Today's post is about some of the things I've liked watching - mostly on YouTube - recently. As I mentioned in my last reading reflections post, because of all the things going on in the world right now, I seem to have very little mental energy for anything after work. After I get home from the office, I can't even muster up the brain power to read for fun, even though I'm currently working through some books that are quite well-written and not particularly heavy or sad in subject matter.
My current favorite YouTube channel is Mejoo and Cats, see a post from their Instagram account above. Mejoo's family of cats: Monji, Bongji, Hyuji, and Yoji, all have big personalities, and the videos are very relaxing and soothing. That's Bongji and Monji in the Instagram photo above. Bongji, in particular, is quite a character. (Make sure closed captions are turned on if you need the English subtitles for their videos.)
I've also been enjoying some YouTube day-in-the-life vlogs that have no or minimal talking, mostly just ambient noise and some added background music. Most of the the channels I watch in this genre are run by women based in Japan or Korea, most of whom live alone in fairly small studio or one-bedroom apartments. Many of them cook often, making meals that feel fancy and a bit complicated because they make several dishes, some of them carefully plated. I find these videos very calming and relaxing.
My favorite creators in this vlog genre are Usako Style and Nami's Life. I also like Yuireu (she often uses more lively background music than the other day-in-the-life vloggers I've listed here) and deemd. Because many creators in this genre are internationally based and English is not the primary language they post in, I'm completely dependent on the YouTube algorithm to show me other similar channels. I have no sense of whether the people I follow are some of the more popular ones in this space, or if there are a whole world of other, more famous ones out there!
Have any of you watched the new, three-episode Sparking Joy Marie Kondo show on Netflix? I don't think this new show got anywhere near as much buzz as her original home tidying Netflix series did back in January 2019. While I'm a huge KonMari method fan, I've never been particularly sold on the concept of her Joy at Work-type ideas (affiliate link). Admittedly, I've also never picked up that book, so I don't know anything about the actual contents, but the idea of KonMari-style decluttering at work just seems inherently incompatible with my profession. There are so many parts of litigation that bring absolutely no joy at all and can be profoundly stressful for all involved, but those things are mostly necessary and unavoidable.
I believe this new Sparking Joy show is based more on the idea of decluttering people's workspaces, not their homes. Though, as it turns out, two of the three episodes end up focusing a lot on decluttering the guests' homes because they work more nontraditional jobs. (One is an entrepreneur who spends a lot of time in her home office and another is a full-time volunteer in her community after needing to retire from her previous job due to health issues.) I did enjoy this new series a lot, though I probably would personally prefer another season of the original Tidying Up series instead, since I can never get enough home tidying and decluttering content. This new show does include quite a few glimpses of Kondo's home life and her absolutely adorable family, which I really liked seeing.
I'll also start streaming the new LuLaRich documentary series soon. It's a takedown and expose of the LuLaRoe multi-level marketing ("MLM") company, which I certainly already know a lot about. I've mentioned a few times before - in the context of recommending the first season of The Dream podcast - that I have a deep fascination with MLMs.
On the very rare occasions when MLMs randomly come up in casual conversation with my friends or colleagues, I always feel embarrassed by how I seem to have tons more knowledge about MLMs than your average NYC-based, office-dwelling professional. The people around me are always so perplexed by the basic concept of an MLM. And then I can see my friends and colleagues start wanting to back away from the conversation when I am able to explain how LuLaRoe was more exploitative than many other big MLMs because the startup costs were unusually high, and because the company didn't allow people to select their own inventory, etc. etc. In short, the new LuLaRich documentary series is right up my alley!
No comments:
Post a Comment
I love to hear from anyone who might be reading! Please feel free to leave a comment or question.