May You Live in Interesting Times by Laraine Newman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Laraine Newman was situated in the exact right place and time to be a part of a lot of cool things, often at their onset. She partied hard with many famous friends and boyfriends, and lived to tell the tale with this audiobook.

Newman was a founding member of The Groundlings. She was an original cast member of Saturday Night Live (which she talks about in depth, offering up a few scintillating details of the experience and her fellow cast members). She even had insider information on a key aspect of the Robert Durst murder investigation and testified at his trial. 

What to Watch November 2021

Turkey time's a'coming, and so are some new shows for November! I didn't make a huge list this time, but there are certainly some goodies to be found. The three-part documentary The Beatles: Get Back drops on Disney Plus, along with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings; season 2 of The Great hits Hulu; The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip descends on Peacock; and much more arrives to tickle your fall fancy.

As always, I've compiled a list of shows I'd like to see that are coming soon, and I'm sharing it here along with links to everything coming to those streaming services so you can go through and pick your own must-watch viewing. Most of what I've collected is on streaming, but a few shows can be found on old-fashioned network TV. And away we go! 

Mrs. March by Virginia Feito

Mrs. March by Virginia Feito
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Mrs. March is an OK read if you temper expectations.

It kicks off with a fun vibe, kind of kooky. You'll want to see where it's going. Unfortunately, it's going to an obvious place, and all your hopes of some last-minute revelation or twist will fade like your grandma's green kidskin gloves decaying at the bottom of a musty old trunk.

You ever watch any Twilight Zone episodes from the original series? The mood of Mrs. March feels very much like one of those episodes — but not one of the better ones. It's not the episode where Capt. Kirk sees something crazy on the airplane wing or the one where the kicker is a cookbook, OK? 

Can My Friendships Survive Facebook?

I remember how we communicated back in the day, 'cause I was fully alive back in the day. I'm Gen X; we communicated by snail mail before it was called that AND jumped on the Internet bandwagon as soon as we were able.

And that day was long before Facebook, even well before the Internet became part of our daily lives. In that "day," I talked to friends on the phone. If one of us moved, we wrote actual letters. Handwritten! In cursive! I have some dating back to the '80s in a shoebox, and the most recent going back to the 2000s (anything via snail mail after that came from parents who are old enough that they never picked up the Internet, smartphones, or any sign of living in the 21st century). 

Scratch: Writers, Money, and the Art of Making a Living

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Writing is about expressing yourself, creating art, making sense of the world, or sharing information and ideas.

It's also all about the money, honey.

A lot of us have dreamed, longingly, of making a living with the keyboard. Most of us haven't figured out how to do it. Do you even know where to start or what to expect to earn? That's where Scratch comes in. 

What to Watch October 2021

Autumn leaves may soon be slowly drifting down in the crisp October air, but streaming options are coming in hot, baby! There are a few biggies: Dune is finally coming to HBO Max! Black Widow is finally included with the Disney Plus subscription! Curb Your Enthusiasm returns! Below Deck Season 9 and new series Winter House (the flip side of Summer House) hit Bravo! The options are better than chocolate (OK, that's hyperbole, but you get where I'm going).

As always, I've compiled a list of my top picks for shows and movies coming soon, and I'm sharing it here along with links to everything coming to those streaming services so you can add your own selections. Most of what I've collected is on streaming, but a few shows can be found on good old-fashioned network TV. And away we go!