What I'm Into (June 2014 Edition)
06/30/2014
The family farm in Illinois
A trip back to my hometown, finding and moving in to a new rental house, and launching The Enneagram Coach...what wasn't there to love about June?
Read and Reading:
Delancey (Wizenberg) is a stellar follow up to A Homemade Life. I loved the behind-the-scenes look at how Wizenberg and her husband opened up their restaurant, especially since I was able to eat at Delancey this past fall. Well worth reading and visiting.
Handling the Truth: On the Writing of Memoir (Kephart) is a worthy addition to any writer's bookshelf. Kephart has me dreaming memoir-sized dreams.
I got an advance copy of my friend Preston Yancey's Tables in the Wilderness: A Memoir of God Found, Lost, and Found Again. Full review coming closer to release date.
If you like the TV show and movie, you'll certainly like The Thousand Dollar Tan Line (Veronica Mars #1). It picks up a couple of months after where the movie left off. It was hard to put down. Give me more Veronica Mars & Co. please!
We'll be discussing Americanah (Adichie) next month on The Red Couch. This is one you'll be dying to discuss. My introductory post will be up next week. Hope you'll join us!
You can see all the books I've read at Goodreads.
Currently reading: Hard Choices (Clinton), The Silkworm (Galbraith), Entre Nous (Ollivier), Amazing Grace (Norris), New and Selected Poems: Volume 1 (Oliver), Wisdom of the Enneagram (Riso and Hudson)
(I read 10 books this month.)
TV:
Must-see TV: So You Think You Can Dance, The Real Housewives of New York, The Real Housewives of Orange County
Music:
New discoveries: First Aid Kit, David J. Roch, and after a couple of months resisting, I've given in to the Sam Smith bandwagon
Listen to the What I'm Into 2014 playlist.
Things I Love:
- Visiting Anne and her family and staying at her beautiful new house
- Spending several days in my hometown catching up with my favorite people
- Family party hosted by my parents with aunts, uncles, and both grandpas- loved sitting outside and hearing what everyone's been up to
- My biannual Cobb family visit blew me away, per usual. Megan and Al always spoil me, from the moment I walk in the door until it's time for me to leave. I adore them and their kids so much. Also, I adore the steak Al made. It was the stuff dreams are made of.
- I didn't love this: the White Sox game rained out. Alas and woe! But they called it off before Jill and I had even left so we ate our sorrows with tableside guacamole at Cozymels and then went shoe shopping.
- I have 8 great friends from college. I don't think the whole group has gotten together since a friend married the year after we graduated. Well over a decade ago. But 7 of us were able to get together while I was back in town and another was back in the country and it was pure magic. I don't think we shut up once and there was still more to discuss and remember. Plus, shouldn't we have watched Ally McBeal or Party of Five for old time's sake?
- I'm obsessed with homemade ginger syrup. This stuff is lifechanging.
- Great experience with True & Co., which is like the StitchFix of bras and lingerie. You can have them send bras and whatnot to your home, try it on, and send back what you don't want. I kept two of the bras I tried and I'm thinking about ordering them in more colors.
- Moving in to my new house! It was no easy process but I found a house to rent and now have a roommate. (It's not a renter's market so we joined forces in order to afford a better place.) Big shout out to Strider and Darius from Two Men and a Truck and my good friend Amanda. They were all miracle workers.
- Watching SYTYCD with Kelley
- The biggest and best news of all: my best friend and her husband adopted their son!!! My nephew-in-love is the sweetest and I love snuggling with him and telling him how handsome he is. And of course, reminding him who his favorite auntie is. One of the great joys of my life was going to the airport to meet their plane. So many happy tears.
Favorite Instagram:
New house. #rentingthedream
(If you want to follow me on Instagram, my user name is leighkramer.)
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What have you been into this month?
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