Episode 338 || Kids Table: Fall
Today Annie is joined by her cousin and frequent Bookshelf collaborator, Ashley Sherlock. Every season, they sit down at the metaphorical kids’ table to chat about what they’re reading, watching, listening to, and buying.
To purchase the books mentioned in this episode, visit our new website:
Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead
”Adrift” by Mark Nepo (This is a poem from this book)
Graceland, At Last by Margaret Renkl
Black Girls Must Die Exhausted by Jayne Allen
What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind by Jennifer Senior
Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket by Hilma Wolitzer
Bookshelf reusable grocery bags
From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com.
A full transcript of today’s episode can be found below.
Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Podcast Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.
This week, Annie is reading Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket by Hilma Wolitzer and Ashley is reading Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead.
If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free media mail shipping on all your online book orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.
We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.
episode transcript:
[00:00:00] Annie: Welcome to From the Front Porch, a conversational podcast about books, small business, and life in the south.
Perhaps most crucially an election map. Can't tell you what people are actually like. It doesn't even tell you what the people who consistently vote for charlatans and scoundrels are actually like human beings are always more complex than the way they vote could ever suggest people can be good and bad.
Brilliant and hopelessly shortsighted, empathetic and willfully blind. This is both the glory and the tragedy of human nature. We are not simple creatures, Margaret Renkl Graceland at last. I'm Annie Jones, owner of the bookshelf and independent bookstore in beautiful downtown Thomasville, Georgia. And today I'm joined by my cousin and frequent bookshelf collaborator, Ashley Sherlock, every season, Ashley and I sit down at the metaphorical kids' table to chat about what we're reading, watching, listening to, and maybe even buying. Hi, Ashley!
[00:01:21] Ashley: Hi again.
[00:01:23] Annie: Happy fall, y'all!
[00:01:25] Ashley: It's here. It's
[00:01:26] Annie: here. Is it here right now? I'm sitting in my super air conditioned little sunroom, and my windows are completely filled with condensation because it's really not fall feeling.
[00:01:39] Ashley: Fall has not entered the chat, but mentally we are there.
[00:01:43] Annie: Mentally we're there. I did want to do like a mental health check on you because I know you love summer. And summer's over.
[00:01:51] Ashley: I am really sad about summer being over. I'm not going to lie. I do not look forward to fall. Like it seems like the rest of the world does I am solar powered. I need, I need the sunshine. I need to be able to. Sit in the sun safely with sunscreen, but thank you for asking him. It's about to be a rough time.
Fortunately, I live in Florida, so I can sit by the pool until at least October, but yes. Thoughts and prayers?
[00:02:19] Annie: Yes. Thinking of you just wanted to check in, make sure you were hanging in there. So we're going to talk about what we're reading, watching, listening to, buying. And these aren't necessarily false themed.
Although I guess they kind of, I don't know. We'll see, I'm curious what you're reading, listening, blah, blah, blah. But we're doing this. We do this every season. So we did this for summer and now here we are at fall. Are you ready to talk about what you've been reading? Yes. Okay. Do you want to go first?
[00:02:48] Ashley: Am I going first? Sure. Okay, so I'm going to start with Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead. Did you read that one?
[00:02:55] Annie: I'm reading it right now.
[00:02:57] Ashley: Oh, me too. Okay. So I haven't, I haven't finished it. I'm listening to the audio book on Libra FM. And I think it was recommended to me by hunter. He said he thought I would like it.
But I think we're also, he and I are kind of also in the same boat and it being maybe a little bit slow to start. Slow to slow to keep us, slow to win us over. But I, I think I've, I've reached a turning point. Okay.
There's this, I liked the dual perspective and I don't really know how they connect yet.
But I think I'm getting there and there's, it's, it's a lot of, kind of like seedy underbelly type stuff, which I'm very into and yeah, I think it's about to get really good.
[00:03:40] Annie: I loved what I read and then put it down because it's so long. And I didn't feel like I could commit the time to it. And then hunters rave review, and I love Maggie Shipston.
Like I have loved her previous works so much. This was one of like my highly anticipated books of the summer, but I'm actually wondering if it might lend itself more to fall reading because it's so big that you can kind of like sit down and cozy up with it.
[00:04:02] Ashley: I like that. If you're reading the physical copy, I definitely like that.
But for the audio book purpose, I may have put it on 1.7 speed instead of one or 1.5, which is where I usually hang out.
[00:04:16] Annie: Yeah. Did you know, I'm sorry. I want to interject here and maybe she's listening. Somebody commented. I can't remember if she was a Patrion supporter. She may have been a patron supporter and I'm sorry, I don't know her name, but if I remember correctly and if you're listening, you feel free to comment, but somebody I want to say said they listened to audio books at life.
Oh four or six speed fig. And now I'm wondering if she meant if you are listening and you're that Patriot supporter or you're that listener? I would love to know. Level of audio book you listen to because I just, for the first time did like 1.5 and two maybe. Oh, I don't even think I've done two. I think I did 1.5.
I think I only did two. So Jordan and I could like finish an audio book right before we pulled into somebody's driveway. But this, whoever this person was, I think said she could listen to an audio book a day by listening to it on like for. For six speed. And I try to do that. And I was like, this sounds like two bugs talking to me.
And so maybe I misunderstood her. I would love to know because I cannot fathom listening to more. I can't fathom going higher than that.
[00:05:35] Ashley: No, absolutely not. I don't know why six is an option, but whoever that listener is, I would love some clarification or whoever else, if you think you're the fastest audio book listener, please tell me what speed can you put in on and also how much you retain from that book.
[00:05:54] Annie: Right? That's the big question because that's my whole issue with audio books is I am by nature, not an auditory learner. So. I already don't retain as much, I think as I would, or as I do. With a physical book. And I can't imagine if the speed is higher, but maybe it's somebody like, like Jordan, I don't think Jordan would listen to that high of a speed, but Jordan is an auditory learner and I think does retain a lot that way.
And so I'm just wondering if it's like a personality difference or if it's like speed reading, but speed listening. I'm just so curious where people listen to their audio books because I did not even know. Until recently that people were listening to more than 1.0.
[00:06:35] Ashley: Well, I did feel bad. I used to feel bad for putting it on 1.5, but then, you know, you have a 400 page book and not that much time, you could look at it faster than
on 1.0.
[00:06:53] Annie: Yeah. That's my thing. Okay. So Great Circle. Is a narrator good for the audiobook? Yes.
[00:06:58] Ashley: I, I need to look up their names because both of them, there's two of them, which I like. And they, they both sound very familiar, but no, I think both of their voices actually really capture the characters.
[00:07:11] Annie: Okay. Good. Okay. Mine is quite different. It is the books that I started the top of the podcast with is called Graceland, At Last. This is by Margaret Renkl. This is nonfiction. I immediately recommended it to my brother, your cousin, Chet. Like I think he's going to love this book. You might like it too. Here's what I like.
All it is, is essays and newspaper columns. So we're talking two to four page chapters, like nothing longer than that, because these are her newspaper columns and her essays, many of which have already been published somewhere else. And Margaret Renkl wrote about. But again, I do think you would really like called last migrations that I want to say came up either in 20, 20 or 2019.
What is time? And I have not read last migrations, but everyone who I know who read it, loved it. And it's still on my back list list. But this new collection, this new book is her collection of newspaper columns. She lives in Nashville, Tennessee. A lot of these columns appeared in the Tennesseean newspaper and it's all about living in the south.
She's been called the voice of the. She doesn't really like that term because she's a white lady, you know, flipping and living in Nashville. So she doesn't necessarily maybe speak for the whole of the south, but she does at least based on these columns that I've read, she does a pretty good job of showing the wide range of voices that exist in the south.
The wide range of belief systems that exist in the south and really have diverse and complicated. The Southern part of this country can be. I really, I love newspaper writing. I love journalistic nonfiction, and I just love, I agree with her a lot. I disagree with her some, but I really love just reading her, writing.
Her writing has really great late migrations was a lot of nature writing. And so the whole first. Section of this book is about nature. And so it's all columns that she's written about plants or trees or animals. And then the second section is about religion. And then the third section is about politics.
And so all of the essays are about these things that I really love and I'm interested in, but the chapters are so short that I will easily be able to finish this book and really have conquered a great work. I think of narrative non-fiction. So or journalistic non-fiction, it's not all of it is entirely.
Anyway. I really like it. I think you would like it as well. And I think it'd be especially helpful if you live in the south, but you have a complicated relationship with where you live or maybe you moved away from the south and you have thoughts about where you grew up, but you haven't been able to articulate them all. I just, I think she writes with a lot of grace in this book called at Graceland, At Last by Margaret Renkl.
[00:09:58] Ashley: I think that's something that I would like to look forward to reading this fall. So whenever you're done with it. please send it my way.
[00:10:05] Annie: Okay, good.
[00:10:06] Ashley: Okay. So this is actually the only other thing I have on my list because it's been a few months, but there's a poem called Adrift by Mark Nepo. Not sure how to pronounce his name and this is my first time reading him. The only thing I've ever read by him is this poem called Adrift. And it's, it's about nature. And I just think he did an excellent job of capturing people who have a lot of feelings, especially people who have a lot of feelings and also enjoy nature because it's all it is.
It's often hard to articulate the way. Being outside and just looking at natural things makes you feel, and it's interesting because like you feel happy. Like we go to nature to feel better. Typically at least that's what I do, but there's also a kind of sadness that comes with it and he just dive so deep in such a short it's like a paragraph of a poem.
He, he dive so deep into. You know, the emotions of how, you know, the, the wind underneath the bird's wings can make you feel sad. And I just think it's so beautiful. I had it pulled up on my phone, but then I lost it as a muscle would have pulled a few lines, but.
[00:11:19] Annie: Sounds beautiful. I also didn't do a poem, but I did do an article that I know you and I have talked about, and I still really do want to do an article club for the bookshelf and the, an article that I saw floating around the internet.
And then. Finally, got the time to sit and read it is “What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind”. This is by Jennifer Senior. It was published in the Atlantic. You can also, this is just a little tip in case people didn't note. So you can read this article, which is beautiful, and I read it, but then I want to Jordan treat it.
And the best way to get Jordan to read something is to make him listen to it. And so there is an app called I don't know how to pronounce the app, but it's AUD M autumn. I don't, I don't know. DM. I'm not sure. Anyway, it's an app and you can listen, you have to, I think there's like a free version and then you have to pay for version.
I actually do pay for a version, but you can listen to these longer form journalism pieces. And so we listen, it's almost like listening to podcasts episodes, so we listened to “What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind.” So I've, I've read it and listened to it. Hmm. This recording, we're recording before the 20th anniversary of 9/11, it will come out after the anniversary of 9/11.
I think this article would be a great way to honor and think about 9/11, where we all were 20 years ago. And what has transpired in the last 20 years and what are. Country and community look like 20 years later. It's the story of Bobby McIlvaine who died in the 9/11 attacks. He died exiting or kind of on the ground floor of the world trade center.
And it reflects on a missing diary. It reflects on his relationship with his parents, the very, to two very different roads. Each of his parents traveled on in terms of grief and kind of the different directions his parents went and just. The legacy of Bobby who was 26 when he died. I thought this was such gorgeous work of journalistic.
Non-fiction Jennifer Senior has ties to the McIlvaine family. And so certainly this essay, this, this work of journalism does feel extremely personal, but I also felt like she exhibited some boundaries in journalism as well. I just think it's that. It's a great listen as well, because it's narrated by and I'm so sorry that I do not have her name, but it's narrated by somebody who does a lot.
Oh, Julie Wayland. That's her name? She's one of my favorite audio book narrators. And she narrates, she reads this article if you decide to listen to it. So “What Bobby McIlvaine Left Behind”, it's just a, it's really thought provoking and I think you would like it a lot. I sent it to our family. I don't know who read it. I think my dad read it, but I like sent it out in like a group text and dad really liked it. So I'm going to recommend that. And then I'm also just going to put a plug in for this book that I'm reading as part of prepping for. Fall literary lunch. I'm trying to read a lot of fall books and some of them are hits and some of them are misses.
This one I think, is going to be really good. It's called black girls must die. Exhausted. This is by Jane Allen. And it is, I don't want to say a romcom because that's not really what it's like, but it does feel like, feel good fiction that also is not afraid. To deal with some of the harder parts of life.
It reminds me a lot of Lisa Cross Smith's this close to, okay. It's going to be a trilogy. It's the first in a trilogy. I think maybe this author had published like maybe self published these books and then a publisher picks them up. Nevertheless, I think they're going to be really feel good fiction. I think they're going to get a lot of attention when they're published.
The first one is called black girls Mustang, exhausted by Jane Allen. So that's what I'm reading. I really think you should read that 9/11 article.
[00:15:03] Ashley: I know I need to go back and find it in the group text.
[00:15:06] Annie: Get you, get you in your feels. Definitely. Sure. I'm sure you need that. What are you watching these days?
[00:15:19] Ashley: Okay, I'm going to start off with something that I want to watch. I think this fall and it's, I don't know. I actually don't know how I feel about it or if I'm actually going to watch it. But season three, season three of You is supposed to come out on October 15th.
[00:15:34] Annie: Oh, well, I'll be watching.
[00:15:35] Ashley: Okay, good. I can't remember like where I left it. It feels like I haven't seen it in five years. So I can't remember like. In what state it left me in, but I think I'm going to watch it. I've been, I was, I know I was super into season one and now they're kind of, they're starting to hype up season three and I think I'm excited.
[00:15:56] Annie: Maybe me, you and Caroline should binge the second season or something. Because I think it'd be fun to rewatch. I think it could be fun to rewatch. I mean, it's, I don't even know if it's objectively good TV is just very binge-worthy as I recall.
[00:16:12] Ashley: Yes. That's a good description. I think that's that's what I meant is if I didn't know if I wanted to watch it, but I do, and I think Caroline could handle Mare of Easttown, so she could handle You, right?
[00:16:22] Annie: Yeah. Yeah. I totally think so. I think we should watch it together. I think it'd be fun. Perfect. Okay. I have. A couple of things I want to recommend. I don't know how many watch you have watches. You have, I'll start with one that I don't know if you've watched yet. Jordan and I just started it. We're almost done with season one and that is Brooklyn nine, nine. Did you watch this?
[00:16:44] Ashley: No. Do I need to?
[00:16:46] Annie: Okay. I wasn't sure. Because I was kind of like, I know that it's funny. Like, I've heard that it's funny, but do I need a sitcom that has like seven, six or seven seasons? Like with. I think 20 or so episodes a season. Like, I don't know that I need that in my life, but I think I do Jordan and I have been watching it and we're not watching it every night.
We just watch a couple of episodes sometimes when we can and you can easily, it's like one of those books that you can pick up and put. Like, it's not like it's totally linear storytelling. Like the episodes are kind of standalone it's workplace comedy set at a precinct at a Brooklyn police precinct. So it definitely has, I think it has more parks and rec fives than the office vibes.
I also find Andy Sandberg to be handsome. I don't know how I feel about that. That's why I'm saying it in a questionable tone. Okay. No, blandly, we'll talk about actual handsome and just a second. So he is blaming handsome. But it is very funny. I think it took, I immediately thought it was funny. I think it took Jordan a minute, but now Jordan laughs out loud. There's there are just some really funny characters. They're very quirky and that's kind of why the parks and rec tie-in and each character is so distinct. I think Caroline might like it too. Anyway. I think it's very fun. And you could, you don't have to binge it. Like you can just watch a couple of episodes and then, you know, a few days later when you're in the mood for something funny, you can watch.
[00:18:10] Ashley: All right. Sounds good. So I'm watching a lot of comfort shows right now, you know, just going through the same things that you always watch, but I'm also on the internet. So I found this person on the internet. Okay. This isn't, it's not TV. And you know, I'm an avid Tik TOK user. I'm not proud of it, but this is where I spend a lot of time.
And I have found this boy to watch his name is Charles Gross, and he has the most soothing, calming voice that I have ever heard come from a man I'm 26 years old living in New York and he. He just talks about all things luxury and look, I don't have it
because of course I know. I
know. Look, I don't have any business. Like I don't, I don't mean I don't, I can't, I'm not going to buy a $700 pair of high heels, but do I want to do. What makes them better than every other high heel? Absolutely. And he, he talks about luxury items. He talks about like high profile events, like what actually happens in like, once you get inside the Met Gala. And see, it's not.
[00:19:26] Annie: That I'm interested in.
[00:19:27] Ashley: Right? It's it's behind the scenes of stuff like that. And he also talks about like the Kardashians and like why, why they're successful and his opinions on. Clothing lines or product lines, whatever. And my most recent favorite video from him is 10 responses to, why are you so dressed up today?
It was just like, it's dumb, but it's, I'm going to use some of them.
[00:19:52] Annie: Well look, it does sound right up your alley. You do love luxury adjacent things I
[00:19:59] Ashley: do. And I think the internet is figuring that out because I've started being served Instagram ads for Tory Burch, which I'm not going to be purchasing anytime soon, but I like that Instagram thinks that I could.
[00:20:15] Annie: Yeah, the algorithm has figured it out. Yeah. Okay. My next one. So I would like to be clear, like I know that Brooklyn nine, nine is like a decade old. I understand that. I also know the show I'm about to recommend is decades. Plural old. Trust me, Jordan and I are looking forward to the return of succession and things like that. Like we're pumped about that, but the reality is that fall to me.
I want to read fall books and I want to watch fall TV. So I've already thought to myself, is it time to start rewatching some episodes of Gilmore girls? Like it's been a while since I've done that. Should I pull that out of my, you know, DVD box? Like, is it time instead last night, Jordan and I had waited, we had said we'll rewatch this, but it makes most sense to rewatch it in the fall.
And so last night we found on Hulu. That great nineties, classic Felicity. Have you seen Solice? No, I haven't. Yes. I know your dad has he used to have the box? I know I now have that box set, but I'm sorry to say that the Florida heat like ruined the DVDs, which is why Jordan and I waited. It just became available on Hulu.
I think this summer and we've been waiting because again, it is such a fall show. It's about this character played by Carrie Russell and Felicity Porter, Felicity graduates from high school in California. And. Ashley while you're here. I don't know. How's your internet. Can you open up a new tab? Yes. Okay. I want you to type in Felicity, Noel and Ben. Noel is how they pronounce it on the show, but I'm pretty sure you spell it. Like no, you know, E L and I want you to just image search that.-- Ben is the only blonde I've ever loved.
[00:22:21] Ashley: I'm trying to figure out why? He's he's a blond nerd with a nose.
[00:22:27] Annie: Yes, he does. He's not super nerdy in the show. He's like this he's the cool guy. And then Knoll is the sensitive nerd. But the problem with that for me is the word sensitive. I just am not interested in a sensitive male. I just don't. But here's what I need you to know.
Essentially, the show is a love triangle, but it's also a coming of age because she decides she lives in California and she goes to high school with this guy named Ben. She has had a crush on Ben for a long time. She gets him to sign her yearbook. He signs her yearbook and he's like, wish we'd gotten to know each other more.
I'm so sorry. I never talked to you. I think we could have really hit it off. He reads that and is like, She asks him. She says, wait, where are you going to college? And he says, oh, I'm going to New York. So she dumps her plans to stay in California and moves to New York and goes to college in New York, just to chase this crush.
Everything I stand firmly against Felicity does. It is so emotional and overly wrought and. Just teen angst. Like you've never seen teenage angst. If you liked Dawson's Creek, this is so fun because it's set in a college it's set in New York city. All she wears is cozy sweaters with her ginormous curly hair and Jordan and I paused it multiple times.
Last night, we watched the first. We pause it multiple times last night to laugh and to talk about these angsty teens. But the show was created by JJ Abrams. Who's famous. Like he did my other one of my other favorite shows alias, but he's like world famous now. So it's fun to also see all of these actors, like Scott Foley has been in a lot of other things.
Keri Russell has been in a lot of other things like, so it's fun to see all these actors kind of at their beginnings and. It is. I highly recommend if you, I know we keep talking about Caroline, but I know you and I, we have made it our mission to introduce her, to pop culture. If you and Caroline are looking for a fall show to binge like Dawson's Creek or like Gilmore Girls, here you go. You're welcome. I love you both. I want nothing but the best for you. Caroline will love Noel, you will love Ben. It's delightful.
[00:24:43] Ashley: Is it streamable or do we need DVDs?
[00:24:45] Annie: Hulu go stream it..
[00:24:47] Ashley: Okay, perfect. Okay.
[00:24:50] Annie: But when you do wait, wait, but when you do live texts me.
[00:24:53] Ashley: Okay, can do. Okay. So I think one, one place where our Venn diagram does not overlap is seasonal watching of things.
I think really you're just a more organized person than I am, and I don't have time to think about, I don't make time to think about what's in season in terms of TV. I mean, like I like Christmas movies at Christmas, but I would almost always rather be watching something that has to do with a beach vacation or a comedy, a comedy set.
And I don't care when so interesting. I'm learning to be okay with it. It's fine. But the last thing, last thing I have that I've been watching since yesterday is the Steve from Blue's Clues.
[00:25:43] Annie: You're welcome.
[00:25:46] Ashley: It was, I saw that, so I actually first saw it on the internet. And first of all, he looked at exactly the same.
And that's what Jordan said. He, I can't
tell if this was, I mean, I think it's sincere, right? Don't you think this is sincere? Yes. Otherwise he's a very good actor, but it would have. The most feel good video that I have ever seen. And if Steve from Blue's clues is proud of. And how far I've come then, dang it. So am I!
[00:26:20] Annie: Oh, I definitely think it was sincere. He was giving off serious Mr. Rogers vibes and I mean, that would be of most praise. And if you go Google him and you read his Wikipedia page. Yeah. I think it was sincere. You know, I did that deep dive. I feel confident that he was being. Really genuine in talking to even people like me, who way past their prime.
We're watching blues, please. That's what was so funny is I watched it because of you and Caroline, you guys were so into blues clues and Jordan, I didn't know this, but Jordan washy with his cousins who he babysat all the time, who are about who are in between you and Caroline's ages. And. I was watching that video last night and Jordan was in the bathroom and he poked his head out of the bathroom and he goes, is that Steve?
My heart? And I thought Jordan would kind of be eye-rolling about it. Cause Jordan really doesn't need to be told, like you're doing. Right. And instead, Jordan sat there. I was like brushing my teeth, like toothbrush hanging out of my mouth. And we both were just mesmerized by Steve telling us that don't worry about student loans and family planning and you know, life we're doing great.
We did the whole world, all every millennial, we all needed it. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. This, you talk about seasonal watching and you're right. That I really that's a big part of my personality is doing things seasonally. Like I will break out you've got mail. And when Harry met Sally very soon but something Jordan, I enjoyed this summer that we are just not going to finish in time.
So we're going to keep watching. I think we're good. We're pretty close here, but. I have been watching the Marvel movies in chronological order all summer long. We've been doing Marvel Mondays. We've also been doing Wizarding Wednesdays. It's been a delightful, like summer routine. But anyway, we've been, we've been watching these Marvel movies and I did it partly just because I was like, almost like for Jordan's sake.
Cause I feel like I'm always watching Gilmore girls or something and I thought, oh, this is something that I can put up with in Jordan Wilson. Instead, I've been very, I've just had a really great time. I want to plug and this'll go into buying as well, but I want to plug bookshelf T's Lauren at bookshelf teas.
She is who posted about watching the Marvel movies in chronological order or she's who I saw. And now bookshelf T's has released like a Marvel. A Marvel collection of t-shirts and sweatshirts, I will definitely be buying one to reward myself for making it through Marvel movies in chronological order.
So I highly recommend that, but the movies have just been really fun and I'm more in love with Chris Evans than I've ever been. Nev. I didn't really know if he was like in my wheelhouse of like, cause he's not nerd with a nose. Like I understand that he is just generically handsome, but I really just find him to be charming as captain America.
I just love these movies. Highly recommend. We've had a great time, like a really, really good time watching them together and we're going to keep doing it until we run out, which has never, because Marvel was always putting them out. And that is true.
That I
could get into. I think you could just because it's really fun now. Here's what you do need to know. These are long movies. They're like two and a half hours, two hours, but we've been watching them on Monday nights. I just, I know movies are hard for you, so I don't know, but the characters are just so fun and then it's fun to watch.
I had seen so many. Out of order, you know, like I had just watched one in the theater or whatever, but to see all of them combined and to see them come together, I think you would really, like, I think you'd love for think you'd love for, and I think you would really like some of the Avengers movies in particular, when all of them come together, we watched civil war this week and I thought it was going to be super stressful.
And instead I loved it, thought it was great. Highly recommend. Good to know. Okay. What are you listening to? Okay.
[00:30:24] Ashley: I'm listening to, I've listened to this album twice through now and it's Reverie by Ben Platt. Have you listened to it yet?
[00:30:33] Annie: Oh yeah. He's so good. He's so good.
[00:30:36] Ashley: I love, I can listen to this entire album all the way through, which often can't be said for a lot of albums, but I really like this one.
[00:30:45] Annie: Yeah, I do too. Are we getting tickets to him or what?
[00:30:48] Ashley: I would very much like. But once we, it might have to be put on hold once, after we talk about what I've been buying.
[00:30:57] Annie: Lately we don't, or we don't have money for anything else. Okay. In terms of music I've been listening, this is an oldie, but a goodie I've been listening to a lot of Sandra McCracken.
Have you ever gotten into her? No, I haven't. She's like soothing kind of folk somebody's cringing at that description, but she's soothing Christian music. Like she definitely is a Christian musician, Christian artists, but for some reason, I don't know. Again, I just think fall when I think of Sandra McCracken.
And so the other day I was working upstairs at the bookshelf, I pretended it was cold outside. All it was was hot and rainy, but I pretended it was cold outside. Mary Catherine wasn't in the office yet. So I just listened to Sandra McCracken while I did my work. It's very soothing work music. Like if you need something to work to.
And for some reason it just seems cozy fall to me.
[00:31:48] Ashley: Nice. I've found a new podcast. I didn't find it. It was recommended to me in therapy. But it's called Popping Perfectionism. And it's actually, it was actually a nice little listen. It's only six episodes long, which I like not a huge commitment.
And it's just these two girl best friends talking about their experience with perfectionism. I'm not really sure. I don't think they're necessarily qualified to talk about anything like psychologically. My understanding was just the, you know, they're just chatting about their experience and it was, it was a delight.
It was quite enjoyable and educational.
[00:32:24] Annie: Oh, that sounds lovely. Have you seen on the internet, all of those, like tweets and memes that are like, there's something like, do you have anxiety or are you just an eldest daughter? Like yes. All of them make me laugh so hard. One of them was like, do you like being in charge?
Or, or you just an eldest daughter or are you a natural born leader? Are you just an eldest daughter? And they all crack me up and they all are so accurate. It makes me laugh. Definitely. Okay. In terms of podcasts, I have been listening to and I am recommending it because I think it is truly excellent journalism, but if you're like me.
In the words of that bachelor contestant many years ago, it might be time to guard and protect your heart against rage. Like, I just feel like I can't be angry all the time. I just can't. And so I'm recommending this with caveats because it is one of those things that does make me a little ragey and then I have.
Do some thinking and checking in with myself, whatever, but it is called the rise and fall of Mars hill. Probably you've heard about it, especially if you're Christian adjacent, if you're in Christian culture at all, but I very much was on the internet in the. 2008 era when mark Driscoll was like all the rage and Christian blogging was all the rage.
And so all of this is very familiar to me. And also I went to a, I mean, I think we all have, well, if you go to church, you probably have church issues. Like, I just think that's how it is. Right. Because churches are made of people and people are imperfect. But I went to a church that definitely.
Struggled with narcissistic leaders and watching that fall, then listening to this one and kind of seeing the parallels, like listening to this podcast and seeing the parallels in my own church going experiences has been interesting and sobering. So I'm recommending that, but again, listen to it.
If you, if you can, like, it's okay. If you can't like, we don't have to listen to everything. I think you would like it, but like, I listened to it. And sometimes Jordan and I listened to it together. And almost that is a little bit better because I can just get up in my angry feels about things. I don't know why I don't, I didn't consider myself a ragey person, but the pandemic has really brought things out.
And then the other thing, I am pretty sure you do this too, but you tell me, so every season I create a new playlist and I just. Songs that I love. And so my summer playlist, I feel like it's done now because we've hit labor day. And so all summer long, I've been adding like some of my favorite songs to this playlist.
It's like an hour and 16 or 36 minutes, which I personally think is ideal for a playlist. And it's all done. It's like, I've finished, it's called my summer 2021 playlist. And now I'm going to start working on fall. Don't you do this too?
[00:35:16] Ashley: I do, but not quite. I just have a couple of catch all playlists. Like I've been working on this one for probably three years. And now like, and now I just go through phases of listening to like, you know, only a few songs each time I open a playlist.
[00:35:35] Annie: I don't know why I'm obsessed with seasons. I really don't. I think it's just to help me cause yours seem long. And if we just break it up into seasons, it's more doable, but yeah,
I'm gonna start working on my fall playlist here pretty soon, but the summer one has done. I'm really pleased with how it turned out. I don't, it's never my intent to create a beautiful playlist like that. Flows perfectly. That's not it at all. It's really, it's literally just me finding a song. I like, and then being like, oh, it's summertime.
So I'm going to add it to my summer playlist. Like, so there's some random stuff on there, but I really do. It's been fun to do. And I'll do it again for fall. Yeah. Okay. Drum roll please. Where are you been spending your money?
[00:36:13] Ashley: This is the longest list I have for today. All of all of my time and energy has not gone to listening, reading, or watching, but, so this list is like twice as long as anything else I wrote down for today.
It's fine. It's totally fine. Where to start doing, do you still have those reusable, grocery bags and stuff? Okay, we'll start with that. So, okay. The bookshelf has new reusable, grocery bags that are like,
[00:36:44] Annie: They're so cute.
[00:36:45] Ashley: They're net material. And they're stretchy. So like they look small when they're just like sitting there, but you can fit so much in them. May or may not have put my 13 pound dog in one of them just to see if it would be cute. And it was very cute.
I was going to get one, but I couldn't decide between two colors. So I got them both. And. I have not had a single regret since also haven't taken them to the grocery store yet because I've never, I've never been a reusable grocery bag person.
I've always wanted to be, but it makes me a little bit nervous just because like, what do you, what do you do with them when you get there, you usually shop with your reusable grocery bag, then hand it to the person?
[00:37:29] Annie: I put mine. Cart. And then I, when I check out this is by the way, this is when I remember this is always, my issue is I rarely remember my bags, but at checkout I just hand the, or my bags and they fill them.
One good thing about a reusable grocery bag is it fits so much more than the plastic. So like, you know, if you're one of those people, cause I definitely am where you get out of your car and you're like, I can carry all these groceries and you put like 10 bags per arm.
[00:38:00] Ashley: All up your arm, up to your shoulders.
[00:38:04] Annie: Yeah. And so it is kind of nice that like, oh, and those, those bags you bought will stretch. And so you can just have two grocery bags.
[00:38:10] Ashley: Yeah. I think it's gonna make life at the grocery store a little bit easier if I can remember to bring it up.
[00:38:15] Annie: Look, I'm going to have to restock those. Those have gone like crazy. And I think my favorite colors sold out even though all the colors were super cute, but I think I'm going to have to restock. They're great. And they're only like 10 bucks, I think
[00:38:25] Ashley: 10 bucks highly recommended, highly recommend people listening. Get them.
[00:38:29] Annie: Okay. My first one is. I don't know how to say this because all bodies are beautiful. I do want to say that. And, but I do just, I have gained pandemic weight, like okay. And I do feel like a little bit like I do feel a little bit like Rachel McAdams and mean girls, like only sweat pants would be down.
Like my jeans don't fit anymore. And I like in a fit of rage just threw them. Like I didn't throw them away, nobody panicked, but I responsibly donated most of the pairs of jeans that are. And then luckily providential my mother, who's like a fashion icon, Susie B. She gave me a lot of her old jeans. So like I'm set, but the one pair of jeans that still fits and that I think still looks great.
And it's still super comfortable are a pair of J crew factory jeans that my friend Courtney recommended to me and I can't rave about these jeans enough. And so if you are like me and maybe, maybe the pandemic got to you and you ate all that sour. What is it? Sourdough bread. Somebody else, if you ate all that sourdough bread that somebody else recommended to you, and you also just need to go spend some money on some new jeans.
I think J crew factory has great jeans and I would never have known that were it not for my friend Courtney. So I just wanted to throw that out there that they have good jeans.
[00:39:54] Ashley: You and I have both benefited from Susie B's closet recently.
[00:39:59] Annie: Oh yeah. I got truly, I think I got three pairs of jeans that are great. And so I think I'm set. I think I'm going to buy one more pair of boyfriend jeans from J crew, because this is what I would like to say about changing weights. Just buy clothes that fit you. You don't have to, like, you don't have to like suck into your old jeans. Get rid of that.
[00:40:18] Ashley: Don't force it. You can be comfortable.
[00:40:21] Annie: Yeah. I just needed a new jeans in the right size. And so I went out and bought them. Actually, my mom gave them to me. And so.
[00:40:28] Ashley: Does this mean, does this mean that all three of us now we're the same size jeans can all share?
Very excited about that possibility.
[00:40:40] Annie: That would be exciting because I don't think that's ever happened before.
[00:40:44] Ashley: No. Pro tip. Find someone, find someone who wears your same size pants and you both buy different pants and then swap.
[00:40:53] Annie: Oh, okay. Done. I'm going to send you some links later. Okay. Okay. What's
[00:41:00] Ashley: next for you?
All right. Next speaking of gaining weight from eating things found a new Starbucks drink. You found a new Starbucks drink, but I tried it.
[00:41:07] Annie: I sent it to you.
[00:41:08] Ashley: You did from Hannah queen? I believe.
[00:41:12] Annie: There's the one great follow.
[00:41:14] Ashley: Okay. I haven't followed her yet, but she's also the one who posted that that poem that I talked about. So, yeah, she's, she's really good. But the drink is at Starbucks. It's an oat milk latte with brown sugar syrup and apple drizzle. Now this is not a perfect drink. Okay. I have not tried the hot version. I only tried an iced version and I believe it would be better hot. Okay. Not sure. Not sure what was throwing me off with the ice. I think maybe the apple makes the coldness. I'm not really sure. So haven't, haven't figured out ratios and stuff like that, but overall, overall, the review is good. Very, very fall.
[00:42:02] Annie: Okay. And if you live somewhere, that's not a hundred degrees and humid and liking, like stepping into a mouse, then it probably, if you get the hot version and really enjoying it, it's good for people.
[00:42:13] Ashley: Good for people who don't like pumpkin spice stuff. There's nothing pumpkin spice in here. Okay. But I also like pumpkin.
[00:42:22] Annie: If you go down the Felicity rabbit hole, then you're going to want some cozy sweaters. It's like, if you give a moose a muffin, if you give a millennial Felicity, she will buy a cozy sweater to buy your cozy sweater.
I think you should go to the common room shot. Where I have been spending a lot of money all summer long because she did this great little women collection. She does Harry Potter inspired clothes, like, and I love them all because they're like inspired by, but you don't feel like you're a walking. I don't know fanfiction.
I don't, I don't know. I feel like she does a really good job of curating clothes inspired by these iconic films and books. And she has a great sweater right now, which I think I've almost convinced myself. I need to buy after watching Felicity last night. It's great colors, especially if you're a Griffin door or an FSU fan.
But just in general, she has some really great sweaters that I think are definitely in that Felicity vibe. And so yeah, if you go down the full city rabbit hole, you're going to need a sweater and you should get it from the common room shop. There'll be a link in the show notes.
[00:43:25] Ashley: I will be documenting my, if you give a millennial Felicity journey, this is going to be a ride I'm excited.
Okay. Next for me is tennis shoes. I, I go through the tennis shoes. I wear them a lot and I like them a lot. I think they look cool. But my most recent favorite pair is by a company called Newton. Like sir, Isaac Newton. I don't know a ton about the company. I know they just switched owners. But the reason I like their shoes is because the kinds that I buy their new gravity's gravity is like the type of shoe.
They have like extra, it's not padding, but just like a little bit of extra, some, some underneath what's the part where like your toes connect to the rest of your.
[00:44:10] Annie: Your arch, your web, your ball, the ball of your foot.
[00:44:13] Ashley: Ball of your foot and the under the ball of your foot area. It's great for stability work. It's great for high impact work. But it's also great. If you just want to like, go for a walk and like sub not subconsciously build, build muscles without trying.
[00:44:34] Annie: Oh. Yep. I do.
[00:44:37] Ashley: Highly recommend.
[00:44:39] Annie: Remember those shoes. I've also been watching some of the Mindy project, which is a great show, the first couple seasons, especially, but she talks about her Skechers.
Oh, what does she call it? Those are my Sketchers. And they like build muscle while you walk. But they probably didn't. I bet the Newtons really do it.
[00:44:56] Ashley: They do. My calves have never been more sore.
[00:45:02] Annie: Okay. Okay. My last thing is just a clothing store. I got sucked into an Instagram ad and I just want to share the love. There's a brand called up west that is based, I believe out west. I want to say Colorado, but I'm not a hundred percent sure if you're listening to this and you are also on Instagram and like close similar to me, then you probably have already seen this ad or maybe.
In Texas or Colorado where they have up west stores. And so you're already familiar with this brand. I was not, but boy, did I just buy three things last night, added them to my cart and hit buy. Their fall collection is really cute and comfortable looking. And also doesn't look, the thing is as much as I love Felicity Porter inspired sweater, I can't wear those all the time here.
And so what I liked about some of the up west clothes that I bought is that they look. A little more lightweight and like, not as bulky, even though I love a bulky sweater, it's just not meant to be for me here. And so I just liked the weight of the clothes and that they were pretty, low-key looking very Jo March inspired in my opinion. So that brand is called Up West.
Should we tell people what we bought? I was on my list. Tell people what we, yeah, we should. I think so that we bought together.
For our October. Yes. I don't know why that was so confusing. We buy a lot of the same thing we do, but we literally bought this together and we're going to see if it was the dumbest thing we've ever done.
Who knows? Who knows, but we're going to Boston. We're going to Boston, not Georgia, Boston, mass.
Oh, we're going to Boston. Can you, what is the trip called again?
[00:46:49] Ashley: Cheer her on weekend.
[00:46:50] Annie: Cheer her on weekend. We're going to cheer her on weekends. Which is something I think I saw about I think I saw it on Aaron moon's Instagram, but then I started following the trip coordinator, Melissa, who works at orchard house, which is the Louisa may Alcott home where I have been once before, but you know, where I haven't been.
In the fall new England look, I was so excited, but that literally was it an hour after we bought tickets, I texted Ashley and I was like, did we just make a mistake?
[00:47:21] Ashley: Look, we can't fully commit because COVID, that's true of us. Neither of us has seen new England in the fall though. And so there's kind of a lot riding on this.
You know, all, you know, all about this trip, I'm just kind of along for the ride to have a good time. Maybe, maybe I'm hoping this trip will help me transition a little bit easier from summer into fall.
[00:47:43] Annie: I hope so too. I look, I'm really excited. We're holding these plans loosely because of COVID also, we, I do follow Melissa on Instagram, but I know nothing about cheer her on, which is a podcast.
I think I know, I know, I know nothing. They really just sold me on new England in the fall with the little women house. That's w that's what we're going for. I do need you to know this is the first time you're going to be hearing this. It's a struggle to find an Airbnb. So that's our latest plight.
[00:48:12] Ashley: Okay. So
[00:48:15] Annie: I've got to be listening. I need to, I need to be doing better.
[00:48:18] Ashley: We also all look to, we are not spontaneous people, but this. Definitely a spontaneous purchase.
[00:48:26] Annie: This is as spontaneous as I've been in years. I just, I just don't do spontaneity. You just basically my entire reading, watching, listening to was me planning out what I'm going to watch and read and listen to it in the fall planning it, which is not a spontaneous person, but we literally were texting one night and it should be admitted at a local.
And we were like, should we do this? And we decided to do it. So we've bought the trip, we've bought the airfare, but now we need to look into the Airbnb. But yeah, we're going to cheer her on weekend in October in Boston, barring catastrophe. I get to wear a sweater. It should be great.
[00:49:07] Ashley: It's going to be fine. It'll all be fine.
[00:49:09] Annie: Okay. Thank you so much, Ashley. Thanks for having. If you want to sit at our metaphorical kids' table and of course, you're welcome. We encourage you to follow the bookshelf on Instagram and find the Instagram posts talking about the kids' table so that you can tell us what you've been reading, watching, listening to and buying.
So. Let Ashley know if you try her and Hannah's Starbucks drink. We'd love to know
From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website:
A full transcript of today’s episode can be found at:
This week, I'm reading. Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket by Hilma Wolitzer.
Ashley, what are you reading?
[00:50:21] Ashley: I'm reading Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead.
[00:50:24] Annie: If you liked what you heard on today's episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes, or if you're so inclined to support us on Patreon, where you can follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic and you can participate in monthly lunch break Q and A videos, just go to: patreon.com/fromthefrontporch
We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.