Have you been living under a rock? Oh no? …Then by now you must have either heard of or binge watched this show by now. If not, I would love to hear your measly excuses. I would advise you not to read further if you are avoiding any spoilers.
This show absolutely sucked me in, gluing me to my laptop for two days straight. If you love serial killer drama’s, this is the show for you. What I really loved about this series is how they portray Joe ( aka secret stalker serial killer from hell ) in such a light you practically feel bad for him, making excuses for all his wrong doings – no matter how bad those wrong doings were.
Joe deliberately takes advantage of social media, making psychological assumptions of his victims to validate his actions and stalker behavior. You are offered bits and pieces into Joe’s childhood, but never the full story. These bits and pieces give you clues to why Joe is well… Joe.
To keep this short and sweet without giving too much away, my only gripe about this series would be the ending. While I do love the cliffhanger, letting us all know there will be a second series, I don’t appreciate the ending. It feels as it was the typical ending to simply, “end things”. I personally feel it could have been more suspenseful and engaging, having Joe and Beck’s “ending” parallel to Joe and Candace’s “ending”.
So without further rambling checking out the trailer below and watch ‘You’ on netflix!
Disney knows how to nail it… and hype it. With a cult leading fanbase, Disney Parks aims to please when it comes to releasing new merch and park delights, the Potion Purple wave that is sweeping Disney Princesses and Creeps alike is the newest kid on the block.
Just like its predecessors Millennial Pink and Rose Gold, Potion Purple does not disappoint. While purple is not my favorite color, leave it to Disney to make the most enchanting and alluring purple on the market.
Before digging into to all the purple offerings, let’s explore the history of the color. Yes, I am that kind of blogger. I love history and will take any chance possible to peer into the past of any subject. While it is common knowledge that purple has been a color for the royal and wealthy throughout most of human history, we must ask why.
The answer is fairly simple. Purple dye was obtained from a area that is now modern day Lebanon, extracted from a small mollusk uniquely indigenous to the region. As you can imagine, it would take an enormous amount of mollusks to produce the dye, making it a commodity of high value.
The colors elite status in English Society lead to a law enforced by Queen Elizabeth I her self declaring only members of the royal family were allowed to adorn the precious color. This insured that wealthy and status would become a strict symbol of the royal family.
It wouldn’t be until 1856 that purple became a color that even the lesser classes could afford to adorn with the creation of a synthetic purple compound by chemist William Henry Perkin.
Spiritually, a purple aura indicates creativity, enlightenment and ideas. It also connects with the crown chakra, the color of wisdom and spirituality. A rich history indeed.
Disney by no means has ignored the importance and history behind this striking color with their newest addition of potion purple. Creating mysterious shifting goods fine enough for the most noble born princess… or villain.
But enough rambling, show us the goods!
Delectable Treats
Purple Glove Macaron – a delectable macaron with a blackberry and currant buttercream and jam center. Found at: Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe (Main Street, USA on the corner just before adventure land); Clarabelle’s Hand Scooped Ice Cream/Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe (Buena Vista Street in California Adventure just before the circle).
Purple Rose – a blueberry mouse surrounding a blackberry, currant and lemon center. Found at: Red Rose Taverne (In Fantasyland across from Casey Jr. Circus Train).
Lavender Milk Tea – a delicious boba concoction of lemon, lavender sugar and purple whipped cream. Found at Red Rose Taverne (In Fantasyland across from Casey Jr. Circus Train).
Purple Fish Tacos – a crunchy baja-style fish taco topped with purple cabbage and a spicy filled lime aioli paired with blue corn chips. Found at Rancho del Zocalo (In Frontierland around the corner from Shootin’ Exposition ).
Jamaican Freeze – a blended frozen drink bursting with candied hibiscus flowers. Found at Rancho del Zocalo (In Frontierland around the corner from Shootin’ Exposition).
Taro Pancakes – fluffy mouthwatering taro batter pancakes topped with purple Chantilly cream and crème anglaise. Found at River Belle Terrace (at the tri-corner of Frontierland, New Orleans Quarter and Adventureland).
Berry Berry Purple Cobbler– a crumbly cobbler topped with a blueberry cream cheese ice cream and purple berry drizzle. Found at Lamplight Lounge (at Disneyland California Adventure at the entrance to Pixar Pier).
Purple Cake Pop – a bite-sized cake adorned with chocolate Mickey ears and dipped in raspberry white chocolate. Found at Candy Palace, Pooh Corner, Trolley Treats and Marceline’s Confectionery.
Purple Potion Color-Changing Drink – a color changing cocktail of Redemption Rye Whiskey, Ginger Infused Simple Syrup and Butterfly pea tea with a side shot of lemon juice. Found at Lamplight Lounge (at Disneyland California Adventure at the entrance to Pixar Pier).
This list is short but sweet. Featured at Disneyland you’ll find the famed sought after ears, sequence backpack with matching wallet (both by Loungefly), Spirit Jersey, Micky T-Shirt and Vacation Mode Water Bottle.
Who is Dirty John and why is his story such a hit? My travels in the podcast realm landed me on a show called Dirty John by Wondery, written and hosted by Los Angeles Times reporter Christopher Goffard. And let me tell you, this is a podcast that will snatch you off your feet in a heartbeat. Extremely well written, narrated and produced. I could go on signing my praises for this series but I would like to dive into what made John Meehan into the monster known as Dirty John.
Why has this story captivated so many people with the podcast alone having over 20 million listeners? I believe the answer to that is simple, it is relatable. Debra Newell is a single middle aged women looking for that completion of her life with the addition of someone to love and love her in return. The lonely hearts damsel meets the knight in blinding armor.
This isn’t a story that is new, actually a story of the ages. Only the context of how these two paths met through the evolution of society, technology and of course, time are what make it relatable to our day and age listeners.
STOP HERE IF YOU HAVE NOT LISTENED TO THE PODCAST, WATCHED THE OXYGEN SPECIAL (found here) OR WATCHED THE TV SERIES (Dirty John, Season 1).
So, who was John Meehan exactly? The list of derogatory terms could fill a page alone, but I’ll simply go with the lowest kind of human being who found fulfillment out of preying on vulnerable women. If you want an even shorter answer then that; scum. With that said, I want to take a deep look into John’s past and take a deeper look into why and what made him such a dangerous predator. How did his childhood through teen years contribute to his ultimate demise?
John had three siblings, two sisters and a brother, whom in his adult life he told most people were all dead and a product of divorced parents whom called it quits while he was in high school. His mother had an affair which prompted a nasty divorce and who John placed the blame of fracturing the family unit. The conditions of his mothers affair we can only speculate mainly due to the fact I couldn’t find many details about his parents married life, but by the sound of it, my guess would be that John’s mother (Dolores) probably had enough of her husbands (William) lifestyle. Now all the articles I have read and shows I have watched reference William in the past tense, so I am going to assume he is dead.
A quick look into William’s character will give us an explanation of how John became such a rotten person. William Meehan lived under the fantasy of a mob lifestyle and ran the Diamond Wheel Casino. William taught John from a young age how to lie, use people, deceive and plot revenge. Every deed was done with the mentality of a low-life con-artist and if you are crossed you rage revenge. This molded John into what would become a life of a sociopathic manipulator, quickly evolving from a child to a teenager dealing drugs into his adult life while running scams for the next big paycheck.
John seems to be a natural born hustler, developed by his father. His get even mentality only cared about one thing; John. A person who had no connection or deep feelings of any kind for anyone at all, not even family.
As for John’s mother, Dolores, I can’t fully develop a proper opinion on her due to the lack of information. But what I can assume is that he had major mommy issues, which, mixed with the lack-of-values hustler gangster attitude of his father, created a molotov cocktail of destruction.
While I do believe a childhood can vastly form a person into their adult person, I also believe genetics and predisposition to behave in certain ways can also account for people such as John Meehan. If he had the perfect child would he have turned out differently? I can’t say. Divorces don’t generally make sociopathic demons out of children. If he had a different father, probably yes.
Now that you have reached the end of my gathered notes of John Meehan’s early years, GO WATCH AND LISTEN TO DIRTY JOHN! The podcast and oxygen special won’t disappoint. I can’t vouch for the Bravo series just yet, I need to binge watch that.
I am never one to promote audio books over physical books, especially when it comes to the classics. But, audio books do have their usefulness in my day-to-day life. Driving, cleaning, creating artwork and even when I am desperately trying to fall asleep – which sounds alarming when the sentence starts with driving, but I assure you that there is nothing to be alarmed over. My favorite reason for listening? Anxiety. While anxiety might seem to gain the best of me at times, I find that being transported to another realm via audio book can be extremely relaxing.
With all that said, my preference is listening to the classics. Especially Austen and the Brontë sisters. Why? Simply because I know these stories well that my attention to the details of the stories isn’t completely needed. I can relax and just listen to the familiar tale.
My recent find isn’t exactly an audio book but a radio drama that I stumbled upon via facebook. A collection of stories written by the Brontë sisters. I thought this perfect to listen to while dabbling in my favorite hobby, building houses in the Sims 4. That is a whole separate blog post, but an interesting note, I have found myself relating builds to the book I was listening to at the time, which I find very charming now.
And the verdict? I can NOT get enough of this series! Well worth the purchase, so much so, I have listened to it on repeat for entire month of January thus far!
If you have a passion for books, the classics or even the Brontë sisters in general, you’ll love this! The series will transport you smack in the middle of each story, as if you are sitting right there next to the characters and participating in each conversation. The BBC usually doesn’t disappoint when bringing stories to life through radio or podcast and this collection hit the mark.
Be sure to check it out for yourself and let me know which of the dramatizations is your favorite!
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Madame morningstar 