favorite member: love them all but nayeon, momo, jihyo are my favessss
which member i’d fight (& why): momo because she is a wonderful kind and beautiful woman who is being way too hard on herself and i will go into her brain and fight all the negative self-talk is that the correct way to answer this question
favorite songs: i can’t stop me, tt, likey, cry for me, baby blue love, conversation, scandal, first time, get loud, go hard, alcohol-free, signal, up no more, sos, bring it back
favorite thing about the group: super good chemistry - i think all the members bring a lot to their sound, i love their choreo so much, the diversity in songs, they all seem like such sweeties
something i’d like to see from them: i really love their more mature songs and their songs that lean more into electronic pop and instrumentals so more of that please!!!
So good I had to share! Check out all the items I'm loving on @Poshmarkapp #poshmark #fashion #style #shopmycloset #alidee #vineyardvines #maurices: https://posh.mk/0UX8nUk701
So good I had to share! Check out all the items I'm loving on @Poshmarkapp #poshmark #fashion #style #shopmycloset #alidee #rockrepublic: https://bnc.lt/focc/U6S4nnNqEP
Came Across This Old Article About #AliDeeTheodore pka #AliDee. It's all about EVERYTHING iAlways saw myself doing. #MakingMusicForFilm & #GettingMySongsInAMovieScore. #GameOn...
@Regrann from @shopchandeliers - Cactus obsessed. 🌵💖 Only a few of these cute tanks left. Looks so cute paired with our new bralette. $42 S/M/L #cactus #boutique #alidee (at Chandeliers Boutique)
Lifted this from @alidee and swapped in some from other challenges to replace ones that were not applicable and here we go! I’m so excited!!
1. A book with more than 500 pages
- Infinite Jest (David Foster Wallace)
Pre-thoughts: I don’t know much about David Foster Wallace, but his short story “Incarnations of Burned Children” seared itself onto my soul, man. And his commencement speech at Kenyon College was also something I found very meaningful. I’ve been meaning to read Infinite Jest for a ridiculously long time, but it’s such a behemoth. I look forward to finally getting into it.
2. A classic romance
- The Awakening (Kate Chopin)
Pre-thoughts: During my thrashing-in-the-water-trying-to-gather-as-many-feminist-books-as-I-could I got this one. I think I read an excerpt in high school, but I don’t really remember.
3. A book that became a movie
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Steig Larsson)
Pre-thoughts: Amelia and Miriam both love this book.
4. A Book About An Immigrant Or Refugee To The U.S.
- The Tortilla Curtain (T.C. Boyle)
Pre-thoughts: A book for a PAX class with one of the loveliest professors I’ve ever had. I thoroughly enjoyed the other books I read for her class, so I’ll be happy to read this one too. I always see T.C. Boyle’s books and never pick them up.
5. A book with a number in the title
- The Once and Future King (T.H. White)
Pre-thoughts: Technically cheating? ONE-ce.
6. A book published by someone under 30
- The Tennent of Wildfell Hall (Anne Brontë)
Pre-thoughts: Recommended by Brittney because she knows I love the other two Brontë sisters.
7. A book with nonhuman characters
- The Hobbit (J.R.R. Tolkein)
Pre-thoughts: Have been meaning to read this book for ages since Kevin last re-read Tolkein.
8. A funny book
- Naked Pictures of Famous People (Jon Stewart)
Pre-thoughts: I have surprisingly low expectations for this book. I do like Jon Stewart so much, and even though I don’t set him on the pedestal I once did, I think he’s shaped a lot of my thinking in many ways. It’ll be nice to see another side to him.
9. A book by a female author
- Picking Bones From Ash (Marie Mastic Mockett)
Pre-thoughts: I mostly read female authors, tbh, but there is something particular about this book that leapt out to me. Against the backdrop of Japan post-tsunami, a mixed woman tries to deal with the cycle of trauma that is absorbed through the maternal line. (*looks into the camera like I’m on The Office*)
10. A mystery or thriller
- S. (J J Abrams) Pre-thoughts: Sam’s book that’s been passed from Sam to Ali and now to me. I love that we exchange books. Sigh #friends.
11. A book with a one-word title
- Collages (Anaïs Nin)
Pre-thoughts: Kevin Barnes told me this was his favorite book by Anaïs Nin! I’m pUmped to read it because I do really really enjoy her writing.
12. A book of short stories
- The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fight in Heaven (Sherman Alexie)
Pre-thoughts: I love Sherman Alexie. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian made me cry. It’s one of the few YA novels I truly love.
13. A book set in a different country
- The Name of the Rose (Umberto Eco)
Pre-thoughts: I bought it because Peter Doherty once mentioned Umberto Eco, and after reading a little bit of Baudolino in Borders (woah, throwback), I picked this one up instead. Then Teona recommended it because her mother enjoyed it.
14. A nonfiction book
- ¡Venceremos?: The Erotics of Black Self-making in Cuba (Jafari Allen)
Pre-thoughts: I have so wanted to read this ethnography for ages, if not only because it has the best cover I have ever seen. It seriously just checks all the boxes in terms of things I find interesting about Cuba.
15. A popular author’s first book
- The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)
Pre-thoughts: Another book I bought around the same time I bought The Awakening. Was supposed to read this with my little cousin this past summer, but we’re both very bad at willing ourselves to read.
16. A book from an author you love that you hadn’t read yet
- On Beauty (Zadie Smith)
Pre-thoughts: Such a beautiful cover! White Teeth was Zadie Smith’s first novel, and I think On Beauty is her latest, so I’m really excited to see how it differs.
17. A book a friend recommended
- The Vulnerable Observer (Ruth Behar)
Pre-thoughts: Matthew recommended this when I was trying to pick books to read to better situate myself into a research area regarding Anthropology PhD programs. Blahhh. Can’t think of that now.
18. A Pulitzer Prize-winning book
- The Road (Cormac McCarthy)
Pre-thoughts: I can’t believe this is the book that was on here twice at first. I know nothing about this book to be honest. It’s another one that’s just been on my bookshelf forever.
19. A book based on a true story
- The Glass Castle (Jeanette Walls)
Pre-thoughts: I remember seeing Teona read this for a class, and I picked it up because I wanted to read about coping with dysfunctional families, I guess.
20. A book at the bottom of your to-read list
- Ape and Essence (Alduous Huxley)
Pre-thoughts: I LOVED Brave New World, and snatched this up right when I finished. But very shortly after, I realized that Brave New World was about enough Huxley as I needed and if I were to read a book of his, I would just re-read that one. I should give it a shot though.
21. A feminist sci-fi Novel
- Kindred (Octavia Butler)
Pre-thoughts: Susan recommended this, and it’s so well-loved. I read the first chapter and it’s so well-written. I’m pumped to read it.
22. A book that scares you
- The God of Small Things (Arundhati Roy)
Pre-thoughts: I also know very little about Arundhati Roy. This book is notorious for kind of breaking one’s heart though so I bought it and then avoided it. I need to get into a good head space and then I’ll tackle it.
23. A book more than 100 years old
- Middlemarch (George Eliot)
Currently reading: I really love it. I’m 15% through (according to goodreads). There’s just something about the slice of life aspect I find so engrossing. And reading about George Eliot’s circumstances via Zadie Smith made me appreciate it even more from a writing aspect.
24. A book by a modernist woman writer
- Their Eyes Were Watching God (Zora Neale Hurston)
Pre-thoughts: Can’t remember why I picked this up. I do remember getting it shortly after I read The Color Purple—which is the book I credited with getting me back into reading full-swing.
25. A book you were supposed to read in school but didn’t
- Invisible Man (Ralph Ellison)
Pre-thoughts: I wasn’t ready for this book then, but I am now.
26. A memoir
- The Diary of Anaïs Nin vol. II (Anaïs Nin)
Pre-thoughts: Loved the first volume. It’s littered with my notes and underlines and highlights. I have the boxset because I think she’s brilliant.
27. A book you can finish in a day
- The Stranger (Albert Camus)
Pre-thoughts: Bought it in high school, never bothered to read it.
28. A book with antonyms in the title
- King, Queen, Knave (Vladamir Nabokov)
Pre-thoughts: Ha, this is the closest I have to antonyms on my bookshelf. Opposites, I suppose. I bought a bunch of Nabokov after reading Lolita, which is such an incredible piece of writing.
29. A book set somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit
- Children of the Alley (Naghuib Mahfouz)
Pre-thoughts: My brother bought my sister-in-law and myself different Naghuib Mahfouz books from his first ever trip to Egypt. I never read it, and reminiscing on that makes me a little sad.
30. A book that came out the year you were born
- The Revenge of the Babysat (Bill Watterson)
Pre-thoughts: Oh how I love Calvin and Hobbes. But I haven’t read them in ages, so I’m really excited to revisit them.
31. A book with bad reviews
- I’d Rather We Got Casinos (Larry Wilmore)
Pre-thoughts: Autographed! I am going into this with very much the same approach as with Jon Stewart’s, if not with even more generosity. Larry Wilmore is a very kind person, and he’s hilarious so I’m going to enjoy this book! Or else! Hahaha.
32. A trilogy
- Lord of the Rings -
Pre-thoughts: Probably the oldest book on my shelf. Got it from Waldenbooks with my dad back when the mall near my house actually had a bookstore. Memories.
33. A book from your childhood
- The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 (Christopher Paul Curtis)
Pre-thoughts: I have both The Watsons Go to Birmingham and Bud, Not Buddy on my shelf. They were such good reads when I was younger. I’m looking forward to re-reading them. There’s a very strong sense of nostalgia attached to them for me.
34. A book with a love triangle
- Never Let Me Go (Kazuo Ishiguro)
Pre-thoughts: I know nothing about this book! Bought it when I was looking into Japanese authors who weren’t Murakami. The internet told me it has a love triangle haha.
35. A book set in the future
- 1984 (George Orwell)
Pre-thoughts: Hahaha, at this point... the “future”, but well anyway. 1984 is one of those books you just know everything about. The running joke is that between my brother and myself we have 5 copies of this book because we keep forgetting we already own it every time we see it in a store and pick it up again.
36. A book set in high school
- The Sweet Far Thing (Libba Bray)
Pre-thoughts: The first two books were total immersive page-turners. But I keep forgetting to just knock out the trilogy and I’m certain I’ve forgotten everything from the first book which is the one I don’t have a copy of. Yay girl power, etc.
37. A book with a color in the title
- A Clockwork Orange (Anthony Burgess) (sorry for cheating)
Pre-thoughts: HA! So obviously it’s orange the fruit, but whatever. I’ve always meant to read this book. I’m kind of pretty sure it’s not my bag at this point, but I’ll give it a go.
38. Read a book about politics in your country or another
- Cuba Under Siege: American Policy, the Revolution and Its People (Keith Bolender)
Pre-thoughts: Of all my Cuba books this is the one that is the most capital P Political. I have several other sociology/anthro texts, but this needs to be read too.
39. A political memoir
- The Autobiography of Malcolm X (Malcolm X)
Pre-thoughts: Another important book that’s been sitting on my shelf. I’m newly motivated to read it after going to the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis though.
40. A graphic novel
- Maus (Art Spiegelman)
Pre-thoughts: It took me a long time to find copies of Maus. It’s always mentioned in the same breath as Persepolis (LOVE) because I think they popularized their genre.
41. A book by an author you’d never read before
- The Master and Margherita
Pre-thoughts: Daniel Radcliffe’s favorite book! One of David Bowie’s favorite books! Often cited as one of The Best Books. I don’t know anything about it aside from that, but I’ve had it for a while and I’m looking forward to reading it.
42. A book you own but had never read
- Flow Down Like Silver (Ki Longfellow)
Pre-thoughts: This book had the highest reviews I had ever seen on goodreads and when I bought it from Women and Children First, the cashier raved about it too. I’m really excited to read it.
43. A book that takes place in your hometown
- Native Son (Richard Wright)
Pre-thoughts: An important author I’ve never read.
44. A book that was originally written in a different language
- The Brothers Karmazov (Fyodor Dostoevesky)
45. A book recommended by someone you just met
- The Shock Doctrine (Naomi Klein)
Pre-thoughts: An acquaintance of Kulsum’s recommended this to me. I already have it—bought it I THINK because of a Jon Stewart interview? It was around the time Occupy was doing stuff. It just fit in with my other literature at the time. I almost feel like I would be uninterested in it this time around, but apparently it’s written in a very accessible way so that in itself might be intersting to see.
46. Read a nonfiction book about feminism or dealing with feminist themes
- The Cultural Politics of Emotion (Sara Ahmed)
Pre-thoughts: Yeah! Okay I’m going to use this challenge to read stuff I should read.
47. A play
- A Streetcar Named Desire (Tennessee Williams)
Pre-thoughts: Tennessee Williams wrote the play I wanted to write, and while a part of me feels helpless because of it, another part of me feels like I’ve found the most bizarre kindred spirit.
48. A banned book
- Black Boy (Richard Wright)
Pre-thoughts: Second Richard Wright book on this list and one of David Bowie’s favorite books. I don’t think this was banned exactly. It was “challenged” and I think bookstores and organizations that commemorate banned books include challenged books in there.
49. A book based on or turned into a TV show
- Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
Pre-thoughts: I am here for Jane Austen!
50. A book you started but never finished
- The Trial (Franz Kafka)
Pre-thoughts: Enjoyed it, but weirdly got the feeling that I “got” it, so I never finished it.
My High Elves are the dickiest dicks that ever have dicked.
They have a cruel “breeding policy” and elves who don’t meet their standards are enslaved and kept hidden from the eyes of outsiders. They view themselves as the continents superior race and that has to stay that way. They cannot allow “impurities” to invest their perfection ...
