The first month of 2020 is done and it was... difficult. Full of anxiety attacks, OCD triggers, and the fear of impending apocalypse. Here's hoping February will be better?
What I Read:
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by: Taylor Jenkins Reid: 2/5 stars
When You Reach Me by: Rebecca Stead: 2/5 stars
The Scarlet Letter by: Nathaniel Hawthorne: 3/5 stars
The History of Pompey the Little by: Francis Coventry: 1/5 stars
A Coyote Columbus Story by: Thomas King: 4/5 stars
Gulliver's Travels by: Johnathan Swift: 1/5 stars
The Paper Bag Princess by: Robert Munsch (hello blog name sake!) 4/5 stars
The Secret of the Old Clock by: Carolyn Keene: 4/5 stars
Winnie-the-Pooh by: A.A. Milne: 4/5 stars
Favourite book: Miraculously, I read a lot this month, and all of these books except for Evelyn Hugo were read for school. (As you can probably tell from the random picture books thrown in there, hello children's literature course). My favourite book was actually The Secret of the Old Clock, which is the first in the Nancy Drew series. I really like easy to get through mysteries, and this book was like the American answer to the Famous Five series, which I absolutely loved as a kid. I can see myself getting into more of these books.
What I Blogged:
I stayed fairly consistent in blogging, and my favourite post was On Whether or Not to Speak Your Mind on the Internet. It was a cool discussion!
Favourite Blog Posts:
Veronika shares her re-reads of her Favourite Books of the Decade
Shayna shares some insight into Library Life
Life Stuff:
Like I alluded to before, this month has been tough. School started up again, and my courses this term are ten times harder than my ones last term. One course is basically all group work and... I just can't deal with that. My OCD has been driving me nuts, with intrusive thoughts and just overall me over- thinking everything. My anxiety has also not been good. I have extreme health anxiety (also lines up with OCD), so all of this talk about an epidemic has made me even more compulsive. Overall, just a very triggering month. I hope this virus is better contained this month, and I hope that everyone who has it will get better. I don't do well with virus outbreaks, and constantly seeing it on my Twitter timeline and the media's fear mongering does not help.
Anyways, February will bring my reading week, Valentine's Day (which I actually very much enjoy despite not having a boyfriend), and the premiere of P.S. I Still Love You! John-Ambrose will rise, folks. The Peter stans are not ready.
So that was my month. How was yours?
OMG sorry you had a tough month! *hugs*
ReplyDeleteI think there's a way to mute keywords on Twitter if it's getting too much for you - obv, that's if you think it'll help at all.
Hang in there Em - you rock! <3
I have muted a lot of words, but the problem is that there is no way to mute twitter moments when it is presented as news. I like to go onto moments just to see entertainment and sports highlights, but often times the main headline is coronavirus stuff which really gets me down :(
DeleteOh no, Emily, I'm so sorry you had such a tough month! The talks of the virus have been so unbelievably scary; the first day it got serious and the media started to pick it up I went on a twitter search, and man... I started looking at the hashtag around 1 am, and I couldn't fall asleep until after 5 am. I had nightmares for days. :| I'm SCARED of anything virus or illness related, so yeah, not the best times. It's like, logically, you can see that that's a fake video, or that's fear-mongering, and yet, I've struggled with letting it go, and only just recently got better at dealing with it. Feel free to write to DM if you're freaking out, or need someone to talk to. :)
ReplyDeleteGroup work was created by the most evil person, I hope your group/classmates will feel more familiar over time and that might help you. :)
Wishing you a wonderful February. :)
PS: thanks for the highlight!
Thanks Veronika. It’s so difficult because on the one hand I know that scrolling through the news on the virus will only make me more scared, but my anxiety tells me that I HAVE to read what’s been going on so I know if there is an outbreak close to me. I think the fear mongering has in general sprung up a lot of racism in society too, so I just wish there was more authentic coverage on this subject. But that’s a whole other conversation!
DeleteI appreciate you offering for me to DM whenever I need to chat, I really do. This week has been so hard on me, and whenever someone just offers to chat, I actually get a smile on my face. It really makes me feel like I am not alone.
I hope you're feeling better now Emily! I'm sorry that you had to experience so many different triggers. Also, it looks like your books last month were a mixed bag, but hey...that's required reading for you 😉. I hope this month will be better!
ReplyDeleteI bookmarked your discussion (and even shared it on my latest TYT post), and I promise I'll comment ASAP!
Aw thanks Roberta! I’m glad you enjoyed the discussion :) Haha, I know, my book reading was so random this month. But, at least I got it done!
DeleteOh no, I hope your February is wonderful like you deserve! <3 Hang in there, the semester will fly by and before you know it you'll be able to take a big deep breath!!
ReplyDeleteYou did so much reading, cheering you on!
Thanks Noel! I appreciate the support :)
DeleteJanuary sounds like it has been a difficult one for you, I’m so sorry to hear you have been struggling. I hope February is better <3
ReplyDeleteOn the bright side, you had a few enjoyable reads, even if they were for your course!
I haven’t read any the TATBILB books, but I’m really looking forward to the next movie :D
- Sabrina @ Wordy and Whimsical
Yes, definitely trying to look on the bright side nowadays! The movies are a great addition to the books in my opinion. They’re so light hearted and fun!
DeleteThe virus thing is definitely anxiety inducing- you just never know with these things! Hoping it's able to be controlled quickly. And I hope February is less stressful for you! I love that you read Nancy Drew and Winnie the Pooh. First of all I'm a big Pooh fan lol, but also I think it's a lot of fun revisiting those old Nancy Drew mysteries.
ReplyDeleteHave a great week!
Thanks Greg! Yeah, trying to stay away from the news these days.
DeleteMy cousin has a sentimental attachment to Winnie the Pooh, but I was honestly not familiar with the story beside a basic knowledge of the characters. I thought it was so adorable!