february 2025 mid-month REPORT
Recent Favorites & Fun Stuff!
I’ve been seeing the “REPORT” trend where people discuss what they’ve recently been reading, eating, playing, obsessing over, recommending, and treating themself to floating around Instagram and TikTok for a few months now, but the first place I discovered it was through Sophie’s blog, Sophie Counts Clouds. It seems like a fun way to keep people updated on what I’m enjoying, so I figured I’d participate in the trend too!
Note: I’m changing the “Eating” section to “Excited About” because 1) I don’t have the money to be adventurous in eating out, 2) I don’t feel comfortable discussing food in depth for a myriad of reasons, and 3) I want to gab about either the random things that I’m currently excited about or the random things that are coming up in the near future that I’m looking forward to!
reading
Over these last two weeks I've kinda been jumping around between a few books, tbh. The one I've been reading most consistently, though, has been Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao. I'm about 40% through and so far I have mixed feelings about this book. Obviously, it's interesting enough to keep me reading, however I have some minor technical quibbles with the story and pace. The romance that’s developing at this point in the book kind of feels like instalove, at least on one person’s side, and it's very obvious. The pace of the story also feels a tad fast, which feels a little odd to me for a cozy fantasy I guess? I suppose I just wasn't expecting the pace to be so quick, although that's not necessarily the worst thing in the world. All that said, Water Moon is relatively enjoyable. It has a cozy, springtime vibe, so I feel like it's a nice read to prepare for the upcoming season.
eating excited about
Lately I’ve been excited about learning more knitting and crochet techniques. I’ve known the basics of knitting since I was in middle school, but I wanted to learn more, and also to learn how to crochet. Fortunately, my friends and YouTube have my back on this journey! My friend and I recently met up for a “craft exchange,” where I taught her the basics of knitting and she taught me the basics of crochet. My friend also sent me a link toY2K-ish themed online magazine called Material Grrrlz, which has lots of knitting and crochet patterns that are easy to understand for beginners—plus, the magazine has a YouTube channel with tutorials for several of the patterns too! Speaking of YouTube, I also have found several other YouTube channels dedicated to teaching knitting and crochet techniques, which has been really helpful. I’m hoping that, if I manage to get my hands on the supplies necessary, I can start knitting and/or crocheting some funky pieces!
playing
(I think this section is intended to talk about games, but I haven't been playing any lately so until I pick up another game I'm just gonna talk about the podcasts and music I've been playing lately...)
I recently discovered the Egyptian Italian rapper/singer Lella Fadda and I've been loving her album Magnun! I found Lella Fadda through her COLORS performance of her single “Tarat Tarat Tat,” and, lemme tell ya, friends: I instantly became obsessed!! I like how she kinda blends Arabic rap with hints of hyperpop—an interesting combination for sure, but Lella Fadda pulls it off with ease. If you enjoy Arabic pop and/or Arabic hip hop—or even if you're new to those subgenres—definitely check Lella Fadda out, as I have a feeling that she's one to watch!
obsessing
These past two weeks I discovered a website called Aeon which is dedicated to essays and articles about natural science, social science, and the humanities written by professionals in those fields. Since learning of Aeon, I have been obsessively reading the pieces it features! Also! One lovely thing about Aeon is that there aren't any paywalls when you go to read any of the pieces—they're all open access! So far, some of my favorite pieces I've read on Aeon have been this philosophy essay on how we distinguish fiction from nonfiction and what that means for our definitions of reality at large and this history article about the history behind why Americans have such a Puritanical view of erotica and pornography. If you’re into researching random topics for fun in your free time, you’ve definitely got to check out this gem of a online magazine!
recommending
Booktube content is my go to "comfort content" on YouTube, and lately I've been loving booktube videos from Léa Crumpton. Léa reads very widely and though her taste overlaps a bit with my own it also expands beyond mine as well, so I think if you enjoy books in general you'll probably find something or another to read from her videos. She mostly makes aesthetic reading vlogs, recommendation videos, and monthly wrap up videos, and all of them are well produced and cozy to watch. She's also able to articulate her thoughts on literature very well and in a down-to-earth and easy to understand manner. I definitely recommend checking her channel out if you enjoy bookish videos.
treating
Honestly, this section is a bit difficult for me to complete because as a low income person, I rarely have any big "treat yo'self!" moments. That said, this past week an ice cream counter was installed by the new owners of my neighborhood's corner store, and you can bet your bottom dollar I treated myself and my mom to a shared cup of our favorite flavor, mint chocolate chip ice cream! It was the first time in a looooong time that I've had mint chocolate chip ice cream, despite it being my favorite, because I've been trying to cut down on my sugar intake. It was a really nice treat, though, and it was a nice moment to share it with my mom.\
song of the day
Listen to the entire playlist for the Life in Technicolor newsletter here.