You don't hate the summers/ You're just afraid of the space: May Favorites

I sort of feel like I'm wading through a giant vat of chocolate pudding. Hot, sticky, sweaty chocolate pudding. That's how summer always feels to me, but hey, I will endure scorching sunshine and wasps flying into my bedroom if it means fall will come. There's a lyric in one of my favorite songs from this month (Maine by Noah Kahan) that goes something like this: you don't hate the summers/ you're just afraid of the space. Chocolate pudding aside, this lyric really struck a chord. I think what I dread so miserably about the next three months is all of the hazy monotony that comes with leisure. Drifting has never been something I'm particularly good at, so I'll have to create projects for myself, but that seems like a lot of work. And so my cycle of purposelessness continues; misery, realizing that misery can be easily remedied, and deciding that the easy remedy requires too much effort. Maybe I just don't like who I become during these months. Maybe it has nothing to do with the season at all. Maybe I should make some chocolate pudding.

Movies and Videos:
The Half of It (Netflix) - I bawled.
Never Have I Ever (Netflix) - I chuckled.
A Secret Love (Netflix) - My heart was warmed.
Gilmore Girls (Netflix) - JESS AND RORY ARE FINALLY TOGETHER AHHHHHHHH
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Amazon Prime)
this cover.
this girl getting into all of her dream schools.

Songs:
Brook Revisited by Adam Melchor
Drive by Oh Wonder
Nervous (Acoustic) by Gavin James
are you okay? by Winnetka Bowling League
Ad Infinitum Pt. 2 by Telekinesis
Autumn by Lists
Great American Novel by Max Jury
Strangers by Jesse Harper, Feat. Aoife O'Donovan
Truly Madly Deeply by Yoke Lore
Maine by Noah Kahan
when the party's over - Lewis Capaldi

(If you're interested, I have two public Spotify playlists. The first is called 'eggshells'. The second is 'black tea and brussel sprouts at 2 AM'. They are both very long. My Spotify username is, aptly, Maya.)

Books:
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
Josh & Hazel's Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate
Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky

(P.S. It's good to use virtual libraries during this time, i.e The Libby app. If you want to buy books, however, I recommend trying thriftbooks.com or Book Outlet. Very affordable options. It's also good to help support your local bookstores - see if they're delivering or doing curb-side pick-up.)

Recipes:
Gluten-free Pumpkin Bread
GF Fried Matzos: 1 egg per every two sheets of matzos. Whisk eggs in a bowl, break matzos into two-inch pieces, heat olive oil in a skillet. Soak matzos pieces until tender (but not soggy!). Drain water, add egg mixture to matzos pieces. Be sure to cover all matzos. Cook until no longer shiny. Add cinnamon and a sweetener to taste. Enjoy your Jewish French Toast!

Fun Things I Did:
I edited a virtual choir video! Here's the link
I reorganized my room... again.
I left books at my best friend's house.
I got an allergy shot.
I cut my own hair, and it wasn't terrible?
I downloaded Instagram, and then after a week remembered why I hate social media, and deleted it again. I tried.
Lots of yoga. I use the YouTube channel Alo Yoga.

Things to Be Excited For:
The Percy Jackson TV series on Disney+! Let's hope they don't screw it up!
Pottermore is featuring HP actors reading individual chapters of Sorcerer's Stone... for free! If you want to enter or return to the Wizarding World, this is the perfect opportunity.
The Selection series is being turned into either a movie or a TV show? Not sure which, but yay!
Autumn is only four months away!
We're here.
We're breathing-ish (allergies, ya know).

Things to Remember:
The people who are writing a novel during this time are cyborgs.
I was just kidding about the above point. Good for them. But you don't have to be doing anything at all right now. Go eat some chocolate pudding.
Dogs still exist.
Candles have a burn memory, which is very important, indeed.
All of our sleep schedules are screwed.

Hang in there, guys.
- Maya

Photo by Maddi Bazzocco on Unsplash