We’re on our second month of the new year and I only have a vague idea of what my resolutions even were. However I’m showing early success though is reading! So here’s the latest!
You’re Never Weird on the Internet (almost) by Felicia Day
Rating:
Basic Summary: A memoir of Felicia Day: actor, YouTube maverick, writer, geek culture maven. You might know her from The Guild, or appearances in Supernatural and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or where I first saw her, on Doctor Horrible’s Incredible Sing-A-Long Blog with Niel Patrick Harris (and The Guild’s music video “Do You Want To Date My Avatar?“). She’s also the lead creative force behind a TON more things. The list is extensive and amazing.
My Thoughts: I enjoyed this book, but it felt weird to give it an actual rating, like numerically scoring Felicia Day on her memoir is not something she would appreciate or support (outside of the sales function on a site like Amazon. I’d leave a good star rating there). So that’s why there’s a gif.
Felicia Day is awkward. Painfully so. But that’s the important message in her book, is she takes you through her journey of finding that place on the internet where she doesn’t have to feel “bad” for the things that make her awkward (like being homeschooled) or for her interests. And then she goes to Hollywood and things make her feel bad again. And then she reaches a certain level of acclaim and has health problems, or #GamerGate happens, or X, or Y, etc.
This book left me feeling convicted. For the times I squash my own weirdness to blend in, and for the times I wish others would squash their own. Or worse the times when I’ve said or done things that lead to that outcome. If you look for it, you can see that Felicia Day has a strong sincerity to be who she is and to do whatever she’s doing. And she wants that for whoever she’s interacting with as well. It’s refreshing.
The Wrap-Up: Love what you love and let no person or thing interrupt that. Life is too short to pretend you’re cool. And we can all tell you’re pretending. (Because it doesn’t look fun.)
Up Next: I’m reading The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin over the course of the year, so watch out for periodic updates on that. It’s a chapter-a-month type of a deal, so I’m not sure how that will translate here. My book club has also reassembled, and Great Expectations is next on our list! I have until early March to fit that in, so look to see some thoughts on that flitter through. And last, but probably next:
The Handmaiden’s Tale. I’ve been meaning to read this one for a while, and the Hulu trailers finally got me to start it. Watch out for that one to come next.
The Pillow Fortress Review 