Lisa Johnson

Recently Read: My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor

by

book cover for Sonia SotomayorIn case you’re looking for a good book to read, I thought I’d share one. My Beloved World by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor is one of the best.

My mother and I both happened to be reading it at the same time, so it was fun being able to talk about it with her. This would be an excellent choice for a book club.  My Beloved World is quick moving and reads more like a novel. I was drawn in from page one and glued until the end.

My impression of her after reading the book is that I admire her even more. From her youngest days, she had a strong survival extinct and believed in a vision for her future. Her struggle with Type 1 diabetes had a lot to do with it. We learn about her family, friends and close ties that she forms with so many people over the years.

She has a certain joy and fun that made me and my mom both feel like we’d love to hang out with her! Her compassion, intelligence, life and work experiences all run so deep that it makes me so grateful that Sonia Sotomayor is on our Supreme Court. I took the book out of the library and had to return it, but would like to read it again. My Beloved World is a book to buy and have for future reference.

Terry Gross interviewed Sotomayor about her book and life on Fresh Air and you can listen online to learn a bit more.

+ + +

Photo Credit: Random House

Top 8 Links: Halloween

by

 Jack O Lantern for Halloween

Halloween was one of my favorite holidays growing up. We lived in a large apartment complex with many buildings and would trick-or-treat in each building on every floor.

It was such a blast and we got so much candy! A friend’s mother would decorate their whole apartment, have scary music playing and she would dress up like a witch. So many years later and I still have such fond memories.

I’ll be picking up some candy today and hopefully we’ll get a few trick-or-treaters. We usually don’t get many, but I still love the day.

Happy Halloween to you and enjoy the links!

+ + +

The Fantasy and Folklore of All Hallows (The American Folklife Center)

Soul Cakes: Hallowed Offerings for Hungry Ghosts (NPR)

Halloween 2014: The horror films and scary TV to watch on Netflix (The Independent)

The Tell Tale Heart – 1953 narrated by James Mason (YouTube)

5 Workouts to Burn Off Halloween Candy (Boston.com)

10 Supposedly Haunted Objects Never, Ever to Bring Into Your Home (Especially Around Halloween)(Bustle)

Here Are the Top Five LA Neighborhoods For Trick-Or-Treating (Curbed LA)

Yes, I Bring My Poor Children Trick-or-Treating in Your Rich Neighborhood (Time)

Recently Watched: Small, Beautifully Moving Parts

by

Small Beautifully Moving PartsThis past weekend, I was looking for a quick film on Netflix. Small, Beautifully Moving Parts was suggested as one that I might like. Since it was only available until November 1st, I decided to watch it. Good choice Netflix!

It was quite a sweet film and I recommend it if you’re looking for something a little quirky and sentimental. Below is a description from the movie trailer.

Sarah Sparks is pregnant and feeling wholly ambivalent, despite her boyfriend’s pure enthusiasm. A committed tech-geek, she fears she is more interested in ultrasound technology than in what’s being ultra-sounded. When her sister lures her to L.A. for what ends up being a terrorizing baby shower, Sarah keeps her rental van and hits the road in search of the source of her anxiety: her estranged mother, now living off the grid. SMALL, BEAUTIFULLY MOVING PARTS takes a comic and poignant look at one woman’s coming-of-parenthood in the age of technology.

You have a couple of days to watch it if you like. I love labyrinths and was really happy to see one in the movie. Although it wasn’t used as fully in the scene as it could have been. I would have liked to see the character walking it, while pondering her dilemma. Anyway, that’s just me.

Have you seen any good films on Netflix lately that you recommend?

+ + +

Photo Credit:  Official Trailer on YouTube

National Chocolate Day: For the Love of a Chocolate Macaron

by

chocolate macaronWithout Twitter trending topics, I wouldn’t have known that today is National Chocolate Day. I haven’t celebrated properly yet, but decided that this holiday is worthy of a post.

Martha Stewart says to “gather the good things” and I would put a chocolate macaron in that list of good things to be gathered. Wouldn’t you?

Dark chocolate is my favorite kind of chocolate. It’s the healthy kind too. It’s even said to improve memory, according to this NOVA Next article.

Now, there’s new evidence to suggest that chocolate dramatically improves the memory skills that people lose with age. When healthy people between the ages of 50 and 69 drank a mixture high in cocoa flavanols for three months, they performed about 25% better on a memory test compared to a control group of participants.

Although it would take seven bars of chocolate a day to improve it by 25%. Only two bars left to eat today!! Just kidding. 😀

Also, I just happened to read an interesting dessert related article in The Atlantic about macarons. Apparently macarons are the new cupcake. But I’ve been writing about macarons for years. I love them so much! Not to be confused with macaroons, which I have no problem resisting.

So I found a beautiful picture combining the beauty and goodness of chocolate and macarons. What could be better than that?

+ + +

Flickr Photo Credit: Chocolate Chocolate Macaron at Starbucks by The Delicious Life.