Harry Potter

8 Things For Which I Am Thankful…

These are the mostly television related things that I am most thankful for this year. It has been another year of ups and downs and this is what helps get me through it all.

1. No Tomorrow
I wrote an entire post about why I think you should be watching this awesome new CW show, but mostly it just makes me laugh a lot. It is genuine and uplifting, and it is the show that I currently look forward to the most each week. I have actually decided that I am most like Kareema, only she says things out loud and I just think them, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. Either way, it has been a great escape these last few months, and I appreciate that more than ever.



2. Lin-Manuel Miranda
Not only do I pretty much have the Hamilton Soundtrack, the Hamilton Mixtape, and the Moana Soundtrack all on repeat right now, but following Lin-Manuel on social media is the best decision I have ever made. Every day, he posts a ‘good morning’ and a ‘good night’ message, and they are always hopeful and encouraging. He is genuine, thoughtful, and supportive, and I just appreciate him. This awesome song from Moana was written by Miranda and sung by Dwayne Johnson:



3. Alfred James Band
When I lived in Philadelphia, I became friends with the Alfred James Band, and even though we have lost touch a bit since I moved to Texas, I was ridiculously excited when they released their second album recently. I had missed hearing these songs, and the album was everything I hoped it would be. I was especially surprised and touched after learning that one of the songs was written for me, and it reminded me that no matter where you go in life, a part of everyone you’ve ever met stays with you forever. You can listen to and download ‘Forgotten,’ as well as the rest of the album here:

4. Gilmore Girls
I probably will not have a chance to watch all four parts of the revival this weekend, but I am so excited!! A part of me is actually a little sad about it, only because I know that once I watch them, then it’s really over. The four words will have been spoken, and there will be no more. But I know that it will be amazing to be back in Stars Hollow with these characters and, for that, I am grateful.

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8 Books That Should Be TV Shows…

This is sort of two lists in one. It is not only a list of books that I think would make great TV shows, but also includes books that should have been made into TV shows instead of movies. I have recently gotten into Outlander, and have been watching The Vampire Diaries, Game of Thrones and several others, so I started to think about what other books I have read that would make good television series.

1. Bloodsucking Fiends by Christopher Moore
A little twisted and very funny, this first book, along with his sequels You Suck and Bite Me, is a vampire love story. New vampire Jody is trying to find her way in San Francisco, and figure out who turned her, and she finds help in the form of a writer turned Safeway night-clerk named Tommy.

2. Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling
I really enjoyed the movies, but there were so many minor stories from the books that were left out and so many character backstories still inside Rowling’s head that are slowly making their way onto her Pottermore website. Seriously though, where did Charlie Weasley go?!

3. What I Had Before I Had You by Sarah Cornwell*
This is a really great novel about a woman who has bipolar disorder. You see how she is dealing with her recent divorce and her son’s newly developed symptoms, as well as flashbacks of when she was a teenager and was starting to exhibit signs. While shows like Homeland and Shameless often depict the extreme symptoms, this gives a more authentic look at the realities of multi-generational manifestations of the disorder.

4. Divine Secrets of the Ya-ya Sisterhood by Rebecca Wells
This book, as well as Little Altars Everywhere, were two of my favorite books in high school…and, oh my God, I am just *now* discovering that a third book came out in 2006 that I did not even know about called Ya-yas in Bloom! My group of girlfriends and I even called ourselves the Ya-yas, and I was obviously TV Yaya. There were so many great stories about this group of four girlfriends, from childhood to adulthood, that would be awesome to see come to life in a series.

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