In 2020, the amount of time I spent on the internet was probably the highest I have in any previous year and I have consumed a near-unhealthy amount of digital content while being at home for long periods. I thought it would be nice to look back. This is inspired by a recent blogpost by @xypnox.

Literature

I read regularly before joining college, but because of involvements on campus and other things to explore, I didn’t read as much as I used to. Without the usual activities on campus, I found more time to read. The guilt of having an unused Kindle lying around at home also contributed ;). Here are some books and pieces of literature I read and liked this year.

• Siddhartha by Herman Hesse
• The Stranger by Albert Camus
• The Plague by Albert Camus (somewhat relatable :P)
• Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
• Apollo’s Arrow by Nicholas Christakis (a very informative book about COVID-19)
• Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
• Men without Women by Haruki Murakami

This podcast episode shifted my approach towards reading from compulsively trying to finish a book regardless of how I find it to only caring about the value I extract from the book. I started caring less about the number of books I read to completion, which I realized was simply a vanity metric, and more about the value I could extract from the book. This, coupled with selecting books based on personal recommendations saved a lot of time and I think I read a greater number of good books. A great habit I formed was to read a book (a physical one, not an ebook) before bed for at least 15 mins. I found that this really improved sleep quality.

TV Shows

• Bojack Horseman - This show was hard-hitting. Wit and humor coupled with its dark theme made it a joy to watch. Bojack ended in 2020 and it will probably remain one of the best TV shows I have watched ever.
• Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee - Jerry Seinfeld’s wit even made it worth watching the episodes that had comedians I hadn’t heard of before. I also discovered many great comedians on this show.
• Sex Education - Goofy, funny, and heartfelt at times. A must watch.
• Seinfeld - Classic. Seinfeld episodes were saviors in depressing days.
• The Queen’s Gambit - No words required. Absolutely amazing even for someone who knows very little about chess.
• One Punch Man - While I am not an anime fan, I really liked this one. There is a cleverly hidden and thoughtful message that is conveyed under the funny and action-packed story.
• The Last Dance - Another great limited series that I enjoyed without knowing much about the topic.

Movies

• Parasite
• Okja - an underrated film by Bong Joon-Ho.
• Bao - a beautiful animated short film by Pixar.
• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
• The Truman Show
• Her
• Dallas Buyer’s Club - absolutely beautiful
• The Two Popes
• Primal Fear - insanely good, must watch!
• The Departed

Comedy

I created a separate section for this because I have totally binged Netflix comedy specials in lockdown to beat the stress of the online semester. Some great ones:

• Sebastian Maniscalco - all three of his specials are absolutely hilarious
• Dave Chappelle: Sticks and Stones - legendary
• Chris Rock: Tambourine
• Jerry Seinfeld: 23 hours to Kill
• Seth Meyers: Lobby Baby - insanely good
• Anthony Jeselnick: Fire in the maternity ward - unbelievably witty and dark.
• Trevor Noah: Son of Patricia
• Mike Birbiglia: My girlfriend’s boyfriend

Music

I have totally fallen in love with Classic Rock and indie rock. Since it will be quite tedious to name all the interesting music I have found, I’ll name some artists I enjoy.

Some all-time favorites- Led Zeppelin, John Mayer, Dire Straits, Pink Floyd, The Doors, Tom Petty, Credence Clearwater Revival.

Discoveries- Blackstratblues, Advait, The War on Drugs, Avocuddle, The Paper Kites, aswekeepsearching, Dayglow, Manchester Orchestra, Gregory Alan Isakov, Finding Hope

Do tell me your thoughts on the above. I am always looking for recommendations :)

Thanks for reading!

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