Today marks the first official day of summer, and I'm so excited for all the amazing and wonderful things to do in this sunny season! Do you have any plans for the summer? Any summer trips or fun adventures? Books you're planning to read? Well, however you plan on celebrating or enjoying the summer, I hope you have a really good time.
I included a Summer themed Geeky TV and Movie List. But instead of a one list, I going to post more throughout the summer. So, if you're looking for any summer themed episodes or movies to watch, keep an eye out for more lists. On today's Geeky Summer List is Gilmore Girls, I tried to included as many summery episodes that I could remember. If I've missed any episodes let me know and I'll add it.
I finished my Step Up rewatch on Monday with Step Up 5: All In and I have to say, I still really enjoy watching this movie. It has an interesting story that centers around many of the characters struggling to follow their dreams of being professional dancers. I think Sean Asa finding The Vortex dance competition was just the thing he needed to keep his dream going because the winner will receive a three-year paid contract to perform in Las Vegas. Sean was truly struggling, with The Mob having a difficult time finding dance jobs, it was becoming abundantly clear that it was not working out for them in Los Angeles. Sean didn't want to go back to Miami and truly in need of help, he ended up getting a job doing maintenance at Moose's grandparents' dance studio and did I fail to mention that his only option for room and board was sleeping in the storage closet at the studio.
If it wasn't for Moose, I don't know what Sean would have done. He barely had any money and even if he wanted to go back to Miami, I doubt he had enough money to do that. Which is why this competition was something he needed to do because it not only gave him a chance to regroup but the other dancers (Moose, Andie, Jenny, the Santiago twins, Vladd "The Robot", etc.) as well and they created a new team to go after their dreams. I loved seeing the characters grow into a strong team and a romance slowly developing between Andie and Sean. While Moose and Camille's relationship was strong and steady despite a little hiccup that came up. As with any Step Up movie, the dances were amazing especially LMNTRIX's final dance that included The Mob.
Despite all of this, Step Up 5: All In isn't considered a fan favorite and I'm not sure why fans were disappointed. I do wonder if it had anything to do with seeing so many of the characters struggling. I think it can be hard sometimes to see your favorite characters having setbacks. This made me think of how some of the Gilmore Girls fans reacted to Rory's journey in the Gilmore Girls revival A Year in the Life. They were disappointed with how Rory was shown in the revival because her life (professional and personal) seemed to be in a downward spiral and nothing seemed be working out for her. She was truly undergoing a major setback in her life but what I like is that by the end of the revival, Rory had found that old spark and was writing again and despite the big bombshell at the end I think Rory was on her way to living the life she wanted.
Which is how I saw Step Up 5, these dancers were not where they wanted to be career and life wise but The Vortex dance competition was a good way back into the dance world that they loved so much and they were willing to take a chance on entering the competition. What I like about this movie is that the dancers never gave up on their dreams, it's very inspiring. I love all five of the Step Up movies and I think Step Up 5 is still a good movie that perfectly closed out the franchise.
Lorelai Gilmore wore a really cute pink coat in the Gilmore Girls revival series A Year in the Life: Winter. Lorelai has such a vibrant personality that it's hard to image her wearing something boring and bland. What I like about this coat besides being an amazing piece is that although it's structured it's not boring or stuffy. It's sophisticated with a casual feel.
Summer is about fun, sun and relaxation and not to mention cute summer clothes. I was inspired by Nakia, Pepper Potts and Rory Gilmore to create three summer looks. What I love about each of the characters' outfits is that they are effortlessly stylish from a colorfully printed jumper to a modern hippie look each outfit gives you that feel of summer.
Nakia (Black Panther)
Even while trying to convince King T'Challa that Wakanda could do more to help the world, Nakia looked amazing in this African print green one shoulder jumper. I love this, the jumper has a casual yet sophisticated feel that could easily go from day to night.
In the Gilmore Girls series, Rory might have been the biggest bookworm but her mother Lorelai Gilmore was an extensive reader as well. Throughout the show and the revival, Lorelai mentioned or talked about a lot of books. It's easy to see how Rory became such an avid reader because her mom (as well as her grandparents Emily and Richard) were big into reading.
In Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life - Summer episode, Lorelai Gilmore was reading "Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" by Cheryl Strayed. This book played a huge part in the final episode Fall where Lorelai was inspired to hike the trail (even though she never quite managed to do it).
Okay, side note: I love the navy blue wedges next to her chair, they are so cute.
I finally watched Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life and I loved watching every minute of the four episodes: Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Throughout each episode, Rory Gilmore was experiencing a setback not only career wise but in her life in general. She was stressing out which is understandable because her life wasn't turning out the way she had hoped. Journalism is a tough career even more so as a freelance writer which is what she was doing. You could tell that she loves writing (and she's great at it) but she was having a difficult time finding work.
In the episode Winter, Rory was dealing with some of her stress by tap dancing albeit in the middle of the night in her mother's kitchen. She said tap dancing was the only way to shut off her brain from constantly over-thinking. It also lessen her anxieties which allowed her to relax.
Dancing does have a lot of health benefits such as improved cardio, muscle strength and toning; reduce stress and it boost your self-confidence. Rory was right, it is a great way to shut off your brain because you will be so focused on dancing that you will not worry about anything else.
If you're looking for a stress relief option perhaps try dancing. To get the health benefits, you don't have to take dance classes (unless you want to), all you have to do is turn on some music and dance for about 20 to 30 minutes.
