cinnamon bun oreos

Do wappa do wappa do wappa do wappa

DUN

DUNDUNDUN

DUNDUNDUNNNNN

Wait, wait, wait, pause.

Okay, I thought I would be kind of epic if I started off this Favorites post with an Eye of the Tiger type vibe, but I can see now that it looks more like a post-wisdom teeth slur/stroke hybrid type of situation.

Apologies.

But hey, now that you know the intention behind the introductory gibberish, you can totally start this post over and get the full effect of the do wappa’s…

No? Well okay then, let’s just get started, here are a few of my favorite things from January and February:

Running!

Go ahead, roll your eyes. I deserve and accept the gesture. I mean, who wants to hear about someone that loves running, right? Running sucks! Except, well, I don’t think it does…at least not anymore. Maybe it’s because I’ve been doing it consistently for over two months now so my body no longer feels like it’s going to spontaneously combust (as it has done every other time I’ve ever decided to “become a runner”) or maybe it’s because one of my goals for 2017 is to run 1000 miles, so I feel like in a way I have to love it. Regardless, I’ve recently discovered that I do. Oops.

Nerd Wax

Speaking of running, have you ever noticed how completely annoying it is to run with glasses/sunglasses? There you are trying to get in the zone and there your glasses are, bouncing around your face like a drunk guy at a nightclub, causing you to break your focus and, depending on whether the glasses are prescription, sending you in and out of ranging levels of blindness. Enter Nerd Wax, stage right. Put a little on the bridge of your nose and your glasses will hang on tighter than a drunk guy at a nightclub, but unlike him, you’ll definitely want to take Nerd Wax home. (Find it here)

Books

When I’m not writing, I’m usually reading, (or running, or eating, or sleeping or asking my brother to clarify popular teenage slang terms or looking up new quesadilla recipes) but mostly reading, and so more often than not, when a favorites post comes around, I have multiple books that I’ve recently enjoyed, making the selection of just one, HARD. So, I’m just going to start recommending two. It’s a safe median, I think. It lets me give you a little variety without writing you a book…about books. So yeah, two. And I’ll do the same for movies and music. Onward!

Here are this months’ recommendations:

Nicola Yoon is quickly becoming one of my favorite new writers. I read her first book Everything, Everything (which is now a motion picture!) and loved it with my whole heart, and The Sun is Also a Star was no different. She just knows how to make your heart swell, and she tends to do so without your permission. (Find it here)

Anna Kendrick is arguably one of my favorite HBINM’s (Human Beings I’ve Never Met) (pronounced, hib-i-nims) and I was so excited to finally get to read her debut book, Scrappy Little Nobody. Long story short: I LOVED it. Throughout the process of reading it I was the physical embodiment of a LOL and I would highly recommend it. (Find it here)

La La Land & The Submarine Kid

As an artist, La La Land was an absolute dream to watch. As a lover of movies, La La Land was an absolute dream to watch. As a human being, La La Land was an absolute dream to watch. Honestly, there’s not much else I can say. (Find it here)

On a completely different token, The Submarine Kid is a story about a soldier suffering from PTSD. It’s told in an incredibly unique way, while still remaining honest, and is extremely well done, well acted and well, just go watch it! (You can find it on Netflix.)

James Arthur & Lauren Alaina

One of my favorite things about iTunes is the expressive language used by the reviewers to describe albums. Those people bring out alllll the adjectives, let me tell you. So I would feel rather unworthy trying to describe anything about these two albums. That being said, let me just leave with you with the names and a few words iTunes uses to describe them:

lauren-alaina-road-less-traveled-album-cover

Back from the Edge by James Arthur: “energetically soulful”, “lusty neo-R&B”, & “gospel-tinged behemoth” (Find it here)

Road Less Traveled by Lauren Alaina: Hmm…the adjective guy keeps it brief here with simply: “crossover gold”, but it should also be noted that an iTunes user rated it as “the best thing that has ever happened”, so there’s that. (Find it here)

Cinnamon Bun Oreos

I mean, this shouldn’t be that surprising, as this cookie was essentially my muse this month. But seeing as it’s still an incredible cookie that I have yet to go a full week without consuming, I thought it deserved another round of recognition. (Find it here)

Have anything you’ve been loving over these last couple months? Let me know! My Amazon cart is always open…

See my previous favorites post here.

A few weeks ago my sister and I were browsing the Target snack aisles when we came across the beloved wall of Oreos. Now, I don’t know if this is standard snack architecture in all Targets, or if it’s unique to ours, but we rarely make a trip without marveling at its wonder.

On this particular trip, we forewent responsibility, self-control, and health conscious spending, and grabbed a package of the newly released, highly enticing flavor known as “Cinnamon Bun.” It was within an instant of seeing them that we shared a glance a.k.a an unspoken agreement that addressed the necessity to purchase, so we threw the package in the cart, and the rest was history. And by “the rest”, I mean “all the cookies” in under 2 days.

Our stance on the matter was clear:

About a week later, a friend of ours brought a package of the aforementioned gifts to the Thursday night bowling league my family plays in.

“I heard these were pretty good,” he said to me with a smile, hinting at my social media post. I smiled back and then opened the package, offering him first taste. He obliged, giving the cookie a nod and an overall look of satisfaction, one that assuredly suggested he would not say no to another one, or two, or three.

For the remainder of the night, we passed around the cookies to friends, many of whom had also seen my affirming proclamation. But while they knew me and understood my undeniable appreciation for what I was dubbing, “a cookie for the ages”, they also knew themselves and understood their own taste buds. So, as they made their way through the cookie, twisting it apart or breaking it in half or consuming it all in one bite, they calculated their opinion.

Some were positive, some were in total agreement with me, some even more so; others tilted their head, shrugged, or remained indifferent; and others shook their head, twisted their mouths, and offered a brief, “it’s not for me.”

I obviously stood on a specific side of the argument, and was unafraid to express it lovingly, which is ultimately what had brought the argument in front of so many around me. It had sparked curiosity and the need for research to see which side was right for them. It had got them thinking. And while those who ended up on the opposite side as me will ultimately always hold an opinion that may not make sense to me, it doesn’t make me doubt that it makes sense to them. It doesn’t make me doubt that it’s what they believe. Why? Because from their point of view, I stand on similarly unfamiliar ground. Why can’t I understand their side of it? Why can’t I see that Cinnamon Bun Oreos are actually horrible?

Simply put: Because I don’t believe they are.

Does this mean we should hate each other? Does this mean I should consider them a lesser person? Does this mean we can no longer see eye to eye on anything?

Of course not. Because there’s always Swedish Fish Oreos that we can collectively agree are disgusting.

What’s that?

You like Swedish Fish Oreos?

Oh.

Well, okay then. I can respect that.

Agree to disagree.