Some of my favorite things I read or watched recently

a selection of delightful long-form entertainment! What I've been watching and reading during my social media fast

Lately, I’ve been feeling bored and unfulfilled. Maybe it’s the post-holiday blues? I’ve even been searching for a new place to move to in SF to see if that would bring some excitement and happiness back into my life. My sweet husband gently reminded me that maybe it’s not my external environment I need to change, but maybe I need to look within. Maybe I should spend less time on social media and take a break.

And he’s not wrong. I know he’s not. There is something about looking at the glossy, beautiful life that everyone else seems to be living on social media posts and feeling like somehow my life is…not where it’s supposed to be. But my phone screen is not a true reflection of life and definitely not a measuring stick I should be using to measure the value or quality of my own life. It’s crazy how easy it is to forget that. I also didn’t like how I automatically picked up my phone and mindlessly tapped on Instagram or TikTok whenever I felt remotely bored.

So it’s January— and it seemed like the perfect time to do some sort of a reset. Some people do no-buy January, some people do sober January… I wanted to do a social media fast. I’ve done short bursts of social media fast in the past, and I remember it was overall a positive thing.

So… I did the drastic thing and deleted the apps from my phone.

Needless to say, there is a lot of time now that I’m not scrolling every free moment away. I wanted to share some of my “long-form” entertainment I’ve enjoyed recently in case you want to do a similar social media fast or just want to watch or read something good.

Here are some of my favorite things I read or watched this past year.

1. Perfect Days is a sweet little movie about a man who cleans toilets in Tokyo. That’s basically the story, but somehow, it’s great. It’s about appreciating the little beauties and interactions and being content in life. It will make you want to travel to Japan and visit its pristine public restrooms, sit in the park for a simple convenience store lunch, and listen to cassette tapes (apparently, they are trendy now).

   

2. Squid Games Season 2; surprisingly, I liked it as much as the first season. It’s not a feel-good type of watch like the other stuff on this list, but it was definitely enjoyable. It had less surprise gore element and more… revealing the greedy human nature perspective. I love the throwback traditional Korean games that I played as a young girl. Watch for surprise villains, unexpected liaisons, and a cliffhanger ending in preparation for the upcoming season 3 this year.
   

   

3. Anything by Kazuo Ishiguro, but most recently, Nocturnes. I think social media has eroded my attention span, and I find myself struggling to get through long novels. Reading short stories is the remedy for my current predicament. This collection of five short stories by Ishiguro is just delightful. In contrast to Never Let Me Go, I cared less for the plotlines of these short stories but read more for the enjoyment of well-written prose. I often feel like I’m in a movie when I read his books.
   

   

4. 18x2 Beyond Youthful Days (available on Netflix): Odd title— probably some lost meaning in translation. But this movie is one of those aesthetic, nostalgic gems. This was a recommendation from my husband, who randomly came across it from the United Airlines flight entertainment app. He said he teared up a few times, which means a lot coming from him— the man rarely cries. Anyway, I thought the acting was excellent and the cinematography was beautiful. Another movie that will make you want to visit Japan… and Taiwan, too!
   

   

5. First Love (available on Netflix). Okay, I totally didn’t mean to but clearly, there is a theme here. It’s cheating a little bit to include it in this list since this one is slightly older, and I watched it a couple of years ago. If you haven’t seen it, you SHOULD! I love the dual storyline and the soundtrack… There is a kind of purity (?) and plainness in these Japanese love stories. I know K-dramas are famous for their twisty plotlines and drama. By contrast, this Japanese drama is simple and just lovely.

That’s it. Five great things to watch, read, and reflect on! After all, isn’t life made up of what we do during slivers of our free time?