Hidden Horror Categories on Netflix
Have you ever explored the hidden categories on Netflix? I JUST found out about these, and it’s amazing. Just go to http://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/### then delete ### and drop in one of these codes instead:
Anime Horror: 10695
B-Horror Movies: 8195
Creature Features: 6895
Cult Horror Movies: 10944
Deep Sea Horror Movies: 45028
Foreign Horror Movies: 8654
Horror Comedy: 89585
Horror Movies: 8711
Satanic Stories: 6998
Monster Movies: 947
Sci-Fi Horror Movies: 1694
Slasher and Serial Killer: 8646
Supernatural Horror Movies: 42023
Teen Screams: 52147
TV Horror: 83059
Vampire Horror Movies: 75804
Werewolf Horror Movies: 75930
Zombie Horror Movies: 75405
You are WELCOME.
Happy Fat by Sofie Hagen - A Review
I can’t remember for the life of me who told me to check out this woman and this book, but I vaguely remember seeing the cover somewhere and instantly knowing that it’d be great. So, so happy to have found this book and Sofie herself. Best parts of the book ahead!
“Beauty is so subjective. It is laughable that we have somehow been tricked into thinking we all should find the same thing pretty.”
I’ve gone back and forth about the idea of cosmetic surgery for years - how it’s great that if you want to change something, you can! Go for it! It’s your life! But also the other side of that coin… just bums me out. There was something in the book that made me (finally, I hope) come to the conclusion that it really just makes me sad that anyone actually believes that they need to change themselves to be “better.” Real change and happiness comes from within yourself and being good to yourself and others. This sounds very after-school-special, yes, but those programs had a good point.
“When fat people say to me, ‘Oh, I could never love myself, I don’t have that confidence,’ I tell them this. ‘You don’t have to have confidence, you just have to be able to understand the basic principles of maths. The more we hate our bodies, the richer these companies get. Ergo, they make us feel bad, in order to make money. Ergo, you do not hate your body because your body is wrong. You hate your body because someone lied to you.’ We believe that the objective truth is that it is a bad thing to be fat. When you realize that is not an objective truth, but rather, someone’s capitalist and very subjective stance, you can begin to let go of the self-hatred.”
“It’s called symbolic annihilation. It’s a term coined in 1976 by George Gerbner to describe the absence of representation in the media. Basically: by not being represented at all, it sends the signal that you don’t matter. It’s a method of making sure that we keep oppressing the same groups of people. If, every time we look at a television, everyone who is not a white man feels a bit worse, it helps to maintain the current system: where the white man is in charge of almost everything. Representation is directly connected to self-esteem - one of the most important traits to possess when asserting yourself in the world. It’s a self-fulfilling prophecy - if you believe that you matter more than others, you will place yourself in that position. Likewise, if you feel like you don’t, you will let others assert themselves over you.”
“There are more naked and murdered women on television and in films than there are fat women.”
“I miss the time I really liked Ricky Gervais, you know, before I learned about his general personality.”
Sidenote to me: I have to consciously become less judgmental about what others are wearing. If someone seems happy with their clothing choices, how in the hell is it my business to correct them? Even if it’s only internal thoughts, I don’t want to have them. I feel like if I can actually do this, then I’ll even become more confident with my only choices and less worried what others will think.
“God, imagine if - and this goes for not just all people during your teenage years but essentially for all people in the world - imagine if people were just nice to each other.”
“Men’s opinions of me are irrelevant. Men’s opinions of you are irrelevant too. Yet we are constantly being fed this idea that it matters.”
“There’s an established narrative which says that women have to be thin to be taken seriously, that their worth is based on their fuckability - and so women should be constantly dieting, exercising and chopping up salads in addition to putting on make-up, having a straight fringe, wearing painful heels and expensive perfume and focusing real hard on smiling to everyone but not too much, not enough to be asking for it. They also need to figure out complicated ways of getting home at night in order to not walk through any poorly lit alleyways, and to do reproductive and emotional labor for all the men in their lives. It takes so much hard work, time and effort to be considered an ‘acceptable woman’ that we hardly have time to just exist. We constantly have to reach an impossible standard in order to just be taken a little bit seriously, and you can’t help but wonder if it’s all a trick. If we are meant to be too busy applying lipstick to get involved with politics, business decisions and activism. When women are given the impossible task of ‘get thin and stay thin’, and when this is made the very minimum requirement to receive basic respect, we can see that this is less of a focus on beauty and more of a way of controlling women.”
“Apart from having been brainwashed since birth to believe that thinness is the ultimate ideal, I think we also love the idea that we can control our own mortality. So whilst the obsession with weight loss and dieting stems from a need to control women, our personal obsession with it could also be fuelled by our need to just control something.”
“A fat activist will ask to be treated with respect and the troll on the internet will say, but what about health? as if being unhealthy somehow removes your right to be treated well.”
“The hatred of fat people is not limited to fat people - it is directed at fat in itself. So even if you have one percent body fat, that one percent is something you are meant to hate, even if it does not mean you need two seats on a plane. If everyone decided to take one stab each at the monster that is fatphobia, it would not have to be just up to the fat people to battle it.”
“To hug your stomach and to start believing that it is a sexy, beautiful stomach - it feels good. And if you have gone through life being told that you are worthless and undeserving of good things, sometimes good feelings can feel uncomfortable. We need to get over this because this is essential work - you are going to be you forever.”
“There is no such thing as failure. You have already been failed by the people you expected to be able to trust. You have already felt guilty enough. You have already blamed yourself enough. Part of the hike towards self-love is reuniting with your body and the instincts you had when you were born. Accepting that you act a certain way, eat a certain way, look a certain way. And that it is all okay. You are okay. And you have always been okay. You only ever tried your best.”
Just such a wonderful book, I can’t recommend it enough.
A Day in Sleepy Hollow, New York
I finally went! Visiting Sleepy Hollow has always been a small dream of mine, how could it not be? It’s the Salem of New York. It’s kind of wild that it’s taken this long for me to actually visit. In any case, October is the perfect time to go. Fully recommend. Here’s how we (I went with my great friend Irene) spent the day!
We met at Grand Central and took a train up to Tarrytown (about $22/per person roundtrip, takes about 35 minutes from NYC). We thought about renting a car for the small trip, but it’s such a walkable area that I figured we’d be fine (I was right). From the Tarrytown train station we walked over to Pretty Funny Vintage, which sells antiques, gifts, souvenirs, jewelry, that sort of thing.
I didn’t realize how beautiful and old Tarrytown is. Look at the gorgeous the music hall.
We then headed to Sweet Grass Grill for lunch. The food was good yes, but the service was fantastic. The wait was on the longer side, but that only makes sense since it’s limited seating ‘cause… you know, the world is ending.
After food, we walked to Bella’s Boutique, which had great gifts and postcards for Sleepy Hollow. From there, we stopped into Tarrytown Pastry Chef because I’d heard good things about the Halloween themed cookies.
This was the point where we finally entered Sleepy Hollow. Look at this beautiful signage (below), it’s located on the corner of Broadway & Depeyster incase you’re looking for it when you’re in town.
We headed onward toward the Headless Horseman sculpture, bridge and monument.
After that we walked near Washington Irving’s grave, but I didn’t really have any urge in entering a cemetery to see a strange man’s grave. Seemed weird at the time and still does. But if that’s your sort of thing, many other people were doing just that. Then we walked through what once was old Sleepy Hollow Village (and is now just a residential street with a woody area) to get to the shoreline.
Once we got to the shoreline of the Hudson, it’s about a fifteen minute walk to reach the lighthouse (which is fully worth a view, who doesn’t love a lighthouse?) and there’s a lined, easy pathway to get there, too. The lighthouse was erected in the 1880s, which is incredible that it’s still standing, intact and beautiful as ever.
From here, it’s about a fifteen minute walk to get back to the Tarrytown train station. It was such a nice little day. There are other Halloween themed things to do nearby (The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze, Home of the Legend, Philipsburg Manor), but they were either sold out or I’ve done them already, so it felt great to have a casual day roaming. It’s hard to find things to do right now (in the middle of a pandemic) that you can do safely, so it was great that this mini trip actually worked out. We spent 80% of the day outside and when we were indoors, nothing was crowded or felt unsafe in any way. If you’re ever in the New York area and you even kinda love Halloween, you should definitely make your way to Sleepy Hollow.
Just delightful.
How on earth did I forget about this perfect scene?
September Shenanigans 2020
The leaves are starting to fall, the colder winds are coming, the pumpkins are starting to appear and I’ve never wanted an October more than I do right now. This time of year stirs up so much inside of me, I can barely breathe. However you enjoy this season, I hope you take some time to bask in these autumn days that are typically so fleeting. Here’s what went down last month.
I recapped what happened off of my summer list.
I made an autumn list of things that I’d like to do this season.
I cannot stop playing this John Legend song on repeat. Especially in recent days.
Some other songs I have on repeat: Never Let Me Go by Alok & Bruno Martini & Zeeba, Savage Love by Jawsh 685 & Jason Derulo and that old Sarah McLachlan song Ice Cream for some reason.
Absolutely in love with the limited edition apple pie flavoured Kit Kats. Unreal.
I made these pumpkin pie overnight oats and they were a big hit. Great autumn breakfast idea.
I ate at Buvette and their snails were definitely the highlight.
I saw the movie The Car and it was phenomenal. You have to see it. The dialogue is atrocious, but a young, smokeshow James Brolin? Christ, he can get it. It’s a perfect bad movie.
I went to Gramercy Tavern and of course that place never disappoints. The service, the food, everything is impeccable. Some photos below.
Something new: did you know that Sephora has in-store rewards available that are different from the rewards shown on their website? Something to check out near the front cashier the next time you’re in a Sephora.
New favourite potato chips: Torres Selecta Black Truffle.
I bought the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion again because it’s such a great product for calming down acne and one bottle lasts at least six months or so.
A great piece about the arts scene in New York City right now.
I rarely listen to podcasts, but I listened to the Conan O’Brien episode of the Michelle Obama podcast and it was great. The episode is about marriage and I liked it so much because I love hearing about how couples first met and fell for one another.
With SNL returning this weekend, I rewatched one of my favourite sketches in recent memory.
As with every other person on earth this month, I watched The Social Dilemma on Netflix and then immediately deleted all the games off of my phone. I know the whole message was to delete Instagram and Facebook, but I’ve never had Facebook on my phone (what am I, 90?) and I truly don’t go on Instagram that much (not by choice, I have a shite battery that lasts about eight minutes a day).
This girl helping senior dogs is an absolute angel on earth.
Fighting ever urge in my body to immediately buy this emerald beauty.
I started watching Girlfriends and even though the pilot is rooooough (as most pilots are), it’s an all right show. It’s insane that Sex And The City basically stole this entire premise. I did, however, stop watching because all of the women are so wildly tiny, it warps my brain to sit and stare at skinny women for long periods of time.
I bought this scalp massager and holy hell, it’s incredible. It elevates a shower times a thousand.
I tried a sample of Fab Pharma’s Rescue Mask and it’s pretty great. It’s weird to not wash a mask off yes, but your skin feels amazing in the morning after use.
My friend Dusty had his movie reviewed by Roger Ebert’s website which is so huge and amazing. Wildly proud.
I started watching Sister, Sister on Netflix and Lisa is the greatest character of all time.
The new autumn candle at Trader Joe’s? Honeycrisp Apple! Already bought! Already sold out! Will I light it or just keep it to smell every so often? None of your business.
Another great New Yorker cover.
I was fortunate enough to eat at Atoboy (thank you Katie & Greg!) and it was perfection. I’ve never eaten tuna so heavenly. Such a wonderful meal and the service especially was warm as hell.
A roasted oyster cheat sheet for NYC, if you should find yourself in need.
A great piece talking about how people make up voices for their dogs.
I rewatched Grease and I can’t believe how often I forget how good the music is in that movie. Every song smashes.
One of my favourite restaurants in Astoria, Mars, opened for lunch recently, very grateful.
REVELATION: Not drinking before bed gives you a crazy, deep, restful sleep. How on earth did I not remember this?
I finally bought those Aerie bike shorts I’ve wanted for months and they’re incredible. Bike shorts should always be this damn soft.
Finally ate at Arte Cafe on the Upper West Side and loved it.
I visited the Krispy Kreme flagship in Times Square and it was pretty great. Most locations in every suburban city have glass windows where you see the donuts being made, so I didn’t get the huge appeal?
I may or may not have indulged in some of the seasonal desserts at Comfortland in Astoria, I won’t tell you details because they weren’t anything amazing. Honestly, nothing compares to the apple fritters at San Remo’s in Etobicoke.
I watched the Surviving R. Kelly sequel on Netflix and it didn’t really have any new information, which makes sense because there hasn’t even been a trial yet.
I also watched all of season one and some of season two of Twin Peaks (for the first time) and I have some thoughts. First things first, the pilot is incredible. But… why is the background/theme music so terrible? It never matches any of the scenes in tone and it just leaves me confused most times. Some parts are so fucking off and bad (acting-wise, script-wise) that I literally googled certain scenes to see if they were supposed to be funny or if I was missing something. What the fuck is with all of the dancing? And THIS scene? What in the good holy fuck?? UGH, and then David Lynch SHOWS UP IN THE SHOW? Kill me. The entire series should’ve lasted one season. I can officially say that I don’t give one shit about who the fuck killed Laura Palmer, she’s the luckiest character of them all to be dead. Blow me, Lynch.
Hot tip: wine bottle as a ravioli maker!
Neve Campbell is definitely onboard for the next Scream!
Best tweets of the month ahead.
Some things that I’m looking forward to doing this month: I must decorate, I really want to make this fall kale salad that sounds incredible, I’m planning a visit to Sleepy Hollow for the day, if I can find the time I really want to try these vegan burgers, I need to finalize the details for my costume this year, MUST BUY these winter stamps, I cannot wait to get my hands on these again, I’m intending on doing my 31-days-of-Halloween celebration yet again (which means that I’ll try to do at least one spookily themed thing each day), and I will definitely be watching some of these 90s sitcoms Halloween episodes. Also, I’m not a huge cronut fan but these flavours (below)?! Get out of here. Already pre-ordered.
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in August over here.
Autumn List 2020
The absolute best time of the year has officially begun. So as the world crumbles around us, let us look to the falling leaf. Let us carve a pumpkin and bask in the candlelight that shines back upon us. Let us believe for a moment that things will get better. Here’s what I’d love to do this season.
Make an apple dessert.
Visit Sleepy Hollow.
Jog before sunrise.
Make homemade hot toddies.
Have the most epic Halloween possible since it falls on a full moon this year and that, my dear, is magical.
However you’re spending the season, I hope it’s everything you want it to be and more.
Summer List 2020 Revisited
Hahahah, remember when I made a list of summer things that I wanted to do? That was cute.
“If I can make it to Canada in the next few months, I’d love to go see Tew Falls finally.”
Didn’t even kinda make it to Canada.
“Go swimming at least twice. (Where? No idea.)”
I went once! In Vermont! And I’m grateful for even that one time.
“Try a Vietnamese iced coffee for the first time.”
Did it! It wasn’t anything miraculous, but happy to have tried it.
“Eat the burger at L’Artusi.”
Done! If you put “eat a burger” on any list of mine, it’d be wild if I don’t move mountains to eat that mother.
“Start planning San Francisco (and area) trip.”
Truly just forgot about this one. Still intending on researching the hell out of this trip.
So 2.5/5, which is actually not terrible for a summer that essentially did not count. Autumn list coming tomorrow!
August Actions 2020
First things first, welcome to (under normal circumstances) the best time of the year. Will this perfect time of year be different than previous years? Of course. We’re all still trying to function in this modern version of hell. SO that being said, I am still going to try and make the most of the seasonal things I like to do (minus seeing the people that I love and haven’t seen for almost a year, eating the baked goods from places that I’m not allowed to visit, or being able to just hug my family). MINUS ALL OF THAT. I will cook what I cannot go out to eat. I will watch the movies in my home that I’d normally insist on watching with others. I will decorate. I will light all of the autumn-scented candles that I can get my grubby hands on. Autumn will happen and I will do the best that I can. And I encourage you to do the same. Here’s what happened last month:
I found out that there will definitely be a Scream 5 and I am pumped.
I read Gabrielle Union’s latest book.
I did two posts about the clothing that I got from Femme Luxe.
I wrote about our recent trip to Vermont.
I have been doing Nathan’s podcast on Patreon a lot lately, and it’s honestly just so fun to do.
Two more songs that I love off of Taylor Swift’s new album: epiphany and mad woman. It’s fast becoming my album of the summer (I’m, like, super indie, I know).
Blue Diamond has these flavoured almonds out right now and the salt & vinegar as well as the dill pickle flavours… are insanely good.
I sent this to my mom and she loved it as much as I do (below).
I tried samples of the Verb Ghost Shampoo, Hair Mask and Spray and they were all equal parts bullshit. Who sends out a spray sample in a small packet, so that it can’t be sprayed? Ignoring the idiotic packaging, the products themselves just fell flat. Absolutely nothing special here.
I tried Ops Pizza in Brooklyn and it was great! Better than Prince Street or Mama’s Too? Not a chance. Still good, though.
My friend Dusty has a movie premiering at TIFF! Too incredible.
I finally got to eat the tomato focaccia from Lilia and now I can’t get it off my mind and have to go get it again before summer is over.
Christ, I love these Cult Gaia bags.
I am fighting every urge inside me not to buy a Halloween tree.
Yep, I’m definitely gonna watch the new Sofia Coppola movie. But obviously not in theatres.
I bought this mask off of Etsy in anticipation of October’s arrival.
I also got this Tan Lines candle that smells incredible. I know it’s basic as hell but candles might be saving my life.
I vote for more light-hearted news items, please/thanks.
I must try these vegan sandwiches SOON, they sound so good.
I’m not sure when I’ll feel okay about visiting the new Krispy Kreme flagship, but I’ll tell you one thing: I can’t wait. I remember when they opened their first Canadian location and my dad was so excited, I think that’s where my love of the company comes from.
I watched the movie Phantasm and even though the fear scene was great, this is one baaaaaaad movie. Just complete shit.
Best tweets of the month ahead.
Some movies that I rewatched: It’s Complicated (the family of children is so annoying in this movie, but I love all of the adults and the food and it’s just comforting to watch) and Adventures in Babysitting (a perfect movie).
I started rewatching Moesha and it’s great to see again, but I can’t believe I didn’t notice how incredible the side character of Kim is! She holds the show together! Obviously, this realization makes me excited for when her spinoff show The Parkers comes to Netflix next month.
I bought this strawberry shampoo from The Body Shop (impulse buy for $5) and the smell reminds me so much of being in middle school (meaning this in a good way). Is it a great shampoo? Meh.
I tried a decent sized sample of the moisturizing cream from Sunday Riley and the best part about it is the smell. I can’t imagine a world in which I’d pay $65 for a basic moisturizer, though, so that says it all.
Forever in love with this summer panzanella salad.
I tried that anchovy pasta that Mindy Kaling recommended and it’s basic as hell, wouldn’t make again.
I made my first purchase from Everlane and the quality of the shirt is beautiful, if not a little shapeless. Will I buy from them again? Probably not. It’s just so bland for the price point.
New songs I keep playing on repeat: Surrender by Natalie Taylor, Savage by Megan Thee Stallion, and (*drops head*) this dance remix to a Taylor Swift song (stop judging me).
I own it already, but I’m so happy to hear that Safety Not Guaranteed is back on Netflix. Everyone should watch it. The ending is amazing.
I’m using the new Trader Joe’s Strawberry Lemon Sugar Scrub and does it do anything magical? Not really. The smell is incredible, but there’s something gross about the little strawberry seeds in the scrub. No thanks.
New watch alert! $25 at Nordstrom. I’ve been making fun of Nathan having a gold watch for some time now and then realized it might be because I was jealous and wanted one of my own. So here we are.
Idea: take hot baths in the summer. I never used to do this and it’s so relaxing. It doesn’t make any sense.
I tried the vegan burger patties from Trader Joe’s and they’re only okay, I wouldn’t get them again. The Impossible Burger is hands down the best one I’ve tried, with a close second place to the Beyond Burger.
I love this idea for basil breadcrumbs on top of a lasagna.
The Met reopened (as well as their rooftop installation) and I can’t bring myself to go. I know they’re taking precautions and all, but I just don’t want to do it. It does look incredible, though.
I tried the brunch burger at Vite Vinosteria in Astoria and I know I say this a lot, but holy shit. Might be the best burger in Astoria? What the hell is with Italian restaurants having these sleeper hit burgers all of a sudden? Vesta is the same way! Either way, I’m not complaining. I mean, look at this beast.
I started a Might Buy bookmark category in my browser window, to cut down on impulse buying and really care about what I spend my money on. Here’s a list of things that I can’t decide if I want to buy or not:
I already have three cropped hoodie sweaters BUT I don’t have one in the colour Heather Stone.
I’ve heard so many good things about these Spanx leggings for years. Might make a move on them.
I’ve always wanted all-red sneakers.
A scalp massager because… might be fun?
These pumpkin dish towels are cute as hell.
I’ve heard such good things about this face wash, but I have ten different open ones in my washroom so this is low on the list.
Some things I’m looking forward to this month: I think I’m going to start rewatching Friday Night Lights, I’m also working on my October list of what to watch each day that month, I’m so excited that Ijeoma Oluo’s new book has a release date of December 2020, and I’m excited to finish the new book I’m reading (that you’ll be hearing about imminently).
If you’ve got any interest in reading last month’s roundup, you can see what went down in July over here.