Rapp Strategies Rundown – March 2021
What we’re reading, listening to and thinking about this month.
Todd R.: March left like a lamb, just like it came in (score is Minnesota 1, Farmers Almanac 0). We spent March watching a lot of NCAA basketball, both seasons of Succession, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and several more Best Picture Oscar winners (The Greatest Show on Earth seemed like a commercial more than a movie, and The Broadway Melody looked like it was made in the 1920’s but it was fun to watch the first full-length talking musical). And with one Moderna shot done and another one in mid-April, it feels like summer might bring a little more normalcy.
Alyssa: March started strong seeing my recently-vaccinated parents for brunch for the first time in a year. A few days later, my husband contracted COVID and our whole house had to quarantine for a few weeks. So, I watched the Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy series on CNN, played a lot of NPR Tiny Desk performances on YouTube and learned how to play Minecraft with my daughter (I’m unsurprisingly terrible at it).
Rich: March started off on a very positive note when Kari and I got our second vaccine shots on March 5 and 6! The light at the end of the tunnel got brighter that weekend. Some of our best friends also got fully vaccinated in March. This resulted in several Baby Boomer Vaccination dinners at our house and friend’s houses. We feel like we’ve been released from prison! We continue to find great joy in our newest member of the family, a Beagle puppy named Flossie. At four months old, she is very busy, and we are even busier training her. And, she is busy training us.
We are welcoming Spring, the opening of golf courses, and the planning of trips. We hope to spend more time with family and friends, and traveling.
Todd S.: It’s truly amazing the range of filmmaking you’re able to see while you’re streaming during a pandemic. I highly recommend “Sound of Metal” for the strong acting and how creatively it conveys the experience of hearing loss and/or impairment. But beware – the film doesn’t hold up as well with fact-checkers regarding medical treatments and costs. Also, don’t miss “The Dissident,” a documentary about Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post journalist who was killed by the Saudi government. It’s a sobering reminder of the importance of a free press and America’s role in world affairs. On a much lighter note: My two sons, ages 8 and 10, strongly endorse the new “Tom and Jerry” movie.
Sarah: This month I've been itching to get in the garden ASAP. Following everyone's advice and the last frost date, I've stuck to indoor seed starting. The seedlings are rearing to be hardened off and transplanted, though! I'm working my way through "The First-time Gardener: Growing Vegetables” by Jessica Sowards of Roots and Refuge Farm, one of my favorite gardening YouTube channels. We also recently invested four hours of our lives into watching “Zack Snyder's Justice League” which was… a lot. My fiancé assured me it was much better than the cinematic version.
Anna: My husband and I enjoyed a weekend getaway to Panama City Beach, where we escaped with varying degrees of sunburn. We also visited the Army Aviation Museum, which has the largest collection of helicopters of any museum in the world. Our evenings involved a lot of Instant Pot meals – a few of our favorites were flavorful chicken burritos, tangy teriyaki bowls and savory pork carnitas. I also binged the bizarre true crime podcast Mommy Doomsday. In true Southern fashion, Isaac and I spent time outside in our rockers, and sampled several brands of sweet tea. I’ve also been reading the Psalms this month, a great anchor in the chaos of our world.
Cullen: March certainly had its challenges. It kicked off with ACL reconstruction surgery on my right knee, which I’m happy to say went very well. Kudos to the amazing surgical and physical therapy teams at Twin Cities Orthopedics.
During rehab I blew through Queen’s Gambit (amazing) and tried out News of the World (mediocre), but by far my favorite watch this month was The Spy. I do a double take every time I see Sacha Baron Cohen in a non-Borat role, so his performance as famous Mossad agent Eli Cohen really blew me away. Highly recommended.
Jessica: It has been one whirlwind of a month! March didn’t bring too many showers, but it did bring me the opportunity to work at Rapp Strategies! Besides the new job, my month was spent with my roommates redecorating our living room, binging Criminal Minds, testing new recipes, and re-watching the Ocean’s trilogy. March also brought about a new hobby: Refreshing the vaccine website for available appointments. Here’s to (hopefully) getting vaccinated in April!
