To the surprise of no one, my recent burst of blogging productivity tapered off lol But I'm happy that I'm reading again and got a in a few full length reviews!
I'm falling way behind again though, so I thought I would do a quick update of all the things!
LIFE
If you remember my health care app saga (I had no access to my Dr, RX's, appointments on my app for over a year. I called. And called. And called. Just to keep getting IT case #'s and no response. Kevin had talked to a Kaiser rep about an unrelated matter and the guy told him that it was an app issue. They were trying to enhance the app but broke the whole thing instead but won't tell anyone. So, I gave up and guess what??? 2 months later they fixed it! I have full access now and even ordered my refill through the app. The only thing I can't access, oddly enough, is billing and I don't care about that lol.
The next thing, if you recall, is my dissolving ECCO shoes. Kevin filled out all the paperwork and sent them back & they gave me a $100 credit. Not bad for older shoes with no receipt. All their shoes are fairly expensive though ($200+) and honestly, I just don't trust them anymore. You can only use the credit on more shoes, so I'm keeping my eyes on the sale page and will hopefully find something that doesn't cost me any additional money.
Fall has arrived right on cue - like a switch being flipped. The rain, wind and cold are here and I am instantly drained of joy and energy lol I enjoy fall things but cold, rainy weather depletes me.
READING
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Stars in Your Eyes by Kacen Callender (audio - ALC copy provided in exchange for an honest review)- 2 lead actors are forced into a fake relationship to help save the indie film project they are working on, thanks to Logan's bad boy persona. But Matty inlocks another side to Logan and things become too real. CW for this one - child abuse, rape, drug use, suicidal ideation, homophobia, PTSD < I really liked this one. It really handled trauma, healing and finding your own path sensitively. It was not your typical cliche bad boy, all sex M/M romance.
The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen - I've been struggling with romances lately but this one really hit the spot! I loved their chemistry - a enemies to lovers vibe but both are mature about it. The magical world, the family of undertakers, and supporting cast were all great. Hart is the most cinnamon roll of a grumpy hero & Mercy was a confident, snarky ray of sunshine.
Liked:
New Adult by Timothy Janovsky (audio - ALC copy provided in exchange for an honest review) - 13 Going on 30 vibe - upstart comedian, Nolan Baker is frustrated by his lack of success, lack of support for his career from family, and by his unrequited crush on best friend Drew. Enter a few magical crystals at his sisters cult like company (a running gag aimed at Gweneth Paltrow's GOOP - I think it was named Dupe?? I can' remember but it rhymed with GOOP) and Nolan gets exactly what he wished for - he's 30 years old and a successful comedian, with all the fame and money he could ask for. But at what cost? This was a lot of fun - light, good message, a touch of magic.
The Honeymoon Crashers by Christina Lauren (audible exclusive) - a cute short story for after The Unhoneymooners. Ami is determined to plan the ultimate, inexpensive, curse free wedding in Maui, for her sister Olive and finance Ethan (from the Unhoneymooners. She's forced to work with surfer dude vibes, best man, Brod,y and all her well laid plans go off the rails as she learns to relax and fall in love.
Ehh:
Funny Guy by Emma Barry - I struggled right from the start with this one. Sam is a comedian on a hit sketch show (think SNL) and self destructs on a regular basis, always going to his safe harbor and best friend Bree. During his latest antics, Bree is given a job opportunity that will take her away from NYC and Sam. Fearing his abandonments issues, she's reluctant to tell him and its' excruciating to finally let go of her love for him since it isn't returned in that way. Except...it might be? I love Barry's writing and I felt, for sure, she could guide me past some of Sam's selfish, bad boy stuff and root for a getting stronger Bree. However, they have such an unhealthy dynamic that I didn't think was ever truly addressed other than - they fell in love so it was no longer an issue.
DNF:
Divinity 36 by Gail Carriger - Carriger's books are always a little offbeat and I usually enjoy them even if I don't 100% get them but I am completely lost with this one. There are so many new terms and concepts always being thrown and me and I...just don't get it. There's a barista - Phex -who lives on one of the moons and alien hears him sing and wants to make him a God. And I think there's some sort of reality show competition for it? I don't know - I don't get it lol
What she does do really well, is write these sweet, found family, quirky, gender fluid type stories and if that's your jam then I say give it a go! I might pick it back up at a later date and see if I connect to it better.
WATCHED:
Afterparty S2 on Apple+ - dragged a bit but I like how it ended
What We Do in the Shadows on FX - loved this season!
Ahsoka on Disney+ - not bad.
No One Will Save You on Hulu - Kevin and I liked this one! It's about an alien invasion from the point of one girl living alone, in the woods. The movie is almost completely dialogue free. Not everything is 100% explained but I really loved how it ended.
Netflix - Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story - sad but interesting, Dolly Parton: Here I Am doc - I feel like they left a ton of personal stuff out (her philanthropy, theme parks - probably by her choice) but good.
Speaking of - I LOVE this cover of What's Up by 4 Non Blondes (ft. Linda Perry) for Dolly's upcoming rock album.
I'm glad they gave you a credit for the shoes. Hopefully the next pair will be better.
ReplyDeleteI will always carry a spare pair of shoes now lol
DeleteKevin come through. First, he finds out about the app deception, and then he gets you a $100 credit. Nice job, Kevin! I adored Hart & Mercy. I cannot wait for the sequel. The Honeymoon Crashers was cute. I was glad to see something good happen for Ami, and it was fun to catch up with Olive and Ethan
ReplyDeleteHe did!!! A year of calling IT and he calls with a billing question and gets an honest answer lol
DeleteHart and Mercy was such a swoony romance & Crashers was light and fun.
Glad the insurance hoopla is working finally. What's going on with the doctor situation? If I recall you had to do PT before you could progress further? How are you feeling?
ReplyDeleteLoved both seasons of The Afterparty - and what a great ending... made so much sense. We just binged both seasons over the past month. We have been waiting for all of Only in the Murders in the Building to be out, so that's what we'll be watching next.
My speech therapy went really well. She went above and beyond in researching my problem and helping with solutions. I was barely coughing anymore and my breathing got better. I backslid as soon as I finished though because I wasn't keeping up with the exercises she gave me ;-) I still have another CT scan of my lungs in November to see if the nodules have changed or are clearer to the tech.
DeleteWe've been waiting for OMitB to finish too. i think we'll start it this weekend.
Lol about billing. It's cooled off here but is still nice. I did see leaves turning overnight.
ReplyDeleteI've been watching Ahsoka and am sorta bored. But I need to catch up. I started watching Riverdale for the batshit quotient lol.
Yeah, Ahsoka is fine. Not must see but not awful lol
DeleteToday is beautiful. Rain, but breaks of sun and still cooler.
I still haven't finished...
DeleteI watched What we do in the shadows too, but I might be one season behind
ReplyDeleteThe latest season was so funny.
DeleteNew Adult was a nice story, I'm glad you liked it too. Hart and Mercy sounds fun!
ReplyDeleteI knew about the app thing, and I went back and read about your disintegrating shoes...that's wild LOL. And $200 for a new pair? is that because they have the superpower of disappearing when you start to get bored of them? 😂
ReplyDeleteBrace yourself for the WA winter...(...It's still summer here. The temps are around 30C - 86F 😮)
That brand of shoes is super expensive Which is why it's so infuriating that they dissolve mid-walking. I did find a pair that only cost me $20 additional. So, I guess that will have to do.
DeleteOur NHS has many faults but my goodness this sounds so complicated.
ReplyDeleteIt was SO ridiculous. My husband found out that they were revamping the whole online website and app but when COVID hit, they paused it all and it broke lol So it's taken them well over a year to fix but they do everything online or via app so it was a nightmare for me.
DeleteI completely empathize with the app situation. We payed my husband's hospital bill through the insurance app months ago and have continued to get mail from the hospital stating that our bill is overdue. We finally got through to someone who explained that the payments through the app are managed by a third party and that we needed to speak to them about the missing payment. It turns out, they sent a check to the hospital and the hospital never cashed it. All said, they refunded us the money and we were able to pay the hospital directly. Frustrating would be an understatement!
ReplyDeleteHoly crap. That's awful! They're just sitting on a check??!!
DeleteI had an opposite thing with this situation. I never got bills and I always paid my copays when I was at visits and didn't think anything about it. Turns out they were sending bills to the wrong address for 3 years & they were wracking up. I had done a change of address with them when we bought our house but I guess you have to call billing separately. I'm so lucky they never sent me to collections or charged me fines. But I had like, a $500 bill waiting for me.
I could go on and on about the crazy systems that have cost us money. The most recent was when we fought our property taxes this year. It turned out the county had only applied our exemptions to my husband's half of the property. They simply assumed that two men couldn't possibly both be owners and living in the same home! Needless to say, we'll be getting a nice refund this year, but the entire process is just ridiculous.
DeleteOh jeeze...it's ridiculous. and then we, potentially get fined for it. (sorry, your comment went to spam so I'm just seeing this)
DeleteGlad you got the app situation straightened out. Sometimes that stuff is more trouble than it's worth! And very frustrating about the shoes- I agree, I'd not want to waste another $100 either! Glad you loved Hart and Mercy, that is such a great one! No One Will Save You sounds VERY interesting. I may have to watch it if/when I get Hulu again!
ReplyDeleteNo one Will Save You was really cool. Weird ending but we loved it.
DeleteOMG finally! And they couldn't just say all this time that they had an app issue? Ugh. Thank goodness it's fixed. Nice on the ECCO credit but yeah, I'd be hesitant to drop more $$, too. Interesting that such major stuff would be left out of the Dolly doc.
ReplyDeleteYeah - just TELL ME it wasn't working instead of sending me through the depths of IT hell lol The billing guy Kevin talked to knew what was going for over a year. I wish I had talked to him sooner and saved myself some time lol
DeleteGosh... I swear I commented on this because I was talking about seeing if the shoe site sold other things than shoes like socks. 🤔
ReplyDeleteI hope you will do a life update soon. 🤗
They sell purses and belts on their site but the $100 could only be used on shoes. I ended up getting waterproof slip on boots on clearance that I can wear out back when taking out the dogs int he winter. I don't trust wearing them any further.
DeleteYou may have commented and it's sitting in spam. I haven't been on my computer in almost 2 weeks so I have to go check on all of that today.