A Drop of Happy

Seven Days in June by Tia Williams is a contemporary romance novel about two people who have seemingly successfully survived their dysfunction. It follows the life of Eva and Shane who have become successful writers after creating characters based off each other. 

When you fall off your reading game

About Tia Williams

Perfect Find now a movie on Netflix starring Gabrielle Union

Book Summary: After a trauma bonding week of making love, Shane disappears from Eva’s life and shows up years later to shake everything up again. 

Rating 7/10

Managing an invisible disability

Toxic mamma

Love, Wine, and New Beginnings: My You, Me & Tuscany Review

You, Me and Tuscany

Will Packer Production

Released: April 2026

Director: Kat Coiro

Starring: Halle Bailey, Regé-Jean Page, Aziza Scott, Lorenzo de Moor, Marco Calvani, Nia Vardalos (did a cameo), and Stella Pecollo

Available: Streaming

You, Me and Tuscany is now available to rent on streaming platforms. The romantic comedy theater debut met with a tepid reception in April. The box office performance was disappointing to say the least, with the charming rom-com pulling in 22 million worldwide as of early May. 

I have seen it in the theaters twice, and if I had the time before it was out, I would have seen it more. I thoroughly enjoyed it because it was light and cute and funny and a pleasure to watch. Now, I am partial to rom-coms. I expect their predictability and appreciate the happy ending. 

What do you do when your life is falling apart? That was the situation that both Anna and Michael faced after losing loved ones, and each faced it very differently. 

You, Me and Tuscany follows Anna, played by Halle Bailey, as she navigates her life after losing her mother. The film stars Regé-Jean Page, Aziza Scott, Lorenzo de Moor, Marco Calvani, Nia Vardalos (did a cameo), and Stella Pecollo. I loved the chemistry the cast had together. They were fun and heartwarming.

Now, I loved this movie, but, again, I am extremely biased. First, I love anything with a romance spin. So this being a romance is right up my alley. I also am a big Halle Bailey fan. Some say there is nothing special about this movie compared to other romance films. It received 66% from Rotten Tomatoes and 6.2 from IMDb, which is pretty accurate. My rating is about an 8 because, to me, there was just something wonderful about it. 

The pacing worked very well for me. The comedic timing of the cast was spot on, especially Francesca, played by Pecollo. The acting was romcom acting. I also loved the setting. It was bright and airy and inviting. Book me a flight to Tuscany!

SPOILER ALERT

The movie follows Anna, who, after losing her mom, gave up on all of her dreams, which included cooking and going to Tuscany. She is working as a house sitter and lost her most recent gig because she took liberties with the owner's clothes. She is floating. The only one remotely keeping her grounded is her best friend, Clair. One night after getting fired, she meets Mateo, and they kick it out. They talk all night and vibe. He tells her all about his home in Tuscany and why he left. He also tells her about his villa that is left unattended. She gets invited for a nightcap, but Mateo ends up falling asleep and nothing happens. 

The encounter does inspire her, though, and she ends up spontaneously going to Tuscany without any plans. This is where all the shenanigans start. Listen for a full recap and discussion. 

Today is a Good day to Renew yourself

Just as trees shed their leaves in winter and renew themselves, the mind can shed its prejudices, barriers and renew itself. - Radha Burnier

Every day is a day to renew yourself, your thoughts, your behaviors, and your focus. Truth be told, I feel like I am doing just that regularly. Consistency and focus are my Achilles’ heel. I  envy people who seem to have it more together than I do, but then I remember to turn that energy inwards so that I can work on myself. I have been writing about the need to stay focused and get refocused for as long as I can remember. It is not something that will ever go away. 

The reality is, we have to be comfortable with the need to refresh and revisit. Just as nature goes through cycles, so do we, while some of us may have shorter refocus cycles than others, that too is alright. I think the thing that can easily get away from us is realizing that we actually need to take a step back, take that breath, and actually pause, reflect and refocus. 

We probably do it in small doses on a daily basis, but sometimes we need to take bigger steps back. This is why practicing mindfulness and grounding activities and working on stress management is important because it all works together to keep us on the right course. 

So, just revisit one of the articles or shows I have posted before that may help us. 

When Doing IT All Goes Wrong: 5 Life Balance Tips to Get Back on Track 

Finding Focus: Today is a Good Day to Believe in Yourself Again

Collect Experiences, Not Stress — That’s Where Living Begins 

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky. –Rabindranath Tagore

This is a beautiful way of saying enjoy the journey. This is a poetic way of saying count it all joy. This is saying seize the day. This is saying everything is a lesson. As I move through life and gain wisdom along with every strand of gray hair, I am learning to embrace this more and more. Really, I am learning to understand it more and more. As the world gets smaller through 6 degrees of separation and social media and avalanches of information from around the world and headlines meant to pull and tug at our emotions, the one thing that is unchanged, no matter where we are or what we are going through, is that the sun is going to rise and set. Life is going to keep on keeping on. Everything is going to keep on moving. Understanding and appreciating how everything contributes to the flavor of life will help us handle the ups and downs. 

This quote is a lovely way of slightly altering a cliché that, when we truly think about it, hits home. When we take the time to try to change our mindset towards the things that happen to us, we may be able to better handle the things that happen to us. The universe and its workings are beyond our grasp at times. How everything, creation, destruction, and everything in between fits and somehow works, and where it doesn’t, the world shifts to make necessary adjustments that we cannot begin to fathom, is awe-inspiring. For many, this is where a deity (God or any other) comes in to help us pull it all together, from some of the marvels of science, and yet for some, simple acceptance. Nevertheless, putting this into perspective and realizing that no matter what, at the end of the day, experience is living, and everything contributes to our tapestry of life. How can we grow and live life to the fullest is to collect experiences and not stress. That’s where living begins. 

Today is a good day to collect experiences.

The Magic of Learning From Your Experiences

Michael Movie

Released: April 2026

Director: Antoine Fuqua

Starring: Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo, Nia Long, Kendrick Sampson, Larenz Tate, Derek Lik, Laura Harrier, Miles Teller, Juliano Krue Valdi, and Keilyn Durrel Jones

In theaters

Loved it! The movie was over, and the whole audience in the theater just sat there waiting for more. 

Great casting

Make-up artist

Rating 10/10

Headlines and Haters

The movie stopped in 1988

Black or White video 1991

1994 settlement after 1993 accusations

Court Case 2005

Why didn’t we get to see about the accusations and the settlement

GQ article Yes, Michael Really Ends Like That

Today Is a Good Day to Talk About Your Joys (Yes, Yours Matter)

Today is a good day to be positive. I am not talking about ignoring our problems or propagating toxic positivity. I am talking about thinking of the good things in life, having a different perspective and practicing gratitude. 

I do love that quote from Ella Wheeler Wilcox because she is basically saying yeah, life is rough, but it’s not only rough. There are moments of joy and happiness that will carve out for ourselves. We have a habit of talking about our woes and pushing our woes. That’s why clickbait is so popular because it tugs on our emotions, and the more negative the better. 

Talking about our problems is our greatest addiction. Break the habit. Talk about our joys. — Rita Schiano

Journal Prompt: Your toughest accomplishment

The Drama Review: A Hard Lesson—Everyone Isn’t in Your Corner

The Drama starring Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, and Mamoudou Athie dropped in theaters, and to be honest, I was not too excited about seeing it. Zendaya notwithstanding. However, I am glad I did. 

Lesson learned: Some people only care about themselves and do not always have your back

Rating 8/10

Spoilers 9:30 marker

After finally watching America’s Next Top Model documentary, Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, I have concluded that Natalie Nunn is better than Tyra Banks. Hold up, wait a minute. Let’s get into it before everyone attacks me from all directions.

7/10 for the three-episode documentary.

Listen to the full episode. 

Know your Values

Article: Stressed Out? Activate Your Core Values for Real Relief and Resilience

Is Trya Banks a crappy person?

Does she know who she is?

Natalie Nunn > Tyra Banks

Not another America’s Next Top Model Cycle

Did you all know about the controversy?

Why I know nothing about the movies or previous adaptations

About the Movie: Release, cast, critic, Box Office

Review: Listen to why I gave it a 9.5.

Recap and Spoilers

Oftentimes, there are things we want to do. There are places we want to go. There are goals we want to accomplish that may seem unattainable. Sometimes, when we look at the situation we are in, all those things seem dang near impossible. I get that. How can we dream bigger when we are caught up in just trying to survive, or trying to get through the day or battling health concerns or consumed with worry about what loved ones are going through? Sometimes, it never seems like the right time. 

How do others do it? How do they overcome? How do they make it look easy? First, I think we should acknowledge that regardless of what success we think we see, everyone has their own personal battles, and although they make it look easy, for them it probably was not. Basically, let’s get out of their business and get back into our own because everyone has their own trials and burdens to bear. But what can we do for ourselves if we are in the pits? 

The only limit is you. The only limit is ourselves. The only limit is how big or small we can dream. It sounds impactful, but I want us to take it a step further and make it impactful. I want us to translate that into positive action for our lives. The only way to do that is to change our mindset. To shift it away from all the reasons we cannot to all the reasons we can.