Episode 369 || Spring Kids' Table
This week on From the Front Porch, we invite you to pull up a chair at the Kids’ Table. The Kids’ Table is our seasonal episode series where Annie sits down with former colleague, friend, and cousin, Ashley Sherlock. They catch up on what they’re reading, watching, and listening to each season.
To purchase the books mentioned in this episode, visit our new website:
Reading:
Funny You Should Ask by Elissa Sussman
The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green (audiobook through Libro. FM)
“How an Ivy League School Turned Against a Student ” by Rachel Aviv
The Unsinkable Greta James by Jennifer E. Smith
When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo
Watching:
Bridgerton season two
Yellowjackets
Rothaniel
Upload
Severance
The Adam Project
Listening To:
“Hilarious” by Charlie Puth
Harry Styles’ “As It Was”
Maggie Rogers’ “That’s Where I Am”
Buying:
Jo Malone perfume sampler set
Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter
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.
Thank you again to this week’s sponsor, The 101st annual Rose Show and Festival, here in Thomasville, Georgia. If you want to come for the weekend and experience the flowers, fun, food, and shopping in beautiful Thomasville GA, plan your visit at thomasvillega.com.
This week Annie is reading Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. Ashley is reading Chorus by Rebecca Kaufman.
If you liked what you heard in 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 and follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.
We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.
Our Executive Producers are... Donna Hetchler, Angie Erickson, Cammy Tidwell, Chantalle C, Nicole Marsee, Wendi Jenkins, Laurie johnson and Kate Johnston Tucker.
Libro.FM:
Libro.fm lets you purchase audiobooks directly from your favorite local bookstore (Like The Bookshelf). You can pick from more than 215,000 audiobooks, and you'll get the same audiobooks at the same price as the largest audiobook company out there (you know the name). But you’ll be part of a different story -- one that supports community. All you need is a smart phone and the free Libro.fm app.
Right now, if you sign up for a new membership, you will get 2 audiobooks for the price of one. All you have to do is enter FRONTPORCH at checkout or follow this link:
Flodesk:
Do you receive a weekly or monthly newsletter from one of your favorite brands? Like maybe From the Front Porch (Or The Bookshelf)... Did you ever wonder, ‘how do they make such gorgeous emails?’
Flodesk is an email marketing service provider that's built for creators, by creators, and it’s easy to use. We’ve been using it for a couple of years now, and I personally love it. And right now you can get 50% off your Flodesk subscription by going to:
Transcript:
Annie [00:00:01] Welcome to you from the Front Porch, a conversational podcast about books, small business and life in the south.
Annie [00:00:24] Relationships are like countries, friendships, families, marriages, any deep, meaningful relationships tends to form its own customs, its own language.
Alyssa Sussman, Funny You Should Ask.
Annie [00:00:43] I'm Annie Jones, owner of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in beautiful downtown Thomasville, Georgia. And this week, it's time for a visit to the kids table. One of our main goals for 2022 is to grow the show to 10000 listeners, which again, just scary to say out loud. Right now, we are a community of around 7000 people, which is amazing and beyond my wildest imaginations. But the best way to grow the show is to have listeners leave a review on Apple Podcasts. All you have to do is open up the podcast app on your phone. Look for From the Front Porch, scroll down until you see, write a review and then tell us what you think. So many of you did this last month. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And I am just so grateful. I wanted to feature one listener's review. Listener RW10303 said, I'm always looking for book titles that fall within my favorite genres. I also want to learn about literature and nonfiction titles that people are buzzing about. This podcast helps me do both at the risk of sounding trite, this podcast is like sipping a warm cup of tea. I was recently pregnant and love listening during that time. It was a way to keep calm and also to build my TBR for the long days and nights ahead. Thanks to The Bookshelf for this content. Those are such kind, generous words to describe our show. And now I will forever pretend that RW stands for Rita Wilson, obviously. So thank you, Rita, for your comment. Rita doesn't listen to the show. It's fine. OK, back to the show. So if you are a newish listener From the Front Porch, The Kids' Table is our seasonal episode series where I am joined by my former colleague, friend and cousin, also known as Fuzzin, Ashley Sherlock. Hi, Ashley.
Ashley [00:02:24] Hello.
Annie [00:02:26] Together, Ashley and I make up members of our own families real life kids table, and we're bringing those conversations to you each season to tell you what we're reading, watching, listening to and occasionally buying. How are you?
Ashley [00:02:41] I'm doing OK. I can tell that I have matured slightly since we first started doing this because I can now mostly keep a straight face while I listen to you read the intro.
Annie [00:02:52] Oh, I'm so proud. You're doing it. I can barely keep a straight face while I do the intro. It's fine when I'm recording alone, but when I'm recording with someone else, I feel like you're witnessing something that was meant to be private.
Ashley [00:03:06] It feels very private, and I still stare at my feet the whole time.
Annie [00:03:12] Oh, well, welcome back. We are here to talk about spring. Do you remember when we did this for winter and what we talked about?
Ashley [00:03:21] Sort of.
Annie [00:03:23] All we talked about was New York.
Ashley [00:03:24] Oh my goodness. Wow, that feels like it's been a year. Let's go back.
Annie [00:03:29] Doesn't it? I feel like you almost need New York trips or trips in general. Quarterly. That might be my new life philosophy, because that really does feel like I understand the concept of time. And I know that was two months ago. But you are correct. It feels like a year ago.
Ashley [00:03:45] I'm a fan of quarterly kids tables surrounding our quarterly trips to New York.
Annie [00:03:52] Maybe I can business expense it.
Ashley [00:03:54] Yeah. I feel like...
Annie [00:03:55] If an accountant's listening. So tell me, Ashley and I have been looking at a place in the Dominican. Would that count as a...
Ashley [00:04:05] It's a write off. It's basically free.
Annie [00:04:07] Absolutely. That's actually how that works. I love when I try to explain business taxes to people and they're like, Don't you write that off? And I'm like, what do you think that means? But yeah, maybe we should write off our travels. What podcasts about them? It's a business expense.
Ashley [00:04:21] There you go. Problem solved.
Annie [00:04:22] Problem, problem solved. I'm a genius. OK, so let's talk about what we've been reading. I would like to start.
Ashley [00:04:29] OK. Of course you would.
Annie [00:04:32] OK, I have to tell you about this book because I literally finished it. I started it yesterday and I finished it yesterday. I started it at The Bookshelf while I was waiting for some story time. Kids to show up, then went upstairs to do office work, downloaded the audiobook so I could keep reading and then got home and picked up the physical book again. That's how much I was hooked on this book, and it's a great audiobook and I know you like to listen to audiobooks. So let me tell you about it. The book is called Funny You Should Ask. This is by Alissa Sussman. I started the episode with a quote from it. I need you to know that despite my devotion to the blandly handsome man, I do have a celebrity crush on Chris Evans. I'm not the celebrity. He's the celebrity. I wish it wasn't true. I wish it wasn't the case. But it just is. And I'm sorry about it. It's too normal for me, honestly, and I don't really like it. I prefer for my crushes to be quirky and interesting, and this is neither of those things. But what I want you to know is that 10 years ago, there was a celebrity profile written about Chris Evans, written by a woman. I believe her name. Was Edith Zimmerman. And it was written in 2011, you can Google for it, we'll put a link in the show notes. I believe it was a GQ or Esquire piece. And basically, she wrote this profile about Chris Evans like the standard celebrity profile, except it wasn't standard at all. It was fascinating. And she essentially wound up like going with him to a premiere. It was almost like they have a flirtation, but no one really knows you know what happened. But the profile ends supposedly literally with her climbing out of Chris Evans window to avoid an embarrassing hangover situation. And what I'm telling you is Funny You Should Ask, is now the fan fiction about that event. So this book is about a writer who does a celebrity profile on a famous hunky movie star who I definitely pictured as Chris Evans the entire time. And I pictured the lead as Jenny Slate or Anne Hathaway, you choose. And anyway, it is essentially fan fiction about the real life article profile that was written and what might have happened before or after in the book's case. This character interviews the celebrity, and then 10 years later, they get back together to do another interview and to kind of unpack what happened in the first interview. It is very charming. It is occasionally steamy. And I did skim those parts. I wouldn't have been definitely unable to listen to those parts. There is something about an audiobook that I would not have been able to do, but it was so charming and so fun. I just want to recommend it to everybody. It's a delightful little paperback. Great for your beach bag. But also I know you are an audiobook listener and the audiobook was fantastic. The narrator was great.
Ashley [00:07:31] Oh, I'm so excited about that. I literally downloaded it while you were talking about it, using one of my Libro.fm credits because Libro.fm supports independent bookstores.
Annie [00:07:43] Free ad. Look, that is that is exactly what I did. I downloaded it on Libro. It is so delightful. There is one other book that I've read this year that I literally read again, and it was Nora Goes Off Script and this is another book where I'm like, I think I could read that again, which I never do. I never finish a book and think I could read that again. But this one, I'm like, I could pick up that audiobook where I left off because I left off the audiobook to finish reading it. And now I'm like, I could go back and just listen to the rest of the audiobook. It was just so it was just so fun. It was so fun. And because I had the back story and knew about the Chris Evans profile and there, I don't know if this will matter to you because I don't know if you've seen this movie, but there are so many references and allusions to the great classic Hollywood film The Philadelphia Story. And I mean, I loved it. I watched the Philadelphia Story last night as a like chaser. Is that the appropriate term?
Ashley [00:08:39] Do I need to see that movie?
Annie [00:08:42] Yes, you do. It's a classic. It's a classic. It's where undoubtedly Amy Sherman-Palladino got her rat a tat tat like back and forth.
Ashley [00:08:52] Oh, interesting, OK. Should it come before or after the book?
Annie [00:08:56] Hmm. I mean, I want you to start the book like the moment we hang up. But here's the thing later this year, when I also will beg you to read the crane wife by C.J. Hauser. There's a whole essay about Philadelphia Story in there. So at some point you've got to watch the movie.
Ashley [00:09:13] Gotcha. Will do.
Annie [00:09:15] That's my first read. I just had to get it off my chest. I'm so excited.
Ashley [00:09:18] I'm super excited about it. I feel like dropping everything that I'm currently reading or thinking about reading and picking that up.
Annie [00:09:27] You should.
Ashley [00:09:27] We shall see. I read and I know you did too, but I don't read as much as you do. I read The Unsinkable Greta James by Jennifer E. Smith and loved every minute of it. It was so charming and it wasn't. It had like family drama that you like, but it wasn't too much for me to handle. It was just the right amount of drama and slightly unexpected, and it was about it was about an indie musician on a cruise ship. And I have no desire to ever go on a cruise in my life, but I am very interested in people who do go on cruises and what cruises are actually like.
Annie [00:10:03] Cruise culture. Cruise culture reminds me of Disney World culture.
Ashley [00:10:09] They do have the same vibe, for sure. No interest in either one myself, but definitely interested in books about them. So it was it was really nice. It was. It was an easy read, and I liked it a lot.
Annie [00:10:21] You're right that it had family drama, but not dark family drama. It had just enough kind of antics. And I look, I am also anti cruise. That's just not something I'm super interested in, but I did think what would an Alaskan cruise be? OK, like there was this really beautiful scene by a glacier that I just thought was so lovely. And I'm like, Is this the best way to go to Alaska, I don't know.
Ashley [00:10:43] I think you can fly there and go out on a boat and see a glacier and be fine.
Annie [00:10:47] OK, maybe that's what I would do. Did you listen to that one?
Ashley [00:10:50] I did. I can't remember who narrated it. But yeah, it was. It was really good.
Annie [00:10:54] The other one I wanted to mention as well because again, I know your affinity for audiobooks to Jordan, and I did the thing where we drove to Birmingham and back in one day and we downloaded the audiobook and I'm so sorry. Truly, this word is very hard for me to pronounce, and I don't know why I even practiced the Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green. This is the nonfiction essay collection that came out, I don't know a year or two ago and received rave reviews, and I like John Green a lot. But for some reason I did not have any compunction like I did not feel the need to pick this up really at all. Despite one of our former staffers really loving this, Caroline, who worked at The Bookshelf, loved this book. And anyway, I kept seeing people talk about the audiobook, so I downloaded the audiobook and Jordan and I listened to it on our trip. Jordan was hooked. I was hooked. I should not be surprised that John Green is a great audiobook narrator. He's a podcaster, so I feel like that makes sense and it's consistent with who he is. The essays are really funny and interesting. They're they're like listening to your nerdy best friend. And honestly, they reminded me of listening to Jordan. Talk about something.
Ashley [00:12:03] That's what I was about to say, is this going to make you feel like I'm talking to you and Jordan?
Annie [00:12:06] Yes, because John Green is also OCD, so and so he and Jordan are real kindred spirits in that way. And even while listening, I kept telling Jordan because we were going to break up the trip by listening to an audiobook and then by listening to music. So I kept telling Jordan, like, are you ready to to move on to music? And Jordan kept saying, No, we've got to listen to the next essay, like it was that it was that enjoyable that we kept wanting to listen to it. And I don't know, do you know what it's about?
Ashley [00:12:33] I have no idea. I remember it coming out and seeing all the rave reviews, but I guess I was just like you and just happened to not pick it up.
Annie [00:12:41] Yeah, yeah. So basically, he's taking Anthropocene. He explains it beautifully in his introduction. I'm going to butcher it, but essentially it's the essence of human existence. So he's taking each essay is about a piece of human existence. And then he writes an essay about it, and at the end, he rates it on a five star scale. Because he talks about there's a severe problem with the five star scale, which there is, and he's like, What would happen if we boiled things down to a five star scale? And so he does things like diet Dr. Pepper. And then he also reviews things like the sense of human wonder.
Ashley [00:13:20] Listen, John Green and Hank Green, his brother are geniuses. I don't know really what was in the water. Their mother was drinking, but they are both smart people.
Annie [00:13:31] And very smart and thoughtful about our current culture in a way that I wish other people were like. I just find them to be exceptionally interesting, and the book is exceptionally interesting.
Ashley [00:13:42] Nice I'll have to pick that one up, too. OK. So my next one is When We Were Birds by Ayanna Lloyd Banwo. Have you read this one?
Annie [00:13:52] I have not read this one.
Ashley [00:13:53] OK, so I worked Word of South this weekend. And if you're listening, you do not know that is Tallahassee Florida's music and literature festival. They have every spring and we sell our books there. And this cover caught my eye and I checked my Libro.fm and I had already downloaded the book, so I started it. But OK, wait, before I get started talking about the book, I forgot to tell you that Word of South this man and his husband came to the bookshelf tent and he, Olivia and I were working and he was like, Are either of you ever on the podcast? And we're like, Yeah, we both are on there occasionally. And he was like, That's amazing. I love this podcast. And he pulls out his phone and he scrolls down his favorites list and he shows it to us and there's From the Front Porch and it just he made our day. I didn't get his name. I wanted I wanted to give him a little shout out on here. I really hope he's listening. And I thought he was wearing a black shirt and he had a beard, and that's all I can remember, but it made me extremely happy. So if you're listening, thank you for coming by the tent and for listening to the podcast. I am much more awkward in person than here. So it was weird, but here we are.
Annie [00:15:08] Oh, that makes me so happy.
Ashley [00:15:10] It was quite lovely.
Annie [00:15:11] I do want to tell you something funny about When We Were Birds, which is I pulled that book off the shelf and handed it to Olivia, and I was like, This cover is beautiful. We should sell this at Word of South. And I think it's funny that you went to Word of South and picked out the one book that I was like, This cover is beautiful. And you also thought the cover was beautiful. It's very striking.
Ashley [00:15:32] It's it is very beautiful. And that is that's just one of those things you texted me. What was it yesterday, the day before yesterday asking my opinion on another visual? Can I give you my opinion? Option two. And you were like, yeah, it's my answer was also option two. So I feel like with if we ever differ on something, then that's when somebody else needs to dig in.
Annie [00:15:55] Yeah. I mean, you say, pay attention. A therapist needs to be called.
Ashley [00:15:59] That's hilarious. OK. Anyway, this book I have not finished yet. I'm still reading it. But it is Ayanna Lloyd Banwo's debut novel. She's from Trinidad, and it has lots of ties to that. It's about two young people wrestling with their destinies, and what's cool about it is it has elements of multiple genres. It's kind of it's basically a love story mixed with a ghost story, mixed with mystery. And so it's not my usual genre. It's basically magical realism, and I don't have a lot to do with like the fantastical worlds and things like that. But it's very interesting so far as it feels kind of like a fable. So, yeah, it's in. It's very beautifully done. Beautiful words.
Annie [00:16:46] OK. I just wanted to put a plug in for my last thing, which is, you know, my adoration for articles and for longform journalism. And I think if you don't have time to join a book club, you should join an article club or start your own. And one of the articles you should read is this article that came out in The New Yorker. I want to say three weeks ago, Jordan and I happened to listen to it. We sometimes listen to longform journalism on the app Audm. AUDM, Aud M, I don't know. Anyway, we downloaded that app and I like listening to certain articles on it. And this article is called How an Ivy League School Turned Against a Student. It's by Rachel Aviv, and it is this really powerful piece of longform journalism and storytelling about a young woman who was a student at the University of Pennsylvania, and she got a scholarship there and went on to become a Rhodes scholar. But the university felt like there were discrepancies in her personal story that had led her to the university. And it is. It is a really powerful, upsetting look at abuse and victims of abuse. And anyway, it is, in my opinion, excellent excellent storytelling and journalism, and you can listen to it on that app. Or you can, you know, go to the New Yorker website and read it there. But I think it is really valuable reading and worth discussing in some context with with people that you're close with. So it is called How an Ivy League School Turned Against a Student and that is by Rachel Aviv. Are we ready to move on to watching?
Ashley [00:18:25] We are.
Annie [00:18:26] OK. Do you want to start to start?
Ashley [00:18:29] I can go since you started last.
Annie [00:18:32] OK. Tell me.
Ashley [00:18:32] So I know you started Severance with Adam Scott and have not finished. I finished the first season. It's all there is.
Annie [00:18:41] You did?
Ashley [00:18:42] Yes. Oh my goodness. OK. The premise of the show is wild. I'm a big fan. I was questionable at first. It felt a little bit like a slow burn, in my opinion. But the last two or three episodes have my jaw absolutely on the floor. OK, it's just it's a it's a wild ride. It's weird. It's about people who go to work, but they get severed. So they it's like they're people that they work for. Insert this little chip into their brain. So you're what's what they call an inny at work. So your inny has no idea who you are, what you do outside of work.
Annie [00:19:19] Do they call the outside of work your outy?
Ashley [00:19:22] Yes.
Annie [00:19:24] Oh, OK. Yes. I don't even remember that we've seen one or two episodes.
Ashley [00:19:30] Yep. If you're when you're outside, we're here an outy. The inny's and the outy's know they exist, but they don't know anything about them. The majority of the series is a day in the life of these people. But the last, the last few episodes, man, and that kind of leaves you on a cliffhanger. And unfortunately, there's not a date for season two yet, which I'm afraid created by because. Truly, I do says it physically. My mouth dropped open. OK, and the very last episode.
Annie [00:20:00] Here's my question. So Jordan and I watched the first couple, we really liked it. Is it depressing? Because at first I thought, I don't know how much of a downer I am capable of absorbing right now.
Ashley [00:20:12] OK? I was concerned about that, too. I think it's I mean, it could be depressing, but I think it's more interesting than depressing.
Annie [00:20:18] OK, I can handle interesting because I'm about to tell you about a show that is also bordering on depressing interesting. But it's more interesting than not. And so as long as it's interesting, I think I'll be fine. But that was part of my hesitation, especially after that first episode. I thought, Oh, I like this, but is this all like too much, too too much for me right now? But yeah, it sounds interesting. So OK, my next one? Jordan and I downloaded a trial for Showtime just so we could watch the show. Yellowjackets, have you watched the show?
Ashley [00:20:48] I have not.
Annie [00:20:49] Have you heard of this show?
Ashley [00:20:51] I'm trying to think. I don't think so.
Annie [00:20:54] OK. It's about a group of teenage girls in the 90s who are on a soccer team and they're get on the plane to go to nationals and their plane crashes, and they are in the wilderness and you find out that they survive for 19 months. And the show opens. It's like Lord of the Flies meets L ost like, OK. The show opens with a very gruesome scene of a young woman running to her supposed death, and she's surrounded by these weird people in various states of ritualistic garb. And you realize they're probably teenage girls who have survived and like, formed this cult. Maybe anyway. And it goes back and forth between the '90s when this happened and then now 2021 2022, when the women are in their adulthood and the after effects of trauma and what became of these women and what secrets they're all hiding. The casting of the young actors and the older versions of themselves is impeccable. Like absolutely spot on. Jordan and I were hooked. My literal only complaint is I put off watching this because we don't have showtime. We had to download Showtime and do a free trial thing. But I, for whatever reason, thought that this was a 10 episode mini series arc. So please imagine when we get to the end of episode 10 and there is a cliffhanger and things are not wrapped up at all. And I realize, no, no, there are going to be multiple seasons of this show, but I went into it the entire time thinking I was getting 10 episodes worth of storytelling, and that is my only complaint. So my wish for everyone is that you would watch this show, which is gruesome and fascinating and terrifying and really good storytelling, but that you would also go into it knowing that there are going to be more than one season. And so don't be disappointed when you get to episode 10. I literally looked at Jordan and I was so angry. I said, What did we just do? Because I would have probably put off watching it a little more, but I just thought, Oh, this will be a nice 10 episode thing that we can watch. Silly, silly me anyway. Very, very worth the download, though. Very much worth doing Showtime for free.
Ashley [00:23:20] OK, nice. My next one, which I know you've seen too, is Upload. It's been a while since I finished it, but it was so good I hadn't. I can't believe I hadn't heard of it. There's two seasons out.
Annie [00:23:34] I can't believe more people aren't talking about it. I don't get it. It's so good.
Ashley [00:23:37] It's a very good. It's funny and it's thoughtful and it's by that man whose name escapes me, who also did.
Annie [00:23:44] Greg Daniels.
Ashley [00:23:45] Greg Daniels. Man guy's a genius.
Annie [00:23:49] Yeah, it's so good. And I think if you like the Mike Schur shows like if you like Parks and Rec or The Good Place, I think there is a lot in Upload that has some of those same sensibilities. Yeah, there's a lot about morality, a lot about our current culture. Jordan, I love it. We binged season one back when it first came out and season two, and I really like Robbie Amell or however you pronounce his last name, like I'm rooting for his career.
Ashley [00:24:16] Which one is he?
Annie [00:24:17] He's the very handsome guy from the death. He's the main guy.
Ashley [00:24:20] Do you think something like that could actually happen in the distant future?
Annie [00:24:26] Oh, I hope not. I don't know, but I hope not. I'm worried about the Metaverse. Let me be real.
Ashley [00:24:33] RIght? Yeah, same, same thing, basically.
Annie [00:24:37] Yeah. I don't know. I don't. I try not to think about it, but I would be deeply concerned if that was our future.
Ashley [00:24:43] Yeah.
Annie [00:24:44] OK, I want to put a plug here for of all things, I can't believe I'm saying this. Bridgerton season two.
Ashley [00:24:52] Oh my goodness. Wait, I know you like this or is this new information?
Annie [00:24:57] This is new information because I hated season one and I tried not to hate it. Yeah, I tried not to hate it because so many people I know enjoyed it or had a good time with it. But I watched it with Jordan and we fell asleep during several episodes like just dozed off. And it had so much sexual content like, like, aggressively, well, OK. Maybe it wasn't aggressive. It felt aggressive to me to be watching a Regency era Netflix show. And I think Jordan and I, Jordan did say, he said we mistakenly went into this thinking it was Downton Abbey and it was not Downton Abbey. So that might have been part of my issue with season one. But also, did you watch season one?
Ashley [00:25:43] I started it, but lost interest.
Annie [00:25:46] That's the thing. I just was not interested in the main character, Daphne and her baby bangs. I just do not care. Her bangs were so short. It was such a distraction. It was the worst hairdo I've ever seen. And so it was worse then with Felicity chops off all her hair. That's an older millennial reference. I hope people enjoy it. OK, so I started season to honestly fully prepared to kind of sort of hate watch slash watch while I did chores or like something else. You know what I mean? Like, really not pay attention, just kind of noise in the background. But let me tell you. I really like season two of Bridgerton.
Ashley [00:26:23] Really?
Annie [00:26:24] Yes. I was very invested in the eldest brother storyline. I know people have been waiting. This is my second blandly handsome reference and I'm sorry about it. And when I say people, I think two people deemed me and asked me about whether I thought the brothers on Bridgerton were blandly handsome or not. Here is my final verdict. Anthony, the eldest brother, too handsome, though with his sideburns. It's a close call, but too handsome is the verdict. Collin, the youngest brother, not handsome enough, just not handsome to me. I don't find him attractive at all. Middle brother Benedict always been my favorite brother. He is blandly handsome.
Ashley [00:27:01] OK, wait, I'm googling this.
Annie [00:27:02] Yes, the thing about blandly handsome is sometimes you're very handsome and sometimes you're just so, so handsome. You're both which I think Benedict qualifies, but I think most people will say that Anthony is too handsome, given what we just witnessed in season two of Bridgerton. Lots of heavy breathing and lots of b's literal b's. Not just birds, and the metaphorical bees. Real b's. I just say there is literally a b plays a literal role, and there's just so much slow like a s m r. Is that what it's called? There's a lot of breathing. There's a lot of breathing. Yeah, that look, those aren't my favorite parts, but I really like the love story at the heart of this one. I like the siblings. Oh, I loved all the Bridgerton siblings and I loved the Sharma sisters. I think you would like season two.
Ashley [00:27:51] OK, I might give it a try.
Annie [00:27:54] Did you look them up?
Ashley [00:27:55] I did, and I think I know who you're talking about. The guy with the sideburns is not handsome enough, right?
Annie [00:28:01] I don't know. I'm going to send you a picture. I found a picture of all three of them, and I'm going to send it to you and I'll circle and identify who's who.
Ashley [00:28:07] OK, I think I know who is too handsome, not handsome enough and blandly handsome,.
Annie [00:28:12] OK, some people kept telling me Colin was blandly handsome, and I'm sorry, guys. No. Also, it it is true that if you watch the show, it's hard to like Colin anyway. So maybe that's part of the problem, but I don't find him attractive at all. And blandly handsome people, you have to find attractive like you still have to think they're cute.
Ashley [00:28:30] Yeah,.
Annie [00:28:31] That's the whole point.
Ashley [00:28:32] Send me a picture with updates, please.
Annie [00:28:34] OK, I know that's the highbrow literary content people are here for. What are you? What what else are you watching?
Ashley [00:28:42] OK, so I have two movies, one of which we watched together. So we had a fuzzin night. We Annie and my sister to go see the new Sandy B and Channing Tatum movie The Lost City. Ten out of ten, in my humble opinion. So funny, man, I laughed out loud so many times, and Sandra Bullock is so talented and so beautiful, and Channing Tatum was also surprisingly wonderful in this movie.
Annie [00:29:11] Yeah, who knew? I remember going to Channing Tatum fan, but here we are now.
Ashley [00:29:16] I like there. I liked their what's the word chemistry chemistry.
Annie [00:29:21] Yeah. Yes.
Ashley [00:29:23] The other movie I watched recently is the Adom Project with Jennifer Garner. I don't think it is your speed, although it could be. Jennifer Garner, Mark Ruffalo and Ryan Reynolds.
Annie [00:29:35] Yeah, it's a fun cast.
Ashley [00:29:37] It's a fun cast. It's a fun. It's a great family movie, but it's about a little boy who gets bullied and has time travel. It's very cute.
Annie [00:29:47] OK, maybe I'll try it because I mean, I like Jennifer Garner and again, I'm rooting for her career. I wish she was allowed to play more than just moms, even though we love moms.
Ashley [00:29:55] Me too. I stinking love Jennifer Garner and I take back what I said. I think you would like this movie because there are some very heartwarming moments.
Annie [00:30:02] OK. I think Jordan and I watch it. The last thing I'm going to recommend is a comedy special. It's on Netflix. So a couple of weeks ago, I watched the SNL episode with Jerrod Carmichael, and I loved his monologue. Like, I thought he did a great job and I had not heard of him before, which is my fault. But also, I'm not a huge I don't just like watch a ton of comedy specials. It's not really my general vibe but I loved his monologue that was so clever. And then scrolling through Seth Meyers Instagram One day, as is typical, I saw that his full interview with Jerrod Carmichael was on like the late night Instagram feed, and I thought, That's interesting. They don't normally show whole interviews. They normally just show like a two minute clip or something. And so I sat down and watched the entire interview, and it was stunning. Like I, I think I reposted it to my Instagram Story, like the way Seth Meyers interacted with Jerrod and the way Jerrod opened up and shared his story and the way Seth Meyers allowed there to be room for him to tell his story was just really touching and lovely. And truly, the moment I finished that interview, I went and watched Jerrod Carmichael's new comedy special on HBO Max. It is called Rothaniel, and I loved it. I told Jordan. And I am discovering what I love about certain comedy specials I'm thinking about the Mike Birbiglia's of the world is when it's really good storytelling, like if it is good storytelling, it doesn't even really have to be that funny, although obviously that is a plus of a comedy special. But I just needed to be really good storytelling. And this is Ashley. I know you love comedy and I know you love writing. You have got to watch this just because the arc of it and it is a tight, like, 55 minutes.
Ashley [00:31:49] Nice. OK? What's it called again?
Annie [00:31:50] Rothaniel. And it's on HBO Max. And then before or after you should watch his interview with Seth Meyers. It's really the art of the interview. It's really so good.
Ashley [00:31:59] Good. I need a new comedy something in my life.
Annie [00:32:02] OK, try that. And OK, moving on to listening to my listening to is light, as you know, and we have discussed many times, my favorite thing to do is like when a new season begins to start a new playlist on Spotify, and I just randomly add songs as they come up in movies or TV shows or on Instagram or a new artist releases something and I just add them to the playlist. And by the end of the season, I have a really fun time capsule of that time. So my winter playlist is officially done, and I really am happy with how it turned out. And now I have moved on to the Spring 2022 playlist, and I wanted to tell you that I'm sure you already know, but I added two new songs last week that I thought you would like. One is the new Harry Styles. Have you heard it?
Ashley [00:32:44] Oh, I have.
Annie [00:32:45] Of course you have. Isn't it so good?
Ashley [00:32:47] It's wonderful, as is he.
Annie [00:32:49] It's so. Oh gosh, what to one of my former The Bookshelf staffers who used to say It's a bop, it's a real bop. I think. I think it's just really bubbly and fun. I really like it. It's called as it was. And then have you heard the new Maggie Rogers song?
Ashley [00:33:05] I don't think so. I may have heard a clip.
Annie [00:33:06] OK, so I I love Maggie Rogers, but it's been a while since she's put out new music. This is her new song called That's Where I Am. And it is really good as well. And again, just really, it sounds like spring to me. Like both of these songs are upbeat. They're fun, they're good for driving in your car with the windows down. Highly recommend, and I've added them to my Spring 2020 playlist.
Ashley [00:33:28] Very nice. My listening is also light. (inaudible) I have to not take in some things, so when I'm mostly listening to lately is sounds of nature. But the song that has been on repeat for me the past the past few days really is Hilarious by Charlie Puth. It is also, I would say, a bop, is a heartbreak song. Kind of. It's catchy.
Annie [00:33:55] OK, I'm going to listen to it as soon as we hang up to see if it's worthy of adding to my playlist. We shall see.
Ashley [00:34:02] Please report back.
Annie [00:34:03] OK, will do. And then checking in on what we're buying lately. I want to tell you about a journey I've been on.
Ashley [00:34:10] Please do.
Annie [00:34:11] OK, so I am 36 years old and I keep saying I want a signature lip color. I want a signature perfume. And I do have some lip colors that I like. But I watched an Instagram video the other day, a reel of a woman putting on this brightly colored lipstick and like being so excited and then wiping it off before she goes anywhere. And that is how I feel any time I wear color on my lips. I just feel like it's a costume and I am not one for costumes. That being said, I think I have found a couple of signature lip colors. I don't know the names of them, but one of them. Interestingly enough, because of what you have put down here is a Charlotte Tilbury lip color anyway.
Ashley [00:34:53] Which one?
Annie [00:34:54] I think it's Pillowtalk.
Ashley [00:34:55] Oh my. Charlotte Tilbury lip color is When I Was.
Annie [00:34:58] Oh, actually Erin Moon bought this for me in London, and it's the only lip color I really own. So, so sure, we can call it a signature. But what I decided to embark upon this year after talking to some friends of mine when we got together in Chicago last fall is I'm trying to find a signature scent. And here's the deal. You and I both come from a family of highly sensitive noses and also people who are highly allergic to things. And I think that's why I just I don't really know what a good perfume smells like, because most of our family, the women in our family, it feels like either they don't wear perfume or they're like Totsy from Gilmore Girls and we've been (inaudible) and you wear so much perfume. And so there has to be a happy medium there. And I also my friend and I were just talking about how well all of my friends have kids and they were talking about like when they die, they want their children to, like, smell something and know it was how their mom smelled. And so I was like, Man, I don't have any way that I smell like. I changed deodorants fairly frequently because natural deodorant is a total total like kind of sort of scam like, I just feel like I'm constantly fighting the odors, OK? So I found a sampler on Sephora of Jo Malone perfume, and I recognized the name Jo Malone from when I went to London. And Jo Malone was like a thing. And I didn't. No, it was a thing, but it's a thing. The royal women wear Jo Malone perfume, so I got this perfume sampler set for $20 from Sephora, and it came with five cents. Jordan and I both collectively sniff them and I've worn them. There are three that I've narrowed it down to, and now we're going to spend the rest of the summer trying to figure out which of the three could be my signature scent. I don't have the names in front of me. I'm just here telling you that. Did you know you could buy a sampler, set a perfume for $20? Because I didn't.
Ashley [00:36:52] What an interesting thing to think about. I want my kids to smell something and think of me when I'm gone. I've never heard of that. I mean, I do get it.
Annie [00:37:05] But right, like I know our houses have smells like your house has a smell. My parents' house has a smell. But like mama, our grandmother had a scent like she definitely did. She and she wore perfume more than our probably our own mothers do because our mother's like as asthmatic so and so like. I don't know. I think my mom mostly smells like essential oils these days. But that's not really my vibe. So I was like, What could I smell like? And so I'm working on it.
Ashley [00:37:35] It's so weird that that was your thing, because before we started, I don't know why, but like, I guess I was too close to my microphone and like caught a whiff and it smells just like you.
Annie [00:37:51] My microphone?
Ashley [00:37:52] My microphone. Yeah, it smells like Butterworth. It smells like your house.
Annie [00:37:55] Does it smell like my office that microphones never even been in my parents' house?
Ashley [00:37:59] I know I don't. I just smells like general Butterworth
Annie [00:38:03] or in my house the house. Only my own microphone. But you can't. Notoriously, you can't smell yourself, really.
Ashley [00:38:10] My my scent, my personal scent is essential oils as someone with a very sensitive schnoz.
Annie [00:38:16] Yes, it look. It's true. I am also very sensitive. I don't like certain floral scents because I get headaches like I don't. I'm not interested in that.
Ashley [00:38:25] I can't burn candles. Unless they smell like food.
Annie [00:38:27] Oh, interesting. I can burn a subtle smelling candle, but I wanted a perfume that like, if I wore it one day, it wouldn't like, make my mom have an asthma attack. You know what I'm saying?
Ashley [00:38:38] You smell like you, but not too much.
Annie [00:38:42] Right, but won't kill anyone, that's the goal. What about you? What have you been buying any fun journeys?
Ashley [00:38:48] So are several fun journeys, actually. I have got a lot written down, but I'll follow the theme of, well, I guess. But I wrote Charlotte Tilbury's Flawless Filter. It is a complexion booster, and I use it as like a foundation type thing. This is the first makeup endeavor that I have ever gone on besides mascara and maybe a lipstick, but it just like smooths your whole face and it just magically looks really good.
Annie [00:39:23] Did you have to pick a color?
Ashley [00:39:25] You do have to pick a color. I bought two. I bought one on the lighter side that I that like, if it didn't work now, then I would just use it in the winter. And then on the darker side that I'll use once I'm a little bit more tan to try them out. And I think I got the sample sizes too, just one. OK, testing the water.
Annie [00:39:40] I'm going to look that up.
Ashley [00:39:41] I like it a lot so far.
Annie [00:39:43] I like her lip color. So what else?
Ashley [00:39:46] OK, so I know I can't remember if I said this on another podcast episode. So apologies if I did. But it is something that I like a lot. I know you are always looking for a new pair of athletic shoes. I just bought a new pair. They haven't come yet, but this will be my third pair from Newton. Newton Running. Oh, I typically buy the Gravity's, but this time I went with the Motions just to mix it up a little bit. What I like about them is that they have like a shock absorber type thing and the ball portion of your foot, which is really great for more high impact work. But also if you just want to go for a walk and maybe tone your calves a little bit. It's hard for me to imagine wearing any other shoe for actual working out two purposes.
Annie [00:40:29] Oh, that's good to know. I'm still wearing my Adidas that I bought at the Peak Pandy.
Ashley [00:40:36] OK, two years ago.
Annie [00:40:40] Do you know what I just did? I didn't write this in the outline, but I went to Target this week and I have a pair of fake Birkenstocks from Target that I wear to the pool and that I've been wearing for years. I love them, so I found a duplicate pair and I got so excited. They're twenty dollars fake Birkenstocks from Target and then, you know, Target like writes in their clothes on the tags, what season something comes out. And so I looked at my old target fake Birkenstocks, and they were from second quarter of 2018.
Ashley [00:41:12] So how did they last that long? I had two pairs of Target Birkenstocks, and I don't know when I bought them. I might have. Around the same time, but they are so uncomfortable now. They're like my checking the mail shoes. They hurt my feet. So bad, my my mom even tried them on and was like, What are these? I mean, they've been worn for years, but my goodness, it's like, it's worse than going barefoot.
Annie [00:41:39] I love mne so much, and I was so excited to find a duplicate pair. But it did occur to me, especially one time my mom trolled me on the internet because we went to market last year and she found a picture on her phone of me at market four years ago, and I was wearing the exact same outfit, right? And she literally dm'd it to me and said, Get some new clothes.
Ashley [00:42:05] That was the most on brand Susie and Annie encounter,
Annie [00:42:10] it is, it totally is. I also think that's perhaps my (inaudible) nature coming in like just wear the same thing. I found a shirt I like to Target, and so I bought it in two different colors
Ashley [00:42:20] just coming out of the basement once every every six months to see the light. So funny.
Annie [00:42:27] Anyway, well, this has been delightful. Thanks for boosting my mood.
Ashley [00:42:30] Absolutely. Back at you.
Annie [00:42:36] This week, what I'm reading is brought to you by the 101st annual Rose Show and Festival here in Thomasville, Georgia. Ashley, this week is the Rose Show and Festival. And you are talking to one of the judges of the Rose Show parade floats.
Ashley [00:42:57] That is so cool.
Annie [00:42:59] I'm so excited. They called to tell me I feel honestly like the equivalent of being asked to judge the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade floats.
Ashley [00:43:09] Might as well be.
Annie [00:43:10] Yes, it is the same level of importance to me. I am so excited this weekend. I will be riding around in a golf cart. Judging I'll be Maureen O'Hara is basically what I'll be doing, I'm just so excited.
Ashley [00:43:20] Do you have your outfit picked out?
Annie [00:43:23] I do not, but I guess I won't be wearing those Target Birkenstocks. But today I spent a good portion of my morning and afternoon in two different meetings with the city of Thomasville, both in my role as a merchant and on the tourism board. And there are so many fun things planned. You know, they haven't really gotten to host Rose Show in the capacity that they wanted to host it for the last two years. And so this feels like a chance to finally get to put into place some of the plans they've had in the works for the last two years. If you are not familiar with Rose Show, you've and you've never been, have you?
Ashley [00:44:04] No, I haven't. This'll be my first.
Annie [00:44:06] So it is just a lot of fun and a lot of kind of small town fun but really well-produced, well planned, well executed events. So it'll take place Friday and Saturday, and that's the 22nd and the 23rd. As you're listening to this podcast and Friday, they will open up the rose tent like the marching band comes out and we're right by the rose tent. The Bookshelf is and so we can hear the marching band kind of opening everything. Friday night is the parade and then the swing and medallions come and do a street dance. It is also delightful. And then Saturday is a full day of festivities, including like an artisan market out of the amphitheater and there will be a concert and a spin shop on Saturday night. So there's just all kinds of fun events planned. Jordan and I love Rose Show. It makes us feel very lucky to get to live in this town and to get to kind of experience a small town festival. And what's really cool about the role that I get to play it not just as a judge in the parade, but as a merchant means that I kind of get to be behind the scenes and see all the work that goes into it. And it's more than just the Rose Show window decorating contest, which is something that we participate in every year. But there are a lot of... There is a lot of time and energy and planning that goes into an event like this, and I'm so excited to be a part of it. And so if you are interested in coming to a Rose Show hotels are booking / booked up. So check your Airbnbs check surrounding cities. If you are within driving distance, make a day trip, come to Thomasville, experience the fun of being in a small town. Come to the artisan market. Make build your own bouquet of flowers. Come look at all the beautiful window displays. The Thomasville History Center has all the old Rose Show beauty pageant dresses on display. It like it's just a fun event in our town, and I'm really excited about it. So this week I'm reading and subsequently crying through Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. Ashley, what are you reading?
Ashley [00:46:09] I'm reading Chorus by Rebecca Kauffman.
Annie [00:46:12] Thank you again to our sponsor, the 101st Annual Rose Show and Festival here in Thomasville, Georgia. If you want to come for the weekend and experience the flowers, fun, food and shopping in beautiful Thomasville, plan your visit at ThomasvilleGA.com.
From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in Thomasville, 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: bookshelfthomasville.com A full transcript of today’s episode can be found at: fromthefrontporchpodcast.com Special thanks to Studio D Podcast Production for production of From the Front Porch and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. Our Executive Producers are…
Donna Hetchler Angie Erickson Cammy Tidwell Chantalle C
Executive Producers (Read Their Own Names): Nicole Marsee Wendi Jenkins Laurie johnson Kate Johnston Tucker
Annie Jones: If you’d like to support From the Front Porch, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Your input helps us make the show even better and reach new listeners. All you have to do is open up the Podcast App on your phone, look for From the Front Porch, scroll down until you see ‘Write a Review’ and tell us what you think. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us over on Patreon, where we have 3 levels of support - Front Porch Friends, Book Club Companions, and Bookshelf Benefactors. Each level has an amazing number of benefits like bonus content, access to live events, discounts, and giveaways. Just go to: patreon.com/fromthefrontporch We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.