Author of the novel WHEN YOU LOSE CONTROL

Last night was my third, and possibly last, time seeing Micky Dolenz in concert. I was at Mohegan Sun for The Monkees Farewell Tour/The Mike and Micky Show.  I've been a huge Micky fan since I was about five. I grew up watching The Monkees reruns on Nick at Nite, read Micky Dolenz biography, and often wore a Monkees shirt as a kid. Now, as an adult with a house, I have my stash of vintage Monkees magazines and autographed Micky Dolenz drumsticks.  In my mind, The Monkees are all alive and perpetually 20 somethings. They're all together, making us laugh and up to crazy/hippie/60s/boy band shenanigans. But, that is not reality and that is okay.  Micky and Mike are the last surviving members and both are in their late 70s. They seem grateful, seasoned, and remain playful. Mickys voice, miraculously, still sounds the same and it provides deep comfort, a voice I've counted on for 30 years. Mike has lost some of his Texas twang, but made up for it with his adorable, grandpa-lik...

Wrapping up my BSC essays, I thought it was only fair to mention some of the supporting actors who've really done an amazing job.  Marc Evan Jackson as Richard has been the surprise hit of the series for me. I think his character updates have been some of the best in the whole show. Richard in the books felt a bit...much. He was over the top in just about every way and it never quite made sense way he and Sharon were attracted to each other. (Yes, they were high school sweethearts, but why?) In the show, he comes off real and relatable. Still uptight, but much more believable. I also loved the bond he formed with Dawn about preferring things neat and orderly and the importance of letting go. I absolutely loved Richard in this series and hope they'll eventually follow the Richard and Sharon story line.  Watson is another character from the books whom I never really liked. I appreciated that it was hard to meld his and Elizabeth's families but...I don't know he never real...

Anais Lee plays Jessi and she is incredibly talented, absolutely shining in her role. She does a great job bringing the 11 year old, practically professional ballerina, to life.  Jessi in the books, like a lot of the other characters, sometimes came off way too mature and accomplished for her age. The show and the actress both humanize Jessi very well and make her believable.  This season we finally met Jessi's family and they too come off much more believable in the show. Aunt Ceceilia was left out and honestly, I think it's for the best. In the books all she did was take out her frustrations on the Jessi and her siblings, with Jessi and Becca getting the worst of it and 99% of the time they didn't deserve it. Interestingly, *SPOILER* they kept the Jessi and Derek Masters plot line. Derek has been updated to be an internet star and momentarily, Jessi wants to join him, or at least try.  Side note, Jessi very briefly tries to join Derek in his endeavors and her mom calls ...

Growing up, I was a Mallory, I wanted to be a Stacey. I remember loathing my glasses and braces and cursing the fact that I wasn't able to resemble my favorite character in any way, but I digress.  Mallory is played by Vivian Watson and she does such a lovely job. At first this season, I wasn't sure why Mallory was coming off as annoying but when I thought about it, it makes sense. She's younger than the other girls and she wants to fit in and make a good impression, so she comes off strong.  I love that Mallory is this excitable go-getter in the show and that her personality isn't defined by glasses, braces, and having a million siblings.  It's also nice to see Mallory coming off more real. In the books she acts like a 16 year old in terms of maturity and seems like she's a practically a prodigy. While yes, of course there are people like that, sometimes Mallory came off not believable in the books. The show humanizes her. The show has definitely focused on the...

I am so stoked about all the Dawn changes that have been made! I adore that she's Latina and I think having her dad be gay made her story so much more interesting! I am so here for all the representation.  Getting right into it, the way Dawn casually mentioned *SPOILER* that she's pansexual and the kind way that Mary-Anne was nothing but supportive was probably my favorite moment in the entire series. Wow. I pride myself on having a cold, dead, heart but this ice queen melted. Well done, BSC! I hope anyone who comes out has as good of an experience as Dawn did. That's how coming out stories should go, love and acceptance. Amazing. I also think the changes they made to Dawn's mom, Sharon have been great. She almost seemed a little too 'scatterbrained' in the books to function, and the series makes her seem more realistic and less like an over the top character. It's trance sort of strange how they got rid of Jeff altogether but I get it, if you only have 10 e...

Women crush Wednesday! Oh my god, I have wanted to be Stacey McGill since I started reading the books in kindergarten/late 1991. She's always been my favorite character, with Claudia as a close second.  Stacey was everything I wasn't; great at math, fashionable, confident, pretty, blonde, posh, metropolitan, I could go on and on. I remember thinking her perms were so cool and grown up and I longed to be her. Even her diabetes didn't get her down, sometimes it would land her in the hospital, but she would learn from it, manage her disease better, and get stronger. She was my hero as a kid. I'm so glad that Stacey remained largely unchanged in the new series. Probably the only big difference is Stacey has an insulin pump now. Love the modern take! All of the BSC characters, in the books, were always wise/mature beyond their age, Stacey especially. She was able to navigate NYC and live her life like a full grown adult, so it made sense *SPOILER* for the series to have her ...

I have to start by saying that Malia Baker is just perfectly cast as Mary-Anne! In my opinion, all of the updates to Mary-Anne have been very well crafted. I love that she's half black and half white. I love how her narrative was written- the way she balances being really shy and hating conflict with standing up for the kids she babysits or herself feels modern and realistic.  I also adore how they've celebrated Mary-Anne's natural hair. As someone who was born with very hard to manage, 2B, hair, I always felt bad about it growing up. All the cool girls had pin straight hair, hair like mine was either looked down on or made fun of and having someone like Mary-Anne on TV when I was a kid definitely would've helped me accept myself. I say it a lot, representation matters! (Side note, in the books, when Mary-Anne got her makeover, I thought it was cool and ballsy,  but then looking at her haircut on the cover kind of negated it for me. Short hair can be awesome, and I'...