Currently [Vol. 16]

I feel like so much has happened since my last Currently post. To be fair, that’s because I didn’t do one at the end of December, so it has been twice as long since my last one than there usually is. And December was kind of a wild month, so that makes me feel like soooo much has happened.

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Currently, I am …

Watching … The West Wing, Rizzoli & Isles, Elementary, Supernatural, and Buzzfeed Unsolved: Between being done with school and the chronic illness life, I’ve been watching a ton of TV. I started my annual West Wing rewatch after I finished my finals and I just finished the entire show. Whoops! I’ve also been watching Rizzoli & Isles and Elementary, both of which I had only seen a few episodes of before. Rizzoli & Isles is really good, and it’s set in Boston, which I love. My only problem with it is it’s basically summer the entire show (like, throughout multiple seasons). Boston does not have that kind of weather for more than one season, but supposedly years have passed? I’m a little annoyed with that continuity error, but not so annoyed that I stop watching. And Supernatural is back from hiatus! I’ve loved the new episodes, especially the backdoor pilot of Wayward Sisters, a spin-off featuring a 5-person found family of women who hunt monsters. Talk about girl power! And, of course, Buzzfeed Unsolved. I’m hooked – especially because the seasons alternate between being supernatural (like ghost hunting) and true crime. Give it a watch if you haven’t already!

Looking forward to … Finding out the plan for my ankle, starting work on my internship, and getting through TLM edits: If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter, you know that I’ve been in a walking cast since January 3. All of my health problems started with my left ankle, and while we now believe that most of that pain was arthritis, I do have a semi-rare congenital ankle condition that has decided to act up in my right ankle. I had a cortisone injection a few weeks ago and I’m in a boot until I see my surgeon on the 9th, which is when I learn if I need surgery. I’ll keep you guys posts as I know more. Right now it’s just a waiting game, which is a little frustrating, but it is what it is. I’m also looking forward to starting my editing internship! I’m not sure the exact date that it starts, but I’m looking forward to it. And I’m also looking forward to being done with TLM edits. TLM is my second novel, and I finished the first draft in August. Now I need to make it good. It’s an excruciating process because of the emotional connection you have to your own book, but I really want to get through a couple of drafts on my own before I bring in professional help.

Spending my time by … Taking care of Harley (my puppy), editing TLM, and planning M3: If you don’t follow me on Instagram, you’re missing out because WE HAVE A PUPPY! His name is Harley, he’s a golden retriever, and he’s 13 weeks old. Because he’s so little, he requires a ton of supervision, so that has been taking up a lot of my time. I don’t mind because I love him, but it’s a lot. I’m also spending a ton of time editing TLM. It is so time consuming for a couple of reasons. 1: I want it to magically become the book I know it can be, but that’s not happening without me putting the work in. 2: It’s 251 pages (double-spaced, 8.5″x11x). 3: I don’t know how busy my life will be once my internship really starts, so I’m trying to do as much editing as I can right now. Oh, and I’m also trying to do the pre-writing work on M3 (novel 3) because that’s way more fun, so I’m procrastinating by doing that.

Thankful for … My family and friends, my medical team, my pets, and all of you: According to my rheumatologist, I’m doing the best that I have in a long time (ankle excluded because it isn’t related to my chronic illnesses). I’ve achieved this through a coordinated effort with most of my doctors and finding the right balance of medication and other means. What I’m super thrilled about is I’m on the lowest dose of steroids that I have been on in years. I’m trying to get as low as possible without compromising my quality of life because if I have surgery, I’ll need to go on a high stress dose of steroids. Additionally, my rheumatologist thinks that one reason why I’m doing so well is because of Harley. I’m the most active that I’ve been in a while because I’m up and down taking him outside, which is really helping my fibro (it’s not helping my ankle, but whatever honestly). I’m also so grateful for all of you, the people who have “listened” to me rant on social media about my health, the people who have supported me and wished me well, and the people who have been kind enough to pray for me. So thank you. And now let’s put an end to this mushy stuff.

Reading … A Column of Fire, The Lost Order, Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, and Warning Light: I first started the month with Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, which is exactly what it sounds like. Given that I started editing TLM, this has been incredibly helpful. Each chapter is on a certain issue that fiction writers need to look for while editing, and each chapter ends with a to-do list for when you’re editing for that particular issue. There are also exercises to go with each chapter so you can apply what you’ve learned. I strongly suggest it! If you follow me on Instagram, you’re probably sick of seeing shots with The Lost Order in them. It’s a really good book – think if Dan Brown wrote a book about a Civil War secret society that had a vault of gold hidden away. If you like action books, books about politics, or history, you’ll like this one. I just started listening to A Column of Fire on Audible and I’m obsessed with it. It’s the third in the Kingsbridge series, although you don’t need to read either of the previous books to understand what’s happening. It’s about love in the time of the religious issues in the Tudor dynasty. It starts during Queen Mary I’s time, during which it’s illegal to be Protestant. Then it goes into Queen Elizabeth I’s time, where Protestantism was the norm. (It also helps that the 16th and 17th centuries are my jam, especially when it comes to English history.)

Throughout the entire month, I’ve also been reading Warning Light, which I got through NetGalley. Basically, an analyst from the CIA volunteers for a field mission and things go terribly. It’s an okay book, but it isn’t nearly as good as the others I’ve been reading. It just screams male escapism (how is this guy a master at certain defense acts and also be able to kill people with limited training?), so if you’re a guy looking for some CIA escapism, you’ll probably like this. I just am neither a man nor does my escapism involve being Tom Cruise from Mission Impossible.

Be my friend on Goodreads.

Hoping for … A resolution for my ankle that helps the pain but doesn’t require surgery and for Wayward Sisters to be picked up: So the first one is a big more serious than the second. I really want my ankle to feel better, but I also really don’t want to have surgery again, less than a year after my last knee surgery. The good news is I know this surgery works because of how it helped my left ankle, but the bad news is the recovery is ROUGH, so I don’t want to have it if I don’t have to. But I’m also really hoping for the second item here. Whether or not Supernatural continues for a long time or a short one, I’m really hoping that its spinoff happens. It seems like it’s just similar enough to Supernatural that I’d like watching it, but also different enough that it isn’t like Supernatural 2.0. And again – I want that monster-killing girl power!

Listening to … IDGAF by Dua Lipa, The Greatest Showman soundtrack, Heaven by Kane Brown, Finesse (Remix) by Bruno Mars and Cardi B, Reputation by Taylor Swift, and my Working playlist: I don’t have much to say other than I like all of the things listed here. I’m especially enjoying The Greatest Showman soundtrack because I don’t plan on seeing the movie (too much revisionist history of Mr. Barnum) but I love musicals, and the soundtrack is catchy! If you’re looking for a playlist to last an entire workday with a variety of genres in it, follow my Working playlist on Spotify. I update it regularly!

Feeling … frustrated with my body and by people who aren’t taking care of themselves this flu season: These two are pretty much unconnected. I’m annoyed with my body because my chronic illnesses are actually not awful right now, but my pain is still extremely high because of my ankle. The last few years, it has felt like I can’t catch a break. I’ve developed new conditions (endometriosis and POTS), I had a bad reaction to a medication and was hospitalized, I had knee surgery again, and then out of nowhere my ankle got incredibly angry. So I’m frustrated that this is where I am. But I’m also really frustrated by people who aren’t taking care of themselves this flu season. This flu is killing people at a terrifying rate and hospitalizing them even more. You need to cover your mouth when you cough, stay home if you can, hand sanitize like nobody’s business, and more. My vogmask has been out in full force this year because I’m terrified of getting the flu because I’m incredibly immunosuppressed. One of my friends got pneumonia and almost died because she’s immunosuppressed and someone gave her a virus. Please please PLEASE take care of yourself this flu season and stay home if you can.

Wearing … Madewell jeans, J. Crew Pixie Pant, sweaters, my vogmask, riding boots or sneakers only (they’re the only things that keep me even with my cast!): I’ve been all about comfort recently, but I did dress up occasionally. This was my favorite outfit from the month.

Loving … the Stila Matte ‘n Metal palette, having free time, my new headphones: This is my first semester when I’m not in school and I actually have free time. What? How is this possible? It has been amazing to work on my projects and still have time left to *gasp* read for fun. Additionally, I got this Stila palette for Christmas and it’s amazing because I actually like all of the shades. I talk more about it specifically in my post about makeup for fair skin. And I also got these amazing headphones for Christmas and I love them. They’re not noise canceling, but they’re pretty close, and I don’t have to worry about my ears hurting from wearing ear buds all day.

What are you currently reading, watching, or loving?

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