M. Suzanne Terry

Well, it’s here.  Texas summer.  It took its merciful time getting to Denton, but this week it seems to be making up for lost time.  Goodbye, low utility bills.  I’ll miss you most of all.

June means:

– summer conferences in Housing

– having most of my conversations start with some variation of, “I haven’t seen you in so long – where have you been?”  Working.  Always, always working during the school year.  Summer means no teaching, though, which makes just working my full-time job feel like time off.

– summer cleaning (because it was too nice outside/too busy in the spring)

– snow cones

And all these things:

Books

Apparently I think I’m a young adult, because YA fiction is what I’ve been reading lately.

In June, I finished the latest in Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments series.  They’re…okay.  I would have enjoyed them more in a month when everything else I read was terrible, but that’s not really a recommendation, is it?  If you have to read poorly written things to appreciate something, maybe it’s best to advise others to skip it.  Especially if they happened to read something like Lord of the White Hell by Ginn Hale in the same month.  There’s just no comparison.

I also read Citrus County by John Brandon.  He writes dialogue well.  I can read just about anything with well-written dialogue.

My favorite book of the month was Will Grayson, Will Grayson.  I love John Green.  Every time I read another book of his for the first time, I gush and say, “This is my favorite book I’ve ever read of his!”  And it’s true every time, but it’s especially true with this one.  This is my favorite favorite.  I’ve never read anything else by David Levithan, but I certainly will now.

In July, I am actually reading books written for proper grown-ups (well, older ones, anyway):  The Paris Wife, Let the Great World Spin, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Snapper, The Cookbook Collector, and I might finish A Storm of Swords and Quiet.  I also might start Infinite Jest.  Maybe.

Or maybe I’ll just catch up on TV.

TV is my boyfriend:

The only movie I watched this month (or last month, for that matter) was Friends with Kids.  It’s not new, but it had me at Adam Scott, whom I adore.

I haven’t even watched a lot of TV this month.  I finished the last season of The West Wing.  Yes, it was my first time.  I’m glad I waited until it was off the air, because I am pretty sure I would have been an emotional disaster if I had actually followed it as it was airing.  Just the whole time.  In related news, if anyone is looking for gift ideas for me, you’ll notice that I’ve provided a link in the previous line for your convenience. /shameless

Lately, I’ve been watching Dr. Who.  I’m about halfway through the fourth season.  The weeping angels are still the creepiest villains. *shudders*

And I haven’t been watching Game of Thrones, but I had to see what everyone was so upset about re: the wedding of doom.  Clearly, these upset fans have not read the books, or they’d be used to people dropping like flies (and don’t yell “Spoiler Alert” to me.  If you don’t know that a lot of people die in this story, you haven’t been paying attention, because…um…war).  I like that the episode inspired this (spoilery) and this (spoilery).

I can’t believe I missed the start of SYTYCD.  I love that show.  Fair warning – next month will probably include videos of dances that everyone just really needs to see.

Music:

At work, I have been rocking my Pandora stations, specifically the Build Me Up, Buttercup station and the Edith Piaf station.  You’re welcome, coworkers.

In my car, it’s been Melody Gardot and Madeleine Peyroux.

Food:

I’m taking Preston Yancey’s Sacramental Baking course, and I now am addicted to sourdough.  Seriously – I might have a problem.  A happy, delicious problem about which none of my friends are complaining.  You can throw just about anything into a loaf of sourdough.  Sundried tomato and olive is my current favorite.

It’s summer, though, so most of what I have been making are a thousand different salads.  My favorites in June were this Mediterranean couscous salad,  arugula pasta salad with chickpeas and goat cheese, and anything with this lemon garlic vinaigrette dressing,

I also bought Popsicle molds and made many frozen treats.  My favorites were vegan peach pie pops and vegan orange creamsicles.

I want to make this banana jam…and possibly roll around in it a little.

The Interwebs:

– The person who made this cake is pretty much my hero.

– 31 Unmistakable Signs that You’re an Introvert.  Yep.  If the crowd is too big, I will socialize with your cat.  And ONLY your cat.

– My Imaginary Well-Dressed Toddler Daughter on Pinterest.

– Jonalyn Fincher’s video response to Jessica Rey’s The Evolution of the Swimsuit

That about sums it up.  Looking for something else to read, watch, or generally be into?  Check out similar posts at Leigh Kramer’s blog!