Is it just me, or did January take about a hundred years? It seems like a hundred years ago that Emily was here and we were laughing together. About a million things have happened since day 1 of 2014. No matter, I’m excited for the year of the horse and all it’s promise.

Awesomest cleavage in the history of Hollywood

As part of my award-winning movie quest, we saw American Hustle, and we both enjoyed it a lot, though possibly for different reasons. I thought it was packed with great performances and great hair. Amy Adams and Jennifer Lawrence were both terrific. I’ve never felt more sympathy for a crooked politician or enjoyed a fake British accent quite so much. I think my husband was most in it for the constant promise of seeing Amy Adams’s boobs. I can’t even imagine what it would be like to have a body that hot.

Awesomest peek into Afghanistan

I sincerely enjoyed reading A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini. You might remember him from his best seller, The Kite Runner. This is another rich tale set in Afghanistan, this time focusing on the intertwining lives of two women. The story spans maybe 30 years and gives us a glimpse of how politics in the region impacted the lives of average people. This is not necessarily a cheerful book, but it is beautiful, intriguing, and inspiring. I loved the perspective it provided.

Awesomest TV prison sentence

This month, I finally watched Orange is the New Black on Netflix. It was just as good as everybody said it was. If you haven’t checked it out yet, get on it. It’s funny and irreverent and gives us a chance to examine how our circumstances can affect our perspective on the world. Beyond the pure fun of the plot, that was the most interesting thing to me. The characters are so easy to relate to. Which is kind of scary.