My Monthly Wrap-Up | February 2021

Posted on by Lashaan Balasingam @ Roars and Echoes

Hello ladies & gentlemen,

The month has come to an end and it’s time to do a quick wrap-up of what has been done.

Reading Breakdown.

Novels read: 1 (↓1).
Comic books read: 10 (↓3).
Manga volumes read: 3 (↓6).

BOOK REVIEWS.

Call of the Bone Ships by R.J. Barker.

COMIC BOOK REVIEWS.

The Low, Low Woods by Carmen Maria Machado.
Daphne Byrne by Laura Marks.
Digital Mini Reviews | What Would Life Be Without Books?
Plunge by Joe Hill.

MOVIE REVIEWS.

Stamp Day for Superman (1954).

VIDEO GAME REVIEWS.

Demon’s Souls (2020).

TOP BOOK.

Plunge by Joe Hill.

Definitely the best of the five Hill House Comics that have been released! It totally deserves a sequel if it ever could get one. 😀

Check out my review for more on my thoughts!

LEAST FAVOURITE BOOK.

Daphne Byrne by Laura Marks.

This was pretty uninspiring. It doesn’t bring anything new to the table and the artwork is mediocre compared to the stunning cover!

Check out my review for more on my thoughts!

TOP MOVIE.

Out of the 13 movies I watched in February, three easily got all five star rating: La Haine (1995), Sound of Metal (2019), and There Will Be Blood (2007).

La Haine (1995) is an authentic and chilling 24-hour journey alongside three hooligans fully embracing verlan and bathing in a cycle of violence and hate as society feeds a deep-rooted cultural segregation without any mercy for dreamers and misfits.

Sound of Metal (2019) is an emotionally-resonant, deafening, and daunting journey of self-acceptance depicted through a staggering and evocative performance by Riz Ahmed who’s character battles a rapidly deteriorating hearing. The story presents his transformation through a raw and authentic vision of grief while drawing a profound and sensible analogy to drug addiction as he chases after the memory of a past life no longer within his reach.

There Will Be Blood (2007) is an indisputable epic revealing the blazing clash of modern capitalism and religious fanatism while exposing the frailty of personal beliefs, the sin of avarice, and the madness of power. Daniel Day-Lewis’ portrayal of Daniel Plainview is a mind-boggling tale of self-destruction as we watch a man lose his grasp over his humanity as his ego consumes him following failure, deception, and treachery. Paul Dano’s portrayal of Eli Sunday sublimely supports Daniel Day-Lawis’ through a composed and terrifying performance as a religious zealot blinded by a parasitic obsession for self-actualization.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

CURRENTLY READING.

55400126
The Minders by John Marrs.

I’ve never read anything by John Marrs but I’ve heard of his books before. Really looking forward to seeing how this ends! 🙂

PERSONAL LIFE.

What a terrifying month it has been! I thought I was ready for all the new challenges that were coming but I clearly underestimated the power of time. Or at least I overestimated my ability to manage it! It’s not like I didn’t see coming many of the things expected for the month but a lot of them drained me so quickly that it was hard to not want to do things that required less cognitive processing! Throughout the month, blogging had to take the hit first and it was pretty much inevitable. Most of my daily tasks requires me to read and type away on a computer and to add blogging in there was overkill. While I still managed to squeeze in a couple of posts here and then, I definitely couldn’t maintain a tempo that I was so accustomed to have for reading and blogging.

The first thing that really made it all hectic is the lectures I was giving this month. The online classes I gave were on Monday mornings and that’s rough as much on me as on students! While I love the experience of teaching, I can’t say the same about doing it online, especially to students who are more likely than not hidden away behind their computers. The magic of teaching is just not the same. You don’t see them, you don’t know if they REALLY understand what you’re saying. You can’t even tell if your jokes make a couple of them laugh. Teaching online forces to revert to your imagination and convince yourself that your teaching style works… And that your jokes are funny. 😛

The second thing that made things more complicated on my end is my work duties. By the middle of the month, our little crime preventionist team saw a organizational change in structure that made all of our projects a bit more complex to execute. My contract was also in the middle of renewal and that led to a change in scenery as I had to decide to take another offer that guaranteed permanence (which is pretty much a guarantee of financial stability) within the police organization. While I won’t be working in crime prevention for the next year or so, I will be on an even bigger project related to a police body cam project and you can’t imagine how big of deal this is politically out here right now. One thing’s for sure, I won’t be without something to do for a while!

To keep myself sane, I did find time for a bit of reading, gaming, watching movies, and roaming around the city, just so that I didn’t go crazy (did I mention that I also have things to do related to my thesis?). While I clearly couldn’t post or blog hop as much as I wanted to, towards the end of February, I was able to catch up on a lot and I will try to stay connected with y’all, because I miss y’all. I already know that a lot of things should come before my blog but I also know that every time I do blog, I’m a happier person. 😉 So thank you all for being awesome every time I do get the chance to check out what y’all are up to!

Lilo And Stitch Exhausted Gif - IceGif

Thank you all for checking out my monthly wrap-up and don’t forget to check out any posts that might interest you or that you might have missed out on!

Stay tuned for my Monthly Anticipation post coming out soon. 😉

So what’s going on with y’all? What have you discovered this month? What are your thoughts on the books/TV series/movies I’ve checked out?

Yours truly,

Banner1

INSTAGRAM – FACEBOOK – GOODREADS – TWITTER – OUTLOOK

Published by Lashaan Balasingam @ Roars and Echoes

Reader. Reviewer. Researcher. Criminology Ph.D. Candidate. Montreal, Quebec (Canada). Want to know more? Connect with him!

42 thoughts on “My Monthly Wrap-Up | February 2021”

    1. Wow! To study La Haine must’ve been quite the challenge. As someone who grew up with French, the verlan they used here is nothing easy to understand on your first viewing hahah My French girlfriend had to teach me some new words just to make it so much more fun to watch! 😀

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  3. Another fully online semester? That’s what our universities have, and it’s tough on everybody, I have some friends who stayed in academia and they have similar experiences as you do. Wonderful you have a stable position secured, and one that is connected to you interests and specialization – cherish that 🙂

    And it seems to me you still managed to read some great books & comics, and write about them, so, you know, not that bad a February, in my eyes 😉

    Have a great March!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I think it’s going to be very likely that our education system shifts towards a pro-online courses system considering how accessible it is and how it actually works to get more people educated quickly and efficiently but the cost of education won’t justify that vision though hahahah

      Absolutely. It’s what all my colleagues prioritize too and I can’t blame them for tell me that too. During a pandemic and such precarious times, securing yourself a financial position in something you enjoy is probably a dream come true hahaha

      Thanks, Piotrek! Hope you had an excellent month of February and that March is looking brighter on your end! 😀

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

      1. Thanks!

        The experience of being at the university for a few years, very much in person, was for me more important the the actual lectures. I hope that won’t be lost for the future generations… online courses are great when you need that extra skill, but I wouldn;t want to have it all on Zoom.

        Not to mention the early education, my oldest niece is in the first grade now, and about half the semester was online, it’s absolutely not a good solultion for the youngest students, even if it’s necessary for now.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Tell me about it! I hear about it through my work colleagues and I find it so saddening that such crucial periods in our education are done online without direct contact. While, as you said, it was necessary, I hope it doesn’t harm their growth in the long term too! 😮

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you so much, Nicki! I do hope they’ll learn something new through my courses too. Hahahah I love that you mentioned the secrecy side of it all. I doubt I’ll be able to share early-access info about it but once it’s all deployed and public, I’ll probably talk about it! 😛

      Like

      Reply

  7. I can’t believe how busy you are, Lashaan, and the fact that you’re blogging at all is amazing! I hope your new job is a good one, it sure sounds fascinating😁

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  8. Well look what a busy bee you have been! So many changes in your life. And yes I get it, blogging sometimes gets pushed in the back and work comes first!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  9. Life happens, but it’s good to hear you have things going on, even if a bit hectic right now. That’s always a tough balance, but it seems you’re doing a good job with it, prioritizing as you need to. I hope you’re able to settle into a more comfortable groove that let’s you have time enough for yourself. And I hope you really enjoy that new work, it sounds fascinating. Take care, Lashaan!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Exactly. I think things got shaken up a lot throughout February and that March will have to serve as a transition phase towards stability now. I’m just glad that I can juggle everything for the moment and, hopefully, no nasty surprises will come to ruin my flow. 😛 Thanks, Todd! I hope you had a really good month of February too and that March is looking good on your end so far!

      Like

      Reply

    1. It can indeed be tough but it’s also less exciting compared to traditional in-person teaching. Hopefully, this pandemic won’t change the education system TOO much, at least not to the point where most classes will be given online instead of in-person.

      I hope March won’t be too rough for you too then! 2021 sure has a lot of surprises for us on an individual level huh? 😛

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  13. Wowers, man! You have a lot going on. You mentioned the thesis and I was like “Back up, he’s working on a thesis too with all that other stuff??”
    I have a couple friends who are now doing classes online due to the pandemic and, from the student POV, it’s rough and requires a lot more reading than usual. Before this, I’ve never had the instructor’s POV on the experience before, but I can imagine how hard and tricky it must be for you too.
    Hope you have a better March though.
    Take it easy and blog when you can 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Hahahaha I surprise myself with the number of things on my plate sometimes. February really put emphasis on all the things I got going and I think March is going to have to be about finding the balance to make it all work better for my own sanity!

      Oh yes, I wouldn’t be too thrilled to be following online courses as a student too. It must be less stimulating too. Much more robotic. There’s definitely a bunch of upsides to it all for both teachers and students but the downsides on both ends can be killer if we don’t foresee them.

      Thanks, Zezee! I hope February has been kinder to you too!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  14. Hang in there! February was busy for me, too, and it flew by. As long as you are still able to enjoy a bit of downtime and relax, then all is good. It’s been years since I watched There Will Be Blood. You’ve made me want to revisit it. And I was wondering about Sound of Metal. Sounds like it’s worth watching. Best of luck with your new position!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Absolutely agree with you there, buddy. I often tell others the same too, when I wasn’t too busy myself, and I think it’s something that really keeps us sane at the end of the day, to take some time for ourselves, to not push ourselves into doing things as if we “have” to.

      Oh man, I can only say a big yes to re-watching There Will Be Blood. It was stellar! It also gives us an idea of what kind of Riddler he’s going to give us in the upcoming The Batman movie! 😉

      As for Sound of Metal. 100000%. I will vouch for it all the way. I don’t think it’s on everyone’s radar as it should be but man, it needs more attention. I can’t imagine what it would’ve been like watching it in theaters. The experience would’ve made me cry, to be honest hahaha

      Thanks for the kind words, man. I hope you have a fantastic month of March too. It sounds like it was quite the busy month back in your corner of the world too.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  16. Wow, apparently February was hectic for a lot of us ahah, time management is a tricky business and as soon as something new comes into your routine, I feel like everything is messed up and you have to start all over again – at lest that’s what it feels like to me. The past month I felt like I was constantly “chasing” something, and it is very draining, even though it was filled with fun and positive stuff. Congrats for your new contract then, and good luck for the online teaching! 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. I know what you mean. It’s what often ruins my daily plans, especially when some activities take more time (or at least I end up putting more time in it than planned)! I do hope that you’ll find that balance so that your days don’t feel too draining too. Thank you and stay safe, Juliette! 😀

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  17. Phew, that sounds like a volatile month! I can imagine how awful online teaching is if you don’t get any interaction and have no idea if people understand what you are teaching. Hope all goes well with your new position and that you will find the work interesting. And fingers crossed that March will be just a tiny bit calmer! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you! It is indeed new for everyone but hopefully, with time, we’ll all be able to make online teaching be much more interesting… somehow… Although I still hope on-site teaching will still be the number one option post-pandemic. It has too many benefits to overlook that easily hahah

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out /  Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s