---01--- Athens, Ga

---02--- Hilton Head, SC

---01--- Sweetwater Creek State Park

---01--- Fernbank Museum of Natural History

---02--- High Museum of Atlanta

---01--- Fox Bros BBQ

---01--- Refuge Coffee Co

---02--- PERC Coffee

---03--- Hodgepodge Coffee 

---01--- Hawks vs. Suns @ State Farm Arena

I've been accepted to present at a couple of national conferences this year. More to come!

Keep in mind this post is collaborative, and I haven’t read many of the books on this list. There’s always so many perspectives to explore, and so many books I’m personally always happy to recommend based on your preferences. 



1984

This almost goes without saying, but if you’ve never read George Orwell’s dystopian classic, now is a better time than ever. Whenever political strife pops up, the references to this book go through the roof, and nothing has captured the experience of an all-controlling surveillance state with the same emotional depth as this masterpiece.



The Sympathizer

Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is a hilarious romp through politics, culture, friendship, and romance. It’ll make you laugh, make you cry, and make you think about the world in a totally different way. Set across Southern California and Southeast Asia, the book touches on the familiar and the foreign in ways that will make you question your preconceived notions about both. And if you really get hooked, you can check out the recently released sequel.



The Genetic Lottery

People might be skeptical about a scientific work, especially one about genetics, but this public-facing book by Katherine Paige Harden does an amazing job keeping you engaged while getting you educated. As a geneticist, Harden shares the history of genetic research while looking toward its future. Her chief aim is to figure out a way to reconcile genetic research’s checkered past with an equitable solution to make it actively helpful for an egalitarian ideal. 

Get enough sleep

Sleep is crucial for our overall health and well-being, but it is often one of the first things to go when feeling stressed. Make sure to get the amount of sleep every night the works for you. If you have trouble falling asleep, try to establish a bedtime routine that includes winding down for 30 minutes before turning off the lights. Sleep deprivation can cause several problems, including irritability, difficulty concentrating, and fatigue. Getting enough rest will help you feel more alert and able to handle whatever comes your way.



Eat colorful

Eating a balanced diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains will help you maintain your energy levels and improve your mood. You can also consider adding cbd oil from the CBDistillery to your diet as it may help improve anxiety levels.

It's also essential to stay hydrated, so be sure to drink plenty of water throughout the day.



Physical activity

Physical activity is a great way to reduce stress and improve overall health. Just 30 minutes of exercise per day can help to increase energy levels, improve sleep, and boost your mood. If you don't have time for a formal workout, try to find ways to incorporate activity into your daily routine. Taking a brisk walk in your neighborhood or playing with your dogs at the park are great options.

Making time for physical activity can be challenging, but it's worth it! Not only will it help you feel better mentally and physically, but it can also give you some much-needed “me” time.



Take breaks

When you're feeling overwhelmed, it's essential to take a step back and give yourself a break. Whether taking a few minutes to read your favorite book or taking a relaxing bath, taking some time for yourself can help you recharge and return feeling refreshed.

If you have trouble taking breaks during the day, try setting aside some time each evening to unwind. You could also try scheduling regular weekends or vacations away from work. Taking periodic breaks will help you avoid burnout and keep your stress levels in check.

There are many things you can do to reduce stress in your life. By following these simple tips, you can make some positive changes that will significantly impact your overall health and well-being. So don't wait - start making these healthy habits part of your daily routine today!

What is dystopian fiction?

While romance and utopian novels are fantastic - they can take us away to the perfect world for a while, dystopian novels offer a stark reality.

Rather than rainbows and flowers, you are going to dive into a repressive, oppressive, sad and often lonely society.

The words that you most often see associated with dystopian novels are hard governments, totalitarianism, dehumanisation, disasters, wars, post-war and bleakness. 

The art of the dystopian novel is that it tackles real-world issues like autonomy, politics, war, government corruption and more in a fictitious way.

It’s not a genre that everyone will want to read, but it is one that everyone should. A great dystopian fiction novel will leave you with a lot of questions, and it might highlight some real-world issues that you have yet to be aware of.

But there are other reasons that the next book you choose should be dystopian fiction.



Suspenseful

If you want to be gripped and feverishly reading more of the book than you had originally planned, then dystopian it is. While horrors and thrillers might have you hooked, the emotions you will feel while reading a dystopian novel aren’t the same.

The style of the writing is often entrancing and will have you turning pages trying to get to the bottom of the who, what, where, and why.

The most loved characters often won’t make it out alive, or something traumatic and dramatic befalls them. Dystopian fiction novels are true to life, and sometimes the unexpected happens, and sometimes there is nothing you can do but watch from the sidelines. 

 

Settings

If you want to feel like you can smell the acrid air and the dust on your own fingertips, then dystopian novels are perfect. Most often, the cities and the descriptions are so recognisable that you can imagine where the characters are.

What makes dystopian novels so impactful is that they heavily reflect the elements that we are familiar with, and that means the content is even more thought-provoking.

There are a few dystopian societies that you may encounter - technological, moral, totalitarian control, corporate, bureaucratic.

And these will be in combination with figurehead concepts, surveillance, propaganda, restrictions and censorship, fear of the outside, and conformity.

Big topics that are intricately woven into beautifully written texts.



Thought-provoking 

We are inundated with things that need our consideration, but often unless we put in some work, we will be coming at every issue with only our own point of view to drive us. When you read a dystopian novel, you will be presented with a different opinion, view and occasional facts.

While what is contained within the novel might be highly exaggerated, many of the topics take their inspiration from the world around us. It is also interesting to read dystopian novels that are based in a country that is not your own.

It’s not just that but looking at how you might handle something, or that maybe you and your action and voice can make a difference in the world. What makes these types of novels even more interesting is that not everyone's opinion will match yours - and there are a lot of discussions that can be had.



Busy

Just like real-life, dystopian novels are busy - there is always something happening. There are a lot of stories that need to be woven together so that you have a fully rounded picture of what is going on.

You’ll get some history; you’ll get characters that arrive and deliver information, death, most likely some upsetting situations, and more.

You’ll explore the rules, you’ll experience the thoughts and feelings of others, and each page will be filled with more.



In your feelings

Because of the topics that these types of novels cover, you can find yourself in a dark place during reading - and that is one of the things that good art should do. Good art should make you feel things, and sometimes it is lighthearted and lovely; other times, it is darker and more pressing. Both are valid.




In the end, one of the shining things that appear in all types of the dystopian novels is the vastness of the human spirit.

Genre: Literary thriller

Synopsis: Inti Flynn arrives in Scotland with her twin sister, Aggie, to lead a team of biologists tasked with reintroducing fourteen gray wolves into the remote Highlands. She hopes to heal not only the dying landscape, but Aggie, too, unmade by the terrible secrets that drove the sisters out of Alaska.

Inti is not the woman she once was, either, changed by the harm she’s witnessed―inflicted by humans on both the wild and each other. Yet as the wolves surprise everyone by thriving, Inti begins to let her guard down, even opening herself up to the possibility of love. But when a farmer is found dead, Inti knows where the town will lay blame. Unable to accept her wolves could be responsible, Inti makes a reckless decision to protect them. But if the wolves didn’t make the kill, then who did? And what will Inti do when the man she is falling for seems to be the prime suspect?

Content/Trigger Warnings: Abuse, animal violence/death, anger issues, agoraphobia, anxiety, blood/gore, death, rape, trauma

Genre: YA southern family mystery

Synopsis: Eighteen-year-old auto mechanic Sawyer Taft did not expect her estranged grandmother to show up at her apartment door and offer her a six-figure contract to participate in debutante season. And she definitely never imagined she would accept. But when she realizes that immersing herself in her grandmother's "society" might mean discovering the answer to the biggest mystery of her life-her father's identity-she signs on the dotted line and braces herself for a year of makeovers, big dresses, bigger egos, and a whole lot of bless your heart. The one thing she doesn't expect to find is friendship, but as she's drawn into a group of debutantes with scandalous, dangerous secrets of their own, Sawyer quickly discovers that her family isn't the only mainstay of high society with skeletons in their closet. There are people in her grandmother's glittering world who are not what they appear, and no one wants Sawyer poking her nose into the past. As she navigates the twisted relationships between her new friends and their powerful parents, Sawyer's search for the truth about her own origins is just the beginning.

Content/Trigger Warnings: Arsony, bullying, blackmail, car accident, absent parent

Genre: Hiking guide, Fat positive, Disability

Synopsis: From the founder of the Fat Girls Hiking community comes an inclusive, inspiring call to the outdoors for people of all body types, sizes, and backgrounds. In a book brimming with heartfelt stories, practical advice, personal profiles of Fat Girls Hiking community members, and helpful trail reviews, Summer Michaud-Skog creates space for marginalized bodies with an insistent conviction that outdoor recreation should welcome everyone. Whether you’re an experienced or aspiring hiker, you’ll be empowered to hit the trails and find yourself in nature. Trails not scales!

I’m not sure I can fully articulate how it felt to read Fat Girls Hiking. I’ve shared time and time again that I’m not the biggest fan of nonfiction, though I do read it from time to time. I stumbled across the book on NetGalley, where I regularly peruse the Read Now titles. The title caught my eye and then the cover interested me a bit deeper. I skipped past it a few times because, again, I don’t love nonfiction. But finally I couldn’t take it any longer, and I clicked that READ NOW button.

Anyone who knows me knows that I don’t shy away from the word “fat.” I use it far more than I would’ve anticipated as a chunky 8-year old, or even as a midsize college student that thought I was immensely large compared to all my friends. From wearing double-digit jeans since I was in seventh grade to being told I had a “women’s body” in high school by my best friend’s mom, I always felt uncomfortable with my curves, even when my belly was relatively flat. I was always larger than my friends, both in height and in girth, so even when I was smaller than the “average American woman,” I felt ridiculously large in all the spaces I inhabited.

But over the past five-ish years, I’ve completely shunned diet culture and found a new joy in using the word “fat.” I’ve reclaimed it, if you will, and I use it exactly the way it should be used - as a factual descriptor. It makes people uncomfortable in many spaces, including within my familial unit, but I’m working to try and educate people that fat isn’t a “bad word” and being fat isn’t a bad thing. I’ve gone so far as to actually present on the topic in public spaces. And I’ve been fortunate enough this past year to find new doctors for my many ailments that don’t shame me for my weight. It’s felt good for that to not be a main topic in my doctors visits. 

 

I’m not ashamed to be fat, but I do recognize that it creates a marginalized space for one of my identities and that others don’t back down from shaming me, either blatantly or in less obvious ways. I also recognize that as a size 18/20, I’m on the smaller side of fatness. I’m more “acceptably fat” than other people who are larger than me. I also have other obvious identities that afford me privileges that sometimes make my fatness “more acceptable.” I try to be cognizant of the good I can do, while also trying to care for myself and how to bring joy to myself.

I’ve enjoyed certain spaces within the outdoors as long as I can remember. I like parks and walking in paved trails, but just since COVID hit have I really been exploring outside areas with natural trails and even invested in hiking boots and a hammock. But the hammock bit was scary (will it hold my weight?? It did!) and finding active clothes that fit well and stay up isn’t an easy feat at affordable prices. I absolutely love Girlfriend Collective (which is sustainable, slow fashion, but not at a price point everyone can afford). 

Reading this book was a gift. It felt like a book I could’ve written myself. I felt seen and understood. It’s part memoir, part guidebook, a collection of profiles, and an intro to the outdoors for folks who feel it’s not a space they belong in.

The author of the book and founder of the Fat Girls Hiking community, Summer Michaud-Skog is self-described as midsize fat, white, and queer, but throughout the book, she makes sure to make note of her privilege and how certain experiences may be/feel less safe, less appropriate, etc for folks of more marginalized identities.

Fat Girls Hiking is full of beautiful pictures, acknowledgment and awareness for the Indigenous peoples of the land we’re residing on and exploring, and stories that prove representation matters. I cried my way through the book and read it all in one day.

This book is meant for fat folks, for queer folks, for folks of color, but it shares a meaningful message that all folks could read. It would maybe give them an awareness of how the outdoors is meant for everyone.

I loved this book so much.