting but still not bad.
The Fault in Our Stars (2014) - my guilty pleasure movie. I had a horrible, horrible day and went to see this by myself in an effort to decompress. I saw the plot twists coming a mile away, I cried when they wanted me to cry, and I enjoyed it.
People Like Us (2012) - a good movie that felt like every other movie of the same genre.
Ginger & Rosa (2012) - a lot more depressing than I was expecting. Elle Fanning and Christina Hendricks were marvelous, however.
