January 2023 Monthly Round Up

Well if that wasn’t the most January January to ever January… It only took about 4 years to end. Welcome to 2023’s first monthly round up! I know we’ve been teasing lots of different things for this year already on Twitter and such but we’re really hoping we get to share these things with you in the upcoming year. We have entered the Year of the Rabbit and, as always before we look forward to the rest of the year and lose ourselves in planning, we look back at the first month of the year and see how it started.

Book of the Month

E: The Silmarillion by JRR Tolkien. With a little help from the Obscure Lord of the Rings Facts guy’s (aka Don Marshall) podcast, I’m actually getting through the Silmarillion and understanding it.

N: Unfortunately, I skipped out on a lot of reading for fun this month so I’ll leave the recommendation to Emma this month. She picked a pretty epic one at that!

Movies & TV

TV Show Picks

E: Avatar: The Last Airbender – a rewatch is never a bad thing and I’d forgotten so much that it almost felt like watching it for the first time all over again. Now, onto the Legend of Korra XD

N: The Last of Us – like many I am hooked and glued to the TV screen waiting for the next episode.

Good Movie Recommendation

E: The Mummy. People forgot about Brendan Fraser for the longest time but he was one of my favourite people when I was a teenager. I loved Rick and Evie and I loved this movie. Since the Brendan Fraser hype train has reappeared again, I decided to watch the movie again and I’m delighted to say I still love the movie.

N: Finally got to watch Matilda the Musical with the munchkins in my life. It is still amazing and a must watch!

Cheesy Bad Movie Recommendation

E: King Arthur – So many problems with this movie. So so so so many. I got to a point that I was watching just to point out mistakes.

N: 13 Going on 30 – for the year that is it in and a few bits being planned. I watched this at least three times this month.

Gaming Picks

E: It was a close one but, honestly, Lego Star Wars has been so much fun for me and it was an amazing Christmas present.

N: I’ve been marathoning Disney Dreamlight Valley in my spare time this month so, it wins my gaming pick hands down.

Music

Single of the Month

E: We Are One – Wild Youth.

N: We Are One – Wild Youth

Album/EP of the Month

E: RUSH! – Måneskin

N: Lover – Taylor Swift. I’m not asking myself questions for this one but it’s been on repeat a lot this month. ‘I Forgot You Existed’ is still a bop.

Favourite Things

Favourite Thing About January?

E: I started working in a more consistent role in work and, even though it’s hard, it’s a new routine and it makes it difficult for me to go to a lot of events, it’s good to be working and saving for more fun in the future.

N: I’ve learned a number of important lessons this month, the biggest being I believe in myself more than I thought I did.

Favourite Item of the Month

E: My new My Year in Music planner. It swears at me… a lot XD I’m being serious!

N: Fairy Lights, it has been a lot of evenings in this January so, it always makes things twinkly.

Event of the Month

E: The Red Bull F1 Show Run in Dublin was the absolute highlight of the month for me. To see the RB8 and hear a V8 F1 engine was so amazing to me and really was unforgettable. Younger me was screaming for joy.

N: Danny O Reilly in St Canice’s in Kilkenny, what a night I’m still raving about how amazing it was.

Moment of the Month

E: When OMG’s TikTok video for a blog post was successful(ish), I was super proud of that. It was a little thing but it did great in my opinion.

N: Being gifted a ticket to a very special event coming up in a few months.

Your Quote of the Month

E: “Oh yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it, or… learn from it” – a very wise monkey

N: “Leaving the ghost of you in 2022 xoxo”

Three things you are most excited about for February

E: A gig in my hometown that I can actually go to without worrying about work the next day, some new music that I may or may not review (we’ll see) and potentially another interview if things go well for OMG. Oh and there are F1 car launch dates this month!

N: Kicking off February leading an exciting programme in work, our first Chasing Abbey gig of 2023 and organising an exciting interview for OMG.