February Mishmash

The one in which I went to Mexico and got rained on!

Feb 29, 2024

Hi! It’s a leap year! What a weird thing. An extra day to keep up with the sun? This month went by so fast. I read some good books, didn’t cook much worth mentioning, and went to Mexico! Also, Matthew had a birthday, and I got a really bad cold. It feels like spring is almost here, so I am excited about that. I hope you enjoy this roundup of stuff I liked this month!

Food!

I haven’t done much cooking this month, but I did make this: Coconutty Beans & Greens and it was very delicious! I cooked up some Rancho Gordo Lima Beans for this recipe, but you can of course use canned beans, and I used jalapeno instead of the Thai chiles mentioned.

Books

You can shop all my recent reads here: https://bookshop.org/shop/michelleflook (Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.)

Only fiction this month! I finished 4 books in February, and all were really good!

Fiction:
- Anita de Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez - This is a great audiobook! The three main characters all have distinct voice actors. The voice of Anita was particularly amazing, full of passion and rage, befitting her side of the story. The book goes back and forth in time between 1985 (Anita) and 1998 (Raquel), highlighting power dynamics in the art world, and poses the question who gets to be remembered??
- Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll - Loosely based on Ted Bundy, this book presents a fresh perspective, telling the story of some of the peripheral characters in a serial killer story. The story jumps around a bit in time, and is told by multiple characters: Pamela, whose best friend was murdered. She saw the killer as they were leaving the sorority house, and acts as an eyewitness in the eventual court proceedings; and Ruth, an eventual victim, tells her story leading up to her eventual kidnapping/murder. Tina is another important character that features in both women’s stories, she was an intimate friend of Ruth’s, and connects with Pamela to help bring the murderer to justice. A fast-paced story that sheds a light on the victims rather than the criminal.
- Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange - I loved Tommy’s previous book, There There, and didn’t realize that this book was sort of a continuation of that story. The first part of Wandering Stars is set way in the past, following through generations of the family, and the second half picks up shortly after where There There ends. The historical context was interesting, and getting to know more of the current day family was great. Each of the characters are so distinct, and though the stories told in this book are very sad, lots of tragedy, addiction, trauma, the end left me feeling hopeful.
- Last Days of the Midnight Ramblers by Sarah Tomlinson - This book is similar to Daisy Jones and the Six, in that it’s focused on a ‘legendary rock band’, telling their story, in this book the main character is the ghostwriter hired to get the story published. There is also a bit of a mystery involved, so that made this a little different. I listened to the audiobook, and it is not a full cast, which would have been better. Definitely a fun one though, if you liked Daisy!

TV/Movies

American Nightmare (Netflix) - A fascinating docuseries about a wild story that highlights how police often blame the victims. The story this focuses on was touted in the media as the “Real Life Gone Girl.”
Lover, Stalker, Killer (Netflix) - A great documentary, an insane story that is very hard to believe!
Criminal Record (Apple TV+) - A really well done crime drama, that again features how the criminal justice system lets people down.
The Woman in the Wall (Paramount+/Showtime) - This is kind of a slow show, but a really interesting story, that focuses on a part of Ireland’s history that we did not know anything about. It’s a really sad story overall, but with a mostly happy ending.
The Greatest Night in Pop (Netflix) - A really fun music documentary, about the recording of We Are The World.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - We really enjoyed this Hunger Games prequel movie! I did not read this book in the series, so can’t comment on how it was adapted, but I loved Lucy Grey, and the movie was definitely entertaining.
Who TF Did I Marry (TikTok) - I was riveted by this TikTok series from a woman detailing her history with a pathological liar. You can take this like a podcast, listening while you do other things, it’s about 50 ten-minute parts. I hope someone reaches out to her to do a show or a movie about this story, it’s absolutely nuts.

Projects!

I completed only two more blocks from the AGF Sewcialite Sampler Quilt I am working on, but they are both really cute!
Blocks 3 and 4 from AGF Sewcialte Sampler 2024

Miscellaneous!

I went on a girls’ trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, and even though the skies were mostly grey, and we even got rained on a bit, we had a great time relaxing and taking advantage of the all-inclusive resort we stayed at. We didn’t leave the resort, though we had plans to. The spa was really nice, the food was surprisingly good overall, and nothing beats a swim-up bar.
Mexico!