artsy musings of a bibliophile

Monthly Recap: December

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And 2014 is over.

LIST OF NEWSWORTHY

December was a month that I mostly spent doing random stuff like binge-watching and making myself forcefully read.

Blogoversary Fail.
So one thing that I totally spaced out on in November is that my blogoversary was on the 13th! I started my fourth year of blogging and what. To be fair, I haven’t been blogging much for the past couple of months or so.

All the Mails!
So I got a letter from Mel as the pen pal project kicked off (I still need to send my letter to Amber, I suck) and then Asti surprised me with the cutest card ever. It even looks like her! Hehe. Also, I managed to stay alive in Ready Player One edition of the Bookish Games and now I have proof.

The Spreadsheet Craze
Crini likes to make spreadsheets and after looking at a couple of her Google Sheets, I thought it’d be cool to make a few. I did and I’m definitely digging it!

TV WATCH

Basically, a month of binge-watching everything.

I started watching The 100 because of everyone on my Twitter timeline (re: Amber, Judith, Terri and a hundred others) going crazy over the Bellarke. Not a chance of me passing up on a life-ruining ship, no.
Then I decided to binge-watch How to Get Away with Murder and damn, what a show!
I have NO idea why I’m still watching The Vampire Diaries because I hate it with a vengeance.
I’m loving the current season of Arrow so much and The Flash is getting better!
Revenge finally got a little better. What. What.
The Big Bang Theory is the greatest show of all time. The Septum Deviation is my favorite episode because of how hard I laughed watching it.
The mid-season finales of New Girl and Brooklyn Nine-Nine were fabulous and I actually liked a couple of episodes of Selfie.
Finally caught up on Suits and got Litt up like hell.
I ended my December with a binge-watch of season 2 of Orange is the New Black and man, it’s so freaking good.

MOVIE WATCH

The awkward moment when you still have one X-Men movie left to watch.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (6/10) – Well, we finally know what happened and I wasn’t whelmed.
X-Men: First Class (7/10) – Probably my favorite X-Men movie as of yet. So badass!
The Wolverine (6/10) – I so don’t get the point of this movie, I just want all the young X-Men back!

APP WATCH

Ever since I got my first ever smartphone in June, my life have also been all about apps. So I decided to add this category since I keep installing new apps and getting rid of the ones I get tired of/find no use of anymore.

 

Elevate
Elevate is a brain training app and I absolutely love it! There are three levels to play every day and what’s better than kickstarting the brain.

Duolingo
I just discovered this app randomly browsing the Play Store and I really like it! I started with French and it gives you these small 5 to 15 minutes (you can set the duration) lessons.

Google Keep
Since Wunderlist didn’t work out for me, I decided to use Evernote again but then I thought I should also try out Google Keep. My verdict? Google Keep is a keeper!

LIST OF READS

Getting back into the habit.

When Joss Met Matt by Ellie Cahill
Sovereign, Volume 1 by Chris Roberson and Paul Maybury
Super Secret Crisis War! Volume 1 by Louise Simonson and Derek Charm
Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge

LIST OF BLOGPOSTS

Seriously, this is embarrassing.

I posted my answers to the TBR tag.
I posted my end of year book survey.

LIST OF BOOK BUYS

I’ve contemplating going broke because I want to buy a box set. However, I did give in and bought one eBook.

Rebound by Noelle August (thank you, William Morrow Books!)
Making Pretty by Corey Ann Haydu (thank you, Katherine Tegen Books!)
Tiny Pretty Things by Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton (thank you, HarperTeen!)
SOS: A Prequel to The Silence of Six by E. C. Myers (Got it for free on Amazon!)
Talon by Julie Kagawa (I got a $0.99 Kindle deal!)

PLAYLIST

I didn’t listen to that much music this month so it was mostly just playing the songs I discovered on repeat.

Trove Styrke, people! // Listen is a fantastic album. // I’m just here for Bastille’s song.

December 2014 by Sana on Grooveshark

How was your December?

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Haha, you forgot to update the captions under your noteworthy images. And no, I do not think I look like a penguin. But I do deserve a crown. I will accept that bit.

    Aww, happy belated blogoversary! Really, if you're not going to do a giveaway I guess there's no real reason to write a post about it, haha. I think I started blogging in March? I can't remember if that's when we started Oh, the Books! too? Maybe. It's too hard to keep track of such things 😛 But four years is pretty epic! Go you!

    ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK! I actually just binge watched the first two seasons this month, as well. Now that I'm not working I needed something to break up my day and decided to try it out. Wasn't sure I would like it after the first episode but then I just couldn't stop watching it! Definitely a fan.

    Anyways, my December was peachy. I just can't believe it's over :O 2015, you better not suck!

  2. Whoops! I thought I might have missed something, haha.

    You're so right about that! I guess I should skip this year and do a half a decade of blogging in 2016. =P

    Eeeep, I had no idea you were watching OITNB! So sneaky, Asti. I really, really like that show (it's like in my top 3 right now).

    Yes, I so want 2015 to be so much in so many ways.

  3. Crini is my spreadsheet-hero. I'm hoping to use some more of them this year, I used to track all of my bookish stuff on a Word document but that's not very convenient. Happy late blogoversary 😀

  4. Asti's penguin card is so adorable!!

    I totally get the spreadsheet craze – The only difference is that I suck at Excel so I just feed my obsession for organization with pretty planners and whatnot.

    Wunderlist didn't work out for me either! 🙁 I was initially using Any.Do and I adored its minimalist approach but I ditched it to try Wunderlist. I might give Google Keep a go and if that too doesn't work I'm going back to Any.Do.

    My list of post for December = ZERO (thanks to connectivity issues). So yeah don't feel to bad.

    Also on a more important note: HTGAWM – This show is THE bomb. LOVED IT SO MUCH. And Connor? *ALL THE HEART EYES*

    Happy New Year & Happy Blogversary! 😉

  5. THE 100! I AM NOT SORRY I WILL NEVER APOLOGISE FOR THIS OBSESSION. You'd have to be pretty crazy to pass up on Bellarke, let's be honest. I need to catch up with How To Get Away With Murder! I was doing so well with keeping up with shows and then The 100 happened.

    Pretty sure the point of The Wolverine was to see Hugh Jackman in his shirtless glory.

    DUOLINGO! It's my favourite app ever. I've been using it for a couple of years now (started on the site, now I use the app mostly) and I adore it. I'm keeping up with the Spanish that I learnt in school, and I started to learn German (I can understand it, but I can't read/write/speak very well at all). This year, my goal is to keep up with my Spanish and continue with the Dutch lessons that I started last year. I want to be able to read Harry Potter 1 in both languages by the end of the year! I'd be able to manage it in Spanish, but definitely not Dutch. Yet. Sorry, this was a ramble. I just love languages!

  6. I've heard so many things about The 100, I should probably start watching it :O But then again, I -just- started watching American Horror Story, so I'm notorious for being behind-on-the-times. XD I'm so excited for a new season of OITNB! And ugh, The Vampire Diaries… it's like a trainwreck you can't look away from. I'm seriously only watching because Damon. *drool*

  7. I've seen more people talking about How to get away with murder, I must check it out. THE 100. I will catch up this weekend. I'm happy that New Girl returned to their original level and Big Bang was hilarious as always.

  8. The photography in this blog post is absolutely stunning. <33 Share your secrets, will you?

    I had a pretty rough month with posting in December, so no worries there. 2015 is a new year so that means a ton of new possiblities. <3

    I SERIOUSLY need to get on The 100 bandwagon. It needs to happen. I swear every. single. person. on my Twitter timeline is RAVING about that show. I want to watch just to see what this Bellarke nonsense is about haha. The Big Bang Theory is also on my list! A lot of my IRL friends are in love with it, and I think that I would really enjoy it.

    Also, thanks for the heads-up about Elevate! I feel like I need more solid apps instead of Twitter and Pinterest (which have basically been taking over my life haha). I'm sorry you didn't like Wunderlist (I'm actually quite the fan!) but yay for finding something better.

    Here's to an amazing 2015!

    -Aneeqah @ My Not So Real Life

  9. THE 100! YESSSS Bellarke for life. I also binge watched How to Get Away With Murder. I was so hooked from the start. It's a crazy story line and I absolutely can not wait for the season to start up again.

    I think I'm going to go on an X-men rewatch. I never fully watched the first ones because I was too young and distracted lol. I need to have a marathon with one of my friends who has never watched them.

    Also love your playlist. David Guetta and Bastille were also on repeat for me in December. Hope you get back into the reading habit (or binge watch more awesome shows)! 🙂

  10. Your photos are so stunning! Haha, I don't celebrate anniversary by own decision but it's big milestone for you! Four years! Wow! I watched all the X-Men series but not these three, oh my, and I tell myself I'm huge X-Men fan, LOL. And heard so many things about How to Get Away With Murder. Plussss, I already give VD, just, ugh, don't like it anymore. 🙁

  11. can't wait to hear what you think of Talon! I want it soo bad because of the dragons but then it's Julie Kagawa and and her books never really wow me.

    I still need to start Orange is the New Black. I mostly want to watch it because Nova Ren Suma's book was described as Orange is the New Black meets Black Swan and I loved that book to pieces XD

    27 more days until HTGAWM is back! WHY IS THAT BREAK SO LOOONG???

  12. I can't believe 2014 is over!

    Btw I am still amazed at how spectacularly you take pictures, seriously. Brooklyn Nine-Nine- YEESSSS I LOVE THAT SHOW. Also New Girl + Big Bang Theory are also great. Do you watch Modern Family? I feel like you'd like it.

    You should watch the latest X-Men movie, I loved it! Also, yay for learning French! French is the official second language of Canada so I take some French classes as well, although I am nowhere near an expert, maybe we can practice our french sometime, yes? 😉

    Happy New Year and may your 2015 be your best year yet!

  13. How To Get Away With Murder and Orange Is The New Black are such amazing shows!! I can't wait for them both to come back, especially with the way the winter finale went for HTGAWM!! X-men:First Class and X-men: Days of Future Past are probably my favorite of all the x-men movies!! I have the Duolingo app, actually, I just haven't been able to be consistent with it, haha.

  14. OMG YES THE 100 IS SUCH A GLORIOUS SHOW. Seriously though, Bellarke is beautiful. *gets all emotional* I love How to Get Away With Murder as well–Viola Davis is such a brilliant actress omg.

    Lovely post and have a fantastic 2015! <33