Obsessed: Summer

Consider my summer skin (and any WordPress blogging credibility I possessed, because #oops, bye bye blog life!) totally shed.

(Rationale: This “millennial abroad” returned home, rediscovered hummus, Pitchfork and overpriced EVERYTHING, and transitioned from “Dylan Teacher” to “poor, lowly (Dylan) student”. Summer changed to fall, breezes turned to gusts, and my “Obsessed” bookmarks folder overflowed, like a waterfall from my eyes because, goodbye summer. The school and life balance is hard, y’all! I’ll try harder, though.)

This special “end of summer” edition of ~ObSeSsEd~ features too much music, too many Instagram accounts, all of the Meryl Streep things, and of course, Hummus For Dummies.

• My favourite end of summer Instagram accounts: @adriana_gabri, another ex-pat/foreign teacher in South Korea; @alperenakbulut, simple and muted scenes from everyday life; @ariellevey, glamour in South California; @thewiresburn, making me want to move to countryside and chase the sunset for a living; @artfuldesperado, pretty food, pretty travel and pretty British Columbia; and @imthejam, feels for the big cities I’ve never been to.

• My wonderful friend Steph (from Life in Limbo) was rarely seen without her Nikon D90 this summer and it’s a good thing. Steph produced not one, but TWO videos documenting the sunny (and rainy) times in Busan. Check out both the “Summer” and “Summer 2.0” videos (and “Spring“, if you missed it!)

• I honestly don’t believe in the notion of a “guilty pleasure”. I present my complete and utter obsession with Ariana Grande’s “Break Free” without comment. In addition, I’m quivering with anticipation for Jessie Ware’s new album and love the eponymous lead single, “Tough Love“. Plus, let’s not forget Calgary native Kiesza’s sleeper hit “Hideaway” and subsequent Ben Howard cover.

• One of my favourite McGill/Montreal-based bands, Motel Raphaël, released a new video for their track “Ghosts“. The video served up the feels (specifically for Tam-Tams) and felt like an (unintentional?) homage to my favourite Alex Winston music video.

• I personally loved The Giver, despite the middling reviews it received. The long and short of it is: Meryl Streep + Taylor Swift = a happy Dylan. Also, my favourite Saturday afternoon find ever is Ayn Rand’s The Devil Wears Prada (Meryl Streep + objectivism = a happier Dylan).

• I don’t always cook in my kitchen, but when I do, I’m happy that Imgur exists: Hummus Made Easy.

• My parents gifted me with a Kobo Aura for my 24th birthday. The moment I finish The Master and Margarita (UGH, 80 pages left), I will be cosying up with my Aura to start both Gone Girl and Wild.

• You basically just have to look at the Top 10 (Grimes, Ariel Pink, Kanye, Frank Ocean) and you’ll understand: Pitchfork Top 200 Songs of the Decade.

• Rediscovering Netflix may have been the best part of returning to my hometown post-Korea. My mom broke her wrist the day after I got home so I spent my days tending to her and watching the first season of House of Cards and the second season of Orange is the New Black. Also, I lied: my mom’s Tylenol 3-induced commentary about OITNB was my favourite part about returning home.