Week 99: Wicked and some couches

Week 99: November 17th-23rd

I normally do a lot of sitting because I work remote from home and watch a lot of TV. This week was no exception, especially because I went to the Living Spaces store and tested out all their couches.

I have found a couple options on the Living Spaces website that could be potential winners, but I wanted to sit on them in real life to get an idea before purchasing. Thankfully, the shopping center across the street from my apartment has one of the few Living Spaces stores in San Diego.

As someone who is really particular about (most) things, picking a couch for my living room has been a bit of a process. I want to stay within a reasonable price range, but I also have expensive taste and want to check all the boxes on my wishlist. At the core of it, I am looking for an affordable, comfortable, and practical sectional with washable cushion covers that is less than 100” long. There are many options online, but there are mixed reviews. For a piece of furniture that will be a major player in my every day life, I don’t want to base my decision off of mixed reviews.

So of course, I went and sat on every couch inside of the Living Spaces store. I took some notes, and got to veto some of the ones I had bookmarked online. I really liked the Aries Seal 3pc, the Delano Ebony and the Zoeller in charcoal, they were all too long for my space. A couch that I had bookmarked especially for the price is the Reid Grey Sofa. Sitting on it in person was promising, but I haven’t bit the bullet and bought it yet.

I had a brain fart moment and couldnt remmeber what “left-arm facing” and “right-arm facing” meant when it came to chaise lounges, so I stopped a very patient Living Spaces employee and asked. I even showed her these crude drawings.

So, for the people who also may experience a brain fart when doing couch research, “right arm facing” means when you are facing the couch the chaise is on the right side. So, when you sit on a “right-arm facing couch,” the chaise is actually on your left side. It is a bit confusing, and the Couch Expert(TM) at Living Spaces did reassure me that they get that question a lot, but I was a little ashamed to have to ask for clarification. I have yet to make a decision on a couch, but hopefully the upcoming Black Friday and holiday sales will work in my favor.

More sitting was done when my friend and I went and saw Wicked in theaters. I had some high expectations, and let me just say, I was pleasantly surprised by the actors’ performances and the overall production of the movie. I won’t spoil it for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet, but the costuming for Glinda, the characterization of both Elphaba by Cynthia Erivo and of Glinda by Ariana Grande, and the flamboyance of Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero were some top highlights for me. My only critique after the almost 3-hour run time was that Elphaba’s costuming could have been better. There was so much untapped potential for some statement looks toward the end of the movie. Michelle Yeoh as Madam Morrible and Bowen Yang as Pfannee were some talented additions for more Asian representation on screen. (I’ll admit it was a jump scare whenever Ethan Slater as Boq appeared, but I think that is just due to the memes online.)

Thankfully, no one (including me!) sang along to “Defying Gravity” in the theatre and really let the movie shine. I loved seeing the pairs of people in pink and green. I think a big part of my childhood was hearing about musicals and what I call “some real thespian sh*t” from my sister and cousins, and Wicked was a biiiiiig road trip album for us.

On the drive home from the theatre, we listened to the Wicked soundtrack again as well as the Broadway musical versions of the songs and sang along to our hearts’ desire. I am glad that I was pleasantly surprised by the movie adaptation and am looking forward to part two coming out this time next year.

See you next week.