Howdy and yeehaw, little campers! It’s the FriYAY Round Up, a rootin’ tootin’ recap of what I’m reading and watching. If I extended that to include what I’m playing and making that would be a mighty long mosey, so we’ll just stick to movies and books for right now. Let’s giddy up!
Cosmic Loves Movies: The Last Four on the Left
My last four of the last week, starting from the right with The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016), which I got around to watching so I could listen to this week’s episode of my favorite movie podcast, Werewolf Ambulance, on The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016). Katie and Allen talk mostly about horror but you don’t have to be a horror fan to enjoy their rapport or how funny they are, and with an impressive archive of over 400 episodes there really is something for everyone here. (This episode on Pay the Ghost (2015) is in my “desperately need a laugh NOW” kitbag.) As for The Rules of Attraction (2002), one of these Mondays I’ll expound on its status as a modern classic, but there’s a review up in my diary. If you’re a fan of Ti West’s X (2022) and Pearl (2022) but haven’t seen The House of the Devil (2009), you’re in for a treat—especially if you enjoy his dedication to time period and setting in horror (and Greta Gerwig’s in it, too!). Finally, there is The One I Love (2014), a quirky romcom with a question mark, one with the flavor of existentialist sci-fi. I’m a fan of Mark Duplass, who was phenomenal in 2014’s tense, anxious Creep (currently streaming on Netflix), so that might have contributed to my enjoyment, but I also like things that are weird and prod me with sticky ethical questions.
(For your convenience: in the U.S., The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) and The One I Love (2014) are both currently streaming on Hulu; The Rules of Attraction (2002) is currently streaming on both PlutoTV and FreeVee, and The House of the Devil (2009) is currently streaming on Shudder. I do not guarantee future availability on these or any other services!)
Other Movie Miscellany:
As a proud member of the Pumpkin Patch on their Patreon, I must shoutout my boys at Petty Pumpkins, Chey and Wes! I discovered them watching their Scream franchise recap/commentary videos (omg, this one on Scream 2 ] is just *chef’s kiss*) and enjoy their vibe so much. They just put up a reaction to one of my all-time favorite horror films, 2012’s The Cabin in the Woods, so go give them some love!
ADHD Book Club Casual Fridays
I’ve been keeping this thing for a week and three days and I’m already changing BOOK VIBES around to ADHD Book Club—as my friend and fellow writer Sebrina says, starting something like this is a journey and it takes a while to get situated! This is the first three fidgety hours of a roadtrip—we’re still sorting out snacks, fighting over the aux cord, and have to navigate all the city traffic out of here before we hit smooth sailing, but if you are here: I’m glad you’re in the mini van! Now fasten your seatbelt and let’s talk books!
I don’t have a review today, vibey or otherwise—instead I’m going to confess the length of list of books currently in progress and share a peek of how I have been cutting through the ADHD timeblindness fog with my most stalwart tools: a notebook and many, many, many pens. But before we do, let’s go over the standard disclaimer one must consider when posting about ADHD on the internet:
[insert as-yet unmade ADHD Disclaimer graphic here]
I am not a professional. None of the anecdotes shared here or my personal findings from those experiences are meant to assist in self-diagnosis, though I acknowledge that sharing them may be personally illuminating for some readers. I’m not presenting research and can only provide citations when I’m doing so. I also have the inattentive/dreamy type, so my symptoms and difficulties may not manifest the same as the next guy with ADHD and vice versa. Anything I say here on the subject that might come across as a “life hack” is just whatever I’m doing to manage myself… at least this week.
Now that’s out of the way: here’s a page out of my reading notebook!
It’s not pretty and I’m not promising pretty! This is not one of those lovely ✨aesthetic✨ bullet journals you see on “plan with me!” video tutorials. I use a lot of different colors and none of them mean anything in particular other than keeping my eyes from skipping over information, there are ink smears, sometimes I make a space for something and then not get around to reading it, yada yada yada. But it’s helping me stay on top of reading—like a physical browser tab for that part of my brain. This image shows the way I record book information and fill out a progress bar for satisfying visual feedback, but I also keep notes of what I’m borrowing and buying, lists of things I want to read, quotes with page numbers/timestamps of what I’m reading, etc., etc. The last part is helpful for future book reviews—though I want most to describe the feelings inspired by a book during and after its reading, some details are necessary and if I want to refer back in my write-up, I should have those annotations ready. My challenge here is in resisting the urge to go full project—as so often happens when I’m reading nonfiction and end up taking reams of notes and overwhelm myself trying to discern what I’m actually getting out of it.
As for what’s currently in my stack of books, I have four fiction and two nonfiction technically in progress, and I’d classify three of those as actively in progress: Terminal Park by Gary J. Shipley (keywords: horror, dark, dense, intellectual, philosophical, artistic commentary, nihilism, challenging), This Delicious Death by Kayla Cottingham (YA, horror, dark, fast-paced, queer, paranormal, monsters, political commentary, pandemic commentary)—listening to this one as performed by Sophie Amoss, and she is wonderful—and The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix (horror, dark, twisted, mystery, fast-paced, funny, unreliable narrator). I’ll talk about those more when I’ve finished them and let them sit a bit, but I’m thoroughly engrossed in each of these separate and fascinating worlds. To be honest I feel slightly out of my depth with Terminal Park—a small insecurity that perhaps I’m not smart enough for it. But I’m 75% of the way in and I’m not giving up on it OR myself now, so expect me to report back in the future.
//
Well, that’s enough out of me for one Friday! I hope you have a lovely weekend and treat yourself in some way. Do something you love to do, eat something yummy, call a friend—whatever warms your soul. If you’re feeling guilty about doing something “nonproductive,” consider this your gentle reminder that if it makes you happy and you don’t have like, sixteen weeks of chores built up, it’s fine. Play the video game, read the book, eat the cheese! Enjoy your life! Adios, amigos ♥️
Cosmic’s Read-o-Rama 