Hard to believe that this year that never was is nearly at its end. A year with the standard number of days, but also possessed with a weird, time-warp sort of quality. Days last interminably, but before I’ve blinked, 12 months have passed, and what, really, do I have to show for it?

Perhaps this is the year I measure time by the media in which I found comfort and solace. My most constant companions, this year without visits with friends, concerts and shows, and casual drives to wherever. It was television shows (in this direct-to- streaming world, are these still a thing?) and podcasts that filled my time, along with cooking and reading (these last two truthfully only this last month).

I have long accepted my love of television and media and the amount of time I devote to it. This year, predictably, I gravitated toward the familiar, and toward the things that make me laugh. And so, dear reader, without any further ado and in no particular order, here is with whom I spent the most time post-Covid:

Television/Streamed Shows (not an exhaustive list) – Netflix and Hulu, mostly

*The Golden Girls- entire series. Again. I’m a third time completist.

*30 Rock- entire series. Second time completist, and currently working toward my third with the Kids 🙂

*Cheers- entire series. 1st time completist! I’d say many of the earlier shows in the series have not aged well at all, but there is a lot to really love about Cheers.

*The Good Place- entire series. 1st time completist 🙂 Ted Danson. What an absolute gem.

*Frasier- entire series. 1st time completist 🙂 Surprisingly lovable, super intelligent, and fucking hilarious.

*Ted Lasso- entire series. With the Kids. Lovelovelove this show. Seriously considered starting again from the beginning as soon as we watched the last episode. 

*Arrested Development- entire series. 1st time completist. They should’ve stopped after 3 seasons. There. I said it.

*Top Chef- seasons 6-most recent 17(?).

*The Great British Baking Show- entire series, except for the last 2 episodes of the most recent season. So utterly delightful, and comfortingly unwavering in its format.

*Masterchef Australia- my absolute beloved cooking show. Worth all the technical hassle to be able to watch beautiful people making beautiful food in beautiful places.

*The Great- just 2 more episodes to go. Can’t bring myself to finish it, because then there won’t be any more at all.

*Call the Midwife- currently on Season 3 of 9. Just about everything you could want in a BBC show about 1950’s midwifery in the East End of London.

*Bridgerton- an episode and a half left to watch with the Girl. Delightful, and an entertaining reminder of how lucky we are not to be women living in the 19th century.

Podcasts- only those new to me this year 🙂

Home Cooking- Samin Nosrat and Hrishikesh Hirwway and their adorable friendship. And some great cooking advice.

Spilled Milk- Molly Wizenberg and Matthew Amster-Burton and their own adorable friendship. More of a historical and contextual kind of take on food.

Wonderful!- Rachel and Griffin McElroy and their totally charming marriage. They talk about stuff they like. 

Literally! with Rob Lowe. Interview format. Great guests, and it is really nice spending time with Rob Lowe every week, who is, as it turns out, a super good guy.

SmartLess- Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett and their awesome friendship. Between the three of them, they know a shit ton of people, and who knew that Jason Bateman would be the funniest of them all?