 I haven't posted in quite awhile, whoops! I guess with college starting and all the other things I've had going on I completely forgot about my little corner of the internet. So, what's new? I visited my dad's hometown for a few days and went to this very cool hot air balloon light show--it was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Oh! I also made a puppet, I'm currently working onboarding another one, it's so much fun. Lastly, I went on a roadtrip with a few of my friends to Oklahoma (which is very pretty by the way), it was so much fun, I really enjoyed it. Overall, September was a good month! Top Tunes House Tour- Sabrina Carpenter I'm not a huge Sabrina fan, but for some reason I've been loving this one of her new album. It feels so Barbie but also Muppet....in some way? Two Little Girls - Ani DiFranco I just love this entire album, but this song speaks to me so personally. Waiting For Wednesday- Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories The perfect fall song! To me it feels like the opening of a 2000s Romcom. Books The Blindfold - Siri Hustvedt I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this book, but what I can say is that I could not put it down. The Blindfold was both interesting and boring. What I would compare it to is The Bell Jar is some ways. Overall I think I enjoyed it, I likely won't re-read it. Movies Most of these are rolled over from August, I only watched four movies in September. I rewatched The Jesus Revolution, this time around I noticed how much romanticism went into this movie in regards to the characters (most of which weren't the best people), but if you try and look past that, I'd say its one of the better Christian films out there. I watched Heathers for the first time, which I really didn't think would be a satire, but I loved it so much! I can see why it's a classic. I watched this really obscure movie called Skatetown USA, it was clearly all made under heavy drug influence-- but it was fun! I made the mistake of letting Dune be my first David Lynch movie, I didn't like it, sorry! Freakier Friday was exactly what I thought it would be, I really think it should just went straight to Disney+. My favorite movie I watched in September was Earth Girls Are Easy, classic 80s stupidity. That's really all, October will have LOTS of movies!
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 July has been a little crazy. My family went on a trip to Florida which was so much fun, we visited Weeki Wachee, such a cool and strange place. It's weird because it's a state park but also has mermaid shows and water slides...all sorts of things. I definitely would love to go again. I saw Superman in theaters, best movie I've seen in a long time but I'll get to that later. I went to my college orientation, scary!! Top Tunes Be Be Your Love - Rachael Yamagata Top song again this month! I don't know why i'm so drawn to it haha Why Should I Love You? - Kate Bush I thrifted a CD of Kate Bush's Red Shoes album and found this song. The sound is just so addictive, I'll never NOT love her vocals. Just For Now - Imogen Heap Romcoms have really been on my mind lately. This song was in The Holiday so of course I have it on repeat! No Books This Time :( Movies To no surprise I watched a lot of movies this month! I had a hard time choosing just a few to chat about but I'll try and keep it short. Never Been Kissed (1999) is by far one of the worst movies I've watched in a while, a very creepy romcom with concerning age gaps and relationships. It was just yucky all around and kind of boring? Shallow Hal (2001) was also boring and controversial. One of my favorite movies I watched this month was Manchester by the Sea (2016), it doesn't have a super strong plot--to sum it up; bad stuff keeps happening. Despite that, I thought it was a beautiful film that portrays grief so well. I watched all of the Final Destination movies in one day while at work and loved most of them, my favorite being the third. Sunshine Cleaning (2008) was also one of my favorites, I found it on DVD a few days ago. Sunshine cleaning was another movie that focused on grief and change, I'd say it's underrated. Of course I saw the movie of the summer-- Superman (2025)! I really enjoyed it and I could have cared less about Superman before this movie. I just left the theater feeling hopeful, I love getting that feeling from a movie.
 Living a pre-internet lifestyle (or at least before the internet became all consuming)  I've found myself growing more and more tired of the current state of the internet; centralized, consuming, and constant. So many people these days say they wish they’d grown up in a different era-- anemoia if you will. I think that longing often comes from a deep desire for real human connection. Lately, I’ve been feeling that same pull—toward something more genuine and grounded, something that isn’t mediated through social media or shaped by algorithms. A few months ago I watched You've Got Mail for the first time and immediately wanted the form of communication Shopgirl and NY152 had; thoughtful, intentional, and just the right amount of online. Today's internet is focal in most peoples lives. In contrast, today’s internet demands our constant attention. Staying endlessly connected and glued to a screen has become the norm—but it doesn’t have to be. Here are a few ways I’ve been working toward that quieter, more intentional “Kathleen Kelly lifestyle.” Dumbphone Smartphone My screen time has always been somewhere between five or seven hours--yikes! As someone with focus issues, having my phone with my 24/7 does not help. I get stuck, so stuck! I find myself on my phone doing nothing but, well....nothing. In desperation, I tried out a plethora of apps to help me disconnect from my phone. I found two that really helped me: Opal and Dumb Phone. Opal helps to limit app use, Dumb phone simplifies your phones homepage to just you essential apps with no graphics-- just words (it really makes using your phone less appealing). I also deleting a tone of apps that I don't need-- my screen time now ranges between thirty minutes and two hours. Practice Boredom There is this need in our modern society to constantly be stimulated, taking our phones out at any given idle time. Be bored! Take the time to take in surroundings, people watch, read a book, do nothing at all. You'll live! Physical Media Collecting physical media is one of my favorite things to do. Scavenging a goodwill's DVD and CD section and feeling excited at the victory of coming across your favorite movie or album or spending hours in a used bookstore. One thing that really bugs me about streaming services is that I find myself scrolling and scrolling, before I know it I've spent the length of a movie scrolling! Same goes for music streaming, the skip button is so tempting. With physical media you choose intentionally, having limited options. Collecting DVDs has honestly saved me so much money. Renting a movie usually costs around five dollars, I can get a DVD at goodwill for a dollar and have it forever! Inter-webbing The internet certainly isn't all bad. All things in moderation. Spend less time on algorithm based apps and websites. Read a blog, make your own, play MMO games-- I could go on. One of my favorite websites at the moment is SpaceHey. SpaceHey was created in the likes of MySpace and offers that sort of You've Got Mail communication, I've also had a lot of fun customizing my profile.  These are just some of the aspects of living that have helped me feel more productive and happier-- sitting on my phone all day just felt yuck!
 June has been such a fun month! I’ve had lots of beach trips with my friends, all of which required subway and fun drinks (I highly recommend bring subway to the beach— yum!). My church youth group hosted a summer camp, one of the coolest experiences, it was genuinely the best time. My best friend flew down to visit for a week. We want to a cat cafe and saw a Hairspray at a local theater— that was a great time. I flew to visit family in NY, I adore airports. My family in New York lives in a super small town, I went to a bookstore around there and bought some pretty neat books and DVDs. Top Tunes Be Be Your Love - Rachael Yamagata I have had this song on repeat along with 'The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants' soundtrack. It's a great song to listen to while on a plane in my opinion. Beautiful Boy - John Lennon Who doesn't love this song? It's been somewhere on my repeats every month for a while now. I Remember You - Bjork One of my favorite Bjork covers, her vocals always impress me. Books
Movies I watched a LOT of movies this month, not all of them first watches but still. I'll keep it brief and just go over some of my favorites. Pieces of April was very unique and I really enjoyed it. The entire film was filmed on a handycam, making it feel more personal. This movie had me crying by the end-- I definitely recommend it! I saw Ferris Bueller's Day Off on the big screen which was so much fun, I adore this movie. The Phoenician Scheme was also a fun watch, I saw it in theaters with my dad-- lots of laughs, fun writing, not my favorite Wes Anderson movie. Pixar's newest movie, Elio, was a good movie-- not great, but I did enjoy it! The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants... ah! I love love it, all the characters wardrobes are to die for. The only thing that bothered me was how much they changed Lena's storyline.
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