Hi guys! First of all I want to say thanks for visiting my little project, building this website has been a fun little learning experience and I’m glad it’s something cute and fun I get to share with my friends. I’ve really been having my #womeninstem moment lol. Anyways, I figure if I have an outlet to share what’s been going on in my little brain it’ll make me less crazy in real life. I guess I can only dream.
So without further adieu here are some of my favorite things from this summer! There’s so much I wanted to cover, but alas I think it would make this list too long because I really just have so many thoughts about everything. So this will be more focused on miscellaneous things that have been bringing me joy and I’ll talk more about the books, tv shows, and movies I have thoughts about in another post down the line.
Fountain Pens
If there’s anything that is truly my biggest vice, it has to be stationery. It’s actually quite embarrassing how much I have in my apartment and back home, my mom is always telling me how I could open a shop with all the pens I own. Ever since covid (and the discovery of my favorite store of all time CW Pencils, may she rest in peace) I have been pretty obsessed with wooden pencils, especially since so much of my schoolwork at Berklee (at least pre-pandemic) required pencil. I’m sure it’s obvious if you’ve gotten a birthday gift from me in the past year or so, because you’ve definitely gotten a variety of pencils with it. But move on over pencils, a new challenger approaches, which of course (I mean it is the title of the section) is the fountain pen.
Look I really tried to avoid it, especially since compared to pencils they can be significantly more expensive, and also I have so many pencils. But the problem is that I see pretty colors and my brain goes into overload and hey look now I have some fountain pens and some pretty ink colors. To keep this section succinct however I’ll just go over some of my favorites:
Kaweco Perkeo with a medium nib: This was the first pen I got (it was a gift from my mom) and it’s to blame for starting me down this rabbit hole. I have it in the “Old Chambray” color (which is just blue and white) and it’s a really cute color combo.
Cream Lamy Safari with a medium nib: I think when it comes to fountain pens I tend to like a thicker nib and this pen is pretty great! I think so far it’s my favorite and I just love how it looks and writes.
Graf Von Faber Castell ink in Deep Sea Green and Olive Green: Just two pretty colors I got with the Perkeo and they both work great in it.
Diamine ink in Wild Strawberry: This is just such a pretty bright red that is a great combo with the Lamy Safari, I think it’s so far my favorite ink to use.
Thunderstruck Cover
I feel like I have so little to say about this video except that it’s awesome. The fact that she’s using the tuner to do those bent notes in the opening is crazy, and it’s overall just an awesome cover of maybe my favorite AC/DC songs. Every so often the Youtube algorithm really pulls out something crazy like this and I only wished it happened more often.
Webtoons
I guess Webtoon isn’t something new and it seems like there’s been a lot of popular ongoing stuff they have, but I’m going to be honest I know nothing about most of them. I think Lore Olympus is one of their big series? I have no clue and I’m too lazy to fact check that. But anyways, here's the few that I actually do read:
Wayne Family Adventures: I mean this is so obviously what I want out of my Batman media, one that actually features the Batfamily as you know, an actual family. I think when it comes to DC’s more recent Batman output that I have actually enjoyed, it almost always tends to be the more goofy and comedic stuff. I don’t know, maybe I’m just burnt out on so much of the self serious and edgy superhero media of late, but Batman is just such a silly guy and grounds for so much comedy, especially with all of his former and current teenage sidekicks. I love that this version of Bruce Wayne is just a tired dad dealing with all of his kids, and I love that this is one of the only things that I’ve read that focuses on his family without it being a convoluted crossover event. All of the main characters get their own little story arcs that really build and highlight each of them, and it’s great that they’re all just siblings that seem to have an actual relationship with one another. I’d honestly recommend this as an introduction to the Batfamily as a whole, especially with it being free to read.
Scoob and Shag Webcomic: What initially starts off as a sort of goofy and chaotic Scooby Doo fan comic turns into an epic filled with cartoon characters across the American cartoon cannon. I am literally not joking. Truly a showcase of what fanworks can be in their highest form, something I don’t think could exist in any other medium. It does take a bit for the story to get going (maybe about 30ish episodes, don’t worry though they start off pretty short), but once it does there are some unexpectedly amazing fight scenes and character moments. I really don’t want to say more about this because I don’t want to spoil anything, but I highly recommend it, maybe even more than Wayne Family adventures, just because of how much I love that this exists.
Vixen: NYC: I guess here is where I need to mention that DC has some deal with Webtoon (which I’m sure has a lot to do with Wayne Family Adventures’ success), and this is one of the series that has come as a result. I will say that I am not familiar with Vixen as a character at all, aside from recognizing her from what I’m sure is her appearance in Justice League Unlimited, so I went into this with very few expectations or really any opinions. I’m happy to say that I have really been enjoying it! While it is on the newer side, I’m enjoying the characters and the anime influenced art style, so I’m excited to see where this more plot driven story is going, especially with it featuring other DC characters from Black Lightning and the Teen Titans
Zatanna & the Ripper: Another DC venture I’ve been enjoying, though this one is even newer than Vixen: NYC. I still feel like it’s worth mentioning though, especially since I really like the art and am intrigued with where its story goes.
Real Housewives ASMR video
This video makes me hysterically laugh and I feel the need to share it with everyone. I could literally make a list of my top 10 moments from this video, truly an all-timer that goes on my personal pantheon of iconic internet videos.
The Boston Public Library
I think my best discovery this past spring was the Boston Public Library and all of its resources, especially their museum passes which let you go to local museums for free. Also their central library is gorgeous and huge, and it has been a really nice place to go read. Hopefully as the fall semester starts it can be a place for me to go study and get work done. Really though, I think the Libby app, which allows you to borrow ebooks through the library, has been the biggest game changer and I’ve read a surprisingly large amount of stuff this year (for me at least). It’s been really awesome to get to read for fun again, stuff like Lindsay Ellis’ books or the first Percy Jackson series, especially when it’s for free on my phone. I've learned that I’m just more inclined to read on a deadline, which fair enough I can work with that. Man, I just love a good local library.