Behind the Curtain: February 2017

I’ve come to look forward to these monthly posts about what I’m into beyond travel because there’s so much more to my life than where I go, despite the fact that it’s something I love. It’s funny how many people respond with their obsessions or agree with mine! As with last month, I’m sharing the things I’m obsessed with at the moment. Thanks for following along! Be sure to share what you’re loving this month below!

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Reading

The biggest highlight was finding out that my local library carries The Walking Dead graphic novels as e-books. I think I’ve read a dozen now, checking out a few at a time. I’m now caught up with the series. I also had more time to read than usual, thanks to some long bus days in Guatemala, so I also finished Beyond Belief, Adnan’s Story, and Walden on Wheels. 

I’ve just started Truly Madly Guilty to see what all the Liane Moriarty fuss is about. I do like that it’s set in Sydney and mentions of neighborhoods I used to frequent. To see what else I’m reading, check out my Goodreads Profile here.

Listening

I’m in a bit of a music funk at the moment. It’s mostly been Sia’s The Greatest on repeat (listen here), which will be my anthem of the year. There’s also a great “Singing In the Shower” playlist on Amazon Prime Music that is fun to listen to while I work. In terms of podcasts, I’m caught up with Criminal and am working on catching up with Truth and Justice. What other true crime or interesting podcasts should I download?

Watching

THE SURVIVORS ARE BACK, Y’ALL. The Walking Dead has returned from its mid-season break and I couldn’t be more excited, especially now that I’m caught up with the comics to the present storyline. I also want to point out that during the Super Bowl (I know, too soon to talk about), there were four different #georgiafilm commercials including the teaser for TWD and Stranger Things. 

I’ll go ahead and let you put Halloween on your calendar for a season 2 binge. I’ve also gotten into Amazon’s impressive list of shows including The Man in the High Castle and Z: The Beginning of Everything. I immediately connected with Zelda on this Georgia-filmed show about a woman shadowed by her husband’s insecurities. I’m a huge Fitzgerald fan and it made me look at their history totally differently.

Loving

Atlanta. Don’t let the Super Bowl fool you. This city is still too busy to hate, even smug bastards like Tom Brady. I digress. The more of the world I see, the surer I am that this is where I want to be. I love changing people’s misconceptions about the city through my writing. I think this is where I want to “settle down” as much as I can.

Traveling

I spent two weeks last month traveling around Guatemala, which was full of a few lows, but mostly highs. I practiced my Spanish, made new friends, and disconnected for days at a time. I’ll be writing about the places I went in the coming weeks.

In the meantime, I spent last weekend with my sister in North Carolina for an early Galentine’s extravaganza at Lake Norman. It was a gorgeous 75 degrees and all fun and games until she lost her phone in the lake. And this coming weekend, I’m off to California with my mom.

It’s her school break and she’s always wanted to drive the Pacific Coast Highway. So after making stops in Bodega Bay (for our The Birds fans!), we’ll be heading south towards Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo. We’re booked at the Madonna Inn and a few other places, but send me the rest of your tips!

Working

After being told that my work for one of my regular clients would be cut down more than half, I scrambled to find more work to even it out. I think I succeeded in getting my bearings. I pitched a bunch of stories right out of the gate and nearly all were accepted.

I worked on a story about a Hindu temple in suburban Atlanta that comes out this spring (pictured above). I also had a lot of stories that I worked on back in December come out this month. The spring/summer issue of The Knot: Georgia that I worked on is on stands now.

The content that I worked on for Explore Georgia, my state’s tourism body, is now live on their website as well. You can also see my work this month on Moment, Roads and Kingdoms, and Thrillist, just to name a few. See what else I’m working on via my Contently profile. *And I got mentioned on Refinery29 this week!