What’s going on in here?
Welcome back to Leave Me Alone! I’m in Here!
What a year this week has been. I know everything is terrible. I hope while you’re here in my room, you can relax and enjoy some pop culture nonsense.
What am I watching?
I still haven’t found my big, multi-season TV project for the winter. Current contenders include The Leftovers, Halt and Catch Fire, and The Americans.
What am I already watching? Here’s what I’m into right now:
Industry. The high octane finance drama returned for its fourth season Sunday night, and I’ve been catching up and reminding myself of what’s going on with our pals at Pierpoint & Co. This show is so stressful and so fun. I hope this season makes it really blow up.
The Pitt. I know I talked about this last time, but now season two has premiered and it has made me so happy. Sweeping aerial shots of Pittsburgh opened the season again, and almost brought me to tears. The 9th Street Bridge! A Clarks song! As I tuned into the episode, I learned that my old college hangout, Hemingway’s on the Pitt campus, was closing. I don’t drink anymore, and I have no real desire to revisit my old haunts. But seeing those beautiful opening shots made me want to jump on the turnpike and head to the Burgh.
Wayne’s World and Wayne’s World 2. I love these movies. I’ve loved these movies since I was probably too young to love them, and they imprinted on me in a way that is still informing my sense of humor and the way I talk. It had been years since I’d watched either one, maybe even since college, when I chose Wayne’s World for my house’s movie night and served my roommates licorice and jelly donuts. Revisiting them now has me thinking about what an early gay awakening Cassandra was, and how much I just kind of want to be Wayne Campbell. Excellent.
I watch a movie every day, and this year I’m really hoping to see more international films, more classic films, and more queer films. Follow me on Letterboxd to see what I’m logging every day!
What am I listening to?
I realized recently that I play a little game with myself. When I decide I love a song, and I want to hear it a lot, I decide I need to get it onto my Spotify “On Repeat” playlist. I do not want to make a playlist of songs I like. I want to manipulate them into a playlist created for me. Here’s what I’m gaming the system with this week:
How Far Will We Take It? by Orville Peck and Noah Cyrus
drivers license by David Byrne
Lips by Baxter Dury
Jason by Perfume Genius
Your Makeup is Terrible by Alaska Thunderfuck
What am I thinking about?
This week, other things I feel like talking about include:
My new pet.
My quest for Items continues. I went to an estate sale in West Chester with friends and fell in love with this little cat statue. She’d been placed unceremoniously on a bathroom counter, abandoned amid picked through boxes and old lady perfume. I knew I had to rescue her. I also picked up a little glass with a picture of Shirley Temple. It will never hold a Shirley Temple, because I don’t like them.
Obsession. As I watch the reaction to the success of Heated Rivalry, and the wildly invasive deep dives into the personal lives of the actors, I’m thinking a lot about the disappearing lines between artists and fans. Obsession is my favorite subject, my favorite knotty thing to watch and think about and unravel. I’m obsessed with obsession. Romantic obsession, professional obsession, I love watching people lose themselves in something or someone else. When is it drive and when is it dangerous? More to come.
Reading a book! I write a lot, and I read a lot of essays and articles and stories. But I’m embarrassed to admit that I have not been great about reading books in recent years. I have worried that my attention span has been permanently wrecked by my phone. But I’m reading a book, and I’m enjoying it, and I’m going to finish it. My great friends Rosalie (read her newsletter!) and Ben gave me this new biography of Joan Crawford for Christmas. It’s fascinating, and I am loving getting to know Joan better.
What am I working on?
Most of my work as MovieJawn’s Community Outreach Director involves running our Patreon. I love it! One of my favorite perks is the quarterly cover vote. Our patrons get a sneak peek of the upcoming zine, and get a chance to vote on the cover image. We just revealed our Spring issue theme: nuns! I am very, very excited. If you want to vote on our Spring cover, consider joining our Patreon!
The Winter 2025 print issue of MovieJawn is still available. Click here to get your copy!
I’ve also been working on a new little element of this newsletter: curated film lists. I love recommending movies, and I want to do it more often. So along with every newsletter, I’m going to include a little list of films based on a theme, an actor, a holiday, whatever I want it to be. What’s kicking us off? Obsession, of course! Check out my list Obsessed with Obsession, and let me know if you watch any of my recommendations!
Now get out of my room!
That’s it for this edition of Leave Me Alone! I’m in Here!
If you’ve read any part of this, I am so grateful! I hope to see you back here again soon.