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| Oglethorpe Square in Savannah, Georgia |
Hello, friends! It's almost officially summer, which means we made through one whole pandemic winter. It feels like things are starting to get back to normal, whatever that means. In fact, this past week I went on my first trip in over a year to Savannah, Georgia. But more about that later.
Currently reading:
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt: Naturally I had to reread the book that inspired my trip to Savannah in the first place! I first read this when I was quite young, and it's interesting the things you remember from books when you read them at a certain age. For example, I remembered Joe Odom's advice to, "Always stick around for one more drink. That’s when things happen. That’s when you find out what you need to know," like I had read it yesterday.
I'm not saying I have followed this advice religiously, but I'm also not NOT saying I did.
Drops of God, vol. 6, by Tadashi Agi: Comixology released more volumes of this manga series I love on Prime. Perfect airplane reading (truly).
Savannah: A compact little guidebook to Savannah I picked up in a bookstore there. It's pretty good.
Movies Recently Watched:
This documentary about the 2019 college admissions scandal where a bunch of rich people paid a guy named Rick Singer (who is STILL walking around free, btw) to get their kids into college is definitely relevant to my interests. If you don't have a vested interest in college admissions, though, it's probably skippable.
Another documentary relevant to my interests. I found it pretty fascinating, but I didn't know all the ins and outs of the robbery and the connections to organized crime.
Conclusion: these paintings will never be found! Or if they are, it will be a total accident and not the result of the FBI investigation at all.
Shout out to A. Ryan McGuigan for seeming like a decent guy despite the fact that 1. he's a lawyer, and 2. he represents low-level criminals.
The Woman in the Window, starring Amy Adams
The Invitation, starring Logan Marshall-Green and Tammy Blanchard
I had high hopes for this one, but it was just okay. There was zero character development and the narrative tension fizzled out pretty early. Instead of wrapping things up, the "twist" at the end just highlighted the weaknesses in the script. The Cabin is a similar story that's way more effective, in my opinion.
Another movie I felt like had a lot of potential but fell short. There was a ton going on in the script, but it never came together to effectively create a feeling of paranoia or suspense. The ending was a downer. But Amy Adams did crush it, as usual.
These weeks in heidenkindom:
I got my second vaccine early this month, and almost immediately started planning a trip to Savannah ("Savannah, Georgia?" Yes, Savannah, Georgia). That was the next place I was planning to visit after Bisbee in 2020. Obviously that didn't happen. Until now! Ticket prices were decent and it all seemed to fall into place. Here are some more pics:
River Street
Where the action is!
Savannah's famous for its 22 squares, four of which date to the city's founding as an English colony.
A cemetery famous for its 19th-century statuary. John Muir once camped there for several days.
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| The grave of Gracie Watson is the most visited in the cemetery. It's traditional to leave her toys and coins as gifts. |
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| The famous Bird Girl statue that was on the cover of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, now housed in the Telfair Museum of Art |
The Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist
Famous Houses of Savannah
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| The Williams-Mercer House, former residence of Jim Williams, featured in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. |
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| The Telfair Museum of Art, former residence of Mary Telfair and home to the first public art museum in the South. |
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| This isn't a house per se - it's a famous restaurant called The Olde Pink House. Amazing food! Highly recommend! |
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| The Owens-Thomas House and Slave Quarters, now part of the Telfair Museums. |
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| Andrew Low House, former residence of the founder of the Girl Scouts, Juliette Gordon Low. |
As you can tell, Savannah is a beautiful city full of history, art, wonderful food, and ghosts! Supposedly. I didn't see any.
This was a really wonderful and far overdue trip. And as a bonus, I was upgraded to first class on the flight home!
Do you have any plans for the summer? Any places you're planning to travel because you read about them in a book?
